Chapter 617: Losses and Gains

Cui Cui Tike received the contract and thought for a long time before confirming that this matter was true.

The Peddler indeed gave him remuneration.

He wanted to return the contract to the Peddler: "I don't want this territory; I only want one person." The Peddler snorted: "What kind of talk is this? I'm not a human trafficker!"

Cui Cui Tike hurriedly explained: "You misunderstood my meaning. I had a friend who lost his life, and I want to bring his life back." The more anxious he was, the more problematic Cui Cui Tike's ability to express himself became.

The Peddler understood: "You want someone to be brought back from the dead? That's difficult." Cui Cui Tike held the contract: "I give you this, and I am willing to pay a greater price."

The Peddler shook his head: "I have a way, but my way is not the resurrection you want. You have to find the way you want yourself." "It's too late," Cui Cui Tike shook his head, "He might have already..."

"As long as you can find the method, it will definitely be in time," the Peddler looked at Cui Cui Tike, "That flower cannot be kept in your clothes all the time. Wildflowers on the mountain need to be taken out for air often."

Cui Cui Tike took out the canned food box from his arms. This seemed to be some kind of hint. Li Li Banfeng nodded at Cui Cui Tike; this was indeed a hint.

Cui Cui Tike didn't understand Li Li Banfeng's meaning yet, but heard the Peddler say: "There is an urgent matter to be done right now. The people of Zhong Desong Cliff haven't died out yet, but they are almost there. I'll give you a piece of proper land. If you turn him into old soil, I will absolutely not spare you."

This matter was quite difficult to handle.

If you don't want Zhong Desong Cliff to become old soil, you must send people to Zhong Desong Cliff. But with Zhong Desong Cliff in its current state, let alone people, even grass doesn't grow. Cui Cui Tike had an idea: "I have a group of friends whose resistance is very strong and should be able to settle down here."

The Peddler shook his head: "Blade-Labor Ghosts won't work, whether it's the Blade-Labor Ghosts on Blade Dao Guiling or those you carry with you." Cui Cui Tike pointed to the Blade-Labor Ghosts beside him: "They don't actually count as Blade-Labor Ghosts in the true sense; they are my..." The Peddler still shook his head: "No matter where they come from, they must be sent back to Blade Dao Guiling!"

The Peddler wouldn't negotiate on this, so Cui Cui Tike hurriedly thought of a way.

Li Li Banfeng was still thinking about the causes and consequences of the matter. The Peddler pushed the truck and was about to leave. "Master Brother, wait a moment." Li Li Banfeng hurriedly called out to the Peddler.

The Peddler pulled out a feather duster and asked: "What's the matter?" Li Li Banfeng hurriedly changed his words: "Master Brother, don't be in a hurry to leave."

"Don't leave, what for? There is no business to be done in this place!" The Peddler was too lazy to even shake his rattle-drum.

"Who said there is no business to be done? Aren't I still here?" Li Li Banfeng took out his wallet, "Buy a box of matches!" "Five cents."

Li Li Banfeng didn't have small change and gave a one-hundred-dollar bill. The Peddler curled his lips, not very happy.

But business is like this; if there is money to be made, you have to make it; you can't argue about the amount. He gave Li Li Banfeng a box of matches and found a handful of small change.

Li Li Banfeng took the opportunity to ask: "I didn't quite understand what you said about losses and gains just now. How exactly do you do this business? Is this business with Cui Cui Tike considered a loss or a gain?" "Didn't I just say it? This business is considered a loss, but not a big one."

"Zhong Desong Cliff is dead, and you say the loss isn't big?" Li Li Banfeng handed the Peddler a cigarette and lit it with a match.

The Peddler put down the truck, took a puff of the cigarette, and said: "Different businesses, different ways of doing things. There is indeed no business that is guaranteed to make a profit without a loss, but you have to know what kind of quality this business is.

There are small-scale businesses, steady businesses, businesses with big ups and downs, and businesses that lose everything.

