Treasures at the Bottom of the Box

Two rickshaws stopped in front of Lu Chunying's house, and two women got off one after the other and went into the yard.

Xiao Yeci and Lu Chunying greeted them at the door. Seeing the two women arrive, Xiao Yeci quickly greeted them, "Sisters!"

Lu Chunying said from the side, "Sister."

Snap!

Xiao Yeci slapped Lu Chunying aside and quickly helped He Yuxiu with her luggage.

He Yuxiu didn't bring much luggage; she had taken some daily necessities from You Tao.

The You Tao was very reserved, keeping her head down the whole time and not daring to speak.

Xiao Yeci smiled and said, "This must be Sister Tao'er, Chunying. Call her Auntie."

Lu Chunying glanced at You Tao's age, shook her head, and said, "Never mind, I'll just call her 'older sister'."

Li Banfeng placed He Yuxiu in Lu Chunying's house, thus gathering all the unsafe individuals together and identifying the key point for defense.

Ma Wu felt that this was absurd, but he couldn't change Li Banfeng's decision.

When it was time for dinner that evening, Ma Wu sighed and said, "I'm just afraid that Chu Huaijun might suddenly send someone over, and then we'll be..."

He Yuxiu interrupted Ma Wu: "Don't be afraid, if he dares to come to this house, I'll just take his head off."

Ma Wu said with a wry smile, "Sister Xiu, don't say such hurtful things. Chu Huaijun is now backed by the Guanfang Envoy."

He Yuxiu shook her head and said, "I wasn't saying it out of anger. I'm a person who deserves to die, deserves to die in the Soda Kiln, and die a very pathetic death. Seventh Brother pulled me back from the brink of death."

I thought I'd never be able to return to Green Water City again in this lifetime. But I'm back today, and I can even move here. It's all thanks to Seventh Brother that Ye Ci and Chun Ying were willing to take me in."

Xiao Yeci laughed and said, "Sister, don't be so polite. Chunying and I can't really be considered sisters."

He Yuxiu said, "Everyone in this house, including myself, is Seventh Brother's man. If anyone touches this house, I will fight them to the death, no matter who they are."

Xiao Yeci secretly glanced at He Yuxiu, her heart pounding.

This woman is even more imposing than any man!

After dinner, Li Banfeng took He Yuxiu and Luo ZhengNan and quietly went to the He Family.

Half a street away from the mansion, the three entered a private residence.

This house belongs to Luo ZhengNan. It has no courtyard, just a two-story building.

Upon entering the first floor, He Yuxiu saw colorful pieces of paper pasted on the wall. The pieces of paper were uneven and of varying heights, seemingly pieced together to form a pattern, but she couldn't quite put her finger on what the pattern was.

"This is a sound-enhancing item," He Yuxiu said to Li Qi in a low voice, "Is it for soundproofing?"

Li Banfeng nodded slightly.

Luo ZhengNan went into the kitchen and poured a bucket of water into the sink. The water leaked directly down the sink, and it was unclear where it ended up.

He added more firewood to the stove and started a fire, but he didn't put a pot on the stove.

He Yuxiu glanced at Li Banfeng and lowered her voice, saying, "Is this a steam engine?"

What a good eye, Xiu Er!

Luo ZhengNan then went upstairs, lifted the bed board, and found an iron bucket more than half a meter long underneath. Both ends of the bucket were connected to the downstairs, and many tubes were inserted into it. Something inside was making a buzzing sound.

He Yuxiu was stunned.

She knew what it was, but it was extremely rare in Pro State.

He Yuxiu asked Li Banfeng, "Isn't this a generator?"

"You recognize this person too?"

"Yes, I recognize it. It's a steam turbine generator. I've seen it before. You can find these things everywhere in Outer State, but they're not very useful in Pro State."

"The electricity generated in Pro State disappears from the front house to the backyard; that's called excessive loss."

He Yuxiu wanted to say was that the line loss was too high, meaning that all the electrical energy was consumed in the line during transmission.

Why not just skip the transmission and use electricity directly indoors?

