Of course Wu Youren remembered what Feng Qianjun and He Wenhao had only just mentioned.
And now, the Life and Death Knot had brought news of his family!
"Do you want it or not?" He sighed softly. "They don't consider me family anymore."
"Quit pretending!" The burly man snorted. "I mean your mother, older brother, and younger sister!"
"..." Wu Youren fell silent, only answering after a long while. "No need to tell me. Just consider me dead."
"Your brother joined the Bureau of Construction," the burly man said with a smile, "carrying on your father's last wish."
"As for your mother, her lung disease persists, but your grandfather is still looking after her..."
"Stop." Wu Youren sighed. "Sir, if you want me to strike at Instructor Hong from the shadows, you can just say so."
"You fucking..." The burly man shook his head helplessly and handed over an envelope. "A letter. Read it yourself."
"Please burn it for me, sir." Wu Youren waved a hand. "I'm already dead!"
That was indeed true. The original owner of this body really was dead.
"Then... could you become a citizen of Great Liang?" The burly man finally revealed his intention to recruit him.
It wasn't that he hadn't wanted to recruit him before, but hostages were such a scarce resource, far more valuable than ordinary people from Jin. They had to be broken in like hawks.
More importantly, these people all knew one another. If an attempt to recruit one failed, the consequences would be serious.
In short, he had to be cautious. The hostages thought they had it hard, but didn't he have it hard too?
Wu Youren fell silent. After a long while, he slowly uttered three words. "Absolutely not possible!"
"Then pretend I never said it." The burly man was actually more tolerant than ever before.
Hesitation was a good sign. Since there was a chance of winning him over completely, why cook a pot of half-raw rice?
In any case, Great Liang and Jin had not only ceased hostilities, but their relations were fairly decent. There was no particularly urgent need.
He even said, "Your brother seems to have some potential as an architect too. Hmm... he's just a little short of money."
"I've forgotten all those people." Wu Youren shook his head. "All I remember is my life here in Great Liang."
"Hmm, you certainly don't owe him anything." The burly man kept rubbing salt into the wound.
"He should have been the one to come back then, but he fell into a river and developed a high fever while out working to support the family. You volunteered to come."
"You're being really annoying!" Wu Youren glared at him.
Even on a night like this, when the other man couldn't see his gaze, he could still feel his anger.
"All right, your earnings this time," the burly man said mildly. "The usual rule. Hand over twenty percent."
"Nothing." Wu Youren answered without hesitation. "I didn't make any money this time."
"You took ten silver dollars from Luo Xi." The burly man was extraordinarily well-informed. "Guess who told me?"
Almost certainly not Luo Xi! Wu Youren had an idea. It was probably those people from the Intelligence Agency.
Thinking that he could no longer take advantage of their help in the future left him feeling a little...
"Forget it." He sighed. "Sixty percent belongs to Instructor Hong. I haven't even recouped my costs!"
"What?" The burly man's voice noticeably rose. "What did you say?"
"I need sixty percent of it," Wu Youren replied. "Hmm, that slipped out wrong."
"Don't be ridiculous." The burly man sneered. "Would Hong Yan care about a measly six silver dollars?"
What a joke. Her entire family had been killed by people from Jin. Would a dignified great knight care about his six silver dollars?
He should at least have said sixty thousand-even six thousand would do. A measly six? What was this nonsense?
"She certainly wouldn't," Wu Youren answered mildly. "But I have my own way of showing my sincerity."
"You..." The burly man pointed at him, speechless. "You'd better not be lying to me!"
"You've been making four dollars off me every month for twelve years!" Wu Youren sighed softly. "Have I ever lied to you?"
The burly man fell silent, then finally answered, "Keep in touch with Sister Hua. She'll pay you. I won't take a cut!"
"Sister Hua?" Wu Youren was taken aback. "I can count the people I know in Great Liang on one hand!"
"The one who keeps trying to poach you." The burly man shifted and vanished without a trace.
"That... female knight?" Wu Youren began to ponder.
The next few days passed without a ripple, until Cynthia came to see him again one day.
This time, she had brought a male martial artist, also a knight apprentice.
Her expression was calm. "The Martial Academy has an exploration mission in Suotu Town coming up. I'd like to invite you along."
"No." Wu Youren shook his head and answered calmly, "I can't even leave the Martial Academy."
"You have Head Instructor Hong's pass." Cynthia's expression was calm too. "I don't believe you can't get out."
"Red Pine's... information spreads that efficiently?" Wu Youren gave a wry smile, then answered seriously, "The pass was valid for one use."
"One Cloud-Surging Pill," Cynthia said slowly. "I know you don't lack for those. It's just a small token."
As its name suggested, a Cloud-Surging Pill could send someone soaring into the clouds. It was a supplementary pill for knight apprentices attempting to advance to knight.
The pill was expensive. Just thinking of how many knight apprentices in the Intelligence Agency had never advanced to knight gave some idea of its value.
It couldn't guarantee a successful advancement, only increase the odds of success by a sliver.
And it had no obvious side effects. Its only drawback was-expensive!
So those from truly wealthy families would casually pop one when attempting to advance to knight.
Cynthia's family probably had some money, but casually producing a Cloud-Surging Pill was beyond her spending level.
Come on, I have a cheat! Wu Youren's face darkened. "How much does the mission pay?"
Cynthia was immediately at a loss for words. Even if they completed the mission to a very high standard, the reward wouldn't cover this Cloud-Surging Pill.
"Go on." Wu Youren waved a hand and said mildly, "That little bit doesn't interest me. You know I'm not short of money!"
"You!" Cynthia glared fiercely at him, turned, and left, walking faster and faster.
"Everyone says you don't have much money." The male knight apprentice couldn't hold back and shot him a fierce glare.
"She even had a fight with her family over that Cloud-Surging Pill!"
As he spoke, he turned to chase after Cynthia.
Who leaked the news? Wu Youren frowned in thought. Only our own people know I'm poor, right?
That just... really hurt his pride!
But poor was poor. As long as he refused to admit it, it was nothing more than a rumor growing with each retelling.
What if someone actually came forward to identify him? That would be good too. At least it would expose a problem within the hostage group.
Two more days passed, and the administrator came to ask whether he had any leopard cat meat left. He wanted to buy some.
Of course Wu Youren wouldn't make him pay. The first crop of vegetables would be ready to harvest very soon!
But he really had no leopard cat meat left. He sighed and called Luo Xi's wristwatch.
Luo Xi responded quickly, but said he had none left either. He still had a few sections of python meat on hand.
Wu Youren said he wanted to buy some. The other man hesitated, but finally said, "You can have it!"
Getting it for free was certainly a good thing, but he could sense that Luo Xi... most likely knew his identity too.
But so what? Everything had merely returned to its starting point. In the end, paper couldn't wrap up fire!
He had kept his lips sealed while outside. Being able to keep the secret for a short time was already enough to be satisfied with.
Then, this python meat... should he take it?
Of course he should. The boy felt he hadn't wronged Luo Xi-it was Luo Xi who had insisted on following him when he went out.
As for whatever negative impression the other man might form because of this action, that mattered even less.
(The update is here. Please keep reading, vote, and bookmark.)