Mutated Tao

Lu Xiucai and the others happily walked into a restaurant for their breakfast.

Lu Xiucai didn’t care, even though it was too early in the day—he ordered eight meat dishes. When the wine came, some of the smarter gangsters poured a glass of wine for Lu Xiucai.

Lu Xiucai drank it in one go and was greeted with cheers again.

The other customers cast contemptuous gazes upon them.

“Sir Lu has a great alcohol tolerance! Sir Lu is amazing!”

“Haha. I can’t drink as much as Sir Lu. Would you be so kind as to give me pointers?”

“Hmph! This is nothing! When I was still hunting demons in Qing Qiu with Master Li Huowang, I could drink an entire jar of wine this high in one go!” Lu Xiucai replied.

“Sir Lu, tell us more about how you hunted demons with your master in Qing Qiu!”

“Okay, let me tell you that even though Qing Qiu looks safe on the outside, it's actually an extremely dangerous place with surging undercurrents! If it hadn't been for Master helping me, I would have died there!”

Lu Xiucai recounted everything that he had experienced in Qing Qiu while eating and drinking with the gangsters. Of course, most of the story had come from Puppy; Lu Xiucai recounted the story with him as the main character.

Amidst the cheers, Lu Xiucai’s face turned bright red from the wine.

He was already slurring, but he felt that he could still drink more.

They indeed drank more and drank everything. Afterward, Lu Xiucai waved at the gangsters and said, "Let’s go to the brothel! It’s on me!”

Everyone cheered louder, and they were so loud that the roof was almost torn apart from the volume of their voice. The gangsters served Lu Xiucai, and some of them even almost recognized him as their foster father.

Lu Xiucai laughed with them, feeling an unprecedented sense of fulfillment.

It was already noon when Lu Xiucai walked out of the brothel, but he wasn't hungry at all. The brothel was famous for giving its customers donkey meat buns. Of course, even though Lu Xiucai wasn't hungry, he got a bit too busy, so he decided to go back to his accommodation and rest.

Lu Xiucai wasn't exactly the ideal tenant to the landlords, but Sir Kui had managed to find several landlords willing to accommodate Lu Xiucai.

Upon arriving at his accommodation, Lu Xiucai pushed the door open and saw a woman doing laundry next to the well. The woman seemed to be quite skillful at doing laundry.

Lu Xiucai had purchased the woman somewhere, and her name was Tao’er. Lu Xiucai had purchased her, as she wasn't that expensive because of her tiny hips and ordinary looks.

Lu Xiucai wanted to make her his wife, but he no longer wanted to touch her after his first visit to a brothel. Tao’er was like a log in bed, and she couldn't be compared to the accomplished prostitutes in a brothel.

Lu Xiucai was now treating her as a servant—her task was to clean the house, wash Lu Xiucai's clothes, and cook some meals for them to eat.

Lu Xiucai collapsed on the bed right away and snored away.

Tao’er stood up and used a wooden bucket to scoop out hot water that she had prepared beforehand. Then, she dipped a towel into the bucket and used it to wipe Lu Xiucai clean.

Afterward, Tao'er removed his socks and soaked his feet in the warm water. After a while, she covered Lu Xiucai with a blanket and even wrapped his pillow with clean clothes.

Night soon arrived, and Lu Xiucai finally woke up. He rubbed his groggy eyes, and his nose twitched upon catching a whiff of dinner. Lu Xiucai then rolled down the bed and made his way over to the table.

Tao’er could not sit with him while he ate, and she could only eat his leftovers.

Tonight's dinner was two vegetable dishes, a soup, and a fried egg. The vegetables were stir-fried with lard, and it was an extravagant meal that Lu Xiucai once only dreamed of eating, but now, he had long gotten tired of it.

Lu Xiucai drank a mouthful of the winter melon soup and wiped his mouth clean with his sleeves. He was ready to win some money in the gambling den. He had to go early, or he would be locked out of the gambling den due to curfew.

Lu Xiucai stood up and glanced at Tao’er. He was astonished to see blood on her trousers, and he became angry after the initial shock had passed.

“What the fuck is that?! What happened?! Who dared to touch my woman?! I'm going to kill him!” Lu Xiucai roared.

Tao’er shook her head and said softly, “No one. It's just that my period is heavier this month, and it leaked out.”

“Period? I’m asking you about the blood on your trousers! What the fuck are you talking about?!” Lu Xiucai shouted.

Tao’er then told Lu Xiucai what she meant by "period," and Lu Xiucai learned for the first time that women would bleed every month.

“I see. It all makes sense now. No wonder my sister-in-law is always unwell for a few days every month. I asked her once, but she scolded me for asking…” Lu Xiucai muttered.

Lu Xiucai handed over some silver fragments at the bottom of his pouch to Tao'er before heading out. “Go and buy some meat for me. I'm not going to eat leaves anymore! I’ve been eating vegetables all my life!”

The majority of the gamblers in the city were heading to the gambling den as well. A curfew was in place, but they would be fine as long as they stayed in the gambling den for the whole night.

Lu Xiucai entered Sir Kui’s gambling den and took out the five bronze coins that Li Huowang had given to him. He played with it in his hands and revealed a greedy grin. With his techniques, there was no way he would starve again.

When he was ready to go to his usual post, Sir Kui stopped him.

Lu Xiucai turned and noticed the dragon tattoo on Sir Kui’s shoulder and arm.

“Sir Lu, don’t worry about earning money for now. I have something to discuss with you.”

The two walked into the small courtyard behind the gambling den.

A hotpot was prepared with mutton slices next to it.

Lu Xiucai sat down and immediately started eating. He hadn't eaten his fill at home, so he was quite hungry. “Is something wrong? Please tell me if there's anything wrong. You accepted me that day, so you're now my benefactor!”

Sir Kui chuckled and poured Lu Xiucai a cup of wine. “Sir Lu, I heard that you were once a disciple of a Daoist? Is it true?”

“Of course! In fact, Master Li Huowang is an Immortal! He could even reattach his head! Evil beings are nothing but appetizers to him!” Lu Xiucai exclaimed, slapping his chest proudly as if he were Li Huowang himself.

“Since you are his disciple, you must be strong, too.”

“Hehehe.” Lu Xiucai took a slice of mutton and placed it in the hotpot. Once it was done cooking, he took it out and munched on it with a grin. “Somewhat. I’m roughly forty—no, sixty percent as strong as him!”

“Good! Youngsters nowadays are truly amazing! Impressive!”

Lu Xiucai smiled sheepishly. It was amazing to think that the infamous Sir Kui would treat him with so much respect. Sir Kui had stroked his ego so much that he was already thinking about bragging to his brothers tomorrow morning.

However, he failed to notice Sir Kui's slight frown.

“Sir Lu, I have a difficult problem. I wonder if you can help me with it. I actually have a sworn brother, but for some reason, he ended up getting possessed. I’m not sure whether it was because he was just unlucky or not, but he has gone crazy. Neither the monks nor the Daoists whom I managed to find for him could help him. If you can help me, I'll allow you to take eighty percent of my earnings here!”

Chacha and Char's Thoughts

This is Hong Da, the creditor! First appearing in Chapter 278! Credits to 格子的乱七八糟 on douyin

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