Tome of Troubled Times

Chapter 442: Hongling Appears

Li Sian smiled as he followed, “I’ve mostly been around Jingxiang these past years and haven’t traveled much.”

Zhao Changhe followed with interest. Old Tiger Lei’s hospitality seemed warm, but there was an undercurrent of indifference. For the first time, Zhao Changhe noticed that Wang Daozhong, who usually dazzled wherever he went, could also be treated like a mere passerby.

What Old Tiger Lei was subtly conveying was this: he respected Wang Daozhong’s strength, but as for the prestige of the Wang Clan of Langya, it held no weight here. Whether you’re from the Wang Clan of Langya or the Cui Clan of Qinghe, this is Erhai. Your family’s influence doesn’t stretch this far. Only your personal strength commands respect; everything else is meaningless.

Even as someone on the Ranking of Earth, being relatively lower on the ranking made it so that Wang Daozhong did not hold much sway in this chaotic region. The saying “even a strong dragon can’t suppress a local snake” rang true. Coming here, one had to abide by local rules.

Once inside, the group took their seats according to their respective roles. Lei Ao waved his hand generously. “Bring out the osmanthus wine for our distinguished guests!”

Zhao Changhe sat quietly to the side, sipping his wine and observing the back-and-forth between Lei Ao and Li Sian.

“So you were in Jingxiang. It seems like the place has been treating you well! You look much more well-kept these days. Anyway, what brings you out here to personally lead a caravan again?”

“I came to see if anyone has been bullying brother Lei. I thought you might need some help.”

Lei Ao was puzzled. “Why would you say that?”

“Have you not had any issues with upstream supplies?” said Li Sian, feigning surprise.

Lei Ao suddenly understood and sighed. “I never imagined such a small matter would bring you all the way out here. I feel quite guilty now.”

“Why do you say that? This small matter seems rather significant to me.”

Lei Ao lowered his voice, casting a glance at Zhao Changhe, and said, “After that batch of tax silver was intercepted back in early spring, the local Pacification Commission didn’t just let it go. They collected from everyone again...”

Li Sian’s expression flickered.

He had not heard about a second collection. Where did the money go after they collected it? It had never reached the imperial court, in any case. Could it have been stolen again? Counting the recent robbery, that would mean three batches of tax silver had been lost in total.

“Fourth brother, you can surely understand. No one can withstand such relentless extortion. By the time it came to this last round, we had no choice but to use our goods directly to pay off the taxes. What we gave you was already the best we could offer... We can only hope this ordeal ends soon and things return to normal. If this keeps up, then forget jade and precious stones, we won’t even have sand to trade.”

Li Sian fell silent for a moment, his expression shifting.

This was a trading town. Its bustling appearance did not necessarily mean all was peaceful among the tribes.

If what Lei Ao said was true, then the tribes of the Hundred Tribes were likely at their breaking point. If another round of taxation followed this recent robbery, the situation could spiral out of control.

Will this push the southwest to rebellion?

Zhao Changhe was also pondering. Could it be that Li Shentong’s motive in robbing the tax silver was to incite rebellion in the southwest. But whether or not the Pacification Commission continues extorting the people isn\'t something that Li Shentong can control...

Lei Ao continued, “If you don’t believe me, you’re welcome to inspect our storage.”

Li Sian waved him off. “No need. Given the situation, what’s your plan?”

“Fourth brother, you are a man of wealth and influence in the Central Plains. Surely you have connections with the Pacification Bureau? If you could...”

Li Sian burst into laughter, “Why ask me when you have the Buddha himself here?”

Lei Ao’s gaze finally shifted to Zhao Changhe, and he smiled, “I’ve been catching up with the fourth brother, and in doing so, I’ve neglected you, Mister Wang. May I ask what brings you to Erhai?”

Zhao Changhe knew well that Lei Ao had no intention of asking him to deal with the Pacification Commission. If he did, his attitude upon their first meeting would have been much different.

It was highly likely that everything Lei Ao had said so far was nonsense. He probably just wanted to brush Li Sian off. An old hand like Li Sian probably noticed this too, but both parties were simply going through the motions.

With that in mind, Zhao Changhe sipped his wine slowly and responded, “First, I’m here to expand my family’s trade routes. Second, I’ve heard that this area is home to many extraordinary talents, and I’m hoping to recruit some for my family. Mister Lei, having been rooted here for many years, do you have any advice for me?”

“What kind of talents are you looking for?”

“Of course, those skilled in gu arts. Isn’t that the greatest difference between the Hundred Tribes and the Central Plains?”

Lei Ao shook his head. “Those who practice gu arts and witchcraft are typically tribal priests and shamans. They adhere to strict customs and regulations. They don’t work for outsiders, nor do they easily reveal their knowledge of gu arts. If that were not the case, we would’ve seen more of them in the Central Plains over these years. I believe that you should understand this.”

“Times change,” Zhao Changhe said with a calm smile. “Now that you’ve been pushed to such dire straits by corrupt officials, clinging to old rules is just laughable.”

Li Sian shot a sideways glance at Zhao Changhe.

Zhao Changhe continued his bold assertions. “You might not be aware of much outside your closed-off Southwest, but I wonder how much you’ve heard about the shifting winds of the Central Plains... Let me be frank, my Wang Clan intends to cleanse the court. If anyone here seeks a new path, could there be a better ally than the Wang Clan?”

Li Sian almost wanted to cover his face.

Zhao Changhe paused deliberately, then added slowly, “And if anyone has ambitions to become independent, why not ally with my Wang Clan? We could watch each other’s backs.”

Not only did Li Sian feel secondhand embarrassment from listening to this, but Lei Ao’s face also twitched. He quickly replied, “This... this is far too great a matter. It’s not something I can decide on my own.”

