The divine manifestations began at the Gongwei Division.

"The Great River Gang?"

Upon hearing those three words, Zhou Heng's attention involuntarily shifted from the settlement screen to the person who had arrived.

Standing in front of him was a man in his thirties, dressed like a scholar, with a shrewd look on his face.

Do you know who I am?

Zhou Heng pondered for a moment, then slowly said.

"have no idea."

The man said, "But that doesn't matter. I know that no matter who you are, if you offend the Lu family, you will surely die."

In Dajin County, only the Dajiang Gang can protect you.

"Aren't you afraid I'm a notorious bandit wanted by the imperial court?"

Zhou Heng said.

"I said, in Dajin County, there's nothing my Dajiang Gang can't do."

The man said confidently, "Once you become a retainer of the Great River Gang, even if you have a history of murder and arson, no one will dare to arrest you from my Great River Gang."

"It sounds like your Dajiang Gang really can control everything in Dajin County."

Zhou Heng said thoughtfully, "Tell me your conditions. What benefits would I get from being your offerings?"

"First, I'll take care of the Lu family's matter for you, and I guarantee they won't bother you again."

The man held up one finger.

"That's not necessary," Zhou Heng thought to himself.

"Secondly, the tribute from the Great River Gang is one hundred taels of silver per month, and there will be additional mission allowances if there are special missions."

The man raised his second finger and continued, "In addition, the Great River Gang has goods from both the north and south, which you, as a retainer, can purchase at internal prices."

Furthermore, if one performs well, the Great River Gang may even inherit martial arts techniques.

"One hundred taels of silver a month, that's quite a lot."

Zhou Heng sighed.

The Dai Viet Dynasty was wealthy, and even ordinary people could earn one or two taels of silver a month.

But one hundred taels of silver is really a lot.

Zhou Heng himself was a demon-slaying captain, a seventh-rank official, and his monthly salary was only fifty taels.

This is because the Imperial Guards are well-paid. If it were an ordinary seventh-rank official, even a county magistrate, he would only receive twenty or thirty taels of silver a month.

The Jiang Gang is really rich and powerful.

Of course, it's also possible that giving a gift implies there's something in return.

"If I were to become a retainer of the Great River Gang, what would my responsibilities be?"

Zhou Heng pondered for a moment and asked.

"The responsibility of the worshipper is naturally to protect the Great River Gang from outsiders."

Our Great River Gang controls shipping on the Huanhua River, which naturally makes many people envious and has created many enemies.

The responsibility of the retainer is to deter them; if anyone attacks the Great River Gang, the retainer must intervene.

The man said, "With your abilities, these things are not difficult."

Zhou Heng remained silent, seemingly weighing the pros and cons.

"In that case, my brother and I hit it off immediately. I'll decide that you'll receive one hundred and twenty taels every month."

The man said, "However, our gang has run into a small problem lately. A rival has hired a master from the capital to deal with us. If you can resolve this, I'll promise you a house in return. What do you say?"

Zhou Heng glanced at him, but unfortunately could only make out a blurry human shape and couldn't see the other person's expression.

The expert from the capital, could he be referring to—

"I'll take this job."

Zhou Heng pondered for a moment, then spoke slowly.

"Alright, from now on you're one of our brothers."

The man laughed heartily, "Let me introduce myself. My name is Gao Mengwei, and I am the head of the Listening Wind Hall of the Great River Gang. My daily job is to gather information, and the gang's honorary members are all nominally affiliated with the Listening Wind Hall."

Have I not yet asked your name, brother?

"I've fallen on hard times and forgotten the name my parents gave me. Just call me Blind Man."

Zhou Heng said calmly.

"Cheng—blind man?"

Gao Mengwei looked into Zhou Heng's eyes. His eyes were grayish-white and cloudy, indicating that he was indeed blind.

"Brother Cheng, you can stay at the inn for now. I'll come back to ask you for help once I find out about the enemy."

Gao Mengwei said, "Shopkeeper, Brother Cheng is a friend of my Dajiang Gang. Please take good care of him."

All expenses will be charged to the Great River Gang's account!

"I understand, I understand."

The shopkeeper poked his big head out from behind the counter and responded repeatedly.

"These are also recorded in the Dajiang Gang's accounts."

