Chapter 0118: The Mountain Spirit Burns Qiantai Mountain, Qianjin Zhai on Qiantai Mountain
Amid the snowy mountains and wild forests, an eerie silence abruptly fell, leaving only the rustling of cold wind through branches.
Just as Hu Lai thought this tactic had failed, suddenly, the Second Leader beside him burst into applause.
“Excellent! Well said!”
The Second Leader’s eyes gleamed as he gazed at the beautiful woman. “I never expected the lady to be such a fiery spirit! Unafraid of bandits or death—this leader admires fierce women like you! That Hu fellow, go find the softest cloth immediately. I shall personally attend to the lady!”
After speaking, he kicked Hu Lai’s back. “Such a splendid fiery woman, and you got her for nothing! And you don’t even cherish her!”
Hu Lai: ?
Fine if I got her for nothing, but why kick me?
Mentally noting this grievance in his little book, Hu Lai hurried to fetch clean, soft cloth strips from the rear carriage and handed them to the Second Leader.
The Second Leader carefully stuffed the clean cloth into the beautiful woman’s mouth, then gently bound her hands and feet, as if afraid of hurting her. The more he looked at her, the more captivated he became.
In these parts, villagers cherished their daughters. If a son went missing in the mountains, they might hesitate briefly, but if a daughter disappeared, the entire village would likely grab their hoes and storm the mountains overnight to eradicate bandits. Thus, mountain bandits rarely kidnapped respectable girls, at most seizing some valuables.
Merchants passing through on business also seldom brought women on their journeys, so women were scarce in their mountain stronghold.
As for beauties who were both stunning and fierce—they were nonexistent.
That’s why the Second Leader found “her” increasingly pleasing and precious the more he looked.
“Second Leader, this one is much prettier than the one the First Leader captured the other day,” a bandit chuckled. “You’re truly blessed~”
“I think so too. But that woman was also quite handsome, just not right in the head—claimed she was some so-and-so from Jingcheng…” The Second Leader forgot the exact title and waved dismissively. “Originally, I was a bit envious, but now heaven has dropped a delicacy right into my lap! Hey, I’ve got a celestial wife now!”
The bandit quickly added, “Then our Qianjin Zhai is doubly blessed!”
“Exactly! When we return, I’ll break out the liquor and celebrate with everyone!” the Second Leader exclaimed joyfully. But he didn’t forget their task, shouting to his comrades, “Let’s go! Turn back to the mountain! Time to wed!”
At his command, the dozen or so bandits stripped off their animal hide garments, pulled out luxurious padded robes from their packs, and wrapped themselves in them. They slicked back their messy, coarse hair with snow and tied it up, instantly transforming into merchants.
With practiced movements, they stuffed the animal hides beneath the carts, then led the horses and goods in the opposite direction—not toward Black Tiger Mountain, but toward another peak to the southwest…
——
Southwest of Black Tiger Mountain stood a great mountain called Qiantai Mountain.
It was said that during the previous dynasty, Qiantai Mountain was occupied by the most vicious bandits in Liaozhou. Brutal by nature, they took pleasure in killing, and countless commoners and merchants met their ends there, causing endless headaches for local authorities.
Later, one summer, the great mountain suddenly erupted in raging flames that charred the entire peak black. When villagers ascended afterward, they discovered the bandits had burned to ashes, leaving not even corpses behind.
The common folk spread tales that Qiantai Mountain was home to a mountain spirit. They claimed this spirit grew negligent in protecting the people, provoking heaven’s wrath, which commanded the spirit to immolate the mountain and eradicate the vicious bandits plaguing it.
But the spirit, resentful of this punishment, transformed into a malevolent entity. For a long time afterward, no trees grew on Qiantai Mountain, leaving its blackened, barren slopes eerily desolate. Even during periods of warfare, many bandits avoided the mountain, both out of superstition regarding the spirit’s self-immolation and due to the lack of forest cover for concealment, making it unsuitable for establishing strongholds.
