Zhutian: Starting from the Space-Time Merchant

Chapter 529 No wonder Feng the Hothead can't have a son – she lends money at high interest rates!
"Hero, spare my life!"

Inside a dilapidated temple in the south of the city, a middle-aged man, his face filled with terror, repeatedly kowtowed to the two figures before him.

"You, who snatched a child and tore a family apart, how dare you beg for forgiveness?"

The sound was clear and melodious, like the gentle tinkling of a wind chime, extremely pleasant to the ear.

The middle-aged man couldn't help but look up.

The figure was not tall and wore a long purple cloak that covered his body.

He was wearing a strange mask on his face.

That voice undoubtedly belonged to a young girl.

He kowtowed again, tears streaming down his face, pleading, "Please forgive me, heroine."

"I originally ran a tofu shop in the south of the city."

"But because he was framed, his family was ruined."

"To rescue my wife and daughter trapped in the fire, I had no choice but to resort to this desperate measure."

"I know I was wrong, and I will never dare to do it again."

"Heroine, spare my life!"

These words, coupled with the man's weeping and begging for mercy, and his repeated kowtows until his forehead bled, clearly made the girl hesitate.

She turned her head and looked up at the silent figure beside her.

"Senior brother~"

"What should we do? Maybe..."

"Do you know why I don't trust you to go out and do chivalrous deeds alone?" Lin Dao raised his hand and tapped Lin Meimei's head with his finger. "Because you have no experience."

"You believe everything he says?"

"Even if someone like you has the best kung fu, they will still be targeted and set up."

"Then just wait to be manipulated and put on a Muzan show."

"Senior brother~" Lin Meimei raised her hand to cover her head, "I won't speak, you come here~"

"Your name is He Hongyi." Lin Dao looked down at the man in front of him. "You run a tofu shop in Sweetwater Lane in the south of the city."

"You said you were framed and your family was ruined."

"But what I heard is that you are addicted to gambling and have lost all your possessions, including your tofu shop."

"As for your wife and daughters who are trapped in the fire, you sold them to a brothel for money and then used them to gamble."

"You're a gambling addict!"

He Hongyi trembled, instinctively wanting to make excuses.

But when he looked up and met Lin Dao's eyes, which seemed to see through the world, the sophistry he was about to utter just wouldn't come out.

He burst into tears.

"I didn't want to either, I didn't want to either!"

"I was living a fairly comfortable life before."

"But he was seduced and became addicted to gambling."

"At first, I won a lot of money, but then I lost it all overnight and even went into debt."

“They are forcing me to pay back my debts, or they will take my shop and my wife and daughters to pay off the debts.”

"I don't have enough silver, and I can't sell the shops and houses right away, so I had to borrow money from the Rongguo Mansion at interest."

Upon hearing this, Lin Daiyu, who had been holding back her words, suddenly exclaimed in surprise.

"What did you say?!"

He Hongyi's crying stopped.

He whispered in response, "It's interest from the Rongguo Mansion."

Lin Meimei looked at Lin Dao cautiously.

But Lin Dao simply snapped, "Keep talking!"

"Yes yes~"

He Hongyi wiped the sweat from his forehead. "I have nothing left, and my wife and children can't even afford to eat."

"The lender is pressuring us to repay the loan every day."

"There's nothing I can do about it."

"I have no choice but to... I have no choice but to..."

"Trying to outsmart me won't work." Lin Dao slowly shook his head. "There's nothing I can do. You just want to win back your losses."

"So he sold his wife and children and went gambling again."

"Then, having lost everything and with nowhere else to turn, he started engaging in begging."

At this point, Lin Dao turned his head and instructed Lin Meimei to "turn her head."

Lin Daiyu knew what he was going to do, so she quickly turned away and dared not look.

"I have two last questions for you."

Inside his cloak, Lin Dao's hand gripped the hilt of his sword.

"First of all, from whom in the Rongguo Mansion did you borrow the interest?"

"The second thing is to set a trap for you, to lure you into knowing where your gambling den is."

Unaware that his time was about to come, He Hongyi quickly responded.

"The one lending money at interest is Laiwang, the steward of the Rongguo Mansion."

"The gambling shop is Caimantang, located next to the Guandi Temple in the south of the city, in Luogu Lane."

Clang!

'puff! '

'Boom! '

'Sizzle sizzle~'

A large hand rested on Lin Daiyu's shoulder.

A steady voice came from beside her ear.

"gone."

I stepped out onto the street and looked up at the bright moonlight.

Lin Dao nodded. "Why don't you go back first?"

"No!" Lin Meimei immediately grabbed Lin Dao's wrist. "Senior brother, I want to go too!"

"I never expected that Feng Lazi would lend money at exorbitant interest rates."

She knew it was Feng Lazi when she heard He Hongyi mention Laiwang's housekeeper.

Because there was only one Laiwang in the Rongguo Mansion, who was a servant that Wang Xifeng brought from the Wang family.

Without a doubt, he was Wang Xifeng's true confidant.

Lin Daiyu's expression was complicated. She never expected that the fiery Feng Lazi would do such a heartless thing.

“Profiteering at high interest rates leads to the destruction of families and the death of people; it goes against the natural order.”

Lin Dao breathed a sigh of relief. "No wonder he can't have a son."

Upon hearing this, Lin Daiyu wanted to laugh, but she held it back.

After pausing for a moment, he finally asked, "Senior brother, shall we go to Cai Man Tang first?"

Lin Dao raised an eyebrow and asked, "How did you know to go to Cai Mantang first, instead of going to see Wang Xifeng?"

