Free Web NovelChapter 91: Chapter 91: Business in the City
"Boss Song, tell us, what’s the plan!"
A group of burly men began to clamor, one of them shouting the question.
The man with the bushy beard grinned:
"We’ve all been starving all winter. Now that spring is here, we need to pull a big score..."
"Yeah! Do we hit Yulin or Yunzhao! Boss Song, say something!"
A muscular man with a scar on his bald head stood up from the crowd and roared.
Boss Song’s smile stiffened. He held up a hand to quiet them.
"Biaozi, sit down. A ’big score’ doesn’t mean raiding the county government office. The last guy who tried that has grass ten feet tall growing on his grave."
"Honestly, in our line of work, there are plenty of tough guys, but not many who use their brains—Biaozi, sit down, I’m not talking about you."
"In this business, your average travelers—the small fry—don’t have much to offer. As for the big fish, their guards are elite. Every time we make a move, we suffer heavy losses, and there’s no guarantee of success."
"So I got to thinking. Those wealthy families in the city make money so easily. Why is it that we have to work so hard, risk our lives, and still struggle just to get a full meal?"
"I thought and thought, and after a little guidance from someone wiser, I finally figured it out. There’s no future in being bandits. We need to transform our business."
"Biaozi, what are you muttering over there? ’I came up the mountain so I wouldn’t have to think, but now I have to think on the mountain too? I came up here for nothing’... Second-in-command, take Biaozi outside for some ’training’."
"Where was I? Right, transformation. That’s why I called everyone here for this meeting. We’re changing our ways; we can’t just be bandits anymore. First step, we’ll change our organizational structure. From now on, I’m not the boss whose word is law. I’ll be your guide. We’ll make decisions together. If anyone has any questions, feel free to ask."
"Xiao Mao, you have a question? Go ahead... Uh-huh, I see."
"Third-in-command, take Xiao Mao outside for some ’training’."
"Alright, that solves that problem. Anyone else have any questions?"
"Looks like no one has any more questions. Excellent."
Boss Song cracked a grin.
"Now, let me tell you all about the new business we’re in."
"I’ve made a contact in the county who can get us jobs. Instead of waiting by the road and trying our luck, we’ll be doing jobs for others. Guaranteed income, rain or shine. The big shots in the county have things they can’t do themselves, so they come to us. It’s a perfect match for our skills."
"Amnesty? This isn’t amnesty! I, Song, would never sell out my brothers!"
"Besides, after dealing with these people, I’ve realized those so-called ’masters’ are truly filthy. Far filthier than we are."
Boss Song spat on the ground, then took a deep breath and announced loudly:
"For our first job of the spring, we’re hitting the Longteng Escort Agency! That’s right, the very same Longteng Escort Agency from Yunzhao that came knocking on our door."
"In two days, a small Escort Team will be passing through here. Six people, with the strongest being just one at the Second Training. Da Chun, you take twenty men, make sure you have ten at the Second Training, and go kill them."
"The cargo is secondary. What’s important are the escort flag and the heads. Bring them all back so we can get paid. Overkill? No, no, no. This is our first job for our new partners. We need to make a good impression. They say the lead Darts Master is pretty skilled, so we’re sending more than enough men! Let’s see if he can take on ten of them."
「...」
"Chicken Mountain. The peak has a crest, kind of like a rooster’s head, which is how it got its name."
Kong Chun pointed at the peak ahead, explaining it to Xie Yuan, who was traveling this route for the first time.
"The terrain on this mountain is treacherous, full of ravines and caves, so it’s home to a few bandit strongholds that have never been wiped out. A few years ago, a bandit leader named Song showed up. He’s powerful and pretty smart. He united all the groups around here into one big fortress with nearly a hundred men."
’The Escort Agency has a specific definition for ’powerful,’ and that means at least Third Training.’
’And with so many bandits around, sending just a few of us on this escort mission means there must be more to the story.’
