Book 14: Chapter 43: Reasonable and Unreasonable
Book 14: Chapter 43: Reasonable and Unreasonable
In Central Continent City’s western outskirts, there were large amounts of vegetable fields.
The chinese cabbage in the vegetable fields had already been harvested, but there was also a lot of chinese cabbage that experienced frost damage, lying on the ground, wilted.
These somewhat wilted looking chinese cabbage were when they were most delicious.
They only needed to add some meat fat, stir fry it a bit, and then it would become the most simple but truly delicious delicacy.
Next to this vegetable field were some thinly spread roof tile houses.
Within one of the houses, a thirty something year old vegetable farmer was currently eating dinner with his wife.
This vegetable farmer’s hands were frostbitten, his appearance also a bit sharp mouthed monkey cheeked, figure not that large and tall. He only looked extremely shrewd, wearing an old leather jacket.
His wife was a bit chubby, dressed in the fine flower coat that was popular in Central Continent City this spring, looking like she had a bit of charm.
It was clear that this year’s harvest wasn’t bad, the two’s face carrying joy. There was a small jar of wine next to the small fireplace. On the table, apart from the stewed green vegetables and oil fried cabbage that was always there, there was a pot of stewed pork and simmer-fried fish and radish.
After picking up a piece of radish that was covered in the fish’s gravy with his chopsticks and placing it in his mouth, tasting its delicious flavor, the vegetable farmer drank a mouthful of wine, feeling exceptionally satisfied. He couldn’t help but narrow his eyes, shaking his head while humming a tune.
His well-rounded wife released a pfft laugh, instead pushing him and saying, “Let’s talk about some more important things… I heard Di Manor couldn’t buy any fresh vegetables, they are offering two to three silvers for three stalks. One or two silvers can buy a whole carriage of cabbage, either way, at night…”
The sharp mouthed monkey cheeked vegetable farmer’s satisfied expression instantly vanished. He suddenly opened his eyes, glaring at his wife, directly slamming his wine cup down on the table. “Stupid woman, you don’t want to enjoy good days, what kind of damned thoughts are you scheming? Did you eat too much pork, has even your brain become a pig brain? You even dare speak these types of words, do you want to harm me to death?!”
The well-rounded wife was first startled, and then she felt wronged, tears moving within her eye sockets. “What do you mean I don’t want to enjoy good days? If we send out some during the night, there might not be anyone who will see. If we have even a single carriage of vegetable’s money, we could open up a shop in the city, we wouldn’t have to work so hard.”
“Working hard is working hard, it’s still better than not being able to continue making a living.” The vegetable farmer cursed, “Why don’t you first think about why Di Manor has to pay such a high price to begin with… Di Manor has offered such a high price precisely because no one wants to sell to them. If this business could be done, why wouldn’t others do it, just a red eyed stupid woman like you can earn this silver? What no one will see at night? No one wants to sell to him, yet you will, this is the same as making life difficult for everyone in the city! Even if you opened up a shop, who would do business with you? Would we still be able to continue in Central Continent City? Even if everyone spat out a single clump of spittle, we would be drowned to death.”
“Also, can you use your brain for a bit? Who is the one fighting in the frontlines to give us this type of good livelihood?”
“Young Sir Lin and his brother were risking their lives on the front lines, yet he was betrayed. Tell me if this doesn’t make your heart feel bitter disappointment? At least I do.”
“Even though I, Sun Dexin, am only a vegetable farmer, unable to help those brothers on the front lines, at the very least, i can learn a bit from Auspicious Virtue, right…”
The vegetable farmer continuously cursed angrily. The well-rounded woman watched as spittle flew everywhere, becoming more and more worked up, unable to help but break out into laughter from crying, laughing with a pu chi sound. “If you don’t sell, then don’t sell. Even with your type of moral integrity, you still feel bitter disappointment, you still want to learn from Auspicious Virtue?”
The vegetable farmer’s eyes glared out fiercely, staring like two bells made of copper and bronze, his neck straight as he said with a hoarse voice, “What, I cannot learn from them? It’s not like I haven’t purchased Auspicious Virtue’s bonds.”
…
When Sun Dexin, this Central Continent City western outskirts’ most shrewd vegetable farmer was cursing out his wife, not selling vegetables to Di Manor, Di Manor was also currently having their evening meal.
Within the lavishly decorated hall, Di Manor’s two venerated elders, Di Choufei’s parents looked at the egg drop soup in front of them, steamed salted pork shoulder and dried meat stir fried with mushrooms.When they picked up their chopsticks, they felt as if there was something stuck in their throats, unable to eat at all.
Compared to before, Di Manor was already much colder than usual.
Apart from the servants who were previously punished to become slaves, most of the workers and maids who were paid a salary all already resigned from their posts, leaving Di Manor.
The loyal and devoted old shopkeeper who was willing to tough out this period with Di Manor, because of the wind chill he caught a few days ago, after coming back from the market yesterday, was already bedridden, his fever high to the point where he didn’t have any rationality left.
Rice, dried fish and meat, as for these types of things, the manor still had some. Even if they really couldn’t purchase anything for a few weeks, it still wasn’t to the point where they had nothing to eat. However, during the past two days, Di Manor even more so couldn’t purchase any fresh vegetables, fish or meat.
Even if it was a cultivator, not being able to eat fresh vegetables and meat, they wouldn’t be able to take it, let alone ordinary people. Moreover, the most crucial part was that their surrounding neighbors all treated Di Manor like it was completely isolated, this was even harder for them to endure.
“Isn’t this just bullying people?!”
