Chapter 352: Bingxun Pass — In the Bustling Pass

A set of horse reins and a saddle were more expensive than Jier had imagined, and even in the general store, there was only a dusty, old set available. Using the excuse that the items were old, Jier haggled with the apprentice selling them, which drew over a Craftsman to judge the situation.

This pot-bellied Craftsman had no desire to inspect the old stock covered in wood shavings and dust, so he took it upon himself to sell them to Jier at half price.

Although even half price wasn't cheap; it actually cost him as much as three Silver Coins.

Jier left his horse with his friend at the city gate guard, and holding the old, dusty saddle and reins, he washed them clean by the well in the corner of the city gate plaza.

In the middle of winter, he really didn't want to touch water, especially the living water of Kendall from the well; it was icy cold, feeling even colder than touching ice with his hands.

After cleaning them, Jier wiped the wet reins and saddle dry with a borrowed cloth and put them on his obedient horse.

The size was slightly off, but that didn't matter much.

Amidst the teasing of his friends among the city gate guards, Jier carefully stepped onto the Stirrup and climbed up, tensing as he leaned over the horse's back and gently nudged its belly.

The horse, which had been standing obediently in place and pacing restlessly, seemed to receive the command; it stepped out with a light gait, clip-clopping as it walked out of Kendall City.

Jier waved to his friends from the horse's back, gripping the reins tightly, and let the horse proceed along the road leading out of the city and down the mountain.

Zhao Ji discovered that riding a horse was quite interesting because horses are very intelligent animals, so it would experience its way along the road on its own. There was no need for Zhao Ji to steer it much at all.

However, occasionally when the snow on the side of the road disappeared, revealing the withered grass underneath, his horse would involuntarily stop and lower its head to eat the withered grass.

At these times, Zhao Ji needed to take action to tell his horse that it had to keep moving forward.

If it were a temperamental horse, it might not listen to its master's wishes at such a time, instead doing whatever it wanted. But fortunately, the horse Zhao Ji was riding now had a very good temperament; it would neither neigh nor throw a tantrum. As long as Zhao Ji nudged its belly slightly with his Boot heels, it would obediently follow Zhao Ji's wishes, give up the withered grass on the ground, and continue along the road with a light gait.

Zhao Ji had set off in the afternoon; buying the reins and saddle and cleaning them had taken some time, but there was still plenty of time left in the afternoon. His speed on horseback was much faster than walking. From Kendall City to Bingxun Pass, it would take more than a day to walk, but Zhao Ji rode there; he hadn't even let it run, just sitting on the horse and letting it carry him forward, and he arrived at the north gate of Bingxun Pass shortly after nightfall.

Perhaps because the Militia had recently destroyed too many Bandit Groups, the guards at Bingxun Pass were very relaxed; they hadn't even closed the pass gates at night. Caravans coming and going could still enter and exit the prosperous Bingxun Pass at night.

At the entrance to the pass, Zhao Ji took out the Sixth-Rank Protection Badge of the Agricultural God Church that he had just retrieved from the fields, as well as the wooden plaque proving ownership of the horse. After proving his and the horse's identity, the guard saw that Zhao Ji carried neither weapons nor large packages, so he waved his hand and let Zhao Ji enter the interior of Bingxun Pass.

Once inside, Zhao Ji found that Bingxun Pass was very lively at night; even the cold winter could not dampen the enthusiastic celebrations of the residents and the merchants passing through.

Jier looked around for a while and discovered that everyone was celebrating the news that the Militia had won a great victory in clearing out the Bandits. It wasn't just the news that the Thieves of Luodai Cave had been wiped out, but also that the Bandit Groups hiding deeper in the mountains to avoid the Militia's clearing operations during the winter had all been wiped out by the Militia one by one.

Along with this news reaching Bingxun Pass came a large number of Bandit heads as proof; one by one, the ferocious, grim-faced heads were displayed on the main street of Bingxun Pass for several days, and both residents and merchants saw them.

Consequently, they celebrated wildly.

