Lin Yi frowned, finding the voice behind him somewhat familiar. After helping Jiang Er to his feet,
he turned to look back, and his brow furrowed.
There were two young men, just like before.
Both wore loose martial arts robes. They were tall, with imposing auras.
When the two young men saw Lin Yi, they frowned as well, then gave a cold laugh. "Oh? I never expected you to be here too, junior brother!"
They were the same two roommates Lin Yi had fought in the communal sleeping quarters.
What a narrow world.
Over the past few days, Lin Yi had learned where they came from.
The tall, burly one was Li Niuhe.
The thin, gaunt one was Zhang Mingxi.
They came from a fishing village and were close. They liked to use their seniority to bully new martial arts school apprentices.
But in these times, anyone who could afford to learn martial arts usually came from a family with some influence.
Li Niuhe and Zhang Mingxi both had family members among the Fishermen Gang's leaders. In the eyes of ordinary people, their families were local powers.
The Fishermen Gang had originally been a civilian organization formed to protect fishermen's interests in the fish market.
But as gang conflicts in Jiaqing County grew more frequent, the Fishermen Gang's leaders gained the Black Wind Gang's backing and gradually turned the group into a subordinate organization—a tool for helping the Black Wind Gang amass wealth.
Lin Yi glanced at Jiang Er and the two young men.
Jiang Er was a fisherman, and the two were spoiled sons of Fishermen Gang leaders. It was only natural that they knew each other.
Lin Yi didn't give it much thought. He gave the two a casual glance, unwilling to engage with them, and immediately started to leave with his fish basket on his back.
Lin Yi's disregard made their faces stiffen at once.
Short-tempered Li Niuhe was furious and was about to start cursing Lin Yi, but Zhang Mingxi stopped him.
Zhang Mingxi's gaze turned cold. "Junior brother, so you like fish. Why didn't you say so? My family sells fish. If you want some, just ask, and I'll bring you the freshest catch to try. Why come all the way to the fish market to buy it?"
Lin Yi raised an eyebrow. "No need. I have enough money to buy fish."
Zhang Mingxi blocked his way. "Come now, of course I know you can afford to buy fish."
"But you've come all the way to my turf. I ought to play the gracious host."
"The fish market is a murky place. I'd hate for some unscrupulous fisherman to pass off rotten fish and shrimps as good ones and give you a bad stomach."
"Let me inspect them for you."
Jiang Er flushed red and protested, "I caught these fish today. How can you say they're inferior?"
Zhang Mingxi turned and shot Jiang Er a gloomy look. "Jiang Er, who do you think you are? I'm talking to my junior brother. Since when did you get the right to butt in?"
Jiang Er was so angry he couldn't find the words to respond.
Zhang Mingxi ignored him and instead gave Li Niuhe a look.
Li Niuhe gave him an understanding nod, then quietly moved behind Lin Yi.
Zhang Mingxi turned back to Lin Yi with a beaming smile. "Junior brother, surely you wouldn't reject my good intentions?"
Thud!
Lin Yi put down the fish basket he'd just hoisted onto his back with a heavy thump.
He sighed softly, looked at Zhang Mingxi and Li Niuhe, and suddenly smiled.
He could tell they were looking for trouble today. It seemed they wouldn't let things go so easily.
"If you want to inspect them, then go ahead."
Lin Yi raised his foot and kicked the fish basket over.
In an instant, seven or eight large fish spilled out.
The two were stunned. They clearly hadn't expected Lin Yi to agree so readily.
After all, he'd had quite a bitter feud with them before.
Lin Yi was usually cool and distant, and didn't mix much with others.
They hadn't expected him to be so obedient today.
"G-good! Then let me inspect them for you!"
Zhang Mingxi was momentarily taken aback, then moved closer and began picking through the fish wriggling on the ground.
"This silver carp doesn't look right..."
"This crucian carp has a wound on its belly. Look, it's soaked in blood, and the meat reeks of fish..."
"Junior Brother Lin, you're lucky you ran into me today. If you ate these spoiled fish, you'd end up with diarrhea!" Zhang Mingxi taunted.
"How about this, junior brother? I'll give you a hundred copper coins for these fish. Tomorrow, I'll bring you a fresh batch," Li Niuhe added with a grin.
In their eyes, Lin Yi had only beaten them last time because he'd caught them by surprise—and they hadn't been fully awake.
In a straight-up fight, Lin Yi was no match for them.
Their plan was simple.
They'd find an excuse to take all these fish.
Then, under the pretext of bringing Lin Yi a batch of good fish, they'd deliver rotten fish and shrimps to his doorstep instead. It would serve as a warning and thoroughly disgust him.
The more Zhang Mingxi thought about it, the more excited he became. At last, his eyes fell on the final fish: a plump Three-Eyed River Goby.
His eyes lit up.
This river goby was quite large—about five pounds, judging by the look of it. It was a rare sight.
Zhang Mingxi coughed twice and cleared his throat. "Take a look at this river goby. It may look fat and healthy, but these fish are often all show and no substance. They're old fish from the river, with loose flesh that tastes like chewing wax..."
"Look, it even has a small crack on its head. That means whoever caught it was clumsy. This fish won't last two hours. Take it home and it'll be stale for sure..."
Li Niuhe helpfully reached out and gently rubbed the raised crack on the river goby's forehead.
The river goby impatiently shook its head again and again, but the annoying human hand kept coming back to touch it.
The river goby flew into a rage. It suddenly slapped its body against the ground, and its entire bulk shot up into the air. Its huge tail smacked Zhang Mingxi across the face before it landed hard and began thrashing against the ground.
"Damn it! Stupid fish!" Li Niuhe shouted angrily, raising his hand to slap the Three-Eyed River Goby in front of him to death.
Lin Yi's eyes turned cold, and the muscles in his legs instantly tensed.
"Stop!" Zhang Mingxi's pupils trembled slightly as he hurriedly stopped Li Niuhe.
"A-Xi, what are you doing?" Li Niuhe asked in confusion.
Zhang Mingxi gave Li Niuhe a look, then turned to Lin Yi with an impassive expression.
"Junior brother, these fish don't look like much. How about I give you five hundred copper coins for the lot? Tomorrow, I'll bring you a better batch."
"Five hundred copper coins? A-Xi, have you gone mad? Five hundred copper coins for a pile of rotten fish and shrimps?" Li Niuhe cried out.
Zhang Mingxi smiled and placated him. "Come on, you can't put it like that. Junior Brother Lin is our junior brother, after all. We can't let him lose out."
Lin Yi rubbed his chin. "Five hundred copper coins? That's quite a price."
"Right..." Zhang Mingxi smiled.
"Yeah, so five hundred copper coins can buy a Treasure Fish. Why don't I give you five taels of silver, Brother Zhang, and have you get me ten Treasure Fish?"
Zhang Mingxi's smile froze and vanished.
Before you continue