Chapter 117: 115. Shen Qingyi is Angry (2/2)

115. Shen Qingyi is Angry (2/2)

Once these words were spoken, the wives and concubines all looked at Chen An.

While drinking his porridge, Chen An said, "Stop looking at me, just drink your porridge and wait for the people from the Red Fire Gang to come and collect the protection fee."

Hearing this, the wives and concubines withdrew their gazes and ate their breakfast in silence.

About an hour passed.

A shout rang out from outside the house.

"Fellow Daoist living in South Alley Number Eight, please come out and pay the protection fee!"

South Alley Number Eight.

This was precisely the house where Chen An's family lived.

"I'll go pay the protection fee."

"Alchemist Chen, I will go with you."

"Mm, alright."

Soon, both of them stood up and walked toward the outside of the house.

A moment later.

A creaking sound was heard.

The courtyard gate opened.

Immediately, the Red Fire Gang member who came into view for Chen An and Shen Qingyi was a male cultivator whose appearance was excessively ugly.

Not a single feature on his face was presentable, and his face was covered in pockmarks, looking extremely hideous.

This male cultivator did not hide his strength, and his cultivation base, reaching the third level of Foundation Establishment, was visible at a glance.

"My surname is Chen, the Chen of 'old and dusty,' and I am an Alchemist. May I ask how to address you, Fellow Daoist?"

Chen An took out 2 Middle-grade Spirit Stones and handed them to the male cultivator, while asking with a kind smile on his face.

The male cultivator took the Spirit Stones and said with indifference, "Let me introduce myself. I am the Manager responsible for providing protection to the residents of South Lane and collecting the protection fee. My surname is Gao, the Gao of 'high mountain.' You may call me Manager Gao from now on."

"So it is Manager Gao. Public order in Baicao Lane is mediocre, so I will need to rely on Manager Gao for more care in the future."

Chen An was very good at handling social situations; as he spoke, he moved his thoughts to take a bottle of Small Restoration Pill from his Storage Bag and handed it to Manager Gao before him with a smile.

Manager Gao took the medicine bottle, opened it, and upon discovering that it contained a Second-tier pill, the Small Restoration Pill, his originally indifferent face was instantly filled with smiles.

"Alchemist Chen, not bad, very not bad."

"I've walked all the way here, and I've hardly met anyone who was straightforward, let alone someone who would show a token of appreciation."

"If only the residents in Baicao Lane were as tactful as you."

"If you encounter any difficulties here in the future, just tell me, and I will help if I can."

Manager Gao said with enthusiasm, forming a sharp contrast to the indifferent face he had just moments ago.

After finishing, he soon left and headed to the next household to collect the protection fee.

Chen An did not rush back into the house, but stood at the doorway watching Manager Gao collect money from other families.

Shen Qingyi, who was beside him, did the same.

Facing the subsequent Baicao Lane residents, Manager Gao was not as easy to talk to as he had been with Chen An.

When he encountered those who were not straightforward in paying, he would scold them at best and beat them at worst, being extremely brutal.

When he encountered those who had no money to pay, he would drag them directly from their houses into the alleyway and beat them violently in front of all the residents.

After finishing, he would take the people away, saying he was dragging them to Sanmei Lou to work as coolies.

Chen An knew that Manager Gao was deliberately acting so brutally to warn the residents of South Lane, so it would be easier for him to collect money in the future.

A new official applies three fires; it was nothing more than that principle.

Seeing the scene of Manager Gao bullying the residents, Shen Qingyi's old habit of hating evil flared up again, and she once wanted to draw her sword and rush over to punish the wicked and eliminate evil.

Fortunately, Chen An was right by her side and stopped her brainless, impulsive behavior in time.

The Red Fire Gang had just stationed themselves in Baicao Lane and was worrying about having no one to use to establish their authority.

If Shen Qingyi dared to make a move now, she would definitely be captured by the Red Fire Gang afterward to be killed as a warning to others, executed in public as a negative example to intimidate the crowd.

Time flew by.

In the blink of an eye.

Half a month passed.

By this time, Wen Zhiyun had been pregnant for ten months, but there was no sign of the baby being born at all.

In the courtyard.

Wen Zhiyun looked down at her protruding belly, her face full of worry as she said, "Husband, it has already been ten months, why is there still no movement from the child in my belly? Could there be some problem?"

"Yun'er, don't worry. I have already used my Divine Sense to check; the child in your belly is developing very well, and I estimate it will be born soon."

Chen An comforted her in a soft voice.

But in truth, he was also a bit worried now, fearing that his tsundere concubine was pregnant with a Nezha, taking three and a half years to gestate.

