Replacement

"Ellie, Raghav's been missing you. He's prepared quite a few interesting props for you, so I hope you'll still be this calm in a little while."

The dark-skinned middle-aged man licked his lips and stared at Wu Heng like he was a lamb waiting to be slaughtered, as if he could see right through his short jacket.

He really didn't like Wu Heng's calm expression. It made him furious!

He'd much rather see these borrowers weeping in terror and begging for mercy. It gave him an innate sense of superiority.

A low-caste porter ought to be groveling on the ground, crying as he kissed the dirt. That was what suited his caste. Staying calm took status and power.

The dark-skinned middle-aged man's anger flared. He reached out to grab Wu Heng's jacket, intending to drag him along and make him kiss the ground properly.

The man's gaze made Wu Heng extremely uncomfortable.

"Maybe you should learn some manners!"

Wu Heng shifted aside, avoiding the dirty hand. His right hand darted behind him and seized the wrist of another thug who was still trying to stop him. Gripping the man's wrist, Wu Heng swung his arm toward the dark-skinned middle-aged man's face.

Thud! Crack!

Two bones broke at the same time.

The dark-skinned middle-aged man's nose was smashed. He screamed and crouched on the ground, clutching his face. Blood trickled between his fingers, drop by drop, staining the dirt a vivid red.

The other thug, with a yellow braid in his hair, clutched his right hand against his belly with his left and doubled over in pain.

"I'd be happy to teach you how to behave!"

The villagers passing by hurriedly lowered their heads and gave them a wide berth. A few couldn't resist glancing over before quickly picking up their pace, leaving a four-meter-wide circle empty around them.

An Eagle Army soldier standing by the office building in the distance saw what was happening and hurriedly waved someone over from inside. In a moment, another soldier came out.

The two leaned against the pillars by the entrance and lit a cigarette. They took turns puffing on it as they watched with interest and traded comments. They clearly had no intention of getting involved.

Wu Heng looked at the two men still screaming on the ground.

"Have you learned your lesson? If you have, show me the way!"

"You have three seconds. You've still got one good nose and one good right hand. Maybe you'd like to swap roles?"

The dark-skinned middle-aged man heard this and forced himself to stand despite the pain.

He tried to wipe away the blood with his sleeve, but accidentally touched his shattered nose and cried out again. Tears and snot began streaming down his face.

The man with the yellow braid held back his cries of pain. His lips twitched as if he wanted to say something, but when he saw the dark-skinned middle-aged man's condition, he changed his mind.

"Don't make us learn our manners, Mr. Ellie. I'll take you to Raghav right now."

"Please... come with me."

The man with the yellow braid nervously tried to bow with his hands together, but his broken right hand only trembled against his left. He hurriedly tugged at the dark-skinned middle-aged man with his left hand, gave him a look, and turned to lead the way.

Wu Heng's sharp eyes didn't miss the look, full of promise of revenge, but he didn't care.

The two men led Wu Heng through streets and alleys to a red-brick house with a gray-tiled roof.

The plain red-brick house looked rather grand beside the shabby mud huts made of black stone all around it.

"Habib, did you test the Eagle Army's car with your face? Is the car okay?"

A skinny young man with multicolored hair saw the dark-skinned middle-aged man's battered face and asked with a grin.

"Qiya, cut the crap. Where's Boss Raghav?"

The dark-skinned middle-aged man's eyes were full of resentment.

"My uncle's in his room. Go right in."

The skinny young man gestured toward the door, then watched Wu Heng follow them with a teasing look. He knew there'd be another entertaining show soon.

"Come with me."

The man with the yellow braid no longer spoke to Wu Heng respectfully.

The dark-skinned middle-aged man and the man with the yellow braid said nothing more. They led Wu Heng past the two men guarding the entrance and into the house. As they went, their backs grew straighter and straighter.

"Boss, we brought Ellie. He refused to pay the interest and beat us up, too. Look!"

The moment the dark-skinned middle-aged man saw Raghav, he pointed urgently at his crooked, flattened nose and bloodied face.

"That's right. Ellie had no intention of paying."

"Boss, aren't we still short a two-legged donkey to transport tobacco? I think he's perfect for the job."

