A Small Tidbit During the Feast

After a minor interruption, the banquet continued.

The main dishes of the Four Treasures Feast were each astonishing and incredibly expensive.

Zhou You felt as though he wasn't eating food, but mouthfuls of gold foil and jade dust.

However, such costly dishes were merely adornments for the banquet, meant to accompany the wine and meal.

The true star of the feast was a thirty-year aged vintage. The wine was amber-yellow like polished amber, and when stirred with chopsticks, it could form threads, marking it as an exceptional brew.

"..."

The sound of musical instruments from behind the beaded curtain reminded him that there were also musicians hired at great expense in the private room.

The musicians were not alone; they came with accompanying players and instruments. A full ensemble would cost at least 30 taels.

Zhou You estimated that including the hosting and gifts, Shen Sijing would have to spend at least 500 taels tonight.

This sum was precisely the "emotional distress compensation" Zhou You had demanded from Tu Laosan of the Wild Fox Gang with an open mouth.

Tu Laosan, as the Vice Gang Leader, had yet to reply, clearly finding it difficult to produce such a sum.

Yet, in a private room on the second floor of the Golden Harvest Tower, Shen Sijing had already spent 500 taels on a single meal.

"No wonder people look down on gang members. Their fists are no match for martial arts schools, and their wealth can't compare to merchants. All they're left with is bullying ordinary folk."

Zhou You shook his head, his disdain for those in gangs growing.

"Zhou You, I only found out about your conflict with the Wild Fox Gang after I returned."

At this moment, Shen Sijing suddenly spoke.

"Your demand for 500 taels of silver is not excessive; I think it's perfectly reasonable."

"If Tu Lao Er refuses to pay, I'll personally go and demand it for you. We can't let our own people suffer injustice."

Shen Sijing said generously, "If you're in urgent need of money, I'll issue you a draft for 500 taels first, and I'll collect the rest from Tu Lao Er."

From his words, it seemed he intended to pay the 500 taels out of his own pocket first.

Zhou You had witnessed his lavish spending before and had no doubt that a mere 500 taels was nothing to this senior disciple.

"Senior Disciple Shen, absolutely not. This is a matter of principle. I don't want the money; I want the Wild Fox Gang's attitude."

The 500 taels of silver had to be handed over personally by the Wild Fox Gang to show their stance.

Shen Sijing nodded upon hearing this, "Very well. With my intervention, you should receive the money within three to five days!"

"Then I'll toast Senior Disciple Shen again. Thank you for standing up for me."

"It's only right. We're fellow disciples; if I don't stand up for you, who else would I stand up for?"

After a few more drinks, a commotion arose outside the window. He initially thought it would stop soon.

However, not only did it not cease, but it grew louder, drowning out the sound of the musical instruments from behind the beaded curtain.

"Stop, go down and collect your reward."

Shen Sijing immediately lost his appetite and waved away the musicians.

Soon, the innkeeper hurried over to apologize.

"Young Master Shen, the City Gate Guards are apprehending criminals outside, and a fight has broken out."

The Golden Harvest Tower was in a quiet area, and such incidents were rare. Tonight, however, they had stumbled upon a major event.

Xu Ying walked to the window, pushed open the wooden frame, and looked out. In the pitch-black night, he could hear the sounds of firelight and shouting.

Along both sides of the street, seven or eight constables were maintaining order, blocking pedestrians from moving forward, lest they interfere with the ongoing battle.

The night breeze was cool, carrying a faint scent of blood. Lives were likely being lost not far away.

"Constable Liu."

Zhou You spotted a familiar face in the crowd. "Call him up to ask about the situation."

A moment later, Constable Liu was summoned to the private room, entering with a sense of trepidation.

When he saw Zhou You, his face was filled with shock, which quickly turned to reverence.

He naturally recognized Shen Sijing and knew that everyone present were apprentices from the Jianxiong Martial Arts School, a room full of Internal Force martial artists.

