Chapter 52: Hard Time? Lifting the City Gate with One Hand

Within a twenty-kilometer radius outside Fufeng Pass lay the territory under the absolute jurisdiction of the Great Qian Dynasty.

Further outward by another ten kilometers was a designated buffer zone, established through joint negotiations with the Northern Barbarians.

This region belonged to both dynasties in common.

The majority of friction and skirmishes between Great Qian and the Northern Barbarians also took place here.

Right at the very edge of this buffer zone, a small town existed amidst the sweeping yellow sands.

Consequently, the town was known as "Yellow Sand Town."

Inside a command tent at the Yellow Sand Town garrison, a burly man with a full beard and a height approaching two meters sat brooding.

The burly man was named Zhao Tong, and his position was that of the Grand Commander of the Yellow Sand Town garrison.

At this moment, he stared at the letter in his hands with a look of utter astonishment.

"What in the world is this? A new recruit is being assigned here this year?"

Over the years, the only people sent to Yellow Sand Town were criminals and those sent here as punishment. When had a newcomer ever run over here on their own accord?

Soon enough, Zhao Tong figured it out, muttering to himself, "It looks like this newly arrived soldier must have offended someone powerful."

After pondering for a brief moment, he raised his voice and shouted toward the outside.

"Someone come here!"

Following the order, a soldier stepped into the tent.

"Boss, what is it?"

The soldier asked bluntly upon entering, showing no particular formality.

Zhao Tong was not surprised by this attitude in the least; or rather, this was simply how the soldiers and their superiors interacted within the Yellow Sand Town garrison.

Zhao Tong chuckled heartily and said, "Go tell the men outside that a newcomer is enlisting this year. Tell them all to watch themselves and not to scare the newbie too badly."

......

After clarifying the situation at the teahouse, Li Dao rode his horse all the way toward the so-called Yellow Sand Town.

Along the way, he left Yunqi City, and half a day later, he caught sight of Fufeng Pass, one of the six great renowned passes of Great Qian.

However, pressed for time on his journey, he did not stop for a closer look and continued pressing onward toward Yellow Sand Town.

By the early morning of the next day—

"This must be the place."

Li Dao sat atop his horse, gazing at the distant loess-walled town as he thought to himself.

With a gentle nudge, he drove his horse toward the small town.

On the other side.

Atop the walls of Yellow Sand Town, a few soldiers were patrolling.

Although Yellow Sand Town was notorious for housing the most stubborn troublemakers, they still observed the necessary rules and routines; otherwise, the garrison could never have survived until this day.

Since Li Dao made no attempt to conceal his approach, the sentries patrolling the wall spotted the incoming traveler at a single glance.

Remembering what their boss had told them yesterday, how could they not realize that the newcomer had arrived?

"That must be the new recruit, right?"

"Definitely. Otherwise, who in their right mind would come alone to this forsaken bird-shit place?"

"So what should we do? Should we call the others?"

"No need to call them. Since he's a rookie, let's teach him the rules for newcomers ourselves first, so he won't have a hard time adjusting later."

"True. If we call the others, it might not be our turn anymore."

After conferring with each other, the two soldiers waited with eager anticipation.

A few minutes later.

Li Dao rode his horse right up to the main gate of Yellow Sand Town.

One of the soldiers on the wall called out, "Halt! Who goes there?"

Even though they had already guessed his identity, the proper procedures still had to be observed.

Li Dao took the assignment letter out from his bosom and replied, "A new recruit reporting for enlistment."

"A new recruit?"

One soldier stroked his chin with an expression of feigned suspicion. "It's been years since we've had any new recruits at the Yellow Sand Town garrison. You aren't trying to pull a fast one on us, are you?"

Li Dao raised an eyebrow. He was well aware of the standard procedure for new recruits joining the army.

Once a recruit's personal information was verified, their documents were immediately dispatched to the specific military post where they were required to report. Therefore, situations where a recruit arrived at a local garrison completely unannounced simply did not happen.

Clearly, this so-called "Troublemaker Battalion" was trying to give him a hard time.

He did not make a fuss. Instead, he simply lifted the assignment letter and stated bluntly, "The official seal is on the report letter. My identity can be verified."

"An official seal?"

The other soldier on the wall pretended to look down and squinted before shrugging. "Too bad. My eyesight is poor, I can't see it clearly."

Hearing this, Li Dao remained entirely unprovoked. He merely said calmly, "Then may I ask what the two of you suggest I should do?"

The soldier spread his hands. "You should solve your own problems yourself. We have no way to help you."

The other soldier chimed in immediately, "Or else you can turn back and invite someone else to come over and vouch for your identity."

"Of course, you mustn't take more than three days. If you exceed three days, you'll be classified as a deserter, and that will become very troublesome."

Li Dao glanced at the two men without a word. Instead, he blew a sharp whistle toward the sky.

