Chapter 338: Star of Misfortune
At the Jiangxiang Gang’s Medicine King Hall, Hall Master Luo Zhengnan sat on the rooftop with the radio crackling beside him, and the more he listened, the harder he laughed.
"What a marvelous, ridiculous world this is," he said. "A man and two donkeys, right there in the street... and of all places, it happened in Medicine King Gully!"
He was still chuckling to himself when Redstaff Sun Xingbing came up to report, "Han Jinwei is here."
"Hall Master Han is here? Hurry, hurry, invite him in!"
Sun Xingbing asked, "Hall Master, Han Jinwei stopped being a hall master ages ago. Why are you still treating him so politely?"
Han Jinwei had once been the hall master of the Jiangxiang Gang’s Yellowclay Bridge Hall. Unfortunately, Yellowclay Bridge was a poor and dreary sort of place, the kind of territory where money did not like to stay for long. Because of that, Han Jinwei often took his men to the Outer Provinces for work.
On his last trip there, he happened to receive an order from Xiao Zhenggong to head to Iron Gate Fort and fight for the possession of the long spear Zhao Xiaowan. In the end, Li Banfeng set a trap for him, and the entire Yellowclay Bridge Hall was wiped out.
Luo Zhengnan later on bought the long spear Zhao Xiaowan back himself. Xiao Zhenggong never made Luo Zhengnan a deputy gang leader, but he did keep one promise. He handed Yellowclay Bridge Hall over to Luo Zhengnan.
Luo Zhengnan was now the master of two halls, while Han Jinwei had become one of his men. In plain terms, Luo Zhengnan had no need to be nice to him at all.
However, Luo Zhengnan understood the art of dealing with people. He turned to his Redstaff and scolded him, "This is exactly why you do not understand how the world works. What is wrong with calling him Hall Master? Who knows? Perhaps one day, the man will climb back up again. As the old saying goes, no one blames a man for being too polite. In foreign words, this is called high emotional intelligence. Do you understand? Now go on, hurry up and invite him in!"
Han Jinwei came in soon after. The two men exchanged a few polite words, and then Han Jinwei explained why he had come. "Hall Master, I would like to go back to the Yellowclay Bridge for a look and help manage the gang’s business there while I am at it."
Luo Zhengnan smiled, seeing right through Han Jinwei’s intentions. Han Jinwei did not want to stay in Medicine King Gully, nor did he want to remain under Luo Zhengnan’s control.
"Hall Master Han, is there still any business left at Yellowclay Bridge?"
"Yes," Han Jinwei said. "There are three sub-branches there, each in charge of its own area. I brought the roster with me for you to review."
Luo Zhengnan could not even be bothered to look. "I went to Yellowclay Bridge just last month. I walked more than five kilometers and barely saw a handful of households. The place is practically abandoned. What is there to go back for?"
"Hall Master, we still have over a hundred brothers over there. About this..."
"Talk it over with them," Luo Zhengnan said. "Those who want to come to Medicine King Gully can come with me. Those who do not can pull their incense sticks and go wherever they please."
"Hall Master, that will not do. They have all worked for the gang."
"Worked? Do you think I have no idea what sort of work they do? Nothing decent can survive in Yellowclay Bridge anymore. The only work left there is human trafficking."
Han Jinwei lowered his head and said, "That is still one of our gang’s businesses."
The Jiangxiang Gang had a hand in every filthy sort of business, and human trafficking happened to be one of them.
Luo Zhengnan’s face sank, and the politeness drained right out of his voice. "Old Han, I have told you this before, but I will say it again today. The gang has its businesses, and each hall has its own rules. In Medicine King Hall, no one touches the business of selling people. Anyone who does is picking a fight with me, Luo Zhengnan."
"Of course, of course." Han Jinwei did not dare argue with Luo Zhengnan. After a few polite words, he hurried off.
Luo Zhengnan went back to listening to the radio. The broadcast was still chattering away about the fellow who had been caught in the street with the donkeys, and Luo Zhengnan listened with great interest. After a while, he muttered to himself, "Why would a Mourning Cultivator come to Medicine King Gully? Could this have something to do with that person at Yellowclay Bridge?
"Also, that idiot dared to provoke Monkey Qiu, so he has only himself to blame. After being screwed by donkeys in the middle of the street, I doubt he has the face to stay in Medicine King Gully. The best thing he can do is scram. The sooner, the better."
Luo Zhengnan very much hoped that the Mourning Cultivator would leave at once. Unfortunately, Yu Heshun had no such plans.
Not only did Yu Heshun stay, but after spending two days nursing his injuries, he went right back to Qiu's Medicinal Trading House to make a fuss.
This was the usual logic of Mourning Cultivators. They would cling to whoever hurt them.
"You hurt me this badly," Yu Heshun cried. "If you do not make this right, you will have to take care of me for the rest of my life!"
Ding Youming, a clerk at the medicinal trading house, burst out angrily. "Who is serving you for the rest of your life? What rubbish are you spouting?"
"What did I say wrong? You hurt me, so I came here to reason with you!" Yu Heshun slipped straight back into his old trick, bellowing for all the street to hear.
