Chương 18: Gifts

The next morning, Shu Yang woke up early, packed his belongings, and headed out of the run-down inn where he had spent the night. He had tried to blend in with the crowd in a nearby tavern the night before, but Shu Yang didn't find anything interesting in their crude conversations, so he headed back early to get some sleep.

'Just as well. With an early start, I should be able to get back home by tomorrow night.' Coming out on the street, Shu Yang breathed in the fresh autumn air and couldn't help but long for home. But he still had some business to take care of. He walked to the western part of the city and found the marketplace already open and in full swing. Shu Yang looked around the stalls to see if anything would be suitable as a gift. He quickly found a hairpin with blooming flowers that he thought would suit his wife.

It wasn't expensive at all, so Shu Yang bought it. Stopping by a small stall selling books, Shu Yang couldn't help himself and took a closer look.

'Tinayue isn't really interested in anything besides reading. So maybe I should just buy another book for her.' The books he had bought would of course be read mainly by his daughter, since she was the most gifted in that area. But it didn't have the same sentiment as giving her a book to call her own.

"Do you have anything here that would interest a young girl who likes reading?" Shu Yang asked. He didn't have the nerve to browse through the books with the stall owner right next to him.

"Take a look at these ones," The man behind the stall said with a smile, picking out three books and placing them in front of Shu Yang.

"These are all classics. Proven to be a hit with young girls over the last few decades." Shu Yang glanced through them and quickly understood that they were all fictional stories, written for young ladies.

'This…isn't really appropriate, is it?' Shu Yang didn't have anything against fiction. He always told stories himself, and found a lot of joy in both telling them and hearing them. But the books in front of him were obviously garbage, with no literary quality at all. It was just written to trigger the emotions of young girls.

"This one, I guess," Shu Yang said with a sigh. He had always been strict with his children, but gifts shouldn't have to be good for their growth. It should just make the children happy. Even if he wasn't a fan of the style himself, his daughter was still young and would probably really like it. After paying, Shu Yang left the busiest part of the market and found a store selling swords. His son Tianhu wouldn't like anything else.

Glancing at the swords, Shu Yang realized that most of them were out of his price range. For the moment, he couldn't afford anything better than the most basic sword.

'Should I give a sword to the other boys as well, just to be fair?'

'No. That would make it seem like I'm encouraging them to become swordsmen. Tianhu is already a lost cause, but the others should focus on the Shu martial art.' However, just as Shu Yang reached for the sword, Tianxu's eager eyes seemed to appear before him.

'Fine. Tianxu can get one. The most important thing is that the kids are happy.' After buying the two swords, Shu Yang felt he wouldn't be able to carry much more. His bag was already packed with books from the day before. He struggled to come up with ideas for what to give Tianren and Tianan for a while. But eventually, he decided on a pair of brass knuckles for Tianren and a pair of shoes for Tianan. He also reluctantly bought a bottle of fine wine for his father-in-law.

For all his arguing, the man had always been good to him, after all. Pleased with his purchases, Shu Yang headed over to the store he had passed by the day before, where they sold carriages. He found the same man he had spoken to the day before and quickly settled everything. The store would also arrange for someone to bring two horses. So Shu Yang took a seat inside the shop, where he was served some tea and waited for everything to be arranged.

Finally, about an hour later, Shu Yang left Kuo City in his brand new carriage, almost entirely without a silver coin left. The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

'Well, I guess all I have to do is focus on developing the wine business and trying to get my hands on more land. Once I've got money to spend again, I'll come back to buy what I missed.' Steering the carriage wasn't as tricky as Shu Yang had imagined. The horses were docile and well-trained; they didn't need much oversight. The carriage was basically empty too, so the horses didn't struggle, and the pace was quite fast. Since Shu Yang was traveling alone this time, he was a lot more observant of the surroundings.

But after a few hours had passed, Shu Yang gradually let his guard down. It was still bright out, and flat fields surrounded him on both sides. He would spot anyone approaching from a mile away. Slightly bored, Shu Yang picked up the books he had bought and carefully read through them. He swallowed all the knowledge within them with relish. Even the book about etiquette for Officials interested him, despite him not planning on ever becoming one.

