Chapter 355 - 354: This Is No Time to Talk About Outsiders

Chapter 355: Chapter 354: This Is No Time to Talk About Outsiders

A heavy weight thudded on the staircase, which groaned as if it couldn’t bear the load.

’This pig even knows how to climb stairs...’

Just two breaths later, the Long-tusked Pig clambered onto the second floor, shattering several wooden steps. Its small, rage-filled eyes immediately locked onto Hee Lingchuan, who had stood up.

The diners, vendors, and waiters on the second floor scattered like the wind.

Hee Lingchuan had stepped in to save the hunter, but it wasn’t just because he couldn’t stand seeing a beast harm someone on the street, or because he felt the need to right a wrong.

In his eyes, the wild pig was wreathed in black miasma, and several small ghosts were actually clinging to its head!

That’s right. In broad daylight, these small ghosts dared to peek out and look at him, glaring and gnashing their teeth—even though the sunlight wasn’t shining directly on them.

A moment ago, they had coveted the hunter’s two yellow goats and goaded the Long-tusked Pig into snatching them.

The appearance of such ghosts, no matter where, was a strange omen.

The small ghosts pointed at Hee Lingchuan, and the Long-tusked Pig lowered its head and charged.

Its momentum was so fierce it broke the floorboards.

Hee Lingchuan took two steps to the side, but the Long-tusked Pig was surprisingly agile. It planted its short legs and continued its charge toward him.

However, Hee Lingchuan’s turn was even more fluid. His feet spun around, almost brushing against the pig’s body, as his right hand naturally gripped the hilt of the Floating Life Blade.

A cold glint flashed.

Hee Lingchuan leaped back to get clear.

The Long-tusked Pig couldn’t stop its momentum and slid sideways across the floor as it fell.

At the same time, its head separated from its body.

Hot, stinking pig blood splattered all over the floor.

The small ghosts and black miasma clinging to the Long-tusked Pig dissipated into smoke, leaving no trace behind.

A waiter, cowering in a corner, pointed at the Long-tusked Pig’s corpse and stammered, "Violent Fang... Sir, you’ve killed Violent Fang!"

"This thing is called Violent Fang?" Hee Lingchuan picked up the pig’s head and examined it closely. "You’re welcome."

Now that he thought about it, after he had thrown his flying blade, he seemed to have heard someone shout "Come back!" But with the clamor of the crowd, he hadn’t paid it any mind. The Long-tusked Pig, in its pain, cared even less and had charged straight for him.

"That’s Third Master Gan’s Hunting Pet!"

’Third Master Gan?’ Hee Lingchuan was stunned. ’This ghostly thing has a master?’

Just then, the sound of footsteps arose as a group of people strode through the hall and rushed up to the second floor.

It was the same group of well-dressed, proud riders who had just passed through the street.

The young man in the lead saw the two halves of the Long-tusked Pig, his pupils constricting in shock. He roared in fury, "How dare you kill my Spirit Pet!"

"This is your pet?" Hee Lingchuan tossed the pig’s head at the young man’s feet and took out a handkerchief to wipe his blade. "You walked it without a leash. How was anyone to know it was yours?"

A guard behind Third Master Gan stepped forward at the right moment and barked, "You dare cause trouble in Wuze, kid? Do you have any idea who you’ve provoked?!"

The retainers swarmed forward, surrounding Hee Lingchuan.

Whether a fight would actually break out was another matter; dominating with sheer presence was what was important. Hee Lingchuan knew this point very well from his past.

Third Master Gan raised a hand to stop his men. "My Violent Fang was a Spirit Seed from the Demon Nest Swamp. It rendered great service to the county by helping to quell demon infestations. I’m not an unreasonable person, but we’re going to have to settle this account."

"Does clearing out a few demons make up for murder?" Hee Lingchuan glanced out the window. "Your pet was on a rampage. If I hadn’t intervened in time, you’d have a man’s life on your hands. How are you going to thank me?"

The hunter staggered up from the ground and went to find his hound. Several wounds on his body were bleeding, the worst of which was on his leg, where a round hole had been gouged out. He had encountered wild pigs before while hunting in the mountains. A moment ago, he had desperately pushed against the pig’s tusk, doing everything he could to stop it from goring his upper body.

