Chapter 80 Reunion (Part 1) (First update to congratulate Baiyin Mengpangpang 5/5)
After completing his quarantine period, Wu Youren was also sent back to the Martial Academy and back to his small house.
For some reason, when he saw the house in the distance, he felt a sense of "coming home".
But when he reached the door, he smiled bitterly – it was just an illusion after all, it wasn't his home at all!
The vegetable garden behind the house was in disarray, as if some herbivore had gone in and wreaked havoc.
The door lock was broken, and when he pushed the door open, he found that many things inside were missing.
Wu Youren didn't have many belongings to begin with, so no one touched them. However, the jars containing his pickled vegetables were nowhere to be found.
"How damn poor are they?" He shook his head helplessly.
He knew in his heart that it had little to do with being poor or not; many people knew he was from Jin, and there was no reason not to take advantage of the situation.
Fortunately, no one touched his clothes, mainly because they were all very old and worn out. Although they were washed very clean, the martial artists didn't care for them.
But it doesn't matter anymore. This mission has greatly improved our financial situation, so there's no need to worry about these things.
He went out and bought a few sets of clothes, daily necessities, and some food. After returning, he took a shower and slept soundly until dark.
Next, I meditated to digest the experience points while remaining vigilant for anyone approaching.
When dawn broke, he didn't feel tired at all. So he went to the vegetable garden behind the house and started tidying up the various vegetables.
This mission lasted quite a while and involved some intense battles.
But once he returned to the Martial Academy, those things were over, and he had to adjust his mindset as soon as possible.
Go back to being yourself, keep a low profile when necessary, and get used to these routine practices.
The vegetable garden had been thoroughly disturbed; it took a whole day to tidy it up.
He didn't sleep much that night, as his main task was to work hard to accumulate experience points.
The next day, I continued to tidy up the vegetable garden, and it was mostly restored, but it would take some time before it was back to its original state.
The administrator appeared in the afternoon.
He calmly stated: Some people try to take advantage of me, and I can't handle it all; there's nothing I can do about it, I have my own job.
However, the key point is that growing vegetables in the Martial Academy is not allowed in the first place.
If he intervenes forcefully, it would be tantamount to endorsing Wu Youren's actions, and he would likely have to bear corresponding responsibility.
Finally, he asked, seemingly casually. "You've been gone for over a month, are you still able to get your hands on any strong liquor?"
Wu Youren understood. The administrator tacitly allowed him to grow vegetables here because he had promised to sell two jars of strong liquor at a discount every month.
The other party had no obligation to look after his vegetable garden. The reason there hadn't been any major problems before was because he was there most of the time.
He's been gone so long, he even owes money on strong liquor, isn't it normal that people don't care?
As for the vegetables being sold to the cafeteria—guess if the caretaker deserves some credit for this chaotic vegetable garden?
"It's alright," Wu Youren smiled naturally. "The strong liquor will have to wait a few days; I'll try to make up for last month's as soon as possible."
This outcome is perfectly reasonable; he doesn't blame the other party at all, as they didn't do anything wrong.
It's a foreign land to begin with; if he thinks it's his hometown, then he hasn't figured out how to live.
He put those emotions behind him when the administrator left.
Not long after, he received another message from Cynthia.
She asked from across the room, "Now that you're back, why didn't you come to visit me?"
I don't know how she got this information.
Wu Youren replied, "Since you live in the female warriors' dormitory, it's not very convenient for me to go there. Let's wait until you've recovered from your injuries."
In the evening, a light rain began to fall again. As he was observing the vegetable garden, Cynthia arrived.
She had injured her lower back and had been resting for about ten days. Although she still couldn't exert herself, martial artists recover much faster than ordinary people.
She said that Aslan's sword had been handed over to the Martial Academy, but they only got two thousand silver dollars in compensation, which was really a rip-off.
However, Naimuer has been confirmed dead, the two thousand taels were split between them.
