The Captured Criminal

When Su Ming left, he was carrying a small bag.

The first thing he did was ask Niu Dabiao where his home was.

Yuye led him there.

"[Mr. Graves.] "Qianye thought to herself, "[Is it inappropriate for us to teach Niu Dabiao a lesson now?]"

Although she wished Niu Dabiao would suffer misfortune.

But humans die in this place when exposed to the light; keeping a low profile is the best strategy.

Yuye thought this way partly because her younger brother was still in the other party's hands.

But perhaps because she had finally managed to have two decent meals, she also felt a strong desire to prevent anything from happening to Su Ming and the others.

Being "borrowed" like this doesn't seem so bad.

"It's nothing, I'm just giving him something," Su Ming replied.

The little incident ended quickly.

"[First, clothes and fabric," Su Ming said. "[And while you're at it, get some soft mattresses.]"

Although Su Ming wasn't a particularly picky person, the conditions in that shack were just too terrible.

It's even worse than a livestock shed.

The latter, at least, can provide shelter from the wind and rain, and at least has soft, dry grass as a cushion!

Ensuring the quality of rest is an important part of maintaining combat effectiveness.

Yuye pondered for a moment.

[To steal decent clothes, you'd have to go to the central district and find some wealthier families.]

"No, no, no." Su Ming shook his head. "We'll pay for it."

Constantly stealing and getting into trouble is probably not a good thing.

****

The two had already left the slum while they were talking.

Yuye sized up Su Ming.

The orc-style cloak he's wearing now is an old outfit she bought that afternoon, which was later altered by Yise to fit her perfectly.

Su Ming and Jinxiu carefully wiped away the stains and old marks, turning the garment into something new.

However, only the front was repaired; it wasn't exposed.

To avoid drawing attention in the slums, Yise sewed several patches onto his cloak.

Su Ming unbuttoned his collar and turned his cloak inside out as he passed a street corner.

The worn layers and patches were hidden inside, while what was exposed on the outside became neat and tidy clothes.

In an instant, Su Ming transformed into a proper half-orc resident of the city.

Yuye took a step back and followed behind Su Ming, striking a pose like a hired follower.

[If you buy a lot of clothes, a few silver coins won't be enough,] Qianye reminded her.

Su Ming took out a gold coin.

He did bring some money with him.

But these are Star Empire gold coins, and they even have Xialike's portrait engraved on them.

"What do your gold coins look like?" Su Ming asked.

Yuye looked around and picked up a stone.

Then she took the gold coin, placed it on the stone slab on the ground, and slammed it down several times.

In no time at all, Xialike's face was gone.

She continued hammering, until the entire gold coin was smashed into a jumbled mess, its original pattern no longer discernible.

"Our gold coins can look anything," Yuye replied. "They're very free."

[Good!]

****

The two arrived at a conventional-looking clothing store.

Yuye consciously went to the corner and squatted down.

Her lackeys, dressed in such shabby clothes, were usually not allowed to enter.

Su Ming was then welcomed into the shop by the shop owner.

[Relay his words to me in real time.]

Su Ming couldn't understand the orc language, and this scene wasn't suitable for using a mobile phone for translation.

"Okay," Yuye replied.

The process was simple and easy; buying clothes was straightforward and without much hassle.

The magical lights in the shop were dim at night.

With Yise's makeup skills being perfect enough, Su Ming was not in danger of being exposed.

Su Ming picked out a set of ordinary clothes in the local style for himself, and two sets that fit Yise well. Then, he took out some softer fabrics of slightly better quality.

When it came time to pay, the shopkeeper took the badly damaged gold coin without batting an eye.

He bit it with his teeth, weighed it on a scale, and finally cut it in half and returned it to Su Ming.

Seeing this simple and straightforward style of giving change, Su Ming finally understood why the "gold coins" here were shaped so freely.

At another general merchandise store, Su Ming bought a mattress and a few other household items.

Su Ming himself "cannot" carry things.

After all, he's now a "proper person" with a group of followers.

The Yuye were piled up quite full.

After that, they "passed by" the vicinity of the slum.

Su Ming confirmed that no one was around, took Yuye's hand, and a flash of invisibility light appeared.

As the light faded, Su Ming's cloak was once again turned inside out, with the patched side showing, making him indistinguishable from the poor people around him.

The bags used for carrying things were replaced with old, worn-out straw bags.

Qianye is still a child at heart.

This transformation made her burst out laughing.

Su Ming couldn't help but smile.

He glanced at the outline of the city wall in the distance.

Under the cover of night, one can vaguely see the totem poles on the city wall and the silhouettes of lazy patrolling sentries.

Perhaps, he could think of a way to smash these pieces of junk? Su Ming pondered.

****

The two quickly returned to the shed where they had settled down.

"Fifty minutes, that's really good at timing," Yise said.

"The central district is a bit far; I can only walk, I dare not run," Su Ming explained.

They put the things down.

By laying out everyday odds and ends and spreading out a mattress, the quality of life visibly improved.

Yise lay down on the soft mattress.

"That's nice, I want to sleep a little longer."

She slept for most of the day today.

Su Ming took out several tightly wrapped brown paper packages and unfolded them into an isolation barrier.

You'll want to eat there again.

He untied one of the paper packages.

"Bread!"

When Yise saw what Su Ming was holding, his eyes lit up, and his voice became somewhat hoarse.

Eating two meals of raw boiled pig intestines in a row will definitely fill my stomach.

But when you suddenly see normal food, you can't control your saliva.

Su Ming continued to open the remaining paper packages, taking out cheese, bacon, and tomatoes.

"Waaaah!"

