"Seeing as you're an honest lad, I'll give you these three peanuts. Don't get greedy and eat them now. They might come in handy when it matters."
Thinking back to Old Blind Man's words, Chen Zhuo drove the donkey cart while carefully examining the peanuts in his palm.
What exactly was this layer of white powder coating them?
Chen Zhuo studied them from every angle, then held them beneath his nose and sniffed.
There was no sharp herbal smell. Instead, he caught a faint trace of blood.
Chen Zhuo furrowed his brow slightly. After a moment's thought, he carefully tucked the three peanuts into his waistband.
Old Blind Man had no reason to lie to him.
Besides, for the sake of their deal, Old Blind Man would surely rather see him stay alive.
He'd only get the rest of the payment if Chen Zhuo survived. If he died, that would be the end of it.
"The Autumn Hunt..."
Huang Yuan'er's round little face flashed through Chen Zhuo's mind, and he unconsciously tightened the bundle on his back.
Inside were a hundred taels' worth of silver notes and eight bottles of Demon Blood.
Though they were all False Blood, they could still take his martial cultivation to the next level.
Thinking of this, he no longer had the appetite for lunch.
He bought a whole steamer of meat buns by the roadside, then sat on the donkey cart and polished them off in a few bites.
"I can't rush this."
After a moment's consideration, Chen Zhuo decided not to drive straight to the yamen. Instead, he took out the shopping list Yan Ming had given him beforehand and went to the shops listed on it one by one.
He had killed Zhou Sheng with his own hands, and as luck would have it, he'd gone out today. Given Huang Yuan'er's temperament, he was sure to pin the suspicion on him.
If he was going to put on an act, he had to do it properly.
Before long, several large bundles of spices, fruits, and vegetables had piled up on the cart, along with dozens of pounds of fatty pork. The cart was loaded to capacity.
Chen Zhuo didn't climb back aboard. He was genuinely afraid of crushing the cart beneath his weight. Even without him, the cart made a series of teeth-grating creaks as it rolled along.
To his surprise, Little Black Donkey ambled along leisurely, as though it thought nothing of the weight behind it.
Chen Zhuo stroked the donkey's head and was astonished to find that its coat was completely different from before.
It was sleek and shiny, and its hairs had become like fine needles, prickling beneath his touch.
"Was it because of those two drops of wine?"
Holding the reins, Chen Zhuo walked at an unhurried pace, gradually sinking into thought.
Old Blind Man certainly had plenty of tricks up his sleeve. It seemed he'd have to dig deeper into them when he got the chance.
Just as his thoughts were turning, a conversation by the roadside suddenly caught his attention.
"She's caught a Spirit Fish again! That girl's really something."
"I'd love to taste Spirit Fish. If I could have a bite, then wash it down with a cup of fine Shaodaozi liquor, wouldn't that be heavenly?"
"One Spirit Fish goes for at least thirty taels of silver..."
"Work hard enough and you might manage to drink Shaodaozi, but Spirit Fish? If you don't get to eat it at birth, you probably won't get to taste it in your whole life."
Hearing the chatter around him, Chen Zhuo looked in its direction and saw a crowd gathered in several layers not far away.
"Is that her?"
Through a gap in the crowd, Chen Zhuo caught a clear glimpse of what was happening inside.
At the center of the crowd, a girl with striking features and a thick braid atop her head stood quietly, holding a fishing net.
She wasn't hawking her catch. She simply waited patiently for a buyer, silently watching the crowd.
Chen Zhuo had seen her before. She was the one who'd eaten even more than him when they'd had noodles that morning.
"She actually caught Spirit Fish."
Given her bottomless appetite, Chen Zhuo had guessed that her martial cultivation was impressive, but he hadn't expected her to be skilled at fishing too.
He'd spent a fair amount of time in the yamen's kitchen, but he'd only ever heard of them. He'd never seen one before.
That was because they could only be found in Green Pool Lake outside the city. Their scales were exceptionally slick, and they were unusually fierce, making them extremely difficult to catch.
Chen Zhuo had only occasionally heard Yan Ming mention Spirit Fish, and every word he said had been full of praise for their flavor.
Chen Xiao's nostrils twitched slightly as his gaze quietly settled on the three Spirit Fish in the net.
They had large heads and narrow bodies, several sharp bone spines standing upright on their heads, and fine scales covering their entire bodies.
How were these Spirit Fish? They were clearly demon fish.
"The scent of Demon Blood..."
Chen Zhuo couldn't catch even the faintest trace of it. He stared intently at the fish for a while, and a string of small characters suddenly surfaced in his mind.
They were the contents recorded in the Inheritance Manual: the recipe for Five Desires Demon Soup.
Tigers represented the desire to kill, and fish represented obsession...
The second True Blood... wasn't this just what he needed?
Without a second thought, Chen Zhuo called out loudly, "Miss, I'll take all three Spirit Fish!"
At his sudden shout, the crowd fell silent.
Dozens of gazes rained down on him. They seemed eager to peer through the bamboo hat on his head and see what sort of wealthy young master had appeared.
Under their scrutiny, Chen Zhuo led the donkey cart forward at an unhurried pace.
The crowd parted to let him through.
"Thirty taels of silver apiece, no bargaining. Are you sure you want all three?"
The Braid Girl asked in a clear voice.
Chen Zhuo's gaze swept over the Spirit Fish in her hands, and he nodded without hesitation.
"That's ninety taels in total. Here you go."
Chen Zhuo hadn't even taken out the money when the Braid Girl handed him the three Spirit Fish along with the net, explaining as she did:
"Spirit Fish aren't ordinary fish. They can survive three to five hours out of water."
"You're handing them over so readily. Aren't you afraid I'll just take them and run?"
Chen Zhuo looked at her in surprise and smiled.
The Braid Girl shook her head. "If you dare run without paying, I'll beat you to death."
Her voice wasn't loud, but her words rang with conviction.
Chen Zhuo said nothing more and immediately took out the silver notes from his bundle.
"Here's ten taels in change. Take it."
After that, the Braid Girl gave him a brief reminder, then turned and left without another word.
Chen Zhuo put away the loose silver and watched her graceful figure disappear around the street corner, lost in thought. Then he took the reins and walked away as well.
The Spirit Fish deal had gone remarkably smoothly, probably because the outer city was full of poor folk and no young masters had suddenly appeared to cut in.
As the two of them left one after the other, there was no more excitement to watch, and the crowd quickly dispersed.
"Well, there goes my money again."
By the time he'd finished buying everything and added the three Spirit Fish to his purchases, his silver was once again nearly gone. The horizon had gradually reddened.
The first rays of the setting sun fell across him, stretching his shadow longer and longer.
The day wasn't over yet, but as Chen Zhuo stood at the yamen gates, he felt as if a lifetime had passed.
Chen Zhuo glanced toward the entrance and saw that not a soul was there.
"Have the Strong Squad slackers all gone off somewhere?"
Puzzled, Chen Zhuo first led the donkey cart into the shed. Then, with bundles piled in his arms, he entered through the main gate.
As soon as he stepped inside, he ran into Fifth Master hurrying toward him. His eyes darted about as he frantically signaled to Chen Zhuo.
Before Chen Zhuo could react, Huang Yuan'er suddenly appeared in his line of sight, with more than a dozen Yamen Runners behind him.
As soon as Huang Yuan'er came close, he barked without preamble:
"Where did you go today? What did you do?"
"Tell me everything, exactly as it happened!"
Before you continue