Time passed bit by bit, and Lu Qing continued to lurk on the tree.
On the other side, Ma Gu was incredibly anxious.
"Any luck finding where Brother Lu is?"
"No discovery, Dashan and I have circled the area several times and haven't found any trace of Young Master Lu," Xiao Tian replied.
"How could it be, did we arrive a step late, and Brother Lu already broke in and got captured?" Ma Gu anxiously said.
"That shouldn't be the case," Xiao Tian hesitated, "We've been here for quite a while and haven't noticed any disturbance in Happy Village. If Young Master Lu had broken in, it shouldn't be this calm."
"I think Young Master Lu is probably hiding somewhere, waiting for the right moment to act."
Upon reflection, Ma Gu also felt this made sense.
Lu Qing was a Qi Blood Realm Martial Artist. If he had broken in, Happy Village couldn't have possibly dealt with him without any noise.
A more significant possibility, as Xiao Tian had said, was that Lu Qing was hiding somewhere, waiting for the right opportunity.
"Then we'll also continue to wait, we absolutely can't let Brother Lu come to harm," Ma Gu suppressed his inner anxiety.
Xiao Tian and Dashan exchanged looks.
If it was the usual Master Ma, he wouldn't have overlooked such an issue.
It seemed that Master Ma truly valued Young Master Lu immensely, even losing his usual calmness.
Unbeknownst to Lu Qing, Ma Gu had also brought people to wait on the other side of the mountain to meet up with him.
He remained hidden in the tree, silently awaiting nightfall.
Eventually, as time went by, dusk arrived, and the sky gradually darkened.
At that moment, lights began to be lit inside Happy Village, gradually becoming brightly illuminated.
Lu Qing, who had shut his eyes to rest during the afternoon, also opened his eyes.
"Alright, perk up, guests will be arriving soon!"
The two guards below, who had been quite lax until now, straightened up.
Only then did Lu Qing realize that Happy Village was actually a night-time business.
No wonder he had been hiding for so long without seeing anyone enter.
As the lights came on and time passed, Lu Qing finally saw people approaching.
And there were quite a few of them.
Some were plainly dressed villagers walking over, others were landlords dressed in fine silks, arriving by sedan chairs.
Lu Qing even saw a sleazy-looking old man wearing patched clothes.
It was baffling where these people got the silver to spend in the golden cave.
Just as Lu Qing was preparing to make his move while the opposite side was busy receiving guests.
Suddenly, a mix of crying pleas and cursing sounds approached from the outside, getting closer and quickly arriving at the village gate.
Lu Qing saw that it was a man in his forties, grappling with a young girl.
The crying and shouting were from the girl, who was clutching the man's hand, pleading sorrowfully.
"Dad, please, you can't gamble with this money anymore, this is the silk I embroidered for a long time to exchange for mom's medicine!"
"Bullshit! Your money is mine; I need money and using it is no issue!" the man cursed, "Your mother's illness isn't severe; letting her suffer a bit is fine. Besides, once I win back my losses, we'll have plenty of money for as many doctors and medicines as you wish!"
"Dad, really, you can't. Mom coughed up blood yesterday; if we don't get a doctor to treat her soon, mom really won't make it!"
The girl still refused to let go of the man's hand, crying desperately.
"What not making it? I saw her fine this morning; a few more days of rest and she'll be alright!" the man said impatiently, "Are you going to let go or do you believe I'll kick you?"
"Dad, please, mom really needs money for medicine, or she will actually die, she will really die!"
The girl's face was covered in tears as she tightly held onto the man's arm.
"Then let her die!" the man shouted as he kicked his daughter away, "It would save me the trouble of earning money to buy her medicine!"
Hearing these words, the girl who fell to the ground suddenly widened her eyes, seemingly unable to believe that her own father could say such things.
However, seeing him about to walk into the village, she threw herself at him again, clutching his legs.
"Dad, don't gamble anymore, give me back the money..."
The man, unable to walk because he was being held, became irritated and raised his hand to hit her.
At this time, many onlookers had gathered at the village gate, most of them customers who had come to Happy Village for entertainment.
Seeing this scene, instead of feeling pity, they watched with great interest.
The two guards seeing the man unable to walk because he was being held, couldn't help but laugh.
The first guard shouted, "Zhao Lao San, can you not even handle your own daughter? If you can't manage her, why not let our village help you out? We guarantee we can discipline her properly!"
The man, already agitated, brightened up at hearing this.
"Master Chen, are you serious, your village would take her?"
