Chapter 81: Heart Like a Fierce Tiger (Part 1)

At around 7:30 PM, stars twinkled in the sky. By a desolate riverside beach outside Jiangning city, the night wind whimpered as it swept past the boathouse on the river. Light emanated from a room inside.

He woke up groggily, his consciousness not yet fully clear. There was little light. The sounds from outside, reaching his mind, fluctuated in volume. Before his brain fully engaged, he couldn't make sense of the fragmented sentences.

"Drink less wine...""A scholar who can't even truss a chicken...""This time's 'meat pig'...""Around midnight, Dalang will take a torch to the mountain to wait for someone... he should know about these things by now...""Know the signal...""Three circles left, three right...""Daddy, that 'meat pig'... nice shoes...""Don't mess around.""But...""This kind of 'meat pig'... at least thirty, if not fifty...""He won't wake up until at least midnight, let him be...""Daddy, for this kind of 'meat pig'... let him with one hand...""Behave..."

A dull ache throbbed at the back of his head. It took a long time for his thoughts to coalesce, an indescribably complex feeling.

It had been a very long time since he had felt such blatant hostility. Not even during the incident with Tang Mingyuan had he encountered such hostility.

He tried hard to recall what had happened before: that gaze, the swing of the stick... Who was doing this?

The Su family, the Xue family, the Wu family... it couldn't be them; it was incomprehensible. The Su family currently had no reason to do this to him, unless someone wanted to kill the old master and then eliminate Su Boyong and his daughter. The Xue and Wu families also had no reason to lay hands on him. All he had was a minor reputation for talent, and for merchants of their standing, this kind of direct action was usually a last resort. Once committed, there was no turning back; after such a complete breakdown, the consequences would be entirely out of control. He shouldn't have been their first target...

The Wulie Army? Even less likely. If it were them, it wouldn't be like this.

Who was it? Whom had he offended?

He was quite sensitive to judging good intentions and malice. If there had been any prior indications, he would most likely have noticed them. This incident truly seemed to come out of nowhere. He filtered through possible individuals in his mind, one by one. Xue Jin was one, but that person couldn't possibly have such decisiveness and courage, not even if he lost his mind. Beyond that, he couldn't think of anyone else. Or was this a random kidnapping for ransom?

"Meat pig," midnight... that didn't seem right either.

He couldn't determine the source of this hostility, no matter how hard he tried. However, this was not the time to ponder these things in detail. His hands and feet were bound, and the room was dark. In the adjacent room, several people were eating and drinking. The faint light of an oil lamp seeped through the cracks in the wall. The room swayed slightly, and he heard the sound of flowing water; they were on the river.

The image of the man before he fainted came to his mind: a giant over two meters tall, almost like a boxer. And accomplices; they would be difficult to deal with. He closed his eyes, tensed his body slightly, then relaxed. His fingers behind his back constantly fumbled, searching for any usable protrusion. On the corridor outside, someone seemed to pass by occasionally.

How absurd, inexplicable... he couldn't understand why this was happening or who was behind it. A slight anxiety and agitated mood surged within him. Not being able to find any clue was most frustrating for him, but it was immediately suppressed by his calmness and self-control. His fingers continued to fumble, slowly, inch by inch, trying not to make any sound.

He had systematically trained for a year. Coupled with the ominous feeling in his heart when he saw that gaze, he actually made a slight dodging movement when the wooden stick swung. Perhaps because of this, the assailant misjudged the timing. This might be his only chance. There was nothing to overthink or complain about; only by resolving the immediate situation would he have leisure to think. An opportunity might not be found, but he had to remain calm, not impatient, not impatient...

Time flowed by like the water beneath, minute by minute. As the burning sensation at the back of his head gradually faded, the oppressive darkness gave way to a quieter environment. The surroundings also became clearer. He heard the sounds of conversation, drinking, and eating. In the adjacent room, there were two adults, two children (though the children were likely already grown), and a woman. This might be an entire family.

"Meat pig"... this wasn't their first time doing this. There must have been homicides. That giant man was too difficult to deal with; he wasn't in the same weight class. An ordinary scholar would likely be terrified just by seeing him. Ning Yi adjusted his breathing, analyzing these thoughts in his mind. He didn't know when, but a faint sound came from the door. He slightly opened his eyes. Someone was quietly picking the lock.

When the lock was half-opened, it stopped. "Little brother, what are you doing?"

"Brother, the 'meat pig's' shoes... he won't be needing them anyway."

"Dad said no mischief. Give me the key."

"Oh."

The two brothers kept their voices low, then each went their way. Ning Yi had originally taken a deep breath, and now he exhaled slowly. His hands against the wall behind him, he sped up the subtle friction.

Not long after, fragmented sounds could be heard from the doorway again.

The door opened just slightly. A stout young man quietly squeezed in, then softly hummed, a little pleased. He held a stick in his hand and tucked the wire from his hand into his pocket.

