Chapter 123: Tanuki Power (Part 2) [Thanks to the adorable host, Baise Youling +1]
The man's hometown was a very remote mountain village, and he weighed 8 pounds 8 ounces at birth! Fortunately, his mother had already given birth to several children before, and she was still working in the fields the day before giving birth, so she was in good health. Otherwise, she would have definitely suffered a difficult labor and postpartum hemorrhage, resulting in the death of both mother and child.
He was born with an enormous appetite and grew very quickly. Before he was ten years old, he was as tall as an average adult and had terrifying strength.
At that time, the world was relatively stable. He started helping his family with farming at a very young age. During the off-season, he would learn to hunt from the hunters in the village or sell his labor to do odd jobs for others.
Even with such efforts, as he grew older and his appetite increased, it became difficult for him to support himself. In addition, the harvest was poor, and his parents could no longer support the family. Helpless, they sold their son, who was working as a day laborer, to a brokerage firm, which then sold him to the former prefectural governor's office as a menial servant.
The story begins at this point.
The former prefect was a simple man, but his family members were anything but. He had a beautiful widowed sister who lived at home.
My younger sister was unrestrained even when she was still unmarried, and had illicit relationships with many scholars. Even after marriage, she did not restrain herself. After her husband died, she became even more unruly, no longer hiding her affair, and openly kept male lovers. In the end, she was driven back by the elders of her husband's family, who could no longer tolerate her.
The former prefect, having a terrible headache, took her home.
I repeatedly told my younger sister to behave herself.
By chance, the man caught the eye of this younger sister.
Undoubtedly, this was a young, robust, vibrant, and energetic body, a rugged style completely different from the talented men of the past. The younger sister, gazing at him from afar, fell instantly in love with the body of the man wiping sweat in the servants' courtyard, and became lustful.
This boy, who looked to be twenty-five or twenty-six but was actually only sixteen, was completely taken advantage of.
My younger sister adored her for two years, and gradually settled down.
One day, the former prefect suddenly discovered that his younger sister had changed her personality. His heart skipped a beat, and he felt that things were not so simple.
Then the former prefect discovered this.
Then the man was so angered by the former prefect that he was sold off.
At the same time, rumors of a romantic affair also began to circulate.
This man actually managed to tame that "poisonous spider"!
This child must have extraordinary abilities!
You should know that this younger sister was famous throughout Sibao County since her teenage years, known for her boldness and rich romantic history. She liked whoever she liked, no matter how awful they were; and she wouldn't even bother to glance at whoever she disliked, no matter how outstanding they were.
Admirers are like crucian carps crossing the river.
They all thought they could make this breeze stop them in their tracks and make them settle down. Whenever they confidently made this request, the girl would laugh and trample their admirers' sincerity into mincemeat.
The more I loved her, the more I hated her afterwards.
She continued to do things her own way, and no one could control her.
Thus, he earned the nickname "Poisonous Spider" even before his marriage.
I wonder what her short-lived husband thought.
This woman, after becoming a widow in her brother's house, did not go out to find food for two whole years, shocking all her former lovers.
After making further inquiries, they learned of the man's existence.
Everyone: "..."
The old flames: "..."
They felt humiliated.
Upon seeing that the former prefect had sold the man, someone quickly bought him. After that, no one knew what happened. All that was said was that a woman was found dead on the bed, covered in blood. How she died was unclear. The way outsiders looked at the man became even more intriguing.
Most intriguingly, the government officials didn't classify him as a murderer; they simply sold him back to the brokerage firm. It wasn't until the Geng Kingdom attacked, the Xin Kingdom was destroyed, and Sibao County changed hands, with the former prefect and his family moving away, that the man reappeared at the brokerage firm.
Good heavens, he was still popular with women, and many people came to inquire about his price, both openly and secretly, but he refused to be sold again.
Seeing that the duck that was about to be eaten was about to fly away, the brokerage boss was so angry that he ordered his thugs to beat him up, trying to force him to submit through brutal beatings. However, the man suddenly attacked and broke his leg, leaving him no choice but to support the man.