Some people have tried it, and sophisticated electrical appliances, such as televisions and computers, cannot be used properly in Pro State. After turning them on, the screen is full of static, and occasionally some images appear, but the origin of these images is unknown.

Construct simple electrical appliances, such as Light Bulb, and you can use them.

However, generators are extremely noisy. To light a Light Bulb, you have to endure the deafening noise and add coal and water. It would be more practical to use a gas lamp.

He Yuxiu also disliked the noise. She covered her ears and asked, "What are you going to do with this?"

Li Banfeng said, "That depends on the skill of an expert."

The output line of the steam turbine generator is connected to a hemispherical radar-like device.

Luo ZhengNan cranked the rotating wheel, adjusted the radar's direction, and then led out two wires, connecting them to his temples.

He switched the switch on, and an electric current flowed through his body. Luo ZhengNan trembled and activated the technique.

He Yuxiu said in astonishment, "I've never seen this kind of door before."

Li Banfeng smiled calmly, "Xiu Er, you'll see what's what later!"

Luo ZhengNan straightened his back and solemnly announced, "Next, please listen to an excerpt from ' The "Generals of the Yang Family" '—' "Exploring the Valley".' The shouts of men, the clatter of the reed pipes, the echoes of mountains and valleys, the sounds of battle shake the heavens!"

Li Banfeng exclaimed, "Xiu Er, what do you think of this singing style?"

He Yuxiu disagreed. "Her voice is so-so, but her figure is alright."

Luo ZhengNan shook his head. "Wrong channel."

He adjusted the radar's direction, waited a moment, and said to Li Banfeng, "There are three with hooks near the He Family, one at the front gate, one at the back gate, and one by the roadside."

Without a doubt, these three people were spies sent by the Guanfang Envoy.

Li Banfeng took out a Music Box from his pocket, opened the lid, and on the tray was a small golden figure.

With a slight turn, align the little golden figure's face with Luo ZhengNan, press the switch, and the Music Box will play music.

The music was soothing and moving; it was a wonderful gift from Ling Miaoying to Li Banfeng.

He Yuxiu and Li Banfeng will be fine after listening to this music, because the golden statuette is not aimed at them.

But Luo ZhengNan had something to do; he was very tired and about to fall asleep because the music he heard was different from what others heard.

He wanted to transmit the music he heard, so he twisted his left ear, switching from receiving mode to transmitting mode.

The music from the Music Box was transmitted via radar to the ears of the three men with hooks, and less than a minute later, all three fell asleep.

Luo ZhengNan also fell asleep; the Music Box was too powerful.

Li Banfeng turned off the generator, packed up the equipment, helped Luo ZhengNan back to bed to rest, and then took He Yuxiu back to the He Family.

"Seventh Brother, you've made so many preparations for my trip home?"

Li Banfeng nodded and said, "You have to repay this favor. I'll make you do some really outrageous things."

He Yuxiu smiled and said, "Let's do it then. How much more excessive can it be?"

"Go home and explain things clearly, then come back as soon as possible."

He Yuxiu nodded and walked towards the He Family.

Inside the He Family, the accountant Sheng Shanzhou, was about to leave with his suitcase He Family Madam Yan Yulin stopped him, saying, "Old Sheng, you can't leave. Aren't you going to take care of things at home?"

Sheng Shanzhou looked troubled and said, "Madam, I'm just an accountant. I don't have that much ability. I'm too old to do this anymore. Please let me go home and enjoy a couple of days of leisure."

Yan Yulin shook her head and said, "No, Lao Sheng, what will we do if you leave now?"

"With the master gone, what can I do? Madam, please let me go."

"Who said the head of the household isn't here?" He Yuxiu jumped in through the window, startling Yan Yulin so much she almost screamed.

Sheng Shanzhou's suitcase fell to the ground. He quickly bowed to He Yuxiu and said, "Miss, you're back. What's wrong with me...?"

Are you leaving?

"I, I... I..." Sheng Shanzhou dared not leave. Even if He Yuxiu told him to leave, he wouldn't dare to go out the door. "I'm going to get the account books and report the accounts to the head of the household."

