Chapter 629: Don't Act Recklessly
Tie Niaofei and his entourage settled into Daizhou City's largest inn.
There was little in the way of fine wine or exquisite dishes. Years of drought had fractured economies across the land, leaving private businesses in a desolate state. Daizhou was no exception; the inn offered only the most basic sustenance, yet at exorbitant prices.
Tie Niaofei held a coarse steamed bun, nibbling at it with little appetite. Just as he considered asking his men for some dried meat to accompany his meager meal, a sudden clamor erupted from the inn's second floor, followed by a group of people descending the stairs.
The moment Tie Niaofei’s gaze fell upon them, fury blazed in his eyes. “Tian Shenglan!” he snarled.
Among the approaching group, one of the foremost figures was Tian Shenglan, later known as one of the Eight great Jin merchants. His eyes swept over the room, instantly recognizing Tie Niaofei. A flicker of surprise crossed his face, but he quickly composed himself. “Well, well,” he drawled, “if it isn’t Tie Niaofei.”
Tie Niaofei’s hand instinctively dropped to the hilt of his saber.
Behind him, his thirty cavalrymen mirrored his gesture, their hands resting on their hilts.
Tian Shenglan’s men followed suit.
The tension in the inn’s main hall became palpable. The innkeeper ducked behind his counter, while the staff scurried away, clearly poised for a swift escape.
Tian Shenglan, not usually a man of many words, found himself speaking at length. “I never thought a bandit siege would save your hide. And now you’ve even tracked me all the way here. What then? Do you truly intend to start a fight in Daizhou?”
“This isn’t Hedong Circuit,” Tie Niaofei shot back, “where your bribes have corrupted the salt administration. Since your men didn’t attack me on sight, I’m confident the local prefect hasn’t been bought, and won’t side with you.”
“Nor will he help *you*!” Tian Shenglan sneered. “I am a legitimate merchant, sanctioned by the court, whose sole purpose is to provision the nine border garrisons. Try to lay a hand on me, and see if the local troops won’t tear you to shreds.”
Tie Niaofei’s mind raced, swiftly calculating. Could he kill Tian Shenglan in a flash, flee the city, and use his cavalry’s mobility to outrun any pursuing imperial soldiers? Was it truly feasible?
Just then, a faint voice emanated from the small avatar on his chest—the Heavenly Lord. It was barely a whisper, audible only to Tie Niaofei. “Don’t act rashly,” it advised.
Tie Niaofei’s face lit up with relief. “The Heavenly Lord has arrived!” he exclaimed.
His joy, however, was quickly tempered by the Heavenly Lord’s earlier caution. He lowered his voice, almost to a murmur. “If your humble subordinate were to strike down Tian Shenglan now and make a swift escape, there’s a chance I could get away.”
“But there’s also a chance you wouldn’t escape,” the Heavenly Lord countered. “Even if you did, there could be casualties, costing the lives of several soldiers.”
The logic was undeniable.
Tie Niaofei instantly sobered, inwardly chastising himself for allowing hatred to cloud his judgment.
“Don’t be hasty!” the Heavenly Lord whispered. “You now hold the status of a legitimate merchant, complete with salt permits. From this point on, you can stride boldly into any border garrison, mingling with the troops as if you were sworn brothers. Is it truly worth jeopardizing such an invaluable identity by impulsively committing murder, only to brand yourself a wanted criminal? Does that sound appealing?”
Tie Niaofei awkwardly scratched his head. “The Heavenly Lord’s wisdom is absolute,” he conceded.
“What you reported to Sun Chuanting just now,” the Heavenly Lord continued, “he didn’t fully credit, but he certainly believed half of it. He’s already drafted a document calling for fortified border defenses and stringent surveillance of Jin merchants, and dispatched a messenger with it.”
“Zhang Zongheng is stationed at Yanmen Pass, merely twenty li from here. Sun Chuanting’s retainers, on horseback, can deliver the message in half an hour. Zhang Zongheng, being more astute in border affairs than Sun Chuanting, will certainly react once he reads the letter.”
