Chapter 69: Chapter 66: Nanyi County, Baicao City_1
Wang Lin heaved a sigh of relief and asked, "Lu...Lu Yan, what do we do next? Liu Xingming and Huo Tian are dead, but many people saw us leaving with them."
"That’s easy to arrange."
Lu Yan had already thought of a strategy when he made his move. He explained, "We just need to say that we found traces of the murderer outside Hongliu Town. We split up to pursue him, with me and Brother Wang as one team, and Liu Xingming and Huo Tian as another. We were feeble and lost track of our target. When we returned to Hongliu Town, there was no sign of Liu Xingming and Huo Tian."
"Good plan."
Wang Lin nodded.
In any case, there’s no proof to contradict them, who could say their story isn’t true?
Moreover, Lu Yan and Wang Lin had no reason to harm Liu Xingming and Huo Tian.
The prerequisite for this plan was to dispose of the bodies without a trace.
The two of them started searching the bodies right away. They found around a thousand silver tickets on the six dead bodies, clearly, they hadn’t carried a lot of money with them when they ventured out.
Lu Yan divided half of the money to Wang Lin, but Wang Lin refused to take any. Without courtesy, Lu Yan kept it all.
Next, they moved the six bodies into the mountains, threw them into a beast den, and watched as the creatures eventually devoured the bodies.
Then they returned to the small path, cleaned up the bloodstains, and walked into Hongliu Town with a swagger. In full view of the townsfolk, they pretended to ask about Liu Xingming and Huo Tian’s whereabouts.
After waiting for half a day, the two casually returned to the Red-clad Mansion and reported Liu Xingming’s disappearance.
The Liu family immediately dispatched people to search the vicinity of Hongliu Town, but after two days of searching, they found nothing.
During this time, Lu Yan and Wang Lin were interrogated twice. But their stories matched, and the Liu Family’s men couldn’t figure it out. So they gave up, presuming that Liu Xingming met with misfortune while chasing the murderer.
These days, the strife among the feudal lords often resulted in the death of a few highly skilled fighters. It was a common occurrence.
Especially lately, people from all major houses were often seen around Changfeng City.
Lu Yan didn’t rush to the Blood Land Vein right away. Instead, he waited for five days until the incident completely died down before he silently entered the Blood Land Vein.
"Ah, the dish is ruined again, can you buy me a few more additional ingredients?".
Upon seeing Lu Yan, Shen Yinuo sighed.
Lu Yan felt a pang in his heart.
The mutated heart meat, sold properly, could go for fifteen thousand, adding in the various supplementary ingredients for five thousand, that’s a total of twenty thousand silver coins down the drain.
Even though he was prepared, it still felt unpleasant.
"How many? Do you know how expensive it is? It’s five thousand silver each, I’m just a lowly red-clad guard, where would I get that much silver."
Lu Yan pleaded poverty.
Having returned from Qingyang City around ten months ago, he had already spent close to ten thousand silver on martial food daily.
Adding the previous five thousand, he only had a little over twenty thousand left.
The funds couldn’t allow for too many extravagances, and he still needed to cultivate.
Moreover, to acquire the main supplementary spiritual medicine — nine-section ginseng for the mutated nine-section heart meat was a difficult task.
"Money is not a problem, you can sell the mutated heart meat for it, those feudal lords will scramble for it."
"You need to understand, once I become a master martial chef, and can cook mutated nine-section heart meat, all the costs will be recovered. Remember, think big."
Shen Yinuo earnestly advised Lu Yan.
His same old trick, it wasn’t persuasive at all.
"Fine, I can agree to you."
Lu Yan nodded, and continued, "But we need to change our previous agreement."
"Change it how?"
Shen Yinuo asked.
"Before, we agreed that you would cook martial food for me for one year, but during this time, you have been experimenting, adjusting, and haven’t been able to properly prepare ’Yinuo Lizard Meat’, so you can’t dedicate your full attention to cooking martial food for me. Therefore, we need to revise the agreement, this time doesn’t count. Only when you officially become a martial food master and start cooking martial food for me, does the one year period start."
Lu Yan stated.
Just you wait, wait until you fleece me now, and I’ll fleece you later.
I’ll fleece you until there’s no hair left.
"No way, keep dreaming."
Shen Yinuo immediately shook her head and said, "Becoming a master martial chef isn’t easy, even if I succeed in cooking mutated nine-section heart meat, it doesn’t mean that I’ll become a master martial chef. To be a master martial chef, I need to be successful at cooking mutated nine-section heart meat 80% of the time. I have no idea when I’ll reach that level, I can’t waste time here."
"Let’s do this, when I become a martial marquis, I’ll cook for you for one more year, how about it? That’s generous, right? I am Shen Yinuo, Yinuo of Yinuo, a promise made in gold."
"Alright!"
Lu Yan didn’t ask for anything more.