Song Huaying, who was sitting in front of the house door teaching her daughter to play the zither, heard this and also spoke to comfort her: "Sister Wen, don't worry. You are a fairy; it is normal for your pregnancy to be longer than a mortal woman's. The longer you carry, the better the talent of the child in your belly."

"Silly Ying, there is no such saying. Fairies are also people; in terms of pregnancy, there is no difference from mortals. Otherwise, it would be going against the heavens, and a monster would be born."

Wen Zhiyun said with a smile.

Upon hearing this, Song Huaying immediately spat "Pah, pah, pah" a few times, then said, "Sister Wen, don't say such things randomly. You are definitely carrying a fairy fetus, not a monster."

"You girl are quite superstitious."

Wen Zhiyun walked up to Song Huaying, smiled, and flicked her forehead.

Watching this scene before him, Chen An couldn't help but smile.

These two usually addressed each other as sisters, but at this moment, the tone of this tsundere concubine speaking to the little wife sounded just like a mother talking to her daughter, which was quite discordant.

However, upon second thought, he felt there was nothing inappropriate about it.

After all, considering their current ages, the nearly forty-year-old coquettish concubine could indeed be the mother of the not-yet-twenty-year-old young wife.

Thinking of this, Chen An's gaze couldn't help but fall on Shen Qingyi, who was sitting under a tree on the other side chatting with Gu Xinyue, and he suddenly felt a bit strange in his heart.

Shen Qingyi was now fifty-five years old; according to the customs of early marriage and childbearing in this era, she was already at an age where she could be Wen Zhiyun's mother.

Yet now, the not-yet-twenty Song Huaying, the not-yet-forty Wen Zhiyun, and the fifty-five-year-old Shen Qingyi addressed each other as sisters in their daily lives, which was truly too strange.

"The world of cultivation is not good in many ways, but it has one very good point: no matter how old a woman is, as long as she is a cultivator, her appearance can always be maintained as it was in her youth."

Chen An sighed silently in his heart.

Unknowingly, another half month passed.

On this morning, Wen Zhiyun was truly anxious.

She sat on the edge of the bed in her room and asked Chen An with a very worried face: "Husband, it has already been ten and a half months of pregnancy, why is there still no movement from the child in my belly?"

"Quickly use your Divine Sense to help me check again!"

"Alright, I will check again."

As Chen An spoke, he spread out his Divine Sense, infiltrating Wen Zhiyun's belly to examine the child within.

After a round of examination.

The result was the same as before.

There was nothing wrong with the child; it was very healthy.

But for some reason, there was not the slightest sign of labor.

This was too strange.

"Husband, what is the result?"

Wen Zhiyun asked with an anxious face.

Chen An smiled and comforted her: "It's fine, there is no problem at all with the child in your belly. Zhiyun, don't worry too much. Just wait a few more days and let nature take its course; the child will be born soon."

"I hope so."

Wen Zhiyun looked at her large belly, her willow-leaf brows furrowed and never relaxing, feeling incredibly troubled.

At this moment, just like last month.

The voice of the Red Fire Gang Gang Leader rang out from the direction of Sanmei Lou.

The voice was extremely penetrating, spreading throughout the entire Baicao Lane like ripples in water.

"All residents of Baicao Lane, the one-month deadline has arrived. Please consciously prepare the Protection Fee and wait at home; a Manager will arrive shortly to collect it!"

Chen An ignored this voice.

Seeing Wen Zhiyun's face full of sorrow, he decided to help her dispel her worries.

About half an hour later.

【Fire Spirit Root aptitude +3】 x5

Chen An sat leaning against the head of the bed, looked down at Wen Zhiyun nestled in his arms, and asked her softly: "Zhiyun, do you feel better?"

"Mm, much better."

Wen Zhiyun's face still had a rosy flush.

Chen An kissed her and said slowly: "The Manager from the Red Fire Gang responsible for collecting money should be arriving soon. I will go outside for a moment; you rest well in the room."

After speaking, he quickly put on his clothes, got out of bed, and came to the courtyard outside.

Just as he arrived, the voice of Manager Gao rang out outside the courtyard.

"Alchemist Chen, come out and pay!"

As soon as the words fell.

Chen An opened the courtyard gate with a creak, handed over the 2 prepared Middle-grade Spirit Stones, and smiled kindly: "Manager Gao, long time no see."

"No matter, we will see each other every month from now on."

Manager Gao did not show the enthusiasm of last month; after taking the Spirit Stones handed to him and dropping that sentence, he turned around and left directly.

Chen An watched the other party's departing back and couldn't help but frown slightly.

This Manager Gao seemed to have an appetite that was a bit too large and was insatiably greedy.

Last month, when he gave him a bottle of Small Restoration Pill, he was greeted with a smiling face.