The streets were too cold, so everyone lit bonfires to keep warm. Residents and merchants dressed in flamboyant clothing, moved large wine barrels from the taverns out onto the streets, and the merchants bought them to provide drinks for everyone passing by to drink to their heart's content, as long as you could drink it.

People held wine cups, linked arms, kicked their legs up to dance, and sang crude, tuneless lyrics at the top of their lungs, releasing the mood that had been suppressed by the pressure of the Bandits.

The merchants all knew that with the large number of Bandits near Bingxun Pass wiped out, the security of the trade routes here would be much better for at least two or three years, and they could make a big profit during the safe time that followed.

When the news arrived, the most sensitive merchants in the pass rushed to various taverns to recruit idle people, urgently expanding the scale of their Caravans. If they didn't run fast enough, what would they do if they didn't have enough manpower?

Driven by them, the entire Bingxun Pass seemed to have come back to life from its hibernation in the cold winter.

People put on their leather hats, wrapped themselves in fur coats, put on wooden-soled fur shoes, and walked out of their homes. As soon as they walked into a tavern, they could immediately find a Caravan in need of manpower. One Caravan Steward offered a higher recruitment price than the next, just for fear that their Caravan wouldn't recruit enough people to transport more goods.

The officials of Bingxun Pass also became active; they boldly opened the night gates of the pass to the people and had the tax collectors divide into several groups, collecting commercial taxes at the north and south gates all day and all night.

The Soldiers guarding the city gates were also very busy, either busy checking the large number of Caravan cargo vehicles entering and exiting, or busy collecting the coins bribed by various Caravan Stewards.

When Jier had just entered the pass, he took a glance and saw that the inner pockets of several Soldiers' chests were bulging; he guessed they must be filled with coins of all sizes.

And the tax collectors sitting inside the pass gate acted as if they didn't see it; they even boldly placed two small wooden buckets on the table where they sat. One contained the normal tax, and the other contained the coins the merchants bribed them with directly.

Every Caravan that passed inspection threw an equal amount of coins into both buckets for the tax collector, and then the tax collector immediately dripped hot wax onto a tax payment certificate he had just prepared and stamped it with the official seal of Bingxun Pass.

Jier was an eye-opener to watch this, and he had to admire the "flexible" methods of these people.

Although Bingxun Pass seemed very lively at night recently, Jier knew that the shops that could buy the valuable items he had on him would not be open to receive him late at night.

So Jier went to the inn room he had rented before, handed the horse to the clerk, and spent extra money to have the other party take care of his horse.

As a result, the clerk helplessly indicated that their inn didn't have enough manpower; the other clerks had already quit their jobs and run to the streets to join various Caravans to make big money.

Now even the Cook in their inn had quit and run off to be a long-distance Cook for a large Caravan. If the inn hadn't been his own family's business, this clerk would have run off to do business too.

With no other choice, Jier had to take care of his horse himself. Fortunately, the stable in the inn's backyard had everything, and the clerk didn't charge Jier for using it, telling Jier to just tinker with it himself.

Jier had to personally remove the saddle and other parts from his horse, then use a brush to clean and smooth out its fur, and catch and crush a few lice he found. Then Jier tried to draw water from the well, but the bottom of the well was frozen with a layer of ice.

Jier had to first put a large Stone into the water bucket, use the heavy wooden bucket to break the frozen surface, then bring the bucket up to remove the Stone, and then draw the water.

There were piles of hay in the stable, and Jier took some out and spent time feeding it to his horse.

After it was full and satisfied, Jier closed the inn stable and had to go out to find food himself. Because the inn's Cook had also run away, there was no one to cook.

He left the Backpack containing the valuable items in the room, and Jier went out to a tavern to eat.

It was funny; he found a tavern nearby and went in, only to be mistaken for a young man looking for work, and several Caravan recruiters immediately surrounded him. They talked over each other about the scale and benefits of their respective Caravans, but Jier remained unmoved.

They pestered him for a while, and Jier had to unfold the wolf-fur Cloak he was wearing to show these Caravan recruiters the exquisite winter clothing he was wearing, indicating that he was not short of money, and only then did these people apologize and leave.

After he found a place to sit down, he ordered a large portion of roast lamb chops, a large bowl of thick soup, and a fruit pie.