"After all, it was Laiwang who came forward."

Lin Daiyu explained, "It's also possible that he used the name of the Rongguo Mansion to organize it himself."

"But I think he would never have dared to do it without Feng Lazi's permission and support."

Lending money at exorbitant interest rates is a business that not just anyone can do.

You need to have the ability to get your money back. If you encounter a stubborn person or a local resident who refuses to pay, you'll have to resort to official channels to pressure them.

Laiwang'er?
He's a dog!
They don't have the ability to move around in official circles.

"Even if we're going to search, we should first gather all the evidence before we start searching."

"My senior brother has accompanied me in upholding justice for a long time, but he has never killed innocent people indiscriminately. He only takes action when the evidence is conclusive."

"Therefore, the first thing to do is to gamble."

“Such a harmful place should be eradicated as soon as possible.”

Lin Dao raised his hand and gently patted her little head, nodding in satisfaction.

"Sure enough."

"She is better than most young women in their boudoirs."

Hearing her senior brother's praise, Lin Daiyu was overjoyed, as if a warm current flowed through her body.

"It was only by following my senior brother to explore the world that I had the opportunity to broaden my horizons and gain more knowledge."

Lin Dao said something as if he was thinking.

"Because you don't like staying indoors all day, I just accompanied you out for a stroll."

For him, the only person he truly cared about in this world was Lin Daiyu.

The time portal clearly indicates that it aims to rewrite destiny and make up for regrets.

Then let's do the opposite of what's in the book.

Since Lin Daiyu has lost her father, then let's save her father.

Lin Daiyu had no one to rely on, and her dowry and inheritance were all stolen and misappropriated, so let's give her the power to break free from worldly oppression.

Lin Daiyu spends all her time in the inner quarters, weeping until dawn. Let's take her on a journey to see the world.

Lin Daiyu encountered a scumbag, so let her experience the warmth of a caring man.

These are the things Lin Dao has been busy with in this time and space.

For him, everything else was just a diversion.

"Walk."

"Let's go to Caimantang and broaden our horizons."

Without a doubt, the name Cai Mantang is outstanding.

In reality, this place is just an ordinary street-front shop.

Several burly men dressed in short-sleeved shirts and with their chests exposed stood at the entrance.

They chatted and joked around in a crooked and disjointed manner.

The storefront is small, with a black cotton curtain hanging above the main entrance.

The only thing that looked somewhat respectable was the plaque covered in gold powder.

"You have a very strong backer."

I looked up at the plaque that read "Wealth Abundant in the Hall" painted with gold powder.

Lin Dao smiled and said, "They dare to open a shop in a prime street-facing location and even have a signboard displayed so openly."

"This backer is really strong."

Lin Dao and Lin Meimei's attire is strange.

He was wearing a long, hooded cloak, his entire body wrapped in it.

One is purple, and the other is gold.

Standing here, one is indeed very eye-catching.

After all, gold clothing was taboo in feudal times.

A group of burly thugs stepped forward and blocked their way.

"You guys~~~"

Lin Dao raised his hand and slapped him.

The burly man, weighing nearly 200 pounds, tumbled and rolled more than ten steps away like a gourd.

With his head bleeding profusely, he had already fainted.

The other thugs were all terrified.

They instinctively drew their blades, but no one dared to step forward.

It's like a joke; a single slap sent a burly man flying more than ten steps away. Is that even a human being capable of?!
They're just thugs who get paid to do the work, not idiots.

Lin Dao didn't even look at them. He led Lin Meimei forward, lifted the thick curtain, and stepped inside.

Upon entering, a cacophony of noise immediately greeted me.

Shouts, yells, sighs, stomping, clamor, and the clanging of tools all blended together, creating a cacophony like ocean waves.

Even while wearing a mask, Lin Daiyu instinctively covered her nose.

The smells of sweat, feet, candle wax, ice cubes, etc.

The various smells mixed together were so strong that they almost made people vomit.

There were more than a dozen tables of varying sizes in the hall, and each table was surrounded by people.

Almost none of these people with red eyes noticed Lin Dao and Lin Meimei, who were dressed strangely.

They were all intently focused on the tools in front of them.

While feeling agitated, Lin Daiyu curiously looked around.

This was definitely the first time she had ever seen such a place.

My curiosity got the better of me.

Lin Dao stepped forward and headed straight for the back hall.

Lin Daiyu hurriedly followed.

The thugs outside followed him in and hurriedly went to report to the manager.

The back room is slightly smaller, but the environment is much better.

There were only seven or eight tables, and the people gathered around were mostly dressed in more refined clothing.

Compared to those poor folks outside who live on copper coins, the people here must at least be like He Hongyi, owning a shop.

They are the real fat sheep in Bopu.

Looking around, Lin Dao walked straight to the largest table, which had the most people around it.

With a flick of his wrist, he pushed the person in front of him away, causing them to stagger.

He approached the table and glanced at it.

It was originally a die.

At this moment, everyone was curiously observing Lin Dao and Lin Meimei, the two strangely dressed guests (Assassin's Creed cloaks).

Upon hearing the news, the steward rushed to the table.

"Two esteemed guests."

The manager bowed with a beaming smile.

"Tea will be served in the inner room."

"Here's twenty taels for your trouble. Shall we leave now?"

Twenty taels of silver—that's a lot of money.

Lin Dao did not respond, but simply took out a bundle from his cloak.

Turn on shake.

A dozen or so silver ingots, each worth fifty taels, landed heavily on the table!

"Full pressure~"

"leopard!"

(End of this chapter)