The high fevered housekeeper began to speak nonsense, his unconscious shout was vaguely heard by several cultivators in Di Manor.
When facing this type of furious voice, these cultivators inwardly coldly thought that this was indeed bullying others, but what can you do? Who knows how many people’s eyes are focused on Lin Xi right now, don’t tell me you want to try and kill Lin Xi?
For them, this wasn’t much of a right and not right issue. The only thing they didn’t think of was that Lin Xi would actually use this type of method.
…
Tang Wei walked along Vermilion Bird Avenue.
Under the twilight glow, this Central Continent Guard Cavalry Officer wore extremely ordinary sackcloth cotton padded jacket. He was thirty something years of age, his figure also ordinary, on his back a large cloth bag. He whose head was hung, quickly walking, also seemed like an ordinary tourist in Central Continent City.
Before any people paid him any attention, this informal dressed Central Continent Guard high ranking officer was already not far from Di Manor.
However, right at this time, his footsteps suddenly stopped, his eyes also contracting slightly. A wave of biting coldness surged from within him.
With a gulu sound, he subconsciously swallowed a mouthful of saliva.
Lin Xi who carried the black nightmare-like large metal chest walked out from a narrow alley connected to Vermilion Bird Avenue, walking towards him.
He knew that he wasn’t Lin Xi’s match, he also knew that Lin Xi wasn’t someone he could touch.
That was why while looking at Lin Xi who got closer and close to him, his entire body’s muscles were completely taut, but he didn’t dare make any movements. There was only cold sweat pouring endlessly down his back.
Many people saw Lin Xi, and from this, many people also saw this man who stood rigidly in place.
Everyone could see that there were some issues, they could tell that as Lin Xi and Tang Wei got closer and closer, the mood mysteriously became tense.
He only calmly gave Tang Wei whose entire body was already drenched in cold sweat a look, and then passed by Tang Wei’s body.
It was as if two ordinary people were passing by each other, but in this instant, the large metal chest behind Lin Xi swayed slightly, smashing into the large cloth bundle on Tang Wei’s back.
It seemed just like a light tap, yet in this instant, the large cloth bag on Tang Wei’s back was ripped apart by a wave of invisible force, exploding. All of the things inside completely flew out.
Wave after wave of food smell spread across the street.
Following the terrifying ripping noise, on this originally clean street, everyone saw all types of vegetable and meat dishes scattered everywhere.
“There is even Peony House’s flower fish… these dishes don’t look cheap at all.” Lin Xi calmly stopped, looking at the food scattered everywhere. He looked at Tang Wei whose jacket was completely covered in the juices of various dishes. “I must apologize for bumping into you. If you need any silver, I can compensate you.”
How could this possibly be something that could be settled through money?
Everyone knew that this wasn’t a matter of silver.
Lin Xi’s actions only clearly expressed that even if Tang Wei went out to buy again and there really were some people who brought over some food, before it was brought into Di manor, they would be ‘accidentally’ bumped into by Lin Xi.
The thick food juices seeped into Tang Wei’s coat, his clothes that were originally already completely soaked through now gave him an even more uncomfortable oily feeling. However, Lin Xi’s calm and cold appearance even more so made him feel a mysterious sense of humiliation, his eyes instantly becoming bloodshot.
“Sir Lin, no matter what one does, there has to be reasoning behind it!”
He controlled his own emotions again, looking at Lin Xi and spoke out fiercely regardless of everything, “Even if ruffians struggle in the marketplace, they know not to bring disaster to parents and children. Sir Lin, you are acting only because of prejudice, yet mysteriously did this type of thing. Do you not feel like doing this type of thing is too shameless, a bit too despicable?”
“That is why you are now treating yourself as an envoy of righteousness?” However, under his vicious berating, Lin Xi instead revealed a calm smile. His smile, for the first time in this Central Continent City, became a bit distressed.
“Do you want to discuss reason?”
Lin Xi calmly continued. He looked at this seemingly absolutely furious high ranking officer, and then looked at some figures in the buildings along the streets, his cold and clear voice traveling extremely far, entering everyone’s ears.
“If you want to discuss reason, then you can discuss reason with all of those who have died for our nation in South Tomb Province’s front lines. If you want to discuss reason, you can discuss it with those who charged straight through enemy armies, they had countless wounds left behind on their bodies, established glorious contributions but still hadn’t died, yet in the end, they died under the betrayal of their own people.”
“Are you extremely angry? You want to discuss reason with me?”
“What qualifications do you have to be upset? What qualifications do you have to discuss reason with me?”
“Do you believe that what you represent is righteousness?”
“Think about your status, think about this empire, think about what you are doing. Think about those who are fighting while drenched in blood in the frontlines, dying together with the cities they are defending, what were all of you doing then?!”
“When you come with anger, believing that you are self-righteous, coming to discuss reason with me, I only know that the student who was willing to die in battle for our empire at any time, the one who I viewed as my own younger brother, now lies in the ice-cold and lonely earth, forever unable to wake again. I will often think about the glory of him and those soldiers, but you? You all, when you want to discuss reason with me, have you ever thought about your good friends, your family members having blades entering their bodies, dying, lying ice-cold in dirt, this type of feeling?”
After finishing these words, Lin Xi gave this entirely pale faced, body shaking Central Continent Guard high ranking officer who could no longer raise his head again a look, throwing a silver ingot by this Central Continent Guard high ranking officer’s body, throwing it straight into a lump of mud-like fish meat. Then, he didn’t give this Central Continent Guard high ranking officer another look, continuing to walk forward.