The young man walked towards the corner. He clearly saw the scholar, bound hand and foot and lying on the ground. This scholar looked frail, perhaps not even as strong as him, practically a wisp in the wind.

All those rich people in the city were like this.

"Meat pig, if you wake up and dare to cause trouble, I'll bash your head in with this stick..." the young man whispered fiercely. He waited for a moment beside him, then put the stick aside. He squatted down and took off the scholar's shoes. In the dim light, he looked at them with pleasure. Then he sat down with his back to the scholar and took off his own shoes—putting on shoes while facing away from someone was an unconscious habit.

The first shoe, the second shoe, both beautiful and fitting... Just as he was about to stand up, behind him, the figure silently sat up. His hands stretched out in the darkness, and the ropes continuously fell from his wrists. Those hands suddenly came together.

*Crack—*

His head twisted to an unnatural angle.

Without his shoes, he silently pushed the door open and stepped out. Outside was the boathouse corridor, shaped like the character "王" (Wang, king), with six rooms. He had been confined to the room between the living room and the kitchen, which had no door. The three rooms on the other side only had windows. The corridor was empty. He quietly moved past, glanced into the living room, and quickly pulled back.

Three people sat around a table, lit by an oil lamp. One was the giant man who had spoken to him. Another was also burly, like an iron tower. The third person was likely the giant man's eldest son, also over 1.8 meters tall.

Three hulking figures...

Inside the room, the tower-like man was talking to the giant man's eldest son.

"...Dalang, your uncle tells you, in this criminal world, only true ruthlessness, true boldness, and meticulousness can establish you. But don't think ruthlessness means reckless fighting. True ruthlessness is only shown when truly needed. Just once, and everyone will fear you. Back then, that fellow surnamed Lei..."

The words didn't register in Ning Yi's mind at this moment. Their gibberish sounded like a philosopher's ramblings. He looked around. The door was in the living room; how was he to get out? He wasn't a strong swimmer, and although the current outside was relatively calm, it was also noisy. If heard, he wouldn't get far.

He wore a grim expression. Following his original plan, he walked to the other side. In the kitchen, a plump woman was cooking. Ning Yi glanced around, looking at the chimney and other things. Two seconds later, he walked in and picked up the knife from the chopping board.

The woman turned her head. The next moment, with a swish, blood spurted upwards like a fountain into the pot, sizzling. A dark silhouette was cast on the wall as the cleaver relentlessly chopped down.

Blood seeped through the floor, perhaps dripping down into the river below. The dark figure stood before the stove, expressionlessly pouring pork, kerosene, and various oils into the boiling pot. His gaze shifted, continuously sifting through the various items in the kitchen. Sometimes he would take down paper packets, open them, then discard them. After the oil in the pot was fully boiling, he poured the scalding oil into clay jars wrapped with straw ropes.

Then, a voice came from the living room: "Dalang, go see if your mother's food is ready..."

Ning Yi quietly pushed the kitchen door shut. In one hand, he held a steelyard weight; in the other, a sharp boning knife. He hid to one side of the door. Footsteps approached. The moment the door opened and the person stepped in, Ning Yi blew out the lamp, as if it had been extinguished by the wind. The fire from the stove still flickered faintly. The young man paused, slightly stunned: "Mom..."

"That person surnamed Gu, I hear he's become an official this time, going to be a county magistrate..."

"If Dalang and Erlang could go with him to serve as attendants or something, that might be good. We have leverage over him..."

"We don't need to push this kind of scholar too hard..."

Inside the room, Yang Yi and Yang Heng were talking, occasionally sipping wine and eating peanuts. Realizing Dalang had been gone for some time, Yang Heng frowned.

"Why isn't Dalang back yet..."

"Mom—" The sound suddenly came from the kitchen, desolate and hoarse. Both men jolted. Yang Yi grabbed a crossbow and rushed towards the inner corridor, while Yang Heng drew his steel saber and headed for the door outside.

"Check the 'meat pig'!"

Yang Heng rushed out of the room to see if anyone was escaping into the river. A few seconds later, Yang Yi's furious shout suddenly echoed from the room behind: "Let him go—"

When Yang Yi rushed into the central corridor, it was dim, with only a faint glow coming from the kitchen. Before he could open the second door to check on the 'meat pig', his eldest son was pushed out, his head covered in blood, swaying unsteadily. He had clearly been somewhat lucid just moments ago, and now he was battered like this again.

A blood-stained boning knife was held against his neck, wielded with one hand; any slightly larger movement could slit his throat. Hidden behind his son, pushing him along, was the "meat pig" he had kidnapped. The scholar, who had originally appeared harmless, was subtly covered in blood.

"Let him go!"

Yang Yi's teeth were clenched tight enough to crack. He raised his crossbow and roared in a deep voice.

Ning Yi's current height wasn't actually short, but Yang Yi was truly towering, now blocking the way like a wall. Both sides paused slightly. Then, a voice carried over, not as high-pitched as Yang Yi's, but simply filled with deep disgust.

"Shoot."