Chapter 128: The Pink Dress

"Lan."

On a square-shaped seating platform made of sand outside a sand house, a woman called out to another sitting next to her. The woman, with white skin, brown hair, and blue eyes, glanced back.

"Seems like your husband, Man Geru, is up to something again."

"Mimi, how many times do I have to say that I don't care what he does?" Lan reminded her, her brown hair shining in the desert sunlight.

"Listen first..."

"Yesterday, he distributed all the money to the poor, and today he is attacking other gangs," Mimi said.

"Do you by chance know what happened? Why is he behaving so weirdly? And there are rumors that he is working for someone now." Mimi brought her face closer to Lan.

"Mimi, I told you many times, I don't care about his business," Lan shouted back.

"Anyway, I want to show you something new. Wait here." Lan stood up and walked into the house behind them.

Then she came back with a silver-white frock with intricate embroidery and handed it to Mimi. "How is it? I just bought it two days ago. It cost me 200 silver coins."

Mimi's eyes glanced at the dress, and she said, "Pretty."

"See, back then I told you to marry a gangster. You did not listen to me, otherwise you could have at least afforded similar dresses," Lan said.

"You know, right? I am better off single. I don't want to marry anyone," Mimi replied.

"Mmm... come with me. By the way, I was planning on shopping today," Lan said.

Then she went inside and came back out, bringing a pouch containing silver.

Then they both walked. The six houses near to her house looked empty and abandoned.

After walking for a while, they saw a horse carriage and got inside.

"Take us to the Caravan Gate," Lan said.

"Yes, ma'am." The carriage started.

As the carriage started, Mimi glanced out of the window and noticed a family packing things, not far away.

"One more family is leaving the vicinity." Mimi looked back at Lan. "Don't you feel lonely staying in this place where no one wants to live around since it's Man Geru's home?"

"I'm used to it," Lan replied.

"It must be tough marrying a gangster," Mimi commented.

"I still remember how that idiot Man Geru proposed to you a year ago."

A Year Ago,

Lan was riding a horse, and Mimi sat behind her. They had their faces covered with thin black cotton veils.

They were coming back from the neighboring city when suddenly the wind intensified and turned into a sandstorm.

"Neigh!"

Suddenly, the horse stopped and threw both of them off its back before running into the approaching sandstorm.

This reproduction came from the author's NovelPhoenix chapter without their permission; reading there supports them.

Their vision was obscured.

Lan breathed heavily. Her legs were submerged in the sand beneath her, which was only growing deeper. She could not feel her legs anymore.

Then he appeared and stood in front of her. He was wearing a white dress with the Fish emblem on his left shoulder.

He caught her hand and pulled her out of the sand.

"My friend..." Lan pointed to Mimi, who was half-buried as well.

At the same time, the veil on Lan's face fell off. The man froze for a second.

"Please save her..."

The man came to his senses and immediately pulled Mimi out as well. Then he grabbed both of them, one on each shoulder, and ran behind a big rock nearby.

The sandstorm continued to rage, but the man placed them on the ground. He looked at Lan, took out a chicken leg piece from his dress, and knelt down.

"My name is Man Geru. I am from the Fish Gang. I would love for you to become my bride." Then he offered the leg piece to Lan.

"Never thought he would propose with a leg piece." The voice brought Lan back to the present.

"Most importantly, what an idiot he is. He can't even see it now that you only said yes back then for the money," Mimi said.

"Mimi!" Lan shouted.

"I don't want to talk about it," Lan said.

The carriage moved through the streets of Dust Fall City until it reached a place full of multiple carriages. Some carriages stopped at the edge of the street.

In front of the carriages, wooden stalls were arranged.

These stalls contained embroidered clothes, silk dresses, jewelry, earrings, and all kinds of women's items.

Lan stepped down from the carriage, and her eyes immediately fell on a few clothes hanging at one stall. She rushed over.

Mimi followed.

"Mimi, these look so good, don't they?" Lan grabbed a bunch of earrings.

Mimi nodded.

"How much are these?" Lan looked at the seller.

"Two silver," the seller replied.

Lan then threw five silver coins out of her pouch. "Take five."

The seller bowed. "Thank you, ma'am. If you don't mind, we have more that might catch your eye." He took out more sets of jewelry from under his desk.

Lan looked around, but she found nothing satisfactory.

And then she moved on to the next shop. It was full of clothes, and her eyes fell on a few normal daily-wear clothes.

She bought them.

Then she went to the next stall. There, her eyes fell on a particularly pink-colored embroidered silk dress. Her eyes widened.

"I want this one." She pointed her finger toward the mesmerizing pink silk dress.

Mimi nodded. "It's very pretty."

Lan walked to the seller. "Give it to me, I want this one."

The seller looked at Lan and said promptly, "400 silver coins."

"400 silver coins! My foot! Do you think this dress is a palace or something?" Mimi came forward.

"400 silver coins," the seller looked back at Mimi and then at Lan.

"Mimi, chill. I believe I have enough." Lan opened the pouch and then froze.

Mimi looked back at Lan. "Don't tell me you don't..."

Lan nodded.

"Let's go for now. I will ask Man Geru to buy it for me." Lan said as she left the place.

That evening, in the courtyard of the Fish Gang Base...

"Maa." The goat stood in front of all the new gangs that had sworn allegiance to the Fish Gang. All of them had bruises all over their bodies.

Man Geru was standing next to the goat.

"Considering you are the first batch to swear allegiance to the Fish Gang..."

"There are ten independent gangs among you," Man Geru said, looking at Lo Hua and Hai Bodu.

"You should all thank me for providing you with a special opportunity. Go out and earn without any violence, by doing actual work."

"And the first five gangs who earn the most money will only have to give up forty percent of their earnings."

"And the rest have to give eighty percent," Man Geru declared.

Silence spread across the courtyard.

"And there is one more reward."

"The man I serve, Big Brother Yan, will personally train the ten people who earn the highest."

Lo Hua's eyes narrowed. He remembered the slap that still stung on his cheek, clenched his fist, and was determined to be trained by such a monster.

Others also looked at each other.

"That's it for today. You go back to your gangs, and we will take our share on a weekly basis. So go and earn."

"Maa..." the goat beside him shouted, dismissing the smaller gangs.

Then Man Geru left the base and walked toward the city.

"Lan, I am back," Man Geru finally said as he came home. He had a bandage on his left hand and multiple wounds on his body.

But he noticed immediately that Lan was sitting quietly in a corner.

He stopped.

"Man Geru, there is a dress I like in the Old Quarter market. Could you buy it for me?" Lan looked at Man Geru with expectation.

"Mm... I will... How much does it cost?" Man Geru asked.

"Mm... not much, just about 400 silver coins," Lan said.

Man Geru's eyes went wide.

"What happened? Won't you buy it for me?" Lan asked.

"No, my dear wife... I would if I could... currently I am a bit pinched for money. I will do it once I get money," Man Geru said.

"Liar! You have money to give to the poor, but don't have the money to buy a dress for me." She kicked the ground and ran inside.