chapter 17 Fish and Businessman

Back at Dabie Mountain, Zhang Jian returned from his very eventful fishing trip that had produced a handsome catch. On reaching home, he found Wang Yan all sweaty at the well. He sighed to himself as he immediately understood that the young girl was actively trying to draw water from the well. Even a child could see that the task Wang Yan had set out to do was far beyond her physical capacity. He promptly made a move to stop her;

"Wang Yan! You don't have to do this. Leave the fetching of the water to me from now henceforth."

In his mind, the young girl must have had a very hard time under the old man's service. It was no wonder she was always trying to outdo herself. He didn't want her to suffer any more so he tried to collect the pitcher from her. But Wang Yan thought he didn't think she was good enough to perform the task. She protested vehemently saying;

"Please senior, I can do it. Just let me!"

She tried to prove herself by displaying her agility, but her strength was no match for this particular chore. In one brief sudden movement, the bucket slipped and went crashing straight to the bottom. An embarrassing silence ensued. Cerberus who had been watching all the while was completely overjoyed at the sight of Wang Yan's failure. He wanted to mock her so bad but he restrained himself because he couldn't bear Zhang Jian's wrath. Instead he just grinned wickedly, savoring his own sick pleasure. On the other hand, Wang Yan's face was flushed with embarrassment. She was always finding herself in awkward situations like this.

She had half expected Zhang Jian to rebuke her or shout at her at least. But he remained quiet as he gazed at her with an intense set of eyes that looked like it held all the mysteries of the world.

"I saw that." Zhang Jian said coolly. He moved towards the well and gracefully drew water with little effort. Wang Yan watched in awe as he drew water effortlessly from the well. The look on her face disturbed him greatly as he thought of what she must have gone through in the past;

"She's probably not used to being offered help." He thought.

Wang Yan quickly recovered from her shock and prepared herself mentally. Since Zhang Jian was a master of the type she had never seen before, then things like this were to be expected. She looked forward to seeing far more astounding feats than this from Zhang Jian.

For the first time, she saw the bucket by his side which he had returned with. She longed to know the mystery it contained but didn't know how to present her question without seeming too nosy. She summoned courage and made her move. Gesturing at the bucket, Wang Yan asked cautiously;

"Senior, is this ...?"

"Oh it's a treat for you." He answered flatly. Anxious at the mere thought of what Zhang Jian had brought home for her, she peeked in the bucket and gasped.

"All of this is mine?"

"Don't tell me you haven't had this before?" Zhang Jian sighed inwardly. "I really have to take care of her."

Outwardly he said;

"Get some wood. My legendry fish soup is in order."

Out of curiosity, Wang Yan glanced at the fishing bucket she had ever seen before.

"Help me!"

A faint strange voice came from the bucket. She barely heard it and wasn't sure if it was her imagination.

'How could a bucket make a sound?'

She swept imaginary plots in her mind for granted. However, She learned that she was wrong in noticing some unusual fish struggling in the bucket.

Cerberus was still encircling the bucket like a vulture hovering over its prey. Zhang Jian noticed this and went a little distance off and threw Black Fish King's body on the other side of the hut because of Cerberus' longing eyes.

Wang Yan on the other hand wasted no time in getting around to doing what she was supposed to do to expedite the process. She quickly resumed her responsibilities as she pondered on Zhang Jian's strength in her mind. He wasn't like any other master she had known. She wasn't a schemer, so she was content with the little she knew about him. She refused to go sniffing around looking for answers.

A faint voice sounded again from the seemingly ordinary bucket.

"Help me! Help me!"

The laughter packed the kitchen and was full of life.

His attempt went unnoticed.

...

Some time passed after that and Zhang Jian soon noticed that he was out of rice paper. This meant that he had to go into town to visit his merchant who was his plug for stationary. So, Zhang Jian prepared to go obtain some more. As he was leaving, he found Wang Yan and charged her to stay put;

"This is a dangerous place. Make sure you stay indoors, I will be back soon."