The business in Yaowang Valley is steady. Yao Xin fell, but the foundation of Yaowang Valley is still there, so I handed the business to Xu Han. Old Xu doesn't need to play any tricks; he can earn money by guarding the stall properly.

The business in Haichi Ridge has big ups and downs. If you can block that insect disaster, it is equivalent to saving a piece of proper land and thousands of living beings, which is a huge gain. If you can't block it, Haichi Ridge will be destroyed, which is a huge loss.

This kind of business is the hardest to do. I intended to do it myself, but I was tripped up by other things after finding Cui Cui Tike. It happened that I saw you saving the disaster at Haichi Ridge, so I let Cui Cui Tike find you. I didn't expect you to really get it done.

You dare to think and dare to fight. Everyone thought Haichi Ridge was hopeless, but you still fought to the end carrying Cui Cui Tike. Since then, I trust you and want to find you for businesses with big ups and downs.

I thought the situation in Zhong Desong Cliff was the same as in Haichi Ridge, so I wanted to find you for this business. Even if you didn't agree, I would have thought of a way to make you agree. But after I saw the situation in Zhong Desong Cliff more clearly, I found that this business didn't suit you. Zhong Desong Cliff had already rotted to the roots.

What happened here is not as simple as fighting for power and profit. What these people did has nothing to do with the word 'Virtue.' They also wanted to provoke a war and drag the entire Puluo Continent into it.

This kind of business has no possibility of making money, and even the capital cannot be preserved. When encountering this kind of business that loses everything, you have to change someone to do it.

The situation in Qianliangfang is very similar to Zhong Desong Cliff, and Cui Cui Tike did a good job with that business, so I chose him. Although this business in Zhong Desong Cliff is still a loss, the matter has never exceeded the scope of Zhong Desong Cliff, so I said the loss isn't big. The reward still has to be given. Do you understand now?"

Li Li Banfeng thought for a while and said: "Then you might as well have made things clear earlier, so it wouldn't have made Cui Cui Tike timid and forced himself into this state."

The Peddler laughed: "Brother, you are not the one in charge, so you don't feel the pain. You think it's inappropriate for me to make Cui Cui Tike timid? If I let Cui Cui Tike let go of his hands and feet, he could slaughter the Puluo Continent tomorrow!

I let him judge for himself who should be killed, which was to leave a little capital for Zhong Desong Cliff. But now nothing is left. Business is like this, and I can only acknowledge the loss." The Peddler pushed the truck and was about to leave again. Li Li Banfeng shouted: "

"What are you waiting for?" The Peddler said impatiently, "If I just stand here and chew the fat with you, don't I have business to do?" "Business must be done; I'll buy a candle."

"Twenty cents."

Li Li Banfeng gave him another hundred-dollar bill, and the Peddler grumpily went to get change.

"Brother, I've patronized your business twice now, let's talk about something else!" The Peddler picked up a feather duster, "What else is there to talk about? Speak quickly!"

"I have a way to break the boundary."

The Peddler put the feather duster back and rolled a cigarette for Li Li Banfeng, "Junior brother, sit down and let's talk slowly."

The two sat side by side, and the Peddler struck a match and lit the cigarette for Li Li Banfeng, "Tell me in detail, how did you break the boundary?" "I built a bridge on the boundary, and people can walk across it."

Li Li Banfeng still wanted to earnestly explain the principle of the dark bridge to the Peddler, but the Peddler asked impatiently, "How many people can walk across your bridge at once?" "Three or five people, I suppose."

The Peddler's smile faded, "Is that so."

Li Li Banfeng was unhappy, "What? You think it's too few? You look down on me?"

The Peddler got up and tidied up his cart, "It's not that I look down on you; means to break the boundary are very rare, but three or five people is too few. Besides, you are a Balance Person now; you don't need to go through so much trouble just to send three or five people across the boundary, right?"