The next second, a piercing eagle cry rang out from the heavens.

A dark streak of light dove swiftly down from the clouds.

Just as it was about to crash into Li Dao, it came to an instant halt and landed gracefully upon his shoulder.

The dark shadow was none other than Bai Qian, the falcon Li Dao had brought along.

Having undergone a transformative evolution through precious beast blood, even as a fledgling, it was far more formidable than many fully grown eagles.

"Go, deliver the letter up there."

At his command, Bai Qian picked up the assignment letter in its beak, spread its wings, and flew up above the two soldiers, dropping the letter down upon them.

However, while dropping the letter, it also delivered a small "bonus."

One of the soldiers instinctively reached out and caught the falling envelope.

The next instant, a glob of white liquid landed squarely right between his eyebrows.

Reaching up to wipe it away, he instinctively gave it a sniff. A pungent, fishy stench invaded his nostrils, and how could he possibly fail to understand what it was?

"You brat, you..."

"Quiet! Don't forget the rules."

Just as the soldier was about to fly into a rage, he was interrupted by his companion.

At this, the soldier regained his composure, remembered the situation, let out a long breath to steady his mood, though his expression remained exceedingly unsightly.

Li Dao spoke up from below the wall, "Can the two of you see clearly now?"

Without even looking, the soldier replied, "We see it. So what?"

"Then can you open the gate and let me in?"

"Sorry, the two of us don't have that kind of authority."

The soldier sneered in explanation, "We are only responsible for patrolling, not for opening the gates."

"And as a matter of unfortunate coincidence, let me inform you that the two guards assigned to the gates have suffered from heatstroke due to the weather and have been sent to rest. There are still three hours left until the next shift change."

"So, your options right now are either to wait for three hours..."

"Or open the gate and come in yourself."

Clearly, Li Dao's actions had deeply angered them, and they were determined to make things difficult for him to the very end.

They had the patience for this game, but Li Dao certainly did not.

So he asked, "What do you mean by opening it myself?"

Hearing that Li Dao actually intended to open the gate himself, the soldier immediately wore a malicious grin.

He bluntly stated, "The gates of Yellow Sand Town are unlike ordinary city gates. They open vertically."

"If you want to open this gate, one way is to use the internal mechanism to hoist it up."

"The other way is to lift it up entirely with brute force."

Hearing this, Li Dao cast a glance at the gate of Yellow Sand Town.

He noticed it differed from typical double-leaf gates. It was constructed from numerous thick, solid wooden beams reinforced with iron plating. Above it was a gap large enough to accommodate the raised door, while its sharpened wooden tips at the bottom were embedded into the ground. It could indeed be lifted vertically.

Giving the two soldiers on the wall another look, Li Dao led his horse toward the massive gate.

The two guards on the wall froze the moment they saw this, exchanging bewildered glances.

"Is this new recruit an idiot? Does he actually expect to lift the city gate?"

"Want to find out? Let's go take a look."

"Right, right, let's go look. If he actually tries to lift the gate, I'm going to have a good laugh at his expense."

"Let's go, let's go."

By the time Li Dao arrived in front of the city gate, the two sentries from the wall had also made their way inside to stand right behind the gate.

Through the square gaps in the middle of the door, he could see them, but he ignored them completely, nor did he bother asking why they had abandoned their post to run down here.

He carefully examined the gate before him, knocked on it with his knuckles, thought for a moment, and nodded slightly.

When this city gate was manufactured, special techniques must have been employed.

Although it was made of wood, its weight was unquestionably massive.

Meanwhile, the two soldiers on the other side of the gate watched Li Dao's serious expression and froze once again.

"Looks like this fellow is actually going to try it."

"Let him try then. We've already made it clear. But this guy is truly young and reckless; he can't even take a little provocation. If he actually meets those old troublemakers inside, he probably won't survive a day."

"Hey, what if—just what if this guy actually manages to lift the gate?"

"Are you dreaming? This gate is forged from solid iron-wood, thoroughly drilled and oil-soaked to make it even heavier. With the iron plating and iron nails on top, altogether it conservative weighs at least five thousand catties! If he can lift that thing by himself, I'll kneel right here and call him father on the spot!"

One of the soldiers made a solemn vow right then and there.

The other soldier slapped his own forehead. "What am I even thinking? How could anyone possibly lift this gate by himself? If he can lift it, you can be his son, and I'll be his grandfather—the kind who kowtows three times with nine prostrations right on the spot!"

While they were arguing among themselves, Li Dao had already finished making his preparations.

He patted his horse, then stripped off his upper garments, knowing his clothes might be ruined in the process.

With his shirt removed, Li Dao, who usually looked slender in his robes, revealed a physique sculpted with perfectly defined, rock-solid muscles enhanced by his continuous physical strengthening. A fierce, rugged aura finally emanated from him.

