Bitter Vegetable Manor

As the Wife had predicted, in battle, the Paper Delicate Woman printed by Li Banfeng fell apart in less than a minute.

Actually, it was still a long way from a minute. Li Banfeng used his Pocket Watch to tell the time. He stood still and did nothing. The Paper Delicate Woman could last for fifteen minutes.

I can manage to do odd jobs for three and a half minutes.

A hand-to-hand combat session would typically last between fifteen and twenty seconds.

Combat with weapons lasts approximately ten to fifteen seconds.

The time was indeed short, but the Paper Delicate Woman was indeed formidable; her actual combat strength depended on Li Banfeng's willpower.

If the mental infusion is gentle, the paper figure can perform simple actions such as punching or stabbing.

If the mental energy is poured in more intensely, the paper figure can still display a certain degree of martial arts, but it will fall apart even faster.

The pendulum advised, "Master, why don't you learn painting skills from me? This shortcut is useless."

"You have to learn painting skills, but this method is also quite useful." Li Banfeng bought a bunch of paintbrushes and paints. While learning painting skills from Zhongbai, he also trained the paper figures he printed, striving to maximize their fighting power in the limited time.

Neither of these tasks was easy. Li Banfeng prepared all the necessary supplies and went to the new place for Shut-in Cultivator.

Walking down the street, Li Banfeng suddenly muttered to himself:

"Have you forgotten something?"

"What's up?"

"Weren't you going back to Yuezhou?"

"There's no rush."

"Why aren't you in a hurry?"

"He's still in Yuezhou, and I don't know what he's up to. Even if I go back now, I'm afraid I won't be a match for him."

In Yuezhou, Zou Guoming (Big Head), an agent of the Dark Star Bureau, is having dinner at home, eating the food his wife cooked.

Big Head's wife is named Miao Ruifang. She is a great cook, a good homemaker, very frugal, and a very considerate person.

But since losing her job, Miao Ruifang's personality has changed somewhat.

Halfway through the meal, she suddenly put down her chopsticks and said to Big Head, "Let's sell the house."

"Why?" Big Head was stunned.

In Yuezhou, owning a 103-square-meter house is Big Head's only source of pride over the years.

Miao Ruifang said, "My child will be starting junior high school next year. We either need to buy a house in a good school district or send him to a private school. We can't keep making do like we did in elementary school."

The Dark Star Bureau's income is not low, and even if his wife doesn't work, the family lives a comfortable life.

But the tuition fees at private schools in Yuezhou are enough to make anyone shudder.

As for school district housing, it's so expensive it leaves you speechless.

Big Head looked at his wife and said, "I'll figure out a way to get the degree."

"What solutions can you come up with? You said you'd find a solution back in elementary school, what solutions have you come up with?"

When the child was about to start elementary school, the bureau promised to apply for a place in a top-tier elementary school for Big Head.

The degree application was finally approved, but for various reasons, the degree was not awarded to the Big Head.

The bureau explained to Big Head that it was about considering the overall situation.

The bureau has agreed to help with the application for a junior high school place, but what if we ask him to consider the bigger picture as well?

"I'm on the night shift tonight, I'm leaving now." Big Head put down his chopsticks and put on his jacket.

"Didn't you just work the night shift yesterday?"

"I have to work overtime today."

"I really have no idea what kind of job you do!"

Married for over ten years, his wife has never been to Big Head's company, nor has she asked much about Big Head job. She only knows that Big Head works at an electronics company, but she doesn't understand why electronics companies often have night shifts.

If you don't understand, don't ask. His wife calmly cleared the dishes, Big Head down.

I didn't have to work the night shift today, Big Head went to Flower Lake Park.

As he walked behind the Western-style building, he saw the sobbing woman again.

Is Hu Lishan, who drowned herself in the lake, still here?

She's long gone; neither her body nor her spirit remains here.

What remains here is merely a mark, a mark left by He Jiaqing for Big Head. Only Big Head can see this sobbing woman, and by seeing her, he can find the entrance to the new land.