Although he had long anticipated Zhou You's boundless future, seeing him in the private room now delivered a severe blow to his inner composure.

"Tell me, what happened?"

Xu Ying didn't stand on ceremony and asked directly.

Constable Liu stood respectfully and recounted the entire sequence of events.

It turned out that recently, a large number of refugees from Sucheng City had poured into the city, including many martial artists.

These martial artists were of mixed quality; some were content with poverty and lived honestly, while others, unable to bear the hunger any longer, resorted to desperate measures.

The incident originated from a group of migrant martial artists.

It so happened that in Gongliang City, two families were sworn enemies. Both were small, wealthy households with modest fortunes.

Over the years, the conflicts and friction between these two families had been constant, gradually accumulating a generational blood feud, with each side having committed murder.

In one household, they hired a group of external martial artists who possessed internal force as assassins to wipe out their rival family.

If it were any other time, they would never dare to do such a thing, but with the increasing number of refugees, the city's order had gradually descended into chaos, and the authorities couldn't manage everything.

This household had also calculated their plan perfectly: the refugee killers would flee the city after committing the murders, and the culprits would be untraceable, making it impossible to investigate.

However, the outcome was always less than satisfactory.

This group of martial artists with internal force was ruthless. Since they were already taking a huge risk by acting as assassins, they were naturally not good people.

In the first half of the story, they had killed the entire rival family, ensuring no one escaped, thus completing their mission successfully.

But when it came to the latter half...

The employer had kept their promise and paid them in gold and silver. However, they never expected that flashing their wealth would lead to their own demise.

The group of external martial artists, having just finished their killing spree, suddenly had a wicked thought. They figured if they could kill one family, killing another wouldn't make much difference. It would be better to strike while the iron was hot and finish them all off. They turned on their employer that very moment, wiped out the entire family, and looted all their wealth.

The news of the two families being massacred sent shockwaves throughout Gongliang City.

This group of external martial artists had underestimated the public order of Gongliang City.

The two victimized families were well-off, far from ordinary citizens, and the incidents immediately drew high-level attention.

After the constables in the city traced the case to the martial artists with internal force, the City Gate Guards quickly took over this major case.

The City Gate Guards set up a comprehensive net, pursuing the murderers who hadn't managed to escape to the nearby areas. The operation was already in its final stages.

After Constable Liu finished speaking, Shen Sijing rewarded him with half a pot of wine and two pieces of beef.

Constable Liu thanked him profusely and left.

He still had to maintain order and couldn't be away from his post for too long.

"Aren't they just utter fools?"

When hiring assassins for such a high-risk operation, one should find people they know well. Did they think they were just hiring laborers, pulling anyone off the street?

Why do people always look for fellow townsfolk? Because there's a sense of kinship and a degree of restraint. No matter what, they wouldn't go too far.

The external martial artists killed people and then fled the city to hide, without any scruples – that part was true.

However, the employer's family hadn't considered that if these people had no ties locally, they naturally had no scruples either. They didn't hesitate to kill the rival family, and they wouldn't have any psychological barrier to turning around, double-crossing them, wiping out the entire family, and robbing them of their wealth.

The martial arts school apprentices in the private room sighed in disbelief, seeing how esteemed martial artists with internal force had devolved into unscrupulous killers.

The City Gate Guards had numerous experts, the advantage of knowing the terrain, and the help of local constables. It was only a matter of time before they annihilated those murderers.

As expected, the commotion only ceased in the latter half of the night.

The City Gate Guards annihilated these vicious criminals, leaving no survivors. They beheaded them and displayed the heads in wooden cages around the city walls to deter the refugees.

The wind blew, making the cages spin and sway, gently bumping against the flagpoles. The heads gradually shriveled and blackened as they weathered.

"This era is going to be chaotic."

From a corner of the city wall, a weak sigh drifted, scattering with the wind.