Chapter 157: Blood of the Hero
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Wu Lie was very much affected by his presence.
He could hear the smile in Supreme Wind’s words, "Sir Wu, I believe that you won’t think that I’ve come to bribe you, will you?"
Wu Lie flushed a bright red and replied, "Of course not. Nine sirs’ kindness cannot be considered bribery. Even if it were to be bribery, I shall accept it shamelessly."
Supreme Wind laughed at.
Without further preamble, he took out a few pills and fed them to Wu Lie’s wife and son before cultivating to comb through their meridians.
"I will come every night from now on. Your son will regain his sight about ten days from now and his eyes will recuperate to their usual state about half a month later; the poison in his body will be entirely cleansed as well. As for the mistress, I can only revive her and enhance her health; unfortunately, I can't do anything about her broken legs.
Wu Lie was near tears.
After so many years, this was the first time that Wu Lie, as an impartial arbiter, was so moved.
Wu Lie’s tears coursed suddenly as he watched as his child blink timidly and his wife sleep so peacefully for the first time in years.
When he woke up from his trance, Supreme Wind was already gone.
There was a note on the table, the handwriting on it terribly messy.
"Man of fealty, an official of patriotism – the heaven will bless, the people will see; dedication for the empire and for its people shall forever be; take care dear sir, long live Yutang!"
…
Recalling the scene last night, he held onto the silver taels the old marshal had tossed over.
He had said it was a loan and he had to return them, since the start of the conversation. The old marshal knew that he would not accept it otherwise.
My dignity is being cared for by so many people! They have carefully guarded it for me, afraid to hurt my pathetic ego.
Wu Lie took in a deep breath, determination shining in his eyes.
His pace was wide as he strode towards his home, hugging tightly to the silver taels.
With such patriotic and devoted officials, why worry that Yutang would not regain its glory?
He would do his part in realizing this greatness.
…
When Yun Yang left his dwellings once again, he suddenly realized that Tiantang City had become much cleaner.
It was already the ninth of the tenth month now.
There were eleven more days before Tie Zheng’s wedding.
Two teams of people from other countries had already arrived and had stopped outside the city.
Tie Zheng’s wedding – a goblet of wine for every militant in the world; this was a huge affair for the armies all across the earth.
Of course, it could also easily become a titanic event that would turn Tiantang City into a volcano waiting to erupt.
Yun Yang had decided to first complete Tie Zheng’s wedding before speaking of other things.
After all, this goblet of wine belonged to all the militants in this world, whether they were dead or alive!
They were all qualified to have a drink.
Yun Yang would not allow this momentous occasion to be sabotaged by anyone.
He strolled towards the promised location, stepping on the sparse, wilted leaves on the street.
"Young Master Yun, you’re here." Young Master Ma stood up, a warm smile on his face.
"Yes, about the wine I’ve booked earlier - how much of them are ready now?" Yun Yang asked gently.
Young Master Ma coughed and said, "Since Young Master Yun has mentioned it two months ago, this young brother did not dare to slack and has worked all through the nights to change all the labels on the Drunken Immortal Brew we have in stock to the Blood of the Hero. Even the pots have been changed so that no one could tell the difference. Other than that, the twenty-odd branches under the Ma Family have been producing the wine day and night. There are already eighty-five thousand pots of this new Blood of Hero in stock, as of now."
"How much is a pot?" Yun Yang asked.
"I know, I know, we’ve been working around the clock during this entire period…" Young Master Ma smiled amicably. "The quality has to be the best since Young Master Yun has asked it to be so. The market price for each pot is about six hundred silver taels while each pot is twenty catties in weight."
Yun Yang frowned. "Six hundred taels? One pot? Twenty catties in weight? Doesn’t that mean that a catty of Blood of the Hero is worth thirty silver taels? Young Master Ma, are you fellows trying to eat people alive or drink their blood?"
"Of course, if Young Master Yun wants all the wine, we only need…" Young Master Ma gritted his teeth and continued resolutely, "Two hundred taels for a pot is good enough! Young Master Yun, we have cut all the labor cost for this price… Any lesser and our family will really not profit at all! After all, it’s a large sum…"
Yun Yang hummed softly and did not speak as he raised his cup of tea. He was mentally calculating furiously, "Eighty thousand pots will be one million and a hundred and sixty thousand catties. One catty can make three goblets of wine so there’ll be four million and eight hundred thousand goblets…"
"Not enough, by far." Yun Yang shook his head, "I need at least a hundred thousand pots of Blood of the Hero!"
"Oh, my…" Young Master Ma moaned. "Boss, another hundred thousand pots at this price… You'll put my family under the ground."
Yun Yang looked at him coldly.
At the receiving end of Yun Yang’s gaze, Young Master Ma finally lowered his head in resignation. "Sigh, alright, alright..."
