Fear and Obedience

Huan Wei arrived in front of the town hall. The town guards were standing guard at the gate. People were coming in and out. Of course, Huan Wei was not the only one with a request or a complaint. He wanted to turn his head and check on Huan Zhong, but he stopped himself. He had to leave no room for doubt to make the man believe.

He took a deep breath and walked inside. When he reached the stairs in front of the building, the guards looked at him. Everyone knew the poor boy from the court. They did not block his way and let him pass. Huan Wei bowed his head and walked on. When he came up the stairs and entered the building, he saw dozens of people waiting in line. Of course, Huan Fu did not personally deal with such complaints. That was the job of the people assigned in his place. Huan Wei had heard many complaints as soon as he entered. Although there were dozens of different complaints, the vast majority complained about the same thing.

"The caravan is running out of time. They will have to leave soon. Why aren't the stalls open yet?"

"I have been waiting for this caravan for the last few months. Why are all the stalls closed?"

Huan Wei calmly stood in a line. It seemed like it would be a long time before it was his turn. He turned his head and looked behind him. He wondered if Huan Zhong would come in too. He looked for a while, but no one came in.

Meanwhile, all eyes turned to the two people passing by. One was a tall, handsome young man with short hair. His clothes were not ostentatious and yet his style was quite good. One of his eyes had a scar from a cut on it. That's why he was one-eyed. People were afraid to make too much noise when he passed by. Huan Wei knew this young man very well. Huan Shanyuan... As Huan Fu's grandson, he was the most powerful cultivator in town. He had entered the Path of the Divines a long time ago. People often talked about him reaching the 4th staircase. Huan Shanyuan must have been preparing to enter the Great Sword Palace by increasing his power. In any case, he was the strongest in town. He was even stronger than Huan Fu. Compared to the younger generation who hadn't even reached the stage of choosing a path, Huan Shanyuan was on a completely different level.

Huan Wei also looked at the girl walking beside him. She was Lei Jingfei, Huan Shanyuan's fiancée. She had a slender waist, a sweet face and pleasant looks. Her hair, tied back, reached almost to her waist. She was wearing a long red dress. People found themselves staring at her, but they all straightened up. They were not going to watch his fiancée in front of Huan Shanyuan.

Lei Jingfei actually came from Broken Mountain Town. She was going to be a guest here for a while. She was a genius who had entered the Path of the Divines, just like Huan Shanyuan, and she was the daughter of Lei Weisheng, the representative of the Great Sword Palace in Broken Mountain Town. It was thought that she and Huan Shanyuan would soon be able to enter the Great Sword Palace. After all, both of them were far ahead of the young people in their hometowns.

When Huan Wei saw how good some people's lives were, he felt bad inside. He thought about the hardships he had to go through to earn money for food. Huan Shanyuan's grandfather ran the town and headed the richest family. This man had never had to think about food money in his entire life. He should have had access to all the resources he wanted. He was even sent to the Divine Region by Huan Fu to enter the Path of the Divines. This continent was ruled by the four great sects, and the Divine Region within the dominion of the Great Sword Palace was far away from Bitter Sea Town. Even if Huan Wei had reached the Explorer stage, he would never have been able to go to the Divine Region. Some people's lives started so easily. Others had to go through all this trouble just to pay for food.

Huan Wei turned around. His nerves were frayed. Huan Shanyuan and his fiancée walked out of the building. They were probably going to walk around for a while. Huan Shanyuan didn't look very happy about it. He had never made any friends in this town. He didn't allow anyone to serve as his helper either. He was always alone and completely focused on getting stronger.

Finally it was Huan Wei's turn. He stepped forward and stood in front of the attendant. "I have a complaint."

The man at the desk put his hand on his forehead and said in a tired voice, "The caravan stalls will open tomorrow, young man."

"My complaint is not about that."

The official looked up at the young man and recognized him. "You are Huan Wei."

"Yes, you must remember me from the court."

"Yes, tell me. What is your complaint?"

