Livelihoods, Things Change and People Change

Livelihoods, Things Change and People Change

Livelihoods, Things Change and People Change

Lin Changshun had grown shrewd with age, and his eye was naturally sharp. That martial outfit alone had to be worth at least one or two hundred Large Coins.

Though he was somewhat familiar with his fisherman nephew, he knew that his nephew merely did hard labor at the wharf. How could he possibly have become a manager?

Hearing Lin Hai call out, Lin Changshun's old face darkened. In a low voice tinged with long-standing helplessness, he said, "That's a manager, do you understand..."

Before he could finish, Lin Mo spotted the two of them from afar. Seeing Lin Hai there as well, he understood at once.

Presumably, ever since the [Calamity of Blood Light] had been dealt with some time ago, his two younger cousins' lives were at least no longer in danger.

"Uncle Changshun, Hai!"

Lin Mo greeted them warmly. Lin Changshun froze, thinking his eyes and ears had deceived him. He rubbed his eyes, and they instantly grew moist.

Lin Changshun hurried over with Lin Hai, exchanging greetings.

"Mo, have you been eating your fill and keeping warm these days?"

"Everything's fine, Uncle Changshun. Don't worry."

"You've made something of yourself, you've made something of yourself. That's good."

Seeing that his own nephew no longer lacked food or clothing, Lin Changshun was happy from the bottom of his heart. Looking at the villagers queuing all around them, however, his expression was somewhat bewildered.

"Brother Mo, have you become some manager lord?" Lin Hai was blunt by nature and asked with wide eyes.

"How could that be? I'm just helping out with work..."

"Brother Mo, life has been hard lately... A whole bunch of water ghosts appeared from who knows where, throwing everyone into a panic." Lin Hai complained quietly. "Those big lords have seized the chance to jack up prices. The manager lords at several fish stalls have used the water ghost trouble as an excuse to raise the taxes terribly high."

"Oh, and they even claim it's because they're taking risks to buy our catch... A full twenty-five percent, plus all sorts of other miscellaneous charges."

Upon hearing this, Lin Mo somewhat understood why business at the wharf had been getting better and better lately, and he secretly clicked his tongue.

"Have these water ghosts been causing such havoc? Has anyone in Big Fishing Village been hurt?" he asked.

"No, no. Everyone's had good luck fishing and hasn't run into those things."

"Brother Mo, can you speak to the managers? Have them buy at the normal price, with a fifteen-percent tax..."

Lin Hai had barely spoken before his father, Lin Changshun, yanked him so hard that he staggered. Lin Changshun's face turned livid.

"You silly fool! Your Brother Mo finally found himself work. How can you go making such demands?"

Lin Changshun knew how formidable the county's lords were. Seeing Lin Mo moved by the matter, he hurriedly urged, "Don't listen to this silly fool's nonsense. Just go by the wharf price. We won't make trouble over such things."

"It's fine, Uncle Changshun. Leave it to me. The Dockside Fishery Market only charges a ten-percent tax."

Seeing Uncle Changshun's concerned expression, Lin Mo reassured him.

In this world, when had the lower classes ever escaped exploitation? Where else could the profits come from but these lowly households and fishing families?

But since they were fellow villagers and neighbors, he could not bring himself to do such bastardly things.

"Weigh them here."

Without allowing any argument, Lin Mo took the bamboo baskets from their hands and weighed the goods, most of which were vegetables and medicinal herbs.

"Uncle Changshun, bought at the wharf price, these come to roughly thirty-five coins."

"That's too much, too much..." Lin Changshun was rather surprised and hurriedly waved his hands. Elsewhere, he would have been lucky to get thirty coins.

"That's the price. Let me take a look at your catch too." Lin Mo fetched a wooden bucket. "Mud catfish, eleven jin and four liang... grass carp... snakehead..."

"Uncle Changshun, the total comes to eighty-nine coins. I'll count it as ninety for you!"

Not a single coin short!