Stepping up to the heavy gate, he squatted slightly, placing his hands beneath one of the convenient horizontal wooden beams.

Then he took a deep breath.

"Rise!"

The next instant, his waist, legs, and arms exerted force all at once.

Under the immense pressure, the muscles all over his body visibly bulged, and a network of thick veins throbbed across his skin.

Creak—crack!

Right at that moment, the previously motionless gate actually began to tremble. Fine dust rained down from the gaps above, accompanied by the groaning sound of grinding timber.

No way!

Not far behind the inner side of the gate, the two soldiers watched this scene with expressions frozen in sheer horror.

What kind of background did this new recruit have? To actually shake a five-thousand-catty gate—even just making it tremble was something beyond ordinary mortals.

However, the shock awaiting them had only just begun.

As Li Dao steadily increased his strength, the trembling gate began to rise slowly.

Finally, propelled by his terrifying might, it continued to ascend.

A few breaths later.

The wooden door was lifted all the way up to Li Dao's neck level.

Yet that still wasn't enough. Such a height might allow him to pass under, but his horse certainly couldn't, and furthermore, he didn't like ducking his head to enter, especially in front of two "troublemakers."

"Up!"

Li Dao unleashed his internal strength once more, pushing upward with both hands, and hoisted the five-thousand-catty gate entirely over his head.

The astonishment did not stop there.

After ensuring the stability of the elevated gate, Li Dao suddenly withdrew one hand, choosing to prop up the massive door with just a single arm.

He had to admit that a five-thousand-catty gate was indeed quite heavy; supporting it with one hand finally made him feel a slight touch of pressure, but it was nothing he couldn't handle.

With his free hand, he grabbed the horse's reins and pulled the animal inside through the threshold.

Having done this, Li Dao stepped backward and casually lowered the gate.

Boom!

With a thunderous crash, the heavy door slammed into the ground.

That impact landed not only on the floor but straight upon the hearts of the two "troublemakers."

Amidst the deafening sound, the two men felt their legs turn completely weak.

Facing a powerhouse like Li Dao, their rebellious thorns could no longer stand erect.

Li Dao put his clothes back on, grabbed his horse, and walked up to the two soldiers.

Thud! Thud!

Before he could even speak, he suddenly saw both men drop to their knees.

"Father!"

"Grandfather!"

Finished shouting, the soldier who called him grandfather immediately began kowtowing.

Li Dao raised an eyebrow. "What is the meaning of this..."

The soldier who called him father replied, "I said earlier that if you could lift the gate and come in, I would acknowledge you as my father."

"And him?"

"He said that if you lifted the gate, he'd recognize you as his grandfather, with three kowtows and nine prostrations included."

Having said this, the soldier who called Li Dao father didn't feel at all aggrieved.

After all, although he had just called someone father, he now had a good brother who had to call that same person grandfather. Calculating it that way, he didn't lose out at all.

Hearing this, Li Dao said bluntly, "I didn't hear that wager earlier. In truth, the two of you didn't have to go this far."

The soldier shook his head. "A soldier in the Yellow Sand Town garrison honors his words. A promise is a promise; breaking it would be even more disgraceful."

"Weren't the external rumors saying you lot were all troublemakers?"

"Being troublemakers means we made mistakes and refuse to bow to unjust authority, but how a man conducts himself is an entirely different matter."

Li Dao was momentarily stunned. Originally, he had assumed the troublemakers of the Yellow Sand Town garrison were nothing more than a bunch of ruffians, but seeing them now, it was somewhat different from what he had imagined.

Nearby, the soldier who had finished kowtowing quickly climbed back to his feet.

"Rookie, you've got guts today! I'm marking this down."

Initially frightened out of his wits, his defiant nature flared up again the moment he recovered his composure.

Li Dao paused for a second, then smiled faintly. "Very well, I've noted you down as well."

"Hmph."

For some reason, hearing those words sent an inexplicable wave of unease through the defiant soldier.

At that moment, he saw a hand stretch out toward him.

"What are you doing? Don't think I'm afraid of you!"

Startled, the soldier instinctively took a step back and spoke with utmost vigilance.

Li Dao laughed softly, "I just want my assignment letter back."

Hearing this, the soldier's expression stiffened. Remembering his previous overreaction, his aged face flushed red.

"Here, take it, take it!"

Flinging the letter back at Li Dao, the soldier turned on his heel and fled, realizing full well how thoroughly he had embarrassed himself.

Li Dao turned his gaze to the other soldier. "Brother, would you be so kind as to lead me to the Grand Commander to officially report for duty?"

"Seeing as you're not a bad sort, I'll do a good deed today."

Giving himself a graceful way out, the soldier walked ahead to lead the way.

Yet judging by his demeanor, he had clearly been thoroughly subdued by Li Dao's display of might, which accounted for his newfound cooperative attitude.