Chapter 4

There are always people beyond people, and skies beyond skies; Yang Ning still agreed with this saying.

Although he was clear about his grudges, he was not someone who would stir up trouble. He had previously thought that the Monkey and the others were truly tamed by his beating, but now it seemed that those guys had ulterior motives.

Yang Ning felt that sometimes one shouldn't feel too good about oneself.

"You should rest for a few days. I've already told them not to let others know that you're getting better," Old Tree Bark always had a worried and sentimental expression.

Yang Ning asked curiously, "Why is that?"

"Why?" Old Tree Bark smiled bitterly, "If Fang Lao Da knows you're getting better, will he let you rest?"

"Fang Lao Da?" Yang Ning felt he had heard this name before and quickly remembered, "It seems that Fang Lao Da took me into the Beggar Gang?"

Old Tree Bark nodded, "Fang Lao Da is the leader of hundreds of Beggar Gang disciples in Huize City. He took you in because he saw that you were nimble."

"How so? If he knows I'm getting better, will he cause me trouble?" Yang Ning was curious about what grudges the Beggar Gang leader in the city might have with him, "Why can't he know I'm better?"

Old Tree Bark confirmed that Yang Ning's mind was indeed muddled after his illness and explained, "Not to cause you trouble, but to make you continue working. Do you think we can stay in this land temple that shelters us from the wind and rain? It's all because of you."

Yang Ning was even more curious, thinking that living in a land temple could be his achievement?

"Fang Lao Da knew you were nimble, so he took you into the Beggar Gang to do those things. In the past half year, you haven't failed once, and you've done a lot for Fang Lao Da," Old Tree Bark sat on the threshold, "Not everyone among the hundreds of Beggar Gang disciples in the city can find a place to shelter from the wind and rain. It's because of your achievements that we can stay here." His face showed a hint of anger, "But Fang Lao Da is really a scoundrel. When he saw you fall ill, he didn't spend money to treat you, and he ignored you. He probably thought you were already dead."

Although Yang Ning also secretly cursed Fang Lao Da, he realized from Old Tree Bark's words that the owner of this body, Xiaoshaor, was not a simple character and had done a lot for Fang Lao Da. He sat down on the threshold and asked, "Right, what did Fang Lao Da make me do? What great achievements did I make?" Seeing Old Tree Bark looking at him, Yang Ning immediately pointed to his head, indicating that he had forgotten many things.

Old Tree Bark smiled bitterly, "What big things can we beggars do?" He extended a withered hand, pointing out his middle and index fingers while keeping the other three fingers folded, making a gesture like a pair of scissors, and then looked at Yang Ning without speaking, but the meaning in his eyes was clear: now you should understand.

Yang Ning was first stunned, then imitated Old Tree Bark, extending his two fingers forward. Feeling that this gesture was so shameless, he immediately withdrew his hand and frowned, "Why does this gesture look like stealing wallets?" He was taken aback and looked at Old Tree Bark, surprised, "Old Tree Bark, you can't mean that I... I used to steal things for Fang Lao Da, right?"

Old Tree Bark nodded solemnly, "You are the fastest under Fang Lao Da!"

Yang Ning felt a chill, not knowing whether Old Tree Bark's words were praise or sarcasm. He smiled bitterly, never imagining that Xiaoshaor had achieved so much through this.

"Do Beggar Gang disciples live by this?" Yang Ning's impression of the famous Beggar Gang instantly collapsed.

Old Tree Bark sighed, "If Lu Lao Da were still alive, it wouldn't be like this."

"Who is Lu Lao Da?"

"Lu Lao Da was the head of the Beggar Gang in Huize City. When he was around, the rules were strict, and no one dared to do those deceitful and thieving things." Old Tree Bark's eyes glimmered, "Back then, there was order among the young and old. I've been in the Beggar Gang for over twenty years, and I had some seniority. When Lu Lao Da was around, he took good care of us old beggars and would gather us to discuss important matters." His face showed a rare hint of pride.

Yang Ning couldn't help but think that if you've been in the Beggar Gang for over twenty years and are still just like this, it's really too pitiful. No wonder those guys don't listen to you.

But he also understood that Old Tree Bark was kind and good-natured and didn't like to fight. Where there are people, there is a江湖 (jianghu, a term for the world of martial arts and chivalry), and where there is a江湖, there is conflict. The Beggar Gang is the largest江湖, so internal conflicts are inevitable. With Old Tree Bark's personality, he really wasn't suited to fight.

"You mean Lu Lao Da is dead?" Yang Ning frowned, "How did he die?"

"When Lu Lao Da was around, the constables didn't dare to touch us Beggar Gang disciples," Old Tree Bark's face showed a hint of pride, "The Beggar Gang now has hundreds of disciples, all because of Lu Lao Da. When he was alive, even Xiao Yishui had to give him face." He then sighed, "Unfortunately, he died of a sudden illness three years ago."

"Xiao Yishui? Sudden illness?"

Old Tree Bark explained, "Xiao Yishui is the constable of Huize City. This person...!" He shook his head and didn't say more about the constable, "Lu Lao Da was originally very healthy, but one day he suddenly fell ill. Fang Lao Da personally took care of him, and he passed away in a few days. Fang Lao Da then naturally took over Lu Lao Da's position."