Sure enough, Kong Chun continued:
"They say this Song fellow is smart because he picks his targets carefully and never provokes people he shouldn’t. Our Escort Agency has... come to an understanding with him. We’ve had no trouble."
Kong Chun’s words carried an unspoken understanding, which Xie Yuan naturally grasped.
The Escort Agency was in the security business, which meant they had to deal with forces on both sides of the law. Paying a "toll" to some of the larger strongholds could save a lot of trouble.
But this wasn’t something you could talk about openly, even if everyone knew. Besides, some strongholds would take your money and then turn on you, while others changed leaders every other day. That’s why an Escort Agency ultimately had to rely on its own strength. A small agency that survived by relying on the whims of others wouldn’t last long in this world.
"We have two routes from here. The first goes through Chicken Mountain, right into the stronghold’s territory. The second bypasses the mountain; we take a detour around the outside along the Yushui River. It adds a day and a half to the journey, but their scouts don’t venture that far, so they won’t know we’re passing through. Even though we’ve paid them off, the Escort Agency always prefers to play it safe and usually takes the second route. Of course, some small teams have taken the first route and haven’t had any trouble. Brother Yuan, what do you think?"
Kong Chun asked.
Xie Yuan was not one to be unconventional, and since they weren’t pressed for time, he nodded and said:
"Let’s take the Yushui route."
"You got it."
The rest of the Escort Team saw that although Xie Yuan was young, he wasn’t reckless or arrogant, which put them somewhat at ease.
’His experience may be limited, but he acts like a seasoned veteran. No wonder his cultivation is so fast; he’s clearly exceptional.’
The Escort Team adjusted their course and headed toward the base of Chicken Mountain.
The Yushui River was not particularly wide. It meandered around Chicken Mountain, flowing toward Yulin County. The hook-like peak of Chicken Mountain reached out toward the Yushui River, resembling a rooster pecking at a worm.
Xie Yuan and his group followed a road that ran between the edge of the forested, gentle slopes extending from Chicken Mountain and the Yushui River.
He glanced from side to side, raising a slight eyebrow.
"Forest on the left, river on the right, and the dirt road isn’t very wide. If someone were to set an ambush here, it would be difficult to maneuver."
"We’re a good twenty li from the main road near Chicken Mountain’s peak. The stronghold’s men don’t usually come this far. And since we took the detour early, even if their influence is widespread, their scouts can’t have reached this far out. It’s impossible for them to know we’re taking this route. Even if they did, we just have to show our escort flag, and we should be fine."
Kong Chun spoke with confidence. They had taken multiple precautions; today’s escort mission should be smooth sailing.
Xie Yuan nodded slightly. ’The logic is sound,’ he thought, ’but nothing has ever gone smoothly for me since I joined the Escort Agency. The fact that I was promoted so quickly is partly because every single escort mission has had a major incident.’
Some people at the agency were already suspecting he had a "bandit-attracting" constitution. But since he hadn’t been there long, they weren’t sure and were still observing him.
Xie Yuan wouldn’t admit he was a jinx, but since waking up in this world, he had run into so much trouble that he couldn’t deny it. ’Then again,’ he mused, ’for an extradimensional heavenly demon like me, it would be abnormal if my fate *wasn’t* abnormal.’
This escort mission had started in Yunzhao, and so far, nothing had happened. Xie Yuan himself was starting to feel a little uneasy about it.
He squinted, his gaze constantly scanning the forest and the road ahead, and then his brow slowly furrowed.
"Don’t you guys think... it’s a little too quiet in this forest?"
Kong Chun and the others listened intently and realized it did seem a bit too quiet.
While it was true that insects and birds were dormant in winter, such a dead silence often meant one other thing: the intimidating presence of a large group of Martial Artists.
Kong Chun unfurled the escort flag and said:
"I’ll go scout ahead."
"No, let me go."
Xie Yuan stopped him, spurred his own horse forward, and advanced cautiously, meticulously scanning the forested slope.
Just as he turned his head, a glint of cold light flashed in the corner of his eye. He then heard a SWISH as a cold arrow shot out from the woods!
