Chapter 274: Zhang Hu Tries to Cross the Checkpoint
As the group of martial artists took advantage of the night to converse briefly with the soldiers at the checkpoint, Zhang Hu observed how easily they were granted passage. At that moment, he immediately understood what needed to be done.
“You stay here. If it works, I’ll come back for you and then call the others.”
“Got it!”
Hu Liu readily agreed. Since he didn’t know any light-footwork techniques, he couldn’t risk approaching the checkpoint recklessly. If the soldiers refused passage and a fight broke out, Zhang Hu could at least escape using his agility. Staying behind also meant he could hide among the rocks and not become a burden.
“Brothers, we are humble folks from the wilderness, hoping to cross into your border town to sell some local specialties. I kindly ask for your understanding and help.”
Zhang Hu didn’t dare make up wild stories—after all, they would soon be crossing with ten carts full of goods, which couldn’t possibly be hidden.
Hearing that Zhang Hu wanted to sell goods, the four border guards exchanged silent glances before turning their attention back to him.
“What are you selling?”
“Some fruits. I even brought some for you to try.”
With that, Zhang Hu took out a cloth bag filled with tomatoes and handed them to the guards.
Each of the guards took a tomato from the bag. Under the flickering torchlight, the fruit’s vibrant red hue became even more striking, catching their attention.
“What is this? You grew this in the wilderness? I’ve never seen anything like it before. People from the wilderness have come to trade before, but they mostly brought wild animals or furs. This is the first time I’ve heard of fruits being grown there.”
“That’s right! This is our first harvest. These fruits are delicious!”
Seeing that the guards were only looking at the tomatoes but hesitating to eat them despite their curiosity, Zhang Hu quickly grabbed one, took a big bite, and chewed it with satisfaction.
Juice burst from the tomato, glistening under the firelight, making the soldiers’ eyes widen in amazement.
“Hey, isn’t the wilderness supposed to be dry and barren? How did you manage to grow such juicy fruits? The smell is nice too. Maybe it tastes good? Let’s try it!”
Since Zhang Hu had casually taken one at random from the bag and eaten it right in front of them, the guards figured there was no harm in tasting it themselves.
Once they took a bite, their eyes lit up in surprise.
“This fruit tastes so strange! A little sour, a little sweet… but most importantly, it’s incredibly juicy! It’s actually pretty good, and I was just feeling thirsty.”
“Yeah! This is the first time I’ve tasted a fruit like this.”
“If you like it, these are all for you,” Zhang Hu said smoothly. “And here’s five taels of silver, a little something to buy you all some drinks. We’ll only be here for three days—if we don’t sell these fruits quickly, they’ll just rot.”
Seeing how much they were enjoying the tomatoes, Zhang Hu pressed his advantage, shoving the remaining fruit into their hands. Since there were five of them, he also took out five small silver pieces and handed them over with the bag.
“This fruit must sell for quite a bit, huh? Five taels of silver just to pass? You think too little of us, don’t you?”
One of the guards scoffed, weighing the silver in his palm with an unimpressed expression. His tone was full of disdain.
Realizing they wanted more, Zhang Hu took a deep breath, as if making a difficult decision, and pulled out another five taels of silver, placing it in the soldier’s hand.
“Brother, we people of the wilderness are poor. We just want to sell some crops to improve our lives. Please show some mercy. If our goods sell well, we’ll be sure to bring you more next time.”
Holding the silver, the soldier showed no sign of letting them pass. Instead, he sneered even more.
“Hmph! Why should we care if you’re poor? We stand guard here for only two taels of silver a month—who has ever shown us any sympathy? Besides, letting you wilderness folk pass without proper documents is illegal. Do you think you can brush us off with just this little bit of silver?”
Seeing that the guard intended to extort them further, Zhang Hu clenched his teeth but knew that getting aggressive wasn’t an option. There were at least ten thousand, if not twenty thousand, stationed soldiers at this checkpoint. If this guard shouted for reinforcements, they wouldn’t just fail to establish trade in Dongfeng Kingdom—they might not even make it out alive.
Weighing his options, Zhang Hu swallowed his frustration and forced a smile.
“How much do you need to let us through? If it’s too much, we’ll just have to turn back.”
“Fifty taels. Ten taels for each of us. Otherwise, don’t even think about crossing.”
At that number, Zhang Hu nearly lost his composure.
“Fifty taels?! That’s too much! We haven’t even sold anything yet! How about this—if we manage to sell our goods, we’ll make up the difference on our way back?”
“Make up for it later? Don’t talk nonsense. By the time you return, the guards on duty will have changed. Where would we even find you to collect? Stop wasting time. If you delay any longer and more patrols come by, you won’t be getting through at all.”
Hearing this, Zhang Hu gritted his teeth and reluctantly pulled out another ten taels of silver, handing it over.
“This is all I have on me. I’ll bring the remaining twenty taels when our convoy crosses later. I just need to go back and gather the rest from my brothers.”
“Fine, but be quick. We switch shifts in an hour.”
Seeing that Zhang Hu truly had no more silver on him, the guards relented. With an impatient wave, they gave their warning.
Zhang Hu quickly thanked them before hurrying back to inform his group.
In truth, he still had more silver. Before setting out, Yu Luo had provided them with sufficient funds for contingencies. However, these guards were clearly greedy—if he had offered too much from the start, they would have kept demanding more.
Yu Luo had instructed them to prepare bribes when passing checkpoints and was willing to accept costs up to a thousand taels, but Zhang Hu knew better than to give in too easily. If he had started with fifty taels, they might not have been able to pass without paying several hundred.
At last, under the watchful eyes of the border guards, Zhang Hu led the convoy of ten carts through the checkpoint.
