Chapter 6

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Li Jing ate breakfast and then set off for the town with a bolt of silk and two bolts of cloth on his back.

The town is called Chishan Town, but this town is not a modern township; it is a military town. Chishan Military Town is not far from Wang Li Village, at the foot of Chishan Mountain, next to Fahua Temple. Since the late Tang Dynasty, the fubing system had long been in decline, and the court mostly used recruited soldiers. The central government had the Shence Army, while local areas had the armies of various towns. Large towns were called "armies" and had military governors, while smaller ones had military cities, military towns, and garrisons, each with their own military commanders and troops stationed in various regions.

Dengzhou's Wendeng County is in the coastal area of Shandong, and Wang Li Village is near Chishanpu. Chishanpu is an excellent harbor, facing Japan and Silla across the sea, with a water route of only three days. The two major maritime routes of the Tang Dynasty were the Guangzhou Port and the Dengzhou Port. Guangzhou Port connected to the South Seas and the Western Regions, while Dengzhou Port connected to Liaodong, Bohai, Silla, and Japan. These two maritime routes were known as the Maritime Silk Road.

The main port of Dengzhou is in Penglai, but Chishanpu in Wendeng is the closest route to Silla and Japan, and has always been prosperous. The Ziqing Pinglu Military Governor's Office, which oversees Deng, Qing, Lai, Zibo, and Qi states, established Chishan Town at the foot of Chishan Mountain behind Chishanpu, directly under the command of the Pinglu Army.

Chishan Military Town has a garrison of 3,000 soldiers, and their families also live with them, making the town populous and bustling. The entire Chishan Military Town is nearly square, with each side about 1,100 meters long, adapted to the hilly and coastal terrain, with an irregular outline. The city walls are brick-built, with a gate and a barbican on each of the four sides, a total of 7 gate towers and corner towers, and a water gate at the river entrance. The main street runs east-west between the east and west gates, with a drum tower spanning the street to the west. The streets inside the south and north gates are also main streets, but they do not align directly. Secondary streets are mostly parallel to the main streets.

Due to the large number of soldiers and their families in Chishan Town, it has gradually become the center of the southwestern part of Wendeng County. Although the Tang Dynasty stipulated that only counties with more than 3,000 households could have a market, the regulations have become increasingly relaxed in recent years. Chishan Military Town, with its large population and proximity to the largest temple in Wendeng County, Fahua Temple, is very popular. The town commander of Chishan Town also holds the position of town defense commissioner, with significant power, higher than the county magistrate, and usually does not pay much attention to the county officials. He has established a market within the military town, and nearby residents mostly come to Chishan Town for their transactions.

The main responsibility of Chishan Military Town is to guard the safety of Chishanpu, preventing pirate attacks and plundering, and also to collect tariffs on goods from ships docked in the port. However, in the late Tang Dynasty, military officials were in power, and these military commanders were arrogant. Stationed here, they almost became local emperors, and even the county government had to respect them. The southwestern part of Wendeng County has almost become the direct jurisdiction of Chishan Military Town. Not only do the locals come to Chishan for their transactions, but even for disputes and lawsuits, they go to Chishan Town rather than to Wendeng County.

Li Jing left the house, and Lady Han watched his back until he was far away before returning to the courtyard.

At this time, the sun had just risen halfway, and the white frost on the ground had not yet melted. Walking on the frosty village road, it made a crunching sound.

It was already late autumn, and the winter wheat planted in August had already sprouted. Most of the men in the village had gone to the fields. The villagers of Li Wang Village used to grow rice and millet, as well as sorghum and soybeans, but in recent years, due to droughts and locust plagues, they could only grow more drought-resistant winter wheat and soybeans. Winter wheat was planted in August and harvested in May of the following year, after which they could plant another crop of soybeans, millet, or sorghum.

Li Jing was wearing a round-collar robe, which was lined but not filled with cotton, and his family could not afford a fur robe. The cold morning wind made him feel chilly all over.

Breathing out white mist, it took Li Jing about an hour to reach the foot of Chishan Mountain on the north side, where Chishan Town was located.

It was still early in the morning, and the eastern barbican gate had not yet opened. In front of the city gate, more than a hundred people had gathered. Some were leading donkeys and mules, others were driving carts, and most were carrying things on their shoulders or in their hands, mostly coming to the town for transactions. They sold charcoal, firewood, fish, meat, sheep, and pigs, among other things. However, most of the people were yellow and emaciated, with pale faces and thin bodies. Their clothes, though relatively neat, were patched with many patches.

Seeing these people stomping their feet to keep warm in the cold wind, Li Jing sighed deeply. Although the people's lives were hard, they could still survive. But when Wang Xianzhi and Huang Chao rebelled next year, everyone would have no way to survive. Although in his memory, Wang Xianzhi and Huang Chao's rebels did not reach Dengzhou, they did reach the states under the jurisdiction of Ziqing Pinglu.

Natural disasters were already frequent, and with the rebellion, the number of bandits would increase like locusts.

