Ma Wu brought up Li Banfeng. It was too sudden.
Li Banfeng set down his chopsticks and quietly gazed at Ma Wu.
The atmosphere wasn’t tense. Li Banfeng knew that if Ma Wu wanted to harm him, he would never have dined at the same table, let alone bring up the subject so directly.
Ma Wu smiled. "Brother Li, I’m talking about Li Banfeng, not you.
"Li Banfeng is a friend of mine whom I met in Medicine King Valley.
"Although I’m down on my luck, I still hear some news. I’ve heard that Li Banfeng has offended the Lu Family, and they are searching for him in Medicine King Valley.
"If you know Li Banfeng, please pass on a message for him: as long as he hides in Greenwater Bay, that move would be the right one.
"Greenwater Bay is the foundation of all the major families, and no family would dare to make too much trouble there.
"Puluo State is vast; it’s difficult to find a person. The Lu Family’s power is not small, but if they cannot find Li Banfeng in Medicine King Valley, they will not continue to search elsewhere because, after all, it’s only Lu Xiaolan’s word.
"Moreover, many rumors have recently emerged, saying that after Li Banfeng went to the He Family Mansion, there was no further news of him. Many people believe Li Banfeng has already died at Lu Xiaolan’s hands.
"The people of a great family do not have such patience. With no word from Li Banfeng, they will focus on Lu Xiaolan; they will think Lu Xiaolan is lying. It’s the same for both the Lu Family and the He Family. As time goes on, Li Banfeng will gradually be forgotten.
"Brother Li, you must find an opportunity to convey this message. Let Li Banfeng avoid crowded places. If he can be patient and endure, he will surely get through this difficult ordeal."
Li Banfeng took a sip of alcohol and said to Ma Wu, "You could tell the Lu Family that Li Banfeng is in Greenwater Bay. The Lu Family would give you a good amount of reward money, perhaps even a direct stake in their family business."
Ma Wu nodded. "I’ve thought about it, but I can’t do it. When I was starving, Li Banfeng gave me something to eat."
After a moment of silence, Li Banfeng poured his wine to the brim.
Ma Wu also poured himself a cup.
Both men raised their glasses and drained them in one gulp.
Li Banfeng ate a piece of soy-braised beef. "What are you planning to do next?"
Ma Wu smiled. "I’ve calculated my days. I have at most another five or six days to live.
"I plan to show you around Blue Poplar Village and, incidentally, tell you about the special features of Greenwater Bay."
"Since there are still five or six days left, why don’t you seize the time for cultivation? Don’t you want to live?"
Ma Wu shook his head and smiled. "Back in the day, when girls threw themselves at me, I never thought cultivating would be difficult. Now that I’m down on my luck, the difficulties have multiplied.
"I want a companion, but it’s not about love or compatibility first; it’s about hard cash.
"I daren’t even dream about passing the First Layer. Let’s just talk about following the routine. I need to do it three times a day, and the money for these three times isn’t so easy to come by.
"Brother Li, I know you’re a righteous man, and you might offer to pay for me. I appreciate your kindness, but I’m a bottomless pit that no one can fill.
"Moreover, having interrupted my cultivation for ten days, my physique has been severely damaged. Even if a girl were delivered into my arms, I would be of no use myself."
Li Banfeng blinked. "So what you’re saying is, there’s no hope left for you?"
Ma Wu laughed. "Brother Li, you’re so straightforward. It’s not that there’s no hope at all. Right now, my meridians are weak but not yet broken. If I had elixirs, I could still be nourished back to health. But once the meridians are broken, I can only rely on Soul-Returning Soup to cling to life.
"However, this isn’t Medicine King Valley. Elixirs aren’t easy to buy here, not to mention their exorbitant prices. And forget the Soul-Returning Soup; the Peddler could be anywhere. My fate is already sealed."
Li Banfeng asked, "What kind of elixir would be able to nourish you back to health?"
Ma Wu said, "The most common is the Snake-Patterned Pill. I don’t know if you’ve heard of it, but taking seven Snake-Patterned Pills would mostly lead to a recovery. However, the Snake-Patterned Pill..."
Let alone seven, Ma Wu couldn’t even afford one Snake-Patterned Pill now.
"I don’t have any Snake-Patterned Pills, but would this elixir work?" Li Banfeng took out a Red Pill and handed it to Ma Wu.
Ma Wu looked at it for a moment, his eyes widening. "Is this the Mysterious Flame Pill?"
Li Banfeng asked, "Can this elixir save you?"
"Yes, it can!" Ma Wu was very excited, but then he asked, "Why would you want to save me?"
Li Banfeng shook his head. "It’s not so much about saving you. I’ve had no opportunity to sell this elixir, and I need the money. Let’s just say I’ll sell it to you.
"If you recover this time, make sure to find a way to earn money quickly and repay me as soon as you can.
"If you can’t pay me back for a while, just give me an IOU. We’ll clarify the principal and interest.
"If you take the elixir and prolong your life but then continue waiting for death, then it’s my bad luck. This elixir would be a burial gift for you."
Li Banfeng was speaking the plain truth. He truly intended to sell the elixir to Ma Wu.
Ma Wu clutched the elixir, his fingers trembling uncontrollably. He was at a loss. "Brother Li, I don’t know how I can ever repay this debt. I..."
"How come you don’t know again? Playing dumb, huh? Didn’t I just tell you to pay me back with money? You’re a money-maker. Now tell me, how do you make money?"
