Chapter 52: Good News from Heaven

“Kid, I’m the young master of the only family in Xilan City—the Liu family.”
Zhou Jinchi thought Lin Dong hadn’t understood, so he raised his voice slightly and repeated it through gritted teeth.
Lin Dong merely responded with an “Oh” and said nothing more.
Furious, Zhou Jinchi wanted to stamp his foot, but fearing that Wen Wangzhong and his daughter would suspect him, he snapped, “Which county are you from?”
“Xilan County,” Lin Dong replied calmly.
“Huh?” Zhou Jinchi thought his ears must be faulty. If he was from Xilan County, how could he not know about the Liu family? Could it be that his ears weren’t the problem but his voice was too soft?
Speak louder? But then Xiao Ying would hear him!
Filled with rage, Zhou Jinchi felt pain in every part of his body. The whole plan was about to succeed—how could someone buying spirit stones suddenly appear?
“Uncle Wen, think it over carefully. He’s just someone you met once; we don’t even know his character. You’re taking Xiao Ying to ask him for help—who knows if he has evil intentions?” Zhou Jinchi tried to persuade Wen Wangzhong again.
Wen Wangzhong glanced at Zhou Jinchi and remained silent. To escape this dangerous situation, even if he knew it was a tiger’s den, he had to go. Every moment of safety counted.
“Xiao Ying, try persuading Uncle Wen again.”
Zhou Jinchi turned to Xiao Ying, but got no response either. Furious, he wanted to draw his sword and slash Lin Dong and Wen Wangzhong, then kidnap Xiao Ying back.
Before long, amid Zhou Jinchi’s incessant nagging, Wen Wangzhong and his daughter packed up whatever hadn’t been damaged, gathered the spirit stones from the counter, tied up their belongings, and went to the back yard to get some change of clothes. Everything was ready, waiting for Lin Dong’s signal.
“Let’s go!”
Lin Dong nodded at Wen Wangzhong and stepped out of the shop first. The father and daughter followed closely behind, stopping at the door to close it once Zhou Jinchi came out.
Snap!
A clear sound of a sword being drawn echoed. Zhou Jinchi clearly intended to use force. His icy sword tip was pointed at Lin Dong. “Kid, I’m sure those extortionists were sent by you, aiming to do something bad to Xiao Ying. Uncle Wen and Xiao Ying have been deceived by you, but I’m not that easy to fool.”
Lin Dong twisted his neck, and a shiny bench appeared in his right hand. In an instant, he moved behind Zhou Jinchi, raised his right arm, and swung the bench at his head.
Bang!

Zhou Jinchi was only at the second level of the Agile Phase; he couldn’t even discern the movement path of the Eighth-Level Misty Step, let alone match Qiao Tianhao’s strength at the sixth level of the Agile Phase. Naturally, he had no chance of understanding. Before he could figure out what was going on, he flew out through the door, crashed hard to the ground, convulsed a few times, and then fell silent.

Wen Wangzhong and Wen Ying trembled, hesitant to look at Lin Dong again. The possibility of leaving one danger to encounter another was indeed not negligible.

“Uncle, you can close the door now,” Lin Dong said with a smile upon seeing their expressions, explaining casually, “If no one provokes me, I definitely won’t provoke them either.”

Though still uneasy, they closed the door and locked it before following Lin Dong in silence.

Halfway along, Wen Wangzhong couldn’t help asking, “Sir, where are you from?”

“I own the Lin’s Inn on Shi Bei Street,” Lin Dong replied with a smile. “Just call me Lin Dong.”

“Oh, so you’re Innkeeper Lin.” Wen Wangzhong’s worried heart finally settled. Running an inn, if it wasn’t a scam, was a legitimate business. Since it was in Xilan City, it likely wasn’t a scam. If it were, it would need strong backing—in that case, opening a restaurant would be more profitable.

After hesitating for a moment, Wen Wangzhong cautiously said, “Innkeeper Lin, that person just now… was the young cousin of the Liu family. To be honest, he orchestrated that incident targeting my daughter Wen Ying. He’s notorious, second only to the young master of the Liu family. If you hit him, it could get you into big trouble. Fortunately, he doesn’t know your identity yet. How about my daughter and I leave the city for now? That way, even if he sends people to look for us, they won’t find us, and they certainly won’t think it was you who hurt his cousin.”

“It’s fine.” Seeing the noodle stall approaching, Lin Dong decided it was better to tell the truth. After all, honesty saved time, and since Wen Wangzhong and his daughter were in trouble, they had no choice but to follow him to the inn unless they wanted to leave Xilan City.

After organizing his thoughts, Lin Dong said, “I won’t hide it from you either. I went to Wen’s Antiques Shop today not to buy spirit stones, but for Wen Ying.”

“Huh?”

The father and daughter were stunned, looking at Lin Dong in shock.

Wen Wangzhong’s expression turned grim. Could it be that this man, like Zhou Jinchi, had his eye on Wen Ying?

If that was the case… it might not be so bad.

Wen Wangzhong was also shocked by the thoughts that arose in his mind, but after some reflection, he felt relieved. The man before him, in terms of both appearance and temperament, seemed to be ten or even a hundred times better than Zhou Jinchi. He was engaged in legitimate business and had also trained in martial arts; Xiao Ying marrying him shouldn’t be too bad.