This month, when he didn't give any, he was met with a cold face.

It was somewhat difficult to deal with.

"Alchemist Chen, what's wrong?"

Shen Qingyi had walked out of the room at some point, and seeing Chen An frowning slightly, she couldn't help but ask.

Chen An did not want to say much to Shen Qingyi, who was overly intolerant of evil, lest she have another episode and draw her sword, so he just said indifferently: "Nothing."

Seeing that Chen An did not want to talk, Shen Qingyi did not ask further and make a fool of herself.

She just stood silently with Chen An, watching the scene of Manager Gao collecting money from house to house in the lane.

At this time, Manager Gao had reached the door of a widow's house while collecting the Protection Fee.

This widow lived not far from Chen An's house, only a distance of one or two hundred meters.

She was quite attractive and had no children.

She made a living by selling spirit fruits, and her financial situation was not very good.

The monthly Protection Fee of 2 Middle-grade Spirit Stones was a bit of a burden for her.

She was currently living off her savings.

Once her savings were used up, she would be completely unable to pay the Protection Fee.

Therefore, from the day the Red Fire Gang announced that they would be stationed in Baicao Lane, this widow had already started looking for a desirable husband for herself.

The reason she is still single now is purely because her standards are too high; she looks down on cultivators at the Qi Refining stage.

Even if it is a Foundation Establishment stage cultivator, if their appearance is not handsome enough, she does not want them.

She is very picky.

During this time, she had come to flirt with Chen An, but unfortunately, Chen An had no interest in widows, and in the end, it just fizzled out.

In front of the widow's house.

Manager Gao walked up to the stall the widow had placed at the entrance, swept his gaze over it, and finally landed on the spirit grapes in front of the widow, asking:

"Boss lady, are your grapes sweet?"

"Sweet, my grapes are super sweet!" the widow said with a passionate expression.

After hearing this, Manager Gao shook his head: "Then forget it, I like to eat sour ones."

"Is that so? Then Manager Gao, take a look at the other spirit fruits and see if any suit your taste?"

The widow said, still with a passionate expression on her face.

Soon, Manager Gao looked at the spirit peaches behind her and said:

"Boss lady, are your peaches sweet?"

"Sour, my peaches are very sour. Does Manager Gao want to buy some to take back and taste?"

Manager Gao shook his head again and said: "No, for peaches, I like to eat sweet ones."

"Heh... hehe, Manager Gao, your taste is truly a bit unique."

The widow said with a forced smile, still acting passionate.

At this moment, Manager Gao pointed at the spirit loquats below in front of the widow: "Boss lady, are your loquats sweet?"

This time, the widow had learned her lesson; she neither said sweet nor sour, but instead asked: "Manager Gao, my loquats are both sour and sweet. I wonder which flavor of loquat Manager Gao likes?"

"None, I was just asking casually; I don't like eating loquats."

"Then may I ask, what flavor of spirit fruit does Manager Gao like to eat?"

The widow endured as much as she could and asked with her usual passion.

Manager Gao grabbed the widow's smooth, tender jade hand with a beaming smile and asked meaningfully: "I like to eat a spirit fruit called 'widow'. I wonder if the boss lady has any for sale here?"

"Manager Gao, please show some self-respect."

The widow pulled her hand back directly and took a few steps back, very bothered by Manager Gao touching her hand.

Manager Gao was too ugly, and she found him disgusting.

Seeing the look of disgust on the widow's face, Manager Gao was hit where it hurt; he flew into a rage out of shame and raised his hand to slap the widow.

"Smack!"

"Damn it, am I giving you too much face?"

"I wanted to talk to you nicely, but you're putting on an act with me here—do you really need me to use force?"

Manager Gao said with a fierce and menacing look.

The widow was slapped very hard, blood spilled from the corner of her mouth, and she trembled with fear, not daring to speak.

Not far away, Chen An saw this scene and couldn't help but shake his head, lamenting the coldness of the world.

The widow was very pitiful, but he had no intention of meddling in other people's business.

He was the head of a household with a wife and daughter to take care of, so he could only stand by and watch when encountering such things.

Heroically saving a damsel in distress or anything of the sort was no longer suitable for him now.

"Fellow Daoist Shen, let's go back inside."

With the mindset of "out of sight, out of mind," Chen An said to Shen Qingyi beside him.

However, just as he finished speaking, a "Clang!" suddenly came from beside him!

This was the sound of a blade being drawn from its scabbard!

Shen Qingyi could no longer endure it; she pulled out the sword at her waist and, with an Instant Step and a "Hum" sound, rushed toward Manager Gao, who was a hundred meters away!

PS: Setting out the bowl, begging for monthly tickets and recommendation tickets!