Crotch Mountain was as its name implied.
Two mountains flanked a single ravine, just like a pair of cotton trousers, and Jiao Potian’s stronghold was located right in that ravine.
Even with Li Qiuchen’s meager experience, he could tell that this place could hardly be considered some perilous strategic pass. At most, it was merely rather hidden and not easy for people to discover.
Jiao Potian was a capable man. Relying on nothing but his own two legs, he had run madly for a day and a night, fleeing back to his stronghold. Then he had ordered the stronghold gates shut tight, defending to the death and refusing to come out.
He had probably been scared pissless.
Li Qiuchen crouched on a hill outside, narrowing his eyes as he observed the arrangements inside the stronghold from afar.
A dozen or so thatched huts, two stables, forty or fifty men and horses… On the surface, that was about all there was.
“What do you think?”
After weighing things in his mind for a moment, Li Qiuchen turned to look at the white crane.
“Gah?”
The white crane looked completely bewildered.
“Bandits like these don’t produce anything in ordinary times. They only sit around eating through their stores. Even if they shut their gates, they won’t be able to keep them shut for long. They’ll have to go out and rob people.”
Li Qiuchen’s experience came from reading Water Margin in his previous life.
Song Gongming was always going down the mountain to borrow grain. Some people thought he was finding excuses to establish his prestige and cultivate followers, but in reality, there simply wasn’t enough food. With men eating and horses chewing every day, the consumption was astonishing. If they didn’t rob people, how were they supposed to survive?
There was also another factor to consider: the moral standards of bandits.
Judging from their behavior, they had none whatsoever.
Now that Chao Tianwang had returned injured from attacking Zengtou Market, could Brother Gongming really have no thoughts of his own?
So Li Qiuchen judged that whether Jiao Potian wanted to reestablish his authority, or whether the stronghold was short on grain and fodder, it would not be long before they went out to plunder.
Although it was not impossible to scheme against them now, wouldn’t it be more reliable to wait until they split their forces before making a move?
…………
While Li Qiuchen was thinking about how to wipe out this bandit den and completely eliminate future trouble, Jiao Potian, lying on his bed, was also silently contemplating his life and future.
After thinking it over and over… wasn’t he utterly finished?
Even a regular army would collapse if its casualty rate exceeded fifty percent, let alone lowly bandits like them who could not show their faces in respectable circles.
Jiao Potian claimed to have over a hundred men and horses under him, but in truth, there were not that many at all. Aside from the men who had gone out plundering with him this time, the rest were almost all the old, weak, sick, and disabled, with no fighting strength to speak of.
Nonsense—going out with the chief meant one might still snatch a few things and scrape together food and drink. What could one do by staying at home? Anyone with a bit of strength in his arms, or even the slightest ambition, would never remain in the lair gnawing on tree bark.
In the end, all his brothers had fallen in the mountains, and he alone had escaped back. Jiao Potian only felt as if the sky were about to collapse.
After thinking it over, he sat up, fished two silver ingots out from under his backside, summoned a trusted subordinate, and instructed in a low voice, “Xiao Shengzi, take these two ingots of silver and ride a fast horse to Song Family Hamlet. Invite Song Laosan over. Whatever you do, don’t tell him we lost so many brothers. Just say I’ve run into difficulty and want him to come give me some advice.”
The camp gates opened wide, and a fast horse galloped out. Li Qiuchen, who was meditating beneath a tree, opened his eyes and calmly watched the rider leave.
“Gah?”
The white crane asked softly.
“We’re not chasing.”
Li Qiuchen shook his head and said, “He’s either going to fetch a physician or bring reinforcements. If he happens to invite some reclusive expert, and you follow him only to be discovered, you’ll be serving yourself up on a platter. The two of us will stay here. If things look bad, we can run at any time.”
The white crane looked at him sideways, hesitating as if it wanted to speak.
Aren’t you being a little too cowardly?
Li Qiuchen remained unmoved by the stupid bird’s contemptuous gaze.
Childish.
What reason do I have not to be cowardly?
Meanwhile, let us speak of Song Family Hamlet, fifty li away.
Song Laosan was a mountain rover.
Such people had different names in different places—blade hands, wheat hands, mercenaries… Simply put, they were strong and sturdy men who had learned some skills, were unwilling to settle down and scrape food from the fields, and wandered from place to place doing all sorts of messy trades.
The mountain rovers of the northern frontier were an extremely loose group. There were no particularly close ties between them, though this also had something to do with the broader environment of the north, where the land was vast and the population sparse.
The mountains were full of jackals, wolves, tigers, and leopards. Those with the courage to enter the mountains mostly possessed courage and ability beyond ordinary men. And what was more dangerous than jackals, wolves, tigers, and leopards was the human heart. Sometimes, in order to fight over valuable mountain goods, conflicts would erupt between mountain rovers, leading them to slaughter one another.
In simple terms, they could be described with two words: ruthless men.
That day, after receiving Jiao Potian’s message, Song Laosan sat at home and pondered for a long time before calling his two sons to his side.
His eldest son was Song Gang, and his youngest son was Song Yu. Both were now grown men, skilled with blade and horse, and possessed of extraordinary strength.
“Do you think I should go?”
“Dad, what background does this Jiao Potian have? How come I’ve never heard his name?”
Song Laosan sighed and said, “This man only took to the greenwood less than two years ago. Of course he has no name in the jianghu. But he used to be quite a formidable figure. He served as a head jailer in the county, ruthless and black-handed, but he also had a measure of loyalty. Back then, when your father was arrested and thrown inside, it was only by having someone go through his connections that I managed to come out alive. This man can be considered to have saved my life. If he has truly run into trouble and comes asking me for help, if I refuse, I fear people will laugh at me when word gets out.”