Tie Niaofei understood.
His hand slowly moved away from his saber’s hilt, and the thirty cavalrymen likewise relaxed their grip on their weapons.
Tian Shenglan, watching from across the hall, let out a silent breath of relief. It seemed Tie Niaofei didn’t dare kill him within Daizhou City limits, and his confidence immediately surged.
“Hmph! Stay put, like a good dog. A petty salt smuggler like you can’t lay a finger on me.” Tian Shenglan sneered, adding, “And one more piece of advice: steer clear of the border for your business. Otherwise, heh...”
With that, he turned and ascended to the second floor once more.
“Bah!” Tie Niaofei spat.
His old comrades had been slaughtered by salt administration officials and two Jin merchants, and he himself had endured days of torment in their dungeons. Seeing Tian Shenglan’s smugness, Tie Niaofei longed to tear into him with his bare teeth. But the Heavenly Lord had just issued a divine decree, and he knew he had to prioritize the Heavenly Lord’s greater design.
Forcibly suppressing his rage, he thought, *Just wait. The Heavenly Lord would surely not let him off lightly*—
An hour and a half later!
At the gates of Daizhou City, a large contingent of cavalry arrived. Every rider was impeccably equipped, radiating fierce determination, instantly recognizable as supremely elite border cavalry.
These cavalrymen escorted a civil official, mounted and armored.
Zhang Zongheng, the Supreme Commander of Xuan-Da, had arrived.
Zhang Zongheng had been preparing to depart Yanmen Pass and return to the Datong border garrison when he unexpectedly received an essay from the renowned scholar, Sun Chuanting.
Sun Chuanting, as everyone knew, was a renowned scholar fond of discussing border matters. He spent his days making grand pronouncements and crafting impassioned prose, outlining countless strategic ideas for countering the Mongols and the Manchus.
Thus, when his essay arrived, Zhang Zongheng grudgingly gave it a read.
After finishing it, he chuckled to himself, *Merchants collaborating with enemies, selling provisions to invaders—do you truly think we’re unaware? Of course we know, but the border is so vast, who in hell could possibly control it? Small peddlers slipping contraband across under the cover of a dark, windy night... what can I, as Supreme Commander, do? It’s not as if I can string barbed wire along the entire frontier, is it? Even if I did, someone would simply snip a hole and pass through.*
He was about to dismiss the entire matter when he suddenly noticed a name listed at the very end of the letter: Tian Shenglan.
The sight of that name instantly unsettled Zhang Zongheng.
For Tian Shenglan was no furtive peddler; he was a highly reputable Jin merchant, engaged in dealings of considerable magnitude. Zhang Zongheng himself had heard the name, and had even harbored some admiration for the man.
He had even personally received Tian Shenglan, commending him for alleviating the livelihood struggles of the border troops in the Datong garrison.
Such a man, now accused of colluding secretly with the Manchus—how could Zhang Zongheng remain impassive?
As Daizhou City was quite near, Zhang Zongheng immediately assembled a cavalry detachment as escort and galloped there with utmost urgency.
Upon reaching Daizhou, he rode directly to Sun Chuanting’s residence.
His sizable retinue charging into the city created a considerable stir. On the streets, common folk immediately began spreading rumors, and in the inn’s main hall, many whispered, “A high official has arrived!”
Li Daoxuan, naturally, became aware of the situation instantly. He chuckled, then, with a familiar *whoosh* of co-sensing, he projected his consciousness once more into the palm-sized puppet.
The small puppet was still concealed amidst a pile of leaves, but the stone table directly beneath its branch was now deserted.
The Puppet Heavenly Lord twitched its limbs, coming to life. It pushed off the branch with both hands, leaping down. It landed with a heavy thud but felt no pain, then quickly righted itself and made its way towards the front hall.
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