Chapter 274: The Saltpeter Mine Stolen

Several bottles of Imperial Wine were already empty.

Zhao Li and several of his trusted aides were also drinking until they felt lightheaded, the intoxication rising to their heads.

Yet when they looked up, they discovered that Xiao Moting was completely fine; his face was not flushed, his heart rate was steady, and he was not the least bit drunk.

Zhao Li was dumbfounded, his heart filled with immense doubt.

According to reliable information, Xiao Moting had a very poor tolerance for alcohol and would collapse after just a few cups.

But now, he had brought his men to toast him in turns until they were almost floating, yet the man had finished several bottles of wine without showing the slightest sign of intoxication.

At this moment, Xiao Moting poured a full cup of wine and handed it to Zhao Li.

"Commandant Zhao, it is rare for you to come to Beijiang to perform official duties; I will toast you a cup."

Zhao Li dared not refuse and hurriedly took it.

"Many thanks, Prince."

After speaking, he downed the wine in one gulp.

As soon as he finished, Xiao Moting poured him another cup.

"Commandant Zhao has had a hard journey; I am holding this banquet to welcome you."

With things having reached this point, how could Zhao Li dare to say a single word of refusal? He could only drink another cup.

But after he finished the second cup, Xiao Moting's third cup of wine arrived.

Looking at the full cup of wine, Zhao Li only felt a headache coming on.

He had already drunk his fill; if he kept drinking, he feared he would be the one to get drunk first while Xiao Moting remained sober.

At this time, Xiao Moting lifted his eyelids.

"What is it, Commandant Zhao? Will you not drink?"

"I will, I will..." Zhao Li had no choice but to take the cup.

Just like that, Xiao Moting took the initiative and toasted Zhao Li several cups in a row.

Finally, Zhao Li truly could not drink any more, and with a thick tongue, he said, "Prince, this subordinate cannot go on..."

Having said that, he collapsed onto the table with a thud.

Xiao Moting sneered in his heart, feigned a calm and collected appearance as he stood up, and gave orders to his subordinates.

"Someone, take Commandant Zhao back to his room to rest."

They wanted to drink him under the table?

That was impossible.

In Qingshan Village.

Bai Wei sat in the courtyard with a basin placed in front of her.

The basin was filled with half a basin of wine, emitting a fragrant aroma.

This wine had all been sent over by Xiao Moting via Teleportation.

Xiao Moting had asked her for a "Thousand Cup Drunkard" medicine; Bai Wei did not have any, but she gave him an idea: to seize the opportunity to teleport the wine over here whenever he was drinking.

This half-basin of wine was what Xiao Moting had sent over.

In reality, he had drunk at most three cups.

"Woof woof!"

Dahuang rested its two paws on the edge of the basin, sticking out its tongue to lick the wine, looking completely intoxicated as it drank.

Bai Wei burst into laughter at the sight.

"Dahuang, I didn't expect you to like drinking too! Be careful not to get drunk."

"Quack!"

Cangyun also spread its wings and flew down from the sky.

Seeing Dahuang drinking with such gusto, it could not hold back either and jumped down from the tree to steal some wine.

One dog and one bird gathered around the basin, scrambling to drink the wine.

Before long, Dahuang and Cangyun were both drunk.

Dahuang's four paws were unsteady, and it walked with a sway.

Cangyun could not even stand firmly, let alone fly.

Watching the drunk bird and dog, Bai Wei doubled over with laughter.

Not knowing how the situation was on Xiao Moting's side, she wrote a note and sent it over via Teleportation.

"Xiao Moting, what is the situation on your end?"

Immediately, she received the note Xiao Moting sent back.

"Bai, many thanks for the idea you gave me; Zhao Li has already been drunk by me."

"That is good." Bai Wei breathed a sigh of relief. "Hurry and send them away, lest there be complications from delay."

The next day.

Xiao Moting was out patrolling when he happened to run into Zhao Li leading his men over.

Having been passed out for a day and a night, Zhao Li could not help but tremble all over when he saw Xiao Moting.

