Chapter 43: Find the Person Pulling the Strings for Me!

The elderly couple offered kind explanations and urged everyone to leave, genuinely believing that once the matter was clarified, the misunderstanding would naturally dissipate.

To their surprise, the crowd did not disperse, still lingering in place with reluctant footsteps.

The Su family stood face-to-face with these people in a silent atmosphere.

Suda and Erda held water buckets in their hands, unsure whether they should proceed directly to fetch water at this moment.

If they went, they could not set their minds at ease, leaving behind a house full of the elderly, children, and women to deal with these people.

If they did not go, their chores would truly be delayed.

Their family's troubles had yet to be untangled, and it remained uncertain whether the men from Pier 12 would launch another attack. The entire family had to seize every fleeting moment to work.

Suda rubbed his face, casting a cautious look toward the crowd, offering a clear hint, "Do you... need anything else?"

If nothing, they should scatter.

They really had work to do.

Yet the moment his voice fell, he saw the eyes of the crowd on the opposite side instantly light up.

Suda took a step back, a sudden sense of impending doom rising within him. He had asked the wrong question; he had definitely asked the wrong question!

Sure enough.

"Su Family Bodhisattva, I have a small request... Can I, can I clear a patch of barren land right behind your courtyard? I, I want to grow vegetables too! When I was exiled, I brought two packs of vegetable seeds from home, and I haven't used them yet. They've been kept in great condition!"

"I also want to clear a piece of wasteland right next to your house! It doesn't need to be big, just a tiny patch. Would that be alright?"

"I beg the Su Family Bodhisattva to show mercy and let us grow some vegetables alongside you!"

One person calls out, a hundred respond—such was the scene before them.

Facing those dim, gray-looking eyes, and capturing the faint spark of light that suddenly ignited within them, the Su family felt a complex mix of emotions.

Had they not received the protection of others, one day in the future, they too would have lived to become just like these people.

Dim, despairing, and humble.

Old Madam Su exchanged a glance with her husband. After he gave a gentle nod, she spoke up, "Tubei Mountain is filled with wasteland everywhere. Whoever clears the land owns it. If you want to farm, go ahead. The wasteland around my courtyard's vegetable garden is yours to clear if you wish."

Then, her tone shifted slightly. "However, let's make the ugly words clear beforehand: our family truly has no martial arts masters backing us. If anyone comes looking for trouble again and ruins the crops everyone has planted, you cannot blame the Su family then. All of us reduced to this place are struggling to survive. Within the limits of our ability, the Su family will gladly offer convenience where we can, but where our capabilities fall short, you cannot fault us."

Having obtained the Su family's consent, the crowd was on the verge of tears of joy, no longer daring to ask for more. They answered without hesitation, "Alright, alright! Thank you, thank you!"

The crowd gathered outside the Su family's door finally dispersed at this moment.

Each of them rushed back home to grab their land-clearing tools, led their families, and sprinted back behind the Su family's courtyard, staking out their plots and immediately burying themselves in clearing the land.

The drive erupting from these people was unprecedented, so intense that it diluted the gloom hanging over them and caused them to radiate light.

Tubei Mountain, silent for many years, finally regained a bit of hustle, bustle, and genuine human vitality.

After finishing their trivial chores, the Su family sat in the room, listening to the clattering sounds coming from behind the courtyard, and smiled with open-minded calm.

They were simply ordinary commoners.

They were neither capable of looking out solely for themselves nor saving the world.

Ordinary was fine.

They would take things as they came and find peace in fate.

...

The dilapidated temple in the western district of Fengyun City.

It was unknown which dynasty or era this temple had been built in, but its history was already far too ancient.

The courtyard wall in front had long since collapsed, leaving only a section of yellow mud foundation, and the courtyard was overgrown with weeds.

The main body of the temple walls was mottled, densely covered with cracks, severely damaged, and the eaves and crossbeams were webbed with spider silks.

Walking from the outside in, perhaps due to the lack of incense offerings, a chilling, cold aura permeated the dilapidated temple, causing even the bright spring sunlight to swerve and avoid its path.