However… glancing at Wen Ying, Wen Wangzhong’s relaxed expression darkened again. Though today’s scholars appeared polite, refined, and elegant on the surface, their inner selves were often unsatisfactory. But still, Xiao Ying liked such people!

Lin Dong had no idea what Wen Wangzhong was thinking. He nodded toward the noodle stall across the street and asked, “Do you know Jiang Kui?”

“I’ve never met him. I’ve heard from neighbors that he’s a poor kid with a decent character, though he looks too fierce and has a scary loud voice. He’s in his early twenties, yet not a single matchmaker dares to approach him.” Wen Wangzhong expressed his thoughts before adding, puzzled, “Does Manager Lin know Jiang Kui?”

“I do. He’s an excellent cook. I wanted to invite him to work as a head chef at the inn. But he…” Lin Dong smiled and looked at Wen Ying. “He thinks nothing is more important than being able to see Wen Ying from afar every day.”

Wen Ying immediately blushed, twisting her small hands together, at a loss. Wen Wangzhong looked somewhat saddened. So it was for Jiang Kui… That young man… Not only was he not Xiao Ying’s type, but even if he were, he would still object.

“Manager Lin, I think it’s better if we father and daughter don’t disturb them anymore!” Wen Wangzhong said helplessly.

“Don’t worry. If Wen Ying doesn’t like it, I definitely won’t force her,” Lin Dong said with a smile. “Besides, you agreed to pay in spirit stones for accommodation. Even without Jiang Kui, there’s no reason to turn down such a good deal.”

“Well…” Wen Wangzhong still hesitated.

“How about this? You go to Shi Bei Street first and find out more about my character. If it’s good, tell the inn staff to arrange for you to stay in the back courtyard of the new inn. If not, you can just leave.”

Wen Wangzhong nodded. That was indeed a good idea.

“Then, shall we go first?”

Lin Dong nodded. A good reputation could indeed be useful sometimes. As long as Wen Wangzhong asked around in Shi Bei Street, he would never believe that the father and daughter would just leave.

After the father and daughter walked away, Lin Dong smiled and headed to the noodle stall.

“Boss, a bowl of noodles.”

After sitting down firmly on the stool, Lin Dong greeted Jiang Kui, who looked somewhat disheartened nearby.

“Um… this…”

Jiang Kui was awkward, but his loud voice still carried great impact to Lin Dong’s ears.

“What, this and that? Are you trying to take advantage of me because I like eating noodles here and raise the price?”
“No, no!” Jiang Kui waved his fan-sized hands repeatedly. “Just now, I saw Boss Wen from Wenji Antiques Shop carrying a load and walking with you for a while. I was wondering where he’s heading.”
Lin Dong couldn’t help but laugh. This big fool wasn’t completely stupid after all; he knew how to be indirect.
“He doesn’t have a specific destination. The antiques shop encountered some trouble, so Boss Wen wanted to stay at my inn to take shelter.”
Jiang Kui quietly breathed a sigh of relief, and a slight smile appeared on his face buried in his beard. “Did he say how long he’d stay?”
“Who knows? The trouble is serious. He’ll have to stay at my place for at least a year or two. Longer than that? Who can say?”
Bang!
Jiang Kui stumbled and knocked over the table where Lin Dong was sitting.
“What’s wrong? Are you really not going to make noodles for me?” Lin Dong said irritably. “I even thought of inviting you to work as a chef at my inn. Who would have thought that beneath that honest appearance lies such a heartless person who exploits those he knows?”
With a sudden leap, Jiang Kui stood up, his face filled with joy. He grabbed Lin Dong tightly. “You mean you want to hire me as a chef?”
Lin Dong replied calmly, “That’s one of my thoughts.”
“I’ll go! I’ll go! I’ll do it even without pay.” Jiang Kui grinned widely, his laughter making the roof shake.
“Alright, then get ready and follow me back to the inn,” Lin Dong said, waving his hand.
“Sure!”
Jiang Kui immediately got to work, folding the wooden tables together in no time.
Perhaps remembering something, his excitement faded as he cleaned the stove. He turned to look at Lin Dong and mumbled, “I can give up the salary. Just make sure I have enough to eat. But once Boss Wen returns, I’ll come back and open this noodle stall again.”
Another Liu Xiu?
Lin Dong felt helpless. Top-notch employees were temporary workers—could top-notch chefs also be temporary?
“What if I offered you twenty taels of silver per month?”
“That still won’t work. This noodle stall was left to me by my uncle. As long as I’m not starving, I can’t let his legacy be ruined,” Jiang Kui shook his head firmly.
“What if… I could find a way for Wen Ying to marry you?”
“How, how is that possible? How could Miss Wen Ying marry me?” Jiang Kui became panicked.
“I mean, if!” Lin Dong said slowly, emphasizing each word.
The thought of Wen Ying standing beside him in a wedding dress made Jiang Kui feel dizzy.
“Then… then I’ll work for you my whole life, without asking for pay.”

“No pay? Want to starve your wife and kids? Fine, hurry up and pack your things and come with me.”
Lin Dong stood up, his face beaming with a bright smile.
What a brute who forgets filial duty at the sight of beauty!
He wants to be the head chef at Lin’s Inn!