A Trap for Dou Lin

"I have hundreds of questions." Dou Lin couldn't help but utter when he finished his task of exchanging the gold inside the chests.

"I know, but we don't have any idle time. Just take care of the gold and follow me."

"You are always ordering me around to carry your things. Do you think I am your servant?"

"…" Dou Lin really loved to complain while doing his tasks. At one point, Li Qiang found this amusing. He put his hand behind his back and marveled at the moonless sky. It was dark and cloudy, yet to Li Qiang, it was a perfect sky. It was the perfect night to kill people.

"You didn't kill them," Dou Lin said. In fact, carrying things wasn't so hard for someone like Dou Lin, who could harness the properties of the Earth. His body wasn't only strong in defenses. His strength was also top-notch. This was the reason why most people who chose to become soldiers are affiliated with the element of Earth.

Li Qiang shrugged. He can still use them. That's the reason why he didn't kill them.

"And what did you do to the gold? Where did you buy all those fake gold?"

"I made them."

"Huh?"

"Creating fake gold isn't hard."

"But I have never seen a fake who weighs just like a genuine gold."

Again, Li Qiang shrugged in response. The answer to that question is obviously chemistry. Explaining it to someone like Dou Lin, who knew nothing about Earth, would be a waste of his time.

"I never thought that a Duke like you would actually steal gold."

"Why not?" Corrupt officials steal money from people. Even the King needed money to live!

This time, it was Dou Lin who didn't say anything.

"This gold… I will use this to build an army."

"Huh?"

"This is why I wanted you to start looking for a place where we could build a base. I will give you a month to do that."

"But… I am nor your servant!"

"I know! That's why it is best that you asked your people to do it for you!"

"You—"

Li Qiang could feel Dou Lin's sharp gaze towards his back, but he ignored it. He knew that Dou Lin's people had been following them all along. However, they didn't want to reveal themselves and just chose to watch them in secret.

"And if they won't do it?"

Li Qiang turned towards Dou Lin. "Then I kill them. Useless people are nothing but a waste of space in this world."

"Did you really think you can…" Dou Lin didn't continue his words. Since Li Qiang discovered his presence, the man slowly showed him a lot of changes—changes that no one expected. By now, Dou Lin was aware that Li Qiang wasn't harmless.

In fact, the man was too dangerous.

Dou Lin pursed his lips. Li Qiang cannot use the elements, but he was very proficient with poison. Dou Lin has watched Li Qiang create a poison out of nowhere and use it on his servants. He was ruthless and would hesitate to kill anyone that irritate him.

However, to Dou Lin, this isn't the real thing that made Li Qiang dangerous.

What made this man dangerous was his weird martial arts and weapons.

That's right.

Li Qiang was good with needles and daggers and anything that anyone could throw. Dou Lin was sure that Li Qiang could easily kill anyone using a stone. As long as the thing can be thrown, Li Qiang can use it as a weapon.

This was something that Dou Lin had never seen before.

In this part of the world, people usually train using weapons. A sword master would not train the arts of spears and daggers. And an archer would not touch a sword. This is why they were only given one chance to master something.

While most of them would choose something associated with their elements, there are people like Dou Lin who choose to learn another craft. He chose to master the art of daggers.

And while he could still use a sword or bow and arrow, his proficiency was only average. "What is going to happen now?" Dou Lin asked. Until now, he still couldn't understand why Li Qiang chose to leave those people alive. Why not just end their lives after robbing them?

"Instead of asking questions, you should hurry. I still need to sleep. I don't want to ruin my skin." Li Qiang answered.

"…"

...

Qysten and the others were woken up by the other members of the Golden Orchid. Those people were waiting for them outside of the forest and when they realized that Qysten was late, they immediately went inside to check on them.

When they arrived, everyone in the unit was asleep. This included the handyman and even the horses.

Everyone was sleeping soundly.

"Sir Qysten… we didn't lose any gold this time. However, you should be mindful next time." The leader of the guards told Qysten. "I already reported this matter to the higher-ups. You should tell them what really happened that night."

Qysten could only nod at the head guard's words.

…..

"A total of hundred thousand gold." Dou Lin reported. Why did he have to count everything on his own?

"That little?"

"What do you mean? A hundred thousand gold could already build a small kingdom!"

"Oh? I didn't know that. Are you talking about a kingdom made of wood?"

"You— "

"That's not enough to— "

"If you want to buy a piece of land, a hundred thousand gold is enough."

"Oh?"

"Why are you acting like that?" Dou Lin hissed. "You are showing like you – "

"It's precisely because I didn't know the prices. Dou Lin… did you think I personally handle my finances?"

Silence followed his words.

Li Qiang sighed. "Since you said it is enough, you should handle it then."

"What did you say?" Dou Lin couldn't help but cursed inwardly. This Li Qiang was truly cunning! He made him say that it was enough so he would have an excuse to let him handle it! It was all a trap!

How hateful!

....

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