Having accepted the elixir, Ma Wu spoke very seriously to Li Banfeng about his methods of making money:
"The speed of making money depends first on capital and second on risk. Trying to turn one piece into a hundred is extremely difficult. Trying to turn one hundred into ten thousand is much easier."
Li Banfeng said, "What if I want to turn one million into ten million?"
After pondering for a moment, Ma Wu replied, "The quickest way is to go hunting in the New Land. There’s risk involved, but it’s not too great. There’s a thirty percent chance of losing half your investment, a twenty percent chance of losing it all, and the remaining fifty percent chance of making a profit. Out of this fifty percent, there’s a twenty percent chance of making over ten million. For the rest, it’s hard to say how much."
Li Banfeng nodded. "First, I’ll get a million for you, and we’ll get started right away."
Ma Wu grabbed Li Banfeng’s arm. "Brother Li, I just told you—I’ve been targeted. Every time I get a bit of money, someone comes to rob me."
Li Banfeng frowned deeply. "How can people do this? Robbery is wrong! Next time, introduce him to me. I am an upright person. I’ll give him a good talking-to."
Ma Wu didn’t catch Li Banfeng’s drift. "Brother Li, just a reminder: the people who come for me are different each time. It’s impossible to guard against."
Li Banfeng frowned. "Do you recognize them?"
"No."
"If you don’t recognize them, how do they recognize you and manage to find you?"
Ma Wu couldn’t figure out the reason either.
Li Banfeng was pondering a strategy when suddenly there was a knock on the door. Upon opening it, he saw Landlord Wei.
"Gentlemen, I’m sorry to intrude. This is the rent for two months, five thousand in total. Please accept it."
Li Banfeng was taken aback. "What do you mean? Are you kicking us out?"
Landlord Wei shook his head and pointed to the bandages all over his face. "I’m not asking you two to leave; you can stay as you please. The rent for these two months is my way of repaying a debt."
He had seen Ma Wu help him earlier.
"Tomorrow night, there’s a confrontation in the wilds—I’ll have a showdown with that dog Yu Mazai at the Huntian Venue. If I get through this, I’ll consider myself lucky. From then on, you can stay as long as you like, even a hundred years, without paying any rent.
"If I can’t make it through tomorrow night, then I’ll be crossing the bridge, and I won’t be able to help with your housing anymore."
Having said that, Landlord Wei took his leave. Ma Wu offered a wry smile. "This is Blue Poplar Village; even finding a peaceful place to stay is tough."
Li Banfeng asked, "What did he mean by a confrontation, the Huntian Venue, and ’crossing the bridge’?"
Ma Wu explained, "A confrontation is a duel. A ’field confrontation’ means dueling on land in Blue Poplar Village that has been torn down but not yet rebuilt.
"This is a rule in Blue Poplar Village: any major or minor matter can be settled by a duel.
"Trivial matters are settled on the street, witnessed by neighbors. The winner takes charge, though there could be repercussions later.
"Major issues are settled in the wilds, with the Song Family as witnesses. Likewise, the winner takes charge. If anyone reneges later, the Song Family will administer justice."
"The Song Family?" Li Banfeng was puzzled. "Who are they?"
Ma Wu said, "The Song Family is the leader in Blue Poplar Village. Here, even if you’re just a small vendor selling dough sticks, you need the Song Family’s approval. Even if you only make one yuan a day, fifty cents of it goes to the Song Family.
"In a duel in the wilds, the Song Family acts as witnesses. If it’s fought during the day, it’s known as the Clear Sky Arena, and it goes on until one party surrenders. If it’s at night, it’s the Huntian Venue, where they fight until one of them drops dead.
"Landlord Wei and Yu Mazai chose the Huntian Venue, which means it’s a fight to the death. If Landlord Wei crosses the bridge tomorrow—meaning he dies in the wilds—his property will go to Yu Mazai, and we’ll have to move out quickly."
Li Banfeng exclaimed, "Then we have to go check it out and see for ourselves who wins!"
Ma Wu shook his head. "Everyone in the village will be in the wilds to watch the spectacle tomorrow; you’d better not go. It’s best for you to avoid crowded places. But I really need to go take a look and also find some men to bring back.
"We have to hunt in the New Land three times, and we’ll need a lot of help for the first trip. Plus, we’ll need to get more rotten fish to serve as both bait and a smokescreen. Making money isn’t hard; the difficulty lies in fooling the watchful eyes of the Song Family."
"Can we do without the rotten fish?" Li Banfeng really despised the stench of fish, let alone the smell of rotten ones.
Ma Wu looked sincerely at Li Banfeng. "We are people engaged in important endeavors. It’s only right that we endure some hardship."
That evening, Li Banfeng continued to go out to get familiar with the surroundings.
After taking the elixir, Ma Wu slept straight through to the next evening.
Having slept for a full day and night, Ma Wu looked significantly better and headed to the wilds to watch the duel.
Meanwhile, Li Banfeng was in the village collecting supplies, getting ready for the hunt.
At one in the morning, Ma Wu returned, bringing back good news and ten young men.
The good news was that Landlord Wei had won the field confrontation, so Li Banfeng and Ma Wu didn’t have to move out for the time being.
These ten young men were to be their assistants for the hunting trip in the New Land.
Ma Wu brought out pen and paper and had the young men sign a life-and-death contract on the spot. "I, Ma, am a straightforward person. If you work with me, you’ll surely get paid. But if any of you turn tail in the face of battle or gossip once we’re out, don’t blame me for being ruthless."
PS: My dear readers, let me confide in you—they’re heading to the New Land to hunt for Peaches, and those are Peaches!