Chapter 33: Returning to the City

Before returning, he took one last look at the cellar Cheng Feng and Cheng Fu had dug.

It was just a simple, large space, about 20 square meters.

Looking at the dirt-filled cellar,

Cheng Feng knew he had been too presumptuous.

But he still asked Cheng Fu if it could be expanded further, preferably connecting it to the house above.

The exit should be placed in a more hidden corner, preferably with three exits, and he should get some load-bearing pillars or something similar.

Cheng Fu laughed: "It's not like we're some big, wealthy family, why bother with all that?"

Cheng Feng was very solemn: "Father, why can't we become a big, wealthy family?"

Cheng Fu was stunned, finding it hard to believe.

Cheng Feng, however, muttered to himself: "Father, I have the confidence that in my lifetime, I will make our Lao Cheng family a wealthy one. This house might become the ancestral home of our Lao Cheng family in the future. Our descendants can come to see it later, and you can't let our children and grandchildren see something so Ordinary, right? At least make some sort of hidden underground space."

Cheng Feng used his words to stir up Cheng Fu's enthusiasm.

He didn't expect, however, to have touched the very bottom of Cheng Fu's heart.

Lao Cheng had never had any grand ideas his whole life; he just wanted to live in peace and safety.

If his sons had a way forward and were successful, that would be even better.

When he grew old and went down below, he would at least have something to answer to the ancestors with.

Watching his second son describe a world Cheng Fu had never thought of before in such a simple way, Cheng Fu also found something to look forward to.

He said dismissively: "This little brat has quite a lot of thoughts; I'll expand it properly this year."

Secretly, however, he made a firm resolution that from now on, this cellar would be his personal battle with Cheng Ming.

The second son has succeeded; next year, he can arrange things for Lao San as well.

Lao Da can still help out at home.

That's quite good.

As for this cellar, bring it on!

Cheng Feng only had four taels left on him; he took out three and gave them to Cheng Fu, saying: "It's fine if the cellar is small, but if it were as big as the house, I'd be afraid it might collapse one day and bury someone alive. I still have some silver here; you take this first to buy some load-bearing materials, and I will send more later."

He communicated with Cheng Fu a bit more; it was already November, and in another month, it would be the New Year.

Cheng Feng would definitely come back for the New Year, and he also asked if his eldest brother's marriage had been settled.

Cheng Fu said it was almost there.

Cheng Feng nodded to show he understood; Cheng Fu was an honest man, very down-to-earth, so if he said it was almost there, it likely was.

He estimated there would be a result by next month.

Cheng Fu's efficiency in getting things done was still quite high.

After all, the eldest brother's marriage had been under consideration since before the year began.

But the issue of the bride price had left the matter somewhat incomplete.

However, with the brother Cheng Feng and Lao San's side-hustles, as well as Cheng Feng's recent situation,

word of it would mean there were plenty of families to choose from.

Cheng Fu wasn't stupid; he had a capable son to talk about, but he couldn't talk about it with great fanfare.

By using the pretext of finding a wife for Lao Da, he might even be able to negotiate a marriage for the second son at the same time.

Cheng Fu even took the opportunity to ask Cheng Feng: "What kind do you like?"

Cheng Feng didn't react in time and blurted out: "Good-looking, and capable of bearing children, of course."

Cheng Fu smiled and tucked these words into his heart.

Cheng Feng realized what he had said and hurriedly added: "Father, you should focus on the eldest brother's business first; there's no rush for mine."

Cheng Fu made an excuse and brushed it off: "It's fine, it's fine, I was just asking in passing, you won't lose out."

Cheng Feng felt that given his status and position, if he didn't find a sweet, devoted girl from a wealthy family in the future, it would really be a disservice to his own efforts!

He hurriedly explained: "Your son is still in the stage of working hard; who knows, I might even be able to marry a young lady from those wealthy families in the future! Father, don't rush to worry about my affairs yet."

When Cheng Fu heard this, he couldn't stop grinning; there was hope!

He didn't pry further and changed the subject.

Everything at home was peaceful.

Cheng Feng was then able to return to the county seat with peace of mind. Of course, on the way back, he also dug up the fifty taels of silver he had buried outside the village.

The home in the county was also running low on grain.

Cheng Feng prepared to put the silver at home to be used next year.

Under the sunlight, Cheng Feng walked along the winding dirt path; after another short stretch, he would be able to see the county seat.

With something to look forward to in life—a wife, children, and a warm bed—Cheng Feng's steps became even lighter.

Suddenly, a chaotic sound of horse hooves and shouting came from ahead, breaking the tranquility of the air.

Cheng Feng frowned, lightened his steps, and quickly approached the source of the sound.

"We're almost at the county seat; where did these highwaymen come from?"

