Fool

"One liang of silver?! He's that rich!?"

Lin Guoliang and the others were stunned.

They stared at the liang of silver in Yang Ling's hand and swallowed unconsciously.

They worked themselves to the bone, and it took several of them just to scrape together ten copper coins.

The nearby miners swallowed too, their eyes shining.

The copper coins they earned were usually just enough to cover food and drink.

Even if they managed to save some, they weren't allowed to exchange them for silver.

In the vast Fire Crystal Mine, there were only a handful of miners who had silver.

Uncle Wang clicked his tongue in amazement, but reacted quickly and shouted to the miners:

"Xiao Yang's put up everything he has. Show him some respect and let this go!"

"Fine, we'll do it for Xiao Yang."

"These brats got a beating today. They probably won't dare try this again."

Several miners immediately crowded forward, took the liang of silver from Yang Ling, and prepared to go to Steward Niu to break it up and share it.

Macaque's face turned pale, then flushed.

Yang Ling walked over to Officer Chen.

"Let me see the wound."

Officer Chen smiled weakly.

"It's probably nothing. Thanks, Brother Yang."

He was picking up the local customs quickly.

Yang Ling smiled, pried open Officer Chen's hand, and saw a thumb-sized gash on his forehead. Blood was seeping out.

He took out a bottle of Healing Ointment and sprinkled it on the wound.

The bleeding stopped at once.

He glanced at Officer Chen's Attribute Panel.

His strength was 6 points, considerably higher than an ordinary person's, and his Health Points were 60. At the moment, he had only around 20 left.

With this bottle of Healing Ointment, a few days' rest should bring his Health Points almost back to full.

Chen Xu felt a chill creep over his scalp. He hadn't realized Officer Chen's injuries were so serious. If they hadn't been treated promptly, the consequences could have been dire!

Suddenly, Officer Chen's expression changed.

"Look out!"

A gust of wind swept over.

Yang Ling reached back and caught the pickaxe.

Macaque was startled and instinctively tried to yank it back, but it didn't budge.

Yang Ling gave it a light tug, and the pickaxe fell into his hand.

The nearby miners looked at one another.

"Nice move!"

Officer Chen exclaimed in amazement.

Chen Xu and the others were stunned too.

It had all happened in a flash.

They hadn't even noticed Macaque trying to sneak an attack.

They hadn't expected Brother Yang to deflect it so effortlessly.

"Yang Ling, sticking your neck out for them violates the rules here!"

Macaque said, trying to sound tough despite his fear.

Yang Ling said nothing. He stepped forward, grabbed Macaque by the throat, and slowly lifted him up.

Macaque's face turned beet red as he desperately scrabbled with his hands and feet.

Yang Ling didn't budge. His arm didn't even tremble.

"That strength..."

The miners stared in astonishment. The mine guards watching the commotion exchanged glances, each seeing a trace of wariness in the other's eyes.

One of the mine guards muttered to himself:

"Steward Niu's guess must be right. This kid has an unusual background."

Uncle Wang and the others clearly hadn't expected the usually kind Yang Ling to be so terrifyingly strong.

"P-please, spare me..."

Macaque clutched Yang Ling's thumb and forefinger with both hands. His eyes rolled back, and his tongue had already slipped out involuntarily.

"Xiao Yang, if you kill him, we'll have to report it to Captain Lin in the city. What a hassle. Do me a favor and let him go."

Steward Niu strolled over.

The miners around him immediately moved aside, looking at him with respect.

Steward Niu was generally fair in his dealings, so aside from Supervisor Wu, he commanded more respect among the miners of the Fire Crystal Mine than anyone else.

Yang Ling let go. Macaque dropped to the ground and gasped for breath, his eyes filled with fear as he looked at Yang Ling.

"Steward Niu, what do you think we should do about this?"

Yang Ling said after a moment's thought.

"The dispute over the mine claim is settled. You handled it well."

"As for Macaque trying to attack you just now, I'll punish him by making him hand over ten jin of Fire Crystal Rock Ore."

"He'll have to turn in ten jin of Fire Crystal Rock Ore before he can get paid again. How does that sound?"

Steward Niu said with a smile.

"I have no objections."

Yang Ling nodded slightly.

Macaque's face grew even paler.

Ten jin? How was he supposed to afford food and drink for the next while?

"All right, that's settled. Everyone go back to work."

Steward Niu waved his hand.

The nearby miners obediently dispersed.

Macaque didn't dare linger either and slunk away.

After settling the matter, Steward Niu slowly returned to his seat.

"Brother Yang, that medicine of yours is really something. I'm already feeling much better."

Officer Chen slowly stood up, pleasantly surprised.

What kind of medicine was this? How could it work so well?

In his experience, even if this injury wasn't life-threatening, it should have taken ten days or half a month to heal.

"You can buy it at the pharmacy. Five copper coins a bottle. It's called Healing Ointment."

Yang Ling said with a faint smile.

Five copper coins a bottle?

That wasn't too expensive.

Chen Xu and Officer Chen thought to themselves.

Chen Xu hurriedly cupped his hands.

"Brother Yang, we owe you one today. Otherwise, Chen... and the others would have been in trouble."

"I'm lending you this liang of silver. Pay me back when you get the chance."

Yang Ling said.

Chen Xu was taken aback, then slowly nodded.

"I definitely will!"

A liang of silver was a lot, but he believed that given enough time, he could earn that much!

"Brother Yang, we're injured too. Could you give us some Healing Ointment?"

Lin Guoliang came over, supporting Wu Meng.

"I'm out."

Yang Ling replied casually.