Ding Youming was not afraid of him at all. In fact, his voice was even louder. "Who hurt you? The donkeys hurt you! Go reason with them! Let the donkeys serve you for the rest of your life!"
The moment those words left his mouth, the crowd burst into roaring laughter.
Yu Heshun’s face flushed red. "Stop talking nonsense..."
"Who is talking nonsense?" Ding Youming swept a hand toward the crowd. "Ask anyone here. Who doesn’t know you got screwed by donkeys in the middle of the street?"
"I, that was..." Yu Heshun wanted to explain that someone had used their ability on him.
Ding Youming did not give him the chance to explain at all. "I do not care whether you were sincere or faking it. Either way, you got screwed by donkeys in the street!"
"I, I was..."
"You got screwed by donkeys!"
"Stop slandering me!"
"I have evidence right here. You got screwed by donkeys!" Ding Youming turned on the film projector, the one Li Banfeng had specially brought over.
A moment later, the scene of Yu Heshun doing it with the donkeys in the street was projected right in front of the medicinal trading house.
The crowd roared with laughter and cheered. Yu Heshun was so furious his face nearly twisted out of shape. With no way to argue, he turned and left.
In the back hall of the medicinal trading house, Li Banfeng asked Qiu Zhiheng, "He will not ruin the fengshui of the trading house, will he?"
Qiu Zhiheng shook his head. "No one is blaming us, so the fengshui will be fine. He will not be able to stay in Medicine King Gully anymore."
Outside the medicinal trading house, wave after wave of laughter rolled through the street.
Li Banfeng did not laugh. Something about this did not feel right. He had to admit that Mourning Cultivators were difficult to deal with. He also had to admit that Qiu Zhiheng did indeed have his methods.
It also made sense for Shopkeeper Feng and Yu Nan to hide. Neither of them wanted to get tangled up in that foul luck. But why did the rickshaw driver hide? The rickshaw driver was a high-level Wanderlust Cultivator. If it was only one Mourning Cultivator, and if that was all he was capable of, the rickshaw driver would definitely have a way to deal with him.
This matter might not be as simple as it looked.
Two days later, Yu’s Cloth Shop opened for business.
When Yu Nan saw Li Banfeng, she was very happy. She quickly invited him inside for a drink. After two cups of wine, Li Banfeng brought up the matter of hiding from disaster.
Yu Nan did not seem to find it strange at all. "Shopkeeper Feng told me something was going to happen in Medicine King Gully and said I should hide outside for two days, so I went to the New Land."
So the information had come from Shopkeeper Feng after all.
A few more days passed before Shopkeeper Feng finally returned as well. When he heard that Li Banfeng was back, he was both surprised and delighted.
"Trader Li, it has been a long time. I have been waiting for you for days. Come, let us settle the money for the pills first."
The pills Li Banfeng had left with Shopkeeper Feng on consignment had all been sold.
Shopkeeper Feng was very proper when it came to business. He followed the agreement exactly, settled every account clearly, and left no room for confusion.
Li Banfeng waved it off. "There is no rush about the money. Let us talk about hiding from disaster first. Where did you hear the news?"
Shopkeeper Feng took a sip of tea. "From a friend."
That was all he was willing to say, and Li Banfeng had never been the sort to pry when the other man clearly did not want to speak.
"I came to ask you about someone," Li Banfeng said. "Your elder brother, Feng Chongli."
Shopkeeper Feng frowned slightly. After a long silence, he asked, "May I ask why you are looking for him?"
"It is a business matter."
Shopkeeper Feng let out a sigh. "To be honest, I do not like bringing him up. Even though we are brothers by blood, we have never walked the same path.
"Still, we made an agreement. When it comes to business, we have to look out for each other. Since you have asked, I cannot pretend I know nothing.
"A few days ago, he went to Yellowclay Bridge. After that, he came from Yellowclay Bridge to Medicine King Gully and found me. He said a Mourning Cultivator was coming here and told me to hide for a while.
"Mourning Cultivators are the bane of all business people. I passed the news to Boss Qiu and Shopkeeper Yu, then hid back in my old hometown. I only dared to return these past two days after hearing that the Mourning Cultivator had left.
"If you are looking to do business with that brother of mine, then as far as I know, he has gone back to Yellowclay Bridge. You can try looking for him there. He should still be there."
Yellowclay Bridge was a town wedged between Greenwater City and Blackstone Slope.
Li Banfeng had passed by Yellowclay Bridge several times by train, but he had never once set foot there.
The next day, Qiu Zhiheng helped Li Banfeng arrange a travel permit and sent him to the station.
When they reached the station square, the two had just stepped down from the rickshaw when they heard an argument nearby. They followed the noise and saw a group of people making things difficult for a rickshaw driver.
A young man in his twenties pointed at the driver and snapped, "Yuanzheng Street is only a few steps away, and you want eight dollars for it? Are you that desperate for money?"
The rickshaw driver looked utterly bewildered. "I-Isn’t that the usual price?"
Eight dollars was the usual fare from the station to Memorial Arch Street.