Song Gang asked in confusion, “If he was doing perfectly well as a head jailer, how did he end up becoming a bandit?”
“Who knows? I only heard he made a mistake while handling official business. Maybe he killed someone in prison who shouldn’t have died… Now that he’s come asking, it’s hard for me to refuse, but I’m also worried he may harbor ill intentions and try to force me to join him.”
“What’s there to fear from him?”
Song Yu had a more impatient temper and immediately slapped the table, saying loudly, “Big Brother and I will go with you. If he really does have bad intentions, then the three of us father and sons will just kill our way out.”
Song Laosan nodded and said, “People say one must not harbor the heart to harm others, but one must also not lack the heart to guard against others. In truth, that is what I was thinking as well. This time, I’ll take the two of you with me and test just what this Jiao Potian is made of.”
Once the three had finished discussing matters, they packed their weapons and belongings, mounted fast horses, and hurried toward Crotch Mountain.
Two days later, the father and sons led their horses into the stronghold. At one glance at the miserable state inside, Song Laosan thought to himself that something truly must have happened.
Jiao Potian did not come out to greet them. It was not that he did not want to, but that his body had collapsed, and he lay on his bed unable to get up. When Song Laosan saw him, the man who had once been as sturdy as a bear was now withered like dry wood.
Song Laosan was greatly shocked. “Chief, what… how did it come to this?”
“Third Brother!”
Jiao Potian seized Song Laosan’s arm, tears pouring down like rain.
After listening to Jiao Potian recount what had happened, Song Laosan opened his mouth, but in the end felt too embarrassed to curse him.
“Then… Chief, why did you call me here? What are you planning?”
Jiao Potian wept and said, “I won’t hide it from you, Third Brother. Now, whenever I close my eyes, I dream of the mountain god killing people. That mountain god doesn’t want to let me go either. It wants to torture me to death alive! Third Brother, you’re a man who roams the mountains. You have to think of a way to save your brother!”
“Mountain gods don’t kill people.”
“Ah?”
Song Laosan shook his head and said, “Chief, you used to live in the city, so you don’t understand the rules of the mountains. Mountain gods guard their lands and shelter living beings. They wouldn’t casually take life over such a small matter. From what you’ve told me, this sounds more like you offended some evil thing in the mountains.”
“Ah? An evil thing?”
Jiao Potian grew even more frightened. “Then what should be done?”
Song Laosan hurriedly comforted him. “There’s no need to be afraid, Chief. Your inability to sleep right now has nothing to do with evil things. Go down the mountain and find a physician to prescribe a couple doses of calming decoction. Drink them, and you’ll be fine. There is only one thing I don’t quite understand. Why were you so dead set on fishing up those Xuan Pearls?”
Xuan Pearls were indeed valuable, but the true pearl-producing regions were still along the Blackwater River and the Jinlin River. In a little mountain village like that, even if they went into the river to gather pearls, how many could they get? If there really were a steady yield, would such a good thing ever have fallen to you?
Jiao Potian smiled bitterly and said, “Third Brother, there’s something you don’t know. Your family only has a few mouths to feed, and you can guarantee food and clothing without worry. But I’ve got a hundred or so brothers under me, hiding in a mountain ravine digging wild greens and gnawing tree bark, so hungry their eyes are glowing green. How could that be as pleasant as life in the city?”
“I had someone go to the county to make inquiries. In truth, the crime I committed back then wasn’t anything serious. It’s just that at the time, I had no connections, and no one was willing to speak on my behalf. With no other choice, I could only flee and become a bandit.”
“Now, the county magistrate has taken another concubine and dotes on her greatly. That woman has a younger brother who is a formidable person. My friend told me that this man is secretly buying Xuan Pearls at a high price. If I can find a few superior ones and send them over, perhaps I can ask him to put in a few good words before the county magistrate, have my charges pardoned, and go back to continue working.”
At this point, Jiao Potian glanced at Song Laosan and lowered his voice. “I remember that your children are no longer young either, Third Brother. If we can open up this path, perhaps they can be sent to the county to find some proper work…”
Song Laosan’s heart stirred violently.
This was exactly why people said Jiao Potian was loyal—he had struck Song Laosan right in the heart with a single sentence.
The title of mountain rover sounded intimidating when spoken aloud, but in truth, it was no respectable profession. It was nothing more than licking blood from the edge of a blade, wagering one’s life in pursuit of wealth and status. His two sons were already grown men, yet they were still single. It was not easy for them to find wives.
If they could find work in the county town…
Thinking of this, a smile appeared on Song Laosan’s face. He supported Jiao Potian and said with a smile, “Chief, are those words true?”
“This concerns my life and fortune, and your son’s bright future. Do you think I would joke with you?”
The two began discussing matters back and forth, completely failing to notice the tender emerald leaves of the creeper on the wall outside, gently swaying in the wind.
The creeper’s roots burrowed into the ground, extending all the way out of the stronghold and continuing toward the mountain forest.
On a nearby hill, Li Qiuchen, who was meditating beneath a tree with his whole body covered in roots, branches, and leaves, slowly opened his eyes.
So that was how it was. Now it made sense.
Xuan Pearls were a stepping stone. With Xuan Pearls, one could bribe the county magistrate’s brother-in-law.
If even bandits and mountain rovers could use this route, then why couldn’t I?