Steam Era: The Lord of 'Puluo' Chapter 1435: Dirty Work

Cao Zhida sent out the steamed buns, and these travelers thanked him profusely as they left with them.

After a while, these men returned.

They didn’t walk back, they were pushed back by a cart.

They were lying on a flat cart, their faces pale, frothing at the mouth, looking like dead men.

The person pushing the cart was a middle-aged man in his fifties. He pushed the cart to the restaurant’s front door and shouted inside, “Is there anyone alive in there?”

Zuo Wugang came out of the restaurant, glanced at the men on the cart, and immediately understood the situation.

The middle-aged man pushing the cart looked at Zuo Wugang: “Are you the owner of this place?”

Zuo Wugang nodded: “That’s me.”

The middle-aged man said, “I’ve been traveling the roads for decades; friends call me Tan Jinxiao. These friends of mine ate a bun at your place, and in the blink of an eye, they couldn’t get up. What do you make of that?”

Zuo Wugang laughed, “What do you make of it?”

Tan Jinxiao frowned, “The situation is clear, and you’re still playing dumb with me?”

Zuo Wugang flexed his wrists, “It’s rare for me to do something good and now I run into someone pulling a scam. Just say it, what do you want?”

Tan Jinxiao laughed, “What do I want? You think I came to blackmail you? You look down on me, is that it? I’m telling you, I’ve come here to argue with you seriously!”

As he spoke, a lot of passersby gathered to watch the spectacle.

“What’s going on?”

“Didn’t you see? This place’s food isn’t clean, and it caused trouble.”

“Who’s that guy?”

“Seems like it’s Old Tan?”

“Better leave, this is not something to watch.”

Zuo Wugang looked at Tan Jinxiao, “So, how do you propose we settle this?”

Thud!

Tan Jinxiao lay down on the ground.

Zuo Wugang looked down, “What’s this supposed to mean?”

“We do it civil today!” Tan Jinxiao lay on the ground, said to Zuo Wugang, “Today, I lie here and let you hit me. Let you hit me twenty times in total. Ten times from the front, turn over, and back facing you, let you hit ten more times,

so long as I don’t beg for mercy, or even hum a sound, this beating is for nothing, and I’ll never come to your restaurant again in my life. If we happen to meet, I’ll bow to you first,

but if today I don’t beg for mercy, then sorry, this place becomes mine. You can do business here, but every month you’ll have to pay me tribute, understand this?”

Cao Zhida stopped Zuo Wugang, “Master Zuo, we can’t fall for this; this guy’s just a hooligan!”

Zuo Wugang has been in the Jianghu for many years, surely he’s seen hooligans?

He pushed Cao Zhida aside, ready to take action.

Zhen Jincheng stepped in to advise, “Master Zuo, it’s not worth it to get angry with people like this, let’s focus on our business.”

“Darn it! Those people are laid at the entrance, insisting there’s a problem with our place, how do we keep doing business?” Zuo Wugang pushed Zhen Jincheng aside and kicked Tan Jinxiao.

Zuo Wugang had reached the Earth Layer Seven; this kick had force, and an ordinary person might be killed by it.

Bai Shoulian advised, “Master Zuo, go easy, I asked Juanzi before, the Patrol Officer at Three-Head Fork manages things!”

Juanzi told everyone that the Patrol Officers here are different from those in other places. The Three-Head Fork’s Patrol Officers manage external affairs but not internal affairs.

If Zuo Wugang killed someone inside the restaurant, nobody would interfere; outside the restaurant, in the street, killing someone would be a problem.

Tan Jinxiao raised his head, “What now? Scared? Afraid to hit me to death?”

Zuo Wugang laughed, “Don’t worry, I’ll spare your life!”

Bang!

Zuo Wugang kicked him repeatedly, ten times in total. Tan Jinxiao didn’t make a sound, flipped over, and continued to let Zuo Wugang hit him.

“Come on, kick your daddy, don’t hold back!”

Zuo Wugang indeed got a bit scared, this guy’s bones are that hard?

He had handled hooligans before, sure to subdue them with a few punches and kicks.

He kicked another ten times on the back, Tan Jinxiao didn’t make a peep.

“Now, enough, right?” Tan Jinxiao crawled out from the ground, “Everyone watched, how do we settle this?”

More and more people gathered to watch, and Zuo Wugang dared not renege.

But this business was given to him by the Seventh Master, he couldn’t just lose it.

“Your name is Tan Jinxiao, right?” Zuo Wugang snorted, “Old Tan, I didn’t hit you hard today, but I don’t submit to you.”

“Not submitting is easy to handle; you stay here, let me hit you twenty times!” Tan Jinxiao stretched his legs and arms.

Zhen Jincheng blocked in front of Zuo Wugang, “I’ll take these twenty hits on behalf of Master Zuo.”

Zuo Wugang pushed Zhen Jincheng aside, “Get out, I don’t need you.”

Bai Shoulian advised, “Master Zuo, I’ve already sent someone to find the Seventh Master; we’ve encountered a tough situation, let’s just hold on for now.”

They continued arguing, and more onlookers joined, all laughing at Zuo Wugang for being cowardly.

Tan Jinxiao grew impatient, “Stop stalling, all come at once!”

He coughed and coughed up a mouthful of green phlegm.

The phlegm grew from small to large, enveloping Zuo Wugang and his men.

With great effort, Zuo Wugang managed to poke his head out of the phlegm, exclaiming in shock, “So you are a Tanxiu?”

Tan Jinxiao laughed, “Yes, why else would they call me Old Tan? I tell you, this is just the first move, plenty more tricks are coming.”

Old Tan, Old Tan…

Zuo Wugang shivered, asked, “Tan Jinxiao, isn’t that your name?”

Tan Jinxiao laughed, “Didn’t I just say, friends call me Tan Jinxiao, that’s my nickname.”

Bai Shoulian asked, “Then Jin Xiao, what’s that about?”

Tan Jinxiao laughed, “You can’t see? Jin means Gold!”

Zuo Wugang caught a fresh scent.

Zhen Jincheng and Cao Zhida’s faces turned pale with fear.

This guy is both a Tanxiu and a Gold Cultivator!

Tan Jinxiao continued, “As for the smile, you should understand it by now.”

Cao Zhida exclaimed, “There’s Laughing Cultivation too? You’ve mastered three disciplines?”

Zuo Wugang said, “Shut up, don’t laugh, if you laugh, it’ll get in your mouth!”

In the emerald green phlegm, a patch of golden liquid emerged.

The phlegm bubbled, and the smell slowly spread, the spectators couldn’t withstand it and all ran away.

Tan Jinxiao got close to their faces, smiling mischievously, “Brothers, feast your eyes, this is called Green with Gold, Fate as Deep as the Sea, our meeting is destined, laugh with me, come on, have a laugh!”

He spoke in such a comedic tone, getting close, constantly telling jokes to them.

“I say, fellows, don’t hold back, life is too short, laugh if you want to, indulge yourselves!”

“Pfft, pfft, pffthaha!”

PS: The fellows couldn’t hold back in the end!

Shala deeply bows to thanks all the dear readers, Shala begs for your votes, and let’s charge forward together once more!