Chapter 7: Yizhuang, Mysterious Corpse

Chapter 7: Chapter 7: Yizhuang, Mysterious Corpse

After the two finished the wine in their bowls, the light screen in front of Fang Xu shifted once again.

Friend 4: Huangzhou Prefecture, Qinghe County, Fenglin Town - Liang San (15%)

Friend 5: Huangzhou Prefecture, Qinghe County, Fenglin Town - Xie Xiaoqi (15%)

"Not bad, not bad!" he thought. "Five friends now!"

However, staring at the percentage at the end of each friend’s status on the light screen, Fang Xu was slightly confused. He wondered what those numbers meant.

"Fang Family boy, how much more of this fine wine do you have?" Wu Ningxue asked. Savoring the moment, a sharp light gleamed in her beautiful eyes.

His thoughts interrupted, Fang Xu snapped back to reality and quickly replied, "To be completely honest with you, Wu, there’s a strict prohibition on alcohol by the authorities. I didn’t dare to brew too much. These two jugs are all I have right now."

Hearing this, Zhang Mingliang hurriedly pulled the remaining jug and a half of fine wine into his arms. "Wu, Fang Xu gave this to me."

Wu Ningxue’s beautiful eyes widened as she immediately retorted, "The boy from the Fang Family only said he’d let you taste it. When did he agree to give it to you?

"How about this—you take the opened jug, and I’ll take the untouched one."

Zhang Mingliang hugged both jugs tightly, refusing to let go. However, sensing the faint Evil Qi radiating from Wu Ningxue, he could only helplessly compromise. After reluctantly handing the sealed jug over to Wu Ningxue, he quickly grabbed the clay seal next to him to cover his own jug, terrified that the aroma would escape.

Wu Ningxue was elated to have the wine.

"Fang Family boy, I won’t take this wine for nothing," she said. "One jug of wine for one Qi Blood Pill. How about you come and collect it in ten days?"

Upon hearing this, Fang Xu quickly cupped his hands in thanks. "Thank you so much, Wu."

Seeing this, Zhang Mingliang seemed a bit embarrassed. He chimed in, "Fang Xu, you probably need Blood Food lately. I won’t take your wine for nothing either. I’ll have someone deliver fifty pounds of Blood Food to you later."

Fifty pounds of Blood Food was roughly equivalent in value to one Qi Blood Pill. By exchanging goods for the wine, the two clearly did not consider Fang Xu a true friend. Fang Xu didn’t mind this at all. Regardless of what they thought, as long as the system recognized the friendship, that was enough. He never intended to be genuine friends with them anyway. Besides, with fifty pounds of Blood Food on the way, he wouldn’t need to spend his own money on it for the time being.

After exchanging a few more pleasantries, Zhang Mingliang hurried off. As for Fang Xu, since he hadn’t managed to purchase a Qi Blood Pill, he had to settle for buying some Medicinal Powder to use temporarily.

After Fang Xu left, the old man, Chu Li, looked at Wu Ningxue and bowed. "Ms. Wu, do you really consider that boy from the Fang Family a friend?"

"A friend?" Wu Ningxue gave a faint smile and shook her head. "He’s not qualified yet.

"Enough, Elder Li. My father’s eightieth birthday is in a few days, so this jug of fine wine must be preserved perfectly.

"Furthermore, notify the family to send over some Qi Blood Pills as soon as possible."

On his way back from the streets, Fang Xu hummed a tune the entire time. This trip had been extremely fruitful. He had spent fifty taels of silver to obtain the Refining Viscera Technique, and used two jugs of wine to gain five friends, fifty pounds of Blood Food, and a Qi Blood Pill.

"Fang," a familiar voice called out from behind just as Fang Xu reached his front door.

"Mrs. Wang?"

The newcomer was Wang Ergou’s wife, Wang Family. Seeing her, Fang Xu quickly hid the cloth bag containing his silver behind his back.

"Fang, Si Ji has already sent Ergou’s body to the Yizhuang," Wang Family said, having changed into plain mourning clothes that made her look even more delicate and pitiful. "I... I want to go see him. Could you..."

"You want me to accompany you to the Yizhuang, Mrs. Wang?" Fang Xu asked.

Wang Family nodded, anticipation in her eyes.

Fang Xu hesitated for a moment before replying, "Alright, wait for me to put my things away, Mrs. Wang."

Wang Family was part of the inheritance he had received. Although he couldn’t harbor any other intentions toward her for now, the system’s mighty power had already altered her mindset—a fact he could exploit. After all, behind the Wang Ergou incident stood Wang Erhu, who served as one of the Government Soldiers. He was a Martial Artist and Fang Xu’s designated candidate for a future friend.

"Sorry to trouble you, Fang," Wang Family said. She bowed slightly, looking at him with deep gratitude.

