Joining

"All right, all right, put down your weapons. He's our companion. Bombur, Dwalin, forks and spoons can't be used as swords and shields. Bofur, you'd better put down that flute. It poses no threat to his armor..."

Gandalf soothed them one by one, coaxing the Dwarves into lowering their guard as though they were children.

"So this is the powerful companion you spoke of, Gandalf?"

The calmest person present was Thorin. This Dwarf, who carried himself with the bearing of a king, had made no major movements from beginning to end. His eyes remained fixed on Li Wei, never leaving him for even a moment.

He recognized that smell. Orc blood.

"Oh, yes. He will surely be of great help on our journey. I guarantee it in my own name."

After greeting Bilbo, Li Wei finally spoke to Thorin, who had been staring at him all this time.

"Greetings."

"I feel as though we've met before." Thorin searched his memories for that face.

"Yes. I once traveled to visit the Blue Mountains. We met in the workshop within the hall."

"Eh? Are you the Human who stayed at the inn by the entrance a few months ago?" one of the Dwarves asked.

Li Wei nodded and smiled as he greeted the many Dwarves.

Suddenly, another Dwarf spoke up. "I think I heard that a few months ago, a Human traveler drank the strongest drinker in that area under the table."

"Really?"

The Dwarves found it hard to believe.

"Him? A Human drinking a Dwarf under the table? Don't joke around!"

"Boo—"

"But I think it's true. Lots of people were there at the time."

Someone said that, and the Dwarves immediately fell silent.

"I don't believe it unless he drinks with me!"

The Dwarves began egging each other on.

"All right, all right, this isn't the time to talk about that—"

Seeing things about to spiral in another direction, Gandalf hurriedly stepped in to smooth things over.

"You smell strongly of blood, Li Wei. Did you encounter any danger on the way?"

Li Wei nodded. "Danger would be overstating it, but I did run into some Wargs and Orcs that didn't know their place."

"Strange. They actually dared to attack you?" Gandalf raised a brow.

"What do those beasts not dare to attack?" said a Dwarf who did not know the circumstances.

Anduin Valley was too far from the Blue Mountains, and the news had yet to fully spread.

But what Li Wei had done would eventually ripple across all of Middle-earth, becoming a kind of legend.

"I found it strange too. This group was quite different from the ones I'd encountered before. They were fully equipped, with everything they should have had, and there seemed to be a powerful leader behind them. That gave them quite a bit more courage."

"But I still wiped them all out."

"Though their Wargs ran fast and scattered in different directions, my horse was obviously faster."

Gandalf nodded, no longer surprised by Li Wei's matter-of-fact way of speaking.

The Dwarves looked at one another and whispered among themselves. Some thought that while this warrior did look very powerful, he was truly quite good at boasting.

Bilbo, meanwhile, looked utterly bewildered. He had no idea what Li Wei was talking about.

Orcs? Wargs?

He had never heard either word, but from the conversation, Bilbo could determine one thing:

"Oh, so you know each other. Gandalf—Li Wei. All right, good, as expected, um."

Bilbo blinked and took a deep breath.

He decided he would find a chance to quietly remind Li Wei to be careful when making friends.

After that small interruption, Bilbo brought Li Wei a stool so he could sit on the other side of the table and join the meeting.

Now the table was packed full, without the slightest bit of space left.

At least Li Wei had a seat, while Bilbo could only stand on tiptoe behind Thorin to peer over the table.

"We must seize this opportunity and reclaim Erebor." After analyzing the pros and cons, Thorin made his declaration.

"But there is no way into the mountain."

Balin was always the most rational among the Dwarves.

"My dear Balin, that is not quite right."

Gandalf bent down and drew a key and a map from within his robes, then said to Thorin:

"Your father Thráin gave these to me. Of course, only for safekeeping."

"Now, they are yours."

Thorin took the key and clenched it tightly in his hand.

"Where there's a key, there's naturally a door..."

"There's another way in!"

