Liu Family, Forty Taels of Gold

"Which family?"

"The Blackwater Liu Family!"

Zhao Han had thought it would be Jinshi Weapon Shop. Instead, it was the Liu Family.

The Liu Family was the foremost aristocratic family in Blackwater County. That Muscle Refining Realm steward belonged to the Liu Family.

"Fine!"

"Little Wang, watch the shop for now. I'll take this honored guest to the Liu Family to find Steward Mao."

"Alright!"

Zhao Han put away the cloth bundle and followed the shopkeeper toward the Liu Family.

Along the way, the shopkeeper asked Zhao Han's name.

"Yan Zhao!"

The Liu Family was not far from the Mad Saber Martial Arts School. Its grounds were vast, at least ten times the size of the Mad Saber Martial Arts School.

It was said that the Liu Family Head possessed Bone Refining Realm strength, comparable to the two gang leaders of Viper and the Black Wolf Gang. That was how the family had managed to stand firm all this time.

Upon arriving at the Liu Family, Zhao Han found that its estate was indeed enormous. The shopkeeper explained their purpose to the guards at the gate, and one of the guards went inside to call someone.

Before long, the familiar Steward Mao emerged. He was the Muscle Refining Realm steward who had been waiting for a painting at Scholar Liu's stall that day.

"Steward Mao, this is Hero Yan Zhao, the great hero who killed Mountain Lord!" The shopkeeper introduced him respectfully, bowing deeply.

Steward Mao smiled as he sized Zhao Han up. "Not bad. Hero Yan has rid Blackwater County's people of a menace. I, Mao Liu, am endlessly grateful!"

With that, Steward Mao cupped his fists.

"No need for all these pleasantries, Steward Mao. I'm pressed for time. Let's proceed with the transaction directly."

"Of course, of course."

Steward Mao gave the shopkeeper Five Taels of Silver to send him away, then invited Zhao Han inside.

"Hero Yan, Miss Ruyan is currently in charge of the Liu Family. Please follow me."

"Lead the way!"

The two arrived outside the Liu Family Main Hall, where another steward stood at the entrance.

"This must be the hero who slew Mountain Lord. My Miss has been waiting for quite some time!" Steward Mu said with a smile, extending a hand in welcome.

"I've troubled Miss Liu by making her wait!"

The three entered the main hall.

On the leather seat at the head sat a peerlessly beautiful woman dressed in a black skirt and black boots, her hair coiled up, light makeup on her fair skin.

She was holding a book and reading with great interest.

This woman should be Liu Ruyan, the Liu Family's Miss whom Scholar Liu had been pining for day and night.

Judging by that painting from the other day, Scholar Liu's craftsmanship truly was superb.

Even Zhao Han had found her breathtaking at first glance.

But he had been baptized by modern celebrities, internet influencers, beauty filters, slimming effects, photo editing, AI-generated beauties, and all manner of other things.

He had seen plenty of looks capable of toppling cities and kingdoms.

After that first glance, he remained utterly calm.

"Miss, this is Hero Yan Zhao. He was the one who killed Mountain Lord!" Steward Mao introduced him respectfully.

Perhaps she had been too absorbed in her reading. Despite all the commotion just now, Liu Ruyan had not heard a thing. Only when Steward Mao called out did she slowly put down her book.

"Hero Yan, please sit. Uncle Mao, serve tea!" Liu Ruyan said calmly, extending her slender hand.

Zhao Han immediately waved his hand. "There's no need, Miss Liu. Let's complete the transaction quickly."

As he spoke, Zhao Han placed the two cloth bundles on the floor and opened them, revealing the Tiger Bone, Tiger Skin, Tiger Head, Tiger Paw, and more inside.

An aura belonging solely to Mountain Lord spread through the room, frightening all the mosquitoes and insects away.

Liu Ruyan's pupils contracted almost imperceptibly, though a smile remained on her lips.

"Hero Yan truly is capable. You could even kill a Mountain Lord comparable to the Bone Refining Realm. This little woman admires you immensely."

"No need for all these pleasantries. Please name your price!" Zhao Han appeared impatient beyond measure.

In truth, Zhao Han had just sensed a faint trace of the Yin Tong Cult's aura.