Jinxiu pounced on it, lying on a tomato and starting to suckle.

Su Ming used a knife to slice the bread and tomato, then added bacon and cheese to make a sandwich.

He handed one to Yise, and also to the Yuye and Yugan.

"Eat quickly, don't leave any smell," Su Ming said.

The two half-cats immediately began to feast.

Su Ming took a bite of the sandwich himself.

The aroma of wheat from the bread, the salty fragrance of the bacon, and the rich flavor of the cheese blended together, instantly giving him a sense of satisfaction as if he had returned to the world.

"Thanks to the clothes you made."

Su Ming said to Yise.

"Now we can use it in the normal market."

Yise was also very happy.

"Well, it's all because I honed my skills to repurpose all those clothes my mom stuffed into my wardrobe that I can't wear out anymore."

"I never imagined it would come in handy like this."

****

The phone suddenly beeped.

Su Ming clicked on it; it was a satellite-push alert.

It's currently a period of weak signal, Su Ming can't send back information, but the satellites in the sky can provide high-power coverage.

Receiving broadcasts unilaterally is not a problem.

On the screen, a squad of orc guards is marching towards the slums.

Yise also came over.

There are no key personnel targets inside.

She concluded.

"They're just ordinary Cloud Fang Guard."

Su Ming zoomed in on the image of one of the half-fox-man with a broken tail.

"This one looks like the leader."

He had a vague feeling that it was somewhat familiar.

However, the satellite images were taken from a vertical overhead view, so they don't reveal much detail.

Moreover, the images they saw were actually composites of radar data, and the colors were fake.

Next to the half-fox man was a half-tiger man, whose tail was also bald, making him even uglier than the half-fox man beside him.

Yise immediately made a connection.

"Oh no!"

"Could it be that guy whose cloak we stole this morning, coming looking for us?"

Jinxiu tensed up upon hearing this.

"I heard that orcs are notorious for stealing, so they specifically developed a tool for finding lost items."

"If an item has been used within the last 26 hours, its location can be traced by burning the owner's hair."

Yuye beside it nodded in agreement.

"If it weren't for this restriction, our ' Black Claw ' could have emptied the entire city."

Su Ming smiled.

"If you're looking for a cloak, then there's nothing to worry about."

They then remained stationary, observing the movements of the guards via satellite.

They did indeed enter the slums.

The half-tiger man walked along, constantly feeling sorry for his tail.

He began to regret making such a fuss over two cloaks.

But the feedback from the half-fox Anrelo's spell was getting closer and closer, and becoming more and more obvious.

As they approached, the half-tiger man's spirits lifted, and he charged ahead, bursting into a house in the slum that was living in relatively comfortable conditions.

Following the ripples, he found his lost cloak inside the house.

The person living inside is a half-cowman.

Enraged, the half-tiger man punched the other man in the face.

"You brat, how dare you steal from your grandpa!"

****

"Is it Niu Dabiao?"

Yise was somewhat surprised.

She remembered that when Su Ming left, he took those two cloaks with him.

But unexpectedly, he framed this guy.

"Killing two birds with one stone."

Su Ming shrugged.

"So delicate," Yise exclaimed.

"No wonder Zijin said that doing bad things with you is a very happy thing."

Su Ming raised an eyebrow. "Don't frame me. When did I do anything wrong?"

Yuye couldn't understand satellite images, but she figured it out.

"Very nice!"

She was very happy that Niu Dabiao, who had bullied her so much, had been taught a lesson.

However, Yuye had some doubts.

"Why would the guards investigate just two cloaks?"

The Cloud Fang Guard wouldn't bother with such a minor matter as a resident's theft.

The "water money" spent on getting these old men to come out was far more than the value of the cloak itself.

Yuye explained the intricacies of the situation to everyone.

Su Ming narrowed his eyes.

It's impossible that the half-tiger man requested it voluntarily; it means someone brought in the guards to investigate.

There must be a very meticulous person among this group.

We must be more cautious in our subsequent actions!

Su Ming thought to himself.

****

Niu Dabiao, on the other hand, was filled with resentment.

He had merely found two cloaks at the doorway, and because they were of good quality, he was quite pleased with himself.

Unexpectedly, the victim suddenly showed up at his door and beat him up without saying a word.

"I'm innocent, Your Honor!" Niu Dabiao pleaded.

Anrelo's eyes were filled with disappointment.

He didn't travel all this way just to catch a petty thief.

Anrelo asked a couple of questions, but didn't hear anything new.

I've never seen a thief who would readily admit it.

Anrelo waved his hand, and two burly men from the guards immediately stepped forward.

Punches and kicks rained down, the dull thuds echoing in the cramped room. At first, Niu Dabiao continued to cry out his innocence, but after a few blows, his voice turned into muffled cries of pain.

Anrelo sat to the side for a few minutes before leisurely getting up.

Still being stubborn?

He asked casually.

"No, I wouldn't dare."

Niu Dabiao had completely surrendered, blood streaming from his mouth and nose, lying on the ground trembling.

"It was... it was I who stole it!"

Anrelo turned away, looking rather uninterested.

"Take this guy to the Blackstone Mine and sentence him to three years of hard labor!"

Niu Dabiao's eyes widened immediately.

This is absolutely a severe punishment.

The orc miners who went to work in that place usually worked for about three months, and then left as if they had shed a layer of skin, taking with them a reward that was not small, but not much either.

The longest a convict could survive among those forced into hard labor was no more than two years.

"My lord, spare my life!" Niu Dabiao hurriedly begged.

But Anrelo had lost patience.

He struck out with a palm, knocking Niu Dabiao unconscious.