"I am being threatened by Huan Quon. The town leader, Huan Fu, has given me protection against Huan Kong, but Huan Quon does not hesitate to pressure and threaten me. I don't have the power or money to stand up to him. That's why I came to complain about what he is doing."

The man at the desk took out a few pieces of paper and started taking notes. "Okay, a warning will be sent to Huan Quon. Anything else?"

Huan Wei turned his head to look at the door before opening his mouth. At that moment, Huan Zhong walked in. He and the man locked eyes. The merchant had an uneasy expression on his face. Huan Wei looked at him and said, "I also have a complaint about a merchant." Huan Zhong swallowed.

"Of course. Which merchant? What is your complaint?"

Huan Zhong walked over with quick steps. "Huan Wei, I finally found you, can I have a talk with you?"

Huan Wei turned towards him and gave him a disdainful look. Then he turned back in front of him. "One of the marketplace merchants," he added. Huan Zhong's face was turning whiter and whiter. By the time Huan Wei turned to look at him again, Huan Zhong was already sweating.

The merchant slowly nodded his head up and down. He seemed to agree. Huan Wei smiled. Then he turned to the man at the table. "The price of rice is being sold higher than it should be and I am the only one being treated like this. Other people get it cheap and I, who am already poor, have to buy it expensive."

"All right, hold on." The attendant wrote something on another piece of paper and stamped it. Then he handed it to the young man and said, "If you are ever charged a high price again, show this."

Huan Wei took the paper and bowed his head and said thank you. Then he left and walked out of the building. Huan Zhong was right behind him. Looking at the merchant, he was really scared. The color still hadn't returned to his face.

"So, Huan Zhong? Did you think I was joking or something?" said the young man. He ran a hand through his messy hair and pushed it behind his head. They had moved away from the town guards. "Were you afraid of dying? What changed that you stopped me?"

The merchant took a deep breath. "Okay, come and work for me. I'll pay you by the day. Just keep your mouth shut."

Huan Zhong had now reached the point that Huan Wei wanted. The young man intended to make the most of it. "Normally I would have asked you for thirty coppers a day, which is not much to you, yet you insulted and dismissed me, Huan Zhong." He turned his head to the merchant. "But now you will pay me ten times that amount, three silver coins."

Huan Zhong did not want to, but he had no choice. Huan Wei was right. This merchant had too much to lose. He couldn't afford to let something like this come out. "Okay. I'll pay."

"By the way, I won't actually work at your stall. I'll just move a few boxes you left lying around. Then I'll get paid and I'll leave."

Huan Zhong did not object again. Huan Wei seemed quite pleased with him. This man had profited all this time, thinking he had deceived the young man. Huan Wei hadn't even been able to use the money he had taken from him. At that moment, he realized that he had even more hatred for this man. "I've changed my mind. I want five silver coins now."

"Huan Wei, don't you think that's a bit too much?" Huan Zhong timidly protested. "Most days I can't even make a sale. Just because I sold a necklace for 15 silver coins once, do you think that's every day? Paying you 3 silver coins is already almost a gold coin a month."

"Anyway, that's your problem, Huan Zhong. If you don't agree, tell me and I'll go back to the town hall while the road is still close."

"Okay, okay." The merchant helplessly agreed. At that moment Huan Wei wanted to raise the price to eight silver pieces, but he wasn't sure if this man could afford that much. If he pushed too hard, Huan Zhong might try to do something. So he decided to keep the pressure low enough.

"Then let's go and I'll do my job and you can pay me."

Huan Zhong said nothing. He was probably cursing the day he had decided to buy those things from this boy. Back then he looked like a helpless, poor boy. Now he was in a position to threaten him and get him to do what he wanted. It didn't take him long to realize that Huan Wei was not what he seemed. Maybe he had really stolen the pill and framed Huan Hong for the theft? Huan Zhong was expecting everything from this young man. Huan Wei, on the other hand, was content. Now he could live comfortably without leaving the city and focus on getting stronger.