Chương 16: A Bountiful Harvest

Following Zhong Hong, they wound their way through half of Yellow Leaf Town. They didn't stop until they reached a small courtyard. Zhong Hong stepped forward and knocked on the door. A moment later, an old man with a thoroughly annoyed expression opened it. And he had every right to be annoyed. Anyone having their door pounded on first thing in the morning would be pissed off.

"What do you want?" Seeing Zhong Hong's unbothered, thuggish demeanor, the old man's tone softened a fraction.

"Old Man Liu, I heard from some brothers that you want to sell your donkey cart. Is it still here?" Hearing it was business, the old man instantly woke up, his enthusiasm rising by a few notches:"Oh, it's still here. You two want to buy a cart? Please, come in. My cart is as good as new, countless times better than those being hawked in the market." Zhong Hong didn't pay him much mind, swaggering into the courtyard.

He looked left and right, inspecting the cart a few times before starting to negotiate with the old man. Song Que didn't understand the intricacies of this, so he stood quietly, watching the old and the young haggle back and forth. A moment later, Zhong Hong walked over with a smug expression like a victorious rooster, leading a dark-faced Old Man Liu behind him:"A'Que, it's done. Fifteen taels of silver. The price is a bit high, but acceptable." Hearing this, Old Man Liu almost spat a mouthful of blood.

If he could win a fight against this guy, he would definitely give him two tight slaps across the face right now. Song Que didn't know the market price, but looking at Old Man Liu's face, he knew he had gotten a bargain. He cheerfully reached into his shirt, pulled out fifteen taels of silver, and handed them over. Receiving the silver, the old man broke into a wide grin, more than half his anger dissipating. He politely taught them how to use and care for the cart.

Feeling they had heard enough, Song Que and Zhong Hong exchanged a nod, pulled the cart out, hitched the donkey, and rode away. On the way, they stopped at an eatery. The two laughed and chatted as they ate breakfast. As for the fact that Song Que had already eaten breakfast? For someone possessing the Tesseract, this wasn't an issue at all. The more he ate, the better. That granddaddy in his head could absorb it all.

Taking advantage of the moment, Song Que discreetly slipped five taels of silver into Zhong Hong's hand as thanks. Seeing this, Zhong Hong was startled. This guy is too f cking generous! Five taels of silver just for running an errand? * It had to be said, this was not a small amount for the people in this town. Although his eyes gleamed with greed, he suppressed it, putting on a stern face to refuse:"A'Que, what are you doing? Take it back quickly! Do you not see me as a brother?" Your eyes are betraying you.

Watching Zhong Hong's conflicted expression, Song Que laughed inwardly. The mouth says no, but the body is very honest! Despite this, Song Que didn't look down on him at all; he genuinely wanted to build a good relationship with the Zhong family. As for money, he could always make more. This was just a minor expense.

"Brother Hong, I accept you as a brother. But you heard about this through your friends, and you'll definitely need to treat them to something as a courtesy. So take this money. We brothers will have plenty of opportunities to help each other out in the future." After refusing a few more times, Zhong Hong finally pocketed the money. He was delighted inwardly, his enthusiasm for Song Que soaring. If there were a favorability gauge, one would visibly see it jump by +100.

After eating, Zhong Hong fought to pay the bill, and Song Que didn't argue with him. On the way back, he commissioned Zhong Hong to take him to the market to buy some goods. Zhong Hong's motivation was through the roof now. Without a word, he led Song Que on a shopping spree. Filling an entire cart with new bedding, spices, and supplies, they returned to the Zhong residence immensely satisfied. The author's tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

By the time they arrived, his initial fifty-plus taels of silver had dwindled to merely a few. But Song Que didn't feel the sting. To him, money was meant to be spent; he was a quintessential hedonist. Zhong Kui came out to greet them and his jaw dropped when he saw the cart full of goods. After a long while, he recovered his wits and looked at Zhong Hong. The latter stepped up and whispered the morning's events into his ear.

The more Zhong Kui heard, the more astonished his gaze became as he looked at Song Que:"I didn't expect you to be a hidden tycoon, Little Que. And here I was worried you were short on silver." Song Que chuckled, brushing it off:"Uncle Zhong, you're joking. It's just from trading the extra meat I hunted for some loose change with the neighbors. It's not much." Though suspicious, Zhong Kui didn't press further and simply nodded. Inwardly, his estimation of the youth before him rose a few more notches.

In these times, no matter the method, being able to earn such a large sum of money in his position was incredibly impressive. Right then, Zhong Hui returned. He looked at the donkey cart in the courtyard with surprise, but the shock quickly gave way to a long laugh:"Little Que, are you planning to move the entirety of Yellow Leaf Town back home?"

