Immortal Travel of Longevity

Lihua gazed at the overlapping peaks and said, "Only two mountains left!"

Once they crossed these final two mountains, they would truly enter Yan Land.

The layered mountains were a stunning sight from afar, but what lay within them was far less beautiful.

"Why doesn't the Local Government here deal with these bandits?" Lihua asked.

Yunxiang patted Lihua's head. "Many things in this world exist for a reason."

"Rumor has it that during the early years of the Rebellion of the Eight Kings, the Prince of Yan's military was weak. This remote part of the Southern Domain was already sparsely populated and barren. When Prince Xiao sought to expand his territory, Yan Land fell into imminent peril. Fortunately, the mountain bandits came to their aid. The government and the bandits established a pact and fought side by side, which was the only way they kept Prince Xiao's grand army at bay."

"After the war, the Prince of Yan tacitly permitted the existence of some of these bandit groups. Some of them even hold official documents stamped with the Local Government's seal!"

"Rumor?" Lihua blinked.

Yunxiang said, "Perhaps it is true."

The remaining two mountains were vastly different.

As they approached the next mountain range, the path before them abruptly ended.

The mountain path had been deliberately blocked off with massive boulders. Since the valley dropped straight down, their only option was to take a detour.

This added a significant distance to their journey.

Yet, it was a detour they had no choice but to take.

"Looks like we'll have to go around," Chen Changsheng said.

Yunxiang glanced at the blocked path and said, "This mountain is already under the jurisdiction of Yan Land's Local Government. This valley was blocked on purpose."

Beside the mountain, a narrow trail wound through the grassy woods. It had likely been trampled by many passing feet to form a path.

They set off on the longer route.

They continued forward.

The road ahead only grew more rugged.

Even the horse found it difficult to endure and refused to move halfway through.

It rested for half a shichen, eating plenty of fodder and drinking its fill, before it was finally willing to move again.

The bumpy ride in the horse carriage left Yu Hongjin dizzy and disoriented.

Fortunately, they still managed to make it across.

After a long while, they finally caught sight of a barricaded checkpoint in the distance.

Official soldiers were stationed there, but most appeared exceedingly lax. Some lay dozing beneath the trees, while others sat in a circle gambling. Hardly anyone paid attention to the road.

"Place your bets, place your bets."

"Big, big, big..."

"Aiya!!"

Some let out heavy sighs, while others grew red-eyed with excitement.

They hardly looked like a group of official soldiers. If anything, they carried more of a bandit air than actual bandits.

"A horse carriage is coming!"

Finally, someone noticed the approaching horse carriage.

The soldiers all looked over, their eyes filled with shock and disbelief.

"They actually made it through..."

They were likely astonished that anyone had managed to safely cross the first seven mountains.

The leader of the soldiers stepped forward and raised a hand. "Dismount for inspection!"

Chen Changsheng leaped down from the horse.

The soldiers circled the horse carriage. Finding nothing unusual, they asked, "What brings you to Yan Land?"

"Business," Chen Changsheng replied.

Yunxiang reached out and handed over the Tang Trading Firm Waist Token.

The soldier took it and recognized it at a glance.

"You're from the Tang Family Trading Firm?"

Chen Changsheng nodded. "That's right."

The soldier gave a faint nod and handed the Token back, but then he said, "My brothers and I got stuck with this grueling duty, posted out here in the middle of nowhere. We've heard the Tang Family Trading Firm is plenty rich. How about you do us a favor and treat us brothers to a cup of tea?"

Chen Changsheng paused for a moment before asking, "Tea money?"

The soldier nodded and smiled. "That's right, tea money."

Chen Changsheng looked at him and chuckled. "You just lost your betting money, didn't you, Officer? You're only asking because you need more funds to gamble with."

The soldier shook his head. "Not at all. This tea money has always been a rule. We're just handling official business."

"Official business?"

Chen Changsheng asked, "Collecting tea money counts as official business?"

"How is it not?" the soldier added. "Just hand over the money and don't ask so many questions."

Chen Changsheng shook his head. "I don't have any money."

Even if he did, he had no intention of handing it over.

The soldier frowned. "No money, no passage."

Chen Changsheng said, "At worst, This Chen will simply take another way around the mountains. It makes no difference."

The soldier sneered. "If you want to take a detour, be my guest. With all these overlapping mountains, it'll take you an eternity to find your way out."

All the surrounding paths had long since been blocked off completely.

Yunxiang raised an eyebrow and spoke up. "For you to blatantly collect tea money like this... how is it any different from bandits demanding a toll? Aren't you afraid of being punished if word gets out?"

The soldier remained completely unbothered. He smiled and said, "The girl in the carriage makes a fair point, but out here, we don't care about those rules. Since I dare to ask for it, I'm not afraid of whoever you decide to tell. That's just the way the world works. If you want to pass, you have to accept it."

Displeased, Yunxiang coldly replied, "The official soldiers of Dayan are even worse than bandits."

The man didn't get angry. He simply waved a hand dismissively. "Cut the crap. Hand over the tea money, or get the hell out of here!"

Yunxiang paused and asked, "How much do you want?"

The soldier thought for a moment and said, "From ordinary merchant caravans, we only collect a dozen silver taels or so. Your Tang Family Trading Firm is rich, so make it a hundred."

"Are you just hiking up the price on a whim?" Chen Changsheng asked.

"What if I am?"

The soldier was brimming with arrogance, not taking them seriously at all.

It seemed this sort of thing had happened many times before.

Yunxiang's tone grew ice-cold. "Acting like this, how do you have the face to look the people of Yan Land in the eye?"

The soldier warned, "Girl, if you keep running your mouth, don't blame me for getting rough."

Chen Changsheng looked at the soldier. He furrowed his brows slightly, feeling somewhat displeased.

Silence fell over the carriage for a moment.

Yunxiang suddenly spoke, "Hong Jin, fetch the silver!"

Yu Hongjin froze. She looked at Yunxiang in sheer surprise.

"Sister Yun..."

Before Yu Hongjin could finish speaking, she was interrupted by Yunxiang.

"Give it to him!"

Yunxiang's voice had turned bone-chillingly cold.

Yu Hongjin couldn't suppress a shudder.

Following Yunxiang's orders, she withdrew a hundred silver taels from the Fragrant Pouch at her waist and stacked them neatly onto a tray.

Chen Changsheng looked back and said, "There's no need to spend this silver."

Yunxiang met the Mister's gaze and said, "Let them take it."

Chen Changsheng let out a sigh at her words and said no more.

Holding the tray of silver, Yu Hongjin stepped down from the horse carriage.

Staring at the gleaming white silver, the soldier's eyes went wide.

"You really are rich..."

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