Chapter Thirty-Six: The Search of the Li Residence

The Butcher’s Blade was also leading his men to train in the southern part of the city. When he saw the system announcement, he erupted with fury. One of his underlings tried to comfort him, “Boss, Chen Baxian reaching level 10 makes him harder to deal with. Next time we want to take him out, we should send more people…”

“Are you an idiot?” The Butcher’s Blade slapped his subordinate on the head and scolded, “Do you think the first person in all of Huaxia to become a Second Lieutenant is just an ordinary player? Listen to me—all of you. If you run into Chen Baxian again, steer clear and don’t provoke him.”

In real life, the Butcher’s Blade was just a small-time thug, but he hadn’t become a boss by being brainless. His philosophy was simple: if you can’t afford to mess with someone, stay far away. If Chen Hao were just an ordinary player, he would’ve gone all out to take revenge. But once the gap between them became too great, he would immediately let go of his grudge and go back to bullying those weaker than himself.

Having reached level 10 and become a Second Lieutenant, Chen Hao didn’t need to focus on leveling for the time being. He and White Demon headed toward Penglai County. As they neared the city gate, Chen Hao asked White Demon to go ahead and buy some food to bring back, while he followed at a leisurely pace.

Chen Hao’s caution was well warranted. Upon entering the city, he sensed he was being tailed. Pretending not to notice, he walked straight to the marketplace. There, he bought two live fish and carried them to the residence of Li Piseng in the eastern district.

The gatekeeper, Old Qian, knew Li Piseng intended to take Chen Hao as a disciple and greeted him warmly. “Young man, you’re here again?”

Chen Hao made his way to the door of Li Piseng’s residence and said, “I saw some fresh fish in the market today, so I bought two for my teacher. Is he at home?”

“The master is in his study. I’ll take you to him!” Old Qian led Chen Hao toward the study.

Meanwhile, Wang Yu, who had been tailing Chen Hao, watched him enter the Li residence. He hid around the corner near the main gate, keeping an eye on the entrance. He waited outside for two hours, but the target never left. Noting how familiar the gatekeeper seemed with Chen Baxian, Wang Yu concluded the target must be residing inside Li Piseng’s home.

To be certain, Wang Yu waited another two hours. With no sign of Chen Hao leaving, he hurried to the southern part of town to report to Three-Life Stone. Upon receiving the news, a calculating smile crept across Three-Life Stone’s face. He sneered, “County Constable Liu Shengkui has long wanted to deal with the great scholar Li Piseng but never had a good excuse. With Wang Wu and Chen Baxian hiding in the Li residence…”

Three-Life Stone rushed to the county office to report to Liu Shengkui. After hearing the situation, Liu Shengkui pondered, “Li Piseng is a renowned scholar. If we search his home and fail to find Wang Wu, it could cause a lot of trouble. Are you sure Wang Wu is in the Li residence, Three-Life Stone? If we search and don’t find him, you’ll have to answer for it.”

“Player Three-Life Stone, County Constable Liu Shengkui is issuing you the quest ‘Search for Wang Wu.’ Quest objective: search Li Piseng’s residence with the constabulary and find Wang Wu. Reward: become the patrol officer of Qingshuihe Village. If you fail to find Wang Wu, you will lose Liu Shengkui’s trust and be punished. Do you accept?”

Completing this quest would fulfill Three-Life Stone’s wish to become a patrol officer, but the risks were high. Liu Shengkui made it clear that Li Piseng was not to be trifled with. Though he coveted the Li family’s wealth, he hadn’t dared make a move. If Wang Wu was found, all would be well, but if not, Liu Shengkui would be hard-pressed to justify his actions, and Three-Life Stone would bear the consequences.

Confident in his judgment, Three-Life Stone recalled his men had seen Chen Baxian enter the Li residence and not leave for four hours. Since he always appeared from the eastern district, it was certain he lived there. The risk was worth it for the chance to become a patrol officer. “Sir, I trust my judgment. Wang Wu is definitely at the Li residence.”

After accepting the quest, Three-Life Stone accompanied Liu Shengkui to see County Magistrate Liu Ziyuan. Li Piseng was upright and principled, and the magistrate did not like him. Liu Shengkui brought Three-Life Stone along to implicate the magistrate, so if nothing was found, responsibility would be shared.

But Magistrate Liu Ziyuan saw through the plan. “Arresting criminals is the constable’s duty. There’s no need to report to me. Handle it as you see fit.”

Liu Shengkui’s face darkened. With responsibility pushed solely onto him, any problems would be his alone to bear.

The military commissioner of Denglai had already urged him multiple times—if he didn’t catch Wang Wu, Liu Shengkui’s days would be numbered. He also coveted Li Piseng’s wealth and didn’t want to miss the chance to ruin him. But if he failed to find Wang Wu, Li Piseng would not let it go, and Liu Shengkui would not escape blame.

Clenching his teeth, Liu Shengkui ordered, “Three-Life Stone, I’m putting all the constables and officers under your command. Search the Li residence thoroughly. If you fail to find Wang Wu, I will not forgive you.”

“Man’s nature at birth is good, his natures are much the same, but their habits become widely different…”

As Three-Life Stone led the officers and constables toward the Li residence, Chen Hao was in the small courtyard reciting the Three Character Classic. After delivering the fish, he had left through the back gate, telling the servants his lodging was nearby. No one found it odd.

Chen Hao exited through the back to keep his residence secret. The alleys behind the Li residence were many, allowing him to avoid pursuers. The fact that Three-Life Stone would seek out Liu Shengkui and lead the officers to search the Li residence was unforeseen.

Had he known, he would have been delighted—Li Piseng was not someone to cross. An esteemed scholar with many disciples, including the new judicial officer in the capital, anyone who provoked Li Piseng, like Three-Life Stone or Liu Shengkui, was courting disaster.

After returning to the courtyard and having a meal with Wang Wu, Chen Hao, in no rush to level up, practiced his saber techniques several times, then took up the Three Character Classic to study. White Demon practiced archery in the courtyard, trusting Chen Hao’s advice completely and determined to gain the five archery attribute points available.

Chen Hao recited the Three Character Classic for five hours straight and soon received a system notification: “Player Chen Baxian, congratulations! Your mastery of the Three Character Classic is now ‘Proficient.’ Your Culture attribute increases by 2.”

Chen Hao had allocated all 20 of his political free attribute points to Culture. At level 10, his Culture attribute was 30; with the two-point increase, it reached 32. With the annotated version of the Three Character Classic by Li Piseng, he gained an extra point, so if he kept the book in his satchel, his Culture attribute would be 33.

Later in the game, to enroll in a famous military academy like Baoding Military Academy, one’s Culture attribute needed to reach at least 60. Early on, the admission requirements were looser—if Culture reached 40, there was a chance to pass the entrance test and begin formal military studies.