Brutal

The reason Wang Long and his men were looking for him was self-evident.

After a moment of silence, Qin Fang suppressed the agitation in his heart. Since he could no longer avoid this, he might as well lay everything out on the table.

"For this, I must sincerely apologize to you all... You saw the state I was in at the time; I truly had no other choice, so... I did indeed deceive you. But I remember the debt of saving my life, and I will repay you in the future."

Qin Fang decided to be blunt.

The expressions of Wang Long and his men darkened instantly at these words.

"So... you really were lying to me back then?" Wang Long asked with a gloomy expression.

"Yes," Qin Fang nodded.

"You... you don't have any more gold outside the city?" the man with the mole by his mouth asked urgently.

"No." Qin Fang shook his head. "I am just a refugee. The Golden Chain I gave you that day was something I stumbled upon by chance, intended to be my nest egg once I settled down. I gave it to you that day, and I truly have nothing left."

"Then why did you say there was more outside the city?!" someone asked angrily.

Qin Fang fell silent before saying, "If I hadn't said that, would you have saved me?"

This question caused the room to fall silent.

If it weren't for the hope of more gold... would they have bothered to save him?

The fact that they didn't take Qin Fang to Spring Return Hall initially, but rather to one of their temporary hideouts, proved they never intended to save him in the first place.

Moreover, they had vaguely suspected that Qin Fang might be lying to them at the time.

It was only greed that made them harbor a sliver of hope, thinking, "What if?"

That was why they had spared no expense to get him treated.

Now, that hope was shattered.

One could imagine how they felt.

"Kid, I'm afraid this isn't going to be easy to resolve... Now, tell me, what do you think I should do with you?"

Wang Long's face fell completely. He looked at Qin Fang with a sinister gaze, murderous intent swirling in his eyes.

Clearly, he was burning with rage at being played by Qin Fang.

"I was forced by circumstances; I truly had no intention of playing you all for fools."

Qin Fang took a deep breath, keeping his posture very low. "But it is a fact that you saved me. I remember this great kindness, and I will repay you in the future."

"Repay? What kind of repayment can you give me?"

"I truly cannot give you anything for the moment... but if you would just grant me some time, once I am settled in True Martial County, there will naturally be benefits for you all."

Qin Fang said sincerely.

"Hahaha, wait until you've gained a foothold in True Martial County, and then give me a reward?"

Wang Long burst into loud laughter, then his expression suddenly collapsed. "Kid, do you take me for an idiot?!"

Before Qin Fang could speak again, Wang Long strode over to him.

Qin Fang's heart skipped a beat. Before he could say a word, Wang Long swung a slap directly at him.

The speed was immense. Qin Fang was startled and instinctively raised his left arm to block, but the next moment, with a loud bang, his entire body was sent flying.

Bang!

His back slammed hard against the doorframe. He let out a muffled groan, his back throbbing with intense pain, and he collapsed onto the floor.

The blow didn't hit his face because Qin Fang had blocked it with his arm in time.

However, the arm that took the hit felt as if it had been shattered.

Cold sweat instantly beaded on Qin Fang's forehead.

Wang Long struck without hesitation, giving him no chance to react.

He was in too much pain to speak, only able to look up at Wang Long.

Wang Long crouched down, staring at Qin Fang with a cruel glint in his eyes. "Kid, let me teach you a lesson: if you give your word, you must keep it. If you go back on your word, you have to pay the price."

Before Qin Fang could speak, Wang Long grabbed one of his fingers.

Qin Fang's expression changed, but before he could utter a sound, Wang Long gave it a vicious twist!

Snap!!

A crisp sound echoed.

Qin Fang couldn't help but let out a shrill scream.

His left index finger had been snapped by Wang Long!!

The excruciating pain made Qin Fang's eyes widen, leaving him unable to speak.

Only then did Wang Long release his hand with satisfaction. Looking down, Qin Fang's left index finger was twisted at an unnatural angle.

"Consider this a small punishment for a big mistake. Now, you should remember not to go around lying to people, right?"

Wang Long grinned sinisterly, revealing a mouthful of yellowed teeth.

Qin Fang, however, could no longer speak; cold sweat streamed down his forehead as he curled up on the ground, clutching his left hand.

"One finger to teach you a lesson. But this isn't over."

"Don't say I didn't give you a chance. Didn't you apprentice yourself to Old Wu? That's perfect. I'll give you three days... Three days from now, prepare fifty... no, one hundred taels of silver for me, and this matter will be settled. Otherwise..."

He sneered, "Kid, you still have plenty of fingers and toes... We'll play this out slowly."

After saying this, he looked around the room before sneering again, "Old Wu is certainly good to you. I heard he even spent time renovating this house for you recently? One hundred taels of silver shouldn't be much for Old Wu, right?"

Qin Fang clutched his broken left hand, curled on the floor, the excruciating pain rendering him speechless.

"Go take a look and see if there's anything worth taking."

Wang Long ordered indifferently.

Hearing Wang Long's words, the others sneered and charged straight into Qin Fang's home.

Within moments, the sound of crashing and banging erupted as they deliberately smashed the tables, chairs, and benches... Clearly, this kind of activity was their specialty.

In just a short while, the house that had finally begun to feel like a "home" was reduced to a chaotic mess. Qin Fang even watched as Mole-Face deliberately stomped on the table several times until the tabletop snapped in two.

The teapot and other items brought by Elder Wu were wantonly thrown to the ground and shattered into pieces.

"Yo, you can actually afford meat? Such a big piece—just right, since the brothers' mouths have been getting bland enough to sprout feathers these past two days."

Someone emerged from the kitchen, dangling a large slab of pork.

This was what his master had just brought over yesterday.

Qin Fang stifled his gasps, looking over from the side without a word.

Wang Long's voice rang out once more: "Kid, maybe you had no choice back then and were just trying to survive, but I don't owe you anything. Since you came to me and made a promise, you have to fulfill it, right?"

"Remember, you only have three days. Three days from now, if there's no silver..."

Wang Long didn't finish his sentence, but two cold laughs said everything that needed to be said.

Qin Fang struggled to look at Wang Long, whose eyes were filled with undisguised cruelty and mockery.

Qin Fang said nothing more, and Wang Long stood up after a final sneer.

"Alright, we'll come back in three days. We have to give him a chance to scrape the money together, don't we? Let's go."

Wang Long rose and left, while the others followed, laughing maliciously and cursing as they walked out.

"Trying to play the deadbeat? When I was pulling these tricks, this brat was still playing in the mud."

"Hahaha."

As Mole-Face passed by Qin Fang, he gave the man lying on the ground a kick before walking away with a wicked laugh.

Finally, Wang Long and his men were gone.

Qin Fang lay on the ground for a long while before slowly crawling to his feet.

He gripped his left hand tightly and looked down; his index finger was twisted at an unnatural angle, and the sharp pain continued to pulse through him.

His gaze swept across the room... the house he had just finished repairing was now in total disarray, and the teapot and furniture his master had brought were all intentionally destroyed.

Qin Fang knew their goal wasn't just destruction; it was intimidation.

He slowly stood up and walked to the kitchen.

The kitchen was also a wreck; even the pot had been smashed with a brick, leaving a gaping hole. The bowls that had been on the stove were shattered all over the floor.

Qin Fang slowly turned his head toward the front door.

He tightened his grip on the throwing dart he had been hiding in his right hand.

Without lingering, he clutched his left wrist and walked straight out of the courtyard.

His gaze locked onto the men who were nearly out of the alleyway.

Expressionless, he didn't even close the door; clutching his wrist, he slowly followed after them.