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The thick wooden board was like flimsy silk before the giant crossbow bolt, torn to pieces. The bolt's momentum carried it through, embedding deep into the ground, its shaft still quivering as if a steadfast warrior charging to its last moment.
Linagu's face darkened. The bolt landed just a hundred paces from his seat, fired from the mountaintop. If the ballista adjusted slightly, he'd be the target. Against such a high-speed projectile, unless you predicted its path, dodging was nearly impossible once it was visible.
His scalp tingled, itching to tear off his headwrap and scratch.
Weren't such heavy ballistae only found in major cities?
In all his years in the border regions, Linagu had only seen them in two—Yunzhong and Linrong…
"Lord Fei, is this your display?" Linagu's expression flickered.
Fei Qian smiled. "Yes, but… it's not over yet…"
Not over? What did that mean?
Linagu spun toward the mountaintop.
A piercing wail followed as four black streaks shot from the summit!
"Thud, thud, thud, thud!" Four near-simultaneous impacts rang out. Linagu turned slowly. The massive wooden target was obliterated, leaving only five dark bolts quivering unevenly in the ground…
The noise drew eyes from the market. Many Hu froze, some dropping their goods unnoticed.
The Cui family clerks in the market subtly straightened, their smiles growing warmer.
No more bolts fired, but the Hu, previously loud over disputes, instinctively lowered their voices…
Linagu closed his eyes, imagining the scenario. One ballista? His cavalry might rush through with speed. But five, firing in sequence? A catastrophe!
He glanced at the nearby camp, gauging the distance. The bolts' range easily covered it, and their accuracy was terrifying…
"Does this display pass muster?" Fei Qian asked.
"Ah…" Linagu's throat felt dry. He gulped two mouthfuls of wine before saying, "It does! Impressive, truly impressive…"
Fei Qian smiled, waving for soldiers to clear the debris.
When leaving the Huang family's hidden estate, Fei Qian had asked patriarch Huang Chengyan for parts to assemble five ballistae, kept hidden in his carriage. At Beiqu, Huang Dou unpacked and set them up on the mountaintop.
But there were only these five. Without the Huangs' precision components, any more would lack accuracy, range, or durability…
Linagu, unaware, heard the ongoing clanging from the mountaintop and grew uneasy. The stool felt uncomfortable; he shifted, forcing a dry laugh. "Lord Fei, your market seems well-stocked…"
"Naturally. If it's on the market, I have it."
Linagu leaned closer. "Then… blades and armor… do you have those?"
Fei Qian thought, If I had blades and armor, I'd keep them. Sell to you? But he said, "We do have them, but the price… and it's not convenient now. Though we hit it off today, it's still our first meeting…"
Linagu's eyes flickered. "What does Lord Fei mean…?"
Fei Qian chuckled. "I mean nothing… truly, nothing…"
Linagu laughed heartily. "Good, good, I understand!"
Fei Qian smiled. Sometimes, the world worked this way: speak the truth, and few believe you; lies, they embrace…
---
Ada quietly set down a piece of cloth. He wanted it—his wife had nagged about it—but he needed a cauldron and tea more.
After passing several stalls, he found one selling tea bricks. Excited, he crouched, pointing to the smallest. "This… how to trade?" He lifted his sheep. "This one, for that, okay?"
"Big sheep, almost enough, but I don't take sheep…" The clerk didn't speak Hu, but Fei Qian, after opening the market, had hired Hu who knew Han to translate. The clerk stood, calling, "Hey! You… Guzha! No, Zhagu! Zhagu, over here!"
"Zhagu?" Ada turned, puzzled.
"Ada?!" A Hu man turned, saw him, and rushed over, embracing and patting Ada's back.
"You two know each other? Explain it to him…" the clerk said.
"Ada, you want… oh, tea? Right, you can't trade sheep directly… come with me…" Zhagu led Ada to a separate shelter. "Sell your sheep here first, then use the money to buy tea…"
Money? Ada knew what it was, but Hu traded goods directly with Han or within tribes, rarely using coins.
"Why so complicated? Sheep for tea is simpler," Ada grumbled. Money couldn't be eaten or drunk—what use was it? Coins were for chieftains; common herders like him had little interest.
"Hey! That's the rule here. And…" Zhagu glanced around, whispering, "Trading directly, we always lose out. Money's better! I'll help."
With Zhagu's aid, Ada sold his sheep for five-zhu coins, then used them to buy the small tea brick. To his surprise, he still had a few coins left…
"This…" Ada looked at the tea brick in his left hand, the coins in his right, confused. He traded a sheep for tea—how did he end up with extra money?
Zhagu laughed. "See? Direct trade, no extra coins!"
Ada tucked the tea brick—less than a pound—carefully into his chest, clutching the coins. Suddenly, he remembered something and bolted.
"Ada! Hey, where you going? Leaving already?" Zhagu called, puzzled. Most herders spent every coin before leaving.
Ada, running, shouted back, "My horse's with Bada—I've got more sheepskins! I'll trade them for more of this… this money!"
*****
A/N: Han dynasty tea value: ordinary tea bricks roughly matched meat prices. Meat: 10 jin ≈ 1 shi of grain (recorded equivalence). Grain: ~220 coins per shi (varies with harvest). 1 shi of rice = 13–15 kg. A sheep in Han lands: 300–500 coins. So, if Ada traded one sheep at this market, how much profit did Fei Qian make?