Chapter 1131

From outside to inside, describing him as a "grassroots commoner" is not an exaggeration. However, just looking at his honest appearance, when he heard that He Lingchuan had come to "buy red rope," he immediately persuaded the well-meaning neighbors to leave.

He didn't dare to close the courtyard gate, because there were still several burly men behind He Lingchuan.

Fortunately, those burly men did not enter the courtyard; only He Lingchuan came in to ask him questions.

"The red rope of the Ming Deng grass? Yes, yes, even the password is there." Lu Lu Lu Laoliu said solemnly, "But this is a good thing, so the price is not cheap."

He Lingchuan was very polite: "Mr. Liu, you might as well tell me."

Lu Lu Lu Laoliu moved his mouth, as if making up his mind, and spat out a number: "Five..."

Before he could finish a word, his voice went hoarse, and he hurriedly coughed twice: "One-time price, five thousand taels!"

"Lion opens his mouth wide." He Lingchuan countered with three thousand taels, and it was an immediate transaction.

Lu Lu Lu Laoliu rubbed his hands. Three thousand taels of silver—he couldn't earn that much in two lifetimes.

His fingers trembled slightly; He Lingchuan could see he really wanted to agree, but Lu Lu Lu Laoliu's wife suddenly coughed hard a few times from inside the room.

Lu Lu Lu Laoliu was startled, then immediately came to his senses: "Um, we, we need to think it over again. Come back in two days?"

"I'm heading into the mountains right away." He Lingchuan stared at him, "Three thousand taels of silver—what else are you dissatisfied with?"

"We, we just, need to think it over a bit more."

He Lingchuan could see that Lu Lu Lu Laoliu truly wanted those three thousand taels of silver, but now he was forcing himself to stop— the reason could only be—

"Oh, has someone else also made an offer?"

Lu Lu Lu Laoliu was exposed by He Lingchuan's blunt words, his eyes flickering twice.

Indeed, just two days ago someone came to buy the red rope, offering five hundred taels. Lu Lu Lu Laoliu and his wife were stunned by that figure and agreed without thinking.

The other party required them to accompany them up the mountain after the White Bear King's death, so the money hasn't been handed over yet.

Today, He Lingchuan also came to seek purchase; he tried to shout a price of five thousand taels, but He Lingchuan countered with three thousand taels!

This, this is a rare opportunity to hoard! If we wait a few more days, could we wait for an even larger sum? Or else, letting them bid against each other wouldn't be bad either—Lu Lu Lu Laoliu and his wife's hearts suddenly opened up.

He Lingchuan laughed: "Knowing that more people have the red rope in their hands makes you more dangerous. Frankly, if it weren't for that secret password still holding you hostage, requiring you to go up the mountain to verify authenticity, you'd already be dead."

Lu Lu Lu Laoliu's face changed color, but before he could speak, the woman inside rushed out: "In broad daylight, you dare threaten us? Believe it or not, we'll go report to the officials right now and arrest you outsiders!"

"Then these three thousand taels of silver are gone." He Lingchuan knew seeing is believing, so he reached into his bosom and threw a sack of gold onto the bamboo table.

The sack mouth opened, and several gold ingots, gold bars, and gold pellets rolled out, clattering and rolling, gleaming with charming light in the sunlight, also making Lu Lu Lu Laoliu and his wife swallow their saliva.

Do people spend their whole lives chasing just this?

"Three thousand taels—do you know how many sacks of gold that is?"

The couple didn't know.

"I'm willing to pay three thousand taels, but others might not. You guess, they don't want to pay money, yet they want the red rope—what would they do?" He Lingchuan laughed, "Your Dao Zhen's public security has only improved these past few years, right? Before, what was it like? You've forgotten so quickly?"

Before? The couple glanced at each other, then stepped aside to whisper a few sentences, and finally agreed.

Lu Lu Lu Laoliu was overjoyed by this unexpected windfall, his mood lifted, and he answered every question.

It turned out his father had also once been prominent, and by a fortunate coincidence had tied the red thread with the Ming Deng grass, but after returning from the mountain, he fell ill and died within two years, and on his deathbed passed the secret of the Ming Deng grass to him.

He himself had no particular talent, and then came years of war; he struggled desperately just to live an ordinary life like everyone else.

"Who was it that previously ordered the red rope from you?"

"I don't know, also seven or eight people, saying they came from the east, waiting for this thing to save their lives. I said pay first, they refused, agreed that after some days, when the White Bear King is suppressed, we'll go up the mountain together."

Lu Lu Lu Laoliu added: "I don't think they look very wealthy either."