The thing he was most excited about was finally gaining some detailed knowledge about the surrounding area. Understanding more about the Kingdom and Prefecture he was in made him feel more at ease. It wasn't until the sun went down that he finally put down his book reluctantly and made camp for the night. He fed the horses and made sure they had water to drink before eating some snacks he had brought. He didn't want to light a fire in case it attracted unwanted attention.

He would only be out in the wild for a single night after all. Shu Yang decided to keep watch all through the night. Since he was all alone, no one would be able to warn him if a group of thieves showed up. Hours passed, and the night grew darker. Shu Yang almost lit a fire several times to have some reading light, but managed to hold himself back. He went through the information he had gained during the day and couldn't stop his mind from drifting away, imagining those faraway places described in the text.

Afraid of falling asleep, Shu Yang rose to his feet and started practicing his martial art. It had been inconvenient to practice these past few days, but now he had plenty of time. Shu Yang focused deeply on each and every movement. This was a top-grade martial art he had deduced with the help of the Bloodline Tree, and it had taken him almost an entire year. He wasn't upset that it had taken him so long, though.

If he didn't have the Bloodline Tree, he would never have been able to figure out how to reach the Innate stage, no matter how many years he had. Even if it wasn't the most powerful martial art, Shu Yang could feel that he was growing stronger, slowly making his way to the Innate stage. The movements he used all needed a careful manipulation of his blood and qi, forcing Shu Yang to become increasingly aware of the small trickle of qi inside his body.

'Thankfully, I can gain the talent of my sons. Otherwise, I'd never be able to take this step. Still, it seems that 'slight talent' only gets me so far. I've felt completely at ease through the earlier stages, never having to stop and think; my body takes the necessary steps for me.

'But this time is different. While reaching the Innate stage should definitely be possible. It won't be easy.'

'If this is how it is for me, I can only imagine how much Tianhu will have to struggle in the future.' As soon as dawn broke, Shu Yang didn't stall for any time and immediately set off again.

'Considering the carriage is moving a lot faster, I should be able to make it back to Baishu Village while there is still some light left.' A few hours passed, and the sun slowly climbed over the horizon.

'I always thought of Kuo City as a faraway place, but now that I've traveled back and forth, it doesn't seem that distant all of a sudden. I will definitely visit more often in the future whenever I need something.' Suddenly, a small movement from up the road caught Shu Yang's attention.

'A man?' Shu Yang turned his head to see if there was anyone else close by, but he couldn't see anyone.

"What can I do for you, sir?" Shu Yang asked politely as the man approached the carriage.

"I was wondering if it would be possible to catch a ride? I've been walking all through the night, you see," The man said, looking over Shu Yang curiously, seemingly trying to peek inside the carriage. Shu Yang narrowed his eyes slightly.

'Walking and feeling tired?' The man didn't seem weak at all. Shu Yang now had a little more experience, and he was almost certain that the man in front of him was a martial artist.

'And that strange haggard look on his face…As if a young man's skin aged twice as fast. It reminds me of that murderer who came to my house three years ago.' Shu Yang started feeling more and more uneasy, and his blood started pumping. Just as Shu Yang was about to answer, the man took a step back and waved his hands apologetically.

"You know, I think traveling in a carriage might be too straining. I'll just take my chances and find a place to rest out here."

"Is that so…" Shu Yang said, feeling suspicious.

"I won't keep you any longer," The man said, leaving the road and heading for the small forest across the fields. He tried to make it look like he was at ease, but Shu Yang could tell his steps were slightly hurried.

'It looks like he somehow noticed my strength. So he really did have bad intentions?' Shu Yang kept his eyes on the man and started moving his carriage again. Even if he was probably stronger than the man, he didn't want to get into a fight unless necessary. Shu Yang went through the interaction in his head and became more and more convinced that he was one of those murderers who had been causing unrest lately.

'Luckily, he was alone and not very strong.'

'But what is going on? Where do these people come from?'