"Then let me cut a few pounds of mutated heart meat for you to sell."
Shen Yinuo took out her small knife.
"No need."
Lu Yan waved his hand right away.
To sell mutated heart meat was no joking matter. That was asking for death.
Didn’t you see that the last time, all the major feudal lords in Qingyang City swarmed for the mutated heart meat, over ten Martial Marquis were there.
If he sells the mutated heart meat, he will definitely be targeted by the Martial Marquis.
With his current strength, he wouldn’t even be able to escape from the Martial Marquis.
If he wants to sell the mutated heart meat, he should at least wait until he has broken through the limit five times.
Right now, he should still put it up first.
"I’ll make you pay it back with interest later," Lu Yan thought to himself.
He first returned to Changfeng City, bought a map, and when he got home, he spread the map out to find a place to buy Nine-section Ginseng.
Last time, he spent a lot of energy to buy a Nine-section Ginseng, now, he can’t continue to buy it in Changfeng City.
As for Qingyang City, Lu Yan didn’t want to go either.
He wanted to go to an unfamiliar city to buy it.
After planning the route, Lu Yan told his parents and then asked Brother Wang for a ’leave’
Now that Brother Wang has become his man, asking for leave is easy; as long as Lu Yan informs him, Brother Wang will handle it well.
Lu Yan left the city and found a secluded place to use the shape-shifting technique, changed his appearance, and headed towards Jiuqu City.
Jiuqu City is located south of Changfeng City, more than a hundred and thirty miles away. In two hours, Lu Yan arrived at Jiuqu City.
Jiuqu City also has a Linglan Chamber of Commerce.
The Linglan Chamber of Commerce, founded by the Wei Family, is almost present in all the major cities of Li’an County.
Lu Yan first came to the Linglan Chamber of Commerce to ask, but was told that there was no Nine-section Ginseng.
Lu Yan then went to other pharmacies and markets to inquire, but none of them had Nine-section Ginseng for sale.
Then, Lu Yan went to another city to the south to inquire, but still did not buy Nine-section Ginseng.
"Nine-section Ginseng, although not as rare and precious as mutated heart meat, is also an important strategic material. Not many people would sell it. It was a stroke of luck that I could buy one last time. It seems I can only go to Baicao City in Nanyi County."
Lu Yan thought.
Changfeng City, located on the southeast edge of Li’an County, to the east is Lu Yan’s old home, Qingfeng County, and to the south, is Nanyi County.
Baicao City in Nanyi County is only over five hundred miles away from Changfeng City.
Now that Lu Yan had already traveled more than two hundred miles to the south, going to Baicao City was just over three hundred miles away, not far away.
The Li Family of Baicao City, even in the entire Lingdong Six Counties, was known far and wide.
Because the Li Family of Baicao City was a grandmaster-level feudal lord, controlling a second-tier blood land vein and being proficient in planting and cultivating spiritual grass.
Many kinds of supplementary spiritual herbs required by martial foods can be found in Baicao City.
That includes Nine-section Ginseng.
Lu Yan continued forward, travelled day and night, and reached Baicao City.
"This is indeed the huge city of a grandmaster-level feudal lord."
Lu Yan looked at Baicao City, several times larger than Changfeng City, and sighed.
Baicao City is not a county city because there is more than one grandmaster-level feudal lord in Nanyi County, and there is more than one second-tier blood land vein.
But the magnificence is not less than that of a county city.
The four city gates were bustling with carts and horses, and various chambers of commerce were moving goods in and out.
Red Knife Leafs from Changfeng Mountain are mostly sold out through Baicao City.
Lu Yan entered the city with the crowd and began wandering around with interest.
On both sides of the street, there were rows of shops and a dazzling array of products.
He also chose the largest restaurant in Baicao City and enjoyed a meal of unique martial food.
Grandmaster-level feudal lords are indeed grandmaster-level feudal lords. Although each person could only purchase a limited amount of martial food in the restaurant, a person could buy up to five pounds at once, far more than Wuke’s House.
After a full meal, Lu Yan arrived at Baicao Pavilion.
Baicao Pavilion is owned by the Li Family, so it was the first choice to buy Nine-section Ginseng.
Upon inquiring, indeed there was Nine-section Ginseng, 3,000 pieces per plant.
Lu Yan bought two in one breath, along with some other supplementary spiritual herbs, spending a total of nearly ten thousand silvers.
"I hope Shen Yinuo can successfully cook the mutated Nine-section Heart Meat with these two supplementary spiritual herbs."
Lu Yan thought, packed up the spiritual herbs, put them on his back, and walked out of the city.
On the street, a group of people passed by Lu Yan, and immediately, a man stopped and took a sniff with his nose.
"Third Brother, what’s wrong?"
A burly man asked.
"Big Brother, I smelled the smell of Nine-section Ginseng. It’s on that guy."
A thin man with a mustache looked towards Lu Yan’s back.
