Chapter 58 Zhenhu Division
Chapter 58 Zhenhu Division
Although, strictly speaking, Master He only stayed at Bazhenlou for a few days, and even including the journey from Qingyun Manor, it was less than ten days in total, Master He's departure still made Wang Sumo feel somewhat uneasy...
For example, there are no longer any of the old man's peers who speak sharply and who would occasionally spar with him.
Although Zhao Tong and Bai Cen were enough to keep the old man busy, it was not the same as when Master He was around.
Wang Sumo could also clearly sense the old man's disappointment.
We hadn't seen each other for twenty years. We had been bickering and joking around for a few days, and then suddenly he left again.
Although he always bickered with Master He, the one who was most unaccustomed to Master He's departure was probably the old man himself...
Bai Cen has good judgment.
After Master He left with Deyuan, Bai Cen took the initiative to sit in Master He's usual seat—next to the old man. This way, while the old man was driving the carriage, he could chat with him, find things to talk about, and find things for the old man to do.
The old man glared at him, "Why are you so noisy?"
Bai Cen: "..."
Bai Cen Naihe: "Grandpa, that's not very kind of you. I'm just repeating what Master He said before. You're fine when Master He tells you, but when I tell you, it's just annoying."
The old man didn't mince words, saying, "Yes, it depends on the person."
Bai Cen was speechless. The old man's words had choked him to death, but the old man did it openly and honestly!
Bai Cen had no choice but to cross his arms and lean back slightly against the carriage, deciding to remain silent and simply stay quietly by the side to watch over the old man.
He was originally worried that the old man would be upset if Master He suddenly left; but now he was relieved. Well, compared to Master He's departure, the old man was more annoyed by his nagging.
That's alright, nothing's wrong...
Bai Cen felt relieved.
The old man continued driving the carriage; he had indeed found him noisy for a moment.
Sometimes, as people get older, their temper flares up, and they become less patient than before, especially when they are feeling down.
He felt uneasy when Lao He left. Even though he knew Bai Cen meant well, he was so annoyed when he heard the rest that he wanted to throw him off the carriage!
I don't know how Lao He manages to remain so gentle and composed all the time...
Although Bai Cen kept quiet, the old man was still annoyed.
As I get older, I understand one thing more and more.
Just like how Lao He would travel a long way from Qingyun Manor to see him with his maid—at this age, every time you see someone you want to see, it's one less time you'll see them.
Don't think about having plenty of time in the future, because life is full of unexpected events and changes that can interrupt those "plenty of time."
When he was young, he parted ways with Lao He. Both of them were full of vigor and agreed to meet again in ten years.
The first time, the second time, the third time... it was always the same.
But at noon today, I could no longer utter such bold words.
The same applies to the martial arts world. If you meet Liu Henshui, you can go together to see the Eight-Sided Formation-Breaking Umbrella. Once you see the Eight-Sided Formation-Breaking Umbrella, it might lead to a whole new story.
He and Lao He may never have the chance to meet again in the mountains and rivers...
He had just come to this realization when Bai Cen kept nagging in his ear, which made him quite annoyed.
Afterwards, he suddenly felt that he had poured cold water on Xiaobai. Xiaobai could have ignored him, but he treated him as one of his own and was afraid that Xiaobai would be upset and depressed.
When Lao Qu turned his head slightly to look at Bai Cen, who was dozing off against the carriage, he saw that Bai Cen had his arms crossed and seemed to be asleep.
The old man turned back and sighed softly.
Suddenly, the dozing "statue" behind him spoke up, "It's alright. I know you were upset about Master He's passing, but it's alright now. Don't worry about having no friends on the road ahead, old man. Aren't we still at Bazhenlou?"
Old Qu turned around again, and there was someone whose eyes were still closed, but whose arms were wrapped around a sword and whose lips were smiling.
Old Qu scoffed, "Sharp-tongued!"
The more you like something, the more you should say the opposite.
Bai Cen didn't open his eyes, but his smile widened. "Don't worry, the old master instructed us before he passed away to take good care of the old man."
"You just listened to what he told you? You're so kind?" Even the old man would have to retort.
Bai Cen then opened his eyes with a smile, and leaned closer to say, "You should hear it! Master He gave me a huge sum of money!"
Old Qu suddenly stopped the carriage, and Bai Cen almost flew out. "Hey! What are you doing, old man?"
Old Qu was furious. "He gave you a huge sum of money, where is it?"
Bai Cen was speechless. He could only take out a neatly folded piece of paper from his sleeve. Lao Qu took it without even looking at it, then opened it and glanced at it.
— These are silver notes from Jinsuilou!
Bai Cen quickly snatched it back from his hand. "Old man, you have to be careful. This is a bank note from Jin Sui Lou. If it's torn, they won't accept it!"
Old Qu's slightly better mood sank again. Those who left after making proper arrangements were mostly prepared not to come back. Otherwise, why would they impulsively stuff so many silver notes into this brat's hand?