As for those strange items, a Martial Academy instructor wanted to buy them, but the price offered wasn't reasonable, and she was currently inquiring about the price.
Wu Youren said there was no rush. "We're both back now, and there won't be any more missions in the short term. Let's try our best to sell it for a higher price."
The two chatted casually for a while, and then Cynthia couldn't help but ask, "Are we getting a little distant?"
Back in the cave, she almost gave herself to him, but now she always felt—he seemed rather cold towards her?
"I'm under a bit of pressure," Wu Youren sighed softly, his gaze blank, "I'm not very certain about the future."
"Sigh," Cynthia sighed as well, having now roughly learned about the identity of the young man from Jin.
It was supposed to be very confidential information, but she was attentive enough that, through tireless effort, she managed to learn some details.
She confirmed that the other party's identity was not particularly distinguished.
However, this isn't bad news; if the other person's status is too high, she wouldn't even be qualified to be matched with them.
What she wasn't so sure about was Wu Youren's financial situation, but that still wasn't a problem.
The two gained a great deal from this mission, more than enough to elevate them to the level of Knight.
The only concern is that, as the descendant of a powerful Jin, the other party is under the implicit supervision of the Great Liang, and his future is uncertain.
After a moment of silence, Cynthia tentatively asked, "Do you want to escape back to Jin?"
Upon hearing the words "escape back—", Wu Youren knew his identity could no longer be concealed.
But this was within his expectations. Is there really such a thing as a true secret in this world?
The existence of the Hostage Prince Corps was known to far too many people, and the fact that it only reached the other party's ears at this point was already considered slow.
He was silent for a moment, then shook his head with a wry smile. "Impossible."
However, this wasn't the specific answer the female warrior wanted to hear. She sighed softly, "So you really do want to go back."
Is this a question of whether or not I want to go back? Wu Youren was speechless: Do you even know how unfriendly Liang has been to me?
He shook his head. "You know my ambition: to exterminate the Weird Race. I have no interest in fighting against the Human Race."
"In Great Liang, we can still kill the Weird Race," Cynthia replied, though she was somewhat skeptical.
When the young men of Jin attacked the human Knight at their patrol points, they showed no mercy.
"I know," Wu Youren nodded slightly, "But I don't want to be cannon fodder—like in our patrol missions."
Cynthia was about to retort that everyone had their own role in the battle, so where did this talk of cannon fodder come from?
But upon hearing the last sentence, she swallowed her words back.
The three Knight Apprentice held out desperately, surrounded by the Weird Qi, without receiving any support.
Even evacuation is left to fend for themselves; aren't they just cannon fodder?
However, she didn't think this situation would not occur in the Jin.
War inevitably results in death, and there will always be those who shoulder the most arduous tasks!
However, the young man from Jin was clearly emotional at this moment, and she didn't want him to continue being unhappy.
After a while, Wu Youren sighed softly, "This rain isn't going to stop anytime soon. Your wound hasn't healed yet, so don't get it wet."
Cynthia left silently, his emotions still somewhat unsettled.
About an hour later, he returned to his room to continue meditating.
Around midnight, he suddenly opened his eyes while meditating, pondered for a moment, and then slowly and silently lay down on the bed.
The next moment, a soft knock came at the door, sounding particularly abrupt amidst the patter of rain.
Wu Youren got up to open the door, muttering to himself, "Thank you this time, you know how to consider my feelings."
"You're a big shot now," a burly man walked in; it was the one with the Life and Death Knot.
He casually remarked, "Perfect mission rating, I'm truly impressed."
"Just lucky," Wu Youren thought to himself, not considering himself a big shot at all; the other person's words were clearly sarcastic.
"At least you have some self-awareness," the burly man said, plopping down on a wooden stool, the wet raindrops from his clothes dripping onto the ground.
"Do you know that Aslan's Lineage is seeking justice from you?"
Cynthia gave me all the money! Wu Youren was really annoyed. You guys are so good at finding excuses and making things up.
