Replacement

"Ellie, Raghav misses you dearly. He has prepared quite a few interesting props for you, and I hope you can remain this composed in a moment."

The dark-skinned middle-aged man licked his lips, staring at Wu Heng with the gaze one might reserve for a lamb headed to the slaughter, as if he could pierce right through his short tunic.

Wu Heng's calm expression displeased him greatly; it made him furious!

He preferred to see these debtors weeping in terror and begging for mercy, as it gave him a sense of superiority that welled up from within.

A low-caste porter kneeling on the ground, weeping as he kissed the dirt—that was the only thing fitting for his caste; composure was something that required status and position to sustain.

Anger surged within the dark-skinned man. He reached out to grab Wu Heng's tunic, intending to drag him along and force him to kiss the earth properly.

The look in the man's eyes made Wu Heng feel extremely uncomfortable.

"Perhaps you should learn some manners!"

Wu Heng shifted slightly to dodge the filthy hand, then whipped his right hand back. He grabbed the wrist of another thug who had been trying to block him from behind and used it to strike the dark-skinned man's face.

Bang! Crack!

Two sounds of breaking bone rang out simultaneously.

The dark-skinned man's nasal bridge was shattered instantly. He clutched his face, howling as he crouched on the ground, blood dripping through his fingers and staining the dirt a vivid red.

The other thug, who had yellow braids, also clutched his right hand with his left, pressing it against his abdomen as he bent over in pain.

"I am more than happy to teach you how to be polite!"

Nearby villagers lowered their heads and hurried away. Some couldn't help but glance back, only to quicken their pace, leaving a four-meter-wide empty zone around them.

An Eagle-nation soldier standing at the entrance of a nearby office building saw what happened and beckoned to someone inside; another soldier emerged a moment later.

The two leaned against the door pillars, sharing a cigarette and taking turns puffing on it while watching and commenting with interest, clearly having no intention of intervening.

Wu Heng looked at the two still wailing on the ground and said:

"Have you learned it yet? If so, lead the way!"

"You have three seconds. You still have one intact nose and one right hand left. Perhaps you would like to swap roles?"

Hearing this, the dark-skinned man suppressed his pain and scrambled to his feet.

He tried to wipe the blood with his sleeve but accidentally brushed his shattered nose, letting out another cry of pain as tears and snot streamed down his face.

The yellow-braided man stifled his groans, his lips twitching as he wanted to say something, but seeing the miserable state of his companion, his words changed:

"No, we've learned our manners, Mr. Ellie. I'll take you to Raghav right now."

"Please... follow me."

The yellow-braided man wanted to bow and clasp his hands in panic, but his broken right hand could only tremble as it hovered near his left. He quickly tugged at the dark-skinned man with his left hand, gave him a look, and turned to lead the way.

The look, filled with the implication of settling scores later, did not escape Wu Heng's sharp gaze, though he did not care.

The two led Wu Heng through the streets and alleys until they reached a single-story house made of red brick and blue tiles.

The ordinary red-brick house stood out with a touch of luxury against the backdrop of the surrounding filthy, old, black-stone huts.

"Habib, did you use your face to test the hardness of an Eagle-nation car? Is the car alright?"

A scrawny young man with dyed, multi-colored hair asked with a smirk upon seeing the dark-skinned man's wretched state.

"Qiya, cut the crap. Where is Boss Raghav?"

The dark-skinned man's eyes were filled with resentment.

"My uncle is in the room. Just go on in."

The skinny youth waved toward the door, looking at Wu Heng, who followed behind, with a playful expression; he knew there would be another spectacular show to watch in a moment.

"Follow me."

The yellow-braided man's tone toward Wu Heng was no longer respectful.

The dark-skinned man and the yellow-braided man said nothing more, leading Wu Heng past the two guards at the door and into the house, their backs straightening as they walked.

"Boss, I've brought Ellie. Not only did he refuse to pay the interest, but he also beat us up. Look!"

The moment the dark-skinned man saw Raghav, he pointed eagerly at his crooked, flattened nose and blood-stained face.

"That's right, Ellie has no intention of paying back the money."

"Boss, don't we still need two-legged donkeys to transport the tobacco? I think he's a perfect fit."

The yellow-braided man added.

"Alright, I've arrived. You two go get your injuries treated; I'll have use for you later."

Wu Heng said to the two injured men.

"You—Ellie, don't be arrogant! Boss, look at his attitude!"

