Chapter 85: Heart and Mind
After Lu Qing sent Magu away, he held the two secret manuals in his hands and fell into deep thought.
Not long ago, Magu had paid him a visit, bringing not only a portion of his spoils from Kuaihuo Village but also two pieces of news.
One was that he had taken care of the bodies from Kuaihuo Village and made arrangements for the unfortunate girls.
This did not surprise Lu Qing.
Earlier in the day, he had gone out and found that Kuaihuo Village had been reduced to ruins.
Magu had not only disposed of the bodies but had also burned down the entire village.
The other news, however, caught him off guard.
It turned out that the Wei family had intervened and helped him sweep the incident under the rug.
In other words, he didn't have to worry about the Black Wolf Gang causing trouble in the village for the time being.
"The Wei family, huh? I owe them one now," Lu Qing thought to himself.
He could guess the reason behind the Wei family's assistance.
It was most likely because they saw his talent in martial arts and his potential to become a powerful figure, so they wanted to invest in him early on.
However, understanding their motive was one thing, and Lu Qing still acknowledged the favor.
After all, there were plenty of people who would offer help when things were going well, but it was rare to find someone who would lend a helping hand in times of adversity.
And this time, the Wei family's intervention could be considered as such.
But at the moment, Lu Qing didn't have the means to repay this debt, so he could only keep it in mind for now.
"Qing, are you home?"
As Lu Qing was deep in thought, a voice called out from outside the house.
Recognizing it as Old Man Zhang's, he put away the manuals and stepped out.
"Grandpa Zhang, what's the matter?"
"Nothing much. I saw you had visitors earlier, so I thought I'd come by and see," Old Man Zhang replied.
"Yes, but they just left," Lu Qing answered.
He had intended to invite Magu and his companions to stay for dinner, but Magu seemed to have other matters to attend to and politely declined with a hint of regret.
"By the way, Qing, I think I recognize those who came by earlier. Wasn't one of them Master Ma from the marketplace?" Old Man Zhang asked.
Old Man Zhang occasionally went to the marketplace and was familiar with those in charge.
"Yes, it was Master Ma. I have some connections with him, and he brought me some gifts this time," Lu Qing confirmed without denying it.
"It really was Master Ma! Qing, you're becoming more and more impressive. Even someone as influential as him is acquainted with you," Old Man Zhang exclaimed, clearly surprised.
In the eyes of a rural elder like Old Man Zhang, Magu was undoubtedly one of the most prominent figures in the area. After all, he was in charge of a large marketplace.
He never expected Lu Qing to be connected to such a person.
Old Man Zhang was both astonished and delighted.
"It's just Master Ma being generous," Lu Qing said with a smile.
"But it's because you have the talent and skills to catch his eye. Otherwise, even if someone forced their way into his presence, I doubt he'd give them the time of day," Old Man Zhang shook his head, disagreeing with Lu Qing's modest statement.
Despite his limited experience, he knew that people like Master Ma appeared amicable to everyone but had extremely high standards.
People like them, rural folk, wouldn't even register in their eyes.
Otherwise, why would Master Ma be so courteous to Lu Qing, going as far as paying him a personal visit, when there were so many people at the marketplace?
"Let's not talk about that. Grandpa Zhang, I was just about to cook dinner. Would you like to stay and join me?" Lu Qing smiled, changing the subject.
"No, thank you. My family has prepared a meal for me, and I'll be heading back soon. Actually, there's something else I wanted to discuss with you," Old Man Zhang said.
"What is it?" Lu Qing asked.
"It's about these silver notes and this IOU," Old Man Zhang said as he took out several silver notes and an IOU from his pocket.
Chapter: A Debt of Gratitude
When Lu Qing took a closer look, he recognized the silver notes that Han Wu had offered as a gift to spare his life, along with the IOU signed by Xiao Yan's father.
Back then, after killing Han Wu and the others, Lu Qing had been in a hurry to find Magu and gather information, so he hadn't paid much attention to these details.
"These silver notes were given to you by those Black Wolf Gang thugs. Now, I'm returning them to their rightful owner," Zhang Deyye said as he handed the silver notes and the IOU to Lu Qing.
Lu Qing glanced at them and took only the IOU, leaving the silver notes untouched.
"Grandpa Zhang, I don't want these silver notes. You can distribute them among the villagers," Lu Qing said.
"You don't want them?" Zhang Deyye was taken aback.
After all, he held three silver notes, each worth a hundred taels, adding up to a substantial sum of three hundred taels of silver.
Moreover, the villagers had witnessed Lu Qing's brutal defeat of Han Wu and his companions.
Even the most honest and simple-hearted villagers would find it hard not to be tempted by such a large sum of money.
Yet, here was Lu Qing, refusing to accept it.
"Grandpa Zhang, after all that's happened, I've come to realize that there's more to my parents' death than I knew. If it weren't for the help of the villagers, Xiao Yan and I might have been captured by those Black Wolf Gang villains a long time ago," Lu Qing said, his voice filled with gratitude.
"And yesterday, if it weren't for everyone's desperate resistance, Xiao Yan might not have been able to wait for me to return before being taken away. The villagers' kindness to us siblings is something we can never repay. Please accept this small token of our appreciation," he added.
Lu Qing had witnessed the villagers' protection of Xiao Yan the day before, and he was deeply touched by their selflessness.
Even without Xiao Li's presence, he knew that Han Wu and his gang wouldn't have been able to lay a finger on Xiao Yan.
But the villagers' courageous act of standing up against the gang, risking their lives to protect Xiao Yan, had left a deep impression on him.
After encountering despicable characters like Zhao Laosan and Laizi Tou, who were willing to sell girls into a life of misery, Lu Qing felt an even deeper appreciation for the pure-hearted villagers of Jiuli Village.
A few hundred taels of silver was nothing to him now, especially with the substantial amount Magu had just delivered.
He'd be better off distributing it among the villagers to improve their lives, showing his gratitude for their care and support over the past days.
"Ah Qing, your words will make everyone feel ashamed," Zhang Deyye sighed.
"If it weren't for your grandfather's leadership, most of the families in the village might not have made it here. When it comes to a debt of gratitude, your grandfather is the one who saved the lives of all of us in Jiuli Village. That's the greatest debt of all," he added.
"If we had stood by and let you and Xiao Yan be mistreated by those villains, how could we ever face your grandfather in the future?"
"So please accept these silver notes. What we did was only what we should have done."
Seeing the earnest expression on Zhang Deyye's face, as if refusing the silver notes would be an insult to his integrity, Lu Qing paused for a moment before finally taking one of the silver notes from him.
"Alright, then. I'll accept this hundred taels, and the rest will be my gift to everyone," Lu Qing said.
As Zhang Deyye seemed about to say something more, Lu Qing quickly added, "Grandpa Zhang, with my current abilities, do you still worry that I won't be able to earn silver in the future?"
Zhang Deyye thought of Lu Qing's effortless defeat of the fearsome Black Wolf Gang members the day before, his connection to Chen Lao's disciple, and his newfound friendship with Master Ma.
He realized that Lu Qing was no longer the lonely orphan he once was.
The young man before him had become capable and self-reliant, and his future achievements were sure to be beyond their imagination.
Finally, Zhang Deyye nodded in agreement. "Alright, then. I'll thank you on everyone's behalf."
(End of Chapter)
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