After leaving the County Yamen, Shen Lin waited for a while longer, but Gao Shenghan still failed to appear.
Shaking his head helplessly, he stopped waiting and walked away.
Along the way, the peddlers and passersby all greeted Shen Lin with extraordinary enthusiasm.
"Master Shen! Here's this month's protection fee. Please take it!"
"Master Shen, my daughter is ready. I had someone check, and five days from now is an auspicious day for the wedding. By then, you see..."
"Master Shen, the shopkeeper says the previous account was miscalculated by the bookkeeper. Your debt was paid off long ago. Here's the money from before..."
After squeezing out of the crowd in some embarrassment, Shen Lin helplessly quickened his pace.
News traveled extremely fast within the county town. In just a few days, word of Shen Lin's breakthrough to the Meridian Opening Realm had already spread everywhere.
The Meridian Opening Realm was the strongest level of martial artist publicly known in Qiulin County.
If he continued advancing step by step, the position of County Lieutenant would undoubtedly be his.
Thus, everyone who had dealt with Shen Lin before completely changed their attitudes.
"Protection money? Here you go! With this little bit of money, I can befriend the future County Lieutenant. What a windfall!"
"He's taken a fancy to my daughter? I'll send her to your residence tomorrow! Once Shen Lin becomes County Lieutenant, her maternal family can use this opportunity to leap across the ranks and become one of the wealthy clans."
"Debt? That was all a previous accounting error! I feel terrible for misunderstanding Master Shen. I must return twice the amount!"
Shen Lin even spotted that broker in the crowd, pushing toward him excitedly with his own wife in tow.
What the hell is this supposed to be?
Once