Chapter Fourteen: The Pawnshop's Origins

  Xiao Ziyang did not know that this immortal master appeared here and had a bit of a relationship with him.

  It turned out that Ganzhou was within the sphere of influence of a major immortal sect in Western Liang. The evil cultivator's slaughter of mountain bandits on Taifu Mountain had caused great panic, startling the eyes and ears stationed by the immortal sect, who reported this information back to their sect.

  When the Xianmen Sect sent disciples to deal with this matter, the evil cultivator had already died at Xiao Ziyang's hands, so this young man naturally made a wasted trip.

  Half an hour later, a servant brought in a large basin of mutton emitting a strong medicinal smell into Xiao Ziyang's room.

  He casually handed a few copper coins to the shopkeeper and sent him away, then ate half a bowl of medicine that tasted strange and was hard to swallow.

  The medicine was indeed effective. This time, Xiao Ziyang did the set of movements twice and only felt exhausted, without that feeling of frustration and loss of appetite in his heart. He just felt extremely tired.

  Xiao Ziyang followed the manual and massaged the acupoints all over his body.

  As the massage progressed, he felt his intestines churning faster and faster, waves of heat emanating from his abdomen spreading throughout his body. In just a short while, the feeling of exhaustion disappeared, and at the same time, the bloated sensation in his abdomen also vanished without a trace.

  Xiao Ziyang rested for a moment, wiped off the sweat on his body, and continued to cultivate according to the "Zi Yu Sheng Yan".

  An hour later, the basin containing mutton was spotless. Xiao Ziyang felt warm and comfortable all over, indescribably relaxed.

  He changed into dry clothes and came out of the upper house, arriving in the middle of the inn's great hall.

  It was just at the time when the lanterns were lit, and the escort agency's convoy had finished unloading the medicine and had settled down in the Jiuru Inn.

  Everyone in the agency was having dinner in the hall. With their heavy responsibilities temporarily set aside, everyone looked rather relaxed.

  When Xiao Ziyang came downstairs, Geng Fu pointed to a bowl of meat soup in front of him and said: "Yangzi, this mutton soup from the Jiuru Inn is very authentic. Come, I'll give you a bowl. These two days, you've either had a headache or a fever, probably caught a cold wind in the mountains. This mutton soup is best for dispelling cold air."

  Xiao Ziyang had just eaten a large bowl of mutton, but now he felt somewhat empty in the stomach. Looking at the steaming hot mutton soup, he couldn't help but feel some temptation. However, seeing the little servant carrying an empty bowl down from upstairs, he hastily shook his head at Geng Fu.

  Seeing Xiao Ziyang seeming to go out, Li Hu couldn't help but say: "This Shuoan City is not a small town in the countryside, don't go out and wander around at night, if you are caught by the city patrol army as a thief, we won't be able to rescue you."

  Xiao Ziyang said: "I'm more familiar with Shuo An City than you, so I'll naturally take care of this." After finishing speaking, he didn't waste any words on him and went straight out of the inn.

  Xiao Ziyang rushed all the way. The closer he got to the city, the more lively the streets became.

  Half an hour later, he stopped in front of a shop. On the lintel above the door of this shop, three large characters "Dadeheng" were written on a black plaque.

  The shop held a lantern, and from the slightly deep doorway, it could be seen that there were no goods in the store, only a high counter.

  This is a pawnshop.

  Xiao Ziyang stood at the entrance of the pawnshop, somewhat hesitant, and passersby looked at him with some sympathy.

  Xiao Ziyang hesitated, but it wasn't because he was reluctant to part with some treasure. In fact, he hadn't come here wanting to take anything at all.

  After hesitating for a moment, he finally lifted his leg and walked in, coming to the front of the tall counter, and pulled out a purple-golden accessory from his pocket.

  This ornament is quite bizarre, a robust tiger-headed ape, holding high a longevity peach.

  The attendant sitting behind the high counter looked up when he saw someone coming in. He saw that Xiao Ziyang's clothes were shabby and his face was rough, so he didn't bother to pay attention to him. Just as he was about to lower his head to look at the account book in his hand, Xiao Ziyang took out the ornament, and his eyes suddenly widened. A moment later, this hint of surprise was covered up by him.

  Xiao Ziyang handed the accessories to Chao Feng and said, "This was found when I was sorting through my late father's belongings. I heard that it is made of purple gold, what do you think it's worth in silver?"

  He took the ornament with an air of nonchalance, weighing it lightly in his hand. After hearing Xiao Ziyang's words, he snorted and said: "Zi Jin? Have you seen Zi Jin? This is just a copper trinket mixed with some tin! I think you're crazy for money!"

  Xiao Ziyang's face showed a disappointed expression, and he asked again: "Do you know what this thing is used for, why it was carved so strangely?"

  He tossed the accessory back into Xiao Ziyang's arms, sneering: "This thing is from Chu State, something old villagers get from the City God Temple when their grandson turns one month old, not even worth a few coins."

  His face showed an increasingly disappointed expression, but what the servant didn't see was that when Xiao Ziyang heard the two words "Chu State", a hint of unusual color flashed in his eyes.

  He picked up the accessory and took a closer look, shaking his head. The shop assistant was about to speak when he saw Xiao Ziyang stuff the accessory into his bosom and turn around to leave the store without hesitation.

  "Wait, sir!" the shopkeeper hastily called out. "I see you're in a difficult situation too... I'll give you three coins... five coins... or even two silver pieces for this lucky monkey..." Before he could finish speaking, Xiao Ziyang had already quickly walked out of the store and disappeared into the night.

  He slammed his fist on the counter in frustration.

  Xiao Ziyang left Dadeheng and went to three more pawn shops in a row. The three pawn shops also greatly undervalued the accessory, but when he asked about its origin, the attendants of the three shops coincidentally mentioned Chu State.

  That year, he searched every inch of his home for clues as to why his parents were killed and found three things that should not have been in his house.

  One was a letter written in the imperial prince's own hand.

  One of them was this strange purple-gold accessory.

  The third item was even stranger, a round iron rod about a foot long and an inch in diameter. The rod was dark and heavy to the touch, seeming solid, but when lightly tapped it emitted a hollow sound. Its sides had many slits, their purpose unknown.

  Xiao Ziyang held the accessory, walking slowly in the bustling streets where people came and went, with a solitary figure, feeling desolate.

  Xiao Ziyang was immersed in memories of his parents, a little dispirited, when he was suddenly pulled back to reality by a strong smell of mutton.

  A man with brown hair, deep eyes, high nose and thick lips is passing by him.

  There are many tribes on the Gansu Plateau who have surrendered to Western Liang, so it's not surprising to see this typical grassland figure in Shuoan City.

  Xiao Ziyang saw through this person and was shocked, suddenly waking up completely.

  He knows this person and has a very deep impression of him.

  This man was one of the leaders of the horse thieves who, together with Tie Qidao Er Dangjia, robbed the wedding procession on the official road in Jinzhou. He was the most ruthless and arrogant among all the horse thieves, and it was he who beheaded the groom.