It was obvious why Wang Long and his men were looking for him.
After a moment of silence, Qin Fang suppressed the agitation in his heart. 'Since there's no escaping this, I might as well try to talk things out.'
"Regarding that, I must sincerely apologize to you all... You saw the state I was in. I truly had no other choice, so... yes, I deceived you. But I remember the debt of you saving my life, and I will repay it in the future."
Qin Fang decided to be direct.
As he said this, the expressions of Wang Long and his men instantly darkened.
"So... you really were lying to me back then?" Wang Long asked, his expression grim.
"Yes," Qin Fang nodded.
"You... don't have any more gold outside the city?" the man with the mole on his lip asked urgently.
"I don't." Qin Fang shook his head. "I'm just a refugee. That golden chain I gave you was something I found by chance, something I'd planned to use to support myself after settling down. I gave it to you that day. I really have nothing more."
"Then why the hell did you say you had more outside the city?!" one of them demanded angrily.
After a moment of silence, Qin Fang said, "If I hadn't said that, would you have saved me?"
The question was met with silence.
If it wasn't for the promise of more gold... why the hell else would they have bothered saving him?
The fact that they had initially taken him to one of their temporary hideouts instead of Huichun Hall was proof enough that they'd had no intention of saving him.
Besides, they'd had a nagging feeling even then that Qin Fang might be lying to them.
But their greed had made them gamble on a sliver of hope. 'What if it's true?'
That was the only reason they'd gone to the trouble of getting him treated.
Now, that hope was shattered.
It was easy to imagine their current mood.
"Kid, I'm afraid this matter isn't going to be resolved so easily... Now, you tell me. What am I supposed to do with you?"
Wang Long's expression turned completely cold. He stared at Qin Fang, his eyes filled with killing intent.
He was clearly burning with rage for having been played by Qin Fang.
"I was desperate. I truly had no intention of making fools of you all."
Qin Fang took a deep breath, his posture deferential. "But it is a fact that you saved my life. I will remember this great debt and repay you in the future."
"Repay me? What could you possibly give me?"
"I can't give you anything at the moment... but if you just give me some time to get settled here in True Martial County, I'll make sure there are plenty of benefits for you in the future."
Qin Fang said with sincerity.
"Hahaha! Wait until you've established yourself in True Martial County, and *then* you'll repay us?"
Wang Long roared with laughter before his expression suddenly turned cold. "Kid, do you take me for an idiot?!"
Before Qin Fang could speak again, Wang Long strode right up to him.
Qin Fang's heart leaped in alarm. Before he could utter a word, Wang Long's hand was already swinging toward his face.
The slap was incredibly fast. Startled, Qin Fang instinctively threw up his left arm to block, but the next second—SMACK!—the force of the blow sent him flying.
THUD!
His back slammed hard against the doorframe. He let out a muffled grunt as intense pain flared through his back, and he collapsed bonelessly to the ground.
His opponent hadn't managed to hit his face, as Qin Fang had blocked it with his arm in time.
However, his arm exploded in pain, feeling as if it had been snapped in two.
Cold sweat instantly broke out on Qin Fang's forehead.
Wang Long had struck without any warning, giving him no time to react.
The pain was so intense he couldn't speak. He could only look up at Wang Long.
Wang Long crouched down, staring at Qin Fang, a cruel glint appearing in his eyes. "Kid, let me teach you a little something. When you make a promise, you keep it. There's a price to pay for breaking your word."
Before Qin Fang could say a word, Wang Long grabbed one of his fingers.
Qin Fang's expression changed, but before he had a chance to speak, Wang Long savagely bent it back!
CRACK!!
A sickening snap echoed through the room.
Qin Fang couldn't help but let out a blood-curdling scream.
Wang Long had snapped his left index finger!!
The searing pain made Qin Fang's eyes fly wide, leaving him speechless.
Only then did Wang Long let go, satisfied. Qin Fang's left index finger was now twisted at an unnatural angle.
"Consider this a light punishment to teach you a lesson. Now, you should remember not to lie to people, shouldn't you?"
Wang Long grinned sinisterly, revealing a set of large, yellow teeth.
But Qin Fang was speechless. Cold sweat streamed down his forehead as he curled up on the floor, clutching his left hand.
"One finger to teach you a lesson. But we're not finished."
"Don't say I'm not giving you a chance. You took Old Wu as your master, right? Perfect. I'll give you three days... In three days, you get me fifty... no, one hundred taels of silver, and we'll consider this matter settled. Otherwise..."
He sneered. "Kid, you've still got plenty of fingers... and toes. We can take our time."
After saying his piece, he glanced around the room and added with a sneer, "Old Wu treats you pretty well, huh? I hear he even fixed up this house for you. A hundred taels of silver shouldn't be much for him, right?"
Clutching his left hand with its broken finger, Qin Fang remained curled up on the ground, speechless from the throbbing pain.
"Go take a look. See if there's anything good."
Wang Long ordered nonchalantly.
At Wang Long's command, the others sneered and barged into Qin Fang's home.
A moment later, a series of CRASHES and BANGS erupted from inside as they deliberately smashed his furniture... Apparently, this kind of work was their specialty.
In a matter of moments, the house that had just started to feel like a home was completely wrecked. Qin Fang even watched as the man with the mole deliberately stomped on the table again and again until the surface splintered and broke.
The teapot and other items Elder Wu had brought were carelessly thrown to the ground, shattering into pieces.
"Well, well! Look who can afford meat. And such a big piece! Perfect. The boys and I have been craving some real food."
One of them came out of the kitchen, dangling a large slab of pork from his hand.
'His master had just brought that over yesterday.'
Qin Fang suppressed a gasp, turning his head to watch in silence.
Wang Long's voice rang out again. "Kid, maybe you were desperate, just trying to survive. But I don't owe you a thing. You're the one who came to me and made a promise, so you have to see it through. Isn't that right?"
"Remember, you have only three days. If there's no silver in three days..."
Wang Long didn't finish the sentence, but his cold chuckle said everything that needed to be said.
Qin Fang forced himself to look at Wang Long. The cold sneer and cruelty in the man's eyes were plain to see.
Qin Fang remained silent. With another sneer, Wang Long got to his feet.
"All right, we'll be back in three days. Got to give the man a chance to raise the money, right? Let's go."
Wang Long stood up and left. The others followed him out, laughing maliciously and cursing under their breath.
"Trying to play dirty with us? I was running these scams when he was still making mud pies with his own piss."
"Hahaha."
As the man with the mole passed by, he gave Qin Fang an extra kick for good measure before leaving with a sinister chuckle.
Finally, Wang Long and his men were gone.
Qin Fang lay on the ground for a long while before slowly getting to his feet.
He clutched his left hand, looking down at his index finger, which was twisted at a grotesque angle. Waves of intense pain radiated from it.
His gaze swept across the room. The recently repaired house was now in shambles. The teapot, table, and chairs his master had brought him had all been deliberately destroyed.
Qin Fang knew their goal wasn't merely destruction; it was a threat.
He slowly walked to the kitchen.
The kitchen was also a wreck. They had even smashed a large hole in his cooking pot with a brick. The bowls on the stove lay shattered on the ground.
Qin Fang slowly turned his head toward the front door.
He tightened his grip on the dart he had kept concealed in his right hand.
Then, without pausing, he clutched his left wrist and walked straight out of the yard.
His gaze landed directly on the men, who were just about to exit the alley.
His face was devoid of expression. Without closing the door, he clutched his wrist and slowly followed them.