This man's tolerance for alcohol was too good; he was truly a Thousand Cup Drunkard.

He never dared to scheme against Xiao Moting again.

Night fell.

Xiao Moting was in his room, exchanging notes with Bai Wei.

Suddenly, a commotion arose outside the door.

"Catch the thieves!"

"That gang of thieves has come to steal again."

"Everyone, come out quickly."

Xiao Moting's expression darkened; he stood up quickly and strode toward the door.

Outside, it was in total chaos, with many soldiers holding torches and running about everywhere.

Zhang Zhao ran over, panting, his expression anxious.

"Prince, this gang of rebels has come again. They wanted to steal grain, but I was prepared, so I didn't let them succeed."

"However, they took advantage of the chaos to steal two hundred catties of Saltpeter."

Xiao Moting furrowed his brows.

"Saltpeter was stolen?"

The quantity of Saltpeter Mine is scarce, and mining it is also not easy.

Two hundred catties of Saltpeter is a very precious resource; it could make dozens of Landmines!

"This subordinate has failed in his duty." Zhang Zhao lowered his head to admit his guilt. "This subordinate will certainly do his utmost to take the Saltpeter Mine back."

Just as they were speaking, shouting came from the distance again.

Xiao Moting looked up and was surprised to find Zhao Li leading dozens of elite Imperial Guard soldiers, fighting with the rebels on the hillside.

A dozen or so rebels were all wearing black cloth masks, holding weapons such as swords, spears, and clubs.

Their skills were formidable, and by utilizing the steep terrain, they were actually fighting the elite Imperial Guard to a draw.

The Imperial Guard had stayed in Shengjing for a long time and were accustomed to flat ground; they couldn't perform at all on the steep hillside.

They were either falling down the mountain or, through a moment of carelessness, being cut down by the opponent.

Seeing that he was about to lose the upper hand, Zhao Li's expression darkened.

He did not want to lose face in front of Xiao Moting and immediately shouted loudly.

"All of you, charge!"

The Imperial Guard in the encampment immediately scrambled up the mountain one after another.

Zhang Zhao also immediately gave the order.

"Archers, cover the Imperial Guard."

Whoosh! Whoosh!

Dozens of iron arrows shot toward the group of rebels on the mountain.

From within the crowd, a person who looked like a Leader suddenly emerged and loudly ordered a retreat.

Hearing his command, the rebels immediately turned around and fled, their figures quickly disappearing into the mountain, running faster than rabbits.

By the time the Imperial Guard reinforcements arrived, the rebels had already escaped into the deep mountains, disappearing without a trace.

"A bunch of cowards, if you have the guts, come down and fight me!"

Zhao Li was so angry he cursed, his face turning blue.

The Imperial Guard he led were all carefully selected warriors, yet they hadn't even touched a single hair of the rebels.

Moreover, he had lost all face in front of Xiao Moting.

Xiao Moting walked up, "Commandant Zhao, you have worked hard."

Zhao Li's face turned from blue to white, and he gritted his teeth as he said.

"These people have excellent climbing skills and are also proficient in Lightness Skill. I suffered because of the terrain; otherwise, our Shengjing Imperial Guard could not possibly have failed to catch them."

Xiao Moting's expression was slightly cold.

He had not stepped forward to join the battle just now, but had been observing from the side.

This gang of rebels was truly not ordinary people; no wonder even Zhang Zhao could not stop them.

He looked up toward the distance.

Not far away was the steep hillside.

This area had high mountains and slippery roads, and there were many wild beasts in the mountains. The nearby villagers almost never entered the mountains, and the Northern Frontier Army usually stationed at the mine rarely went into the deep mountains.

Zhang Zhao stepped forward, "Prince, according to this subordinate's view, this rebel force should be hiding in the mountains. However, this subordinate has had soldiers search the nearby mountains several times, yet we could never find their hiding place."

Zhao Li said indignantly, "If only we could find where they are hiding; I would definitely kill every single one of these people."