Pick Up That Qian For Me

"Brother Yuan, your... strength has grown quite a bit, hasn't it?" Chicken Brother panted heavily, eyeing Li Yuan with astonishment.

He remembered that while Li Yuan had always been sturdy, he certainly wouldn't have carried such heavy loads over mountain paths with this level of ease in the past.

Li Yuan smiled and said, "I've started practicing martial arts, so naturally, my strength has increased."

He shared the news of his martial arts training with Chicken Brother.

"Brother Yuan, you've saved up enough silver?" Chicken Brother asked, surprised.

Realizing he was asking the obvious, he quickly added, "Heh heh, once we sell these wild boars, I should have enough saved up as well."

By the time they reached the village entrance, it was already afternoon.

Under the winter sun, several children playing tag spotted the massive creatures on their shoulders at a glance.

"Wild boars! Look, it's wild boars!" a snot-nosed boy shrieked.

"Wow, there are two of them! They're huge!" The children swarmed around them, their small faces filled with wonder and envy as they reached out to touch the coarse bristles and tusks.

"Go on, go play somewhere else, don't get in the way!" Chicken Brother, though exhausted, wore a look of pride.

Wild boars were fierce beasts; even the village's hunters sometimes went months without catching one.

Only the most experienced hunters and archers in the village could ever hope to bring down a wild boar.

This was something they could brag about for quite a while.

The villagers were stirred as well, poking their heads out from their homes or standing by the roadside to watch.

"Oh, it's Li Yuan and Chicken Kid. Good heavens, these two boars must weigh three or four hundred pounds, right?"

"Incredible! These two lads have guts, daring to mess with a sounder of boars!"

"They've struck it rich! If they take those to the county town, they'll fetch a good amount of silver!"

The murmurs were filled with envy and awe.

Hunting a large beast was a significant event worth talking about in Blue Stone Village.

Even Uncle Zhang, the most veteran hunter in the village, couldn't help but lean on his cane to come out and see the two sturdy boars.

He clicked his tongue in wonder and patted Li Yuan on the shoulder: "Brother Yuan, well done! When these beasts go berserk, even three or five men can't get close. For you two lads to take them down, that's truly impressive!"

Chicken Brother gave an embarrassed smile, scratched his head, and said, "It was mostly Brother Yuan's skill; I just helped out."

The two didn't linger, borrowing a flatbed cart to lash the boars down securely before heading toward the county town.

Winter days were short, so they had to make haste.

Upon arriving at the county market, these rare wild boars were indeed in high demand.

Pork vendors and restaurant buyers swarmed them, and eventually, the largest establishment in town, the Drunken Immortal Restaurant, bought the lot at a flat price.

The manager looked at the tusks and remarked that the meat was of excellent quality, noting that the head meat would be a fine delicacy for drinking.

"Two boars, four hundred and thirty pounds, thirty wen per pound.

That makes 12,900 wen total; let's call it thirteen taels of silver, no need for change."

The manager counted out thirteen taels of silver from his pouch and handed them to Li Yuan.

Generally, in stable times, one thousand wen was equivalent to one tael of silver.

Usually, one could exchange wen for silver, but never the other way around.

With the current wartime instability, the fact that the buyer was willing to convert it into silver at the standard rate showed they were being quite generous.

After the two paid their commission, they walked away with about eight taels of silver in hand.

Split evenly, each of them received four taels.

It was no wonder people said big game was lucrative; despite the high risk, the rewards far exceeded those of ordinary prey.

Li Yuan felt a fire in his heart, Wait a little longer, and I'll be able to hunt these big prizes on my own. That's when the real good life will begin.

With the heavy silver in his pocket, Chicken Brother grinned from ear to ear.

Touching the money bag, he felt as if he could already see the gates of the Martial Arts Hall beckoning to him.

Li Yuan felt much more at ease as well; the expenses for his martial arts training were finally covered for another stretch.

"Damn it, why haven't those two brats come out yet? I'm starving to death."

In a small alley not far from the market entrance, several thugs squatted on the ground, looking extremely impatient.

The leader was a man with slanted eyes, a short club tucked loosely into his waistband.

He was a well-known thug from the East District of the outer city, a lackey under Yan Xiang, known as "Wang Three Scars."

They had seen the two of them carry the two large boars into the market earlier.

"Could they have run off somewhere else?"

"Run where? They can run for a moment, but can they run for a lifetime?"

"If they get away this time, I'll break their legs next time! See how much they like running then."

"Heh heh, Third Brother, I heard the brothel got a new one... wait, is that the kid? Looks like he's coming out."

Wang Three Scars stood up and looked toward the entrance. The face was eighty percent similar, but the build seemed a bit sturdier than before?

"That should be the brat. Quick, grab your gear. When he gets close, make sure he pays his respects properly."

In the distance, Li Yuan and Chicken Brother were also heading this way.

Before they had even entered, Li Yuan had already spotted these few ruffians.

These ruffians came from all walks of life: some were farmers, some were laborers who took odd jobs in the county town when they couldn't survive, and others were fishermen who worked sporadically.

They were all lazy gluttons who spent their days cooking up crooked schemes to bully those who were just as low-born as themselves.

If you didn't go along with their wishes, a dozen of them would swarm you, clubs and sticks at the ready.

However, Li Yuan was no longer afraid of these ruffians. Before he had cultivated his blood and qi, he had to use a slingshot to ambush Chen Qing just to kill him.

After practicing martial arts to nourish his blood and qi, and having trained in stance work for a period of time while supplementing his daily Consumption, he was different.

It could be said that his physique was much sturdier than before, and he had his slingshot hidden away. The ones who should be afraid were them!

Just as the two of them passed the small alleyway.

"Yo, you two little brothers, struck it rich, have you?"

Wang Three Scars walked up with a short club in one hand, a smile that didn't reach his eyes plastered on his face, his gaze sweeping over the bulging front of Li Yuan's tunic.

"You make a fortune on our turf and don't know the rules? Shouldn't you show some respect with a little tribute money?"

Chicken Brother's face turned pale; he had clearly seen this group of ruffians before and instinctively clutched his money pouch tight. "W-what do you want? In broad daylight..."

"What about broad daylight?" Wang Three Scars spat. "We brothers cleared the area for you to keep you from being targeted by petty thieves. Isn't it only right to collect a little fee for our hard work?"

The ruffians behind him erupted into jeering laughter, their gazes playful as they closed in step by step.

"The money is right here. If you've got the guts, come and take it." Li Yuan shielded Chicken Brother behind him.

He immediately held the money pouch high, opened his palm, and let it drop right at his feet.

"Heh heh, the silver is ours." A ruffian behind Wang Three Scars giggled foolishly and started to reach for the money.

But Wang Three Scars stopped him with a wave of his hand, his face darkening.

"What do you mean by this?"

Wang Three Scars narrowed his eyes, staring at Li Yuan's gesture. He had his own dignity, after all.

This brat was truly asking for a beating, actually expecting him to pick up the money.

Li Yuan remained expressionless, his gaze growing colder by the second.

"Pick it up. Pick the money up for me!"

"I'm fucking telling you to pick the money up for me!"

With that, Wang Three Scars swung his short club, aiming it straight at Li Yuan's face.