Later, an arrogant rebel army, drawn to Qiantai Mountain’s strategic position with a river in front and villages behind, camped there to amass troops, intending to claim the territory and establish a new capital. They stormed the villages, burning, killing, and looting. But upon returning to the mountain, they were engulfed by a sudden, raging inferno. The rebels’ agonized screams echoed through the night, leaving the villagers with mixed emotions of grief and grim satisfaction, and deepening their awe of Qiantai Mountain.
Since then, no bandits dared haunt Qiantai Mountain. Even the local people, wary of the malevolent spirit, avoided hunting on its slopes despite the gradual regrowth of trees after the Jian’an Dynasty’s establishment. Passersby would quicken their steps, hurrying past the area.
Thus, no one could have anticipated that outlaws would be bold enough to establish a stronghold on Qiantai Mountain.
“What mountain spirit or evil entity? I don’t believe in that nonsense!”
On the uphill path, Er Dangjia’s tone dripped with contempt. He pushed aside obstructing branches, his broad, tiger-carrying shoulders bearing a stunningly beautiful woman who contrasted sharply with his brutish appearance.
“This lady doesn’t believe in ghosts or deities either.”
The woman was none other than Xie Chengze in disguise. He casually tugged at Er Dangjia’s hair as if grooming a large cat while lazily surveying the mountainous terrain. “So the legendary Black Tiger Stronghold is actually you lot, isn’t it?”
“Heh, the lady is clever indeed!” Er Dangjia boasted proudly. “There’s too little worth plundering around Qiantai Mountain—hardly any fun. So our Da Dangjia set his sights on Black Tiger Mountain, claiming to be from the Black Tiger Stronghold. After raiding there, we’d pose as merchants returning to our base on Qiantai Mountain. The Black Tiger City magistrate would search the entire Black Tiger Mountain but find no trace of any Black Tiger Stronghold!”
Thus, even after seizing official grain supplies, the authorities could never trace it back to them!
Xie Chengze’s eyes glinted with understanding.
Just as he had suspected, the Black Tiger Stronghold wasn’t on Black Tiger Mountain at all—it even went by another name.
“Lady! We’ve reached the stronghold!”
Pushing through the final cluster of branches, the view opened up abruptly. Er Dangjia’s rough, booming voice echoed across the mountain peaks. “Brothers of Qianjin Zhai! Come welcome your Er Dangjia’s lady!”
Xie Chengze lifted his gaze to see a substantial stronghold nestled in the wilderness, resembling a slumbering beast lurking within the cliffs. Devoid of ornate decorations, its walls were studded with scattered animal bones and shattered blades that glinted coldly under the snowy light, sending chills down the spine.
Within the mountain stronghold, the buildings were mostly simple wooden huts with thatched roofs. At the center lay a training ground where the bandits practiced drills, flanked by several wooden tables, long benches, and racks displaying weapons like bows, arrows, and broadswords. Numerous men clad in animal-skin coats patrolled the area. The main gate stood tall and heavy, constructed from thick logs crisscrossed horizontally and vertically, its planks studded with large iron nails, making it exceptionally sturdy.
On the lintel, three crooked, hideously written characters—resembling someone’s awful handwriting, if not worse—were scrawled, likely in animal blood or some similar substance: Qianjin Zhai.
Xie Chengze couldn’t help but comment, “So ugly.”
Not only were they ugly, but one character was also misspelled—the character for “stronghold” was missing a horizontal stroke.
“What?” Er Dangjia looked up upon hearing Xie Chengze speak.
“I said, the calligraphy of your Qianjin Zhai is truly hideous,” Xie Chengze leaned in to whisper the critique.
“Hey! I think so too!” Er Dangjia immediately lowered his voice. “Our Da Dangjia wrote that. I told him it was ugly, but he wouldn’t believe me! Madam, you clearly have a skilled hand—someday you should show him what beautiful characters really look like!”
Xie Chengze promptly lifted his chin with pride. “Naturally! My calligraphy is unparalleled in the world!”