The Crowd of Ruffians Came to His Door

The next day, dawn had barely broken.

As usual, Qin Meng rose early. After washing up, he ate half a boiled deer heart, then went into the courtyard and continued practicing the Black Dragon Eighteen Hands.

As he darted, leaped, and shifted around, his movements grew more natural.

After breaking through to the Dengtang Realm last night, his body had gradually adapted to this fighting style. Each move had taken on new insights and variations—not just in power, but also in rhythm, breathing, and timing.

Once the sky had grown fully bright, Shen Qiuyue poked her head out of the kitchen. "Mengzi, breakfast is ready."

Her face held a gentle smile, and the fire's heat had dampened the hair at her temples.

"Coming." Qin Meng settled into a stance and took a deep breath.

He breathed in the savory aroma of meat and looked toward the busy figure by the stove.

A thousand thoughts stirred in his heart: a man needed a woman at home who knew when he was cold or hungry.

Three hot meals a day, clean clothes, a tidy house...

These small but genuine comforts and sense of stability were the firmest support a man could have as he worked hard outside. Not to mention, at night, he could...

He quickly cut off that untimely thought and turned his eyes to the dining table.

Breakfast was lavish: half a bucket of steamed polished rice, a large basin of chicken stewed with velvet antler, snake soup, rabbit braised in soy sauce, and two kinds of pickled greens.

Qin Meng was starving. He sat down and dug in.

Before long, there was hardly anything left on the table. Qin Meng had polished off nearly seventy percent of the food, and only then did the warmth in his belly chase away his hunger.

"Martial arts training really is a bottomless pit for money," he muttered in amazement. No wonder ordinary families in the dynasty could barely afford to support even one martial artist.

Just as he put down his bowl and chopsticks, and Shen Qiuyue was about to clear the table—

"Qin Meng, get out here and pay your debt!"

The sharp, familiar voice belonged to the hooligan Qin Lai.

Shen Qiuyue got up and glanced outside through the window. Her face instantly went deathly pale. "Oh! Mengzi, there are, there are government officers. What do we do?"

Qin Meng's gaze turned cold. "Don't be afraid. I'm here."

"Creak—" The moment the old courtyard gate swung open, sunlight slanted in from the east, stretching the shadows of the crowd outside into crooked, menacing shapes.

Qin Meng stood inside the gate with a Ring-pommel Saber in hand, calmly surveying the scene before him.

Qin Lai stood at the very front, chin held high. His vicious face was now plastered with smugness and malice—the kick Qin Meng had given him in front of everyone yesterday had clearly left him seething.

But the men standing behind him gave him plenty of confidence.

Five officers in black uniforms wore standard sabers and iron rulers at their waists. They stood casually, but their eyes scraped over Qin Meng like knives.

Their leader, constable Chen Yong, was an old hand who had spent years working the streets.

More conspicuous still were the seven or eight burly men beside him, clustered around a stout, middle-aged man.

The man wore a silk robe. His round face was set with a pair of nimble little eyes, and he was now smiling as he surveyed Qin Meng's ramshackle courtyard.

The neighbors had already been roused.

Heads peeped out from behind earthen walls and beside stacks of firewood, and people whispered among themselves.

Seeing that Qin Meng said nothing, Qin Lai grew bolder. He pulled out the IOU and shouted in his raucous voice, "Qin Meng! Repaying your debts is only right and proper! Fifty taels of silver—if you can't pay up today—"

He deliberately drew out his words so everyone could hear. "The honorable officers of Tieling County are here. They'll throw you in prison and seize your home to settle the debt!"

Qin Meng glanced at him without replying, then looked at the constable. "Constable Chen, what brings you here today? Have you come to collect taxes?"

Chen Yong, the constable with a scar at the corner of his eye, walked forward a couple of steps with a smile that didn't reach his eyes. "You're Qin Meng, right? Paying your autumn tax is fine too. I hear you've been going up the mountain every day lately and bringing back quite a few kills?"

"Just making a living," Qin Meng replied evenly.

"Making a living?" Chen Yong's voice suddenly turned cold. "Then how come I hear you bring back game every day, even a big deer? Do you have a Hunting License?"

The courtyard fell silent for a moment. Everyone understood: Qin Lai was the one who'd put him up to this.

A Hunting License was a permit issued by the authorities.

Hunters who held one had to pay hunting taxes. Unlicensed hunting could result in a fine at best, or prison at worst.

In this northern frontier region, it was common for people to go hunting in the mountains during their spare time to put a little meat on the table. But once someone reported it, the authorities had to look into it.