He saw over a dozen masked men in black surrounding a carriage; blades flashed, clearly an ambush.

His heart stirred, but he did not act immediately, instead hiding to the side to observe the situation.

These bandits were all Ordinary people; Cheng Feng saw no signs of martial arts training.

There was no technique in their blade-swinging either.

They relied only on strength and speed.

The battle grew more intense, and a woman's scream came from the carriage, her voice filled with terror and helplessness.

The coachman on the carriage and the servants around it seemed to have practiced some martial arts.

But none of them had entered the Strength Refining Realm.

Cheng Feng himself was just an Ordinary person and had no intention of getting involved in this matter.

As long as it did not entangle him, that would be fine.

But that coachman seemed to have spotted Cheng Feng, who was watching from the side.

He shouted loudly: "Friend opposite, leave quickly! These people are from the North City Blood Wolf Gang. If you can go to the county town and report this to the North City Lin Family Grain Firm, the Lin family will surely reward you handsomely."

The black-clad gang members looked at each other, then looked at the man leading them.

The leader looked around but did not see Cheng Feng's figure, so he said regardless: "Kill them first, then we'll see."

Cheng Feng felt a surge of joy seeing the leader ignore the coachman's words.

Although the Blood Wolf Gang was the gang his uncle belonged to,

he was not involved in the gang himself, so there was no need to fear them.

He was just an Ordinary person with a bit of martial strength.

He was not invulnerable to blades and spears, after all.

If he could avoid trouble, he should avoid it.

Seeing not a single sound from Cheng Feng's direction, the coachman urged anxiously: "Friend, if you can help report the news that the Second Miss of the Lin family is being besieged by the Blood Wolf Gang, you could get at least twenty taels of silver."

"Twenty taels?" Cheng Feng's heart stirred slightly.

He was indeed short on money.

But not to the point of becoming a target for the other side in such a situation.

How could I, Cheng, be a person who bows for five pecks of rice?

However, the leader of the black-clad men watched the coachman speaking so persuasively, even quoting a price, and felt worried and anxious.

This operation was a promotion mission arranged for him by the gang.

If he completed the mission, he could qualify to become a hall master.

To ensure the completion of the mission, the leader still found his deputy and had him take a few subordinates to search in the direction where the coachman had shouted.

Cheng Feng was greatly surprised; he was hiding behind a tree, in the bushes.

He thought he was hidden very well, occasionally poking his head out to look at the battle.

Yet he had been discovered by that coachman.

He had thought the leader was prepared to just charge through.

It shouldn't take much time for a dozen people to kill four or five servants.

But the Lin family servants had also practiced martial arts, and both sides had suffered losses.

But after all, there were more of them, so the black-clad side would definitely win in the end.

Watching the four black-clad men coming over, Cheng Feng felt helpless, but he was also prepared.

To avoid being recognized, he even smeared some dirt on his face.

Cheng Feng knew that Strength Refining only meant his strength was far superior to ordinary people, but he did not possess very long-lasting stamina.

However, every strike had terrifying attack power.

Watching the four black-clad men about to reach his side,

Cheng Feng could only choose to strike first.

For some reason, Cheng Feng felt a little excitement in his heart.

Perhaps it was to verify what he had learned.

He gathered his strength as usual.

Cheng Feng grabbed a handful of sand and dirt and threw it at the black-clad man closest to him.

A figure like a leopard then broke through the sand and dirt, throwing a full-force punch forward.

A spray of blood mist erupted.

A fist-sized area on the chest had already caved into the body.

That black-clad underling hadn't even had time to swing his blade before he felt himself flying backward lightly, crashing into the black-clad man behind him.

Killing one took out two.

Two remained.

At this moment, Cheng Feng was extremely calm.

The blood in his heart was beating like an engine.

Inhaling a large amount of oxygen, new strength surged up, and he pounced on another black-clad man again.

This gang underling was alert, dodged in advance, and even slashed with his blade.

Cheng Feng retracted his punch and struck with his elbow, the Qi of his strength surging out.

He sent this black-clad man flying again, his chest caved in; it was clear he would not survive.

Seeing three people killed in an instant, the remaining black-clad man lost his nerve.

He turned and ran, shouting at the same time to attract the leader's attention.

In a short time, the servant side had three people left, and the black-clad men had six, plus the one running away, making seven.

Seeing his own side's numbers dwindle sharply,

the black-clad leader felt powerless; the martial strength of the man who had suddenly appeared was unknown.

If they kept fighting, he was afraid he would lose all his men.

If all his men were gone, would he be a commander of nothing?

He had no choice but to say: "Retreat."

Seeing the situation was bad, the black-clad men scattered and fled.

