Chapter 303 - 242: Deduction Successful, the Next Realm Opens

Chapter 303: Chapter 242: Deduction Successful, the Next Realm Opens

"Old Liu, me and the boys spent half the day looking for you in South City, but you, you old rascal, actually ran off to North City. What’s the deal? Are you deliberately hiding from us?" the lead ruffian said with a cheeky grin.

Seeing their aggressive stance, the other patrons squatting on the ground and drinking exchanged knowing glances.

As residents of the Imperial Capital, how could they not be familiar with the way these ruffians operated?

They were obviously here to start trouble.

So, with a silent agreement, they all moved aside.

They were just here for a drink; meddling in this sort of business was none of their concern.

As for Old Liu, he was groaning inwardly.

Ever since running into this gang a few days ago, they had been showing up every other day to eat and drink on his dime.

His humble business couldn’t possibly withstand such harassment. Yet, not daring to offend them, his only option was to try his best to avoid them.

But in the end, he hadn’t managed to get away.

’Forget making a profit,’ he thought bitterly. ’Today, I’ll be lucky if I don’t lose my initial investment.’

While he was lamenting his fate, the ruffians had already walked impatiently to the front of his stall. They reached out, threw open the lid of a wine cask, and started drinking, practically fighting one another for it.

In truth, even ruffians had their own hierarchy.

The top tier colluded with government officials and oppressed the common folk. They ran brothels and casinos, amassed vast fortunes, and were bona fide local despots.

The second tier were vicious and ruthless fighters, ready to draw their blades at the slightest provocation. They built fearsome reputations on the streets through pure ferocity, gathered loyal underlings, and lived just as comfortably.

Below them were the common street thugs. They got by on their wits or a streak of ruthlessness. While not as formidable as the top two tiers, they could at least manage to feed themselves.

At the very bottom were the men standing before him now. This lot had neither the skill for vicious fights nor the courage to draw a blade on someone. They could only bluff their way through, intimidating small vendors to gain petty advantages and barely scrape by day to day.

In fact, if they hadn’t run into Old Liu, they might have gone hungry today.

That was why, even though this was a sour, bitter, mass-brewed liquor, the thugs still drank it with gusto.

They didn’t just drink. They also lifted the lids on the food containers behind the stall and, not caring whether it was meat or vegetables, simply grabbed whatever they could and stuffed it in their mouths.

Old Liu wanted to stop them but feared a beating, so all he could do was stand aside and watch, on the verge of tears.

Soon, a large cask of wine and eight bowls of side dishes had been completely devoured.

Afterward, the leader wiped his mouth, let out a sour, foul-smelling, alcohol-laced burp, and then spoke with satisfaction.

"O-Old Liu, just put it on our tab. We’ll... we’ll settle up with you later!"

With that, the gang turned and left. Tears streamed down Old Liu’s face, but he didn’t dare make a peep. He could only watch helplessly as they walked away before he finally began to clean up the mess.

With all the wine gone, he obviously couldn’t continue his business for the day.

The other patrons returned their wine jugs, paid what they owed, and prepared to leave.

Just then, someone suddenly exclaimed in surprise, "Hey, where’d that young man go?"

Everyone then realized that the young man who had been squatting off to the side, drinking, had vanished.

Old Liu was taken aback as well. He hurried over and found a single wine jug left on the ground.

Seeing this, the other patrons all gathered around, their faces full of surprise as they clicked their tongues in wonder.

"Did any of you see the young man leave?" someone asked.

"I didn’t see him!"

"I didn’t see him either!"

Everyone shook their heads one after another.

"From his clothes, appearance, and bearing, that young gentleman didn’t seem like the type to skip out on his bill over a little bit of wine money!" the middle-aged man said, looking puzzled.

Old Liu wiped his tears, his heart already numb.

After losing so much, he didn’t care about a little more lost wine money.

He picked up the wine jug and was about to hoist his carrying pole and leave when, at that very moment, Wu Liangchen emerged from a nearby alley, a string of coin purses dangling from his hand.

That’s right—a string of coin purses.

They were a collection of several purses, all of different shapes and colors, strung together.

Wu Liangchen handed the still-warm purses to Old Liu. "Here. This is the payment for those men’s wine."

Old Liu was stunned silent.

The onlookers from the stall were equally dumbfounded.

From the moment the ruffians left to the moment Wu Liangchen emerged from the alley, less than the time it takes to burn half an incense stick had passed.

Yet in that time, this young gentleman had managed to relieve the entire group of their coin purses.

’What kind of methods were these?’

Old Liu didn’t dare to accept them, stammering, "This... This..."

Seeing his hesitation, Wu Liangchen couldn’t help but smile. "Don’t worry. They won’t dare to trouble you again."

He then pressed the string of purses into the old man’s hands and took out a silver coin.

"This is for my wine."

With that, Wu Liangchen turned and walked away.

Old Liu finally snapped out of it, realizing he had met a great benefactor. Tears streamed down his aged face. He wanted to offer his thanks, but when he looked up again, there was no sign of Wu Liangchen.

If it weren’t the middle of the day, Old Liu would have sworn he’d just seen a ghost.

"Aha! I remember who that young gentleman is!" the middle-aged man suddenly exclaimed, slapping his thigh in excitement after a moment of deep thought.

"Who? Who is he?"

"Yes, who is it? Spit it out!"

...the crowd asked, growing impatient.

The middle-aged man’s voice trembled with excitement. "Have none of you heard of the man who battled the Broken Sword Sect’s Leader outside Dingyuan Gate not long ago? The one named Wu Liangchen—Master Wu?"

"Ah! So he’s Wu Liangchen?" someone gasped.

Another person came to a sudden realization. "No wonder he has such an extraordinary air about him at his age. So it was him all along!"

"But why would a person of his stature be drinking at a humble little wine stall like this?" someone else wondered aloud, still puzzled.