However, since they've chosen this line of work, it's normal for them to be unscrupulous and have no bottom line in their actions.
He calmly stated, "I was carrying out the Red Pine mission. That person not only became Weird Transformation, but I also didn't kill him."
He only severed Aslan's arm; it was Cynthia who truly killed him.
The burly man spoke with a half-smile, "You think they'll reason with you?"
It's one thing for the students from Liang to think this way, but for the hostage from Jin to consider things this way is simply overthinking things.
Wu Youren had no doubt that even if Aslan's Lineage had no intention of pursuing the matter, these people would find a way to get him involved.
These people will stop at nothing if they are put under enough pressure.
Thinking about it carefully, it's because my performance this time was a bit too eye-catching!
He shook his head. "I'm protected by the Life and Death Knot, right?"
"That's just to let us experts avoid causing you trouble," the burly man said shamelessly, as if it were perfectly justified.
"You want us to mediate? That's easy enough—I heard you've had quite a haul this time, with knives and swords?"
"I've said it before, Hong Da should get 60% of the harvest," Wu Youren replied calmly.
Then he produced a new warrant. " Hong Da is very happy and has extended my stay by six months."
He had absolutely no need to hide this news.
He did want to pretend to be a fool and slap them in the face, but he couldn't pretend to be a fool, since Instructor Hong and the guards at Jin Garden already had connections.
"Tsk," the burly man reached out to take the warrant, but after looking at his wet cuffs, he gave up in the end.
He looked at it carefully for a moment before letting out a soft snort, "As expected, he really has become a big shot."
So, the fact that he knocked on the door when he arrived, and his sarcastic opening remarks, suggests that he was indeed somewhat wary of Hong Yan.
Hong Da knew the identity of the hostage prince of Jin, but everyone else knew that, given her personality, she disliked such underhanded schemes.
Hong Yan wouldn't betray Great Liang, but she is a relatively pure martial artist.
The key point is that Wu Youren's performance during this period was indeed quite remarkable.
(First update, bonus chapter for Silver Dragon complete)
Chapter 81 Reunion (Part 2) (Second Update)
Some of the people in the Life and Death Knot were worried that Chief Instructor Hong might treat them differently because of the need to kill the monsters.
To say they were terrified of Hong Yan? Not really. No matter how strong she was, she was still just a mere Great Knight.
If the guards in charge of the protons needed to, they could easily mobilize the Divine Might Knight.
The problem is that they have many coercive methods, which are really shady and easily arouse resentment from others.
The burly man now wants to blackmail Wu Youren. If Wu refuses to comply, he doesn't mind framing him.
But if Hong Yan knew about this, she might think they were only after the spoils of war.
So, is the Life and Death Knot" just about money? Not entirely, but then again, who would complain about having too much money?
They could explain it this way: only when the other party is driven into a prolonged state of distress and has no other options will they be of use to the Liang!
However, this reason might just be an excuse in the eyes of the Chief Instructor Hong!
Most importantly, the abilities this young man demonstrated were indeed beneficial to the human race's war against the Weird Race!
Hearing this, Wu Youren could only sigh.
" Hong Da extended the pass so that I could focus all my energy on the real battle against the Weird Race."
The implication in these words is quite strong, but from the perspective of the human race, there is no problem with it.
Ironically, the young man from Jin spoke very sincerely, "My lord, I am merely the grandson of a minor nobleman, insignificant in comparison."
Among the hostages, there are so many descendants of dukes, marquises, earls, viscounts, and barons, why are you fixated on me?
"Hey, so it's your turn to tell me what to do?" The burly man laughed angrily. "We'll see!"
He said nothing more, got up and left. The other person was right; why bother targeting such a nobody?
But he'd been in this line of work for a long time, accustomed to using any means to achieve his goals; how could he tolerate being preyed upon and challenged?
And indeed, a considerable amount of money was lost, wasn't it?
Wu Youren sat there silently for a long time before shaking his head slightly: This was his true living environment!
