Chương 33: Eradicating Evil

Yellow Leaf Town, inside the tavern. Calling the waiter, they waited until the kitchen served a large table full of mouth-watering dishes. Only then did Song Que unhurriedly uncork the wine jar, pouring a full cup for both himself and Zhong Hong. The pure, mellow aroma of the wine wafted out, greatly stimulating Zhong Hong's appetite. He greedily inhaled a few deep breaths. Unable to wait any longer, he raised his cup and took a large gulp. The spicy, pungent burn shot up his nose, nearly making him choke.

He had to force it down, his face turning red, to avoid making a fool of himself. Once the mouthful of wine hit his stomach, it felt like a raging fire burning through his entire body. In the lingering chill of early spring, it was an incredibly euphoric sensation. Brother Hong praised loudly:"Good wine! An absolute masterpiece! A'Que, I'm not flattering you, but with this craftsmanship, if you wanted to, you could easily make a fortune of millions of silver taels!" Zhong Hong wasn't exaggerating.

In Yellow Leaf Town, he certainly didn't lack experience in eating and drinking. He had tasted most of the various fine wines and famous liquors available. He even had the fortune of tasting the Five Flavors Pavilion's signature "Knife-Burner," which cost five taels a jar. But compared to the wine he was drinking today, they were all dull and tasteless; the difference was truly like clouds and mud! Because of this, he found Song Que increasingly mysterious, and consequently, felt deeper admiration for him.

This young man was mature, steady, harbored great talent in his chest, and possessed such masterful winemaking skills. If he didn't rise to prominence, the heavens and earth simply wouldn't tolerate it! Thinking of this, he became even more determined to cling tightly to Song Que, this massive golden thigh! The two brothers were in high spirits, rapidly toasting each other. A full jar of fine wine was emptied in no time.

It was Zhong Hong's first time drinking such strong liquor, yet half a jar went into his belly without any issues. Seeing this, Song Que secretly admired him. Drinking alcohol truly is a talent of its own.

"A'Que, I've already marked Butcher Zhu's house exactly as you asked. Just tell me what you want to do. Your Brother Hong might not have other skills, but you can use this brute strength of mine however you please! To hell with the Black Tiger Gang; we'll f*ck up their Zhu family!" Three parts drunk, Zhong Hong spoke sincerely to Song Que. Although Song Que hadn't accompanied Zhong Hong and Pockmark Luo to Butcher Zhu's house at noon, he had seen everything clearly through the Mountain Sparrow.

The Sparrow was still hovering around there right now, and the appearances of the Zhu father and sons were deeply etched into his mind. Therefore, Song Que was very moved by Zhong Hong's offer of help, but it truly wasn't necessary. Dealing with martial arts experts was something he wasn't confident in. But dealing with ordinary people? With the skills of the Great Beast Tamer Song, it would be a piece of cake. Smiling, he declined Zhong Hong's kind offer:"It's not a big deal; don't worry about it, Brother Hong.

Actually, there is something else you can help me with." Hearing this, Zhong Hong didn't hesitate, immediately patting his chest and telling him to give the order. Pouring Zhong Hong a full cup, the two clinked glasses before Song Que spoke slowly:"It's like this: I want to build a courtyard house in Giant Willow Village. I've already selected the location, but there's no one in the village who knows this trade.

So, I need to trouble you, Brother Hong, to help me find some skilled craftsmen, purchase the building materials, and transport them to the village for me."

"That's easy. There's no shortage of skilled masons in town. As long as you pay a high price, getting them to build in the village won't be a problem. The only issue is transporting the materials there; the roads are difficult, so it'll be a considerable expense."

"Don't worry about the money, Brother Hong. Just choose the highest quality specifications. I can comfortably afford a few hundred taels of silver." Hearing Song Que say this, Zhong Hong was relieved. Following that, he was secretly astonished. Since his Zhong family helped Song Que handle his trade goods, he had a rough estimate of how much money Song Que made. But he absolutely couldn't have imagined this kid possessed such abundant wealth! He truly couldn't wrap his head around it.

In reality, Song Que only had about a hundred taels on him. But he could earn more! This time coming to town, he had firmly resolved to harvest a massive crop of leeks! Regardless of whether it was the Iron Blade Society or the Black Tiger Gang, Grandmaster Song believed in spreading the rain and dew evenly; both needed to be patronized! The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement. Therefore, tonight was destined to be a night of hard labor.

But thinking of the expectant gazes of the casino bosses, Grandmaster Song's heart softened. A selfless soul sacrificing his own precious time for the greater good—my level of enlightenment is truly profound! Grandee Song's gaze drifted as he let his imagination run wild. With money, things were easy to handle. Zhong Hong didn't care what this Posturing Lord was daydreaming about. Joyfully, he poured another cup and toasted him.

"One more thing. Brother Hong, help me ask around to see where I can learn martial arts. I mean real kung fu, like what Liang Jing and Feng Han use. I know this is difficult; just do your best." Hearing this, Zhong Hong was placed in a difficult spot.

"A'Que, you don't want to join a gang or become a soldier, which makes this very hard to execute. To be honest, small fries like us can't even get close to people at Guild Master Liang's level."

