Chapter 18.2

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Fan Changyu noticed the issue right away. Not wanting these goons to scare off her customers, she decided to put them to work. The first batch of braised meat had almost sold out anyway, so she bought six pig heads and three buckets of offal from a neighboring butcher. She handed each thug a pig head and ordered them to clean the bristles thoroughly. The remaining ones were put to work washing the offal under her watchful eye.

The sight of the fierce-looking thugs awkwardly plucking pig bristles and scrubbing intestines under Fan Changyu’s command was almost comical, and more than a few of her customers began to relax and approach the shop again.

The thugs buried their heads in their tasks, diligently scrubbing and cleaning. With their fierce faces hidden from view, the customers no longer seemed intimidated and came forward to buy meat.

Fan Changyu busied herself chopping and selling braised meat while keeping an eye on her “workers.” If anyone dared to cut corners or leave a task half-done, she jabbed at them with her staff. “There’s still pig bristles on this head! Use wood ash to scrub the intestines properly, and after that, brush them thoroughly with straw from one end to the other!”

She was more commanding than any bully, taking things to another level entirely.

The gang of street thugs trembled as they worked, silently cursing their rotten luck. How had they ended up provoking this formidable woman?

As if reading their thoughts, Fan Changyu scowled at them. “When you do something wrong, you face the consequences. What do you think the law is for?”

Her words sent shivers down their spines. Shrinking like quails, they nodded furiously, echoing their agreement.

Seeing their attitude improve, Fan Changyu softened slightly and, during a lull in work, casually asked, “Weren’t you all working for the gambling hall? Why do I see you popping up everywhere these days?”

At this, the group looked embarrassed, shifting awkwardly.

Master Jin, his voice low and gruff, replied, “We’re not with the gambling hall anymore.”

Fan Changyu raised an eyebrow, curious. “Why’s that?”

Her tone was less sharp, but her intrigue was clear.

One of the lackeys, clutching a pig’s head, muttered, “We followed Third Brother to work as enforcers for the gambling hall just to make a living. When we couldn’t collect the debts and it came to chopping off Fan Da’s hand to settle the account, even the gambling hall wasn’t happy with that. Besides, we’ve never actually maimed anyone in all our years of debt collection. Then, after our legs got busted… the gambling hall kicked us out.”

Fan Changyu frowned. “Aren’t you still out there extorting protection money all over the streets?”

Master Jin let out a bitter laugh. “What we collect isn’t ours to keep. We’re just errand boys collecting for others.”

Seeing that Fan Changyu didn’t quite grasp his point, he laid it out plainly. “We couldn’t go around openly demanding money from shopkeepers unless someone in the authorities was turning a blind eye. There’s always someone higher up covering for us. When trouble breaks out, they’re the ones who shield us. And the money we collect? The lion’s share is handed over to those officials as tribute.”

His blunt explanation deepened the lines of thought on Fan Changyu’s face.

Fan Changyu stood silent for a long moment, her face clouded with thought.

Sensing her displeasure, Master Jin quickly added, “But no one was collecting protection fees on this street before. If we’d known Miss Fan’s shop was here, we’d never have dared to come…”

A shadow of doubt flickered in Fan Changyu’s mind. She suddenly asked, “When did this street start getting hit for protection fees?”

Master Jin thought for a moment before replying, “Just last month.”

Fan Changyu’s frown deepened. Her parents had been killed by bandits just last month as well. Could there be a connection?

But as soon as the thought emerged, she dismissed it. Her father had spent decades traveling the martial world and was known for his skill in combat. After living in Lin’an Town for more than ten years, it didn’t make sense for someone to suddenly target him now.

Pushing those thoughts aside, Fan Changyu turned her fierce gaze back to Master Jin and his men. “You’re all grown men! Instead of doing honest work, you stoop to being petty thugs and bullies?”

“We’ll change! We’ll change!” they cried out in unison, heads nodding like chickens pecking at grain. “From now on, we’ll be decent people!”

The group trembled like quails with their necks tucked in as soon as Fan Changyu showed the slightest sign of anger.

Seeing them so cowed, she decided to let it go. With all the heavy and dirty work taken care of by the thugs, she found herself with rare free time.

The reputation of Fan’s Braised Meats had already started spreading. Business today was even better than yesterday. Before noon, all the meat she had brought from home, along with what she had freshly braised on-site, was completely sold out. Even the braised eggs in her shop had been snapped up. She even sent one of the lackeys to buy another basket of eggs, which was half sold before long.

At just three copper coins for two braised eggs, the price was irresistibly tempting.

Fan Changyu quickly did some mental math. Today’s earnings totaled over four taels of silver!

The neighboring butchers, naturally jealous of her thriving business, eyed her stall with envy. Yet seeing how deferentially Master Jin and his gang treated her, none of them dared utter a single sour remark.

Fan Changyu, in high spirits from her day’s profits, found herself looking at Master Jin’s group with much kinder eyes. Since they had worked hard all morning and showed genuine remorse, she even rewarded each of them with a braised egg.

The lackeys, having been ordered around all morning, looked as wilted as cabbages left in the field. When each of them was unexpectedly handed a steaming braised egg, their faces clearly showed their disbelief.

Fan Changyu, still wearing her stern expression, barked, “Eat it up and get ready to go with me to confront Wang’s Braised Goods!”

The tantalizing aroma of braised meat had been teasing the thugs’ noses all morning, and their stomachs had long been growling in protest. Now, clutching the warm eggs, they devoured them so eagerly it seemed they might even swallow the shells.

Once finished, their faces were full of longing. One of them hesitated before carefully asking, “Miss Fan… um… in the future, could we, uh, work at your shop?”

Fan Changyu’s face darkened as she thought to herself, Absolutely not! With these burly guys eating like oxen, they’d bankrupt me in no time!

Her rejection was swift and unyielding. “No, you cannot.”

The lackeys didn’t dare utter another word and trailed dejectedly behind Fan Changyu as she marched toward Wang’s Braised Goods. Despite their slumped posture, their intimidating appearances made it impossible to tell they were actually dispirited.

As they moved down the street, pedestrians quickly made way for them. The scene they created—a fierce-looking woman leading a gang of rough-looking men—looked for all the world like a gang leader heading out to settle a score.

Meanwhile, in a nearby restaurant overlooking the street, a man in fine robes stood up and personally poured a cup of tea for the person seated across from him. The rising steam blurred the intricate embroidery of brocade patterns on his wide sleeves.

“The situation in Huizhou remains unstable,” he said, his tone polite yet steady. “Since the marquis is lying low in this area, it’s not wise for your trusted aides to come here. However, I am but a businessman, and the Wei family’s watchdogs won’t find any connection to me. If the marquis is willing to trust me, I am ready to serve you with my life.”

The window lattice was half-open, and the man seated across from him had a profile as finely chiseled as a jade sculpture. His refined brows and eyes carried an air of elegance, yet the dark scabs on his slender fingers tapping lightly on the table gave an impression of casual indifference mingled with an aura of authority that was almost suffocating.

His narrow, sharp eyes were half-lidded as he gazed out the window, seemingly admiring the snowy street outside.

The man in fine robes, noticing the prolonged silence, followed his gaze and looked outside. Only then did he realize that the man wasn’t looking at the snow but at a young woman walking down the street, leading a group of rough-looking thugs.

The finely dressed man glanced back at Xie Zheng, his eyes flickering with intrigue. With a faint smile, he remarked, “That must be the new wife the marquis has taken, yes?”