To verify the authenticity of the red rope and the password, He Lingchuan naturally needed to take Lu Lu Lu Laoliu up to Bai Mao Mountain, while his wife could wait here.

Lu Lu Lu Laoliu was very reluctant: "You have the red rope and the password, why don't you just go up the mountain yourselves? I'm not deceiving anyone—I'll wait for you here!"

He Lingchuan only gave them one sentence:

"You can get three thousand taels just sitting at home—do you really think money is that easy to earn? But rest assured, the White Bear King is currently near Ducheng, not on Bai Mao Mountain."

This is also true; the Liu couple has recently often heard news of the White Bear King causing harm near Ducheng. But thinking about having to enter Bai Mao Mountain, Lu Lu Lu Laoliu still felt uneasy.

Let's just look at, look at the face of three thousand taels! They could never earn this much in a lifetime.

So, He Lingchuan first paid a deposit of one thousand taels, then took the red rope, and the remaining money was handed over to the Xiang Bao. Ten days later, whether Lu Lu Lu Laoliu returns or not, his wife can claim the remaining two thousand taels with the document.

The state of Ju Lu has specially established the "Xiang Bao" institution in towns, for honest transactions between merchants and commoners; in He Lingchuan's view, it is just a third-party platform, yet with official credibility endorsement.

This way, Lu Lu Lu Laoliu also doesn't have to worry that He Lingchuan and his group, after obtaining the Ming Deng lamp, would kill him to save silver.

……

The next morning, Jin Bai and the others set out for Zhao Du, and He Lingchuan went with them.

After thinking it over all night, Jin Bai seemed to have also figured out the necessity of investigating the case, and he energized himself to respond to He Lingchuan's questions.

Of course, the main reason is that he must cooperate with He Lingchuan to find evidence of the theft of tribute goods by Zhao State.

When states interact in this way, evidence is very important.

Even if Mu State later intervenes, one must still be targeted.

"From the Carefree Sect to Ju Lu Port? During the tribute escort, I hardly closed my eyes." Jin Bai said solemnly, "Those days I was basically awake; only when arriving at Ju Lu Port that night did I practice breath regulation for two hours. But there were six brothers guarding outside, and besides, I was regulating breath, not sleeping, and I had also set up a barrier—once someone approached, how could they escape my senses?"

In short, the tribute goods vanished from his person, and this matter he just can't figure out.

Dong Rui said leisurely on the side: "In this world there are myriad divine powers; perhaps you fell into a magical barrier that night and still thought you were in Ju Lu Port."

The Ying Ya Wei arrived in Zhao State, but could not use much elemental power; originally they could easily break through illusions, but now they might just become a roadblock tiger.

"This, we have also considered." Jin Bai answered truthfully: "But for thieves to steal the tribute goods, they must first make the senses of over ten of us fail simultaneously. How could the other side achieve that?"

The stolen light, the invisible thief.

Hmm, this case really is somewhat interesting. He Lingchuan pondered for a while: "Could it be that the tribute goods were tampered with from the very beginning?"

"You mean, what I brought back from the Carefree Sect is just a fake?"

If that's true, then no matter how carefully Jin Bai and the others escorted it, they would just be doing useless work.

"You haven't taken a Ming Deng lamp before, have you?" The last time the Ming Deng lamp matured was thirty years ago; He Lingchuan looked at Jin Bai's age and didn't think he could have come twice.

"No, this is my first time too. But before I set out, I had once seen the lingering image of the Bright Lamp Stand, and I had also examined its data in detail. The Bright Lamp Stand I saw on Snow Peak of the Carefree Sect was no different from the lingering image."

"Lingering image?"

"It is an image contained within a jade slip, a perfect imitation of the real object, more comprehensive and detailed than a painting."

He Lingchuan let out a long oh, so advanced?

"I had also considered this possibility." Jin Bai sighed, he very much hoped it was this way. If the Bright Lamp Stand had been stolen before he arrived at the Carefree Sect, he naturally would not have to bear the blame for dereliction of duty, "but I saw the Bright Lamp Grass, with several lamp moths resting on its leaves. The data says this kind of moth only seeks out the Bright Lamp Grass to borrow light when the Bright Lamp Stand matures. So—"

Even the accompanying moths have come, so it cannot be fake?

"Moreover, when I personally took down the Bright Lamp Stand, the Sect Master Li of the Carefree Sect was standing right beside me watching. He surely would not mistake it, would he?"

"How old is this Sect Master Li?"

"Over sixty years old. The last time the Bright Lamp Stand matured, it was also him who accompanied the Mu State guards up the mountain to harvest it."