After placing his items inside the house and securely hiding his remaining silver taels, Fang Xu locked the door and followed Wang Family toward the Yizhuang in town. On the way, Wang Family walked behind him, her gaze wandering over Fang Xu’s broad back multiple times.

"Fang..."

"Hmm?" Fang Xu stopped in his tracks. Behind him, Wang Family had been keeping her head down and, completely oblivious to his sudden halt, bumped right into him.

Blushing furiously, she stepped back and pinched the hem of her shirt with her slender fingers. "Did you know that Wang Ergou and I weren’t very close?" she whispered.

Hearing this, Fang Xu was taken aback. His mind inevitably drifted to a saying a good friend from his past life used to tell him: when a married woman complained to you about the discord in her marriage, it meant an opportunity had arrived.

Seeing Fang Xu remain silent, Wang Family spoke again, her tone melancholic. "If my father hadn’t been a gambling addict who racked up debts and tried to sell me off to pay them, Wang Ergou wouldn’t have stepped in to clear the debt.

"Coupled with the pressure from his brother who served with the Government Soldiers... how else could I have given myself to him?"

Now that she had opened up, Wang Family seemed intent on pouring her heart out. As she followed closely behind Fang Xu, she kept chattering away. "You probably didn’t know, Fang, but Wang Ergou... he was impotent."

Wang Ergou was impotent?

A shiver of disgust ran through Fang Xu. Could this be the melodramatic trope of being married for three years and still remaining a virgin? Regardless of whether Wang Family was pure and untouched or not, he couldn’t possibly do anything to her. At least until he gained sufficient strength, it was best to avoid such troubles.

Seeing that Fang Xu remained completely unmoved despite her explicit words—merely keeping his head down and walking forward—a trace of resentment flashed in Wang Family’s eyes, and she fell silent.

Walking in tandem, the two soon arrived at the Yizhuang located just outside the town.

The Yizhuang was a temporary resting place for the corpses of those who died unnatural deaths; it was a place of extreme bad luck. As evening approached, absolutely no one was willing to go near it. When Fang Xu and Wang Family arrived, the Yizhuang keeper was nowhere to be found, likely hiding away to slack off. The place was entirely deserted.

Wang Ergou’s body lay on a wooden plank in the center of the room, his face covered by a white cloth. It was an eerie and terrifying sight. Wang Family stood outside the door, refusing to step any closer.

Confused, Fang Xu asked, "Didn’t you want to come see Ergou, Mrs. Wang? Why aren’t you coming in?"

Wang Family shook her head. "The keeper of the Yizhuang isn’t here."

Hearing this, it clicked in Fang Xu’s mind. Since there was no audience, there was naturally no need to put on a show. Wang Family likely felt that if she didn’t visit Wang Ergou at the Yizhuang, it would be difficult to explain herself when his brother returned from serving with the Government Soldiers.

"Since we’re already here, you should at least burn some paper money for Ergou, Mrs. Wang," Fang Xu suggested.

Wang Family paused briefly. She seemed to agree that burning some paper money was a good idea; at the very least, it would prove she had been there. She immediately grabbed some coarse paper from the side and began burning it in front of Wang Ergou’s corpse. On his end, feeling grateful for the one hundred taels of silver Wang Ergou had contributed, Fang Xu bowed to the corpse as a gesture of thanks.

After bowing, he looked around the Yizhuang out of sheer boredom.

In this world, human lives were as worthless as weeds. The bloody conflicts between Martial Artists, or the venomous insects and ferocious beasts in the wild, could easily claim the lives of ordinary people. When those who died tragically were found, they were usually sent to the Yizhuang first, waiting for relatives to claim them. If they remained unclaimed after a certain period, the keeper would drag the bodies to the Chaotic Burial Mounds to be buried. As for any money or belongings left on the corpses, they naturally ended up lining someone else’s pockets.

Fang Xu walked over to another corpse covered by a white cloth nearby. His gaze swept over the feet exposed outside the shroud, and he froze.

This was... Glowing Gold Thread Embroidery!

The corpse in front of him was actually wearing a pair of black tall boots woven with Glowing Gold Thread Embroidery!

When his grandfather was still alive, he had told him that this technique of Glowing Gold Thread Embroidery originated from the Yun Family in Huangzhou Prefecture. A pair of tall boots like the ones worn by this corpse was worth a hundred gold! Converted to silver, it would be a staggering ten thousand silver taels!

However, it was a pity that these tall Glowing Gold Thread Embroidery boots on the corpse were severely damaged, meaning they likely weren’t worth much anymore.

As he examined the boots, Fang Xu was just about to turn and leave when he caught a glimpse of something hidden inside the damaged sole of one of the boots!