Li Li Banfeng said, "I'm not trying to send three or five people; I want to bring all the three-headed people from the Three-Way Fork out."

Upon hearing this, the Peddler became interested, "This is a big business, a business with big ups and downs, and also a very difficult business to do. You want to do it?"

"I do! But this path is hard to find, and I know nothing about the Three-Way Fork."

The Peddler took a medicinal candy from his cart and handed it to Li Li Banfeng, "I know quite a bit about the Three-Way Fork; we can do the business as partners, but that bridge crossing the boundary must carry at least two hundred people at a time."

Li Li Banfeng thought for a moment and nodded, "Give me some more time."

The Peddler pushed his cart and said, "You have plenty of time, but that foreigner doesn't have much time left. He turned Zhong Desong Cliff into this; I'd like to see where he's going to find people."

Cui Cui Tike went to the New Land, a very remote New Land.

In this New Land, there were endless farmlands, hardworking farmers, and hunters coming and going. Walking to the village, Cui Cui Tike asked along the way and finally found Zhang Wanlong.

"Mr. Zhang, I've finally found you!" Cui Cui Tike was very excited.

Zhang Wanlong looked at Cui Cui Tike carefully and smiled in bewilderment, "This foreign friend, have we met?" Cui Cui Tike was taken aback, "Of course we've met; I even bought seeds from you here."

Zhang Wanlong shook his head and said, "You must have recognized the wrong person; I never sell seeds to others."

This attitude was unacceptable to Cui Cui Tike, so he took a few seeds from his bosom, "These are what you sold me back then; you can't possibly have no impression of them, right?" Zhang Wanlong took the seeds and looked at them carefully for a long time, "The quality of the seeds is somewhat similar to what I cultivate, but this really isn't what I sold you." "Then who else could have sold them to me?"

"It's possible it was them." Zhang Wanlong called out toward the cornfield, and two people who looked exactly like Zhang Wanlong came forward. Zhang Wanlong introduced, "These two crops were planted by me; they might have impersonated me and done some business they shouldn't have."

While speaking, Zhang Wanlong darkened his face and said to the other two Zhang Wanlongs, "Was it you who sold the seeds to others?" The other two Zhang Wanlongs shook their heads repeatedly, "We didn't sell them; Brother Long has rules, seeds cannot be sold."

These two Zhang Wanlongs didn't admit it, so Zhang Wanlong called over a dozen more Zhang Wanlongs, "Which of you sold the seeds to him?" All the Zhang Wanlongs shook their heads and denied it, "We didn't sell any seeds."

Cui Cui Tike frowned, "Mr. Zhang, what exactly do you mean? Do you have requirements regarding the price?"

Zhang Wanlong shook his head repeatedly, "I don't sell seeds, so where would the price come from? It's just that I have too many crops, and it's inevitable that someone broke my rules and sold the seeds to you."

"This matter needs to be investigated slowly. You wait in the village for a while; I'll have my wife start a fire and cook. When the hunters all return later, we'll compare them one by one. This matter must be investigated until the truth is out."

How could Cui Cui Tike have time to investigate this with him?

Even if he found out, it wouldn't be of any help to Cui Cui Tike. Helpless, Cui Cui Tike left the village.

Xiao Xiao Genzi walked up and asked Zhang Wanlong, "Brother Zhang, why aren't we doing this business anymore?"

"Business must be done, but it depends on who you do it with." Zhang Wanlong took an antenna out of a drawer, "I bought this from a friend at the radio station; it's good stuff!" He took a pumpkin, found a syringe, and gave the pumpkin an injection.

After the injection, he took a drill and drilled a hole in the pumpkin. "Hum hum~" The pumpkin hummed twice.

Zhang Wanlong hurriedly comforted it, "It doesn't hurt, it doesn't hurt; I've already given you anesthesia." The pumpkin calmed down a little.

Zhang Wanlong picked up the antenna and said to the pumpkin, "This antenna is a bit cold, bear with it."

