Volume One: Menial Servant of Changshui County Chapter Thirty-Eight: The Mist Rises Again

“Why are you still here?” Chen Xuanfeng asked when he saw Lu Jiuzhang still standing in place. “Is there something else you need to report?”

“Sir Chen, I wanted to ask about those two hundred taels of silver…” Lu Jiuzhang said a bit sheepishly.

“They’ll be paid together with this month's salary,” Chen Xuanfeng replied.

But this month's salary would only be paid out next month, so at minimum, Lu Jiuzhang would have to wait at least half a month more.

He simply couldn’t wait that long. If he could get the money now, he could quickly buy spiritual herbs and improve his strength as soon as possible.

“Sir Chen, you know my family is poor. Especially after my elder brother died, I barely have a coin to my name. Just eating is a problem. Could you possibly advance the payment to me?” Lu Jiuzhang said, somewhat embarrassed.

“Pfft…” Chen Xuanfeng nearly spat blood. “You say you’re poor?”

He almost wanted to curse. When Lu Huaigu died, Lu Jiuzhang had received plenty of gifts, not to mention the condolence payment. Chen Xuanfeng estimated the boy had at least a hundred taels of silver on him.

In the entire Demon Slayer Bureau, aside from the demon slayers themselves, among the menial workers, he probably had the most money.

And he still dared to plead poverty?

What justice was there in the world? How would others feel about this?

“Didn’t you receive a condolence payment before?” Chen Xuanfeng asked, frowning.

“It’s all gone,” Lu Jiuzhang said bluntly.

“All gone? More than a hundred taels of silver, and you spent it all that quickly?” Chen Xuanfeng couldn’t believe it.

What kind of menial worker was this? Even he, a deputy director, couldn’t spend so much in a month.

“Director Chen, you wouldn’t know. I fell for a girl at the Red Lotus Brothel and wanted to buy her freedom. I’ve been busy with that lately,” Lu Jiuzhang lied off the cuff.

“You really are rich,” Chen Xuanfeng scoffed.

But after a moment, he seemed to realize something and looked at Lu Jiuzhang. “You’ve started training in martial arts, haven’t you?”

How did he know?

Lu Jiuzhang’s expression changed instantly.

At present, only Zhou Cheng and Manager Chen at the Thousand Mechanisms Tower knew about him practicing martial arts.

Logically, the Thousand Mechanisms Tower shouldn’t have revealed anything about him, which meant there was only one other person—Zhou Cheng.

But why would Zhou Cheng do that? Telling Chen Xuanfeng about his training would only bring him trouble. Or perhaps Zhou Cheng wasn’t trustworthy after all, and he was working with Chen Xuanfeng?

A vague suspicion took root in Lu Jiuzhang’s heart. Even if he grew stronger, it would be limited and still within Chen Xuanfeng’s control. Now, under Chen Xuanfeng’s watchful eye, Zhou Cheng was probably assigned to get close to him, to keep tabs on him at all times.

The more he thought about it, the more disturbing it seemed.

It appeared necessary to distance himself from Zhou Cheng and avoid getting too close.

“Yes,” Lu Jiuzhang admitted through gritted teeth.

“Fine. I’ll advance you the money. Next month, I’ll deduct it from your salary,” Chen Xuanfeng said. He didn’t refuse but instead took out two banknotes, each worth a hundred taels, and handed them to Lu Jiuzhang.

“These are official banknotes from the Grand Xia Empire’s state bank. They’re accepted everywhere in the country. Don’t worry—there won’t be any issues.”

With those words, Chen Xuanfeng waved his hand again, signaling Lu Jiuzhang to leave.

But the doubts in Lu Jiuzhang’s mind only grew deeper.

He clearly knew Lu Jiuzhang had started training in martial arts—so why would Chen Xuanfeng still advance him his salary? Was it overconfidence? Did he believe that, even if Lu Jiuzhang reached the ninth rank in martial arts, he would pose no threat at all?

...

Back in the common room, Lu Jiuzhang now felt suspicious of everyone he saw, wondering if they’d been planted by Chen Xuanfeng.

Even Wang Yunshan.

No matter how close Wang Yunshan had been to his late brother Lu Huaigu, if Chen Xuanfeng gave an order, could he dare disobey? After all, Chen Xuanfeng was the deputy director of the Demon Slayer Bureau, one of the most powerful men in Changshui County.

Wang Yunshan was just a lowly worker. Chen Xuanfeng could crush him with a single hand.

“Back already, Brother Lu?” Wang Yunshan greeted him warmly as Lu Jiuzhang entered the room. “How about it, want to go to the Red Lotus Brothel tonight?”

“I…” Lu Jiuzhang was about to refuse, but Wang Yunshan cut him off. “Don’t worry about the money, I’ll treat you. But could you lend me some silver? I lost again just now.”

“All my winnings from this afternoon are gone. Just lend me a bit, and once I win it back, I’ll take you out.”

Seriously?

Borrowing again? Has he become addicted to dice?

“How much did you lose this time, Brother Wang?” Lu Jiuzhang asked.

“Five taels of silver, all gone—my monthly wage and my side earnings,” Wang Yunshan replied miserably, his face drawn. “Just lend me a bit and let me try a few more rounds. Who knows, I might win it back.”

“How did you end up betting so much today?” Lu Jiuzhang asked, puzzled.

He’d observed the others playing dice before, and the most anyone ever bet in a round was ten copper coins. Nobody was cheating; gambling always had winners and losers, but usually, the most anyone lost in a day was one or two hundred copper coins.

Even if your luck was terrible and you never won a round from morning till the end of the shift, you’d only lose a silver or two at the very most.

Yet Wang Yunshan had lost five taels in a single afternoon. That was truly odd.

“I got on a winning streak earlier,” Wang Yunshan sighed. “I thought I could win more, so I kept raising the stakes—one round, a hundred coins. Who would have thought I’d lose dozens of rounds in a row?”

He only had himself to blame.

Lu Jiuzhang never touched gambling. On the one hand, the odds were always against you, and even if no one cheated, it was just the nature of gambling.

He’d always disliked betting, especially on life and death. Careful planning before action was always preferable.

Besides, for him, gambling was a complete waste of time. That time could be better spent doing something else—like cultivating.

“I can lend you a little, but you have to promise me you’ll stop gambling,” Lu Jiuzhang said, pulling a tael of silver from his pocket and handing it to Wang Yunshan.

“Ah? Only one tael?” Wang Yunshan complained.

“If you don’t want it, forget it,” Lu Jiuzhang said, making as if to take it back.

“I want it, I want it!” Wang Yunshan snatched the silver at once.

“With this, you now owe me two taels,” Lu Jiuzhang reminded him.

“Don’t worry, I’ll pay you back,” Wang Yunshan said, taking the silver and heading straight back to the gambling table.

Seeing this, Lu Jiuzhang knew his words had been wasted.

Just then, the sound of a drum echoed through the room.

A single drumbeat—the signal that the workday was over.

The menial workers in the common room began gathering their things to leave. Those who had won at dice quickly stood up as well.

Wang Yunshan, impatient as ever, tried to persuade his fellows to stay and keep gambling, but none of them listened. Each made an excuse and slipped away.

After all, they’d won money; why stick around and risk losing it?

Lu Jiuzhang also left, intending to pay another visit to the Thousand Mechanisms Tower.