Chapter 807: Seven Taels and Nine

The young man's bandit air did not seem faked.

Although he carried the air of a bandit, he was simple to his core. These two traits seemed contradictory, yet they genuinely coexisted within him.

It was just as the young man had said: he was born a bandit.

As if it were innate, he accepted his identity and felt a deep sense of belonging to it.

"Why would government soldiers pretend to be bandits?" Yu Hongjin asked, thoroughly confused.

"Probably because there are certain things soldiers cannot do, but bandits can," Chen Changsheng replied.

Yu Hongjin could not quite wrap her head around that.

Yunxiang did not try to explain it to her, either.

Yu Hongjin pondered this for a long time without reaching any conclusion. After a brief pause, she asked, "But you let that person go."

"For one, there is no need to provoke them any further," Chen Changsheng said. "There are many bandits in these mountains. Kill one, and another will take his place; we would never know a moment of peace. Second, that young man is not truly beyond saving. It is likely because he has never known fear that he acts so confident, even arrogant."

Had he been traveling alone, he might have stirred up some trouble with these mountain bandits, but Chen Changsheng was not by himself anymore. There was no need to take on such risks.

The horse carriage trundled deeper into the mountains.

They assumed nothing else would happen.

Unexpectedly, several figures darted through the surrounding woods.

This was not the same group as before. These men had observed them for a long time along the way, waiting until they reached a narrow pass to finally block the horse carriage's path.

"The mountain path is rugged, and carving out a road is difficult."

The leader carried a heavy bandit air. He rolled his neck, raised the blade in his hand, and looked toward Chen Changsheng on the horse carriage. "Passing brother, leave a road toll."

"More bandits?" Yu Hongjin was somewhat surprised.

Chen Changsheng glanced at the group and asked, "You are not from the same mountain as that last bunch?"

Yue Diao drove his blade into the ground and snorted coldly. "We collect road tolls. They are wild bandits without a shred of rules. Still, if you managed to walk away from them safely, you must have some skill. But you will have a hard time getting past me."

Chen Changsheng studied the man. He brimmed with robust blood vigor, and his martial arts were definitely not low. Out in the jianghu, he might even be considered a first-rate martial artist. He was far more formidable than that young man from earlier, so it was no wonder he had the courage.

Chen Changsheng asked, "This road toll, what is the price?"

Yue Diao thought it over for a moment and said, "I have exactly seventy-nine brothers on my mountain, short seventy-nine mouthfuls of food. One tael per person—that is not too much."

Chen Changsheng shook his head and said, "Too much."

Yue Diao paused and said, "You name a number."

Chen Changsheng said, "Seven taels and nine."

Yue Diao frowned and said, "Brother, I do not want to cause unnecessary trouble, which is why I am negotiating with you. But that is not how a road toll works. Too much is unacceptable, but too little is unacceptable as well."

Chen Changsheng said, "They say mountain bandits operate by their own rules: they do not rob monks and nuns, and they do not rob a Priest. This Chen is half a Daoist priest. Could you let us pass?"

Yue Diao glanced at him and asked, "If you were truly a Daoist master, I would naturally step aside. But what part of you looks like a cultivator?"

Chen Changsheng said, "This Chen spent his early years undergoing Cultivation at Liuyun Temple in Qiuyue Fang. Afterward, I wandered the Mortal World, finding solace in the mountains and rivers, and gained some enlightenment. I am currently on my way back to visit the Daoist temple."

Yue Diao pondered this for a moment and said, "You said it yourself—you are only half a Daoist master. In that case, we will cut the road toll in half. Be understanding, brother. These mountains go layer after layer, and each has its own master. If the front mountain gains nothing, the back mountain might get lucky. This luck is hard to come by. With it, we eat a full meal; without it, we go hungry. If they were not left with no other choice, what good man in this world would choose to become a bandit? Understanding, please show some understanding..."

Chen Changsheng shook his head and said, "Seven taels and nine."

Yue Diao sighed softly upon hearing this and waved his hand. "Then seven taels and nine it is."

From inside the carriage, Yunxiang spoke up, "Hong Jin, fetch the silver taels."

Hong Jin nodded and promptly handed the silver taels out.

Chen Changsheng reached out, accepted them, and stepped forward.

Yue Diao raised a hand, calling someone to bring over a steelyard scale. After weighing the silver taels, he ordered someone to bring a pair of shears and snipped off a corner.

The final weight was exactly seven taels and nine—not a fraction more, not a fraction less.

Watching this from inside the carriage, Yunxiang spoke up, "You can just keep the extra."

Yue Diao shook his head instead. "There is no such rule. We agreed on seven taels and nine, so seven taels and nine it is. Taking more would bring misfortune."

Saying this, he waved his hand. "Let them pass."

The dozen or so men behind him stepped aside, clearing the road.

Chen Changsheng looked at the man and asked, "I wonder how many more bandits there will be further ahead?"

Yue Diao said, "If nothing unexpected happens, there will be another four or five groups."

"These mountains span nine layers in and out, connecting to Dayan. Anyone from the northern lands wanting to enter Dayan must pass through here. In recent years, many more bandits have occupied the peaks. Scraping their cuts layer by layer leaves little profit by the end, so the groups further back will demand more and strike harder. Your party had best be careful."

Hearing this, Chen Changsheng asked, "Each establishes their own peak and serves as their own master. Some eat their fill, while others go hungry. In the end, has no one ever tried to unify them?"

Yue Diao replied, "Your words have some reason, brother, but that is no easy task. Across these nine mountains, there are roughly over fourteen thousand bandits. It is complicated and complex; there will hardly be a day of unification."

Chen Changsheng nodded, coming to an understanding.

This was not like the jianghu. If chaos broke out in these mountains, it would be just like fighting a war. No one wanted to see such a scene, and no one had the courage to do such a thing.

"Many thanks."

Chen Changsheng cupped his hands in salute, then tugged the reins to urge the horse forward.

Yue Diao sighed, privately thinking it a pity.

In truth, he could have asked for more, but considering how smoothly this person had walked over from the front mountain, he did not want to risk too great a conflict with him.

Neither was a fool; it was always best to act according to one's capabilities.

Lihua watched Chen Changsheng with wide eyes, blinking occasionally.

The Mao'er's eyes seemed to hold many doubts, unable to understand why Chen Changsheng had acted that way.

The Mao'er said, "If it were Ruyi, perhaps she would have slaughtered them long ago."

Chen Changsheng asked, "Were you frequently robbed on the road before?"

Lihua nodded and said, "Many times, but most of them did not make things difficult for us. They let us go without asking for money. Ruyi told me it is because most bandits do not rob women, saying it is unlucky."

"But we did run into quite a few who wanted money. They were basically all stabbed through by Ruyi. It was so, so gruesome."

Lihua's words drew a laugh from Yunxiang inside the carriage.

Chen Changsheng also gave a helpless smile and said, "You make Ruyi sound like some kind of demon king."

Lihua blinked and asked, "Is she not?"

There did not seem to be anything wrong with that.

Yunxiang said, "When traveling away from home, it is best to make things convenient. Many highwaymen are not entirely unreasonable; every trade has its rules, and having one less trouble is better than having one more."

In her early years, the trading firm had run into this sort of thing plenty of times.