Tome of Troubled Times

Chapter 440: Tax Silver

Zhao Changhe arrived at the town at the foot of the mountain, planning to stay the night there.

Looking around, he saw that almost everyone had undergone basic body training, and most people were well-built, though only at the level of fitness enthusiasts. Not everyone had the innate talent or potential for martial arts.

Another significant limiting factor was nutrition.

As the saying goes, scholarly pursuits are for the poor, while martial pursuits are for the rich. Large and established sects could provide better nutritional support to their disciples, but those not admitted to these sects had to fend for themselves. In the current state of the world, it was hard enough for the average person to get enough to eat, let alone provide the nutrients necessary for martial arts training.

This area, being under the control of the Divine Brilliance Sect, was relatively prosperous. Not because the land was particularly fertile, but because the government did not dare to overtax or exploit the area.

As long as no one caused unnecessary trouble, those who were diligent here could be self-sufficient.

At the inn, Zhao Changhe heartily ate three big bowls of pork rice noodles, finding them far more satisfying than the fancy, hard-to-name dishes served by Di Muzhi’s people.

After having dinner, night had already fallen. Standing in the courtyard, Zhao Changhe looked out and felt that the town had a somewhat tense atmosphere. If he listened closely, he could faintly hear the sound of a large group of people gathering at the foot of the mountain, the noise drifting over from the distance under the cover of night.

This commotion made Zhao Changhe uneasy. Since crossing over into this world, he had often been amidst wars and battles, and this situation felt familiar. He was almost certain that a conflict was about to erupt.

This doesn’t seem to be an invasion. It’s more like... a gathering of bandits? Are they going to attack someone?

Yet, looking around the inn, the innkeeper and the servants acted as if they were completely unaware of anything happening.

Li Shentong had mentioned that most of the businesses in the town were owned by the Divine Brilliance Sect.

In the courtyard, Zhao Changhe picked up a stone lock[1] and began practicing his horse stance, but the longer he stood, the more restless he became. His mind was itching with curiosity.

The Divine Brilliance Sect doesn’t seem like the type to engage in banditry. If this is a gang war or a local conflict, should I help them out a little?

Zhao Changhe set down the stone lock and, taking advantage of the night, quietly slipped out of the town, following the sounds he had heard.

Sure enough, he saw a large, well-organized group of people. Zhao Changhe narrowed his eyes slightly as he recognized the elderly man leading the group—the same man he had passed by earlier when leaving Li Shentong.

It seemed the troops had already finished assembling, and the old man led them forward. Zhao Changhe hesitated for a moment, then decided to follow them in secret.

After about an hour of marching, they had left the Divine Brilliance Sect’s territory. The area was still mountainous, and scattered around the slopes were several squads of government soldiers escorting carts, cautiously making their way along the mountain paths. Zhao Changhe could hear one of the officers shouting, “Hurry up, move ahead to Emei to rest!”

Before the words had fully left his mouth, arrows rained down from both sides, and the old man led his men in a sudden charge.

I thought they were going to fight some gang, but you’re actually robbing the government troops?

Based on the fact that Li Sian had chosen to take this route for transport, it seemed there were no reports of banditry affecting civilians or merchants in the area. Otherwise, Li Sian would surely have mentioned it. This meant the attacks were solely targeted at the government.

Zhao Changhe gazed at the sky for a moment, his mind flashing back to the fear the people of Shu had of Di Muzhi. Without bothering to watch the outcome of the ambush, he turned and left.

Help the Divine Brilliance Sect? There was no need for that. Regular government soldiers could never stand a chance against the Divine Brilliance Sect. With his sensitive status, pretending not to know anything was already helping enough. Helping Di Muzhi’s people? He might as well just go home and practice his horse stance. He was not Wang Daozhong, after all.

Still, he had not expected Situ Xiao, with his bold eyebrows and big eyes, to actually be a rebel. The Divine Brilliance Sect had never been linked to such things before, which meant they used to keep it quite secret. Now, however, they were becoming increasingly brazen, doing things like this right at the foot of their own mountain.

No wonder Wanzhuang was somewhat wary of Li Shentong back then... She must have had some suspicions but wasn’t entirely sure if he was a rebel. She was probably worried that if I invited him to fight Maitreya, he might defect at a crucial moment.

But rebels come in different forms, don’t they? The Four Idols Cult is also a rebel force, yet she seems to trust Vermillion Bird quite a bit. Could she have gotten attached to her emotionally?

On the mountaintop, Li Shentong stood with his hands behind his back, gazing at the moon. He smiled as he watched Zhao Changhe dash back to bed.

* * *

Two days later, Li Sian’s caravan, covered in dust from the journey, arrived at the small town at the foot of the mountain.

The town was not large. They had not gone far in before they heard loud cheers coming from the center.