"Brother Hui jokes. It's just that I find myself lacking everything when I'm in the village." Everyone present deeply sympathized with this sentiment. Zhong Hui smiled:"No matter where you are, capable people will always live comfortably. Little Que, look, I've brought back what you wanted." Only then did everyone shift their gaze to Zhong Hui's hands. He was holding a long bundle. Song Que joyfully took the item. Unwrapping the cloth and the layer of oil paper inside revealed a bow and ten arrows.

The bow was crafted from wood and other materials Song Que couldn't identify. The body was pitch black, with the grip wrapped in animal skin. It was over a meter long, which was slightly too long for his current height, but it wouldn't be a major issue. Song Que held it up and gave the string a test pull. A powerful resilience transmitted back. Exerting force to pull the string back, the bow limbs instantly bent into a half-moon shape. He calculated mentally.

He didn't have exact reference points, but he roughly estimated his current strength could lift around 300 catties. Drawing this bow only took about sixty percent of his power; using more would break it. Still a bit light. He lowered the bowstring with slight disappointment. At that moment, gasps echoed around him. Zhong Kui and the others stared at him as if looking at a monster. In disbelief, Old Zhong Kui snatched the bow from his hands and pulled with all his might.

Though he managed to draw the bow fully, his face turned completely red, showing he had very little strength left in reserve.

"You kid, you truly possess innate divine strength!" Refusing to believe it, Zhong Hong also tried. He had to use the strength he used to suckle milk as a baby just to barely draw the bow fully. Seeing this, Zhong Hui immediately abandoned any thought of trying. He had been living comfortably for years and didn't have much raw strength left. Being stared at by everyone made Song Que feel a bit embarrassed. He could only scratch his head and laugh foolishly.

Zhong Hui looked at him and shook his head:"A'Que, you really should join the army. With a physique like yours, becoming a general in the future would be a piece of cake."

"Brother Hui jokes. I'm used to living an unrestrained life in the village. If I became a soldier, I couldn't handle military discipline. I'd probably end up bringing disaster upon myself." Everyone shook their heads, clicking their tongues in amazement. Zhong Kui even stepped forward to squeeze his arms and legs, muttering constantly:"You kid, you are definitely the number one strongman in the village right now." Everyone burst into laughter. They could all see how terrifying the potential of this body was.

To surpass adult men so completely at his current age... once he fully grew up, he would truly be a ferocious beast in human skin. Zhong Hui suddenly spoke up:"Little Que, do you have any interest in joining the Iron Blade Society? With your qualifications, our Guild Master would definitely pour resources into cultivating you." He had his own selfish motives. If Song Que joined, he would soon become a trusted aide within the gang—at the very least, a top-tier enforcer.

Having a brother looking out for each other would bring a lot of peace of mind. But Grandmaster Song had zero interest in this. His ambitions didn't lie here; he would rather quietly and safely grind his strength in the village. So, he had to decline:"I appreciate your good intentions, Brother Hui, but this little brother is used to being free and unfettered. I don't want to join any gang." Hearing this, Zhong Hui could only shake his head in regret.

Seeing the conversation drifting further off track, Song Que hastily interjected:"Uncle Zhong, big brothers. It's already noon. How about we head out to a restaurant to celebrate?" Zhong Hui smiled at this:"A'Que, there's no need for you to spend money. Handing in those goods today earned me a massive compliment from the Deacon. I already ordered a banquet from the Five Flavors Pavilion to be delivered here. It should arrive shortly."

"Let's go, we can talk inside," Old Zhong Kui concluded. Having relied on the Zhong family for favors and freeloading meals several times already, Song Que felt a bit embarrassed. But since he couldn't refuse their hospitality, what could he do but open his mouth to eat and drink? He refused no toasts and enjoyed the meal immensely. The banquet was lively, and everyone ate and drank to their hearts' content.

After the meal, Song Que and Zhong Kui immediately hopped on their carts, bid their farewells, and headed back to Giant Willow Village. On the way, Song Que couldn't wait to pester Zhong Kui, asking him about archery techniques. Zhong Kui held nothing back, dedicating himself to guiding the youth. After a bumpy three-hour journey back to the village, Song Que felt he had reaped a bountiful harvest of knowledge.

Only when the shadow of the old willow tree appeared in the distance did he reluctantly let Old Zhong off the hook. Seeing Old Zhong yawning repeatedly, Song Que smiled apologetically and bid him farewell. At the village entrance, the two carts split in opposite directions, each heading home. Watching the youth's retreating figure, Zhong Kui let out a long sigh:"It's good to be young." He then hurried his cart home. He was exhausted beyond measure and needed a good sleep to recover his energy.

On the way back, the sight of Song Que pulling a cart full of goods naturally caused a sensation in the village. People called out to their friends, standing from a distance to watch him, their hearts filled with a mix of envy and jealousy. Before he even reached his door, Husky, leading Er'ya, Gou'dan, and Li Tie, bounded out eagerly to greet him. Seeing the cart loaded with goods, Li Tie stammered:"A'niu, this... this is..."

"Uncle, let's talk inside."