Big Head followed the woman step by step into the lake. Unlike before, Big Head was prepared.

He brought an oxygen tank to make sure he could last for twenty minutes.

He knew how to leave the new land, and if he couldn't hold out, he had ways to escape.

Diving into the icy lake water, Big Head found a loach in the mud and sand at the bottom of the lake.

Big Head carefully pulled the loach out of the mud and sand; it was about twelve or thirteen centimeters long.

This loach can increase a man's height by five or six centimeters without surgery; all he needs to do is eat the loach.

Big Head once worked on a case where someone brought these loaches from Pro State to the Black Market for sale. A single loach could fetch up to 800,000. The case was eventually dropped, but Big Head knew where the Black Market was and who to contact to ship the loaches.

I just did a business deal. I caught the loach and sold it. It's no big deal.

A loach can't buy you a house in a good school district, but it can cover three years of tuition at a private school.

Big Head was holding the loach and preparing to float to the surface when the loach, which had been relatively docile, suddenly burst out with a strange strength, broke free from Big Head's hand, and bit Big Head hard.

After a sharp pain, Big Head's body went numb, and his head slammed into the lake surface as if it had hit a rock.

He was unable to open the lake.

He can't get out!

Under pressure, Big Head was at a loss. Although he had been to New Land before, this environment was still too unfamiliar to him.

Suddenly a hole appeared in the lake, and a hand, pulling on Big Head's clothes, lifted him up.

It is He Jiaqing.

"I'm a patient, I need to stay in my hospital bed, I can't keep running around saving you!" He Jiaqing looked at the wounds on Big Head's hands and asked, "What were you doing catching loaches?"

"I want to earn some extra money; I want to earn tuition money for my child," Big Head said, explaining his plans for his child's schooling.

He Jiaqing gave Da Big Head a pill. "A fifth-level martial artist, worrying about this little bit of money? You might as well go to Pro State and become Big Support for someone, you'll earn more than you do now."

Big Head taking the pill, Da Tou quickly expressed his gratitude.

He really wanted to go to Pro State, but he couldn't leave his wife and children behind.

"I'll try going back into the lake." The medicine had taken effect, and the numbness in his body had eased considerably. Big Head wanted to go back into the lake, but He Jiaqing stopped him.

"Aren't you afraid someone will investigate you for doing business on the Black Market?"

After a moment of silence, Big Head said, "Some people in the bureau also have dealings with the Black Market, and they've never been investigated."

"They might not be investigated, but you're not one of them! You shipped the goods today, but you could be in jail tomorrow! How are you going to let your wife and kids live?"

Big Head remained silent.

He Jiaqing pondered for a moment and said, "Your wife lost her job?"

Big Head nodded.

What job did you have before?

"The hotel's lobby manager lost her job when the hotel went bankrupt."

"I have a friend who just opened a hotel and is short of a lobby manager. The salary is 20,000 yuan a month, plus bonuses. He'll also help you get a degree. Let your wife work there."

Big Head has a special identity, so you can't just give him money to help him, otherwise Big Head will definitely be investigated.

This was the safest method He Jiaqing could think of.

Big Head was stunned.

He didn't understand why He Jiaqing was helping him.

He knew that He Jiaqing was a man who could change his destiny. It was He Jiaqing who showed him new lands in Outer State, and the two would cooperate on some things in the future.

But ever since they met, He Jiaqing has never asked him anything or asked him to do anything.

Why did you help me?

"For no reason other than that you are a truly capable person, and a truly capable person should live a dignified life." He Jiaqing took out a pen and paper and wrote down the hotel's address.

He had just gotten the paper and pen from the stationery store; he was moving so fast that Big Head couldn't see them clearly.

"Martial arts practitioners at the fifth level need to be tougher. Why risk your life for something like this?" He Jiaqing handed the hotel address to Big Head. "Come find me if you need anything."

