Chapter 76 Black Fire Stone Order (4)

  Huǒ Xiǎo Yè stood for a long time, until his body felt cold, before he let out a long sigh and walked out of the broken hut. He searched all the way to where he had parted ways with Shuǐ Yāo ér, but there was no one in sight. The crows and sparrows in the forest were silent, as if everything that had just happened was just a dream, except for the freshly dug grave mound. Huǒ Xiǎo Yè knelt before the mound, kowtowed three times, and said in a low voice: "Lǎo Làng, Lǎo Guān, Xiǎo Hóu, originally you guys were dead, and I didn't want to live alone either, but someone entrusted Shuǐ Yāo ér's life to me, and I couldn't betray that trust. Otherwise, I would truly be a useless coward! I, Huǒ Xiǎo Yè, am not a coward, not a useless fool! I will definitely live out my own life, rebury you guys properly! You... rest in peace..."

  Huo Xiao finished speaking, shed hot tears, and kowtowed three times before reluctantly getting up to leave.

  Huoxiao Ye turned around in the forest for half a circle, unable to find any trace of Liu Guan's family. He didn't think it was strange, assuming that Liu Guan's family had either escaped or been caught and killed by Shuixiao Er and others. Anyway, Liu Guan's life and death were no longer his concern, so he didn't bother to investigate further. Huoxiao Ye knew that he was alone and lacked the help of Shuixiao Er, so he couldn't stay in Fengtian City for long. He made up his mind to slip out of Fengtian City early in the morning and head towards Shanxi.

  In June of the same year, Wangjiabao, Shanxi Province.

  Wangjiabao was originally just a village, but at the end of the Qing Dynasty, a famous Jin merchant named Wang Quan emerged. After decades of business operations, Wang Quan's business became one of the richest in Shanxi Province. Wang Quan bought large tracts of land in Wangjiabao and built the Wang Family Compound, which covered over 1,000 mu (about 165 acres) and had nearly 1,000 rooms. Due to the diversity of Wang Quan's businesses, which almost covered all aspects of daily life, including food, clothing, shelter, and transportation, it brought prosperity to the surrounding area, making the Wang Family Compound a bustling commercial center with nearly 1,000 households and a population of almost 10,000 people. With the constant flow of merchants and travelers coming and going day and night, as well as migrants from other places seeking a living, Wangjiabao suddenly became a thriving new town.

  Right in front of the main gate of Wang's mansion, there is a street called Wangxing Street, named after Wang Quan's eldest son, Wang Xing. Wangxing Street is the main thoroughfare of Wangjiabao Village and can accommodate four horse-drawn carriages passing side by side. The road is lined with shops and stalls on both sides, colorful flags are flying high, and tourists are thronging, making it feel like being in a bustling city downtown area.

  "Make way! Make way!" someone shouted loudly at one end of the street. The crowd on the street couldn't help but turn their heads, and they saw four tall horses rushing towards the main gate of the Wang family's mansion, kicking up a cloud of dust. The people on the street hastily made way for the four galloping horses to pass through. The crowd retreated in a hurry, squeezing together in a fluster, with some elderly people whose legs were not convenient stumbling and almost falling over.

  These horsemen, all dressed in martial attire, had the three characters "Jin Yu Xiang" embroidered on their chests. They whipped the horses to death, urging them to run faster. Some locals from Wangjia Village recognized these men as the guardian warriors of the Wang family's mansion.

  Some people discussed and said: "In recent days, the martial artists of Wang's mansion have been in a hurry, I wonder if something has happened?"

  "Only ghosts know, let alone in recent days, but for the past month, the Wang family's mansion has been shrouded in mystery."

  "It's been many days since Old Master Wang has gone out for a stroll!"

  "Don't you think that there have been some strange people coming here recently? They're wandering around everywhere, doing nothing, and don't seem to be leaving."

  "Yes, indeed! Two days ago, Wang Ershu's family lost an ancestral gold ingot and was crying out for death. Could it be that these people stole it?"

  "Let's stop talking nonsense, Kong is investigating right now!"

  The martial artists galloped away on horseback, and the crowd gradually returned to calmness (more/new/most/fast??/a | p.1 | 6 | k | x | | o | М), bustling about as if nothing had happened.

  On the street, a frail old man who almost fell over just now suddenly shouted: "Where's my money? My money! It's gone! Oh no, my mother, my money was stolen!" The crowd rushed to surround him, and kind-hearted people asked: "Old man, how did your money disappear?"