Cynthia intended to offer him some advice, but could he accept this situation?
If he gives up and takes another step forward, it will truly be an endless abyss, and no matter how much he regrets it, it will be too late!
"Forget it, I don't want to think about it too much. I should just focus on accumulating the experience points I have now."
The next day, the sun shone brightly, and the vegetables regained some vitality. The third day was also sunny, and the chives—the vegetables—greatly thrived.
On the seventh day, Wu Youren was in a good mood and bought more jars and pots to pickle vegetables.
Two days later, while he was busy in the courtyard, an unexpected person arrived: Liu Jingming, the grandson of a baron.
Wu Youren was genuinely surprised to see him. "What brings you to Red Pine?"
" He Wenhao died fighting the Weird Race," Liu Jingming replied casually.
He squatted down, picked a wolf peach, and ate it in big bites. "I'm here to fill in for you—you're living a good life."
"It's a near-death experience," Wu Youren replied indifferently, his attitude not particularly enthusiastic, but for him, it was still acceptable.
This was one of the few people in Jin Garden who was willing to say a few words.
However, their relationship improved just as he was about to leave Jin Garden.
Liu Jingming intended to curry favor with him, but later, when the list of successful bidders was posted in Jin Garden, he did not come forward to challenge him.
It really was just a "gratitude for not fighting," but that was enough for him to be willing to say a few words to the other side.
This also shows how suffocating his position was in Jin Garden before.
"Come on," Liu Jingming replied nonchalantly. "Everyone says you made a killing fighting the Weird Race, and even found a girlfriend!"
"What everyone's saying?" Wu Youren stopped what he was doing, glanced at him, and then continued working. "How long have you been here?"
"It's been sixteen days," Liu Jingming replied, "But I had to ask many people before I finally found out about you."
Wu Youren didn't find it strange. Red Pine Martial Academy was very large, and with the war going on, things were complicated, making it really difficult to gather information.
"You said all this"—who told you that?
" Feng Qianjun," Liu Jingming replied casually, "I heard from others later—by the way, he went back to Jin Garden!"
"He can go back?" Wu Youren was utterly astonished this time. "And he's even willing to go back?"
What kind of incredible skills are these?!
"The battle with the Weird Race here won't end anytime soon," Liu Jingming said matter-of-factly. "Why don't you want to go back?"
"Oh, I forgot, he's the Earl's son," Wu Youren nodded.
The life of a hostage was extremely miserable, but that did not affect the existence of privileges. He understood this principle when he was in Jin Garden.
He was just a little curious, "Isn't there anyone to replace him?"
"Someone's there," Liu Jingming nodded, his expression turning strange. "Guess who it is? Ha—it's Shi Linyuan!"
"Oh," Wu Youren nodded expressionlessly. That was the first hostage from the Jin he had met after his transmigration.
He was absolutely certain that this person was involved in his accidental fall into Jasper Lake!
Even at the time, that guy's words to him were very unfriendly.
Shi Linyuan was never very popular within the Hostage Prince Corps. He considered himself exceptionally intelligent and didn't think much of his teammates.
He had given the Seventeenth Prince many ideas, and although he couldn't get close to the prince, he was still somewhat "in the emperor's heart".
However, what displeased many was that many of his ideas harmed the interests of other protons.
However, compared to his poor interpersonal skills, Wu Youren had absolutely no popularity—it's hard to explain in detail, as it's all too painful to recount.
What Wu Youren wanted to know was, "Did he apply to come here voluntarily?"
"He wouldn't even think of that," Liu Jingming scoffed. "He's just the grandson of a viscount, only slightly taller than me."
He is the grandson of a baron, and although his father was a son-in-law who married into the family, his surname is indeed Liu!
However, his attitude also reveals that Shi Linyuan's reputation is indeed quite poor.
"Hmm," Wu Youren nodded, then hesitated before asking, "Is Feng Qianjun's return normal?"
"How would I know?" Liu Jingming shook his head; he knew what the other person wanted to ask.
