Forced

Outside the door stood two officials.

One held a register, the other a long whip.

Tax collectors.

There was no need to think about what they had come for.

Chen Sanshi spoke politely. "My lords, give me another half month. I'll definitely gather the taxes!"

According to the usual regulations, there should have been around twenty days left before the tax deadline.

If he worked hard, gathering three taels of silver should not have been difficult.

But the tax collector sneered. "The barbarians in the north keep invading, while bandits wreak havoc in the south. Now is precisely when the Great Sheng Dynasty needs you to repay its grace with your contributions. How can we wait that long?"

Chen Sanshi asked, "Then how long does my lord mean?"

"Seven days!"

The tax collector held up three fingers. "Within seven days, anyone who cannot pay their tax silver will be sent to Hezhou to dig the canal!"

Having dropped those words, the two clerks turned and left. Like harbingers of death, they hammered open the doors of the next households that had not paid their taxes. If they encountered anyone with a poor attitude, they gave them a few lashes as well.

"Why has the tax collection been brought forward by so much?"

"It must have something to do with the wars."

Yanbian Village in Poyang County, where Chen Sanshi lived, was already on the northern border of the Great Sheng Dynasty. Further north lay the garrison posts and the Great Wall, and beyond the wall were the barbarians.

Over the past ten years, barbarian incursions had grown increasingly frequent. There had even been cases of small groups of Barbarian Cavalry breaking into the realm, pillaging an entire village, then swaggering away.

Only three years ago, when the imperial court dispatched another elite force to guard the region, did matters stabilize. Yet small-scale clashes near the Great Wall had never ceased.

It was not only the north that was unsettled; the south was no better.

Chen Sanshi was not well informed, but even he knew that uprisings kept erupting in the south. Though each was crushed before long, there would always be newcomers raising the banner of rebellion.

"Seven days!"

"What good is pushing us this hard? Can common folk conjure silver and grain out of thin air?"

As a modern man with basic historical knowledge, he knew this was the twilight of a dynasty. Troubled times were approaching, and life for ordinary people would only grow harder.

"Shi Ge'er, what happened?"

Inside the house, Gu Xinlan asked worriedly.

"Nothing."

Chen Sanshi did not want her to worry herself sick, so he pretended nothing had happened. Just as usual, he practiced archery, ate breakfast, then took some dry provisions, slung his bow over his back, and headed out.

Since he had arrived at the bottom rung of a chaotic world, he could only follow its rules and find a way to survive.

Gathering three taels of silver in seven days was no easy matter.

Chen Sanshi felt considerable pressure.

And not just him. The villagers were all crying bitterly about it.

As he was about to leave the village, he spotted several familiar figures. His brows furrowed, and he tried to avoid them.

"Little Stone."

Qin Xiong led two hooligans over and surrounded him. "Why are you hiding from me?"

How could Chen Sanshi fail to guess that they intended to take advantage of the crisis and extort him?

He said bluntly, "Brother Qin, if this is about the same matter as last time, there's no need to bring it up again."

"Did you forget what the tax collector said? If you can't scrape together the silver, you'll be dragged off to dig the canal."

Putting on the face of a kindly man, Qin Xiong said sympathetically, "Anyone assigned to that job, I've never heard of one returning alive. How about this: your brother here will take a loss. Give me the little lady you're hiding at home, and I'll pay your taxes for you. What do you say?"

"If I really get dragged off to dig the canal, I'll accept my bad luck. No need for Brother Qin to trouble himself."

Chen Sanshi spoke expressionlessly and started to leave.

After entering the threshold of archery, he trusted in the strength of his two arms, and even his words had become much firmer.

Still, there was no need to provoke a direct confrontation yet.

For one thing, Qin Xiong had gangs of hooligans under him.

For another, the bastard had a younger brother who practiced martial arts. Rumor had it he was formidable and not someone to provoke.

Qin Xiong did not stop him. He merely watched him walk away with a cold expression.

"Boss, I say we just snatch the woman. Why bother paying silver?"

One of the hooligans cursed as he spoke.

"Idiot!"

Qin Xiong smacked him on the forehead. "Do you think the Great Sheng Dynasty truly has no law?"

Such things as forcibly abducting women had once happened often enough, but ever since the new Governor-General of Liangzhou arrived, no one had dared do it again.

"Then what do we do?"

The hooligan asked, "Isn't Boss still waiting to use that woman as a gift for Second Brother?"

"What the hell are you rushing for? Do you really think he can gather three taels of silver that quickly?"

Qin Xiong snorted disdainfully. "When the time comes, he'll be hauled off to dig the canal, and we won't need to spend a single coin!"

"Three taels of silver within seven days."

"Looks like I have to bring down some big game."

"Once I settle the tax matter, I'll figure out how to deal with that Qin bastard."

When Chen Sanshi arrived at Tiger Head Mountain, it was still early. Many large animals only emerged around sunset, so he was in no hurry. He found an open patch first and practiced his archery.

When he practiced now, it no longer took any effort. Instead, he felt as though the bow obeyed his hand and the arrow answered his heart.

Not only could he hit the target every time within forty paces, but within fifty paces, his rate of hitting the ten-ring was also above eighty percent.

It just used up arrows.

Crack!

Another arrow struck dead center, but the shaft snapped in the process.

Chen Sanshi felt quite pained.

A single new arrow cost at least ten wen!

Still, arrows were consumables to begin with. Besides, the ones in his hands were all old arrows, so wear and breakage were normal.

Skill: Archery (Beginner)

Progress: (128/200)

Effect: Can draw the Six-force bow; within forty paces, every arrow hits its mark.

The System Panel appeared.

"Tomorrow, if I work a little harder, I should be able to advance to the next stage."

Chen Sanshi ate some dry provisions to fill his stomach, then got to work.

His senses were keen, and he did not overlook the slightest trace. Without much effort, he followed some droppings and found another rabbit near a patch of bushes.

One arrow through its heart, without the slightest suspense, and he tucked it away.

"Is there no larger prey?"

Chen Sanshi was naturally not satisfied with this.

Yet even with Tracking, he found no sign of any large animals having lived there throughout the afternoon. Only when the sun set did he find a pheasant halfway up the mountain, following a trail of feathers.

The arrow flashed like a startled thunderbolt!

The arrow pierced through the pheasant's body, its momentum carrying the corpse onward before pinning it to a nearby tree trunk.

"About four jin."

"Pheasant tastes delicious, and its price is second only to pork. This one alone can sell for around seventy wen."

"But it's still nowhere near enough."

Chen Sanshi could now be certain that there was no large prey on the outskirts of Tiger Head Mountain.

After all, with the ability of Tracking, he would not miss even the faintest clue. If he could not find any, then there truly was none.

Tracking (Beginner)

Progress: 101/200

Effect: Observes every detail; footsteps as light as a feather.

"Tracking is close to reaching the next stage too."

"Perhaps I can try going deeper into the mountains."

The deeper one went, the more prey there was, but the greater the danger. Usually, only seasoned hunters ventured there, like Uncle Zhao and the others from the village.

Starting from Second Mountain, there would be wild boars, even great worms and Black Bears. Every year, quite a few hunters died there.

Before, Chen Sanshi had only just begun hunting, so for the sake of caution, he had not dared venture in rashly. But now, it seemed he had no choice but to go.

Still, his archery was about to advance. It might not be impossible to give it a try.

"I'll go back and make proper preparations."

"Tomorrow, I'll take a look around Second Mountain!"