Chapter 42: The County Magistrate Visits

June 9th—a day that seemed ordinary to most people. But for Cheng Wencai, the magistrate of Xilan County, it was second only to the New Year in significance. This year, June 9th was even more important than the New Year.

“Good Luck Casino: 188 taels of silver, one golden ox worth five taels. Yan Ji Pawnshop: 126 taels of silver, a string of pearls. Wen Ji Antiques Shop: only 36 taels of silver. I’ll have to make them pay more tomorrow…”

In the inner study of the county yamen, Cheng Wencai happily kept track of the amounts. To his left, piles of unpacked gift boxes formed small mountains. To his right, three large wooden chests were filled to the brim with gold, silver, and jade, almost reaching the tops.

As the sun set and the moon rose, Cheng Wencai, who had been working tirelessly at his desk, finally stopped. There were no more unpacked gift boxes on his left side.

Stretching himself, he let out a deep sigh. “What a tiring 40th birthday!”

Glancing at the fully filled ledger, he closed it and closed his eyes. Though thin and no longer as handsome as before, his face still carried traces of refinement, and a satisfied smile appeared on it.

After resting for a while, he took out three copper locks from his desk, locked the three large chests, patted them firmly, then stood up to put away the ledger. Just as he was about to lock it in a secret cabinet, he seemed to remember something and opened the ledger to take another look.

“Strange, where’s Fulai Restaurant?”

Cheng Wencai frowned. He wondered if it might be because he had taken 500 taels from that young man last time and ignored the incident where Fulai Restaurant was vandalized, which might have upset Kuang Tianwei.

What was the big deal about Kuang Tianwei? A few tables and chairs were broken, and a few employees were injured. It wasn’t that serious.

Opening the door, Cheng Wencai called out, “Cheng Hui, Cheng Hui…”

From the shadows, a young man in his early twenties rushed over and asked, “Uncle Wu, did you call for me?”

After letting the young man in and closing the door, Cheng Wencai pointed at the three large chests behind him. “Go see Master Zhao early tomorrow morning. Have him bring a few people to take these chests to Qiufeng City and exchange them for banknotes. Also, tell Master Zhao to send some yamen officials to Wen Ji Antiques Shop and Fulai Restaurant three times a day. He should know what to do.”

“Uncle Wu, is sending yamen officials to Fulai Restaurant because Kuang Tianwei didn’t come to wish you a happy birthday today?” Cheng Hui asked with a smile.

“It seems you’ve improved. You even know who didn’t show up today!”

“Where?” Cheng Hui said with a smile, “Today, Kuang Tianwei and Lou Jingsong, the owner of Lou’s Winery, came to see me. They said they wanted to invite you to Lin’s Inn tomorrow at noon for a private birthday celebration.”
“Lin’s Inn?” Cheng Wencai frowned. The name sounded somewhat familiar.
“It’s the inn Kuang Tianwei tried to visit last time, hoping you could help send some officials to shut it down.”
“What about Lou Jingsong? Isn’t he always at Lou’s Wine Shop in Qiufeng City?”
“You don’t know? Lin’s Inn has become very popular now. Fula Restaurant has lost most of its business because of it. Lou’s Winery is also in trouble. It’s said that the wine sold at Lin’s Inn is better than Thyme Wine and cheaper, though it’s only sold to customers in limited quantities—still enough to cause trouble for Lou’s Winery.”
Cheng Wencai suddenly understood. These two probably wanted to take advantage of his influence to pressure Lin’s Inn.
Well, it was his 40th birthday. It was only right for him to go and deal with Lin’s Inn personally since its owner hadn’t shown up. As for Kuang Tianwei and Lou Jingsong, it would depend on which side had more money— theirs or Lin’s Inn’s.
Cheng Wencai smiled calmly. When competitors fight, he benefits. If all the shops in Xilan City fought among themselves like these people, his life would be much easier.
“Tell Kuang Tianwei that I’ve agreed.”
“Okay, I’ll go inform them right away.”
After Cheng Hui left, Cheng Wencai was about to go back to his room to sleep when he suddenly remembered he hadn’t considered the possibility that Lou’s Winery wouldn’t come to celebrate.
Although the wealthy families in Xilan City probably wouldn’t dare hope for such luck, things were unpredictable, so it was safer to check carefully to ensure nothing was overlooked.
It seemed he’d have a busy night ahead!
At least sleeping in his room and getting kicked by his “tiger mother” from time to time wasn’t much better, so it was better to stay up in the study.
Returning to his desk, Cheng Wencai immediately opened the ledger and began to compare it carefully.
……
Lin’s Inn, backyard. Lin Dong could no longer hold back.
When it came to food, Lin Dong wasn’t particular. But every time he saw the Silver Rabbit, he felt hungry.
Carrying a tray full of carrots, Lin Dong walked over to the stone table with a smile, placed the tray on the table, and raised an eyebrow at the Silver Rabbit, which was lying there with its ears drooped, basking in the sun. “Dinner’s ready—freshly picked carrots.”
The Silver Rabbit glanced at the tray with its red eyes, then stretched out its paw and grabbed a carrot at a speed Lin Dong couldn’t see, bringing it to its mouth and chewing away.
“Eat more, eat more,” Lin Dong said with a widening smile. The more it ate, the faster it drank.

