"Easy to say." The man in the white shirt placed a copper coin in front of the Old Blind Man.
The Old Blind Man grabbed the copper coin, looked at it closely, and sighed:
"This nonexistent thing, yet it governs the dream world, so powerful."
Augustus seed sowhat bewildered.
Money is the most powerful thing in the world, deciding everyone’s fate.
Why call it nonexistent?
"Old sir, please tell my fortune." The man in the white shirt spoke.
"What do you want to know?" asked the Old Blind Man.
"Please tell what I want to know," said the man in the white shirt, saluting.
"Oh? So simple?" The Old Blind Man was a bit surprised.
"Please." The man in the white shirt spoke respectfully.
Augustus’s chopsticks paused, a look of admiration in his eyes.
—Scholars are indeed formidable.
Seemingly respectful, yet handling matters flawlessly, the real motive being to expose the other’s deception.
No wonder everyone fears scholars.
Unfortunately, his family has no money.
Otherwise, he could also pursue studies.
He was lost in thought, then heard the Old Blind Man speak:
"You want to know if the widow next door whose husband died will crawl over through the dog hole to accompany you tonight, since you did buy her a gold hairpin last ti, spending quite a bit of silver."
The man in the white shirt’s face changed.
"Of course, I’m joking," the Old Blind Man’s tone shifted, smiling: "Congratulations, this year you’ll gain honor."
"Announcing the results in an hour, you’re ranked fourth in the first class."
"Your na is Zhang Xuedi!"
"—The na seems rather casually chosen, but it doesn’t hinder the world’s narrative."
After speaking, the Old Blind Man flicked the copper coin.
The copper coin landed on Augustus’s table.
"It’s yours, kid." said the Old Blind Man.
Everyone glanced at Augustus.
But the Old Blind Man was watching everyone, observing their expressions of jealousy, confusion, or malice, and exclaid:
"Not bad, everyone’s unaware, dedicating a lifeti, playing a role in a play."
"—I even want to learn that technique."
Augustus stopped eating, stood up, placed the copper coin back in front of the Old Blind Man, and quickly walked out of the noodle shop.
He walked faster and faster, weaving through alleyways, onto another street.
Looking around, people were rushing by, no one paying attention to him.
Only then did he breathe a sigh of relief.
Earlier, the Old Blind Man had been watching him all along.
Creepy.
—Perhaps the Old Blind Man and the man in the white shirt are in cahoots, performing a double act, just to entice people.
He had heard of such tales before.
So believed it and were swindled of a large sum of money.
He was determined not to fall for it!
Augustus steadied himself, pushing the matter to the back of his mind.
Following his mory, he asked several people along the way, finally reaching outside the county governnt.
Indeed, so notices were posted outside.
Augustus looked at them one by one and suddenly shuddered.
On a notice, he saw a portrait.
Looking at the person’s likeness and features—
It was the corpse from the sea!
He hurriedly looked at the small characters below the portrait.
Though not well-versed, the text on the notice was simple to understand.
"Offering a reward of one hundred taels of official silver for finding this person’s whereabouts."
One hundred taels!
Official silver!
Augustus staggered slightly, barely managing to keep his footing.
Though never eaten pork at, at least he’d seen pigs run.
Of course, he knew that one tael of silver could be exchanged for a thousand copper coins.
Official silver is the most refined silver available.
Exchanging it for copper coins, one tael of official silver could be exchanged for fourteen to fifteen hundred copper coins.
But!
The reward offered on this notice was one hundred taels of official silver.
One hundred taels of official silver!!!
How many copper coins could that exchange for?
Impossible.
He couldn’t quite calculate that.
But imagining it, one could picture a mountain piled with copper coins.
A mountain of coins...
Augustus stood frozen in place, subconsciously reaching into his pocket.
The two copper coins in his pocket had been touched countless tis, soaked in sweat, slippery, just like his sweaty face now.
The next mont.
Augustus clenched the two copper coins tightly, his fingers turning white.
For this money, Cheng murdered him.
Indeed.
He was just a little fish catcher.
Of lowly fate.
Even if he died at sea, others would rely say "It was his fate."
No one would care about the truth.
Apart from the bedridden old father at ho, no one would feel sorry for him.
A fire suddenly surged from within his body.
This fire was uncontrollable, instantly filled his mind, transforming into a thought:
"Kill them."
Kill.
Kill Cheng and his henchn.
—For hundreds of miles, old and young alike, people who make a living on the sea.
Only Cheng’s ship dared to go to West Tiger Reef.
Only Cheng’s crew kept fishing corpses at sea constantly.
Only—
They and he could retrieve that corpse.
Kill them.
Vengeance for himself and pocket all the money!
They all must die!!!
A voice suddenly sounded in his ears:
"Your body is so well-arranged—liver and kidney ridians move through twenty-six acupoints, fueling the fire of rage above, adding the wind of ignorance below, with murder intent, even Divine Spirit could not dissuade—what a masterpiece, truly a masterpiece!"
Augustus shuddered violently.
Turning his head, it was the Old Blind Man whom he’d bumped into at the noodle shop.
"You followed !"
Augustus reached for the dagger hidden behind his back.
The Old Blind Man quickly leaped back, shouting: "Hold on—look where we are."
He gestured around.
Augustus instantly cald down.
That’s right.
This is the county governnt.
Killing a fortune teller here, what would that accomplish?
Courting death?
"Old sir—"
Augustus inserted his hand into his pocket, intending to take out a copper coin to dismiss him, but after fumbling back and forth, he was still reluctant to take out the copper coin.
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