Yuanzheng Street was even a little farther than Memorial Arch Street, so eight dollars was hardly unreasonable.
This group, however, refused to let it go. An old woman stepped forward and sneered, "Usual fare? You see an old woman and still dare to ask for such a ridiculous price? With that sort of character, no wonder your family has been poor for generations. Seven dollars. Are you going or not?"
The rickshaw driver had been thoroughly frightened by them. He nodded quickly. "Then... then let us go."
The old woman called out, "Get on!"
At once, more than a dozen people surged toward the rickshaw. The driver nearly jumped out of his skin. "Everyone, my rickshaw can only seat two people at most. What are you trying to do?"
The old woman snorted. "Who said it can only seat two? We can squeeze in."
The rickshaw driver hurriedly blocked them. "No, you cannot! You will break my rickshaw!"
"What is this? We paid, but you will not let us ride? Are you bullying outsiders? Is this how people behave in Medicine King Gully? Can a place like this ever be any good?"
The crowd shoved and jostled him. The rickshaw driver grabbed his rickshaw and ran.
Li Banfeng gave the crowd a quick count. There were fifteen people surrounding the rickshaw driver.
Even Qiu Zhiheng was stunned. He turned to Li Banfeng and said, "Brother, quick leave! Do not let that foul luck cling to us."
Li Banfeng shook his head. "I can’t leave yet. I need to go see an old friend."
Qiu Zhiheng froze. "I am also going to look for an old friend. Surely we are not looking for the same person, are we?"
As it turned out, they were.
Qiu Zhiheng took Li Banfeng to Hundred Fragrances Village. From there, they headed southeast for more than thirty-five kilometers until they reached a barren mountain.
Deep within the mountain, they passed through two messy burial grounds. Only then did they spot a small courtyard in the distance.
The moment they entered, the smell of wine rushed straight at them.
Old Mister Yao lay in a reclining chair with a wine jug in his arms, singing an opera aria.
"Ah, this letter comes at just the right hour,
"Heaven itself has come to aid Huang Zhong in winning glory.
"Before the camp gate, I stand and send the order down the ranks.
"Young soldiers, brave lads all, listen well to my command..."
This was a passage from the opera Mount Dingjun!
Surprisingly enough, Old Mister Yao sang every beat and turn properly. He was actually quite good.
When Old Mister Yao saw Li Banfeng, he rose from his reclining chair, grabbed Li Banfeng by the hand, and smiled broadly. "What brings you here, lad?"
"I came specially to visit you," Li Banfeng replied courteously.
"Business going well?"
"Thanks to your blessing, business has been quite good."
"Why did you not bring your wife and child along?"
"Well, I..." Li Banfeng had no idea how to answer that.
Old Mister Yao frowned and continued saying to Li Banfeng, "Little Qiu, not to nag, but look at that beard of yours. Can you not keep it properly trimmed?"
Li Banfeng glanced at Qiu Zhiheng, looking rather awkward.
Old Mister Yao looked at Qiu Zhiheng, rubbed his forehead, and said, "I had too many cups of liquor and mistook him for you. That one is Little Qiu!"
Then he turned back to Li Banfeng. "Why did you come with Little Qiu?"
"I know Big Bro Qiu."
"I am well aware that you know each other," Old Mister Yao responded. "Girl, I must remind you of something. Little Qiu has a family. He is not suitable for you.
"I thought you have always liked Li Qi? Though if you ask me, that Li Qi is no good either!"
"Li Qi is actually quite all right," Li Banfeng said, looking at Old Mister Yao. "How much have you had to drink?"
"Not much!" Old Mister Yao held up two fingers. "A little over four liters. There is still another cup or two left in the jug."
Qiu Zhiheng said, "Old Mister Yao, we came to tell you that Mourning Cultivators have arrived in Medicine King Gully."
"I have heard about that!" Old Mister Yao looked entirely unconcerned. "I thought it was just one Mourning Cultivator? You cannot even handle one? Did you really need to come all the way here for such a little thing?"
Qiu Zhiheng shook his head. "It is not one Mourning Cultivator. There are fifteen of them."
"Fifteen?" Old Mister Yao froze. That sobered him up at once.
"How could fifteen of them come all at once?" Old Mister Yao muttered to himself. " There aren’t that many Mourning Cultivators in the world, right? How could fifteen of them come all at once?"
He fell silent for a while, then raised his head. "Which of you has been to Yellowclay Bridge recently?"
Li Banfeng shook his head at once. He had never been there.
Qiu Zhiheng said, "I went there once at the start of the year."
"How are things there?"
"Not good. It was bleak and deserted. There were hardly any people left."
Old Mister Yao blinked. "I remember that place produced coal, and it had iron mines too. It should not have fallen to that state."
"There is too much trouble in doing business there," Qiu Zhiheng said. "Most of the merchants have gone to Blackstone Slope, and ordinary families have moved away as well."
Old Mister Yao slowly set down the liquor jug. His face went blank with shock. "Is that Star of Misfortune targeting me?"
Author’s Note:
PS: Something big is about to happen in Medicine King Gully.
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