Cheng Feng did not give chase, but instead turned and walked to the front of the carriage.

Looking at the three people guarding the carriage, he sighed inwardly: "Truly worthy of a wealthy family, protecting their master with such loyalty!"

He cupped his fists toward the coachman and said: "I just heard you say that reporting the news would earn twenty taels; given the current situation, what price can you offer?"

Looking at the young man's inquiry, then looking at the three people covered in wounds beside him,

Lin Hu felt bitter inside; just now, when he shouted, he only thought of drawing people away to disperse the manpower so he could escape with his life.

Who could have imagined he would run into a passerby in the Strength Refining Realm?

Having helped beat away the thieves of the Blood Wolf Gang, stepping forward now might risk being accused of a crime.

If one answer goes wrong, he feared the other party would not be soft-handed.

Cheng Feng looked at the silent group, then turned to the carriage and said: "Miss, are you alright?"

The carriage curtain was lifted, revealing a refined and ethereal face; the woman was about seventeen or eighteen, her eyes filled with gratitude, "Many thanks to the young master for the rescue; this young woman is endlessly grateful."

Cheng Feng smiled slightly and waved his hand to indicate that thanks were unnecessary.

Cheng Feng was indeed somewhat angry, but he was not a sycophant who couldn't walk straight the moment he saw a pretty woman.

If he hadn't broken through to the Strength Refining Realm, wouldn't his trip home have brought a fatal disaster upon himself?

Why involve passersby in your affairs?

It is true that you are loyal to your master, but should passersby suffer for it?

He said bluntly: "Then how do you think we should resolve this matter?"

Lin Wan'er felt helpless; the person before her just wanted a quick resolution, but she truly hadn't brought much silver with her on this trip.

She could only say: "Many thanks to the young hero for the rescue, but Wan'er does not have much silver on her right now; could you allow Wan'er some time? Once we return to the city, I will certainly satisfy the young hero."

Cheng Feng did not want to become famous yet, and if he really ran to their doorstep to demand a reward for his help, he feared he would no longer be able to survive in Qingxi County.

He turned and said: "Then how much do you have now?"

Cheng Feng did not want to invite trouble, but silver was indeed needed everywhere.

Lin Wan'er and her group scraped together about twelve taels.

They promised verbally that another fifty taels would be offered later.

Cheng Feng did not believe those verbal promises at all.

He only believed that what was in his hands right now was real.

He brushed off the coachman, who was trying to fish for Cheng Feng's address, with a laugh.

Seeing Cheng Feng so guarded, the coachman felt helpless; could the Lin family really owe you money?

Unable to get an answer, the matter came to an end.

Cheng Feng turned back and searched the bodies of the men in black, but there wasn't a single copper coin.

Cheng Feng sighed at his bad luck.

He piled the bodies together, borrowed a fire-striker from the coachman, and used some dry grass to set the bodies ablaze.

Watching Cheng Feng skillfully loot the money and burn the corpses,

Lin Wan'er was stunned at the carriage window.

Was he really this smooth?

Perhaps fearing further accidents on the road ahead, Lin Wan'er gave a jade pendant from her person to Cheng Feng.

She requested protection for the rest of the journey.

Cheng Feng's heart stirred; it was on his way, anyway.

He decided to escort her for a stretch to ensure she reached her destination safely.

The journey was silent, and Cheng Feng and Lin Wan'er arrived at Qingxi County.

The bustling crowd at the city gate and the lively atmosphere of the marketplace made Lin Wan'er feel a bit at ease.

She bid farewell to Cheng Feng, agreed to meet again in the future, and then hurried into the city.

Cheng Feng watched her back disappear into the crowd before turning to walk toward his Martial Arts Hall.

Fearing prying eyes, he took a few extra detours.

He stayed at the Martial Arts Hall for half a day before hurrying home.

Having been away for three days, nothing major had happened at home.

Seeing Cheng Feng return, the three women were very happy.

Xiaohua went out to buy groceries to celebrate.

Cuier went to boil water to prepare a bath for Cheng Feng.

Cai'er stepped forward to keep Cheng Feng company.

After the bath, Cai'er and Xiaohua were in the kitchen tidying up the meal,

while Cuier stayed by Cheng Feng's side.

Having killed someone for the first time, Cheng Feng did not experience the "newbie vomiting phase" as rumored.

But he was still somewhat unaccustomed to it.

As everyone knows, in such a situation, only a woman's comfort is the best medicine,

and only that could dispel the darkness and fear in Cheng Feng's heart.

Afterward,

Cheng Feng patted Cuier's smooth back and said apologetically: "You should get some rest."

Cuier shook her head and said: "It's alright."

Lying beside Cuier, Cheng Feng looked at his own hands,

"Perhaps this is the true ancient world!"