Chapter 729: 归于来处

Fortunately, the thick winter clothes offered some protection during the beating, and Zhang Shuai had no injuries on his face, so he didn't have to worry about his family discovering anything.

Seeing Zhang Shuai's steps quicken and lighten as he hurried away, the two gambling den enforcers following him exchanged a look.

“That kid looked miserable just a moment ago. Why is he suddenly so energetic? Could he be heading to the Da Zhen magistrate's office to report us?”

“No, no, that's not even the right direction. He's probably going home to raise money. Besides, the laws of Da Zhen don't prohibit gambling dens. Zhang Shuai was caught red-handed, and many people can testify; even if he reports us, he won't win.”

The other man nodded.

“He must be going home then. After all, the Zhang family is reasonably well-off; they should be willing to pay a hundred taels to save their son.”

“Let's follow him and see. He won't be able to pull any tricks.”

The two followed at a suitable distance, while Zhang Shuai's pace quickened even more. He knew he was being followed, but there was nothing he could do to shake them off.

Before long, he was back at his doorstep. He rubbed his bruised leg, then pretended nothing was wrong as he entered the courtyard and walked inside.

“Oh, where have you been all day? I haven't seen a trace of you. You don't even think to help clean the house before the New Year. Dinner will be ready soon.”

His elderly mother, nearly seventy, was still robust with dark hair. Seeing her youngest son rush back, she reprimanded him, but he merely mumbled, “Got it,” and hurried to his room.

“This child, he's old enough to know better but never behaves properly. What girl would want to marry him? Ah!”

Zhang Shuai's mother grumbled with a sigh, though she didn't actually think her youngest son was all that bad; after all, there were girls who would marry him.

Zhang Shuai hurried to his room. After pushing open the door, he immediately looked around on the floor and soon spotted the folded 'Fu' (fortune) character in the corner, still crumpled.

Zhang Shuai's heart filled with joy; selling this 'Fu' character would bring him money. He took a few steps to pick it up but inadvertently kicked the leg of a stool by the table.

“Clang…” “Ouch!”

Zhang Shuai lost his balance and fell, sprawling onto the floor. The draft created by his fall coincidentally blew the 'Fu' character under the bed.

“Hiss… Ouch, when you're unlucky, you trip even on flat ground. This cursed character…”

Zhang Shuai peered under the bed; it was too dark to see clearly. He moved the footboard away and reached in, groping around. He got covered in dust but couldn't find the 'Fu' character.

“Damn it.”

Muttering a curse, Zhang Shuai stood up, found a broom, and swept vigorously under the bed. After a while, he finally managed to retrieve the 'Fu' character.

Picking up the 'Fu' character, Zhang Shuai was covered in dust and kept patting himself off. However, he didn't notice that the 'Fu' character in his hand had no dust on it at all, believing he had simply shaken it clean.

Just then, Zhang Shuai's mother arrived at his doorway, and the dust immediately made her choke.

“Cough, cough… Son, what are you doing? Why is your room so dusty?”

“Uh, Mother, didn't you say to clean? I'm dusting…”

“Cough, cough, cough… Is this how you dust? I don't know what you spend your days messing around with. Come out, come out, wash up for dinner.”

His mother reprimanded him, then turned and walked away.

“Alright, alright, coming right away, coming right away.”

Zhang Shuai, feeling a little guilty, tucked the 'Fu' character back into his embrace, then went out to wash up.

His father and elder brother were out, and his elder sister had long since married, leaving only Zhang Shuai, his younger sister, and his mother at home. During dinner, Zhang Shuai seemed a little guilty; usually talkative, he merely ate his food, saying very little.

After finishing his meal, Zhang Shuai quickly left the table and returned to his room, where the dust had only recently settled. He lay on the bed, one hand resting on his chest, feeling agitated.

Meanwhile, Zhang Shuai's mother came in with a mop, helping him sweep and mop the dust in the room. Zhang Shuai rarely helped with cleaning, and after his mother left, he became even more restless.

As night fell, Zhang Shuai remained wide awake, lying in bed, lost in thought. He even considered telling his mother everything, but a shiver ran down his spine when he considered the consequences, and he abandoned the idea.

‘First thing tomorrow, I'll set up a stall at the market. Hopefully, that Da Zhen soldier will come…’

The next day, Zhang Shuai woke up early. After breakfast, he grabbed his carrying pole and baskets, took the last of his private savings, and hurried out.

Just as he was leaving the courtyard, he tripped over the threshold of the gate and fell flat on his face. Even with thick winter clothes, it hurt for a while.

