Chapter 145: with translation of chapter title

"It's that drunkard!" Jin Buhuan exclaimed.

"How did he come out? Could it be…"

Luo Shisan furrowed his brow, leaning in to listen.

After a moment, he gave a cold snort.

"Looks like it failed."

"Failed?" Jin Buhuan's face changed.

"Then Jiang Xiaomu wouldn't…"

"Hmph, Jiang Xiaomu isn't so easy to deal with."

A cold glint flashed in Luo Shisan's eyes.

"But this is only the beginning. I want to see how long he can hold out!"

Jin Buhuan silently cursed to himself; he had thought he could teach Jiang Xiaomu a lesson this time, but instead he ended up losing the chicken and the rice.

Now Jiang Xiaomu already knows someone is scheming behind the scenes; he will undoubtedly be more vigilant from now on.

"Master Luo, what should we do now?"

Jin Buhuan asked cautiously.

"No rush." Luo Shisan said lightly.

"The good show has just begun."

Jin Buhuan's plump body trembled slightly.

He swallowed, his voice dry.

"Master Luo, this Jiang Xiaomu… is hard to deal with!"

"His Mu Yu Lou is doing booming business; who knows what backing he might have…"

Luo Shisan's gray-white eyes were like dead water, without ripples.

He lightly tapped the windowsill with his wooden staff, producing a rhythmic "duk-duk" sound that rang especially clear in the quiet theater.

"Boss Jin, are you scared?"

Jin Buhuan's face changed, and he quickly waved his hands.

"No no no, Master Luo misunderstood! I'm just… just worried the plan will fail, and then…"

"Failed?"

Luo Shisan gave a cold laugh.

"My Luo Shisan's plans have never failed."

"Jiang Xiaomu is merely a jumping clown; sooner or later he'll die by my hand."

Jin Buhuan silently cursed, this old blind man's tone is not small; last time you sent him to investigate Jiang Xiaomu's background, didn't he also come back dejected?

However, he naturally didn't dare say that out loud, only able to smile apologetically:

"Master Luo's divine calculations, I admire you!"

Luo Shisan no longer paid attention to Jin Buhuan's flattery, continuing to tap the windowsill, as if thinking about something.

Jin Buhuan didn't dare disturb him, only able to wait anxiously at the side.

After a while, Luo Shisan suddenly stopped tapping and said slowly:

"Boss Jin, do you still remember your Jin Zhuangyuan Jiulou?"

Jin Buhuan's face stiffened, a vindictive flash in his eyes.

The Jin Zhuangyuan Jiulou was his lifeblood for half his life, but Jiang Xiaomu took it from him; now it's become Mu Yu Lou, with business even more prosperous than before!

Whenever he thought of this, he hated it so much his teeth itched.

"Of course I remember!" Jin Buhuan said through gritted teeth.

"That was my lifeblood for half my life! Jiang Xiaomu, that dog thief, stole my tavern and ruined me financially…"

Luo Shisan's mouth curled into a sinister smile.

"Boss Jin, do you want revenge?"

Jin Buhuan startled, then his eyes burst with greedy light.

"Want! Of course I want! As long as I can get revenge, I'll do anything!"

"Good." Luo Shisan nodded satisfactorily.

"Jiang Xiaomu, it's time he paid the price."

Luo Shisan's gloomy gaze swept past Jin Buhuan's bulky body toward the window, toward Mu Yu Lou; more precisely, it landed on Jiang Xiaoyu, who was working in the Mu Yu Lou courtyard.

That slender figure, in his gray-white eyes, was nothing but a lamb awaiting slaughter.

"Jiang Xiaomu's weak point is his precious little sister."

"As long as we control her, Jiang Xiaomu won't be able to escape our manipulation."

Jin Buhuan's eyes flashed with lecherous light; he rubbed his hands, his fat trembling.

"Master Luo means…"

Luo Shisan gave a cold snort, cutting him off.

"Don't rush; Jiang Xiaomu isn't easy to deal with. We must take it slow, step by step, driving him into a desperate situation."

Jiang Xiaomu stood grim-faced in the records room of the Xian Ya.

This Luo Shisan fellow is definitely trouble!

He calls himself a "zhuā dāo rén" (assassin for hire); logically he should be registered at the Xian Ya.

But he searched through all the records and still couldn't find any trace of Luo Shisan.

Could this guy be a fraud?

Just as he was about to give up, a tattered wanted notice slipped out from a pile of files.

Jiang Xiaomu picked it up casually, his gaze sweeping over the portrait, his pupils suddenly contracting.

Although the person in the portrait was much younger, the sinister gaze, the gray-white hair, and the signature wooden staff were exactly the same as Luo Shisan's!

The wanted notice read:

Luo Shisan, a great river bandit, skilled at killing and arson, robbing escort agencies.

He had repeatedly committed murder, theft, and other crimes; now he is wanted, with a reward of fifty taels of silver!

"A great river bandit?"

Jiang Xiaomu gave a cold snort; this guy really is an old hand, hiding himself quite deeply!

Fifty taels of reward silver was considered a huge sum back then.

But after all these years, Luo Shisan remains at large, showing how skillful his methods are.

Jiang Xiaomu carefully folded the crumpled wanted notice and slipped it into his lapel.

Fifty taels of silver would be enough for him and Xiao Yu to live comfortably for a good while.

Thinking of Xiao Yu, he quickened his pace.

Returning to Mu Yu Lou, an unusual silence fell over the usually bustling hall.

The old shopkeeper sat behind the counter, worrying as he fiddled with the abacus, producing a crackling sound that only accentuated this eerie quiet.

"Shopkeeper, where is Xiao Yu?" Jiang Xiaomu asked, a faint unease rising in his heart.

The old shopkeeper lifted his head, his wrinkled face full of worry.

"Oh dear, Boss Jiang, you've finally returned!"

"Miss Xiao Yu went out to buy vegetables this evening and still hasn't come back!"

Jiang Xiaomu's heart jolted.

"Buying vegetables? It's so late and she still hasn't returned?"

"Where does she usually go to buy vegetables?"

Jiang Xiaomu forcibly suppressed his panic, trying to make his voice sound calm.

"Just the Dongjie vegetable market; normally he returns in less than half an hour."

The old shopkeeper let out a sigh.

"It's already the hai hour; nothing could have happened, right?"

Jiang Xiaomu's face darkened terrifyingly.

The Dongjie vegetable market is only a fifteen-minute walk from Mu Yu Lou; Xiao Yu couldn't possibly have been gone this long and still not returned.

"Has anyone seen where she last went?"

Jiang Xiaomu's voice was as cold as ice chips.

The old shopkeeper tried to recall, shook his head, and said:

"I didn't notice; there were many customers in the evening."

"Everyone was busy attending to customers; no one noticed when Miss Xiao Yu left."

Jiang Xiaomu's heart sank to the bottom; Xiao Yu had gone missing.

Who could have done it? Luo Shisan? Or some other enemy?

"Damn it!"

Jiang Xiaomu slammed his fist hard on the table, making the old shopkeeper shudder.

"Boss Jiang, don't panic; maybe Miss Xiao Yu is just playing around."

"She might have gone to a friend's house to play and lost track of time..."

The old shopkeeper offered comfort, but his tone lacked confidence.