Zhou Heng casually pointed to the smashed tables and chairs.

Gao Mengwei chuckled, wanting to probe Zhou Heng's background further, but Zhou Heng had already turned and slowly walked upstairs to his room.

"I'm tired, I'm going back to sleep."

Gao Mengwei watched Zhou Heng walk into the room, then stood there pondering for a moment.

Suddenly, he smiled mockingly.

This blind man could defeat Li Yun of the Lu family, so he must have at least an eighth-grade cultivation level. With such cultivation, it's strange that he's unknown.

But it doesn't matter, we're just using each other anyway.

Let this blind man fight the people from the capital. If he succeeds, he'll make a fortune; if he loses, he won't lose anything.

Anyway, this blind man is an outsider and has nothing to do with their Dajiang Gang.

Offerings? Who can prove that the blind man is an offering to the Dajiang Gang?

He chuckled coldly twice, then turned and walked away.

"Shopkeeper, watch your mouth."

Before leaving, he said coldly, which startled the innkeeper, who nodded repeatedly.

…………

After closing the door, Zhou Heng finally focused his attention on what was in front of him.

The countdown to the end of the danger event has concluded.

[The river ripples gently; you have weathered a minor crisis and received the reward: Immunity to all poisons.]

A warm current flowed through his body, and Zhou Heng felt some changes in his body.

"Physique, immune to all poisons..."

The rewards for the danger countdown are random; in the past, they have included martial arts skills, Taoist cultivation, weapons, elixirs, and more.

I never expected that someone would have such a constitution.

It's really getting more and more surprising.

I wonder what kind of rewards I can get in the future.

"Young Master Lu is a good person. He's so arrogant, he shouldn't be intimidated by Gao Mengwei, right?"

Zhou Heng thought to himself that he was actually looking forward to Young Master Lu coming to take revenge on him.

"The Great River Gang is also a江湖 (jianghu) gang, and it must have many enemies. They take people's money to solve their problems. Shouldn't I take the initiative to do something about it?"

Zhou Heng thought about it with a deep sense of immersion.

Of course, he did not forget his real mission.

"The Dajiang Gang is a local power. If we can gain a foothold in the Dajiang Gang, it will definitely help in investigating the mastermind behind Xiaoyao San."

Zhou Heng nodded, affirming himself.

"Yes, I'm risking my life to complete this mission."

After his thoughts were clear, Zhou Heng lay down on the bed fully clothed and soon fell into a deep sleep.

…………

Gao Mengwei has returned to a luxurious manor in Dajin County.

"Once we find traces of those people in the capital, let this blind man take action."

He must have some skill to defeat Li Yun.

Yao Lie, the leader of the Dajiang Gang, with prematurely gray hair, calmly said, "After he kills those people, send him on his way cleanly."

"Don't worry, boss, I'll give him the Leopard Embryo Tendon Strengthening Pill later."

Gao Mengwei said, "Once we've used him up, as long as we cut off his antidote, he'll struggle to his death in agony within a few days."

"Try to appease him beforehand, and don't be afraid to spend money."

Yao Lie said.

"Understood, sir. By the way, what about the Lu family—"

Gao Mengwei hesitated.

"snort."

Yao Lie snorted coldly, "The Lu family wants a share of the shipping business? They're courting death!"

The Great River Gang should not directly intervene in the feud between Cheng the Blind and the Lu family.

Who was that Lin family from Shu Prefecture who came before?

"Lin Yue is a young lady from a collateral branch of the Lin family in Shuzhou. She wants to open a medicinal herb shop in Dajin."

Gao Mengwei said, "This Miss Lin came to pay her respects before, meaning that as long as our Dajiang Gang supports her, she will hand over the Lin family's water transport business in the north to our Dajiang Gang."

"Although the Lin family is one of the top medicinal herb merchants in Vietnam, their business is mostly concentrated in the south, and their share in the north is not large."

Yao Lie said dismissively, "But they've probably come to Dajin this time because of the Lu family."

Let them fight the Lu family.

Once they started fighting, the Lu family lost interest in causing trouble for the blind man.

Go tell Lin Yue that I have promised her that I will establish myself in Dajin County.

In addition, I gave her the shops I owned on Qianmen Street.

"We've given her the best shop; let's see how far she can push the Lu family."