Yang Ning noticed that Old Tree Bark's words were somewhat evasive and felt something was amiss, but he didn't ask more.

Old Tree Bark continued, "After Fang Lao Da took over, he quickly allied with Xiao Yishui. Before, Beggar Gang disciples would beg or do physical labor in the city, doing all kinds of things except for dishonest deeds... but after Fang Lao Da took over, the Beggar Gang brothers started to... ." He sighed and didn't continue.

Yang Ning now understood that the change in the Beggar Gang began with Fang Lao Da's ascension.

Lu Lao Da died, and Fang Lao Da took over, quickly allying with the constable of Huize City, Xiao Yishui. These pieces of information together made one speculate.

However, Yang Ning wasn't very interested in the past of the Beggar Gang. Currently in the Beggar Gang, he only cared about the current situation, so he asked, "The Beggar Gang disciples in Huize City are of mixed quality and disorderly. Does the Wing Fire Snake branch leader not manage? Does the Beggar Gang leader, Xiang, not care about Fang Lao Da's actions that tarnish the reputation of the Beggar Gang?"

Old Tree Bark laughed, "The Beggar Gang has twenty-eight branches spread across the country. Just our Wing Fire Snake branch has tens of thousands of members. A small county with a few hundred disciples, how can the branch leader manage here? And who would dare to report Fang Lao Da's actions? As for Xiang, we've only heard of him but never seen him. I doubt we'll ever see him in our lifetimes."

Yang Ning nodded slightly. A gang with hundreds of thousands of members is an incredibly large force, but precisely because it is so large, it is mixed with good and bad elements. Even if Xiang had three heads and six arms, he couldn't manage everything.

When Monkey returned to the land temple, Yang Ning had already taken a refreshing bath in the pond in front of the temple. The dirt on his body was too deep to wash off completely, but after washing in the clear water, he felt refreshed and his strength and energy were restored.

Monkey managed to get a few wheat cakes in half a day. Yang Ning was hungry and chewed on the cakes, finding them dry and hard to swallow, with no crisp texture. He thought that the use of wheat flour in this era was still not advanced, and these cakes were clearly not fermented, making them hard to swallow.

Since he was here, he had to make the best of it. This was a principle Yang Ning understood.

The air after the rain was fresh, but Yang Ning was also thinking about Xiaodie.

Yang Ning was clear about his grudges. Xiaodie had saved his life, and he was grateful. Hearing from Old Tree Bark that Xiaodie was in a very harsh environment made him even more eager to see her and find out if she was safe.

Yang Ning originally wanted to set off early to the Dead Alley where Mama Flower lived, but Monkey was afraid of the Dead Alley and persuaded Yang Ning to go later. Since Yang Ning was unfamiliar with Huize City, he didn't insist and waited until dusk to have Monkey lead the way to the Dead Alley.

At dusk, the sun was about to set, and the entire Huize City was bathed in the last rays of the sunset.

Although Huize City was a small city, people were divided into different classes. Most small shops and stalls were in the front part of the city, while the few tea houses, taverns, and brothels that could maintain a decent appearance were on a long street in the back part of the city.

The street was bustling with people.

Yang Ning observed the customs and scenery of this era as he walked and found that the scenes were not as ancient and elegant as he had imagined. In fact, most of the buildings in the city were quite messy and lacked planning, making the streets and alleys like a maze. If you were not familiar with the roads, it was easy to get lost.

He had heard that the city was full of refugees, but when he reached the long street in the back part of the city, although it was quite busy, it was not as crowded as he had imagined. From Monkey, he learned that the refugees were settled in a corner of the county, and the conditions there were like a different world compared to the back part of the city.

"Xiaoshaor, do you see that intersection ahead? Turn into it, go straight through the next street, and that alley is the Dead Alley," Monkey pointed the way from a corner of the street.

Yang Ning saw a lane entrance on the street and asked softly, "Is the next street also this busy?"

"Not really," Monkey shook his head, "It's much quieter, mostly residential... Oh no, Xiaoshaor, quickly lower your head...!"

Before he finished speaking, Monkey's face turned panicked, and he turned around, even lowering his head as if afraid of being seen.

Yang Ning, seeing Monkey's reaction, looked around but didn't see anything wrong, and asked in a low voice, "What's wrong?"

"Look at the Ten Li Fragrance across the street...!" Monkey didn't turn around and said in a low voice, "Do you see the two people coming out?"

Yang Ning glanced across the street and saw a two-story tavern that stood out on the busy street.

It was a wooden structure with a sloping eave, and a black wooden sign hung above the front door, with the gilded characters "Ten Li Fragrance" clearly visible.

Yang Ning looked closely and saw two people standing in front of the Ten Li Fragrance. One was dressed in a silver-gray outfit, tall and straight, with one hand behind his back and the other supporting his chin, looking quite elegant. The other was slightly shorter but looked sturdy, leaning close to the man in the silver-gray outfit, whispering into his ear with one hand covering his mouth.

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