Don't let his outspokenness and young age fool you; after eight years as a hostage, who wouldn't be shrewd?
After spending some time at the Martial Academy, he voluntarily returned to Jin Garden. Is this something a normal person would do?
Take Wu Youren as an example. Although his time in Red Pine was also fraught with difficulties, it was still better than being in that big cage.
In the Martial Academy, as long as you are willing to work hard, you can find some opportunities, however small.
But in Jin Garden, there was only endless gloom and despair.
Therefore, there's a certain probability that Feng Qianjun's decision to return suggests he has become less pure.
However, Liu Jingming could not say such a thing, "Those matters are for Your Highness and others to worry about; I am not worthy!"
"That sounds like—my catchphrase?" Wu Youren tore off a peach and started chewing. "Has anyone said anything bad about me?"
"That's something I have to say," Liu Jingming laughed upon hearing this, with a hint of schadenfreude. "Unfortunately, Jin Garden can no longer restrain you."
"What are you saying?" Wu Youren said solemnly, "I was born a man of the Great Jin, and I will die a ghost of the Great Jin!"
"Don't mess with me," Liu Jingming waved his hands repeatedly, speaking in a serious tone, "We're like family, aren't we?"
He took a deep breath, then sighed softly, "Unbreakable family ties, a hometown I can never return to, haha, I understand better than you."
"Yes," Wu Youren nodded in deep agreement, "The Liu family's sons should be galloping across the battlefield—it's a pity they have no use for their skills."
"Sigh," Liu Jingming sighed deeply again, then his expression turned serious, " Feng Qianjun has said a lot of bad things about you, but—that's questionable."
That person's own stance might be the problem.
More importantly, Wu Youren has now become too powerful to control!
Unless he applies to return to Jin Garden himself, given his current achievements and reputation, Jin Garden has virtually no power to restrain him!
The Hostage Prince Corps had specifically analyzed his situation and concluded that the only thing that could restrain him was his family in the state of Jin!
"You're talking bad about me—I've already started growing vegetables!" Wu Youren was speechless. "Aren't these all right here?"
"Anyway Shi Linyuan won't dare to come looking for you," Liu Jingming laughed, "Because he's afraid you'll deal with him."
"The grandson of a viscount? How could I possibly have the guts?" Wu Youren shook his head slightly. "I'd also have to worry about him making things difficult for my family."
As he spoke, his eyes were indifferent. He was an outsider, with no feelings for Great Liang, so how much sense of belonging could he have for Great Jin?
What could influence his decision, besides the obsession of his predecessor, was some basic understanding: a traitor is neither human nor innocent.
Before he transmigrated, he had no stance; after he transmigrated, he had no right to choose his stance!
But if someone deliberately attacks his predecessor's family, then he truly doesn't care anymore. In this world, he has no ties whatsoever!
Whether one is human or demon is just a matter of a single thought!
"He wouldn't dare," Liu Jingming interrupted his wandering thoughts, "If you focus on killing the monsters, the Great Jin might send your family over."
"That's nonsense," Wu Youren laughed. "I'm the only one returning to Jin; why would I send my family here?"
Ultimately, Liu Jingming wasn't exactly his friend, so it was best to leave some things unsaid.
He was about to see him out. "If you don't have anything else to do, don't linger too long. There's a lot of trouble here."
"I, I—of course I have something to do," Liu Jingming said anxiously, then patted his waist.
There was a short knife there, reasonably well-made, but it was just a short knife.
"You know, I'm here to kill the monster, but I really don't have any money—damn the Hidden Dragon Plan!"
"The first time I killed a monster, I used a wooden sword," Wu Youren said calmly. "Are you trying to show off, implying you started from a higher point than me?"
"What the hell is wrong with your brain?" Liu Jingming cursed angrily.
"I mean, I need to borrow money, you understand? Borrow money! Everyone says you're rich!"
(Second update, caught red-handed by Old Mu, time to pay back the debt.)