So this Sect Master Li has seen the Bright Lamp Stand more than once, and it is the treasure guarded by his own sect—could he mistake it? Jin Bai continued: "I also secretly inquired, to see if anything unusual had recently occurred in the Carefree Sect. But aside from someone breaking into the back mountain a few months ago, there has been nothing new."

He Lingchuan analyzed: "Then the urgent matter at hand is to clarify whether the improvement in the condition of the Second Prince of Zhao State is truly due to the merit of the Bright Lamp Stand."

There are not many travelers on the road.

Moreover, not to mention Blade Edge Port and Yangshan Islands, even compared to the Longchuan Trade Route, the number of travelers on this official road is indeed small. Along this journey, we have only seen a dozen or so groups.

Having passed the halfway point, the group came to a three-way intersection, where a signpost stood by the road on the right, with an arrow painted on it, bearing the words:

Xun City.

Xun City is the capital of Zhao State.

Jin Bai glanced at the signpost, then continued straight ahead without looking.

Dong Rui asked curiously: "What does that signpost mean?"

Is not the purpose of a signpost to indicate the way? Why does the signpoint to the right indicate the direction to Xun City, yet Jin Bai and the others continue straight ahead?

"Fake." Jin Bai then pointed at the signpost: "Have you noticed, this signpost is newly made."

Indeed, the wood of the signpost is old, but the characters on it are new, and the wood shavings from carving have not yet been blown clean by the wind at the intersection.

"The last time we traveled this road, we hired a local guide." Jin Bai explained, "There are several bandit lairs near this trade route. They often remove the official road signs and erect fake ones at intersections to mislead travelers and caravans off the main road."

Once foreign travelers are deceived into entering an unknown mountain path, what good outcome could there be?

"Does Zhao State not care? This is also considered a main road of Zhao State, is it not?"

It is truly astonishing that such disorder should appear on the official road from the capital to the port.

Although the Longchuan Trade Route in the Panlong World had previously been plagued by water bandits, its long length and proximity to the Longchuan River, with complex geographical conditions, gave rise to the troubles troubling Xiji and Yuheng City.

But this trade route of Zhao State is only a few dozen li long, yet it already has several bandit lairs!

He Lingchuan just wanted to know: with such high density, is banditry not cutthroat? Can the bandits living off the road eat their fill? "This trade route is the necessary passage for inland multiple countries to reach the seaside; merchants and goods from neighboring countries wishing to go out to sea must pass through here. Zhao State has earned considerable tax silver from this route, and it is said that they usually dispatch troops to patrol back and forth, maintaining public order." Jin Bai then pointed to the newly appeared mountain path beside the road: "For such small paths, they uniformly ignore them. If someone files a complaint, it is your own fault for not having eyes—who let you not take the main road?"

He Lingchuan pondered: "No wonder the products produced here, when exported, reach outrageous prices."

Ya State prohibits the export of ore to the Yangshan Islands; the latter can only seek alternative channels. Besides Mu State, the best ore comes from the Jinjin Plains, where refining is easy and impurities are few.

But the price of ore from the Jinjin Plains is more than fifty percent higher than that of Ya State, even without any unexpected overlaps. If one encounters mountain blockades, political upheavals, or even the blocking and sealing of Julu Port, ore prices will fluctuate.

Now He Lingchuan understands why the ore here is so expensive.

High cost, great uncertainty of risk.

If it were not for the Jinjin Plains and these places urgently needing to sell ore for money, with cheap labor, ore prices could still rise further.

Jin Bai nodded: "So large caravans will certainly hire guides and escort troops to accompany them."

And this part of the cost will ultimately be reflected in the price of the goods.

Dong Rui chuckled: "With official patrols, and yet it's like this?"

"These years Zhao State has also been unlucky, having fought several wars internally and externally, and two years ago still encountered a locust plague. I heard from the guide that since ascending the throne, the Zhao King has implemented two new policies, but people's livelihood has not only seen no improvement, but rather officials have grown fat through corruption. In his anger, the Zhao King again opened a great slaughter, executing many officials."

It is not that Zhao State does not want to manage, but that it cannot manage.

A gust of wind blew, and the ghost monkey on Dong Rui's shoulder suddenly sat up straight, sniffed hard a few times, then leapt onto a nearby tree branch and swung away all the way.

Dong Rui and He Lingchuan thus stopped to wait for it.

After about a dozen breaths, the ghost monkey swung back, clung to Dong Rui's ear, and chirped a few times.

This monkey speech could only be understood by Dong Rui and Ling Guang.