"Can you please stop coming to me?" Ma Wu looked at Chu Er helplessly. "The Bai Le Men incident is over, and I've already moved to a new place. Why are you still bothering me?"

Chu Er's expression was slightly sorrowful. "I've come to say goodbye. I'm going to the Bitter Vegetable Manor to cultivate."

After the incident at the Bai Le Men, Chu Er became much more clear-headed. In Pro State, one's strongest asset is one's cultivation level.

Ma Wu nodded and said, "Going to the Bitter Vegetable Manor is good. Do you not have Travel Permit or money for the journey? You don't need Travel Permit to go to the Bitter Vegetable Manor. If you don't have money for the journey, I can lend you some."

Chu Er rolled his eyes and said, "Ma Wu, we have some kind of relationship, you don't need to be so harsh."

"We have no feelings for each other, never have. Do you have anything else to say? If not, I won't see you off."

Yanzi had told Ma Wu not to talk about feelings with Sufferance Cultivator. Sufferance Cultivator didn't talk about feelings or love. If she really thought something, she would never say it. If she did say it, it was definitely just for show.

Just like Zhong Desong with Mrs. Han, no matter how much he wanted to tell her, he never dared to.

Chu Er sighed and said, "I do have a favor to ask of you. I would like to see Li Qi."

"Why would you see him? Do you even know him? You've only danced with him once, so don't even think there's any romantic connection between you!"

To be honest, Chu Er himself didn't believe in any sense of loyalty or affection.

But she knew that Ma Wu's situation had changed drastically since he met Li Qi, Li Banfeng had the ability to help people turn their lives around.

"I respect capable people, and I want to meet him, otherwise I won't leave."

"I can't stop you from leaving, Li Qi isn't here."

"He owns Land Block here," Chu Er calmly, looking at Ma Wu. "If I can find you, I can find him, but if I go to him myself, who knows what I might do."

Ma Wu scoffed, "What can you possibly do? Do you think I'm afraid of you?"

Chu Er lowered his head and said, "You can take a gamble."

After a long silence, Ma Wu said helplessly, "Fine, I'll take you to see him, but if Li Qi refuses to see you, there's nothing I can do."

The two Land Block were ten miles apart, and under Ma Wu's arrangement, a row of wooden houses was built on each plot.

Arriving at Li Banfeng's wooden house, Ma Wu knocked on the door, but there was no response. "You've come at a bad time, Li Qi isn't here."

Chu Er sat in front of the door and said, "I'll wait for him here."

"Don't wait anymore. He might not come back for three to five days after he leaves."

Chu Er sat for more than half an hour, but did not see Li Qi, and left with a dejected look on his face.

Ma Wu didn't see her off any further; he returned to his own Land Block and went to find Yanzi to cultivate.

Of all the strange creatures in the new land, Ma Wu treated Yanzi the best. He didn't spoil Yanzi for nothing. With Ma Wu cultivating under the Bagworm Moth Madam on the eighth floor, Ma Wu's cultivation level has advanced by leaps and bounds, and he has already reached the second floor. If Chu Er dares to act recklessly, he will be ready to fight at any time.

But to his surprise, Chu Er hadn't gone far and had come back.

She peered out of Li Banfeng's window, hoping Li Banfeng might be hiding inside, refusing to see her.

What she saw next was quite alarming. She spotted a huge spider hanging from the ceiling, using one foot to pry a key out of a crack in the floor.

Chu Er shouted, "Dabo Ensi, is that you? How dare you steal things here! Ma Laowu, did you see that? Someone's trying to steal something!"

Ma Wu had already gone far away, Chu Er deliberately scared the spider.

But the spider didn't react at all, hanging on the silk, about to leave.

Chu Er took a pair of nail clippers from her skirt pocket and threw them through the fence into the window.

The nail clippers instantly grew larger, and with a snap, cut off the spider's leg from which the key was hanging.

