CHAPTER 1096: CHAPTER 601: ZHAO DOUAN: TEACHING PRINCE JING A LESSON (2)

Jin Jian, trying to stay upbeat, was devouring smoked meat pie with both hands like a little hamster. Upon hearing the conversation, he suddenly tilted his head, thinking for a moment before staring at Zhao Douan and saying, "You’ll have to pay more."

Dealing with Qingshan wasn’t exactly the duty of the Heavenly Master Mansion, but it didn’t break any rules either. Each task is its own, and the priest can intervene personally.

Zhao Douan was overjoyed: "That’s fine, that’s fine..."

Yu Xiu held her forehead and sighed softly.

...

After the meal, the caravan continued its journey.

The long procession walked along the snow-covered official road for about half an hour, and then a wide stone bridge appeared ahead.

Beside the stone bridge, rebel soldiers were stationed.

And behind the stone bridge, there was a complex of buildings, including a fortress-like city gate tower that bore the banner of the Jiancheng Road rebels. Beyond it was a small town called White Stone Town.

The small town wasn’t big; it had been a place for surrounding villages and traveling merchants to live and develop for hundreds of years. Yet now, not many townspeople were visible; the entire White Stone Town had turned into a "military town," exuding a killing aura.

"Stop! Accept inspection!"

At the bridgehead, the leading rebel officer saw the caravan approaching and shouted loudly.

He immediately led a team of fully armored soldiers over aggressively.

Huang Xiaorou was stunned for a moment and murmured in a low voice, "Why is the checkpoint so much stricter than last time?"

"Officer, we’ve got the approval for our caravan. Here’s our travel permit." The escort leader Old Huang approached with a smile, familiarly handing out the travel permit issued by the Jiancheng Army.

"Everyone get off the vehicles and accept inspection!" The officer glanced at him, expressionless, and then waved his hand: "Thoroughly search each vehicle for contraband!"

"Yes!"

A large group of rebels clad in cotton coats and armor pounced over like wolves and tigers, harshly thrusting the long spears in their hands into the goods under the rain tarpaulin on the carts!

"Sshhh..."

From the punctured holes, grain flowed out like water, yet they didn’t care, and instead poked a few more holes.

Some even jumped onto the carts, using the spear tips to pry the goods and send them flying.

Watching this made Old Huang and the escort masters’ eyelids twitch wildly; the inspection was so thorough as if they were afraid even a mosquito would get into Hu Ting.

"Dad, something’s not right... Why is the inspection so strict?" Huang Xiaorou whispered.

The escort leader Old Huang shook his head and murmured, "Let them inspect, don’t resist."

Meanwhile, a group of rebels reached Zhao Douan’s carriage.

Zhao Douan, Yu Xiu, and Jin Jian had already alighted in advance, looking like villagers.

Several soldiers’ eyes lit up slightly seeing the two women, though they were restrained by military discipline, so they merely glanced a few times. However, a soldier used a long spear to lift the carriage curtain, his face changing as he shouted, "There’s a woman inside the carriage!"

Not far away, the officer strode over, expressionlessly sneering: "Pull her out! Hiding like this must be suspicious."

A soldier thrust his spear towards the carriage, but suddenly a hand lightly grabbed it.

Zhao Douan smiled and intervened, saying, "My sister is shy and stayed in the carriage; please don’t misunderstand, officers."

The officer raised an eyebrow at his audacity to stop them, coldly staring at him and sneered:

"Shy?! I want to see how shy she is, huh, probably some small spy crossing the border? You all look suspicious. Tell me, who are you and what are your intentions going east?"

Just as Zhao Douan was about to speak,

Huang Xiaorou suddenly rushed over, interrupting him: "They’re with the caravan, going for business."

The escort leader Old Huang piled up a smile and walked over, blocking between the two, nodding continuously: "Yes, they’re with the caravan. Absolutely trustworthy, all upright people, can’t be spies; there’s no spy as noticeable as this!"

