Negotiation

Zhong Lin slept for an hour before Little Shi woke him with a shout. He shook his head and sat in a daze for a while, then the two set off again, taking a detour before returning to the main road.

There were still refugees along the way, but this time Zhong Lin smeared some tree sap over the bag of meat to mask its scent.

The effect was quite good. He did not run into any more refugees trying to rob him along the way.

About two hours later, they finally reached the mountain the middle-aged man had mentioned. It was even taller and larger than the previous two mountains they had crossed, large enough to hide people within it.

Zhong Lin steeled himself, placed his bow and arrows where they were easiest to reach, then pushed the wheelbarrow up the mountain step by step.

"The bandits are coming!"

"Run! Run!"

Shouts rang out ahead. Then they saw countless people running down from the mountaintop, shoving and jostling one another in a huge commotion. Some unlucky people fell, their bodies rolling down the slope—some crashing into trees, others tumbling all the way down.

Zhong Lin's expression changed as well. He immediately threw the wheelbarrow aside and snatched up his bow and arrows.

Little Shi also jumped down from the wheelbarrow, clutching the bag of food tightly to his chest.

Fortunately, the food they had eaten these past few days had reduced the smoked meat in the bag by more than half. There was not much left; otherwise, Little Shi would not have had the strength to carry it.

"Go."

Zhong Lin turned and ran toward the dense forest on the left. Little Shi gritted his teeth and followed close behind.

The children of the poor grew up early. Little Shi, who had seen life and death often enough, knew that crying would not solve anything. The only thing he could do was not hold Second Brother back.

After a short while, the two entered the woods. Hidden behind a large tree, they watched the refugees stampede about in the distance like panicked wolves and fleeing pigs.

Zhong Lin furrowed his brow and said softly, "Shi Tou, hide well. I'll go take a look."

"S-Second Brother, be careful."

Fear flashed through Little Shi's eyes, but he still nodded hard.

Looking at Little Shi, who was only five or six years old—an age when, in his previous life, he might have just started elementary school or not even graduated kindergarten—Zhong Lin's eyes softened with pity. He reached out and rubbed his head.

"Don't worry. Second Brother will be fine. Wait here for me and don't go out."

With that, he darted away through the forest. He needed to find out what exactly was happening on the mountain. This road was the only route to Black Mountain County; if he detoured, there was no telling how long it would take or what dangers he might encounter. He had to investigate clearly.

"Stop!"

Zhong Lin grabbed a refugee fleeing down from the mountain and raised his firewood chopping knife, pressing it directly against the man's neck.

"H-Hero, spare my life!"

The refugee was terrified by Zhong Lin's sudden appearance. Thinking him a bandit from the mountain who had chased him down, he dropped to his knees with a thud. The stench of urine rose from his crotch.

"I have an eighty-year-old mother above me and children below me crying for food! Hero, spare my life!"

Zhong Lin's face darkened. Those lines sounded awfully familiar.

"Shut up. Answer whatever I ask. How many bandits are on the mountain?"

The man froze at Zhong Lin's question, but when he felt the cold blade against his neck, he hurriedly said, "I-I don't know either. Those bandits are hiding in the woods on the mountain. They demand that everyone leave behind toll money. If you refuse, they rush out and kill people. I was too scared, so I ran."

"Fuck off!"

"Y-Yes, yes! Thank you, Hero! Thank you, Hero!"

Zhong Lin used the same method to question several other refugees. The information he got from them was largely the same: they only knew there were bandits on the mountain, but not how many.

"This is troublesome."

Zhong Lin's face sank.

Though the mountain before them was not the only road leading to Black Mountain County, taking a detour meant there was no telling what they would face. They might even encounter more bandits. With no other safe route available, this was their best choice.

Just as Zhong Lin was pondering this, the many refugees at the foot of the mountain began gathering together.

"It's them?"

Zhong Lin's eyes lit up as though he had thought of something. He quickly returned to the forest, swept Little Shi into his arms, and ran over.

"Zhang Village Chief, have you made up your mind?"

The speaker was Zhu Jie of Zhu Family Town, the middle-aged man who had previously invited Zhong Lin. Dozens of ox carts had gathered in the clearing, and their owners were huddled together, discussing countermeasures.

Zhang Village Chief said gravely, "The bandits on the mountain are really just a mob of rioters gathered together to become outlaws. They know this mountain is the only road to Black Mountain County, so they have blocked it here to rob travelers. Though they are nothing but a rabble, with our numbers, even if we force our way through, we will suffer grievous losses."

"Isn't that simple? They can gather rioters, and we can gather refugees. As long as we rally these refugees and send them charging up there, we can take the chance to get through," Zhu Jie said casually.

Had Zhong Lin heard those words, he would certainly have been glad that he had not accepted this man's invitation. Gathering refugees to attack the bandits was, plainly put, using the refugees as cannon fodder. The ease with which this man spoke revealed the viciousness of his nature.

"I support Brother Zhu's method."

"Indeed."

"I support it as well."

An old man stepped forward, swept his gaze across the crowd, and said, "We can speak with the bandit leader first. If he is not asking for much money, we can negotiate. If negotiations fail, then we force our way through."

The men looked at one another and nodded. Courtesy before force—if they could avoid drawing blades, it was best not to. After all, swords had no eyes.

They discussed the details once more, then each went off to gather refugees, coercing the crowd into heading toward the mountaintop again.

Zhong Lin carried Little Shi on his back and followed amid the crowd without drawing attention, his eyes constantly scanning the surroundings as he prepared himself to fight or flee at any moment.

Before long, they reached the mountaintop. Zhu Jie stepped forward, clasped his hands, and called out loudly, "Which one of you is the chief? Come out and have a word."

After a while, a dark-faced burly man emerged from the woods. His face was covered in beard, his back broad and waist thick, and his expression was fierce. One look was enough to tell he was no good man.

"I'm Mountain-Suppressing Tiger. Spit it out if you've got something to say."

His voice carried a savage, ferocious edge that shook the forest.

"Greetings, Lord Mountain-Suppressing Tiger. We are merely refugees fleeing disaster. We hope you will show mercy and let us pass. We have scraped together three hundred big coins for you to enjoy some tea."

Zhu Jie lowered his brows and bent his head, showing none of the ruthlessness from earlier when he had proposed using the refugees as cannon fodder.

The bandit leader sneered. "Hmph! You think three hundred big coins can fob me off? Are you treating me like a beggar? Even if I agreed, would the brothers behind me agree? Isn't that right, brothers?"

"That's right! Are you fobbing off beggars?"

"Three hundred big coins aren't even enough for the brothers to drink!"

"You're looking down on us!"

For a moment, the bandits howled and shouted, their mouths spewing every kind of filthy insult.