The first guard was taken aback; he had only meant to tease, but Zhao Lao San took it seriously.
He glanced at the girl and noticed she indeed had a fair appearance.
"You know once she enters our village, it will be hard to redeem her later," the guard reminded him.
"It doesn't matter, she's just a financial loss anyway. Being able to enter the village is her good fortune. Master Chen, just name your price."
The man called Zhao Laosan didn't care, thinking he still didn't have enough money to cover his losses.
"I can't make that decision, but I can help you by calling someone out to appraise her," said the first guard.
"Then I'll have to trouble Master Chen," Zhao Laosan said, bowing his head.
"Dad!" The young girl said incredulously upon hearing the conversation.
She saw the guard truly go into the village to call someone. A look of terror emerged in her eyes, and she quickly scrambled up from the ground, trying to run outside.
"Thinking of running?"
But this time, she couldn't escape.
Zhao Laosan grabbed her and dragged her back.
"I told you to go back just now and you didn't, so don't think about going back now. Just stay in the village and make money for me!"
"Dad, no, I'm your daughter, how could you sell me?!" the girl cried out, filled with immense fear.
"It's for your own good, being able to enjoy life in the village is much better than embroidering at home every day. Don't you want to buy medicine for your mom? As long as you make money there, your mom's illness can be cured."
Zhao Laosan ignored his daughter's struggle and dragged her back to the entrance of the village.
Just then, the guard had called someone from the village.
Under the girl's despair, a contract was signed.
Zhao Laosan received a sum of silver, and the girl was dragged away crying.
After receiving the silver, Zhao Laosan didn't care about his daughter's cries at all and happily examined a piece of silver.
Now, his gambling funds had significantly increased. This time, he was sure to recover his losses!
Someone nearby saw him and couldn't help but mock him, "Zhao Laosan, you're really ruthless, selling even your own daughter. Aren't you afraid that when you go back, your wife will fight you to death?"
"She wouldn't dare!" Zhao Laosan glared, "Besides, Lai Zitou, what right do you have to speak? Didn't you sell your widowed sister-in-law too, the one who raised you since you were young?"
Stung by the remark, Lai Zitou immediately fell silent.
"Zhao Laosan, is your daughter not yet wed?"
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At this moment, a well-dressed, pot-bellied man asked.
Zhao Laosan was taken aback, "Yeah, she's only sixteen, what do you mean by 'wed'?"
"Didn't expect that Happy Village will get a new chick today, I must try her out," said the pot-bellied man, patting Zhao Laosan's shoulder. "Don't worry, Zhao Laosan, I'll treat your daughter well!"
"Old Master Wang, does that mean you should call Zhao Laosan 'father-in-law' now?" someone in the crowd joked.
"Cut it out, what are you saying? He's nothing, I'd even despise acknowledging him as my grandson," the fat man cursed.
Instant laughter filled the area in front of the village, leaving Zhao Laosan's face somewhat pallid.
Above the large tree, Lu Qing had already stood up.
His face, hidden in the shadows, couldn't be clearly seen.
However, the icy aura emitting from his body made even Little Li beside him somewhat bristle.
Standing on the tree and observing the scum in front of the village for a while, Lu Qing finally restrained himself, not acting impulsively.
It was not the time yet.
Quietly, he descended from the tree and, using the cover of night, circled around and found a blind spot in the village, silently scaling over it.
Little Li stood steadily on his shoulder.
Once inside the village, Lu Qing began to survey the area.
The village was not small in size, with many buildings, the most striking being a tall wooden tower in the center.
Lu Qing's target was there.
Moving swiftly through the shadows of various buildings, Lu Qing was undetected by anyone.
With each step closer to the main building, voices of cursing reached his ears.
Rounding a corner, he saw a garishly dressed middle-aged woman and two men walking towards him.
Following them was a young girl, the same one Lu Qing had seen at the village entrance.
Her hands were bound, and she was being led by a rope, drawing curses for every slow step.
Seeing the girl's face full of despair, Lu Qing hesitated for a moment before quietly following them.
Soon, he saw the trio force the girl into a house at the corner of the village.
Lu Qing followed and, noticing no guards, quietly approached.
Reaching the house, he noticed it was different from the others, constructed of stone.
"Lock this young miss in and starve her for three days; she'll then behave," a sharp, harsh voice came from inside. "And as for you other girls, if you don't obey, I'll throw you all into the mountains to be eaten by wolves!"
Lu Qing slowly looked inside, and as he clearly saw the situation, his pupils constricted.
At the same time, the killing intent he had been suppressing could no longer be contained.