An eccentric old man with a bird's nest of messy hair stood akimbo on the stone steps at the entrance of the ruined temple, his nose and eyes twisted in extreme impatience as he looked down at the elderly man standing below in luxurious brocade, "I'm so poor I'm practically wearing straw raincoats, and you show up dressed all flashily just to show off?"

Sixth Master Wan dared not show the slightest disrespect to the old man on the steps, even though the other party was a few years younger than himself. His demeanor remained polite and courteous, "Please forgive me, Elder Du. Wan's visit today is to see Broken Blade, as I have matters to discuss."

A low, slightly hoarse voice came from the man inside the temple, exuding a chilly, icy texture that was both cold and hard, "Not seeing. Not discussing. Not him."

The eccentric old man immediately lifted his chin, waving Sixth Master Wan away as if shooing a fly, "Isn't it just because of that little business in Tubei Mountain? What Pier 12 pulled this time has already become a laughingstock for everyone, yet you still want to run over and drop more punchlines in front of me? Those few ill-fated ghosts who died under your command have nothing to do with Broken Blade. He didn't do it. Get lost, get lost, get lost!"

Sixth Master Wan glanced toward the dim interior of the temple, a sharp glint flashing briefly in the depths of his eyes, "Broken Blade is a man of his word. Since you say it wasn't you, then it certainly wasn't you. However, besides inquiring about this matter, the old man has another favor to ask today. Pier 12 has repeatedly stumbled over a nobody, and the person pulling strings behind the scenes has quite some capability. I would like to ask Broken Blade to help track down the person hiding behind the scenes. You don't need to take action yourself; just ferret them out and report back to me. The deadline is one month, and the reward is fifty liang of silver."

His gaze shifted to the eccentric old man on the steps, whose impatience was growing, "Plus a Tianchi snow lotus, petals intact and of superior quality."

The eccentric old man's expression changed instantly, and he beamed from ear to ear, "Deal! Deal! I've taken this job for him!"

"The old rules: pay half the reward upfront. Once the task is accomplished, the remaining twenty-five liang and the Tianchi snow lotus will be personally delivered by Wan." The wrinkles on Sixth Master Wan's face moved slightly as he flipped his hand to present a brocade money pouch, then unhooked a flask of wine from his waist and tossed it into the temple, "Knowing that Broken Blade loves wine above all else, this is a newly brewed batch from the Wangque Tower. Have a taste."

After sending off the guest, the eccentric old man eagerly bounded into the temple, "Oh my! A overlord of a region truly lives up to his name—so generous with his money! Just for tracking down a person, the reward starts at fifty liang, hahaha! This business is worth taking!"

When he came to a halt in a certain dark corner, his response was the edge of a broken blade pointed straight out from the shadows.

The blade emitted a chilling gleam in the light, and the lingering, tiger-roaring and dragon-singing resonance of it cutting through the air remained palpable, its murderous intent freezing one's soles.

The eccentric old man swallowed secretly, extending a single finger to gingerly push away the blade aimed at his throat, "Look at you being so stubborn. If you don't take jobs and make money, can you have wine every day? My pockets are cleaner than my face, and you expect to rely on me to support you or something! Besides, this task isn't even hard—just finding someone, right? And it pays fifty liang!"

The man withdrew his blade, leaning against the wall with his eyes closed, "The Tianchi snow lotus."

"..." The eccentric old man gnashed his teeth, though the voice he squeezed out was warmly ingratiating, "Yes, yes, yes. It's true my eyes lit up when I saw the snow lotus, but fifty liang is also solid silver going into our pockets, isn't it? And this wine—the new Fragrant Jade Dew from Wangque Tower, priced at five liang a small jar by that profiteer Baixiaofeng, who only sells five jars a day."

He tapped a finger against the white porcelain wine bottle held in the man's hand, making a crisp clinking sound, "If you aren't taking the job, are you going to return this wine?"

The man remained silent for a fraction of a second, flicked the stopper off the wine bottle with his thumb, and tilted his head back to drink.