Perplexed, Li Sian squeezed through the crowd to take a look and saw Zhao Changhe, shirtless, showing off his bulging muscles as he carried a massive stone lion, pacing back and forth. The lion appeared to weigh five to six hundred jin[2]. Suddenly, Zhao Changhe tossed it into the air and caught it steadily as it fell back down, not breaking a sweat or turning red in the face.

The onlookers, as if injected with adrenaline, cheered with excitement, “Whoo!”

The scene was as lively as a New Year’s celebration.

Li Sian, completely baffled, asked, “Brother Zhao, are you performing here?”

You’re ranked thirty-seventh on the Ranking of Man. You’re a martial artist who has reached the Profound Mysteries, and you’ve even refined the Blood Asura Body. Do you really feel proud showing off your strength to a group of townspeople?

“I am training my body. What do you know?” Zhao Changhe put down the stone lion and walked over with a smile. “You’re finally here. How about grabbing a meal before we go?”

If not for waiting for Li Sian’s caravan, Zhao Changhe would have left that very night. His mind was too preoccupied with Yue Hongling to waste time hanging around. However, he knew that he could not find her on his own. In the north, he had only been lucky to stumble upon her because everyone was out looking for trouble with the Shanxi merchants. But this time, Yue Hongling was deliberately hiding, and he had no leads.

All he could do was wait. After all, sharpening the axe did not necessarily delay the cutting of firewood.

Since he was already waiting, he figured he might as well work on his body. He had never really tested the limits of his strength before, which was a deviation from the principles of body training. But in this atmosphere of universal fitness, he quickly got back into the habits of a proper body cultivator.

The townspeople warmly invited Li Sian and his caravan to a meal. “So you’re friends of Young Master Zhao? It’s no wonder he is so high on the Ranking of Man—his strength is incredible! I bet he could punch a cow to death with one hit!”

The corners of Li Sian’s mouth twitched. “Internal strength masters don’t need to show off—they can kill a cow with one punch just the same. Why bother flaunting brute force?”

“What’s so impressive about that? That’s like something a woman would do!” The townspeople glanced at Li Sian’s delicate appearance and instantly lost interest, quickly running back to Zhao Changhe. “Brother Zhao, show us another move!”

Li Sian could not help but laugh, feeling slightly exasperated. “You’re really enjoying yourself, huh?”

Meanwhile, Zhao Changhe was putting his shirt back on. “I was waiting for you, stop complaining. Besides, I did forget what true body training was. I had started to see myself purely as an internal cultivator. But over the past couple of days, I’ve felt a return to my roots, and I think my strength has improved.”

Li Sian, still skeptical, asked, “You got stronger in just two days?”

“It’s not like I raised my actual power. It’s about reconnecting with the foundation that suits my cultivation.”

Li Sian still did not quite understand, and said, “There are a lot of strange and mysterious things in Miaojiang. Maybe you can find a solution to your meridian problem there.”

“I hope so. In the end, advancing both internally and externally is the true path.”

“I see... Oh, on a different topic, have you heard? A recent shipment of tax silver sent by the Pacification Commission was intercepted here. The whole of Shu is in an uproar, and I bet it won’t be long before the imperial court gets shaken too. Government soldiers will be coming here to investigate soon.” Li Sian glanced around, puzzled by the calm atmosphere. “This place is really close to where it happened. Why aren’t the people here panicking?”

Because they did it... Zhao Changhe smirked. “This is the Divine Brilliance Sect’s territory. They have someone watching over them. This isn’t like other places where they have to fear the officials getting too heavy-handed. Besides, if they didn’t do it, what’s there to worry about?”

Li Sian lowered his voice, “Are you sure they didn’t do it?”

He paused, his gaze falling on a passerby whose shoulder was wrapped in a fresh bandage, clearly from a recent injury.

Zhao Changhe casually replied, “Of course they didn’t. I’ve been here for two days. Wouldn’t I know if something was off? Tsk, why are you staring at that guy’s injury? He was scratched by a dog. I saw it happen.”

Li Sian was an undercover agent for the Demon Suppression Bureau, and his well-honed instincts immediately kicked in. Looks like I’ll have to cover for them. If there’s anything to deal with, I’ll talk to the bureau chief about it privately.

Li Sian looked at him meaningfully. “Hey, I have another identity too, you know. I’m also a bandit.”

Zhao Changhe remained expressionless. “You can save that line for the fifth lord.”

What kind of messed-up world is this? Everyone has a bunch of identities. Honestly, the masks of the Four Idols Cult seem much too fitting.

Hm, I have a secret identity too.

Zhao Changhe went into the carriage and reattached the fake beard that belonged to his Wang Daozhong disguise. “Let’s go. Even though I’ve gained a lot from this trip, I’m still worried about Hongling. I really want to get to Miaojiang as soon as possible.”

1. These are weights that are quite similar looking to kettlebells, though much less refined and made of stone. ☜

2. 250 to 300 kg ☜