When the antenna was inserted, the pumpkin trembled again. Zhang Wanlong adjusted the position of the antenna, and some sounds came from the pumpkin. At first, the sound was a bit noisy, but after several adjustments, the sound gradually became clear.

Xiao Xiao Genzi said with a blank face, "What is this?"

"A radio!" Zhang Wanlong wiped the pumpkin juice off his hands, "Let me tell you, this is technology; you can't study golden juice every day, you have to study scientific technology." Xiao Xiao Genzi still didn't quite understand the concept of technology; in Puluo Province, very few people could hear the radio.

He squatted next to the pumpkin and listened earnestly for a long time. It happened to be advertising time, and the host was recommending a newly launched kitchen knife.

Xiao Xiao Genzi hummed, "This scientific technology is all a lie. If this kitchen knife can cut iron like mud, then why use a machete to kill people?"

The host happened to be saying this part, "With this kitchen knife, you can be cutting vegetables in the kitchen one second, and taking someone's head the next, ensuring you catch them off guard." Xiao Xiao Genzi hummed again, "I can stir soup one second and pour sauce the next, and I can also ensure I catch them off guard! What's the use of this scientific technology?"

Zhang Wanlong laughed, "Why are you arguing with an advertisement? Wait a moment, the real stuff hasn't come out yet."

After waiting for half an hour, the advertisement ended, and a sweet voice came from the pumpkin, "Dear listeners, Ahui is here to report the latest news from Zhong Desong Cliff for you. According to informed sources, Zhong Desong Cliff has encountered a rare plague, and the life or death of tens of thousands of residents is unknown. Detailed information is still awaiting further investigation..."

Zhang Wanlong looked at Xiao Xiao Genzi and said, "Did you hear it this time?"

Xiao Xiao Genzi nodded and said, "The sound of this scientific technology is really sweet."

"Sweet, right! Just Ahui's voice... who told you about this! Something happened in Zhong Desong Cliff, didn't you hear? There's a plague there; who do you think did this?" Xiao Genzi shook his head, "No matter who did it, it shouldn't have anything to do with us, right?"

"That's hard to say," Zhang Wanlong said with a solemn expression, "Plagues are very likely related to Disease Cultivators. Green Flower is the ancestor of Disease Cultivators, but he hasn't appeared for a long time. Wan Wan Jinxian is also a Disease Cultivator, and there is no news of him now either."

"The foreigner who came just now is also a Disease Cultivator. He is looking to buy seeds from us now; who knows what he wants to do? We must be on guard; if this gets involved with the Zhong Desong Cliff incident, we can't afford the consequences."

Xiao Xiao Genzi looked at the radio pumpkin earnestly, silently remembering Zhang Wanlong's words in his heart.

He felt that he didn't know much about Zhang Wanlong, and there was really a lot to learn in the future.

At noon the next day, someone came to the village again. A man brought a box of silver dollars and placed it in front of Zhang Wanlong, "Brother Zhang, I've come to buy something from you." Zhang Wanlong was taken aback, "This brother, what should I call you?"

The man introduced himself, "My surname is Sun, called Sun Chen Yusheng, from the Ink Fragrance Shop; I want to buy some good seeds from you." Zhang Wanlong laughed, "You want to buy seeds too?"

The man was taken aback, "Has someone else been here?" "Yes."

"Who?"

"Never mind who it is for now; let's talk about the rules first. If you take a fancy to grain, or melons, fruits, pears, or peaches, or special products of the New Land, you can pick whatever you want. But I never sell seeds."

The man frowned, "You really won't sell?" "I won't."

"Fine, then I've come to the wrong place." The man left with his box. Xiao Xiao Genzi asked, "Can't we do business with this person either?"

"Definitely not," Zhang Wanlong laughed, "This person's surname isn't Sun; it's He. He is the eldest young master of the He family, He He Jiaqing. He used a disguise technique, but he can't fool my eyes. He He Jiaqing and Li Qi are at odds, so we can't offend an old customer for his business."