The tavern Cook's culinary skills weren't very good, and the lamb chops were a bit overcooked, but Jier had no problems with his teeth; he grabbed the lamb chops with both hands and tore into them, quickly finishing this large piece of meat.

The filling inside the fruit pie wasn't made with fresh fruit—where would there be fresh fruit in the middle of winter? It was all greenhouse—no, it was all fruit the Cook had bought himself during the autumn harvest, made into fruit jam boiled with the sweetest fruit. It was packed into sealed jars and then used for the whole year.

Because it was very sweet and sealed well, it didn't spoil easily.

Inside the thick pie crust was a large amount of very sweet fruit filling. Jier couldn't tell what kind of fruit it was; he just felt it was sweet. Of course, something this sweet wasn't cheap; because it wasn't seasonal food, the price was even more expensive than the lamb chops.

But Jier didn't care; only a place like Bingxun Pass with many merchants had better food to eat. In other places, even if you wanted to eat, there was nowhere to go.

In remote villages, there might be plenty of grain, but there was basically no variety of food. Kendall City naturally had high-end places to eat, but the price of food there was not something Jier could afford. Only here in Bingxun Pass was the food varied and the price something he could afford.

While Jier was eating, he pricked up his ears to listen to the news around him. He heard that many capable merchants were still in Bingxun Pass, which put his mind at ease.

He also heard people drinking say that not long ago, a high-status Militia Captain used the crown on his head to kill the ferocious Bandits who were trying to burn the Militia's supplies with Magic.

Someone described the scene at the time in an exaggerated way, as if they had seen it on the spot. As a result, when someone asked where the person was at the time, the person stammered and couldn't say, causing the people around them to burst into laughter.

But Jier knew that Longsuosi, as the eldest son of the Kendall Baron, indeed wore a gemstone crown on his head, and that the other party was indeed arranged by Kela Knight to be responsible for the Militia's supply matters.

So, was this incident talking about him?

Jier muttered to himself, "Crown. Magic." and other such words, finishing his meal in relative silence.

The next morning, Jier first went to clean the stable where his horse lived, and then fed it. Afterwards, he put on his Backpack and went out.

He first went to several of the largest Merchant Guild shops to ask if they bought valuable items. As a result, the other party indicated that they would not buy items from people of unknown identity and origin.

This caused Jier to return in failure.

But it was fine; Jier soon found the Simons Chamber of Commerce, which had taken root and risen locally.

Arriving once again at the riverside Simons Chamber of Commerce, Jier found the place very bustling. The main gate and side gates were wide open, and cargo wagons were coming and going, stopping at the entrance. Shop Assistants of all ages were either following instructions to move goods onto wagons or unloading goods from wagons to transport them into the warehouse inside the chamber.

Jier had left a deep impression on some of the Stewards of the Simons Chamber of Commerce, so he was recognized quickly. After being invited inside the chamber, Mr. Xiao Simengsi, whom Jier had once rescued, hosted him.

"You say you have some valuable spoils of war obtained from Bandits that you want to sell?" Mr. Xiao Simengsi asked after finding an empty room for him and Jier to sit in.

"That's right, they are all legitimate spoils of war obtained after defeating Bandits." Jier put down the Backpack he was carrying and patted his sturdy, practical Backpack.

Mr. Xiao Simengsi was a bit puzzled: "Excuse me, hasn't the Militia not yet returned to Bingxun Pass? Since you, Jier, joined Kela Knight's Militia to deal with the Bandit Group, how did you come out alone?"

He understood the other's confusion. Jier knew the other party was afraid that he had stolen valuable spoils of war from the Militia and escaped. Regarding this, Jier explained his situation.

Upon hearing that Jier had joined the Hunter team under Lanisha Knight and did not belong to the Militia under Kela Knight, Mr. Xiao Simengsi finally set his mind at ease and indicated that he wanted to first see what Jier had on hand.

Jier opened his Backpack and first took out a small box, which contained a small piece of ruby. Mr. Xiao Simengsi took the ruby in his hand and examined it carefully, using the sunlight shining in through the room's small window.