But the hound next to him wasn’t so lucky. It lay on the ground, its legs twitching.

The hunter gently stroked it a few times. It let out two whimpers and then breathed its last.

"Violent Fang has lived in Wuze for six years. It wouldn’t just kill someone. At most, it would have taught him a lesson," Third Master Gan said, his face frosty. "Violent Fang hurt him, and I will compensate him. You killed my Spirit Pet, so how will you compensate me?"

Hee Lingchuan asked, feigning ignorance, "Who are you?"

The guard behind Third Master Gan chimed in, "You don’t even recognize our Third Master Gan, yet you dare cause trouble in Wuze?"

Hee Lingchuan nodded. "Gan the Third of the Gan Family Commerce Association?"

Third Master Gan lifted his chin.

"A mere merchant family, with not a single official to its name, thinks it has the right to be so arrogant?" ’When I, Eldest Young Master Hee, ran rampant in Black Water City, at least I had the local Prefect backing me.’

"It’s more than enough to deal with you," Third Master Gan said, his face darkening. "Tie him up and hand him over to the County Yamen."

The guards answered the call and moved to seize him.

’This little silk-panted fop actually wants to hand me over to the authorities. How law-abiding.’ ’Of course, whether he’d actually be "dealt with by the law" at the County Yamen is another story entirely.’ Hee Lingchuan backhanded a guard in the nose. The man fell, clutching his face and crying out in pain, only to open his eyes and find the pig’s gaping maw right in front of him.

Hee Lingchuan grabbed another guard by the neck and slammed his head into a table three times.

On another table, of course.

His own table still had unfinished food and wine; he couldn’t have it get messed up.

As he fought, he laughed. "And do you have any idea who I am?"

’The most troublesome part of being a spoiled brat is the small chance of running into someone you can’t push around.’ He knew this from deep experience.

’A really long, hard one.’

’To strike without first figuring out his opponent’s background... this kid’s Daoist Practice is far too lacking.’

Third Master Gan, his face ashen, was about to retort when two servants ran up from downstairs, shouting, "Third Master!" They then leaned in and whispered a few words in his ear.

Third Master Gan’s expression changed drastically. He waved a hand. "Stop! Everyone, stop!"

The guards couldn’t have been more relieved to stop.

Third Master Gan shot Hee Lingchuan a vicious glare and delivered that classic, well-worn line, "Just you wait, kid! I’ll deal with you later!" With that, he led his men and hurried downstairs.

Hee Lingchuan walked to the window and looked down, watching Third Master Gan leap onto his horse and gallop quickly toward his home.

After the crowd had whooshed away, the waiter finally dared to approach, righting tables and picking up bowls. He whispered to Hee Lingchuan, "Sir, you should leave quickly. It’ll be bad for you when Third Master Gan comes back."

Hee Lingchuan pulled his Flying Blade from the pig, wiped it clean, and placed the carcass into his Storage Ring. Then he walked back to his table, sat down, and poured himself a cup of wine. "What’s the hurry? I haven’t finished eating."

A short while later, the Shopkeeper also came upstairs and bowed low. "Esteemed guest, we won’t charge you for your meal. Please, just leave."

"So generous?" Hee Lingchuan asked, surprised. He gestured around them. "The shattered plates and bowls, the frightened customers... you’re just going to absorb the losses yourselves?"

"Then you, you..." ’Are you going to pay? Are you that generous?’ The Shopkeeper decided to just be blunt. "Third Master Gan is a powerful figure. Neither you nor we can afford to offend him. For your own safety, you should leave."

"I’m still waiting for someone." Hee Lingchuan placed two gold ingots on the table. "Don’t panic. If the Gan Family doesn’t pay up for this later, these two gold ingots are yours."

Seeing his supremely unconcerned demeanor, the Shopkeeper swallowed the sigh that had risen in his throat. He glanced at the gold ingots, then back at Hee Lingchuan, not daring to say another word.

Hee Lingchuan asked him, "That Long-tusked Pig, does it always run wild in the streets like that?"

"Third Master Gan always parades it through the city. It’s injured people a few times, and the Gan Family just paid them off to settle it."