Later, the brokerage firm went bankrupt, and the money ended up in the hands of a merchant.
The vendors were willing to treat the man well and didn't mind him freeloading, purely because the man was a good enforcer. He was able to travel around doing business without being robbed thanks to the man.
However, this person's appetite was really giving him a headache.
Shen Tang: "..."
Good grief, now she finally understands what those subtle glances were all about. What kind of filthy garbage are these people thinking?
You think that's enough?
Who knew there was someone even stronger than the strongest?
The vendor then asked mysteriously, "Do you know his name?"
Shen Tang inexplicably felt that this question needed to be answered carefully.
"He didn't say, but I've heard people call him 'Li Li' before..."
The vendor gave another meaningful smile, which made Shen Tang a little PTSD. She forced herself to ask, "Is there a problem with the name?"
The merchant asked, "Do you know what a raccoon dog is?"
Shen Tang said, "I know. There is a beast in Guishan that looks like a pig, has spurs, and barks like a dog. Its name is Lili."
In layman's terms, it's a mythical beast that looks like a pig but has chicken claws; it's considered one of the more friendly little animals in the Classic of Mountains and Seas.
Who knew—
Merchant: "Then do you know what Tanuki is good at?"
Shen Tang blinked blankly: "...Huh???"
Zhai Le, standing to one side, finally understood. His ears turned red, and his lips twitched. "Li Li" is a name that indicates a county is good at earthworks. Therefore, it is assumed that Li Li is skilled in water and soil engineering, which means building houses, roads, and bridges. It's quite normal.
but--
Who came up with this name?!
If Lili finds out, she'll fight this person to the death!
As the center of attention, Li Li wasn't embarrassed at all, or perhaps he was already used to these messy, ambiguous gossips. He had no desire to go back with this young man; the thought of it was too much trouble.
After a while, Qi Shan returned after finishing his conversation.
He called out to Shen Tang, who was surrounded by the crowd, from afar.
"Young Master Shen, what are you doing?"
Shen Tang pointed at Li Li: "I want to buy him back."
As Qi Shan stepped forward, he looked in the direction Shen Tang pointed. When that face came into view, he suddenly stopped and his pupils contracted slightly for a moment!
He blinked and returned to normal, and the man's gaze turned to him.
He glanced at it briefly and then looked away.
Qi Shan asked Shen Tang in a calm voice, "Why buy him?"
Shen Tang complained: "He pushed me! And he hit my pig!"
That sounds like a very willful reason.
Lili: "..."
Tsk, the literary style of Spring and Autumn Annals.
Qi Shan didn't know what was going on, but she knew that Shen Tang wasn't unreasonable. Since he wanted to buy it, she should just buy it. Like Shen Tang, Qi Shan ignored the man's opinion and directly negotiated the price with the vendor.
The vendor hesitated, glancing at the man with an angry expression.
He held up five fingers: "Five taels!"
This price is quite expensive!
Shen Tang decisively quoted: "Two taels!"
The vendor shook his head: "Two ounces won't be enough to buy it!"
Shen Tang, however, stuck to the price and refused to budge.
Finally, he added, "Just two ounces! If you agree, I can buy ten or so more for the others... even if it's a little more expensive."
Wu Hui only has three ounces.
How could this person only give five taels!
Vendor: ???
Ignored, Li Li got up in anger. He didn't care about the deal and was about to leave, but Qi Shan kept an eye on him out of the corner of his eye.
He murmured to himself, "Returning from ten thousand miles away, his face is still as youthful as ever..."
Tanuki stopped walking and slowly turned around.
His gaze was more intimidating and terrifying than ever before.
1. PTSD: Post-traumatic stress disorder.
2. "Returning from afar, one's face remains youthful": This comes from Su Shi's poem "Ding Feng Bo," and in layman's terms, it means that upon returning, one is still young.
|ω｀) I hope this chapter won't be banned.
(End of this chapter)
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