Bai Cen naturally saw it too, and stepped forward to pat him on the shoulder, comforting him, "Old man, we might be overthinking it. Qingyun Manor is rich and has money to burn. This big spender might not even be a big deal to Master He. If you don't believe me, you can ask the owner privately if she extorted money from anyone when she left Qingyun Manor."
However, after Bai Cen said that, Lao Qu felt much better.
As soon as he finished speaking, the curtain on the car door was lifted, revealing Bai Sumo's small head.
"Master!" Bai Cen was startled.
Suddenly, a head popped up in this desolate wilderness!
Wang Sumo said with a smile, "I heard everything. I'm really sorry to interrupt."
Bai Cen and the old man turned to look at her, and Zhao Tong also looked over from another corner of the carriage. Just now, they had indeed heard it clearly from inside the carriage.
He could empathize with him on one hand, because the old bald monk was gone, and he probably wouldn't have the chance to see him alive again; on the other hand, he didn't really want to hear or see it, so he remained silent.
But as Wang Sumo stepped forward, he subconsciously felt that things would take a strange turn.
Sure enough, when Zhao Tong saw Wang Sumo enthusiastically pull out a folded piece of paper from his sleeve, he frowned slightly. He could just make out that the folded paper was actually a silver note.
Wang Sumo handed the silver notes to the old man and said, “Old man, Bai Cen is right. It’s not that Old Master He has arranged everything before leaving and is not coming back; it’s just that his family has always been generous and spends money on everything. Look, this is the silver note given for only two meals and one late-night snack at Qingyun Manor.”
Bai Cen's eyes widened in disbelief.
The old man blinked, and Wang Sumo continued, "They really have no idea! Didn't Ah Zhen say before that the first time she met He Ping was when she was asking about the whereabouts of Bazhenlou? She saw that he was from Qingyun Manor and didn't seem to have any ill intentions. Most importantly, those guys' fancy but ineffective martial arts wouldn't be able to hurt the old man, so she told He Ping that Bazhenlou had been there. Du Ping didn't even think about it and just gave him such a big silver ingot~"
Wang Sumo gestured as she spoke, marveling, "It really is this big."
“So,” Wang Sumo concluded at the opportune moment, “Qingyun Manor doesn’t really have much of a concept of this from top to bottom. It’s all done by He Huai’an, the grand-nephew of Old Master He, along with a few managers. He Huai’an is the kind of person who likes to give out large sums of money. Without a doubt, all the money Old Master He has on him comes from him. So, it really has nothing to do with Old Master He. First, he can’t break them; second, he definitely has many more on him, so one more won’t make a difference.”
Bai Cen: -_-||
He almost believed it when someone just blurted it out like that.
Then he suddenly saw Wang Sumo secretly winking at him, and he realized it was all an act.
He had to play along, saying, "That's right! Qingyun Manor's wound medicine is incredibly valuable. With so many shops, big and small, they're making money every day. Qingyun Manor is wealthier than most martial arts sects. If you don't believe me, you can even check the accounts at the government office!"
This time it was Wang Sumo's turn to be surprised, "Go to the yamen to check the accounts? Which yamen?"
Bai Cen was also surprised, "Boss, you didn't know?"
Wang Sumo nodded blankly.
Bai Cen had no choice but to switch from cooperating to supplementing her with the common knowledge about the relationship between martial arts sects and government offices. How could someone who travels the martial arts world not know this?
"The imperial court supervises martial arts sects. It's not that a sect becomes a legitimate sect just because someone creates one day. It has to be established and registered with the government office. Establishment and registration require paying a silver fee once, and then an annual silver fee is required to maintain the registration. In the martial arts world, this is called 'sect tax'."
“Each martial arts sect is responsible for itself. The imperial court is only responsible for supervision and registration, and does not involve any other control. Think about it, if there is no supervision, any Tom, Dick, or Harry will come out and create a sect, and then claim to be a major martial arts sect. People who have been traveling in the martial arts world for many years are fine, but newcomers, or those who have never entered the martial arts world, are clueless and cannot distinguish which are legitimate sects and which are shady sects.”
"If you encounter some swindlers, they might rent a few courtyards, display a few more weapons and so-called secret manuals, and then start charging you a basic fee to join the sect. They'll tell you that the sect will return the money you paid for joining the sect with each mission, and they'll also give you money every month. Many naive young people who can't keep up with the hype and are eager to succeed in the martial world just run headlong into it!"
Wang Sumo: "..."
Old Master Qu: "..."
Bai Cen didn't understand Wang Sumo's gaze and continued, "I heard that many similar incidents happened decades ago. Those hot-headed young people from decades ago didn't ask any questions and had no basic ability to distinguish right from wrong. They just invested all their savings and caused a huge uproar. Later, the imperial court had no choice but to take action and establish a special department."
"This special government office is called Zhenhu Division. Because it is only responsible for collecting taxes, it is under the Ministry of Revenue..." When Bai Cen realized something was wrong, he stopped and looked at Wang Sumo.
Wang Sumo: →_→
Bai Cen followed that gaze.
Good heavens!
"A hothead from decades ago": ←_←
[Author's Note]
The accountant is coming! [Peeking while covering face]
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