Dongfang Cang wasted no time. He ordered his men to bring up the Black-Iron Prison Cart, cracked his whip, and rode straight for the Provincial Capital.
He invited Lu Chen to travel with him to the Provincial Capital.
Lu Chen politely declined. He planned to return to Frostleaf City first, exchange his banknotes for gold and silver, then draw cards.
He had to try those two newly acquired card pools for himself before he could judge what they held.
Before leaving,
Lu Chen stepped into the inner room. Wang Shouxin was awake. Though still weak, he could walk, and now stood by the window, staring blankly at the Black-Iron Prison Cart outside.
Hearing someone enter, he turned his head.
Their eyes met. Wang Shouxin rasped, "Thanks."
Lu Chen did not know what Wang Shouxin was thanking him for, so he said nothing. Seeing that Wang Shouxin was awake, he turned and left.
He rode to the docks, boarded a boat, and drifted back to Frostleaf City.
He had been gone only a few days, and the city looked much the same.
Lu Chen headed first to his newly opened smithy.
The sun was already high, yet the shop was shut tight, with a lock hanging on the door.
Lu Chen's heart gave a jolt. Locked up in broad daylight? What was going on?
Had something happened?
He stepped forward, twisted the lock, and wrenched it clean off.
Inside, the place was tidy and the tools were neatly arranged. Only the racks stood empty, without a single blade left on them.
So that was it. Everything had sold out. With nothing left to sell, Blind Man had closed the shop.
Lu Chen did not light a lamp. He simply sat on the heavy elm stool in the main room.
All around