Chapter 51 If everything goes according to plan...

Early in the morning, the rising sun cast its first rays through the clouds, scattering them across the earth.

Patches of golden fallen leaves carpeted the ground like a parting gift from autumn to the earth, while the wild flowers and grasses by the roadside bloomed with their final fragrance of the season.

In the distance, mountain ranges loomed vaguely, their peaks rising and falling in graceful succession, wrapped in wisps of mist that drifted gently like white down.

A loess highway stretched from afar, winding past the foot of the mountains before being blocked by a wooden checkpoint.

Beside the checkpoint and inside the guard post, several soldiers were lazily slumped over their desks, dozing off.

Outside the post, an unlucky soldier who had drawn the short straw for guard duty leaned crookedly against the exterior wall, supporting a long spear with both hands and yawning from time to time.

His eyes were hazy, his gaze slow and dull as if he had fallen into an endless slumber, entirely indifferent to everything around him.

Following last night's acceptance of imperial amnesty, the stronghold had celebrated on a grand scale with unlimited food and wine. Everyone had drunk quite a bit, leaving these few still groggy now.

Had it not been for the habits forged by long-term training, they certainly would not have been standing guard at this tax post right now, but rather sleeping lazily back in the stronghold.

It did not matter, however; such days of arduous daily drills would soon become a thing of the past.

In just a few days, the county magistrate would send men to take over the stronghold, and by then, none of them would be mountain bandits anymore, but imperial soldiers instead.

The discipline of imperial soldiers was notoriously lax, far less grueling than life in the stronghold. When the time came, they could sleep as long as they liked without anyone interfering.

As the sun climbed higher, amidst his hazy half-sleep, the on-duty soldier seemed to hear the rumble of carts, punctuated by the shouts of men and the neighing of horses.

He instantly snapped awake, thinking the chieftain had come down for an inspection. He hurriedly straightened up, but upon closer inspection, he saw no chieftains, only a procession of carts and horses approaching from the distance, about to reach the checkpoint.

He hastily raised a foot and kicked the door of the guard post a few times to rouse the men inside.

"Hey, wake up! Merchants are coming, time to collect taxes!"

The men groggily crawled up, rubbed their faces, and crawled out from the guard post. They formed neat ranks on either side of the checkpoint, ready to assess the value of the goods and levy a ten percent tax.

When the procession of carts and horses drew near, everyone could see clearly that the lead vehicle carried an elderly man dressed in a green gown and a small cap, with short boots on his feet, appearing to be a steward. The several men surrounding him on all sides were dressed in close-fitting garments with sabers tucked into their belts, clearly acting as bodyguards.

Seeing their path blocked ahead, the three men hurriedly stopped their carts, not daring to advance further.

The steward looked nervous and flustered, at his wits' end as he lamented aloud:

"We are in trouble!"

"These must be mountain bandits blocking the road. Whatever shall we do?"

The chief bodyguard, however, was a man of experience. After gazing into the distance for a moment, he lowered his voice to offer reassurance:

"Old Steward, do not panic. The surroundings are as quiet as usual with no battle cries, so they are clearly not bandits."

"Even if they truly are bandits, though these men have set up a barricade, their numbers are small and they are no match for our soldiers. We can easily charge through."

Reminded thus, the steward craned his neck to look again and found it was indeed as the man said, whereupon his heart finally settled.

"Alas! Who knows what kind of soldiers these are, daring to set up a checkpoint here and nearly scaring the wits out of me!"

"Once I meet their superior in a moment, I must give them a thorough tongue-lashing!"

The chief bodyguard hurriedly cautioned him: "Old Steward, we are carrying a matter of grave importance on our backs. We must not invite extraneous complications; delivering this Birthday Haul to the capital as soon as possible is what matters most!"

Having just recovered from his fright, the old steward was venting his impotent rage and could not take advice. He merely clamored:

"Rest assured, I know what I am doing."

"If they truly possess some clout, naturally I will not stir up trouble arbitrarily. But if they are merely minor local officials, do not stop me from venting my grievances."

Thinking of the old steward's cowardly bullying ways, the chief bodyguard hesitated for a moment before finally taking a step back and saying no more.

There were still a thousand miles to go to the capital; starting a rift with the old steward over an unrelated minor official was hardly worth it.

Having made up their minds, the men urged the horses and carts forward once more, quickly arriving before the checkpoint.

A tax collector stepped forward and called out loudly:

"Have no fear, worthy merchants. We are not bandits; we are stationed here solely to collect taxes."

"Once you pay your taxes at this checkpoint, you will receive a tax-paid banner. With this banner, you may travel freely within the borders of Yishui County without fear of being plundered by outlaws."

"If anyone dares to rob you, you need only report it to us at Yushan, and Yushan will naturally help you retrieve your goods."

Hearing this, the old steward felt even more at ease.

He had never heard of bandits operating in such a manner; this must be a local official's method of extorting passing travelers. With a smiling face, he probed tentatively:

"Might I ask which military prefecture you gentlemen belong to, and which lord is your master?"

The tax collector proudly puffed out his chest and boasted, "My elder brother—ah, no, my general is..."

Halfway through, he suddenly stammered to a halt, turned his head, and asked his comrades behind him, "What is our elder brother's official title again?"

The men were instantly stumped. They whispered among themselves for a long while without remembering, and only offered: "It seems to be some sort of Commandant..."

The tax collector turned back and continued, "...is a court Commandant, an official of the true eighth rank, only half a rank lower than the county magistrate."

"Oh..." Upon hearing this, the old steward understood immediately. With all this talk of "elder brother" and "general," the man was actually just a local bumpkin!

As a steward in the household of the Grand Administrator of Huainan East Circuit, he had never lacked officials trying to curry favor with him.

A mere eighth-rank military officer from some backwater place was hardly worthy of his notice.

Having figured out their background, his expression changed instantly. Raising the leather whip in his hand, he lashed out mercilessly at the tax collectors while cursing bitterly:

"Blind dogs!"

"Whose caravan do you dare to block?"

"Do you know what is loaded in these carts?"

"I am not afraid to tell you, this is the Birthday Haul!"

"Do you know what the Birthday Haul is?"

"These are gifts being transported to the capital to celebrate Tutor Cai's birthday!"

"Never mind the little official behind you; even the Judge and Military Advisor of Yizhou would not dare to collect taxes on this caravan!"

"Why don't you open the checkpoint at once and let the caravan pass?"

When had these tax collectors ever suffered such humiliation on ordinary days?

Anyone passing through here in the past had always paid their taxes obediently, without exception.

Although the backing behind this caravan seemed quite formidable, they had already killed plenty of local gentry and powerful clans with their own hands; why should they care about anyone else?

Though usually concealed, their rebellious nature had long since been whetted by Li Gui. It would have been one thing if nothing happened, but the moment they were insulted and provoked, their bandit instincts flared up instantly. With reddened eyes and reckless abandon, they raised their long spears and thrust straight at the old geezer.