"Even if someone at that level values you, passing down martial arts is a matter of immense importance. If you aren't close family or a deeply trusted confidant, they absolutely won't teach you. It's difficult!" It wasn't that Song Que had a fundamental aversion to joining a gang; he simply looked down on the likes of the Iron Blade Society and the Black Tiger Gang. Joining for minor benefits, only to be bogged down by a massive pile of obligations later on—the loss would far outweigh the gain.

He knew Zhong Hong wasn't exaggerating, so he could only sigh:"We'll cross that bridge when we come to it. Brother Hong, just do your best to ask around for me."

"That's all we can do." Speaking of this, Zhong Hong suddenly jolted, slapping the table excitedly:"Maybe there is a way! A while back, I helped the yamen runners solve a case and got acquainted with Head Constable Wu Fan."

"I heard he's someone sent from the County to 'gild' his resume. His martial arts are extraordinary! While he might not match the Guild Masters, the way I see it, he definitely has genuine skills! Let me set up a meeting with him for you another day. Maybe you can get some useful information out of him." Song Que was overjoyed. Having a lead was always a good thing. He raised his cup and laughed loudly:"Excellent! We'll do exactly that. I'll trouble you, Brother Hong."

"Haha! We're brothers, what's with the polite words?"

"Haha! No more words! Drink!" With the New Year past, his luck seemed to have improved significantly. After an enjoyable meal, Song Que saw Zhong Hong off. Before parting, he handed him fifty taels of silver to establish a connection with Wu Fan and to hire the builders and buy materials. A slightly tipsy Brother Hong was still yelling about going with Song Que to sort out the Zhu family. Song Que had to expend quite a bit of effort to persuade him before finally managing to shove him on his way home.

Standing on the street, watching the sparse crowds in the night, he felt a wave of emotion. Tonight was going to be another busy night.... The moon is dark, the wind is high. A night for killing. The South Gate District, Wutong Alley. The sky was pitch black. Normal families had long since barred their doors and gone to bed for a good night's sleep after a long day of labor. A drunk figure staggered through the darkness.

Arriving at the front of Butcher Zhu's house, he seemed unable to hold it in anymore, leaning heavily against the wall as if about to vomit. There was no one on the street, and even if there were, they wouldn't want to entangle themselves with someone in that state. The figure just stood there, not actually vomiting. A moment later, a rustling sound echoed as a sparrow flew down and perched on his shoulder. The figure didn't seem surprised by this.

Unhurriedly, he unhooked a bamboo tube from his waist and drew out a snake. Anyone who knew their stuff, upon closer inspection, would recognize it as the infamous Seven-Step Viper! This viper was a type of venomous snake no thicker than a finger, yet its venom was incredibly lethal. Mountain folk turned pale just hearing its name. For no other reason than this: if bitten by this snake, you wouldn't make it past seven steps before the venom erupted and killed you. There was no cure.

The venom acted so rapidly it gave its victims zero time to prepare. But at this moment, the Seven-Step Viper was incredibly docile, lying quietly on the man's hand, its body wriggling softly.

"For every cause, there is an effect. If you can survive this calamity, our grudges will be considered settled." The figure sighed softly, swung his arm, and tossed the Seven-Step Viper over the wall. Without taking a second look, he walked away briskly. Where was the drunken stagger from before? In mere moments, he vanished at the end of the alley.... Human psychology is incredibly complex.

Having lived for over thirty years in a modern world, abiding by laws and moral codes, Song Que had only been in this world for a year before he began to shatter his own internal constraints. Perhaps having found reasons to convince himself, the great Oscar-winning Actor Song quickly tossed these wandering thoughts to the back of his mind. That night, he completely dedicated himself to his acting career.

Applying a bit of disguise and sticking on a fake beard—which was child's play for Song Que, a former cosmetic surgeon—in a flash, he gorgeously transformed into a dark-skinned, bearded, burly thug. Stashing over ten taels of loose silver in his shirt, he strode with the steps of a dragon and the gait of a tiger toward his grand wealth-building scheme.

That night, a legend was born in the gambling circles of Yellow Leaf Town: a God of Gamblers appeared, kicking the Black Tiger first and stomping the Iron Blade second, sweeping a massive fortune from both gangs before vanishing without a trace. Some said it was 500 taels, others said over 1, 000 taels. There were even those who swore it was 10, 000 taels! How much it exactly was remained a mystery.

After all, both gangs immediately launched a frantic manhunt for this person, but it was as if he had evaporated from the face of the earth, leaving no trace behind. Also on that very night, the three men of the Zhu family in Wutong Alley—the father and his two sons—were all bitten by a venomous snake and perished. When members of the Black Tiger Gang arrived at dawn to investigate, they found the culprit: a Seven-Step Viper, which they proceeded to beat to death.

Whether this case was a natural disaster or a man-made calamity remained an unsolved mystery. Because of this, the Black Tiger Gang put immense pressure on the Constabulary, but nothing came of it. That night, Song Que worked diligently, putting in overtime. It wasn't until the early hours of the morning that he finally fell asleep, yet he didn't utter a single complaint. Adding a brick to society's foundation—being a little tired is perfectly fine.