Chapter 37 Zhang Ze, Good Guy

"Although sometimes others act without needing proof, at the very least, you need to ensure they can’t find any overt faults to exploit."

Gu Sheng nodded silently to himself.

Li Yan’s brother-in-law might not play a significant role, but Gu Sheng still treated him as a potential adversary.

Low profile, cautious, and keep improving strength!

The hunters gradually said their farewells, as they still had their own affairs to attend to. Li Lian smiled as she saw them off. Only after everyone had left did she turn to Gu Sheng and apologize:

"Asheng, don’t blame your Erniu brother. This fool tried to hide it from me, but when he awkwardly applied medicine, I immediately noticed something was wrong. After pressing him, I found out how dangerous things were for you all yesterday..."

"I know Li Yan, that scoundrel. He relies on the fact that his sister married a martial artist and behaves lawlessly. He even ruined the reputation of a young lady from Li’s Fort, though that matter was eventually covered up after much effort."

"If his sister starts wailing, I’m afraid that martial artist might actually lift a finger to help. That’s why I..."

"Sister-in-law acted on her own judgment; don’t blame her."

Li Lian pressed her hands at her waist, her expression earnest as she gave a sincere bow.

In her heart, she had stopped seeing Gu Sheng as a mere fourteen-year-old boy. She regarded him as an equal to Gu Erniu, even though Gu Erniu had not fully explained the perilous events of the previous day. Li Lian had deduced most of it.

Speaking of which,

she had personally witnessed Gu Sheng kill a wolf. Such bravery and skill were not things an ordinary person possessed. At that time, Gu Sheng was still a frail boy.

Gu Sheng immediately waved his hand and said:

"Sister-in-law is meticulous. Handling it this way is absolutely no issue. However, this matter must not be shared with anyone else, to avoid any leaks."

Li Lian nodded repeatedly.

"I know. Though I’m just a woman, I understand what’s at stake here."

"Asheng, first you saved me and Wan’er, and now you’ve saved your Erniu brother. You truly are... truly the benefactor of our family. This kind of kindness, sister-in-law really doesn’t know how to thank you..."

As Li Lian spoke, her eyes turned red from the depths of her gratitude for Gu Sheng.

Gu Sheng said solemnly:

"Sister-in-law, you’re being too formal. We are family, no need for such words. When my father passed away back then, if it hadn’t been for Brother Erniu taking care of everything, Father wouldn’t have been able to rest so quickly in peace—let alone the many ways you’ve cared for me."

Li Lian lowered her head, choking back sobs.

"It’s my fault too. I’ve been constantly talking about saving up more for Wan’er to learn martial arts in the future. Who knew it would lead to Erniu being trapped in such a dangerous situation? If something had happened to him, I would have never forgiven myself for a lifetime."

Gu Sheng could only console her lightly.

His own feelings were also somewhat complicated.

Parents who love their children plan long-term for them.

If they wanted Gu Wan to have a better starting point in the future, they naturally had to take some risks. Gains and losses were hard to calculate. For Gu Erniu and his wife, Gu Wan was their life’s goal.

When Gu Erniu’s voice came from inside the house, the two stopped talking.

Gu Sheng discussed some details with Gu Erniu, reminded him to take care of his injury, and then returned home to rest.

...

The days that followed.

Gu Sheng’s life remained no different from before.

He practiced archery at home, rested up for two more days, and then ventured into the mountains again.

Gu Erniu was injured, but he himself was not.

Maintaining the same habits as before would not arouse suspicion.

Besides, Gu Sheng didn’t want to waste time idly.

Though the silver fox pelt had brought him sudden wealth, daily accumulation was equally important. Gu Sheng did not become complacent.

Venturing into the mountains to hunt,

he once again reaped rewards. As his archery skills improved, he rarely returned empty-handed from his trips to the mountains.

While Gu Erniu couldn’t go into the mountains, Gu Sheng still gave him half a rabbit’s worth of meat.

Two more days passed.

It had now been five days since Li Yan was killed.

On this day,

the hunters gathered once more.

Since the invention of the hotpot cooking method, the hunters of Gu’s Manor had started regular meals together for chatting, becoming noticeably more united compared to before.

Gu Sheng had just helped Gu Erniu walk in when Zhang Ze burst out laughing:

"Erniu, I’ve got good news for you!"

Gu Erniu was momentarily stunned and laughed: "My leg’s like this—what good news could there be?"