The Dwarves saw hope.

"Even if we can get into the mountain, searching for the gem will still be very dangerous," Gandalf said slowly. "But as long as we're careful and clever, it may still be possible."

"So we need a burglar."

One of the Dwarves said.

Everyone's gaze converged on Bilbo.

Yet Bilbo had never stolen anything in his life, so naturally he could not accept this. Before long, the Dwarves began questioning him, and soon they were all arguing in a noisy mess.

"Enough! If I say Bilbo Baggins is a burglar, then he is a burglar!"

Gandalf rose to his feet and unleashed his immense pressure. The Dwarves instantly fell silent as though their throats had been seized, and no one dared question him again.

The only ones unaffected by that imposing aura were Li Wei and Thorin.

Thorin was a king among Dwarves, so he naturally would not be easily affected by something like pressure.

As for Li Wei, he thought the special effects were pretty good.

"Give him the contract."

Bilbo began carefully reading through the lengthy contract.

"One fifteenth... hmm, very fair..."

Thud.

But after reading the contract and then being deliberately frightened a few times by several Dwarves, the Hobbit, accustomed to a comfortable life, still fainted to the floor.

This was too exciting.

A moment later.

"Bilbo, I cannot guarantee that you will return."

"But if you do return, everything will be different."

Gandalf was giving Bilbo a pep talk in the living room.

Bilbo considered Gandalf's words, then recalled the wonderful stories Li Wei told every time he came over, and began to hesitate.

"No, I still can't sign it."

Bilbo refused outright.

Meanwhile, the Dwarves were discussing matters by the door.

"That Li Wei fellow seems fairly reliable to me, but that burglar..."

Someone shook his head.

"Nothing's going right."

"When all is said and done, none of us are particularly strong warriors either. We're just a bunch of toy makers, pot menders..."

Thorin did not quite agree with those words.

He began his speech, encouraging everyone.

"To me, every one of these Dwarves is stronger than the armies of the Iron Hills, because when I called, they answered. Loyalty and courage—those are enough."

Gandalf listened to the Dwarves' discussion from the side, then glanced at Li Wei.

"You can fight that dragon, can't you?" he quietly asked.

Li Wei glanced at him and answered softly, "I don't know. I haven't actually seen that dragon either, but if necessary, I can give it a try."

Gandalf said nothing for a moment. He merely turned and instructed Balin:

"Leave a copy of the contract at Bag End."

Early the next morning.

A figure came racing through Hobbiton.

In the woods, Li Wei kept his horse walking as slowly as possible, lest it suddenly break into a run and leave the main group far behind.

It couldn't be helped. The ponies the Dwarves rode were only average in speed and simply could not compare to Li Wei's horse at full gallop.

"Hey, is that diamond covering your horse?"

After walking for half a day, someone finally could not resist asking. In truth, the Dwarves had barely taken their eyes off Li Wei's horse armor the entire way.

"Yes, it is. It's very sturdy and useful in battle."

"Can I touch it?"

"Of course. Go ahead."

"My heavens, that's far too extravagant. How long would you have to mine to piece together armor this large..."

Just as the Dwarf sighed, a voice suddenly called from behind.

"Wait, wait for me!"

It was Bilbo, hurrying over with the signed contract in hand.

At the sight, most of the party groaned while a few whistled.

"Welcome to Thorin Oakenshield's expedition, Mr. Baggins."

Before long, Bilbo rode alongside Li Wei and Gandalf on a pony, chatting with them.

"They made bets on whether you'd join. Most bet that you wouldn't, while a few bet that you would."

"And what about you?"

Smack.

Gandalf raised a hand and caught a small bag of silver coins, tucking it away with a cheerful smile.

"I never doubted you."

Bilbo turned to look at the other side.

Another small bag of silver coins flew over, and Li Wei caught it.

"I'd be more than happy to add a name called Bilbo to the next adventure story I tell."

"Being inside a story... it felt wonderful, didn't it?"