Yang Jing lit the oil lamp, and a dim, yellow glow instantly filled the small hut.
He dragged the burlap sack to the side of the table, untied the drawstring, and revealed its contents.
On top were several heavy gold ingots. They felt cool and weighty in his hand. By the lamplight, he could see the fine patterns on their surface. He counted them—exactly twenty taels.
According to the Great Qi Dynasty's currency system, one tael of Gold could be exchanged for ten taels of silver, so these twenty gold ingots were worth two hundred taels of silver.
Underneath the gold ingots were Silver Yuanbao, each plump and full. Three large fifty-tael yuanbao were stacked neatly, and beside them were scattered five twenty-tael silver ingots. Together, they added up to two hundred fifty taels of silver.
"Damn... That's four hundred and fifty taels of silver."
At that moment, Yang Jing could almost hear his heart pounding, THUMP-THUMP-THUMP. An indescribable wave of joy surged through his chest, leaving him stunned and dazed, as if he were in a dream.
He had guessed that the sack contained the wealth the Great Fortune Gang had accumulated over many years, but he hadn't expected there to be this much. After all, the Great Fortune Gang was just an ordinary gang.
At current market prices, ten taels of silver was enough to buy about two mu of farmland.
These four hundred and fifty taels of silver could easily buy ninety mu of farmland in Wazi Town.
The efforts of several generations of the Yang Family, even at their peak, had only amounted to twenty or thirty mu of farmland.
If he showed this money to his grandfather and the others, they would probably faint from shock.
With this money, he wouldn't have to worry about finances for a long time. And with an ample supply of funds, his progress in the Martial Dao was sure to advance by leaps and bounds!
'Crime really does pay. My nominal post only gets me ten taels of silver a month. One night of murder and plunder has netted me more than I would make in several years.'
Yang Jing took a deep breath, suppressing the shock and excitement in his heart.
He moved the gold and silver aside, and his fingers touched a cold wooden box.
Yang Jing took out the wooden box. As he opened the lid, a crisp, bitter medicinal fragrance wafted out. His pupils contracted violently when he saw what was inside.
Inside the wooden box lay a ginseng root. Its fibrous roots were intact, the main root was thick, and the rings on its surface were dense and clear. Judging by the rings, it was at least fifty years old.
Yang Jing had spent time at the Liu Family Medical Hall and knew how valuable such an old ginseng was. It had to be worth at least two hundred taels of silver.
'Damn, the Great Fortune Gang was more than they seemed. They must have scored a huge windfall before!' Yang Jing thought.
The lamplight fell on the treasures, making the whole room glitter.
He looked at the gold, silver, and ginseng on the table, and his furrowed brow completely relaxed.
'If you want to live well, you have to be bold!'
'This old ginseng is something special—at least fifty years old. Its medicinal properties must be incredible. This must be the precious medicine Xu Tai mentioned. Well, I killed you, so now this precious medicine is mine.'
'The further you progress in the martial arts, the harder it gets. I'll save this old ginseng for after I break through to the Dark Energy stage. It can help me quickly reach the Peak of Dark Energy and then break through to the legendary Transforming Energy.'
'For now, a sufficient supply of ferocious beast meat is already increasing my cultivation speed by a large margin.'
These thoughts ran through Yang Jing's mind as he gazed at the gold, silver, and ginseng.
A man really does need money. At that moment, a profound sense of ease washed over Yang Jing, and he was filled with anticipation for the future.
Yang Jing picked up the ginseng and examined it for a moment. He then carefully placed it back in the wooden box. He put the box, along with the gold and silver, back into the burlap sack, then shoved the sack deep under his bed and concealed it with a few wooden planks.
After doing all this, he blew out the oil lamp and lay down on the bed.
'I should go home in a couple of days. Keeping so much gold and silver here... even though the room has a lock, I still don't feel at ease. I'll take some of it home to hide...'
Lying on the bed, Yang Jing's thoughts swirled rapidly.
The night outside was still thick and dark, but Yang Jing's heart felt bright and clear.
Having eliminated the threat of the Great Fortune Gang and obtained this windfall, his future path in the Martial Dao had suddenly become much wider.
「...」
「The next day, early in the morning.」
The teahouses and taverns of West City were buzzing with gossip.
"Have you heard? Xu Tai, the Gang Leader of the Great Fortune Gang, was burned to death last night."
"It seems he was burned to death in a courtyard in Xinghua Square. How unpredictable life is. To think such a formidable man would be burned to death."
"I passed by there this morning and saw the charred beams. They say the fire burned from midnight until dawn. The body was burned beyond recognition."
"What fire? I heard from the night patrol guards that it was most likely the Yiqi Gang. The two gangs have been fighting nonstop for the past few days, going at each other's throats."
"Not necessarily. With all the things the Great Fortune Gang has done, who knows how many people they've offended. Xu Tai had plenty of enemies. It could have been some expert he screwed over..."
Rumors flew through the streets and alleys as if they had wings.
Yang Jing blended into the crowd in the West Market, his expression calm and untroubled as he listened to the discussions.
He walked up to a hunter's stall with a tiger skin hanging from it and pointed at the fresh meat on the counter. "Two jin of tiger meat. Make sure it has sinew."
The hunter skillfully weighed the meat, tied it with a grass rope, and said with a smile, "Good eye, sir. My brothers and I just took down this 'mountain lord' this morning. One and a half taels of silver."
Tiger meat was also considered ferocious beast meat. Since the tiger is the king of all beasts, it was even more expensive than bear meat. Two jin of it cost one and a half taels of silver.
Now flush with cash, Yang Jing was feeling generous. He paid the money and, carrying the tiger meat, headed straight back to Datong Square.
He placed a clay pot on a small stove. The tiger meat was cut into large chunks and slow-cooked with slices of ginger and scallion. Before long, a rich, meaty aroma began to drift out.