It was emanating from these three people, making it difficult for him not to suspect that this was the Yin Tong Cult's lair.

Perhaps the so-called Yin Tong Cult branch altar was the Liu Family.

I just left a tiger's den, only to walk into a wolf's lair. Last night's Red-Clothed Female Weird is still fresh in my memory.

"Since Hero Yan is in such a hurry, Uncle Mao, Uncle Mu, examine them for Hero Yan."

After saying that, Liu Ruyan gave Zhao Han a deep look before returning to the book in her hands, as though she did not care about Mountain Lord's remains at all.

Steward Mao and Steward Mu were both shrewd men. After weighing the items a few times, they estimated their value.

"Tiger bone, eighty taels of silver!"

"Tiger skin, seventy taels of silver!"

"Tiger head, fifty taels of silver!"

"Tiger paw, one hundred and fifty taels of silver!"

"Loose tiger meat, fifty taels of silver!"

"Total: four hundred taels of silver!"

Hearing this, Zhao Han was delighted. The price was about what he had expected.

A fierce tiger as a whole was generally worth around two to three hundred taels of silver.

Mountain Lord was a tiger spirit, so he was worth more—close to a thousand taels of silver.

Zhao Han still had tiger tendon, a large amount of tiger meat, and tiger kidney in his System Space that he had not sold.

He planned to use the tiger tendon to make a bow himself, eat the tiger meat himself, and as for tiger kidney, such good stuff naturally had to be enjoyed personally.

Together with the tiger penis, tiger tail, and the rest from before, it all came to nearly a thousand taels.

"Hero Yan, do you find this price acceptable?" Steward Mao asked with a beaming smile.

"Acceptable, very acceptable!" How could Zhao Han say otherwise? Taking the money and making his escape was the true way.

Steward Mu hurried over to Liu Ruyan's side, lowered his head, and whispered something to her.

"Mm. Uncle Mao, withdraw four hundred taels of silver for Hero Yan."

"Yes. Please wait a moment, Hero Yan," Steward Mao said respectfully.

"Alright!"

Liu Ruyan gave Zhao Han another deep look, then withdrew her gaze and continued reading the book in her hands.

If Zhao Han had stepped closer to look, he would have discovered that the book Liu Ruyan held was none other than Shanyin Art, merely with a different cover.

Before long, Steward Mao returned to the main hall with a cloth bag in hand.

"Hero Yan, please verify it."

"Alright!"

The moment he took the bag, his hand sank under its weight. Opening it to check, a flash of golden light immediately illuminated Zhao Han's face.

Zhao Han's breath caught.

It was actually Forty Taels of Gold. The golden gleam spilling from within nearly blinded him.

The Liu Family was actually this lavish!

Gold was worth far more than silver.

Normally, one tael of gold could be exchanged for ten taels of silver, but ten taels of silver could not be exchanged for one tael of gold. It often took eleven, even twelve taels of silver to do so.

"Yan thanks Miss Liu, Steward Mao, and Steward Mu." Zhao Han put away the cloth bag, his breathing quickened.

A smile appeared on Liu Ruyan's lips, warm as a gentle spring breeze.

"To be able to befriend an expert like Hero Yan is truly the honor of my Liu Family."

"If Hero Yan acquires such fine prey again in the future, you may bring it to the Liu Family for trade. My Liu Family will certainly offer a price above the market rate."

"Easy enough, easy enough. Now that the transaction is complete, Yan still has urgent matters to attend to, so I'll take my leave first."

"Take care. Uncle Mao, see Hero Yan out for me."

"Yes!"

After leaving the Liu Family's gates, Zhao Han was still somewhat dazed. He had not expected the Liu Family to be so easy to deal with.

He had originally thought that pile of goods would only be worth three hundred taels of silver, yet it had fetched four hundred. The Liu Family was far too generous.

"These are Forty Taels of Gold!"

Zhao Han weighed the cloth bag in his hand, joy bubbling in his heart.

"With this much money, I don't even have any martial arts to spend silver on simplifying for the time being."

After putting some distance between himself and the Liu Family, Zhao Han placed the gold into the System Space and opened the panel to take a look.

Basic Archery [Simplified, Unranked, Proficiency 0/100, use a fine bow and arrow to hunt ten prey]