After waiting for a while, the town finally sounded the drum, and the eastern barbican gate creaked open. As the drawbridge was lowered, the people began to queue to enter the city.

"Two coins to enter the city!" A guard with a saber across his waist, hands crossed, and half-open eyes said to Li Jing.

Li Jing understood this. He had seen that everyone entering the city, whether driving a cart or empty-handed, had to pay two coins. With the current price of a dou of rice at 200 coins, the entry fee of two coins was not expensive. Li Jing took out the string of coins he had and put two Kaiyuan Tongbao coins into the bamboo basket in front of the soldier.

After entering the barbican gate, one did not go straight but walked about a hundred steps to the left along the city wall to reach the east gate of Chishan Town. This arrangement was to enhance the defense of the military town. Even if the barbican gate was captured during a war, the enemy could not immediately rush to the inner city gate but would have to walk around the city wall for a while, giving the defenders time to organize a counterattack.

Entering the city gate again, this time there was no fee, but there were more soldiers guarding. Each person entering was not searched but was scrutinized. If they were unfamiliar faces, they would be pulled aside for questioning. However, Chishan Town had been peaceful for a long time, with a large number of troops guarding it, and no bandits or pirates dared to attack, so it was just a formality.

After entering the city, following the east gate was the main street between the east and west gates, and the west city was a designated market. However, the market in the city was mostly for shops and wholesale transactions of large and valuable items. Ordinary nearby residents who came to the city for transactions mostly set up stalls along the main street. Selling on the street did not require high rent, only a small fee for the stall, and the stalls were not fixed, with early arrivals getting the best spots.

Li Jing first went to the cloth shop in the west market to sell the two bolts of cloth, exchanging them for 1,500 coins. Then he went to the grain shop, using 1,500 coins and a bolt of silk to exchange for 130 pounds of sorghum. This 130 pounds would be about 170 pounds in modern times, and at that time, it was more than a dou. Li Jing packed the sorghum into two large bags, thinking it would be difficult to carry back, but when he tried, he found it was not very heavy, and he was surprised by the strength of his body.

Originally, Lady Han had given him a bolt of silk and a string of coins to buy paper, ink, and books, but Li Jing did not do so. The family could hardly afford food, so he would not buy books and writing materials. It was the end of the Tang Dynasty, and he would not really take the imperial examinations.

Carrying more than a dou of grain, Li Jing did not stop but headed back along the same route. On the way, he heard a shout from the street: "Scholar brother, Scholar brother, you also came to the town?"

At first, he did not pay attention, thinking it was not for him. But when the person shouted a few times and saw no response, he ran in front of him and blocked his way. Li Jing looked up and realized it was an acquaintance.

The person calling him was the second son of the blacksmith Wang, who had a blacksmith shop in the town, named Xiaoshi, who was about the same age as him. The last time Li Jing and his brother Li Yu helped Xiaoshi's brother Dashi pick seaweed by the sea, they got into trouble.

"Scholar" was a title many people in the village used for Li Jing, as he had always studied and had some talent, so the villagers respected him. They only knew that the scholar was the hardest to pass in the imperial examinations and assumed it was the most capable. Therefore, they called him "Scholar," not knowing that the scholar category had been abolished for many years. Now, the main categories were the Jinshi and Mingjing, with the Jinshi being the most valuable.

"Xiaoshi, I came to the city to exchange for some sorghum and am now heading back to the village," Li Jing stopped and said.

"Scholar brother, can you help me bring something back to the village for my mother?" Xiaoshi was somewhat restrained in his words to Li Jing, partly because Li Jing had once obtained the status of a village tribute, making him a true scholar in the village, and partly because the last time Li Jing and his brother got into trouble because of the Wang family.

"Sure, just tell me what you need to bring," Wang the blacksmith worked in the city and rarely returned home, and now Xiaoshi also worked in the city with his father.

"Brother, wait a moment, I'll go get it." Xiaoshi ran off and returned a moment later, out of breath. He was holding a small bag, which contained about 20 to 30 pounds of sorghum, and two large strings of fish, each with six or seven fish, totaling about 20 pounds.

"Scholar brother, this bag of sorghum is for my family, and these two strings of fish are for my family and your family. I caught them in the moat. Take them home and eat them," Xiaoshi said hesitantly.

Seeing his cautious manner, Li Jing felt a mix of emotions. Although the last time they got into trouble was due to the salt collectors and unfair fate, it was clear that the Xiaoshi family felt responsible and guilty towards the Li family. The 20 pounds of fish might not be much, but it was a sincere gesture. He did not say anything more, smiled at Xiaoshi, and picked up his load.

He returned the same way, passing through the east gate and the eastern barbican gate. Entering the city was smooth, but leaving the city was problematic.

"Stop, those two strings of fish look very fat. I'll buy them for one string of coins," a voice with a hint of arrogance sounded from behind.

Li Jing turned around and met the man's eyes.

"It's you!" the man exclaimed.

Li Jing also recognized the man and said coldly, "Not for sale!"

PS: I've made it to the new book list in the category, but I'm still far from the homepage list. Brothers, give me some votes, clicks, and favorites.

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