Hearing Wu Heng's words, the two pointed at him with strange, indignant expressions. Wu Heng's tone made them feel both bewildered and humiliated.

Inside the bedroom, Raghav stood before a black wooden tea table set with a brass tea service, pouring water into a cup from a copper pot.

Raghav wore loose, golden-yellow trousers, with only an orange scarf draped over his neck, leaving his upper body bare. His forehead was polished smooth, with only a small ponytail left at the back of his head, and his stubble was flecked with white.

Hearing their words, Raghav slowly finished pouring the tea before turning to look at Wu Heng and the other two.

"Go and tend to your wounds."

Raghav said this softly, and the two underlings nodded hurriedly and left; as long as their boss had seen their miserable state, that was enough.

Raghav looked at Wu Heng:

"Ellie, have you thought about how to pay back the fivefold interest? It was only threefold originally, but you injured my men."

"If you are willing to help me transport tobacco five times, I can waive your interest."

After finishing his sentence, Raghav picked up his tea and took a light sip.

The doorway behind Wu Heng was already blocked by four thugs wielding knives.

"Aren't you curious about where Vinayak got his gold coins?"

Wu Heng looked Raghav up and down, his brows slightly furrowed.

"What do you mean by that? If you know, why don't you go find them yourself?"

Raghav's expression shifted slightly upon hearing this; he didn't understand how a lowly caste person like Ellie could know these things, though it was possible he had discovered it by tailing Vinayak.

"Do you want me to say it out loud?"

Wu Heng tilted his head slightly to look at the men at the door.

"You lot, get out and close the door."

Raghav waved his hand to dismiss the crowd, and only after the door was tightly shut did he turn his gaze back to Wu Heng.

"Hey, do you think the boss will share the gold coins with us if he gets them?"

"Have you heard the legend of Tumbbad? Vinayak is a descendant of the Rao family."

"That poor kid Vinayak has even taken a concubine now; I reckon he found his ancestors' treasure."

A group of men stood outside the closed door whispering to one another, the greed for wealth etched into their very bones.

Creak.

Less than three minutes later, the bedroom door was opened again, and everyone looked into the room with anticipation in their eyes.

Raghav walked over to the mirror, frowned at his reflection, and massaged his face with his hands.

"Boss, what about Ellie? Did you get the answer?"

One underling asked cautiously.

"I got the answer. As for Ellie, isn't that him right there?"

Raghav gestured with his chin toward the corner of the room.

"Ah, this..."

The four underlings looked toward the corner and recoiled in terror, stepping back in unison.

Lying in the corner was Ellie's corpse, and what was even more horrifying was that the skin was gone from his body, and the blood on him had already nearly dried.

Although the four underlings were bewildered and terrified, their fear of their boss was even greater, and they dared not ask any more questions.

"Boss, we've finished bandaging and are back. That Ellie..."

The man with the yellow braid and the dark-skinned middle-aged man happened to walk up with bandages wrapped around them, but they froze when they followed the others' gazes to the corpse.

"That is Ellie."

The person next to them kindly explained.

The terror in their eyes flashed and vanished, replaced by the pleasure of seeing their enemy get his due.

"As expected of Boss Raghav. I knew Ellie was a dead man walking. Thank you, Boss, for avenging us," the yellow-braided man said.

"That's right, we are loyal to the boss to the death; even if the boss told us to die, we wouldn't even frown," the dark-skinned middle-aged man added immediately.

Wu Heng, wearing the skin of Raghav, looked at the two men pledging their loyalty and nodded with satisfaction.

"Mm, you two arrived just in time. Come with me to find Vinayak in a while."

"Understood, Boss."

The two exchanged a glance, their excitement making them temporarily forget the pain of their injuries; the boss truly valued them.

The other four men cast looks of envy and jealousy, wearing expressions that suggested they wished to take their places.

"Qiya, gather all the brothers now. I have arrangements to make, and everyone will receive a large amount of gold coins afterward."

Wu Heng said to the thin, frail youth approaching from the doorway.

"Understood, Uncle."

The youth paused for a moment before turning and walking quickly outside.

"Now, go buy two sturdy ropes, about 10 meters long."

The dark-skinned middle-aged man nodded in response and jogged away.

Wu Heng reached out to pinch his belly; Raghav's rather fat stomach made him feel truly uncomfortable.

Are you willing to trade your collections, monthly tickets, and recommendation tickets for two erasers from me?