"That's true," Xiao Genzi nodded repeatedly, "Seventh Master is one of our own."

Zhang Wanlong looked outside the door, "This person is not easy to dismiss; he will definitely come again."

Xiao Genzi said with disdain, "Let him come; we just won't sell to him."

"If we don't sell to him, he will take them himself. He He Jiaqing is a Thief Cultivator; most people don't know about this."

Upon hearing this, Xiao Xiao Genzi picked up his ladle, "I'll keep watch at home tomorrow. If he dares to come, I'll give him a ladleful. As long as he shows his face, we'll be able to smell him."

"There is only the thief who steals for a thousand days, not the thief who guards for a thousand days; this trick won't work." Zhang Wanlong laughed and added a lock to the cellar. The next day, after the two finished their farm work and returned, Zhang Wanlong's two wives were cooking.

"Has anyone been here today?" Zhang Wanlong asked. "No one has been here!" the two wives answered in unison. The two went to check the cellar.

Xiao Xiao Genzi checked the lock and said to Zhang Wanlong, "No one has touched this lock; He He Jiaqing hasn't been here." "That's not necessarily true." Zhang Wanlong took out a medicine bottle and dripped two drops of potion onto the keyhole.

After a moment, a vine crawled out of the keyhole, and a rose the size of a palm bloomed on the vine. A woman the size of an index finger stood on the heart of the flower and bowed to Zhang Wanlong.

Zhang Wanlong asked, "Has anyone touched you today?"

"Yes, a man came. He was not honest with his hands and feet, and touched me several times." Zhang Wanlong asked again, "Were the seeds taken away by him?"

"They were taken; I didn't dare to stop him."

"No need to stop him; let him take them if he wants!" Zhang Wanlong waved his hand gently, the woman bowed again, the petals closed, the flower shrank into the vine, the vine shrank into the keyhole, and the lock returned to its previous state.

Xiao Genzi wasn't too surprised; having followed Zhang Wanlong for so long, he was used to these kinds of things.

What he was worried about now was the seeds, "Brother Zhang, let's see how many seeds were stolen by He He Jiaqing."

"No need to look, let him take whatever he wants. Those are good seeds; you reap what you sow, but you just can't grow what he wants." The next night, Zhang Wanlong and Xiao Genzi had two drinks and were preparing to sleep when someone else came to buy seeds.

Zhang Wanlong laughed, "It's really strange; why is everyone coming to buy seeds from me these two days?" No matter how much money the other party offered, he wouldn't sell the seeds!

The man didn't pester him either and got up to leave. Zhang Wanlong asked Xiao Genzi, "Do you remember where we put the newspapers we bought when we went to Green Water City a few days ago?" Xiao Genzi remembered; Seventh Master had told him to read more newspapers.

He brought a stack of newspapers from the backyard, and Zhang Wanlong flipped through them carefully, one by one.

His gaze stopped on a photo, "It's this person, called Du Du Wenming!"

Xiao Genzi had learned quite a few characters with Zhang Wanlong, so he read the news, "Is this a man from the Outer Province?"

"Yes, a man from the Outer Province," Zhang Wanlong said with a solemn expression, "Why did he also come to buy seeds from me?"

Green Water City, Ye Tang Tea House, Mr. Kong Fang poured a cup of tea for Du Du Wenming, "Are you sure you didn't find the wrong place?"

Du Du Wenming said, "The place is absolutely correct. Cui Cui Tike has indeed been here. The Chu family and the He family both have plots of land in the surrounding area. I have inquired about some rumors from them; this Farming Cultivator's methods are quite formidable, and Li Qi has bought quite a few seeds from him."

Mr. Kong Fang pondered the connection, "What does that foreigner want to do with the seeds? He caused such a big incident in Zhong Desong Cliff; does he want to use the Farming Cultivator's seeds to cover it up? This is too absurd."

