"Young Master, don’t fall for his tricks; this guy is all talk with no real skills," the old man, with no ill intentions, listened to their conversation and knew that Mu Hanyan was requesting Ling Baobao’s help. Fearing that he might be deceived as he had been, he offered a word of caution. The latest_epɪ_sodes are on_the NovelHub(.)net
"Don’t worry, even if he wants to deceive me, he’d need the guts to do so," Mu Hanyan said with raised eyebrows and a swagger in front of the others, not wanting to explain too much. Without care, the demeanor of an overbearing young noble scornfully bullying both men and women began to surface again.
Seeing the arrogance on Mu Hanyan’s face, the old man no longer advised further. Judging by their attire and poise, he knew all of them hailed from prominent families, and with the strength of a Tenth Rank Great Swordsman, who would dare to swindle them? They’d have to be tired of living.
"In that case, I won’t say more. However, you don’t need to repay double, just returning the swindled money will do," the old man said politely, not keen on taking advantage of Mu Hanyan.
"Then, I thank you, old man," Mu Hanyan nodded in response.
Mu Cheng immediately instructed a servant to bring paper and pen, tallying the lost wealth of everyone present, and wrote a document for them to sign and seal. This document was Ling Baobao’s indenture contract for the next five years and could not be taken lightly.
After receiving their silver notes, the crowd dispersed, but not before throwing Ling Baobao some vicious glares as they left.
"Young Master, I see that these people are all righteous. Please heed an old man’s advice, be sure to guard against this man, and don’t be swindled by him," the old man, now at the door, couldn’t help but turn back and urge Mu Hanyan once more.
He had never expected to recoup his losses before; finding Ling Baobao was just an excuse to vent his frustration with a beating. Now, with his silver note returned, he was quite grateful to Mu Hanyan.
"Thank you for the warning, old man. I’ll be careful," Mu Hanyan gratefully acknowledged, knowing the advice came from a good place.
"I really didn’t deceive them, you know. Either they had poor aptitude, or it was just bad luck. And that couple with issues, how could I know all that?" Ling Baobao said dejectedly, more to comfort himself than anything, after the people had gone quite a distance.
"I know you didn’t cheat anyone. Perhaps some methods weren’t used correctly. But with those last few people, you obviously swindled them like a God-man. Who else should they beat up if not you?" Mu Hanyan said irritably.
"Eh? Brother Han Yan, you believe I didn’t deceive them?" Ling Baobao asked, his eyes sparkling.
"Believing you is one thing; compensating me after settling your debts is another. Alright, don’t forget your promise. Serve for five years here, and we’re even," Mu Hanyan waved the document in his hand, reminding Ling Baobao.
"What about the hand gestures?" asked Ling Baobao.
"Nonsense, of course I still have to help you comprehend them. Or else, what? Am I keeping you for free meals? You’re not a pretty boy," Mu Hanyan glared disdainfully at Ling Baobao.
"That’s good, that’s good," Ling Baobao suddenly perked up, his spirit restored as he spoke with animated enthusiasm—it seemed he had quite the resilient mindset. Of course, with the intention of paying off his debts, he was keen on learning the Alchemy Hand Formation in earnest. Then he suddenly remembered something and stopped, saying, "Wait, that’s not right. You shouldn’t be keeping a pretty boy anyway. Aren’t you a man? Shouldn’t you be hiding a beauty in your golden house?"
Mu Hanyan couldn’t help but roll his eyes, "Can you not focus on these details? Just do your work properly, and no freeloading allowed."
"Okay then," Ling Baobao blinked and nodded, "Thank you for earlier, anyway." Even if Mu Hanyan had taken advantage of the situation, he had truly helped him out of a big mess. He couldn’t handle being beaten up by that many people; even if he didn’t die, he’d be skinned alive. Besides, turning the tables to one’s advantage was something he had done himself in the past; he wasn’t the least bit put off by Mu Hanyan’s approach—just human nature.
"Come on, let’s go and help you with the hand gestures," said Mu Hanyan, heading toward the parlor at the back of the hall.
Even though Yuan Tianbo resigned himself to the loss of Little Pond City and the mines, he certainly didn’t leave his silver notes behind out of the goodness of his heart. Therefore, the future operation of the mines now depended on the more than ten million silver notes on Mu Hanyan’s person. It sounded like a lot, but it had to support both the mining swordsmen and the various other servants, and it wouldn’t last long. So Mu Hanyan was eager for Ling Baobao to quickly comprehend the Alchemy Hand Formation.
"Hold on, I just remembered something really important I haven’t done," Ling Baobao suddenly interjected.
"What is it?" Mu Hanyan looked at Ling Baobao with suspicion, wondering if the fellow was planning to back out.
"We... haven’t had dinner yet, have we?" Ling Baobao said, touching his belly.
The crowd was flabbergasted.