Cornered

Fang Han turned around to see Qiao Huixin approaching, smiling warmly at him.

Her gaze lingered on his face for a moment before shifting to the wooden bucket in his hand, a hint of curiosity in her eyes.

"You're so young, yet you've already managed to catch Spirit Fish. That's truly remarkable."

Qiao Huixin smiled faintly, her tone gentle.

"If you catch any more Spirit Fish in the future, feel free to come to Moonwatch Tower and find us. We certainly won't shortchange you on the price."

Fang Han cupped his fists. "Thank you, Miss Qiao. I'll remember that."

He said no more and turned to leave.

Qiao Huixin watched his departing back, blinking thoughtfully. Then she withdrew her gaze and continued directing the stewards as they collected the fish.

Yet from beginning to end, the entire scene had been watched by a pair of cold, sinister eyes from nearby.

Brother Jin leaned against the base of a wall, flipping a copper coin between his fingers while staring in the direction Fang Han had gone like a venomous snake.

He had seen with perfect clarity how Fang Han had taken a Spirit Fish from his bucket and sold it to the Qiao Household.

This brat... had actually hidden a Spirit Fish?

A savage grin spread across Brother Jin's lips, and a glint of chill flashed through his triangular eyes.

Fang Han passed through the bustling fish market, surrounded by the cries of hawkers rising and falling around him.

He first visited a candied hawthorn stall and spent two copper coins on a bright-red skewer. Then he went to the butcher's shop, bought two catties of pork belly, wrapped it in lotus leaves, and placed it in his wooden bucket.

The two catties of meat and the candied hawthorn cost only thirty copper coins in total, little more than a drop in the bucket for Fang Han now.

But he knew that life still had to be lived frugally.

If he returned with three or five catties of meat in one go, the neighbors would all have their eyes on him.

Once gossip spread, it would only invite unnecessary trouble.

For poor families, nothing was more taboo than flaunting wealth.

After leaving the fish market, Fang Han entered a secluded alley.

As he walked, he calculated the silver he had accumulated over the past few days.

After killing Zhou Dabao, he had taken thirty-three taels of silver from the body.

Adding the twenty-five taels he had saved before and the forty taels from selling Spirit Fish today, he now had ninety-eight taels.

He had spent three taels on martial arts training during that time...

"I'm someone with nearly a hundred taels on hand now."

Just as he was calculating,

a series of light footsteps suddenly sounded behind him. They followed closely, and it was obvious their owners meant him harm.

Fang Han halted and slowly turned around.

At the end of the alley, Brother Jin was walking toward him.

An undisguised cruel grin hung on that gaunt face, while his triangular eyes gleamed coldly, like a feral cat that had caught a rat.

Two men followed behind him, each gripping a gleaming short blade.

When Fang Han looked back, he saw that another man had blocked the other end of the alley, staring at him with equally malicious intent.

The four men had trapped Fang Han in the alley.

Fang Han frowned slightly and said in a low voice, "Brother Jin, what is the meaning of this?"

In truth, Fang Han had already guessed most of it.

Brother Jin had probably learned that he had gone to the Qiao Household to sell Spirit Fish and had now surrounded him after he left the fish market.

Brother Jin did not beat around the bush. The first thing out of his mouth was a curse. "You brat from the Fang Household, have you got the guts of a leopard?"

He strode up to Fang Han and jabbed a finger hard into his chest.

"You tampered with your bucket and tried to fool me? Do you think the Dragon King Gang is easy to mess with?"

Fang Han's expression did not change. He merely looked at him quietly.

Seeing this, Brother Jin grew even more enraged and snarled,

"I won't waste words with you! Hand over every tael you got for selling those Spirit Fish today!

"If I'm in a good mood, I might even leave you one leg to walk on. But if you aren't honest..."

He paused, his gaze sweeping over Fang Han's limbs as his voice turned dark and sinister.

"Today, I'll break all four of your limbs and make sure you can never get out of bed again!"

The two gang members behind him waved their short blades in cooperation, their edges glinting coldly in the dim light of the alley.

An ordinary person would probably have had their legs turn to jelly at such a display and obediently handed over their silver.

Unfortunately... today, they had run into Fang Han.

Fang Han stood where he was without budging, not the slightest fear visible on his face.

Brother Jin and his men strutted around the fish market, throwing their weight about, but in the end, they were merely foxes borrowing the tiger's might through the Dragon King Gang's reputation.

Brother Jin was skin and bones, his steps unsteady and his breathing heavy. It was obvious he had never practiced martial arts.

The three men with him were no better.

Even together, they were no match for Zhou Dabao, who was dead and buried; at most, they were street thugs who bullied the weak and feared the strong.

A rabble.

"Fuck your mother!"

Fang Han gave a low shout, then moved with crisp decisiveness, throwing the first punch without the slightest hesitation.

There was nothing fancy about the punch, yet it was as swift as lightning and as forceful as thunder!

Brother Jin only saw a blur before his eyes. Before he could react, his entire face took the blow squarely.

Crack!

The sharp sound of bone breaking was especially piercing in the silent alley.

Brother Jin's nose bridge broke instantly, and blood gushed from his nostrils, the corners of his eyes, and his mouth.

He did not even have time to scream. His eyes rolled back, and his body fell stiffly backward, crashing to the ground and kicking up dust. Whether he was dead or alive was unknown.

The alley fell silent for a moment.

The remaining three gang members stared wide-eyed, their faces filled with disbelief.

"Courting death!"

"Get him!"

The three came to their senses and flew into a rage. Cursing loudly, they drew their short blades and rushed at Fang Han.

The man in front swung his blade in a slash aimed straight at Fang Han's shoulder, putting real force behind it.

Fang Han shifted aside, and the blade swept past the hem of his clothes.

He seized the opening to close in, driving a fist into the man's chest with overwhelming force.

With a muffled bang, several of the man's ribs broke. Blood sprayed wildly from his mouth as he slammed heavily into the blue-brick wall, then slid to the ground without moving again.

The remaining two men turned deathly pale at the sight, but they were already riding a tiger and could only charge forward with clenched teeth.

Fang Han did not stop. His fists flew left and right, one punch per man, clean and decisive without any wasted motion.

Each blow landed solidly on flesh. The sounds of breaking bones rang out one after another, and before the two gang members could even scream, they crumpled to the ground, no trace of life remaining.

Silence returned to the alley.

Fang Han stood in the alley, his chest rising and falling slightly, but his breathing had already steadied.

He looked down at the four men lying on the ground, his expression as calm as still water, without the slightest ripple.

These men had preyed upon the fish market for years, squeezing poor fishermen to the bone. Who knew how many families they had driven to their deaths in secret? They deserved to die and were not worth pitying.

He then crouched down and expertly searched their bodies.

He found three taels of loose silver on Brother Jin. The other three had only five taels among them, making eight taels in total.

Fang Han tucked the silver into his clothes and carefully checked the surroundings once more.

Only after confirming that he had left no trace behind did he rise to his feet.

The alley was dimly lit. Four corpses lay sprawled across the ground, their blood winding along the cracks between the bluestone slabs.

Fang Han gave them one final glance, then turned and strode away. His footsteps gradually faded until they vanished at the end of the alley.

From beginning to end, he had not spoken a single unnecessary word.