Du Du Wenming gave a speculation, "Is it possible that the Peddler doesn't want to manage this matter?"

"It's impossible for him not to manage it. Zhong Desong Cliff is a righteous land; he can't just watch this piece of territory disappear like this!" Mr. Kong Fang believed in his judgment, "And even if the Peddler doesn't manage it, the Inner Province can't possibly not manage it. I heard they also invested a lot of capital in Zhong Desong Cliff; things can't just end like this."

Inner Province, Xingzhe Wujiang City.

Song Song Demei's second son, Ban Yue Congde, was telling Lord Fan, Lord Lü, and Lord Bi about his experience in Zhong Desong Cliff. He had told this experience many times; in the past few days, eleven people had asked him about the incident.

Because it involved an epidemic, Ban Yue Congde was initially locked in a prison cell and questioned by specialized people through a wall. The Inner Province people's body structure was special and had extremely strong resistance to epidemics, but because Cui Cui Tike was a disciple of Disease Cultivation, they still took full precautions.

A few days later, no abnormalities appeared on Ban Yue Congde, and the precautions against him were relaxed somewhat, and some people began to question him in person. Now Ban Yue Congde had finally seen the cabinet ministers, and today was an important opportunity for him to perform well.

But performing is one thing; he must not exaggerate. He had said it over a dozen times before; if he couldn't match his words today, there would be trouble. The three cabinet ministers sat on one chair, with one body supporting three heads, looking at Ban Yue Congde.

Lord Fan spoke first, "That foreigner wiped out Zhong Desong Cliff?" Ban Yue Congde nodded repeatedly, "As far as I know, not a single one was left."

"How did you return?"

He couldn't tell the truth about this.

The truth was that he had admitted his identity to Cui Cui Tike and showed Cui Cui Tike the entrance to the Inner Province, and Cui Cui Tike let him go.

Just the crime of revealing the entrance to the Inner Province could cost him his life. Fortunately, before returning, he had already thought of an excuse, and he had repeated it over a dozen times in the past two days, so he had long since memorized it.

"That foreigner's plague couldn't affect our physique. I used a disguise technique, pretended that rashes had grown on my body, and played dead among the corpses. There were too many people dead in the village at that time, and the foreigner didn't check them one by one, so he didn't notice me."

"After he left, I walked around the village and found that there were no survivors in the village." Ban Yue Congde suddenly paused, and this pause made the three cabinet ministers suspicious.

Lord Lü asked sternly, "Why were you guilty when you spoke just now?"

Ban Yue Congde hurriedly explained, "I just didn't see any survivors in Deyuan Village; the situation in the other villages is what I inferred."

This statement was not problematic. How many people died in Zhong Desong Cliff could still be investigated by spies; even if Ban Yue Congde's statement wasn't accurate, the impact wouldn't be too great.

The three lords were very satisfied with the results of this interrogation. Although the storm in Zhong Desong Cliff had subsided, they had two important gains: first, the foreigner Cui Cui Tike defied the Peddler and would inevitably be severely punished; second, the foreigner Cui Cui Tike's technique was ineffective against people from the Inner Province.

Green Water Beggar and Wan Wan Jinxian had already disappeared. If Cui Cui Tike died at the hands of the Peddler, Puluo Province would no longer have the ability to resist the plague. Even if the Peddler spared Cui Cui Tike, his plague couldn't hurt the people of the Inner Province, so the Inner Province didn't need to worry about the plague from Puluo Province.

Ban Yue Congde received a reward. He took the reward money and was preparing to leave Lord Fan's mansion when he suddenly felt a stinging itch on his back. He scratched it with his hand and felt that his back wasn't very smooth.

What is this?

Ban Yue Congde's whole body tensed up instantly; he felt his back getting itchier and itchier. Must not scratch, must not scratch anymore.

Is this a rash?

There was nothing wrong before; why did a rash appear today? Must not let anyone see, must not...