Tian Yuan Escort Agency?!
Fang Chen had heard of this escort agency.
It had an excellent reputation in Baihe County. Goods escorted by them generally never ran into trouble.
But for that very reason, having Tian Yuan Escort Agency transport goods was usually rather expensive.
Those merchants would only seek out the powerful Tian Yuan Escort Agency when their cargo had to travel along particularly dangerous routes.
Zhou Hai continued, "The routes Tian Yuan Escort Agency takes are generally quite dangerous, but for that reason, its escorts are paid much more than those from other agencies."
"I thought about how Senior Brother had said he wanted to gain more practical experience, so I felt this escort agency would be a good choice."
Seeing Fang Chen looking thoughtful, Zhou Hai continued, "I chose this escort agency for another reason as well."
"Tian Yuan Escort Agency knows how dangerous those routes are, so on the first few escorts for any new escort, an experienced and powerful escort will lead the team to ensure its safety."
"Senior Brother can go on a few escort missions first and see how it feels. If it doesn't suit you, you can choose another agency later."
Fang Chen nodded. He couldn't help feeling that Zhou Hai had truly put a great deal of thought into this and had considered everything for him.
Fang Chen cupped his hands and said, "This escort agency is famous far and wide. Ordinary people probably wouldn't be able to get in. If not for Junior Brother's recommendation, they might not even have thought much of me!"
"Thank you so much, Junior Brother!"
Zhou Hai laughed heartily and waved his hand without saying anything more.
He returned to his place and continued practicing his fist.
Fang Chen said nothing more either, silently committing the matter to memory.
He swallowed a great medicinal pill, assumed his stance, and began practicing Tiger Subduing Fist as well.
Time always passed quickly when one was focused on martial arts training.
The day soon passed.
Tiger Subduing Fist proficiency +2! Tiger Subduing Fist proficiency +2!
His proficiency steadily increased.
Today, the Green Robe Gang's search had quieted down somewhat, but they still hadn't given up.
Shen Tian carefully investigated what Lu Jie had done.
He discovered that the man had been entangled in all sorts of disputes almost every day.
For example, if some powerless person made a great deal of money, Lu Jie would directly accuse them of cheating.
Not only would he reclaim their money, he would also give them a brutal beating!
If he discovered someone was addicted to gambling, Lu Jie would let them win a large sum at first, then make them lose everything.
In the end, he would lend them money at interest—in other words, usury.
After taking on usurious debt, such a gambling addict would continue gambling, eventually losing everything and leaving their family ruined.
Naturally, when sending people to collect debts, he used every means imaginable, all for the sake of getting the money into his own hands.
Shen Tian flipped through the list his subordinates had given him. It recorded all of Lu Jie's various grudges.
The sheer number of incidents and people involved made Shen Tian frown deeply. He cursed, "What the hell was Lu Jie thinking? Making so much money was one thing, but he still managed to make enemies of so many people?!"
"How am I supposed to find the murderer?"
The gang members below him were as silent as cicadas in winter, terrified that the hall master would vent his anger on them.
At that moment, one of the men standing beside the hall master suggested, "My lord, whoever could kill Lu Jie must have been an expert. Although Lu Jie had grudges with many people, there aren't many among them who possessed any real strength."
"If we remove those country bumpkins from the list one by one, the rest will be much easier to investigate."
Upon hearing this, Shen Tian immediately felt that it made perfect sense and only regretted not thinking of it himself.
He smiled and said, "You're the clever one. We'll do exactly that! Have the men below quickly eliminate those country bumpkins so we don't waste any more time!"
The man who had offered the suggestion nodded with a smile.
"Yes, my lord!"
Shen Tian immediately felt that the matter had become much clearer, and his mood improved greatly.
However, what was amusing was that the entry concerning Fang Chen on the list read:
"More than twenty days ago, a country bumpkin named Fang Chen won several silver notes at the gambling den. Lu Jie grew displeased and sent men to strike him from behind. They accidentally beat him to death."
And so, "country bumpkin" Fang Chen temporarily escaped the list of suspects...
In fact, after carefully investigating, the people below discovered that Old Six, who had originally been sent to strike Fang Chen from behind, had died on the very same day as Lu Jie!
There were many suspicious points in this.
But after thinking it over, the men felt that something was off.
Wasn't it said that Fang Chen had died?
Although there were some suspicious aspects to Old Six's death that day, Fang Chen couldn't possibly have come back to life, right?
They would have to be bored out of their minds to verify whether a dead man had come back to life.
Thus, on the list, they recorded Old Six's death elsewhere.
And so, Fang Chen temporarily escaped disaster.
The next morning, Fang Chen arrived at Tian Yuan Escort Agency early.
After explaining his purpose to the gatekeeper, a man led him toward the front courtyard.
Fang Chen soon reached the front courtyard.
The man showing him the way told him to wait there. Someone would come and take him to meet the Head Escort.
Fang Chen had only been standing there for a short while when a booming voice suddenly rang out behind him.
"New recruit? Fang Chen?"
A burly man who looked to be in his fifties or sixties walked over.
He wore a somewhat worn brown escort's uniform, with the sleeves rolled up to reveal a muscular forearm covered in knotted veins.
A faint scar ran across his face from his brow ridge to the base of his ear. His eyes were sharp as a hawk's as he scrutinized Fang Chen.
Two younger runners followed behind him, eyeing Fang Chen curiously.
Fang Chen cupped his hands. "Yes."
The veteran escort's expression was somewhat cold. He said directly, "Come with me to see the Head Escort."
As he walked, he continued, "There's something I need to tell you first. I'll accompany you on your first few escort missions to ensure the safety of the entire team."
"But after that, you'll have to rely on yourself!"
"If you think that getting into Tian Yuan Escort Agency through connections means you can sit back comfortably and collect your pay afterward, then I advise you to leave our Tian Yuan Escort Agency as soon as possible!"
"That way, you won't accidentally die on the road in the future!"
Only then did Fang Chen understand why the man's expression had been somewhat cold.
Clearly, Tian Yuan Escort Agency was not easy to enter. It must have had extremely strict requirements regarding strength.
The veteran escort assumed that Fang Chen had entered through connections and therefore believed that his strength was certainly nothing special.
That was why he looked down on him somewhat.
Fang Chen said nothing and merely nodded.
In any case, after escorting a single shipment, the man would quickly learn Fang Chen's true strength.
Soon, Fang Chen arrived at a room and met the Head Escort.
The Head Escort's attitude was quite amiable.
When he saw Fang Chen, he rose from his chair and came forward to greet him.
The Head Escort smiled and said, "You must be Young Master Fang? As Young Master Zhou described, you truly carry yourself with extraordinary bearing and look every bit the gentleman!"
"Your strength should also place you among the best in the Skin and Muscle Realm!"
As the Head Escort spoke, he glanced at the veteran escort, as though trying to convey something.
The veteran escort merely snorted and turned his head away.
The Head Escort did not take offense. He and the veteran escort had been friends for many years.
He knew that the veteran escort was upright and unyielding, and cared only about the safety of the escort team.
Now that he had let someone like Fang Chen—a man admitted through connections—join them, it was only natural that the veteran escort would feel somewhat dissatisfied.
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