roccoschili Chapter 454 - 441: Erhai
Chapter 454 - 441: Erhai
Chapter 454: Chapter 441: ErhaiLi Si’an was too lazy to investigate the tax silver robbery. He was indeed quite loyal to his identity as a secret agent of the Demon Suppression Department, but he had no intention of helping his Ba Shu colleagues with their work, especially with Zhao Changhe around. Depending on the nature of his relationship with the chief, whether he felt like investigating depended on his interest alone.
According to Li Si’an’s bandit-sensitive judgment, perhaps Zhao Changhe was even an accomplice to the robbers...
He continued traveling south with Zhao Changhe, who was posing as Wang Daozhong, and whispered, "Actually, the tax silver of the Southwest Provincial Government was lost once already in early spring... The Imperial Court had planned for this batch of silver taels to go directly downstream to support Jiangnan in the suppression of Maitreya, but it was lost before reaching Shu... so the initially intended tax silver for Shu to be sent to Jiangnan also stayed put temporarily..."
Zhao Changhe narrowed his eyes.
Was it all done by Li Shentong?
Or was it more of a case of ’if I don’t rob it, someone else will, so I might as well’?
"At that time, the chief was about to have a decisive battle with Maitreya on Tai Lake and couldn’t spare effort to investigate this case, so the Imperial Court sent other officials to investigate. In the end, they said it was stolen by thieves, and nothing more came of it..." Li Si’an said, "In any case, the Demon Suppression Department here had clues pointing to Li Shentong, which were reported to the chief. Of course, given Li Shentong’s significant status, no one could really investigate the Divine Brilliance Sect, so the matter indeed came to nothing."
Zhao Changhe nodded, "I see..."
"Oh, to say the investigation did nothing isn’t quite true; they did do something. Under the pretext of
Erhai.
Looking into the distance, plains and grasslands lined the shores, with herdsmen grazing their horses, an abrupt contrast to the rugged terrain that lay behind them. It felt as if this could be a secret realm, and it wouldn’t seem out of place.
Just around this lake, countless tribes could sustain their livelihoods. And this was just one small part of the Southwest, with its vast expanse of other territories, endless mountains, and lakes, where one could truly spend years searching for a person.
Li Si’an sighed with relief, "We’ve arrived. There is a town ahead where various tribes come together for trade. Does it remind you of Yellow Sand Market? Oh, the grassland before we reached Yellow Sand Market."
Zhao Changhe was still absorbed in the beautiful scenery, full of admiration, "I thought that coming here would mean sneaking into each tribe’s stronghold. I didn’t expect the far south and north to be so strikingly similar, as if the Creator tore the same thing in two and placed the halves at the ends of the earth."
Li Si’an cracked the whip and laughed heartily, "The sea is vast, heaven and earth are boundless, perhaps Divine Continent within the world is but a grain of millet, and what then is south or north?"
Eh?
Zhao Changhe twitched the corners of his mouth, as he, a modern man, had been outdone by an ancient in displaying a modern view of the world. Of course, this wasn’t the modern understanding, but rather the contemplation of an intellectual of this world on the nature of the world, which was quite impressive.
Who wouldn’t know how to act high and mighty, "Whether it is the south or the north, it falls under my definition. Whoever has the right to define is the master of the world."
"Eh..." Li Si’an also gave him a glance but said nothing in the end.
Zhao Changhe stopped paying attention to him and thought about taking a bath.
Seeing that Zhao Changhe was itching to jump into the sea, Li Si’an grabbed him, "Bathing in the wild is inconvenient. If we encounter horse bandits, would you fend them off with your hammer? Let’s go into town first, you’ll get to wash there."
Zhao Changhe: "..."
The town was called Xizhou, and it turned out to be a bit of a trick by Li Si’an — it was actually quite a distance away, and they only arrived by the seaside at dusk.
Of course, being a town, it was naturally larger than Yellow Sand Market, and more beautiful.
How could the endless expanse of yellow sand compare to this place, nestled between mountains and waters, where birds sang and flowers fragranced? Instead of resembling Yellow Sand Market, it bore more of a resemblance to the elegance of Suzhou and Hangzhou.
The town was bustling, with the diverse clothing of the Alien Clan dazzling the eyes. It was a pity Zhao Changhe couldn’t distinguish which attire belonged to which clan; at a glance, they all looked similar... Among them, quite a few girls wore short tops that revealed their midriffs, walking unconcernedly on the streets, with passersby paying no mind, as if it were perfectly normal.
However, when people saw Zhao Changhe and the others leading horses into town, the previously calm atmosphere began to feel somewhat eerie. There were many exchanging glances, and it was unclear whether they were conveying caution or malice toward the Xia people, causing Zhao Changhe to frown slightly.
"Hey, Xia didn’t conduct any massacres here or anything, right?"
"No. But once, they killed a Heavenly List warrior here, which scattered the just-united tribes into seventeen or eighteen pieces." Li Si’an looked at him even more strangely, "Hey, didn’t you study a lot of history? I heard the Head Instructor taught you personally. What were you doing during classes?"
Kissing the teacher’s ass.
Zhao Changhe was near tears; whenever it was time for history or culture classes, he felt like sleeping. Was it my fault... well, it was the teacher’s fault for not making it interesting. They should have told the stories in a vivid and engaging way, as anecdotes instead of history, that would make someone want to plug their ears, just like that.
"So because they killed their revered king, the people here are unfriendly to us?"
"Killing the Black Miao King would at most make the Black Miao people unfriendly. The other tribes gained autonomy, and they rejoiced with excitement." Li Si’an lowered his voice, "Besides, that’s old resentment, and it wouldn’t likely cause... The present aloofness can only be due to current problems with the Provincial Government."
Zhao Changhe nodded slightly, asking, "What’s the story with Lei Ao?"
"He can be considered a hero of sorts... Originally, he was just a common tribal leader among his people, his cultivation hadn’t reached the Heaven, Earth, and Human List level, but it wasn’t too shabby either, probably around the Eighth or Ninth Layer of the Mystical Gate. In his early years, he engaged in all sorts of professions in such trading towns. Because he was magnanimous and honorable and had connections with various tribal leaders, he gradually grew in stature within the town, becoming a local strongman, known as ’Lei the Tiger.’"
Zhao Changhe was just wondering why all local strongmen named Lei were called ’Lei the Tiger’ when their carts arrived outside a large tent. A man emerged, his voice booming like a bell, "Ha... I was just thinking that Fourth Brother should be about to arrive, and sure enough. Uh... and this is..."
Zhao Changhe looked at the newcomer, who had a full beard, looked powerful and robust, with the force of a galloping horse—indeed, he did have the look of a "Lei the Tiger."
But having encountered Ba Tu previously, Zhao Changhe did not dare to underestimate these seemingly brash strongmen; who knew if he was another tricky character.
He carried a reserved smile, gave a slight bow, and responded indifferently, "I am Langya Wang Daozhong."