Zhang Shuai didn't go directly to the market. As he had done several times before, he went to Uncle Yu, a close friend of his father's. After buying a batch of accessories, combs, and other items at a low price, he carried his baskets towards the market.

Choosing an empty corner of the market, Zhang Shuai set down his baskets, unfolded the 'Fu' character, and began to loudly call out to potential customers.

Chen Shou hadn't arrived yet today, as Zhang Shuai had said he wouldn't appear until close to noon at the earliest, possibly even in the afternoon. It was still early morning, just after dawn, and the market was mostly full of early-bird vendors with very few customers.

Zhang Shuai called out loudly but soon realized there weren't many customers passing by at this hour. It felt like a waste of effort, so he could only wait, occasionally shouting out to avoid missing anyone.

Although Chen Shou hadn't come, Qi Yuantian had arrived today. He didn't have any specific purpose; he just wanted to browse and buy a few things after spending too much time cooped up in the military camp.

As he casually strolled through the market, Qi Yuantian wore a constant smile. The market in Haiping City was, of course, far inferior to the capital he remembered, but it had its own unique features, one of which was the abundant seafood.

“Come and see, fresh large conger eels!” “Over here, excellent crabs, all alive!”

“Sea bass, sea bass, fifteen-pound fresh sea bass!” “Tiger fish, good for increasing milk production!”

Large fish, prawns, and crabs were kept in wooden boxes with seawater, some dead, others still lively and jumping. It was a particularly novel sight for someone like Qi Yuantian, who had never seen the sea before.

As Qi Yuantian passed by, the vendors at those stalls called out more vigorously. This wasn't just because Qi Yuantian looked like a scholar; more importantly, he wore a sword at his waist. A scholar with such an expression of curiosity usually indicated only one thing: he was a scholar from Da Zhen.

“Selling 'Fu' characters! A masterpiece by a renowned calligrapher, blessed by an enlightened master! Bring it home for good fortune next year! Only ten taels of gold!”

Not far away, Zhang Shuai's shout also attracted Qi Yuantian's attention. Ten taels for a 'Fu' character? How audacious! Could it be a 'Hundred Fortunes Scroll' written by a master calligrapher, with a hundred 'Fu' characters in different styles?

Scholars were naturally interested in such things, and Qi Yuantian was no exception. He followed the sound and found Zhang Shuai's stall, where two or three other people were looking at items, but only at the hairpins and combs on the ground.

As Qi Yuantian approached, a glance from a little distance revealed it was just a large, square 'Fu' character, the kind pasted on doors. His interest immediately waned, and he chuckled as he walked past.

“Vendor, your asking price is quite deceptive. Ten taels of gold for a single 'Fu' character, that's just too…”

The words “wishful thinking” couldn't escape Qi Yuantian's lips. The moment he saw the 'Fu' character up close, he froze.

“Exactly, this guy's crazy for money. He's tried selling it before.” “Yeah, nobody takes him seriously, hahaha…”

“Go on, what do you know? Someone will definitely buy this.”

As Zhang Shuai said this, he looked up and saw the approaching scholar staring blankly at the character on the stall. He immediately chuckled.

“Well, what do you think? Isn't the calligraphy good?”

Qi Yuantian reluctantly tore his gaze away from the character and nodded at Zhang Shuai.

“It's more than just good… This character… This character is simply…”

Qi Yuantian didn't continue his sentence. Although ten taels of gold for a single character seemed absurd, and the character had no signature or seal, it possessed an indescribable quality.

“How did you come by this character? Who wrote it? Do you have any other calligraphy or paintings?”

Zhang Shuai, too, became energized. This scholar, clearly from Da Zhen, seemed genuinely interested in the character. Did he want to buy it?

‘Are people from Da Zhen truly that different in their thinking?’

Shaking off his thoughts, Zhang Shuai quickly said,

“My father said an enlightened master wrote it when he was young. I'm telling you, this character is mystical; the ink looks as fresh as new after all these years. My family only has this one; there are no others. Ten taels of gold is absolutely no exaggeration. If you really want to buy it, I can lower the price a little…”

Zhang Shuai used his usual spiel, while Qi Yuantian was already calculating his money and casually asked,

“How much cheaper?”

Zhang Shuai was slightly taken aback by the question.

“You really want to buy it? Uh, cough, cough, I mean, if you really want to buy it, I can see you're a scholar from Da Zhen, and I've always admired brave men like you who go to war with swords. If you want it, I'll sell it to you for nine taels of gold. That's a whole tael of gold cheaper!”