She nodded submissively. She had every intention of doing what he said.

...

As Zhang Jian wasn't familiar with many people in Peace Town, but he frequented the store of a quiet stationery trader surnamed 'Wu' who had just the quality he needed. Boss Wu prices were reasonable even at a time like this. After navigating the deepest reaches of the market place and after walking for what seemed like a really long time to him. He came upon his favorite trader's store only to find it completely empty. Zhang Jian paused for a minute before he announced his presence and called out;

"Anyone here?"

Some footsteps came shortly after along with a reply;

"Shop's closed today mate. Move along now."

Soon a middle aged man came out and exclaimed upon seeing Zhang Jian;

"Oh Mr. Zhang! Please come in!"

He proceeded to offer him some tea which didn't taste as good as Zhang Jian had expected. Boss Wu smiled;

"Disappointed huh?"

Zhang Jian dismissed his doubts, "No, no. nothing of the sort."

Boss Wu laughed;

"I know a man of your status takes only the highest quality."

Zhang Jian laughed as well, and then added in a serious tone;

"Planning on going somewhere?"

He took a deep breath; "Yes, business has been tough here. Time to look for greener pastures."

Zhang Jian set down his teacup.

"The people here are simple. You should seek out the nobles in the capital."

Boss Wu disagreed saying; "Business is the same everywhere no matter the location."

The other man nodded in agreement and said sadly;

"So this is where the road ends for our business relationship?"

Boss Wu laughed heartily, "It's a small world, if providence is kind to us, our paths will definitely cross again."

Zhang Jian eyes glistened as though those words had a secret underlying meaning behind them;

"Uh-huh, uh-huh. That is an astute observation! In the spirit of good byes, please have this from me."

Zhang Jian took up his calligraphy set and drafted a very beautiful text;

"It's a small world, if providence is kind to us, our paths will definitely cross again."

Boss Wu's countenance brightened at the sight if the calligraphy.

"This is outstanding! Mr. Zhang must be a superior person!"

Zhang Jian rolled back in laugher; "You flatter me!"

A few moments later, the store owner gave a good sized package to Zhang Jian and saluted him saying;

"Till we meet again."

He replied him in the same vein; "Till we meet again."

Zhang Jian returned with a gloomy demeanor. He hadn't many people he could call friends, but for some odd reason, he kept losing friends here. He thought bitterly;

"I hope providence leads us to each other again."

Long after Zhang Jian left, Boss Wu found himself still admiring Zhang Jian's gift to him;

"This is truly a superior man!"

A disturbing sound suddenly startled him;

"Meow~"

Boss Wu's blood ran cold as his environment slowly lost all it color and joy. Like an unexpected guest on a cold winter's night, a sleek black cat gracefully emerged through the entrance with a wicked smile on its face.

"You are he who often referred to as 'The Businessman' aren't you? How is it that you are now so polite?"

Boss Wu answered coldly, "What do you want?"

The black cat took its time to make himself comfortable. Licking his paws, he finally replied;

"If you must know, it's a personal issue. It's not like I want to be here right now."

Boss Wu didn't like the sound of it; "On whose authority are you here?"

"The top brass."

"What do you mean by the top brass?"

"The topmost authority."

Boss Wu shuddered at that revelation and quickly gained back his composure.

"They must be insane! Yin's seal is formidable seal and yet they still want to proceed with this?"

The black cat paid him no mind; "You misunderstand. While this may seem like a discussion to you, in essence, this is an order."

"But Lin Xi swore that I was free from all this!" Boss Wu protested.

"Whatever agreement the two of you might have had in the past is now null and void." The black cat stopped licking and started stretching.

Daring to assert his will, Boss Wu narrowed his eyes and said in his most confident voice;

"And if I decide not to come with?"

The black cat took up an attack pose this time and scoffed; "The consequence would be having your blood marinate in mournful drips- all over my claws."