Chapter 17

The tavern was just a short distance away, a few steps and he was there.

Yang Yu had only drunk some tea all morning, and by now his stomach was growling, so he didn't hesitate to dig in.

Since he had come through the portal, the times he had eaten meat could be counted on one hand. Although these dishes were just ordinary and the ingredients were not complete, he still savored them with great delight.

"Slow down, eat more slowly..."

He wolfed down the food, making Li Er's eyes twitch and his heart ache.

Immediately, Li Er also put aside his reserve and joined in the feast.

Amidst the clinking of cups and toasts, the two of them struck a deal, leaving Yang Yu with a deep sense of reflection.

No wonder in his previous life, business talks always involved drinking sessions.

After a few drinks, even two strangers could naturally call each other brothers.

"Mr. Li, take it easy, no need to see me off."

Waving his hand unsteadily, Yang Yu strolled down the stairs, not forgetting to take two dishes with him as he left.

Once outside, there was not a trace of drunkenness.

"At least it's done."

Looking back at the tavern, he could still see Li Er waving from the window, and he felt a sense of relief.

After coming through the portal, his memory was clearly better than in his previous life, but it wasn't enough to let him write down thousands of words from memory.

The reason he could do it was because he had similar ideas before.

Originally, he had planned to sell books.

In the past six months, he had moved between several schools, partly to learn and partly to consider selling books.

However, publishing books turned out to be much more complicated than he had imagined. The cost alone was beyond his means.

Although Heishan City had a technology similar to movable type printing, it was extremely expensive.

But what truly deterred him was the shockingly low literacy rate in Heishan City.

Selling miscellaneous books in a place where less than one in ten people could read?

It wasn't until he heard Li Er talk about books that he had a sudden idea and decided to try collaborating with him.

Apart from Li Er's excellent storytelling skills, the more important reason was that he only had vague memories of some stories from his previous life.

The only two he truly remembered were these.

This was thanks to reading extracurricular books in his childhood; otherwise, even with his improved memory, he wouldn't have remembered them in such detail.

The rest of the stories seemed familiar, but writing them down would be a challenge.

Fortunately, there was Li Er.

He still needed Li Er to polish the stories.

...

"Such a good story, it can't be unknown. Why haven't I heard of it?"

On the third floor of the tavern, by the window, Li Er held the yellow paper, savoring the words over and over.

"Sir? Why did you drink so much?"

The young servant who had collected money at the teahouse pinched his nose and walked over, tidying up the valuables: "When are we leaving?"

"Leaving? For what?"

Li Er burped: "We haven't earned enough travel money yet!"

"Ah?"

The young servant's eyes widened: "What about the money we just collected? And the two gold ingots?"

"Is that money something we can take?"

Mentioning the gold, Li Er's heart ached again, and he gritted his teeth.

"No money?!"

The servant was shocked and quickly asked.

"Don't wail!"

Li Er didn't want to explain much, leaning against the window and waving the few sheets of yellow paper in his hand:

"With this treasure, money will be as plentiful as we want!"

...

Yang Yu moved quickly.

Being penniless gave him plenty of motivation, and he managed to write a few popular stories from his previous life in one night.

But Li Er was even faster.

Before he even reached the teahouse, he could hear Li Er's rhythmic storytelling from a distance.

"So fast?"

Yang Yu's heart skipped a beat, and he slowed his pace.

The teahouse was packed, and there was no space to stand, let alone drink tea, which left him somewhat stunned.

Was he that popular?

Thinking about it, the stories he had chosen had stood the test of time, and Li Er's storytelling was excellent.

With his reputation from yesterday, it was normal for the crowd to be larger today.

He decided not to rush in and found a shady spot to wait for the crowd to disperse before settling accounts with Li Er.

He closed his eyes slightly, sensing the Cauldron of Gluttony.

The cauldron was now completely black, except for its three legs and two handles, which were still green.

"It's slowing down..."

Yang Yu frowned.

In recent days, he had eaten more stones than in the previous six months, so logically, the cauldron should have been full by now.

Or perhaps the stones were no longer sufficient to meet the cauldron's needs?

"Do I have to eat iron now?"

Yang Yu's thoughts were interrupted by a cold laugh.

He opened his eyes.

A few men were cooling off under an old locust tree nearby, looking at the bustling teahouse with cold smiles.

"Has the monthly fee for this teahouse been paid?"

A bearded man asked.

The others, taking him as the leader, quickly replied:

"Brother Li, the teahouse owner is sensible. He has paid the monthly fee to all four of us, two taels of silver, plus half a tael of silver as a token of respect."

"Hmph!"

The man stroked his beard and sneered: "All four have been paid, but our 'Viper Gang' is left out?

What a bold move!"

"Ah?"

The man who answered was taken aback, looked at the crowded teahouse, and immediately understood.

"Indeed, what a bold move!"

"Daunting to skip our monthly fee, truly bold!"

The others also chimed in.

"Already targeted? I wonder which gang these people belong to, Viper Gang, Wolf Gang, or some other guard..."

Yang Yu frowned.

He was not close enough to hear clearly, but from their eyes, he knew what they were up to.

The North Street was controlled by five major forces, and anyone doing business there had to pay monthly fees.

If not, they would end up like Han Liuzi.

Even paying the full monthly fee was no guarantee, as these people had no sense of honor.

If business was bad, it was one thing, but if it was good, being extorted multiple times a month was not uncommon.

At the beginning of the year, a well-known restaurant on North Street was extorted for several years' worth of monthly fees in just one month, forcing the family to hang themselves.

Judging by the situation, these people were likely targeting Li Er.

"These scoundrels!"

Yang Yu gritted his teeth, his eyes filled with determination.

He hadn't made a single coin, and these people were already planning to rob him?

Seeing the men's increasingly sinister looks, Yang Yu steeled himself and left.

...

"Go together and collect the monthly fee!"

After watching for a while, the bearded man finally spoke.

The eager underlings had no objections and got up to head to the teahouse.

Slap!

As they walked carelessly, a man with a sack over his face suddenly appeared, swung his hand, and knocked one of them to the ground.

"Damn?!"

"Hey! Which bastard dares to hit a Viper Gang member!"

Caught off guard, their own member was hit?

The men were instantly enraged and chased after him, being familiar with the area.

They soon cornered him in a small alley.

"Run?"

"Run again!"

"Brat, you dare to hit your grandpa? Today, if I don't slice you into pieces, I'll take your name!"

The men sneered and closed in.

Then, a scream pierced the quiet alley, making nearby pedestrians shudder and quickly flee.

After a while, Yang Yu, his face covered, emerged from the alley, weighing the money bags in his hand, and quickly left.

But soon, he returned to the alley.

Only when the screams had almost stopped did he remove the sack, a satisfied look on his face, and head towards the gradually dispersing crowd at the teahouse.