The entire tray was filled with carrots, but half a pound of sedative had been applied to them—enough to knock out hundreds of strong men. Seeing that the Silver Rabbit ate one carrot after another without hesitation, Lin Dong didn’t want to waste time either. He took a bench from the mobile counter and started practicing nearby. With the howling wind and the shadow of the bench moving swiftly, the ordinary bench in Lin Dong’s hands became like a versatile weapon—used for lifting, chopping, stabbing… *Chirp chirp…* The Silver Rabbit chewed on the crisp carrots while watching Lin Dong’s performance, looking quite pleased. *Boom!* Suddenly, Lin Dong flipped backward violently, the corner of the bench scraping across the ground, leaving a thin but over twenty-centimeter-deep groove instantly. “Not bad!” Lin Dong exhaled lightly. He had fully mastered the mantras for the Air Control realm a month ago; all that was left was practical experience. Although his speed of mastery wasn’t as fast as Old Ding had misinterpreted—mastering everything in half a day—it was still on par with Old Ding’s, or even slightly better. Being able to match Old Ding’s innate talent for mastery already made Lin Dong very satisfied. What made Lin Dong a bit anxious was that although he had memorized the mantras and energy control diagrams for the Sky Control realm, he couldn’t even perform the basic techniques. The main reason was a lack of spiritual energy. To use the Sky Control realm, one needed at least the strength of the Spiritual Mobility stage. Glancing at the Silver Rabbit on the table, Lin Dong frowned. It had already eaten half a tray of carrots—why hadn’t it collapsed yet? Could it be that a seventh-tier spiritual beast wasn’t affected by sedatives? Lin Dong’s lips twitched. If that were the case, he would lose both the carrots and the sedative. “Little guy, Yun Lan said you’re naturally gentle and won’t fight back unless your life is in danger, right?” Lin Dong stepped forward with the bench, looking at the Silver Rabbit meaningfully. *Chomp chomp…* The Silver Rabbit didn’t bother to pay attention, continuing to chew its carrots. Lin Dong gritted his teeth. Since he had suffered a loss, he had to find a way to make up for it. Yun Lan said this stubborn rabbit was naturally gentle and wouldn’t fight back unless in danger—so it should be true. With a swing, Lin Dong thrust the bench forward, sending a gust of wind toward the Silver Rabbit. The side of the bench, moving straight downward, emitted a sound like a sword slashing through the air. *Boom!* The stone table trembled, and a long, thin groove appeared on its surface, as if cut by a sword. With a flash of silver light, the Silver Rabbit still held its carrots, but it had already left the table and appeared two meters away. *Chomp chomp…* The Rabbit continued chewing its carrots as if nothing had happened before.

Lin Dong grinned as spiritual energy flowed into his feet. With a swift step using the Mysterious Step, he appeared behind the silver rabbit. The long bench was quietly moved to one side, its corner thrusting downward like a sharp sword, gleaming with a silver-white light.

Whoosh!

As the bench corner was raised, dust flew into the air. The silver rabbit had already run to the other side of the stone table.

Click, click…

Lin Dong smirked. Yun Lan had left this dead rabbit for him—was she trying to give him practice in real combat?

“Not bad speed. Go again!”

Regardless of Yun Lan’s intentions, Lin Dong was determined to take on this dead rabbit. Swinging the bench and using the Mysterious Step at high speed, though his strength wasn’t enough to achieve a truly elusive movement, he still managed to appear and disappear intermittently.

One big, one small—just a bench and a carrot—Lin Dong chased the silver rabbit around the courtyard. With a clear target, his use of the Mysterious Step became more agile. His combat techniques were no longer limited to lifting, thrusting, slashing, and sweeping, but rather adapted to the situation on the fly.

After chasing it all morning, with little spiritual energy left, Lin Dong stopped, sweating profusely. He glanced at the silver rabbit and was about to return to his room to recover his spiritual energy before continuing the fight when a thin bamboo pole rushed in from the main hall.

“Boss, Magistrate Cheng has arrived. Sixth Brother is greeting him in the main hall. He suspects some kind of conspiracy and asked me to ask what you want us to do.”

Lin Dong frowned and asked, “Is he the only one?”

“There’s also Kuang Tianwei, Lou Wanzhang from Lou’s Winery, plus a man and a woman. From what they’re saying, the man seems to be Lou Jingsong, the owner of Lou’s Winery, and the woman is Hua Hongyue, the top entertainer at Zuihonglou.”

“Quite a crowd!” Lin Dong sneered. With the county magistrate coming today, it was likely he was here to seek justice for Kuang Tianwei and Lou Wanzhang.

An idea struck Lin Dong, and he asked, “Has the Tiger Mother come today?”

“She has. I guess she’s afraid of being recognized by them, so she hasn’t dared to make a sound.” The thin bamboo pole nodded. Recently, the Tiger Mother might have been worried about running into someone who knew her at the inn. Sitting there from morning till night could attract gossip, so she and the young maid disguised themselves and spoke very little.

Lin Dong laughed. If the top entertainer from Zuihonglou was meant for that county magistrate, then tonight, that magistrate was in for a treat.

“Tell Sixth Brother to take care of greeting Magistrate Cheng. Say I’ve gone out. Tell him to endure if he can. If this county magistrate wants to extort some silver, use the money saved from building the winery as a temporary solution if it’s under two thousand taels. If two thousand taels still isn’t enough… come find me.”

Lin Dong sighed. Anyway, if the inn wanted to survive, it definitely couldn’t offend this county magistrate in public. They could spend money and then secretly try to get it back from the magistrate. If the inn’s cash wasn’t enough… they could only hope that for this fierce woman, comfort was more important than money.