"Good. I'm here now. Go get your injuries treated. I'll have use for you later."

Wu Heng spoke to the two injured men.

"You, Ellie! Don't get cocky! Boss, just look at his attitude!"

The two pointed at Wu Heng, their faces caught between anger and confusion. His words struck them as strange and humiliating.

Inside the bedroom, Raghav stood beside a blackwood tea table. A set of brass teaware sat on it, and he was pouring water into a teacup from a copper kettle.

Raghav wore loose golden-yellow trousers and nothing on his upper body but an orange scarf draped around his neck. His scalp gleamed, with only a little tuft of hair at the back of his head. His stubble was flecked with white.

At their words, Raghav finished pouring his tea before slowly turning to look at Wu Heng and the two men.

"Go get your injuries treated."

Raghav spoke softly. The two underlings hurriedly nodded and left. As long as the boss had seen how badly they'd been hurt, that was enough.

Raghav looked at Wu Heng.

"Ellie, have you decided how you're going to pay the interest, which is five times the principal? It was only three times before, but you injured my men."

"If you're willing to transport tobacco for me five times, I'll waive your interest."

Raghav finished speaking and took a light sip of tea.

Four thugs armed with knives had already blocked the doorway behind Wu Heng.

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

Wu Heng looked Raghav up and down, frowning slightly.

"What do you mean by that? Do you know something? Why didn't you look for it yourself?"

Raghav's expression changed slightly. He didn't understand how Ellie, a low-caste wretch, could know about this. But perhaps he'd followed Vinayak and found out.

"Do you want me to spell it out?"

Wu Heng tilted his head slightly and glanced at the men by the door.

"Get out and shut the door."

Raghav waved everyone out. Only after the door had been firmly shut did he turn his attention 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 descended from the Rao family."

"That poor kid Vinayak has even taken a second wife now. I bet he found his ancestors' treasure."

Outside, a group of men whispered and speculated as they watched the closed door. Greed for wealth was carved into their bones.

Creak.

Less than three minutes later, the bedroom door swung open again. Everyone looked inside expectantly.

Raghav walked over to the mirror and frowned at his reflection, massaging his face with one hand.

"Boss, Ellie... did you get it out of him?"

One of the underlings asked cautiously.

"I got it out of him. As for Ellie, there he is."

Raghav pointed his chin toward the corner.

"Ah, that..."

The four underlings glanced toward the corner and recoiled in fright.

Ellie's corpse lay there. Even more horrifying, all the skin had been stripped from his body, and the blood on him had nearly dried.

The four underlings were bewildered and terrified, but their fear of the boss was even greater. None of them dared ask anything else.

"Boss, we're back after getting bandaged. That Ellie..."

The man with the yellow braid and the dark-skinned middle-aged man came over just then, their injuries wrapped in bandages. They followed everyone's gaze and stopped short.

"That's Ellie."

Someone beside them kindly explained.

A flicker of terror crossed the two men's eyes before giving way to the satisfaction of revenge.

"Just as I expected from Boss Raghav. I knew Ellie was as good as dead. Thank you for avenging us, Boss," the man with the yellow braid said.

"That's right. We're completely devoted to you, Boss. We wouldn't even bat an eye if you told us to die," the dark-skinned middle-aged man said, quickly following up.

Wearing Raghav's skin, Wu Heng looked at the two men pledging their loyalty and nodded with satisfaction.

"Good. You've come at just the right time. Come with me to see Vinayak in a little while."

"Of course, Boss."

The two exchanged glances, excited enough to forget their injuries for the moment. The boss really did value them.

The other four looked on with envy and jealousy, their expressions suggesting they wished they could take their places.

"Qiya, gather all the brothers now. I have a job for them. Afterwards, everyone will get a large share of gold coins."

Wu Heng spoke to the skinny young man who had come over from the doorway.

"Of course, Uncle."

The young man paused, then quickly turned and headed outside.

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

The dark-skinned middle-aged man nodded and answered, then jogged away.

Wu Heng reached out and squeezed his belly. Raghav's rather fat stomach made him very uncomfortable.

Would you trade your collectibles, monthly passes, and recommendation tickets with me for two erasers?