“Nine taels, nine taels…”

Qi Yuantian quietly calculated in his head, then gritted his teeth and pulled out his money pouch from his pocket.

“Inside, I have about twelve taels of silver, four taels of gold, and a hundred or so copper coins. I also have an uncollected official salary voucher from Da Zhen for fifty taels of silver. The total might be just a little short of nine taels of gold, but not by much. If you're willing, come with me now to the nearest magistrate's office; they should be able to exchange it there!”

Zhang Shuai immediately stood up, took Qi Yuantian's money pouch, and grabbed a handful. Feeling the gold, silver, and copper coins, he even took out a gold ingot and bit it hard, becoming even more excited.

“You can't go back on your word! Uh, I mean, it's settled then! Pack up, pack up, let's go now!”

These Da Zhen scholars were quite trustworthy, and now the heavy money pouch was in his hands.

Both Qi Yuantian and Zhang Shuai had excited expressions as they headed to where the magistrate was stationed, which was essentially the former yamen (government office). The two men who had been tailing Zhang Shuai felt a little uneasy; they hadn't dared to get too close after Qi Yuantian appeared, but they still knew the two had entered the yamen.

“What do we do? They went inside!” “Wait and see. That's a Da Zhen scholar; he probably holds a military post. We can't afford to offend him…”

Qi Yuantian was indeed a military man. After showing his waist token, he passed without obstruction and successfully exchanged his silver. At the yamen's treasury, after verifying the authenticity of the official voucher, the magistrate personally handed Qi Yuantian five ten-tael silver ingots. It's worth noting that Qi Yuantian was considered the magistrate's superior.

“Mister Qi, your silver.”

“Good, thank you.”

Qi Yuantian thanked him and exited the treasury, then immediately handed the still-warm silver to Zhang Shuai, who was eagerly waiting. Zhang Shuai accepted the silver, beaming.

“Hahahaha, now I won't die!”

“Hmm? Zhang Shuai, you sold the character to save your life?”

As Qi Yuantian unfolded the 'Fu' character to examine it, he asked curiously. Strangely, the paper was no longer wrinkled at all.

“Ah, gambling ruins lives. I thought I had good luck and card skills, but I didn't realize they had set a trap for me, accusing me of cheating and leaving me with a hundred-tael debt. Ah, now that I have the money, they should let me go…”

“What? They set you up?”

Qi Yuantian raised an eyebrow and looked sternly at Zhang Shuai.

“Are you serious? You truly didn't cheat? They truly framed you?”

Zhang Shuai was startled. How did this scholar suddenly seem so fierce?

“Every word I'm saying is true… I only just learned to play Ma Diao cards recently, and I'm just a common local. A monk may run, but his temple cannot. How would I dare cheat in a gambling den? Wouldn't that be seeking death?”

Qi Yuantian nodded.

“What you say makes sense. Humph, daring to violate the laws of Da Zhen, this gambling den is too audacious! They're practically asking for death!”

He had been worrying about finding a way to establish authority and win over the people in the Haiping City area, and this was practically handed to him on a silver platter. After this angry remark, he suddenly remembered something.

“Uh, by the way, Brother Zhang, in my money pouch… there are two one-coin copper pieces that are very important to me. They were given to me by an elder. I was so eager to buy the character just now that I didn't take them out. Would it be convenient for you to…”

“Oh, it's just two copper coins. Don't be so polite, Mister Qi. Just look for them yourself.”

Zhang Shuai generously opened the money pouch.

Qi Yuantian was overjoyed and quickly rummaged through it. He immediately spotted the two special copper coins and took them out.

“Just these two. Alright, alright, no problem!”

Just as Qi Yuantian took hold of the two coins, he brushed them against the 'Fu' character in his hand. Feeling the 'Fu' character almost slip, he tightened his grip on it, but the copper coins in his hand loosened instead.

Whoosh… whoosh…

A gust of cold wind swept past, and the copper coins in his hand almost fell. Qi Yuantian instinctively reached out with both hands to catch them, securing the coins, but the 'Fu' character he was holding slipped and was caught by the wind, flying upwards.

Whoosh… woo… woo…

The cold wind suddenly intensified; instead of falling to the ground, the 'Fu' character ascended with the wind.

“My character! My character!”

Qi Yuantian was frantic, chasing and shouting, watching as the 'Fu' character unfurled in the wind and ascended directly into the sky…

Thousands of miles away, inside the guest house within the Devouring Beast, Ji Yuan's hand, holding his brush, paused slightly. A corner of his mouth lifted, and he continued writing.

Heh…