Ever since receiving the Red Crystal sent by the small tribal chief, Di Gu worried for several days, fearing discovery, yet consoling himself that the tribe hadn’t suffered any loss.
After some time passed, the trading area remained calm and peaceful. No one noticed that Di Gu had sold a batch of goods at a cheaper price, nor did anyone find anything amiss.
As time went on, Di Gu’s mindset underwent some changes. On one occasion, he received a gift from a Tribal Warrior of a small tribe.
This time, although he was a bit uneasy, his mindset was much better than before, not losing sleep over worry like previously.
By the third time, he was relatively calm, even gaining some confidence because he hadn’t been discovered the first two times. This time should be no different.
Moreover, he didn’t directly take things from the tribe; he just accepted a little something and slightly lowered the prices of goods to be sold.
By the fourth time, Di Gu was completely at ease and confident that it was okay. People from outside the tribe came to trade, offering him something, which seemed completely reasonable.
On the fifth occasion, seeing something he wanted, Di Gu even began to hint to those trading with him that if they gave him the item, he could exchange more goods for them.
Step by step, Di Gu became the first person to accept bribes in the trading area.
Because he didn’t directly take goods from the store, and not every trade involved a bribe, when Dong Kui checked the inventory, he just felt that some estimated goods prices were high, and some sold parts were low, thus only reminding him to be careful next time.
This is how a person’s ambition begins to inflate, especially when wrongdoing goes unpunished and instead brings benefits, causing Di Gu’s ambition to grow even faster.
Until one day, Lan, carrying a piece of Beast Hide, walked into the trading area to the tool shop, wanting to exchange some weapons.
Although she had joined the Thorny Vine, her identity needed to remain a secret, so her behavior was still like that of other Wanderers.
Di Gu naturally didn’t recognize Lan and assumed she was no different from other Wanderers, so during the trade, he started asking for benefits.
"The Beast Hide is not bad, but there are quite some flaws."
Lan frowned and said, "Where are the flaws?"
Di Gu blew a few breaths on the Beast Hide, scattering the fur: "Look, here... here, and here, all have scars."
Lan’s frown deepened because fights for survival are common among beasts, and having some smaller scars left behind is unavoidable. Di Gu’s nitpicking was excessive.
Di Gu’s gaze swept over Lan and finally settled on the Beast Tooth Necklace around her neck.
"This Beast Tooth Necklace is quite nice."
Lan continued watching him, unsure of what he intended to do.
Seeing her lack of reaction, Di Gu spoke quietly, "If you could give me the Beast Tooth Necklace, I could overlook those flaws and even exchange an extra weapon for you."
After hearing Di Gu’s words, Lan looked at him in disbelief, clearly not expecting him to make such a proposal.
Seeing that Lan didn’t immediately agree, Di Gu earnestly said, "If you’re unwilling, that’s fine, but with these flaws, it’s tough to exchange this Beast Hide for good weapons."
Lan, upon hearing this, nearly wanted to kill this scoundrel, but eventually, she restrained herself.
Having been a Wanderer for so long, she had seen quite a few sinister people, and it wasn’t the first time she’d been troubled. This text is hosted at novᴇlfire.net
After a moment of silence, she said to Di Gu, "This Beast Tooth Necklace is very important to me. How about I go back and think it over, and once I’ve decided, I’ll return."
On hearing this, Di Gu’s mood instantly soured, and his face darkened.
"Since that’s the case, you should go back, but make sure you decide quickly, or I might change my mind by the time you return."
"Don’t be angry, I’ll consider it carefully."
Lan flashed a smile, then turned and left the trading area with the Beast Hide.
Outside, she immediately used special contact methods to find Feng Chao and explained everything.
After listening, Feng Chao said to her, "Don’t spread this news for now, I’ll go find the chief and let him decide."
Lan nodded and patiently waited in the wooden house.
Feng Chao then quickly returned to the tribe to find Jiang Xuan and told him everything.