"No need to be so disheartened." Yun Yang patted Young Master Ma’s shoulder. "Your family won’t be at a loss, I guarantee it! When this business is done, as long as the wine from your family is not priced extravagantly and the quality is controlled… your family will be renowned throughout the continent! You will have a hard time if you tried to stay poor then."
Young Master Ma laughed even though he felt close to tears as he replied, "I sure hope that will come true."
"So, it’s a total of three million and six hundred thousand catties of wine!"
Yun Yang said, "Ten taels for a catty so it’s a total of thirty-six million taels."
Young Master Ma looked at Yun Yang pleadingly. They owned a brewery, not a bank. They really did not have so much capital to fill the gap; more than seventy percent of their family’s current assets were divested everywhere as at the moment.
If Yun Yang asked to put the payment on hold, he would be doomed.
"I have thirty million taels right here." Yun Yang produced a stack of banknotes with a flourish.
Young Master Ma heaved a sigh of relief. Although he had to lose six million taels, it was still within an acceptable range.
"I will have Marshal Tie Zheng’s men contact you and deal with the wedding wine." Yun Yang said unhurriedly, "Just give them the wine and ask for six million taels from them as payment."
Young Master Ma lifted his head abruptly, surprise and shock was written all over his eyes.
Yun Yang turned his head and said indifferently, "Are you surprised? That day will be a merry celebration for the militants of the world. This is also a day the fallen warriors in the underworld will look forward to."
"Young Master Ma, I hope you will pay very close attention to the work you are doing on this. Don’t skimp on the quality and the amount must be sufficient. Don’t rat me out either."
Yun Yang turned and walked out of the door with his purple robe fluttering behind him. "Please."
"This is the favor you fellows owe me, consider it paid today. I will not resort to blackmail anymore."
Young Master Ma stood quietly in the same spot for a long while, even after Yun Yang had been long gone.
"Don’t you worry!"
A warm feeling rose in Young Master Ma’s heart. "Even if the Ma Family has to be reduced to total bankruptcy, we will complete this order without a flaw."
…
As Yun Yang was returning to the Residence of Yun, he could feel his residence emanating a chilling aura even from a distance away.
He sighed in his heart.
What had to come would come.
He had made his peace. It was good to have solved this issue before Tie Zheng’s wedding.
He had been walking briskly but his pace slowed when he felt the chilling force; his mood had become calmer the nearer he got to his residence as well.
In the Residence of Yun’s backyard, a man in black was sitting quietly under a tree in the pavilion.
Lao Mei was sprawled on the stone table; there was no way to tell if he was dead or alive. Fang Mofei looked weary and pale-faced, the front of his clothes bloodied. He was staggering, trying his best to lean against a tree.
Although the man in black was sitting there, he seemed to meld and ripple in the air as his sense of existence was near to none. He was like a ball of black fog, shimmering into opacity anytime a breeze blew by.
Yun Yang entered leisurely as if he did not notice the man in black.
His steps were light-hearted as he approached the stone table where Lao Mei was sprawled on to check his pulse. After he was sure that the latter was only unconscious and his meridians blocked, he heaved a sigh of assurance.
He then went to Fang Mofei and checked his pulse before being completely relieved.
Before Yun Yang had gone back to his residence, what he hoped least to happen was that someone from his side had been killed. It would cause both parties to come to a point of no return where things would not end without one side being totally eradicated. As both of his men were merely injured, it meant that the situation could still be salvaged.
It was especially so for Fang Mofei. He looked especially injured, but he had actually just suffered from the other party’s punishment simply because he had not defended himself and counter-attacked. His injuries were not critical, mostly made up of superficial wounds.
The man in black was still like a black mist, his face entirely veiled in fog. He seemed like he was indifferent towards Yun Yang’s actions but Yun Yang could feel the person’s gaze locked onto him when he was still a hundred feet away from his residence.
Yun Yang casually sat in front of the man in black and said nonchalantly, "First Court King Qinguang of the ten kings in Concourse of the Underworld?"
The man in black chuckled in an equally indifferent tone. "Marquis of Heavenly Clouds’ Young Master Yun Yang; a person of marvels, held in high regard by Ling Xiaozui."
Yun Yang smiled. "I wonder what brings King Qinguang here to honor this simple residence with your presence."
"I just wanted to come and have a look at your ability myself; see what it is that could make a person of my Concourse of the Underworld stay!" First Court King Qinguang chuckled icily. Even as he laughed softly, the atmosphere grew increasingly tense as if a fight was about to erupt at any moment.
"If you only wanted to have a look at my ability…" Yun Yang said quietly, "Did you have to resort to this?"
"Of course I did." First Court King Qinguang replied. "You’re only of the fifth peak mystical Qi’s standard right now. This king of court shall do battle against you with the cultivation base of the fifth peak mystical Qi."
"If you lose, Fang Mofei has to die. That is the price for his betrayal. The price is the same for you as well. Even if you have Ling Xiaozui's support, you will still need to pay!"
"And if I win?"
Yun Yang said faintly, "What do I get then?"