Qin Lai's mouth was already spreading into a grin as he waited for the show.

Qin Meng fell silent for a moment, then honestly shook his head. "No."

"No?" Chen Yong raised his voice. "Hunting without a license is a violation of the dynasty's laws! By law, you owe a fine of thirty taels and thirty strokes of the cane!"

The neighbors drew in sharp breaths.

Shen Qiuyue hid inside, clutching the doorframe so tightly that her knuckles turned white.

Qin Meng remained calm. He cupped his hands toward Chen Yong. "Constable Chen, hear me out. My family has no land or property, and I'm a sickly man. We're desperately poor, and my wife is nearly starving.

"Under the Northern Frontier Borderer Statute, unemployed borderers with no property may receive tax relief at the authorities' discretion. They may also enter the mountains temporarily to hunt for a livelihood. As long as they apply for a Hunting License afterward and pay the hunting tax, they haven't broken the law."

He paused, his voice clear. "I hunted a Spotted Deer yesterday and sold it for silver. I also mentioned making a living to Captain Qin of the fort militia. Today, I can apply for a Hunting License and become a registered hunter, then pay the hunting tax."

The smile froze on Chen Yong's face.

He had run into Qin Lai in town last night and accepted five taels of silver from him. He'd assumed it would be child's play to bully an ignorant pauper. Who could have guessed that Qin Meng would know the laws inside and out?

Just then, hurried footsteps sounded outside the courtyard.

"Make way! Move!"

Qin Tianbao pushed his way in with seven or eight militiamen. Each held a spear, and all wore grim expressions.

Two white-haired clan elders followed behind him, leaning on their canes, their faces stern.

"Constable Chen." Qin Tianbao stepped forward and stood in front of Qin Meng. "Mengzi is right. The borderers are trying to survive; their circumstances are understandable. Since he's willing to apply for a Hunting License and pay the taxes, he hasn't broken the law."

Yesterday, when Captain Qin had come to buy velvet antler, Qin Meng had casually mentioned the Hunting License so that no petty schemer could trip him up behind his back.

Qin Tianbao shot Qin Lai a sidelong glance, then turned to Chen Yong. His voice sank a little. "But you, Constable Chen, came in threatening him with 'violating the law' without first looking into his circumstances. Are you abusing your authority for private gain?"

Chen Yong's expression changed.

The two highly respected clan elders spoke up too, their voices old but authoritative. "Luming Fort may not be rich, but we know the rules. Every tax that's due will be paid, down to the last coin. But we won't yield an inch to bullying we don't deserve."

"Exactly." Voices of agreement rose from all around, and the neighbors' gazes turned hostile.

Sweat beaded on Chen Yong's forehead.

He glanced at Qin Lai, whose expression had also turned ugly. Clearly, Qin Lai had overlooked one crucial detail and never expected things to unfold this way.

"Fine, fine..." Chen Yong gritted his teeth. "If you're willing to apply, then we'll do it by the book!"

The rest of the process went surprisingly smoothly.

Qin Meng paid this year's hunting tax on the spot—ten taels of silver. He also applied for a Hunting License and paid ten taels in application fees and a security deposit.

He paid the approaching autumn tax at the same time.

Twenty-three taels of silver. Qin Meng showed no change in expression as he took out his money pouch and counted the pieces of silver one by one. Someone beside him weighed them and recorded the payment.

Chen Yong accepted the money, wrote the two characters for "Qin Meng" in the register, stamped it with a red seal, and handed over a palm-sized wooden plaque. The front was engraved with the words "Hunter," while the back bore a serial number and Luming Fort's seal.

"From today onward, you're a registered hunter," Chen Yong said stiffly. "Pay taxes on what you catch. Don't try to cheat the system."

Qin Meng took the plaque, weighed it in his hand, and tucked it into his clothes.

Next came the second debt.

The stout, middle-aged man who had been smiling all along now sauntered forward.

The seven or eight burly men behind him shifted too. They were all thickset and fierce-eyed, dressed in short jackets. Anyone could see they were hired muscle.

"Little Brother Qin," the middle-aged man began amiably, though his voice carried a calculating edge. "I'm Lin Hai, owner of Hongyun Gambling House in Linshan Town."

"I've seen you fraternizing with Qin Lai," Qin Meng said, cutting him off with a wave. "So tell me: how much do I owe you?"

His words brought the surroundings to an abrupt silence.

The neighbors of Luming Fort fixed their gazes on Lin Hai and Qin Lai.