There were even more than ten Large Coins extra!

A wave of comfort washed through Lin Changshun's heart. "Good, good, good. Sorry to trouble you."

Still worried, he asked an extra question, "Lin Mo, is this really all right?"

Before Lin Mo could explain, someone else spoke up for him.

"Uncle, just put your mind at ease. Little Manager Lin has a kind face!" A sharp-eyed bystander smoothed things over.

"Little Manager Lin, take a look at my goods. They're all fresh."

"Uncle Changyuan, see?" Lin Mo took out a string of Large Coins, removed several copper coins from it, and handed over the exact amount. "Business at the wharf is doing well. Everyone from Big Fishing Village can come sell here without worry!"

He had heard a little about the situation over this period. After hearing Lin Hai's complaints, he now understood the whole story.

The fish markets and fish stalls had taken advantage of scarce goods and high demand to wildly increase fish taxes. Yet he was working for the Li Family Wharf's Dockside Fishery Market—doing good deeds for others while collecting fortune for himself!

"Good, I'll head back right away and tell Changyuan... No, I'll have all of Big Fishing Village come sell at the wharf!"

Clutching the Large Coins, Lin Changshun spoke with certainty, then dragged Lin Hai back in a hurry.

Watching their retreating backs, Lin Mo pondered in silence.

There were quite a few people in Big Fishing Village. This way, perhaps he could gain even more fortune points!

As the fish market was about to close, Lin Mo packed up and prepared to return to the Stone Wall Courtyard to train. There was still fortune there waiting to be harvested.

But when he looked toward the wharf, he saw several large ships approaching from afar. As a manager, he naturally ought to go receive them.

"Brother Chen Qing, was this escort run smooth enough? How did it feel killing those water bandits and water ghosts?"

"It was all right."

On the merchant ship's deck, two martial artists gazed out at the wharf's scenery, chatting idly. One of them, dressed in an embroidered martial outfit patterned with clouds, was Chen Qing.

Some time ago, Martial Master Wang had summoned him away. In little more than a month, he had broken through from beginner Skin Tempering to major accomplishment.

As the saying went, when one person attained the Dao, even their chickens and dogs rose to heaven.

In just one month, he had gone from a mud-legged fisherman to a Personal Disciple basking in boundless glory. Even his senior brother, who was also Martial Master Wang's disciple and currently headed the merchant firm's guards, held him in high regard.

Sun Daquan looked at his young junior brother with undisguised envy. Though he had reached the second refinement, he could not fawn over him fast enough.

He was fairly well informed and naturally knew some of the inside details.

This junior brother before him possessed the excellent martial bones of [Golden Bone Jade Tendon].

The Great Gan Dynasty had once compiled statistics on the geniuses and prodigies produced over thousands of years. Based on the public's general understanding and using innate bones as the criterion, it had specially established three rankings: Heaven, Earth, and Man.

They were known as Heavenly Pivot, Earth Vein, and Human Bone.

'Golden Bone Jade Tendon, ranked three hundred and fifteenth among Human Bones...'

As Martial Master Wang often said, a single martial master was enough to give Changhe County an additional second-rate lineage, and enough to wipe out any local tyrant gang.

And for Chen Qing, becoming a martial master was already as certain as a nail driven into a board!

"Junior Brother, the ship has stopped steadily. Let's go down and report this journey to Master."

"That will do nicely."

Chen Qing nodded and slowly walked down. He ran straight into Lin Mo, who had been waiting for some time. At a glance, he laughed.

"Isn't this Brother Lin Mo? Have you been well lately? Looks like you've sensed your qi and blood too? Not bad, not bad."

"So it's Brother Chen Qing."

Lin Mo did not care for this unprovoked, lofty tone. He stared at Chen Qing's face and searched his memories for a long while.

At last, he found a trace in a corner of his memory. To gain fortune, he had once helped quite a few impoverished youths who could not afford food. Chen Qing seemed to have been one of them.