  The old man slapped his body and cried out: "My money was in my pocket! A total of ten big oceans! Ah, my mother! It's the savings of our whole family! Came to Wangjiabao to buy medicine to save lives! Our family has seven people! Six people are waiting to buy medicine back to save their lives! How can I live? Save people! Catch thieves!" The old man was extremely sad, squatting on the ground and crying out loud, slapping the ground. The surrounding crowd sighed and comforted the old man.

  On the corner of a street outside the crowd, there was a young man with a messy hair and dirty face, wearing tattered clothes, leaning against the wall, slowly nibbling on a dry and hard pancake. A pair of clear but sharp eyes quietly watched this scene. On the right eyebrow of the young man's face, there was a scar about an inch long, which added a bit of masculinity to him.

  The young man took a bite of his biscuit, and with a flicker of his eyes, he saw a flat-headed, short man opposite him, who raised an eyebrow, glanced at the crowd, flashed a hint of schadenfreude, and walked straight across the street, disappearing into an alleyway on the same side as the young man, more than ten steps away.

  The young man smiled slightly, stuffed the pancake into his chest, got up and patted the dust on his buttocks, turned his head and slipped into the alley beside him.

  The young man walked quickly to a fork in the road, looked around and saw that the flat-headed man was walking quickly with his back to him. The young man looked left and right, and since there were no people coming and going on this alley, he came out and quietly followed the flat-headed man.

  The bald-headed man didn't notice at all that someone was following him, and he walked another section with a pleased expression. He turned a corner and entered a narrower and more secluded alley. He had only taken a few steps when he heard someone behind him call out: "Hey, brother in front, slow down!"

  The bald man was taken aback, and immediately turned around with a tense expression. The bald man took one look and found that it was a smiling beggar-like young man walking towards him, who clearly wasn't a local. His face relaxed instantly, and he cursed: "You stinky beggar, what's with the 'grandfather' nonsense?" As soon as this person opened his mouth, his accent revealed his true origin - from the Hubei region.

  The young man shouted: "Keep your mouth clean, who's begging for food? I'm in the same line of work as you!"

  The bald man hummed: "Huh, fellow? Did you see how I scattered them?"

  The young man said: "If you see it, you see it. You're not a local, let's follow the rules of the road - newcomers split half and half when they meet!"

  The bald-headed man scowled and cursed, "You stinky beggar, do you still know the rules? I'll tear you apart, believe it or not?"

  The young man said: "If you have the ability, come on, damn it, you come! Let's see who's unlucky, you or me!"

  "Bald-headed man cursed: 'Damn you! I still believed in your evil!' He scolded while rolling up his sleeves and rushed towards the young man."

  "Guo Laqi! Don't be presumptuous!" A clear and sharp male voice came from above the flat-headed man's head.

  The bald-headed man was taken aback and hastily stood still. A slender man jumped down from the wall and landed beside the bald-headed man.

  This man is about twenty-one or two years old, dressed in a dignified and elegant manner, with a refined appearance. If he hadn't jumped down from the wall, he would have been taken for a young master of a wealthy family walking on the street.

  Bald-headed man Guo Laoqi hurriedly put on a smiling face and said to the man: "Young master! How did you come here!"

  The man didn't pay attention to Guo Laoqi, but instead turned to the young man opposite him and clasped his fists in greeting. With a smile all over his face, he said: "I am Zheng Zhenliang from Suzhou, with an unremarkable nickname 'Xiao Bu Wei'. I'm new here and have caused offense! May I ask how you are called, brother?"

  The young man hummed: "I don't have any nickname, I'm called - Huo Xiao Xie! From Fengtian!"

  Zheng Zeliang's expression didn't change, and he seemed to be thinking as he said: "Oh! Huo Xiaoxie, what a great fire character. May I ask, Brother Huo, why have you traveled thousands of miles to come here?"

  Huǒ Xiǎo Yīn said: "This is none of your business, or you tell me first, why did you come all the way from Su Bei to here?"

  Guo Laoqi said to Zheng Zeliang, "Young master, let me go up and kill him. He hasn't even heard of your nickname, he must be a blind fool."

  Zheng Zeliang still ignored Guo Laoqi and said to Huo Xiaoxie: "Oh! Since everyone has something to do here, let's not say anything. Hehe, Fire brother, it's our first meeting, so let's not follow any rules and split it in half. It's all yours, consider it a gift from me to you."

  Guo Laoqi's face was displeased and he said: "Young Master, it can't be done!"

  Zheng Zeliang slightly tilted his head and said to Guo Laoqi, "How many times have I told you, it's not allowed to steal things here. Which finger of yours is itching? Cut it off yourself."

  Guo Laoqi's expression changed greatly, and he hastily said: "Young Master, please calm down, I was wrong! Please forgive me!"

  Zheng Ze Liang hummed: "That's not going to make Fire Brother return all the things you stole!"