"Hmm, the color is very vivid, and the size is also quite appropriate. Moreover, this gem has been processed by a gem Craftsman, so it actually has many uses." Mr. Xiao Simengsi said deliberately: "However."

"However what?" Jier asked. He himself thought this ruby was quite good; if used to decorate weapons or armor, it would surely add a lot of decorative value to them.

However, he himself did not care much about these things, because he had obtained many Elf Gems from the Ancient Elf Ruin that would emit a glowing light after being exposed to sunlight.

Those gems were much better looking than this thing, both in size and shape. It was just that Jier could not easily explain the origin of those treasures, so after burying them near the ruin, he had not bothered with them again. Those were not things he could use right now.

Mr. Xiao Simengsi brought the ruby in front of Jier and pointed his finger inside the gem: "However, it is not transparent enough inside, which limits many of its potential uses. At least that is how I understand it; many big Merchants only accept very transparent gems. I heard that those gems can be turned into Magic Gemstones containing magical power in the hands of a Mage!"

Jier blinked. In fact, he had already guessed this information before. Now that it was confirmed by Mr. Xiao Simengsi, a Vice President of a chamber of commerce, he felt a bit regretful, yet also a bit excited.

The regret was that this ruby in his hand could not be sold for its maximum value; the excitement was that his Elf Gems might be worth far more than his previous value estimates.

If gems could be processed into Magic Gemstones, the value of those gems would far exceed what ordinary people could imagine.

A look of feigned regret appeared on Jier's face. Seeing this expression, Mr. Xiao Simengsi shrugged and put the gem back into the small box.

Next, Jier took out a bone box of some weight and size. Once this thing was placed on the table, just looking at it made one feel an uncomfortable sensation.

However, Mr. Xiao Simengsi opposite him had a strange expression. His expression was odd, and after carefully opening the bone box and seeing what was inside, his expression became even stranger.

"Where did you get this thing?" He spoke in a low voice and even looked left and right around the room.

It was clearly just him and Jier in the room.

Jier briefly explained how he followed a Magic Beast to the Forest, then the Magic Beast ate the Bandits, and he himself searched the items out of the Bandits' house after the Magic Beast left.

Mr. Xiao Simengsi's gaze was a bit strange: "I didn't expect you to be so bold. But, that Magic Beast?"

Jier laughed: "Later I ran into Lanisha Knight's team. They had heard of my reputation, so they had me join them directly. We later eliminated that Magic Beast. It was quite a bitter battle, though."

Breathing a sigh of relief, Mr. Xiao Simengsi did not examine this set of exquisite and strange jewelry closely anymore. He closed the bone box directly and said to Jier: "This thing was likely stolen by Bandits. Let me tell you, two years ago, a Pastor of the Church of the God of the Dead was robbed and killed by Bandits on the trade route. This matter caused a huge stir at the time. The Soldiers of Bingxun Pass and the Militia of Kendall all assembled, but later the Bandit Group that intercepted and killed the Church Pastor was all killed, yet a set of valuable items carried by that Pastor at the time was not found."

He tapped the bone box on the table lightly.

"This should be the item that went missing back then. It is estimated that the item changed hands among the Bandits, and as a result, two years later, it has been found by you."

Jier raised his eyebrows. He was not interested in these old, stale matters from before he arrived. He only cared about one thing now: "So, is this thing worth money?"

"Money? Heh, the Merchants doing business nearby all know what happened two years ago; who would dare to accept it? This is an important item of the Church of the God of the Dead. Since you have found it now, it is best to return it to the Church. As for money, they will reward you." Mr. Xiao Simengsi said to Jier in an earnest tone.

Jier curled his lips. He had previously hoped that Kendall Baron would give him some reward, but in the end, he had to spend his own money to buy the final reward; the so-called reward was just giving him a chance to purchase rare Magic Materials.

Jier naturally knew which was more important between money and the right to purchase Magic Materials, but compared to those things, he still preferred yellow, shiny Gold Coins.

After all, the weapons he had on hand were quite enough for now, and working hard to improve his martial arts and physical fitness was the most important thing for him recently.