"Has it ever eaten anyone?"

"N-no, not that. At least, we haven’t heard of it," the Shopkeeper said in a low voice. "Before, this Long-tusked Pig was extremely vicious and couldn’t be taken outside. I heard it even injured a couple of the Gan Family’s servants. But a few months ago, Third Master Gan tamed it, and now it obeys him like an extension of his own arm. After the Emperor’s Liquid descended a while back, a demon plague broke out along the Official Road, and this Long-tusked Pig even helped the county clear them out. Third Master Gan boasted about it endlessly, so everyone in the county knows the story."

"Alright. Bring me another pot of wine."

As he went downstairs, the Shopkeeper specifically instructed a waiter to clear away all the tables and chairs nearby.

***

The Eye Spider remained securely in Steward Zhao’s belt as he returned to the Gan Mansion.

The Hee Family’s aesthetic sense had always been on point. Having spent so long at home, Hee Lingchuan had never thought his own residence was anything special. But compared to the Gan Mansion, the Hee Residence was exquisite, elegant, and low-key luxurious without being ostentatious, a testament to Madam Ying’s high standards.

To put it simply, it was all about understated flexing.

In contrast, the Gan Family’s architecture, furniture, and decorations were all opulent and magnificent. Even the massive pillars were gilded, as if terrified people wouldn’t know they had money. The crabapple trees in the garden were clustered together to form a sea of flowers. Everywhere, the emphasis was on a kind of overwhelming, full-circle perfection.

It was like a long scroll where every part was painted with heavy, rich colors, with no light, detached strokes for balance. The final result was just a chaotic mess, devoid of any real beauty.

Now, this mansion—a "nouveau riche" home in the truest sense—was shrouded in a pall of gloom, and even the servants wore expressions of confusion and unease.

The pillar of the family had just collapsed.

Steward Zhao had just returned to the Gan Residence when he was grabbed by an old servant woman who attended to Mrs. Maoo.

"Where have you been? The Old Mistress just woke up, and she’s already cried herself unconscious again!"

"Has the doctor left?" When Steward Zhao had first delivered the bad news, Mrs. Maoo had frozen. Then, with a scream of "My son!" she had charged toward a pillar, moving so fast no one could stop her.

But the old woman wasn’t injured. She had fainted just before hitting the pillar, falling short by a single step.

"Not yet. He saw the Old Mistress faint and prescribed another course of medicine."

Immediately after, a flood of trivial matters descended, leaving Steward Zhao too busy to even take a sip of water. Grand Steward An Xing had perished along with Master Gan, and with the Old Mistress unconscious in bed, it seemed he was the only one left to manage things.

Although Steward Zhao was busy, he found that the feeling of giving orders was quite pleasant.

’If the Gan Family didn’t appoint Luo Xunyi as the new Grand Steward, but chose him instead...’

He hadn’t even begun to get lost in his fantasies when the door to the Old Mistress’s room opened, and Second Master Gan walked out with red, swollen eyes.

"Second Master, my condolences." ℴ

Second Master Gan grunted in acknowledgment and called for a servant boy to bring him some water.

He had shed many tears after hearing the terrible news about his elder brother and seeing his mother unconscious.

Steward Zhao hurried forward to ask for instructions. "Second Master, should we set up the funeral hall in Bailu Hall or in front of the ancestral shrine?"

"Bailu Hall," Second Master Gan said, then hesitated. "No, in front of the ancestral shrine."

"Understood."

"Wait, let me think... let’s make it Bailu Hall after all." Second Master Gan sighed. "I need to hurry and paint a portrait of my elder brother to be displayed in the hall for people to pay their respects."

Steward Zhao asked again, "The Eldest Master passed away in a foreign land. According to custom, we should perform a soul-pacifying ritual. Which master practitioner do you think we should invite?"

"..."

After some back and forth, he finally settled these matters with Second Master Gan. He then stammered, "Right, the caravan also brought back a person from the Demon Nest Swamp this time. He was entrusted by the Spider Queen to..."

Before he could finish, Second Master Gan grew impatient and cut him off with a wave of his hand. "Why are you talking about outsiders at a time like this?"