Dong Rui translated: "It says that deep in the forest beside the road, that is, fifty zhang away, there are more than a dozen corpses exposed in the wild, already rotting. There are also several wild dogs eating there."

The crowd also did not go in, but continued on the road. Jin Bai said: "That is the fate of taking the wrong road. The people I hired said that some local guides charge very low fees, but in fact they are in league with the bandits, deliberately giving wrong directions to merchants and travelers. This way, after the bandits rob, they also get a share."

"Those who hire these dark guides are all small merchants with little money, few in number, exactly what bandits intend."

"Even some roadside inns are black shops, giving guests medicine to rob them clean, or tying up women and children to sell for money. Therefore, traveling this road, it is best not to stop for food or lodging, but to go straight to the destination."

He Lingchuan listened, yet thought of the Feng State.

Back then, when he followed He Chuanhua's army from Blackwater City to Dunyu, he also saw countless human sufferings along the way.

Bandits, black shops, refugees, ruined villages—all present.

Everyone says that poor mountains and evil waters produce wicked people, and again that poverty breeds ill intent; it seems everywhere is the same.

The bandits here dare to kill people directly on the side of the main official road; back then, the ruthless bandits of Spirit-Ling Village, defeated foes, pursued He Chuanhua's regular army of several hundred for dozens of li along mountain paths.

By comparison, the territories of Bailie and Qing State, though small, are much more prosperous and also much more peaceful.

While the group was speaking, someone suddenly shouted "Save me" from the dense forest beside the road, the voice young and tender.

Immediately after, a small figure rushed onto the main road and blocked in front of the group's horses.

He Lingchuan and the others had already heard the sound of breaking branches, and had intentionally restrained their mounts, otherwise this person's reckless blocking of the horse would surely have been trampled by hoofs! Upon closer look, it was a boy of four or five years old, wearing a coarse cloth short garment with two patches, but his appearance was properly formed, his face full of scratches from tree branches, with a large bruise on his temple, blood flowing down his cheeks.

"Save me!" He Lingchuan's horse stepped aside, and he again wanted to lunge at the horse's hooves, "Save my parents!"

He Lingchuan patted the horse's neck, letting it calm down, while asking the boy: "Where are your parents?"

"They want to seize me!" Tears and blood mixed on his face, the boy pointed backward, "They have seized my parents!"

A rustling sound came from the Lin Zi, as if footsteps were approaching again, but no one emerged.

He Lingchuan looked in the direction of the sound, raised his wrist, and a sleeve-arrow shot out with a swish.

In the next instant, a miserable cry rang out from the forest.

The ghost ape on Dong Rui's shoulder immediately leapt into the woods.

After just three or five breaths, a person was thrown out, rolling twice on the ground and coming to rest right under He Lingchuan's horse.

It seemed this person had chased the child to the roadside, saw that He Lingchuan and his party were imposing, and dared not come out.

A short arrow was stuck in his thigh; when he tried to rise, he felt no relief, as He Lingchuan casually drew out a Tenglong spear and pressed it to his throat, rendering him motionless at once.

He Lingchuan asked him: "Where are the child's parents?"

The man nervously pointed deep into the woods: "There, over there."

"Are they still alive?"

"Alive, alive!" the bandit hurriedly said, "We didn't harm their lives!"

Ling Guang on horseback interjected: "Why are you chasing this child?"

The bandit stammered, unable to speak.

Jin Bai, arms crossed, said from the side: "It seems they wanted to abduct the child for money."

He Lingchuan asked again: "How many of you are there?"

"Fifty..."

Before the words finished, the spear tip flashed and pierced a hole in his shoulder. The bandit shouted: "Sixteen, we have sixteen people in total!"

As soon as the words fell, he was pierced through the throat by a spear, front to back.

He Lingchuan shook the corpse from his spear and casually told Jin Bai: "Please wait a moment, I'll be right back."

This cloud-transporter is skilled with spears, Jin Bai picked up the boy and placed him on the saddle in front, nodding: "Good."

He Lingchuan and Dong Rui spurred their horses into the forest, and within seventy or eighty zhang they reached the scene.

This was a gentle slope, not far from the main road, but the woods were too dense for cries for help to carry through.

The victims were a small caravan of seven men and one woman. The men were all bound on the ground, the woman was pressed to the ground and violated, likely the boy's mother.

Another bandit had already begun untying his belt.

Still ten zhang away, He Lingchuan drew his Floating Life blade and casually threw it.

That cold light spun, slipped through the tree gaps without harming a single leaf, yet sliced across the throat of the bandit committing the assault.

A fine head flew high, blood spattering the woman's body!

(End of Chapter)