“There’s no need to decide now,” Zhao Changhe said. “Mister Lei, feel free to consult your fellow tribal leaders or the shamans you’re close to.”

Lei Ao’s earlier arrogance had completely disappeared, and wiping the sweat from his brow, he said, “In that case, Mister Wang, I invite you to stay a while longer and enjoy the sights of Cangshan[1] and Erhai.”

Zhao Changhe said, “I’m here with Mister Li, but only to find a local guide. Now that we’ve arrived, he has his own matters to attend to, and since we’re not traveling the same path, I’d feel bad continuing to trouble him. I wonder if you could provide me with some local guides, Mister Lei? I’ll make sure that they are well-compensated.”

Zhao Changhe’s real intention was to use these attendants to subtly inquire about Yue Hongling and the Sword Hut disciples. If they had not seen a red-clad woman or a white-robed swordsman, he could later “remember” something urgent and ask Lei Ao to mobilize his men for help. That way, it would not seem too obvious.

Lei Ao, however, laughed heartily. “How could I accept payment from Mister Wang for such a small favor? You there...”

He swept his gaze around and was just about to assign a few attendants to the task when a cold voice suddenly interrupted from outside, “I’ve heard that Mister Wang of Langya has arrived here... I am Shi Wuding of the Sword Hut. I’ve long admired the famed Zhenhai Sword of Langya, and I humbly ask for your instruction.”

Li Sian was taken aback, and Zhao Changhe was dumbfounded.

What the hell? Old Wang, are you getting me into trouble even when you’re not here?

No, wait...

Is this a blessing or a curse?

After all the searching, the elusive master of the Sword Hut, Shi Wuding, had suddenly appeared here of his own volition, looking for Wang Daozhong! If Zhao Changhe could stay close to him, every mystery could eventually be unraveled.

But the problem was, he could not beat Shi Wuding!

Shi Wuding was ranked sixth on the Ranking of Earth. If he lost his life here, how was he to trail Shi Wuding afterward? As a ghost?

But now that things had reached this point, running was not an option. Zhao Changhe would not be able to outrun Shi Wuding anyway. He might as well face the other head-on and see if he could talk his way through it.

Feigning calm, Zhao Changhe rose and stepped outside, replying as he went, “Sect Master Shi, you’re too kind. You’re ranked sixth on the Ranking of Earth, while I merely scrape the bottom of the rankings. It should be me who seeks your guidance.”

Li Sian anxiously whispered, “What are you doing?!”

For heaven’s sake, you can’t just die here for no reason! How am I supposed to explain this to the bureau chief?

Zhao Changhe waved him off and stepped out of the tent.

Outside, the guards had already scattered on their own, creating a wide-open space. In the center stood a white-robed swordsman, quiet and upright, his eyes half-closed, head slightly bowed.

The man looked like a living embodiment of a sword. He reminded Zhao Changhe of Han Wubing when they first met.

Now Han Wubing smiled a bit more, no longer wearing such a stoic expression all the time.

As “Wang Daozhong” emerged, the swordsman’s eyes snapped open. A sharp gleam, like a sword strike, seemed to flash through the air, accompanied by a thunderous sound.

Zhao Changhe gripped the ancient Dragon Emperor and, at just the right moment, gave a martial salute and said, “Sect Master Shi, your reputation precedes you.”

It did not matter whether they had ever met. This line worked in almost any situation. More importantly, the gesture was subtle, but he used Dragon Emperor to silently dissolve Shi Wuding’s “sword of the mind,” without revealing any signs of struggle or exertion.

Zhao Changhe had not learned many sword arts, but he had seen plenty.

He had seen similar techniques in the Sword Emperor’s inheritance. One of the reasons he felt the path of the sword suited him better than that of the saber was the sword’s versatility and the many refined techniques developed over generations.

Seeing “Wang Daozhong” effortlessly see through and dissolve his initial show of strength, Shi Wuding’s expression finally grew serious. “You are too modest to say that you scrape the bottom of the Ranking of Earth. With a move like that, advancing a few ranks wouldn’t be difficult.”

After saying that, he also saluted.

Zhao Changhe smiled. “No matter how much I advance, I am still no match for you, Sect Master Shi. With just a glance, you made me raise my hand. It’s unheard of for those ranked higher to challenge those ranked lower. We meet here by chance, far from home, and should be sharing a drink. Why start a fight? I’ll gladly concede—how about we have a drink together at the inn instead?”

Shi Wuding replied coolly, “As a scion of an aristocratic family, you certainly have poise. It is precisely because you are Wang Daozhong that I must challenge y—”

Before he could finish his sentence, a surge of sword qi erupted in the distance.

For the first time, Shi Wuding’s normally expressionless face changed as he turned around and looked over in surprise.

A swordsman from his sect rushed over and reported, “Master, the pacification commissioner was attacked. All they saw was a flash of red, and then she vanished.”

Shi Wuding took a deep breath, muttering to himself, “What a move from Yue Hongling... I thought she was hiding like a stray dog, avoiding pursuit. But all along, she’s been waiting for the right moment to strike. I underestimated her.”

He turned back to Wang Daozhong, cupped his hands in respect, and said, “Something unexpected has come up, and I need to return. I’ll seek your guidance another day.”

With that, he disappeared in a flash.

He did not notice the smile tugging at the corners of Zhao Changhe’s mouth, or the warmth in his eyes.

The setting sun and Hongling... never to be restrained. Indeed, she’s never needed anyone to worry about her.

1. Cangshan or Cang Mountain, also known as Mount Diancang, is a mountain range immediately west of Dali City in Yunnan province of Southwest China. ☜