Settling Down

This was the first time Qin Fang had walked the streets of True Martial County since his severe illness.

Night had just fallen, yet the streets of True Martial were bustling... not with the liveliness of prosperity, but with the sounds of weeping, white mourning cloths, and the ceaseless chanting of scriptures.

This caused Qin Fang, who was following behind Old Wu, to pause in a daze, but he immediately understood what was happening.

He frowned as he looked around; while not every household was draped in white, every three or four houses held a funeral.

It was evident that the riot that day had caused quite a stir.

The wailing was miserable and sorrowful.

In some places, one could even see traces of destruction, making the entire street appear desolate and grim.

"Many people were killed the day the refugees rioted."

Old Wu's voice rang out from ahead.

Qin Fang remained silent.

It was just as he had imagined... once refugees rioted, they were bound to be vicious.

Once the negative emotions accumulated along the journey were vented, there was no cruelty they wouldn't commit.

"If your identity as a refugee is discovered, I fear you won't even wait for the authorities to arrest you; these people alone would be enough to take your life."

Old Wu said calmly.

Qin Fang fell silent.

Then, he had to admit... Old Wu was right.

This era was a society of acquaintances; two villages might fight to the death over a single well, let alone such a deep, life-and-death grudge.

People wouldn't care if he knew the perpetrators or if he had participated in the riot.

They would only say... the perpetrators were refugees, and so was he.

Therefore, he must be in league with them.

As for whether he was innocent?

...Who cared?

Fortunately, Zhang Hao hadn't been boasting; Old Wu's status in True Martial was indeed somewhat transcendent.

Along the way, many people saw Old Wu and greeted him politely.

Old Wu responded with a cold nod, and they didn't seem to mind.

Some even invited Old Wu inside for a drink.

But Old Wu naturally waved his hand and declined with indifference.

During this process, many also noticed Qin Fang behind Old Wu.

Upon seeing him, quite a few people were stunned, their expressions filled with confusion, and they couldn't help but take a few extra looks.

...It was simply because Qin Fang's appearance was too conspicuous right now.

Standing over 1.8 meters tall but gaunt as a skeleton, his appearance caused a flicker of suspicion in the eyes of many.

Clearly, they were questioning Qin Fang's identity.

However, hindered by the fact that Qin Fang was with Old Wu, although they had doubts, they ultimately said nothing.

Qin Fang felt a chill in his heart... it was exactly as Old Wu had said.

With his current appearance, as long as he stepped out and was seen, his identity as a refugee would surely be recognized.

He hadn't known before that the riot that day had caused such severe consequences.

If he had known, his plans would likely have had to change.

Otherwise... once his refugee identity was exposed, it was questionable whether people would even bother reporting him to the authorities.

It was quite possible he would be beaten to death by these aggrieved victims on the spot!

For instance, Qin Fang could clearly feel that the gaze of some people, after their initial shock, was now filled with malice and anger.

They were clearly associating him with the rioting refugees.

Qin Fang was speechless at this situation.

Fortunately, with Old Wu present, these people didn't do anything out of line. They wound through several alleys and finally arrived at a quiet lane.

Following Old Wu into the alley, they eventually stopped in front of a dilapidated courtyard. Old Wu took a key from his pocket, opened the lock, and walked inside.

Qin Fang followed.

He looked around with curiosity; the courtyard was small, about five meters square, with a dilapidated tiled house at the very back, currently pitch black inside.

"This place was my former residence. It has been vacant for a long time, so you can stay here for now."

Old Wu turned to look at Qin Fang, his voice calm: "Try not to go out often. First, focus on recovering your health... at least until you don't look like a refugee at a glance... I will bring you some food tomorrow."

"But I will not involve myself in your business with the Iron Tiger Gang. You handle it yourself; I will not intervene."

"As for the identity issue... the magistrate's office is in chaos right now, so there shouldn't be a census in the short term. As for the future... we'll see how things go."

The grain for disaster relief had been torched, and the refugees were in open revolt... Either one of these was a heaven-shaking catastrophe.

The chaos currently engulfing the True Martial Yamen was easy to imagine.

Upon hearing this, Qin Fang exhaled softly and bowed to Old Wu, "Many thanks for your assistance, Old Wu... This favor, Qin Fang will remember."

Old Wu waved a hand, "I don't expect any repayment from you, it's just... forget it, let it be. Go inside and take a look, tidy things up a bit, and I will return tomorrow."

With that, Old Wu handed the door lock to Qin Fang and turned to leave.

Qin Fang saw him to the gate, watching until he was out of sight before closing the courtyard door and sliding the bolt into place, finally letting out a long, heavy breath...

His eyes flickered.

He had assumed Old Wu would not help him, but he had not expected such a sudden turn of events.

In truth, he did not know why Old Wu had helped him either...

But clearly, now was not the time to dwell on that.

At the very least, for him, the outcome was favorable.

He had a place to stay for the moment; although the fundamental problems remained, he had at least bought himself some breathing room.

And right now... what he lacked most was time.

After taking a deep breath, he walked toward the tiled house.

He pushed open the wooden door with a creak. The interior was indeed dilapidated, almost entirely devoid of furniture—a house stripped bare. In some places, the roof had collapsed, with broken tiles scattered across the floor.

But having fled all this way, what kind of harsh conditions had Qin Fang not encountered?

This was already considered quite good.

He began to work, intending to clean up the house.

Yet, he had barely cleared a spot just large enough to rest in before he was drenched in sweat, his hands and feet trembling.

He gasped for air, his face deathly pale.

Qin Fang knew his body was still far too weak.

In the end, he could only shake his head helplessly; he would deal with the rest of the clutter tomorrow during the day.

Panting heavily, he sat down on the floor in the corner he had cleared, only recovering after a long while.

"The most important thing next is to nurse my body back to health."

"Secondly... I must increase my combat power."

Combat power was far too important in this world.

Because when danger arrived, there would be no police officers to protect him.

He could only rely on himself.

"Although my dagger technique has reached Minor Accomplishment, the lethality of a dagger is still limited..."

A dagger was a short weapon that required close-quarters combat, and with his current frail physique, he would undoubtedly be at a massive disadvantage in a melee; a single graze or strike could mean death.

Even if his dagger skills were perfected, the lethality remained capped.

He had chosen the dagger before because it was easy to carry, and since everyone was a refugee, who was really that much stronger than the next?

But the situation was different now; he had to make a change.

He needed to switch to a skill that, even if his body were weak, would still possess great lethality...

Qin Fang fell into deep thought.

Then, one type of weapon surfaced in his mind...

Hidden weapons.

In the world of martial arts, hidden weapons had always been the hallmark of overcoming the strong with the weak.

But mastering them was no easy feat.

"However, I have the proficiency panel... I should be able to master it, right?"

He looked at the panel before him, which contained only the pitifully lonely entry: "Dagger (Minor Accomplishment)."

Finally, he made his decision.

"Hidden weapons it is!"

"I'll ask Old Wu when he comes tomorrow to see if he can procure some hidden weapons..."

As he thought this, exhaustion welled up. He curled up in the clean area he had cleared and, before long, drifted into a deep sleep.