He exchanged a subtle glance with Gu Sheng, and both detected the caution in the other’s eyes.

Zhang Ze leaned in mysteriously and said: "Guess who’s dead?"

"Who?" slurred San Mazi drunkenly.

Zhang Ze cast an annoyed glance at San Mazi, then enthusiastically exclaimed:

"Li Yan! That mongrel Li Yan is dead!"

He erupted into laughter, grabbing his nearby wine bowl and downing it in one gulp. Zhang Ze had suffered plenty under Li Yan’s oppression. Traveling with Gu Erniu, he’d encountered Li Yan multiple times. His flat nose, in particular, had been the subject of Li Yan’s ridicule often enough.

Hearing of Li Yan’s death now, his heart was naturally ecstatic.

Gu Erniu froze, staring blankly at Zhang Ze, stammering: "Ah Ze, you said... who... who’s dead?"

Gu Sheng also eagerly fixed his gaze on Zhang Ze, while the others stared at him, anticipating more details.

Zhang Ze, seeing the stunned looks of the crowd, felt immensely satisfied.

"Li Yan! That Li Yan who’s always been at odds with you, Brother Erniu! The one from Li’s Fort!"

"Hiss! Of course I know which Li Yan you’re talking about. Hurry up, tell us—how did that bastard die? Where did this news come from?"

San Mazi, excited, pushed for answers.

Gu Erniu was visibly agitated, his hands and legs trembling, even his lips quivering, and his face flushed red as if he’d been drinking.

"Good! Good! That damn scoundrel is finally dead! Heaven has eyes!"

Gu Sheng quietly admired Gu Erniu’s acting. His lip-quivering looked very convincing. After helping him to a seat, Zhang Ze continued:

"Yesterday I went into the mountains and ran into a hunter from Li’s Fort I know. He told me that Li Yan and his lackeys haven’t returned to Li’s Fort for four or five days!"

"That’s almost certainly death in Cang Mountain—no other possibility!"

"Four men, huh... Tch, tch."

Zhang Ze clicked his tongue twice, reveling in schadenfreude over Li Yan and his men’s demise.

The hunters all roared in laughter. Even those who hadn’t crossed paths with Li Yan laughed for Gu Erniu’s sake.

Gu Erniu laughed heartily as well.

After the laughter subsided, San Mazi shifted uneasily in his seat and muttered: "But now that I think about it, while Li Yan was a vile man, his archery skills were sharp. He even had three lackeys with him. How could they all suddenly perish in Cang Mountain? Could it have been a tiger or a bear?"

Being naturally timid, his primary concern was this possibility.

Zhang Ze snorted and lowered his tone: "That’s not certain. It might’ve been done by people!"

Gu Erniu and Gu Sheng’s hearts raced, but their expressions remained unchanged, mingling their curiosity with the others.

"Who’d have the skill to do it?"

Zhang Ze leaned in further and whispered: "The people from Li’s Fort said they saw members of the Black Sand Gang enter the mountains too!"

"I suspect... someone from the Black Sand Gang wanted to hunt a silver fox to curry favor with a big shot within the gang, and Li Yan must’ve gotten into a conflict with them..."

At the mention of the Black Sand Gang,

everyone’s expressions changed.

The Black Sand Gang was a parasitic force oppressing the villages and forts in the area. Overbearing, ruthless, and with an abundance of martial artists, they were terrifyingly powerful.

Just the name of the gang was enough to make everyone grit their teeth in hatred, though they dared not express it too openly.

The atmosphere grew heavy.

After a long silence, Zhang Ze finally exhaled and said: "Whatever the truth is, I think we’d best avoid the mountains for a while. You wouldn’t want to risk your life for a silver fox only to get killed. It’s not worth it!"

Everyone nodded in agreement.

"That’s right, makes sense. Whether Li Yan was killed by beasts or the Black Sand Gang... neither is someone we can afford to provoke."

"No one has managed to catch the silver fox after all this time. I suspect it’s already fled deep into the mountains, far from this area."

"Maybe the Black Sand Gang already caught it."

"For the next half a month, I think I’ll stay home and rest. My wife’s been complaining about me going into the mountains too often anyway..."

"Exactly..."

Listening to the crowd’s discussions and how they began veering off-topic, Gu Sheng and Gu Erniu’s worries diminished considerably.

Looking at Zhang Ze, who was now animatedly sharing gossip on other matters,

Gu Sheng silently gave him a thumbs-up in his heart.

Zhang Ze, what a good man.