At the same time, in Huanglong Mountain.
Huanglong Mountain lay at the junction of Luochuan, Yichuan, and Cheng County. The northern slope of the mountain fell squarely within the borders of Yichuan County.
The sky was already dimming toward evening when a Ming army unit arrived at the foot of the mountain.
This force was led by Wu Zimian, the General Commander of Yansui, tasked with suppressing bandits under orders from the newly appointed Yansui Governor Zhang Mengjing, whose first act in office was to light three fires and make a show of crushing the fierce outlaw Wang Zuogua, who had entrenched himself in Huanglong Mountain.
A General Commander held no fixed rank. In times of war, he carried the general's seal into battle, and afterward returned it.
Despite lacking rank, the authority of the position was immense, roughly equivalent to a regional military commander.
Wu Zimian was a man in his forties, thick-bodied and round-faced, the kind of person whose brain probably had a layer of grease over it. His armor strained against his bulk, and the warhorse beneath him wheezed under the burden, breathing heavily as if it had just climbed five flights of stairs carrying a sack of rice.
He glanced up at the towering mass of Huanglong Mountain and snorted.
"Damn that Zhang Mengjing. New official, three fires, all aimed at burning bandits. And I am the unlucky fool dragged into this mess. You call this a place for men to enter? Tall mountains, dense forests, ravines everywhere. I go in there once and come out a few pounds lighter, if I even come out at all."
One of his trusted attendants leaned in with a grin.
"The job is tough, sure, but the governor provided plenty of military rations. We can pretend to suppress bandits, skim off the supplies, and make a tidy profit."
Wu Zimian's face broke into a satisfied smile.
"Now that is the kind of thinking I like. Why risk life and limb for nothing when there is money to be made?"
Just as he said this, a centurion slipped into the camp and dropped to his knees.
"General, this humble one is Li, a mere centurion of the Yansui garrison. You likely do not remember me."
Wu Zimian waved a hand. "Speak. What do you want?"
The centurion lowered his voice and pushed forward a heavy pouch of silver.
"I have heard that lives may be bought here. I have prepared this silver. I do not wish to enter the mountains and die in that wretched terrain. I only ask to buy my life."
Wu Zimian weighed the pouch in his hand, clearly pleased.
"Fine. Take my written order and leave through the north gate. Say you have been assigned a secret mission. Once you are out, disappear quietly and return home. But keep your mouth shut. If word gets out, military law will deal with you, and that will not end well."
The centurion kowtowed repeatedly, took the order, and slipped away.
No sooner had he left than another arrived, then another, a Zheng centurion, a Zhang commander.
Before long, a large number of soldiers had quietly slipped away, taking their subordinates with them. Wu Zimian's army rapidly lost its fighting strength, though that hardly mattered to him. A thousand miles of official service was for the sake of silver. Combat effectiveness was someone else's concern.
Still, he was not satisfied. He tilted his head and muttered, "What else can we squeeze money out of? Come on, think."
His attendant leaned closer again.
"General, the governor also provided a large number of warhorses. We can sell those as well. When asked later, we simply say the horses were shot by bandits and buried."
Wu Zimian's eyes lit up.
"Brilliant. Go find buyers immediately. We must dispose of the horses before that fool Zhang Mengjing starts asking questions."
…
Meanwhile, back in Gao Village Family, the atmosphere was cheerful and lively.
Li Dao Xuan sat in front of a large pot filled with pepper chicken from Tieshanping, eating with gusto, his face twitching from the numbing spice as he sucked in sharp breaths.
Inside the box, yet another martial matchmaking tournament was underway.
No one could remember how many times Gao Chuwu had fought Xing Honglang by now. Once again it was Jin-style Red Fist against Guanzhong Red Fist, fists colliding in a rapid storm of blows.
And once again, Gao Chuwu was sent crashing to the ground with a heavy thud, kicking up a cloud of dust.
The spectators groaned.
"This is getting boring."
"Gao Chuwu, can you win just once?"
"The men of Gao Village Family are losing face because of you."
Xing Honglang laughed heartily, rubbing her slightly sore fists as she stepped out of the ring. At that moment, her subordinate Old Zhu hurried over and lowered his voice.
"Boss, there is a very interesting deal making the rounds in the underworld."
Xing Honglang raised an eyebrow. "Oh? What kind of deal?"
"Warhorses. A batch of top-tier warhorses, five hundred of them, looking for a buyer."
She sucked in a breath. "Five hundred warhorses? That is no small business. Who has the power to dump something like that onto the black market?"
"The supplier refuses to reveal their identity. They only claim the horses are legitimate military stock, available for inspection, all first-rate."
Xing Honglang hesitated. This kind of deal was massive. If the horses were truly top quality, reselling them could easily bring in thousands of taels in profit. The only problem was finding a buyer capable of handling such goods.
While she hesitated, Li Dao Xuan did not.
This was exactly what he needed. Gao Village militia lacked nothing except horses. He could supply all kinds of materials, but living creatures were beyond his reach. He had been looking for warhorses for a long time without success. Now that they appeared on the black market, there was no way he would let this slip.
Gao Yiye was not present, so Li Dao Xuan resorted to paper. He spread out a sheet and displayed it downward.
"Xing Honglang, we are taking this batch."
She looked up, saw the words in the sky, and immediately made her decision.
"Old Zhu, where is the transaction?"
"The seller claims they can deliver anywhere within Shaanxi or Yansui."
Xing Honglang frowned. "That kind of capability… is this the government?"
Li Dao Xuan had the same thought. Government selling horses through the black market made no sense, yet something about it felt very off.
Then Xing Honglang let out a cold laugh.
"Some corrupt official must be secretly selling military horses. Whoever it is, they must be high-ranking, at least a General Commander. Which means this has to be Wu Zimian."
Li Dao Xuan could only shake his head internally. Another lesson learned. Late Ming generals truly had no limits when it came to creative corruption. No wonder the dynasty was falling apart.
Xing Honglang spoke again, her tone steady.
"Even if the seller claims delivery anywhere is fine, we cannot let them bring the horses to Gao Village Family. That would be asking for trouble. We need to choose a remote location, take delivery there, and then move the horses back quietly. I need to think this through carefully."
Ming Context: During the late Ming period, the Yansui Garrison was one of the Nine Frontier Garrisons defending against Mongol incursions. Corruption among officers—especially the selling of government horses—was rampant and became one of the empire's many fatal flaws.
Trivia:Huanglong Mountain still exists today in Shaanxi Province. Local legends say its slopes once hid rebels, bandits, and "dragon spirits" who guarded buried treasure—perhaps a faint echo of this very tale.