Hu Tu, seeing this, scoffed, "A bad horse does not deserve a good saddle, and you don't deserve good wine, you wasteful thing."
With that, he snatched the wine bottle from Yuan Ming's hand and drank it all down in one go.
"Since you're not drinking wine, have some meat soup instead, I've even put Black Grass Worm in it, it's great for your health. Drink it while it's hot, don't let it go to waste." Hu Tu put down the bottle and called out, "Come on, drink the soup."
As he spoke, Hu Tu pushed the soup bowl toward Yuan Ming and watched him, as if waiting for him to drink.
Yuan Ming picked up the bowl, barely touched it to his lips, then put the bowl back down.
"What's the matter? Doesn't it taste good?" Hu Tu quickly asked.
"No, Brother Hu, since the Black Grass Worm is such a good tonic, why don't you drink it instead? These past few days sleeping rough, you've also had it quite tough," Yuan Ming said calmly as he pushed the bowl of soup back toward Hu Tu.
Hu Tu was taken aback, his hand slowly moving towards the hilt of the knife at his waist, but before he could draw his Dagger, Yuan Ming's left hand had already tightly clamped down on his wrist while his right hand drew out a Dagger, placing it against Hu Tu's throat.
"You, Yuan Ming, what are you doing?" Hu Tu tensed up, not daring to move as he questioned Yuan Ming.
Yuan Ming laughed, "Shouldn't I be asking you that, Brother Hu?"
"You know everything?" Hu Tu tentatively asked after hesitating for a moment.
"What exactly did you add to my soup? Why don't you tell me?" Read ahead and get updates by visiting *.
Yuan Ming said with a cold laugh, increasing the pressure of his hand, and a trace of blood slowly seeped from Hu Tu's neck.
"Stop, stop, I'll talk, it's just a common sedative, no toxicity," Hu Tu said in fright.
"Why?" Yuan Ming's voice grew heavier.
"I sold you to a mine owned by the Kasi Clan, and earned myself a commission. Tonight, someone will come to take you away, and you will become a mine slave, while I'll be able to join the army. With this money, I can bribe my way through and smuggle myself to the Central Plains," Hu Tu confessed as though a weight had been lifted from his chest.
"If you go to the Central Plains without me, what good will it do you? Will you not still just be a pitiable person lost in a foreign land?" Yuan Ming asked after listening, skeptically.
"You... Do you think smuggling is easy? This money is only enough for one person; with you, the risks are greater, I don't want to cause trouble for myself," Hu Tu said.
"Is that the truth?" Yuan Ming asked.
"Of course, isn't that enough? Besides, you Central Plains people are always cunning. Had I not been cheated by a Central Plains merchant, I wouldn't have ended up in this position," Hu Tu said with righteous indignation, which didn't seem feigned.
A look of pity arose in Yuan Ming's eyes as he gazed upon Hu Tu.
"You drink it down," Yuan Ming insisted, pushing Hu Tu's head down to the edge of the bowl.
Without any strength to resist, Hu Tu had no choice but to gulp down the soup, spilling most of it, until the bowl was nearly empty.
"How much did you sell me for?" Yuan Ming suddenly asked.
Caught off guard by the question, Hu Tu still answered, "The going rate, ten silver coins, not a penny less. I only saved up three silver coins after working two years."
"I'm worth just ten silver coins!" Yuan Ming was nearly livid and said, "Ten silver coins are nothing more than what I used to spend on a single drink. Couldn't you have sold me for a higher price?"
Hearing this, a flicker of regret crossed Hu Tu's mind. Could it be that Yuan had not lost his memory and was actually a noble?
It was at this moment his vision began to blur, overtaken by an overwhelming drowsiness, and, stumbling, he fell back to the ground.
Yuan Ming shook his head silently as he watched Hu Tu's condition. If not for that strange dream, he would have been the one lying there, ready for slaughter.
