Chapter 204: Taking Action
Chapter 204: Taking Action
September 20, 2017
Ten days later, hidden undercurrents stirred within Qiangyin County, and a plot against Lu Haikong had taken shape.
During this time, Li Xiong frequently traveled between the Mountain Camp and Qiangyin County, but he remained unaware of this hidden danger.
It wasn't that Li Xiong had become careless; rather, his opponents had become more cautious. Over the past half a month, Li Xiong had exposed himself too much, and his adversaries had conducted a thorough analysis of him. Under such meticulous calculations, Li Xiong could only sense that something seemed amiss in Qiangyin County.
Li Xiong was a cautious man, and the situation in Qiangyin County made him feel uneasy. He immediately prepared to leave and started investigating, but just then, the Zhao Family informed him that they had prepared another batch of iron ore.
The Mountain Camp was severely lacking in iron ore, which prevented them from crafting many items. Lu Haikong had repeatedly emphasized the importance of collecting iron ore whenever possible.
Under these circumstances, with a large amount of iron ore in front of him, Li Xiong couldn't ignore it. So, he was delayed once again, and the delay lasted an entire day.
During this time, Li Xiong negotiated the iron ore deal with the Zhao Family while using the connections he had established over the past half a month to investigate the situation. He also sent news back to the Mountain Camp about the Zhao Family's intention to trade iron ore.
Although Li Xiong reported this news to the Mountain Camp and sought instructions from Lu Haikong, he remained cautious. He hadn't seen Zhao Xie for some time, and the person negotiating the iron ore deal with him wasn't Zhao Xie either. When Li Xiong brought it up, the other party dismissed it, claiming that Zhao Xie had caught a cold.
Given his cautious nature, Li Xiong naturally took action at this point, requesting to visit Zhao Xie.
To his surprise, the Zhao Family readily agreed, and Li Xiong met with Zhao Xie that very day. Zhao Xie seemed to be in poor health, as if he had indeed caught a cold. After a brief and chilly conversation, Zhao Xie excused himself, citing discomfort.
At this point, Li Xiong should have dismissed his suspicions, but in fact, the opposite happened—he became even more suspicious.
Everything was too smooth, and the Zhao Family was too accommodating. It seemed as if they had prepared and orchestrated everything in advance.
"There's definitely something wrong in Qiangyin County. We must return immediately and inform our lord to strengthen the defenses. I suspect the Wang Family has made their move!"
After returning from the Zhao Family, Li Xiong immediately prepared to leave. Just as they stepped out of the courtyard where Li Xiong had been staying in Qiangyin County, a group of private soldiers led by the Zhao Family surrounded them.
Amidst the applause, a burly man emerged from the private soldiers. It was none other than the coachman who had taken the middle-aged scholar to Shanwu.
"Are you from the Wang Family?" Li Xiong's face remained as calm as still water.
"I am Kou Ming from the Wang Family of Horizontal Ridge City. I've heard of your exceptional talents, Li Zhai Master. Our master greatly admires your abilities. Now that your Mountain Camp is on the verge of destruction, if you surrender to our lord, he can guarantee you a life of wealth and honor."
Kou Ming, despite his imposing appearance, spoke in a refined manner, clearly having learned from the middle-aged scholar. Although he didn't master it perfectly, his speech was somewhat incoherent, but he managed to convey his message.
"Destroy the Mountain Camp? Quite a bold claim! Do you think you can do it with your ragtag band of private soldiers? If it weren't for our repeated pleas, your Wang Family would have been wiped out by our lord long ago. Now you dare to talk about destroying the Mountain Camp? It's laughable." Li Xiong chuckled coldly. Despite his absence from the Mountain Camp, he was well aware of its formidable strength.
His words were not an exaggeration; the Mountain Camp's low-key development was a sign of strength, not weakness. To be blunt, even if all the influential families in Qiangyin County joined forces, Lu Haikong wouldn't necessarily fear them.
"Indeed, our Wang Family might be slightly inferior on its own. But what if the five influential families in Qiangyin County, the Zhang Family in Shanwu, and our Wang Family joined forces? Together, these seven families could easily muster five thousand private soldiers, and with some effort, even ten thousand elite soldiers. With such overwhelming might, do you think it would be difficult to destroy your insignificant Mountain Camp?"
Kou Ming spoke with arrogance, and his words weren't entirely false. In just a short span of days, his master had united the seven influential families and assembled five thousand soldiers to attack the Mountain Camp. However, his intention wasn't merely to boast; he also wanted to intimidate Li Xiong. As the middle-aged scholar had said, this man needed to be suppressed to be easily subdued.
But Kou Ming had miscalculated. Instead of being intimidated, Li Xiong smiled with confidence upon hearing his words.
"Five thousand? Ten thousand? Ha! Quite an impressive number!"
Li Xiong strode forward, surveying the surrounding private soldiers. "Do you really think the horses, cattle, and sheep that the Mountain Camp trades are falling from the sky? They are exchanged for the goods we trade with your influential families. Don't be ridiculous. The goods we trade with you are barely enough for our own use; how could we possibly trade them with the Xianbei and Huns?"
Li Xiong paused, his face filled with reverence. "Our lord's might is unparalleled. The horses we trade with you are stained with the blood of the Huns, taken by our lord and his men as they annihilated an entire tribe of ten thousand Huns. Do you truly believe that your private soldiers can threaten our Mountain Camp?"
Li Xiong's words caused a slight commotion among the private soldiers, especially those from the Zhao Family, who had connections with the Qiangyin County soldiers. They remembered how the Qiangyin County soldiers had been humiliated and driven back by the Mountain Camp.
Kou Ming frowned upon seeing this. Li Xiong was proving to be more challenging than he had anticipated. Even at this critical moment, Li Xiong not only showed no fear but also managed to dampen their morale.
Li Xiong looked at Kou Ming and smiled coldly. "Furthermore, do you think the Wang Family is so eager to contact these influential families for no reason? They were once our trading partners, but their greed became too apparent. They wanted to sell a pound of goods for one gold coin, and that's not the worst part. After taking our money, they even tried to reclaim the goods they had sold..."
"Silence! You dare to slander us at the brink of death! Men, seize this mountain bandit!" Kou Ming's youth showed as he couldn't wait to capture Li Xiong even before he finished speaking.
Chapter end
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