The nail clipper swiftly swooped down, grabbed the key, rushed out the window, and slipped into Chu Er's skirt pocket.

Chu Er took off running, with Spider in hot pursuit.

Seeing that the spider was about to catch up with him, Chu Er became more and more panicked as he ran.

Is it really Dabo Ensi?

That really means he's finished.

Chu Er knew that Dabo Ensi's cultivation level was not low, and since she didn't have any special abilities, she couldn't possibly be his match.

After running for more than two miles, the spider suddenly stopped chasing.

Chu Er, leaning on his knees, his face pale and sallow, had been panting for a long time.

He touched the key and was still biting the nail clipper.

What to do?

Should it be given to Ma Wu?

Chu Er turned to go find Ma Wu, but suddenly stopped.

This key is so important, can we let Ma Wu know about it?

Should we go to the house and wait for Li Qi to come back?

What if the spider comes back too?

That spider wasn't Dabo Ensi; it was Dabo Ensi's puppet.

The reason he stopped pursuing Chu Er was because the puppet had exceeded his control.

He sent the puppet to find Red Lotus, but it accidentally discovered the key in the floorboards.

"What's that key for?" Dabo Ensi muttered to himself. "Why does the Second Miss Chu Family also want this key?"

Having already been spotted by Chu Er, Dabo Ensi dared not linger and immediately left the new land.

The train arrived at the Bitter Vegetable Manor Station, Chu Er prepared to get off.

Yang Yanzheng and Wen Hongyan wanted to follow, but Chu Er stopped them.

"You all know the rules of the Bitter Vegetable Manor. Go back now. Unless it's urgent, don't come looking for me."

Chu Er got off the car carrying his suitcase, and Wen Hongyan and Yang Yanzheng looked at him with worried expressions.

"Old Yang, what should we do if she causes trouble in the Bitter Vegetable Manor again?"

"If she deserves a beating, she deserves a beating; if she deserves a punishment, she deserves a punishment. It's up to fate. What else can we do?"

Li Banfeng is controlling the paper doll with his mind, and she is fighting against the Tang Blade.

With a single stroke of the Tang Blade, the paper doll was severed in two.

Li Banfeng objected. "Didn't I tell you not to kill him?"

Tang Blade said, "I only used three-tenths of my strength; this woman is really too weak to fight."

"Then use only half your strength this time!"

Even with just a fraction of the force, the paper couldn't withstand it.

After three strikes, the Tang Blade was put to rest, and the pendulum sword took its place.

The paper-thin girl couldn't even complete one round in front of the pendulum.

What use is she to us?

In wartime, it would be better to let the pendulum go directly.

No, I need to practice more!

Li Banfeng didn't leave his house for two days, diligently training in the fourth level of skills.

The training Travel Cultivator was delayed, but the skills have indeed improved.

He manipulated the paper figure and the pendulum to fight back twice. Although the pendulum was willing to give way, the paper figure still had a chance to fight back.

Li Banfeng was running out of paper and wanted to ask Ma Wu for some. He pushed open the door and found himself not in the wooden house, but in an earthen house.

The dark, dilapidated mud house had only a hole in the south wall, which could barely be considered a window.

What place is this?

Li Banfeng's mind went blank as he realized that someone had picked up his keys.

There was a sound coming from the outer room.

It looks like someone is chopping wood.

Li Banfeng went to the outer room and saw a simple peasant woman with a towel wrapped around her head, wearing coarse cloth clothes, carrying an axe, looking at Li Banfeng in surprise.

"You really came to find me!" The farmer's wife exclaimed with delight.

Li Banfeng stared at him for a while, then asked, "Who are you?"

Chu Er removed the towel from his head, wiped the dust off his face, and said, "Don't you recognize me?"

Do I know her?

It looks somewhat familiar.

"Where is this place?"

Chu Er for a long time before asking, "You came here by yourself, don't you know where this is? This is Bitter Vegetable Manor!"

P. S.: There's a big shot in the Bitter Vegetable Manor!