Chapter 561: A Great Uproar

While they hurriedly prepared on their side, news about the Cloud Mountain Cart Company kept coming in. The Cloud Mountain Cart Company showed not the slightest fear; instead, they spent money to buy up the surrounding residences, then leveled the courtyard walls, leaving only the buildings standing. It looked like they had more carts and livestock on hand and needed more space to house them.

Then they sent people along the streets beating gongs to announce that their Cloud Mountain Cart Company had cheap shipping rates, and that joining their company came with all sorts of benefits. They also arranged for men to drive their carts out for a spin around the block. The carts were all brand-new and uniform, the wooden frames and iron fittings of top-notch craftsmanship and material, and the draft animals were sturdy and full of spirit — clearly goods from beyond the pass, bought at the great mule and horse markets of Henan.

This news struck the Cart Gang as laughable. What time do you think this is, and you're still peacefully doing business, still trying to recruit drivers and drum up trade? But it also made the Cart Gang and the men they'd recruited burn with envy. To be able to buy up so much land, they had to be flush with silver. All those top-quality carts and strong, healthy livestock — those were solid, valuable goods. Once they smashed their way in, everyone's share of the spoils would certainly not be small.

The scouts they sent were all the craftiest local guides. They snooped around everywhere, but no matter how they looked or what they asked, they all concluded there were at most two hundred men inside that cart company, and they had hardly any weapons. This boosted everyone's confidence even more.

They boasted they could field six or seven hundred, but when it came to a real life-or-death clash like this, each of the two cart gangs could produce around four hundred men. That was already them putting everything they had on the table. Even so, four hundred fighters per gang already made them one of the top powers in Qingjiangpu. The Shanyang Garrison Commander could only muster a thousand or so men at a moment's notice, and those all looked like beggars...

You contribute a few, I contribute a few — from all corners of the rivers and lakes, the greenwood, and the marketplace, nearly two thousand men in total, outnumbering that Cloud Mountain Cart Company ten to one. How could they possibly lose?

That Gao Mawhip was a thorough bootlicker. He even sent someone to ask Attendant Lian Ping'an directly, suggesting that since they didn't need such a huge force for this, maybe they should cut down on the numbers to save Master Lian the expense. To his surprise, Lian Ping'an laid down a ruthless ultimatum: he wanted exactly this massive force to sweep the opposition away.

"... First, to leave the authorities no grounds to interfere. Second, to show the restless elements in Qingjiangpu what happens — whoever breaks the rules gets wiped out. We must make an example of someone. First Wang Dagang before the new year, and now this trouble after. If we don't put a stop to it, who knows how many more bastards will crawl out of the woodwork..."

Once those words were spoken, there was nothing more to discuss. Among the Cart Gang's own men and the hired hands, quite a few had seen the world and had real skill. They went over to take a look and came back saying that even if they were going to issue a formal challenge, they should fight it out right at the Cloud Mountain Cart Company. That side had cleared out a huge open space that practically connected with the Shandong Gang's cart lot. So many men could just surge right in — no worry about being too cramped to move.

"Challenge my ass! Eat early tomorrow morning, then we march straight over, block them in, and wipe them out!" Zhang Yunxian said through gritted teeth.

"With so many people, will the authorities interfere?" a more prudent man asked.

"Authorities? Since when has Qingjiangpu ever had authorities? The Shanyang county office only comes when we let them. They've even got a man with a broken arm over there, and they've already called over a dozen of their people, saying there's no way to clean this up. When the time comes, they'll step forward and show their badges — and they'll be on our side!"

Once the talk reached this point, there was nothing left to say. Everyone threw themselves into preparations with fiery enthusiasm, all convinced this was fruit ripe for the picking — wealth and spoils guaranteed to fall into their hands.

They said there were no authorities to worry about, but no one dared make too much of a racket. They had no choice but to move out in batches before dawn, first stopping and waiting in various spots nearby.

The Cart Gang handled things with real thoroughness, sending carts early on to deliver dry rations and hot soup so everyone could eat their fill and not lack strength when the fight began.

Listening to these rough, burly characters shouting and hollering outside, the residents and common folk didn't dare make a sound. They just braced their doors and windows shut tight, the menfolk grabbing whatever they could to defend themselves, terrified of getting caught in the crossfire.

With so many people surging over in the pitch dark, they'd end up trampling a few of their own to death before they even hit anyone. So they had to wait until daylight to move. It was a guaranteed victory anyway — no fear of the duck in their hands flying away.

When the sky was fully bright, every street leading to the Cloud Mountain Cart Company sprang to life. On both sides, the residents kept their gates firmly shut, trembling with fear, while the streets themselves bustled like a market fair. Rough, burly men carrying all manner of weapons surged toward their destination.

They drew closer and closer. Once they entered this area, those familiar with the place found it rather strange — the transformation was far too drastic. Most of the courtyard walls of the residences between the Cloud Mountain Cart Company and the Cart Gang's empty lot had been torn down, leaving lonely, isolated houses standing there, uninhabited on all four sides. As a result, a vast open space now surrounded the Cloud Mountain Cart Company.

"These brainless fools have done our brothers a favor!" someone shouted. Everyone burst into raucous laughter, the atmosphere boiling with fervor.

This huge mob surrounded the Cloud Mountain compound so tightly that not a drop of water could leak through. Prisoners and felons from the jail, skilled fighters from all over, and those desperate, murderous thugs — all stood at the very front, weapons in hand.

