151. Wealth Within the Stronghold

After listening to Shi Qian, Zhang Xuan realized that his expectations were met; if this "master" could ever change his habits, the sun would truly rise in the west. "Big Brother, go to the front gate and call Brother Hu over. With Uncle Tong and Uncle Yang here, there won’t be any accidents. As for the rest of the traffickers, I don't think there are any left. If there are, it must be their sheer luck that their time hasn't come yet. There’s no point in guarding that spot anymore. Call him over; it’s more important that we find where this stronghold keeps its loot. I imagine there should be quite a bit of money."

Zhang Xuan then went to Uncle Tong and Uncle Yang, requesting them to keep an eye on the children to ensure nothing went wrong while he went to handle some matters with Yang Zaixing and the others. He then called Yuwen Chengdu, grabbed a torch, and helped a limping Shi Qian head off to "treasure hunt." Before long, Yang Zaixing and Yang Hu, also carrying torches, caught up with the trio.

Watching them head toward the wooden huts where the traffickers used to rest, Uncle Yang asked, "Brother Tong, what do you suppose they are up to?"

Uncle Tong watched the five retreating figures and said calmly, "Judging by that 'sly' look on little Xuan’s face earlier, with his eyes practically gleaming, he must have figured out where the stronghold's money is hidden. He’s probably dying to go loot the place! Brother Yang, I just don’t understand. Usually, little Xuan doesn't seem like the type to be obsessed with money. Why is he so keen on it? It's like he’s determined to leave nothing behind wherever he goes."

Uncle Yang had no answer for this either. He recalled how Zhang Xuan had once forced himself to search the bodies of the men who had been hunting them, fighting back the urge to vomit until he had cleared them of every last coin, only to run aside and retch afterward. Yet, he spent money lavishly—buying blades, spices, fabrics, herbs, and all sorts of strange, miscellaneous items. Still, looking back, everything Zhang Xuan bought always seemed to come in handy; it was just hard to tell when it might be needed.

"Shi Qian, are you sure the money is in their sleeping huts? And how did you even get in there?" Zhang Xuan asked as they approached one of the cabins. It seemed unlikely that the captive children would have any reason to enter the traffickers' quarters.

"Someone had to clean the huts. The other children were too terrified to go near them because if they did even the slightest thing wrong, they’d be cursed at or beaten. No one would go, but I was actually quite curious about those two huts. I had a feeling there was something inside. As luck would have it, I was eventually ordered to clean them. I pretended to refuse at first, but under their threats, I had to go in. While cleaning, I stumbled upon two hiding spots. To be honest, I don’t know if that money belonged to the stronghold collectively or to the traffickers individually." As he spoke, Shi Qian coughed incessantly. Despite his weak appearance, he seemed quite happy, even carrying a hint of excitement.

Yang Zaixing pushed open the door to the hut. Two traffickers' corpses lay inside, their eyes wide open in terror. Seeing them, Shi Qian gasped and began to cough even more violently. Yang Zaixing quickly covered the bodies with quilts—out of sight, out of mind. They were just here for the money and would be leaving soon anyway, and he didn't feel like moving the corpses.

Once Shi Qian caught his breath, he pointed to the locations of the two quilts, explaining that there was a concealed compartment under each one. Yang Zaixing and Yang Hu lifted the quilts, confirmed the hidden compartments, and pried them open. Inside were wooden boxes, lidless and filled with money. The two men pulled the boxes out without bothering to count the total; it was clearly a significant sum.

Shi Qian watched them and suggested, "You should check other spots in the room, too. There might be more hidden compartments." Yang Zaixing and Yang Hu set the boxes aside and began knocking on the walls and floors, joined by Yuwen Chengdu, but after a thorough search, they found nothing else.

"Let's check the other hut; there's likely nothing left here," Zhang Xuan said, signaling for them to move on to the next site.

Just as Zhang Xuan was helping Shi Qian out of the hut, Shi Qian asked, "Brother Xuan, may I ask you a question?"

"Go ahead! As long as it's not too difficult, I should be able to answer it." Zhang Xuan figured that as long as it wasn't about reciting ancient poetry or obscure trivia, he could certainly clear up any confusion for Shi Qian.

"What do you plan to do with this stronghold and the bodies of these traffickers later?"

"Burn it all to the ground. A place of such evil has no reason to exist. A single fire will settle everything."

Hearing this, Shi Qian covered his mouth and coughed violently again. Once he recovered, he held his forehead. Zhang Xuan didn't pay much mind to his condition, as Shi Qian had been coughing ever since they first met.

Shi Qian lowered his hand and added, "Well, I feel like you've missed one spot. You might want to take a look; you might find something else there."