Sending Fish

"Delicious."

"But there really isn't much meat."

Yun Shou glanced at the pile of fish bones stacked to the side. Spiny Fin Fish had too many bones inside them, and this Fish King had evolved that trait to the extreme: within its body, some bones had even formed plate-like structures, like a crab, with meat hidden in the cracks between extremely fine and hard bones.

It was only because he was a martial artist that he could crush even these fish bones into powder with two fingers; an ordinary person would need a hammer.

"There's still some meat and bones left. I'll bring some to Uncle Ji, Old Man Wang, and Little Hu Tou."

It was already afternoon. Yun Shou dismantled the roasted Fish King, packed it in clean pots and pans, and returned to Qing He Village.

At the village entrance, he spotted his first target: four or five children gathered in a circle, listening to the leader giving instructions.

The leader, an eight- or nine-year-old boy, puffed out his chest and pointed at a girl. "Er Ya, I told you, you're the Empress. You need to be magnanimous and listen to the Emperor. Don't quit just because I ate one piece of your jerky!"

Then he pointed at a dull-witted boy. "Hu Tou, you're the Grand General. When I'm in danger, you have to charge over and save me first, not Er Ya!"

"And you, San Tu, you're the Great Grandmaster rebel. Your first move should be to kidnap the Emperor, not the Empress."

"Look at Shui Zi—he plays his part well. He's definitely going to be a super powerful treacherous minister in the future! My Imperial We's greatest rival!"

Yun Shou: "..."

To be honest, as a transmigrator, when he was eight years old, he wasn't playing the upgraded version of house—playing nation—with these kids anymore.

He interrupted the children's roleplaying game and waved his hand. "Little Hu Tou!"

"Huh? Brother Yun Shou?"

The dull-witted boy turned his head. Seeing Yun Shou wave, he hesitated. "I'm the Grand General right now. I have to protect the Emperor. I can't go over."

"Come here. I'll give you meat to eat."

In a flash, Little Hu Tou forgot his duties as "Grand General," hurriedly trotted over, and then led Yun Shou home, leaving a portion of the meat and bones in a bowl.

His mother heard the commotion and came out from the inner room. Seeing that Yun Shou had come to deliver food, her expression was complicated. She gave a cold snort but said nothing.

Two years ago, after Yun Shou fell into the water and lay in bed for over half a month, Song Xiaohu, worried about his "Brother Yun Shou," had secretly taken some food from home every day to help him recover.

Although it wasn't much, and Yun Shou didn't lack for food under Uncle Ji's care, the sentiment couldn't be ignored.

Song Xiaohu had even been hung up and beaten by his parents after stealing two eggs from home for him, his cries echoing through half of Qing He Village...

Song Xiaohu's Mother naturally had no good impression of Yun Shou, this person who "tricked her foolish son into stealing from his own family." Seeing that his gift was just the most common fish from the lakeside, she didn't bother to put on a friendly face.

She had no idea it was a Fish King.

After Song Xiaohu came Old Man Wang, the elder who had saved him.

Little Hu Tou probably didn't understand what a Fish King was, and his parents weren't fond of Yun Shou, so Yun Shou hadn't gone into detail. But with Old Man Wang, he could explain.

"Old Man Wang, you absolutely must boil this fish bone into a thick soup."

Yun Shou set down the portion of fish meat and bones.

"Is there some special trick to it?" Old Man Wang asked with a chuckle.

"I ran into a Fish Dragon Dance, and this three-foot-three-inch Spiny Fin Fish was in it!"

As soon as the words left his mouth, Old Man Wang's face froze. He quickly looked around, and only relaxed when he saw no one was nearby. His tone turned stern with anger. "Are you out of your mind!? You dared to roast and eat a Fish King on your own? If the Qing He Gang finds out, they'll sink you in the lake!"

With ordinary fish, even the tastiest edible ones or the most beautiful ornamental fish, common fishermen could do whatever they wanted with them after catching them, as long as they didn't sell them outside the gang's territory. They could even play catch with the fish if they liked.

But the Fish King was strictly controlled property—the gang's asset!

If you couldn't catch one, that was fine. But if you did, you had to hand it over to the Qing He Gang (who would also give a generous reward). Otherwise, they wouldn't just kick you out of the area—they might beat you to death!

For outsiders using the "Qing He Gang's grounds" to fish, if they were tough enough, they might not die after the beating. But for someone like Yun Shou, who had an indenture contract... direct lake sinking, certain death!

Old Man Wang's heart pounded with fear. The Qing He Gang was a mountain pressing down on ordinary fishermen. In some small towns, Gang Leader Xu Ruohai was a top-tier expert, a local Renowned Figure!

Under such pressure, who would dare to defy the order?

Facing Old Man Wang's terrified gaze, Yun Shou instead gave a mysterious smile. "Old Man Wang, remember what I said yesterday?"

He extended two fingers and pinched a thumb-thick fish bone. Without releasing his Force Qi outward, he used it like the inner strength of a Second-rate Martial Artist to amplify his power.

He twisted his fingers. With a crack, the fish bone snapped.

Old Man Wang froze.

"Yesterday, I met my master. He said my bone structure was astonishingly strong and took me to train in martial arts..."

Yun Shou flicked his toe, sending a small stone on the ground flying up, which he caught with his hand.

The youth clenched his fist, Force Qi grinding through his palm.

He opened his hand. Stone powder scattered from the gaps beneath his fist, falling to the ground.

Old Man Wang: "..."

He opened his mouth but couldn't say a word.

That joke from the other day... was it actually real?

"It's real." Yun Shou said with a light laugh. "The Qing He Gang's rules can no longer reach me."

The last portion was to be delivered to Uncle Ji's home.

Yun Shou hesitated for a moment on the road.

It was still afternoon; Uncle Ji probably hadn't returned yet. The couple always went out on the boat together.

The Qing He Gang's "shipping organization" had only proposed the idea and wasn't officially established yet, so Uncle Ji and the others were still primarily fishing for a living.

Yun Shou worried he'd arrive at their doorstep only to find the door locked and be unable to get in. Fortunately, it wasn't far from his own home—just a few dozen meters.

When he was still several dozen meters from Uncle Ji's house, he saw the door was shut. He was about to leave when he keenly heard movement from inside, so he strode forward.

But as he drew closer, he saw the door was firmly locked, and the sounds from inside grew louder the nearer he got.

"Could this be... a thief?!"

Yun Shou realized it, but what thief would target a poor fisherman... Last night, when Uncle Ji was about to help him repay his debt of servitude, the clatter of scattered copper coins had startled someone away!

It was a fellow villager, a fisherman, who had been tempted by the sight of money and sneaked in while no one was home to ransack the place!

He set down the pot and basin, took a few steps forward, and saw the window wide open. There wasn't just one person inside—two were rummaging around nonstop.

"Damn, hid it deep, this bastard." One of them complained as he looked up, and happened to lock eyes with Yun Shou. Both were stunned.

Shao Erdan. The village's most notorious rogue and scoundrel. In the entire village, there were only two layabouts who did nothing but steal chickens and dogs all day.

Many people couldn't figure out how this kid had managed to loaf around on Qing He Gang's turf for so many years. But Yun Shou knew from his simulations: he was acquainted with at least one official member of the Qing He Gang (Chapter Five).

And since one of them was Shao Erdan, the identity of the other was practically shouting itself out.

Of course—it was Shao Erdan's own blood brother, the other thug of Qing He Village: Shao Yimao!