It wasn't even the second month yet, but some had already stripped off their shirts and gone bare-chested, revealing knotted muscles and looking utterly ferocious. Others held heavy weapons clearly unsuited for real combat, bellowing and brandishing them about while the men around them cursed and scrambled out of the way — yet they cut the figure of invincible warriors. Still others muttered low instructions to their underlings, plotting how, the moment they broke into this Cloud Mountain Cart Company, they'd rush in and grab the best loot before anyone else beat them to it.

As for the real fighters from each faction — the ones who could actually kill — they stood quietly at the front. These were all death-for-hire desperadoes, well-fed on silver, who would soon charge ahead to draw blood and take lives. The felons released from the jail, meanwhile, were long accustomed to scenes like this and even stood around laughing and joking. They didn't value their own lives, so naturally they couldn't care less about such a scene.

The gates of the Cloud Mountain Company were shut tight, but no one paid much attention to what was happening inside. In their minds, with a show of force like this, those Xuzhou brutes in the Cloud Mountain Cart Company had long since pissed their pants in terror. Many turned to look back at their own ranks, or at the ranks of others. One of the more seasoned men sighed and said, "How long has it been since the rivers and lakes of our Qingjiangpu saw a grand spectacle like this? Once I've been through this, I can go back and brag to everyone!"

Zhang Yunxian was also dressed in close-fitting attire, a goose-quill saber in his hand, walking at the front of the column. He had some foundation in martial arts, but hadn't lifted a hand in years. He found a scene like this utterly distasteful; in his mind, a man of high station stooping to such an occasion was degrading himself. Compared to him, Gao Mawhip was far more at ease, striding at the very front with a pole-blade in hand. The two men did share one thing in common, however: each was flanked by a dozen or so guards, all trusted, capable fighters. A gang boss or dragon-head was too precious to risk — absolutely nothing could be allowed to go wrong.

Looking at the tightly shut gates and the stone walls, taller than a man, with no one visible on top, Zhang Yunxian recalled the report from the men who had set the fires that night, who said there had been sentries posted on every section of the wall. He cursed inwardly. It had to be those worthless bastards slacking off and lying through their teeth, feeding him some excuse to fool him. He'd make sure to deal with them properly when this was over.

But from the look of things now, there were no defenses. More likely, they'd been scared out of their wits. That made success even more certain. At this thought, Zhang Yunxian felt a surge of confidence and prepared to give the order to smash down the gates and charge in. To his surprise, the gates of the Cloud Mountain Company swung open. Someone poked his head out, looking around furtively. Seeing so many people outside, he showed no particular shock or bewilderment — he simply ducked back inside. The gates weren't closed again, but left open a crack...

The scene fell quiet for a moment. This move by the Cloud Mountain Cart Company threw everyone off. Had they been scared stupid? Weren't they afraid, seeing so many people? Everyone who witnessed this felt puzzled. Gao Mawhip had been about to raise his blade and shout the charge, but now he lowered it and pondered for a moment. He turned and said a few words. A big, burly man answered with a booming voice and strode forward, a guandao in hand.

When he was about a dozen paces from the gate, the guandao-wielding man bellowed, "Listen up, you inside! You don't know the rules of Qingjiangpu, coming here and running wild. Today, the good men of every stripe in Qingjiangpu are here to root you out! But since we all eat from the same greenwood rivers-and-lakes bowl, your master will give you a chance. Send out a man to face me in a duel! Win, and you walk away alive. Lose, and you're at my mercy!"

As soon as he finished shouting, a roar of approval erupted. Zhang Yunxian knew this man — he was the number-one enforcer of the Henan Cart Gang, surnamed Zheng, given name Bao. Rumor had it he'd been a guard in the Prince of Zhou's mansion and fled after committing a crime. In gang fights, he'd once used his guandao to hack apart seven or eight men who had real martial skill. He was formidable indeed.

But Zhang Yunxian's expression immediately turned sour. He muttered a curse under his breath: "Damn that Gao Mawhip. Never misses a chance to steal our thunder."

In the rivers and lakes, nothing was more admired than single combat like this. The moment Zheng Bao stepped forward, everyone forgot their earlier puzzlement and erupted in cheers and applause.

"So that's Leopard! Master Gao's number-one man!"

"You heard about that blade of his? That blade weighs a full hundred and twenty catties. Even the gate bar of Shanyang county's city gate — he could cleave it in two with one stroke!"

"For Master Gao to have a man like this under his command — truly incredible!"

The buzz of discussion never ceased among the crowd. The big man seized the moment to flourish his great blade a few times, the strokes humming with power, drawing another round of endless cheers from below. It looked less like a gang fight and more like a theater performance.

"Once today's business is settled, find a chance to fight Zheng Bao. Cut down that swagger of his," Zhang Yunxian said sullenly. A man beside him promptly acknowledged the order. This man of the Shandong Cart Gang had once been a squad commander in the military and had also fled here because of a criminal case. Zhang Yunxian had taken him in. He was a seasoned fighter, but Zhang Yunxian rarely deployed him; it was usually Shi Biao who did most of the fighting.

It had to be said, Gao Mawhip's move was truly brilliant. Sending a man to issue a challenge instantly fired up everyone's morale. If the men inside the Cloud Mountain Cart Company refused to come out, they'd ride this surge of spirit and charge in. If they did come out, the guandao in Zheng Bao's hands was no vegetarian — one stroke and what living man would be left? Once blood was drawn, everyone's fighting spirit would soar even higher.

Thank you, everyone. It's the end of the month, and you all have monthly tickets in hand. Cast them for Mighty Warrior of Great Ming!