Taking Hu Tu's pack, which he never parted with, Yuan Ming opened it to find two sets of clothes, a hemp rope, and a plump sack of coarse cloth.
"You even prepared a rope, quite thoughtful of you," Yuan Ming said, picking up the rope and quickly tying up Hu Tu.
He then tore a strip of cloth from the clothes and gagged Hu Tu with it, so even if he woke up midway, he wouldn't be able to speak.
Yuan Ming opened the coarse cloth sack and a bunch of coins clattered out.
Unfortunately, there were only three silver coins, while there were significantly more copper coins—over thirty.
Based on the exchange rate of one hundred copper coins for one silver coin, Hu Tu must have spent a considerable amount on food this time.
"Hu Tu, oh Hu Tu, how confused you are," Yuan Ming sighed as he glanced at the cloak on the stone stool beside the table.
He finished the remaining food and quietly waited for the arrival of the buyer.
The sky gradually darkened, and the night deepened.
Outside, it quickly became pitch-black. All was silent except for the intermittent sounds of insects.
Yuan Ming carried a package on his back and wore a cloak. His broad hood covered his head, hiding his entire face in the darkness.
He waited until almost the middle of the night when, finally, a flicker of light appeared in the darkness, accompanied by the rustling of footsteps approaching the cabin.
As they drew nearer, Yuan Ming could see that there were two people, one tall and one short, also cloaked like him, each carrying a lantern with an orange flame. He began to silently gauge their strength.
The two approached without any small talk or pleasantries and asked, "Where's the 'sheep'?"
Yuan Ming was initially startled, then quickly realized they were asking about a person.
"Inside," Yuan Ming said in a low, subdued voice.
The two men said nothing more and silently entered. They checked Hu Tu on the bed, saw that he was in one piece with even breathing, not disabled or near death, and with a strong build. They seemed satisfied.
"Count them," one of the shorter men said, tossing a cloth bag to Yuan Ming.
Yuan Ming caught it and immediately stepped back from the two, maintaining his position at the doorway.
He counted ten silver coins, which he then tossed into Hu Tu's money bag, causing a clinking noise.
"First time? Heh heh, don't be scared. If you have more 'sheep' later, come find us. We won't shortchange you," the shorter man said.
While he talked, the silent taller man had already hoisted Hu Tu onto his shoulders.
"No problem," Yuan Ming said with a smile.
The short man, with lantern in hand, led the way while the tall man, carrying Hu Tu, followed behind out of the wooden house and walked into the darkness.
"Why didn't we just lead him away too?" a muffled voice from the tall figure echoed in the distance.
"You know nothing, always making one-off deals. Who would dare to come to us after that? In business, trust is essential..." the shorter figure's voice responded.
"You saved me, now to sell me. I had thought to sell you instead, but I still owe you a chance," Yuan Ming thought, wrapping the cloak tighter around himself and stealthily following the two men into the night.
A short while later, Yuan Ming, carrying Hu Tu, returned to the cabin. He untied the ropes and laid Hu Tu on the bed.
Looking at the sleeping Hu Tu, Yuan Ming took out ten silver coins from the ones he had just taken, threw them onto Hu Tu, and could no longer face the waking Hu Tu. He did not linger and walked into the night.
Yuan Ming knew nothing about the terrain of the Southern Border, so he could only walk in the direction the two men had come from, guided by his instincts.
As daylight broke, a city emerged through the morning mist, surrounded by a ring of high walls constructed from dark cyan stones rising two to three stories high. Despite their rough appearance, the walls looked imposing and majestic.
At the southernmost point of the high walls stood a gate structure even taller than the stone walls themselves, with a very unique shape, resembling a crouched black tiger, ready to pounce, exerting an overwhelming sense of oppression.
Two thick gates were set into the belly of the tiger, all black as if forged of iron, exuding a sense of invincibility.
At the top of the gate, three large characters in the Southern Border style were carved, presumably the name of the city.
"Iron Tiger Town..." Yuan Ming murmured to himself.