"Alright, I don't have time for your ramblings. I have something to tell you, business matters. Remember this: there are now outlets for your goods in various places. Follow Ma Wu's instructions for the specifics, and completely sever all ties with the Chu family..."

After finishing their business, He Yuxiu returned to Lu Chunying's residence, Li Banfeng returned to Luo ZhengNan's place.

After waking Luo ZhengNan, Luo ZhengNan set up the equipment again and woke up the three informants as well.

Li Banfeng said, "They're both asleep at the same time, won't they suspect anything?"

"Seventh Master, don't worry, they don't know they were asleep at the same time; they only know they were asleep."

They were all from Pro State, working for Outer State. They were just trying to make a living; they couldn't possibly tell anyone they were napping in the middle of the night.

Back at Carefree Dock, Li Banfeng was about to have a drink with Ma Wu when Cao Zhida came to report, "A young man came to the dance hall, drank some wine, refused to pay, and insisted on having some tea. Judging from his attire and tone of voice, he should be from the Three Heroes Gate."

Cao Zhida very nervous, Ma Wu didn't take it seriously. With Qin Tianjiu at Three Heroes Gate, nothing serious could happen.

"Give him some money and see if that helps."

Li Banfeng shook his head and said, "I'll go invite this man for a cup of tea. Lao Luo, you come with me."

Luo ZhengNan was brought along in case there were any hooks around.

When Li Banfeng arrived at the dance floor, he saw the young man sprawled out on a chair, looking like he deserved a beating.

Luo ZhengNan nodded slightly, indicating that there were no hooks around.

Li Banfeng sat down next to him and lowered his voice, saying, "Looking for me?"

The young man was startled and was about to sit up straight when he heard Li Qi say, "Don't move, just sit like you were before."

The young man didn't dare to move and whispered to Li Qi, "Seventh Master, we would like to invite you for a cup of tea tomorrow."

Li Banfeng gave the young man a silver dollar, pulled his hat brim down low, and left the dance floor.

The next morning, Li Banfeng arrived at the teahouse, and Xiao Pang quickly invited him to a private room.

"Seventh Brother, Chu Huaijun, the head of the Chu family, treated our First Boss and Third Boss to dinner last night and even gave our First Boss a treasure."

"What treasure?"

"A pair of Judge's Brush."

Judge's Brush?

Li Banfeng had some thoughts.

Could it be a relative of the Judge's Brush in my house?

"What's the use of this Judge's Brush?"

Little Fatty scratched his head. "I don't know what it's used for. I've only heard that it's a treasured possession of the Chu family."

Judging from its origin, this Judge's Brush is quite different from Li Banfeng's; Li Banfeng's pen was snatched from two thugs.

"You invited your First Boss and Third Boss, but where is your Second Boss? Is this a deliberate attempt to isolate him?"

Little Fatty nodded and said, "The Second Boss was furious. Last night, he called me and our Silver Seal over, and we drank and cursed each other. He didn't dare to curse the First Boss, but he cursed the Third Boss as a spineless coward. He cursed him for half the night."

I've been thinking about what Seventh Brother said earlier. His cursing was really directed at me. He might genuinely want to join forces with you. Seventh Brother, would you like to meet our Second Boss?

"Don't rush to meet. First, send a gift to your Second Boss. Go to Yu Fangzhai and pick out something nice that your boss likes. I'll pay for it."

Qin Xiaopang said, "It wouldn't make much sense for me to deliver it; it would be better if Seventh Brother could deliver it to him."

Li Banfeng laughed and said, "What you sent is what I sent; he knows it in his heart."

"A pair of Judge's Brush, a prized possession of the Chu family?" He Jiaqing frowned. "How come I've never heard of them?"

Wan Jinxian said, "The news came from the Three Heroes Gate. They have already been given the Big Gold Seal. This is absolutely true."

"Old Wan, go contact the Ghost Hand Gate and tell them this is my order. Tell them to find a way to get these Judge's Brush back for me."

"The Judge's Brush?" Luo ZhengNan wiped the antenna and put it back in the box. "He Jiaqing seems to like it quite a bit. I wonder if Seventh Master likes it too."

P. S.: Does the Judge's Brush really have a relative?