Saying this, from his sleeve slid a heavy pouch of silver, which was discreetly handed over to the officer.

The so-called escort masters aren’t like those in novels who just fight; most of the time, they rely on negotiations and offer bribes to mountain bandits along the way for protection. After all, bandits wouldn’t want to risk their lives battling escort masters, so offering money is a common practice.

Some officials at checkpoints along the way are no different from bandits, demanding bribes just the same.

However, the officer was icy cold this time, accepting the pouch first and weighing it, then coldly saying: "Trying to bribe with silver? Looks like there’s even more to this."

At this moment, a rebel soldier jumped onto a carriage with a spear and shouted loudly: "Chief, there’s a large coffin here!"

The officer looked over and saw the soldier lift the rain tarp, revealing a large coffin bound with ropes.

His gaze sharpened, coldly saying: "Business? I don’t see how selling a separate coffin in the front line fits into business. Open the coffin! Let’s see what’s hiding inside!"

"Hold on."

At this point, Zhao Douan suddenly spoke up again, still wearing a faint smile, seemingly unfazed by the menacing rebels.

"There’s nothing in this coffin, you can’t open it." He said calmly.

Instantly, all eyes turned towards him, all showing a look of shock.

Huang Xiaorou’s eyes widened, feeling an urge to stomp her feet, cursing "fool!" in her heart!

No matter how much she warned, something went wrong; merely an empty coffin, which she had already checked while loading, was nothing to worry about. Yet this foolish young lord decided to cause trouble now, only making everyone fear the worst outcome.

Sure enough, the officer stared deeply at him, his gaze turning fierce: "What did you say?"

Zhao Douan replied earnestly: "There’s nothing in this coffin. You can’t open it; damaging it wouldn’t be good."

At this moment, the rebels looked at each other, feeling a sense of absurdity, thinking this person was truly incredibly naive.

Who’s this bookworm? Aristocrat? If it were normal times, a bunch of soldiers wouldn’t dare provoke such people easily, but now? Where are we? Who cares what your status is, obstructing the inspection is undoubtedly courting death.

"Fine, excellent." The officer laughed angrily, his face turning completely cold as he waved a hand: "Forget about the coffin. Tie these people up and take them back for a thorough interrogation!"

The escort master Old Huang was anxious: "Officer, can’t this... We have a permit, everything is in accordance..."

The officer swung his hand and struck him: "Prince Jing ordered an inspection of those crossing the border. Now the Huai River Western Front is occupied by the Pseudo-Emperor Court. Nobody can guarantee those crossing aren’t spies. Anyone obstructing is guilty of espionage—executed without mercy!"

Old Huang endured the slap without fighting back.

The escort masters felt like they were drenched in icy water, losing all composure.

Huang Xiaorou’s eyes turned red with desperation, glaring at Zhao Douan. The very thing she feared happened: what could their group of escort masters do against the rebels?

If Zhao Douan and his group were indeed captured and interrogated by the rebels, the consequences were predictable. Even if innocent, they could be falsely accused, and the fate of those three women upon entering the military camp was evident.

Moreover, the entire caravan would be implicated.

At this moment, when everyone felt their hearts sink deep into despair, the officer’s hand failed to land the strike and was abruptly halted mid-air.

Unexpectedly, a hand reached out and arrested the officer’s arm in mid-air, preventing it from falling!

Zhao Douan casually pinched the opponent, his smile gradually fading as he said seriously, "Xu Wen doesn’t know how to manage his soldiers, so I’ll take the trouble and manage them for him."

"Who... who are you..." The officer’s eyes widened. He tried to struggle but realized with horror that his arm seemed bound by steel, unable to budge.

In the next second, Zhao Douan lost his patience, a strand of golden light flew from his sleeve, instantly slashing across the officer’s neck.

The Golden Crow Flying Dagger!