Chapter 18: Beating the Dog

“Are you really here to find me?”

One of them said, “We’re from the Liu family of Chu Capital. We’re not here for anything else...” He pulled an envelope from his pocket and handed it to Lin Feng. “Inside is a document to annul the engagement. The young lady has already signed it. All you need to do is sign it as well, and we will take it back to the authorities in Chu Capital to officially dissolve your engagement.”

Lin Feng couldn’t help but admire the persistence of the Miss Liu—she had tracked him down even here in this remote mountain village.

Were they afraid he would never return to Chu Capital?

“Just because you want me to sign it, I’ll sign it?!”

The man was taken aback. “What? Back in Chu Capital, you were at least the young master of the Lin family. But now that you’ve been kicked out and reduced to a commoner, do you really think you’re worthy of our young lady? One should have some self-awareness!”

Another sneered, “Even in Chu Capital, you’re unworthy—just a good-for-nothing idler and wastrel!”

“I’ve heard you were thrown out for drunkenly harassing and insulting your father’s concubine. That’s utterly disgraceful!”

It seemed this scandal was well known in Chu Capital. His reputation was completely ruined.

Lin Feng thought to himself, no matter how down and out he was, these two dogs had no right to mock him. He sneered coldly, “Sixxi, teach these two dogs a proper lesson!”

“Alright, big brother!”

Sixxi grinned fiercely and advanced toward the two men.

Seeing Sixxi move to attack, the two immediately took defensive stances, clearly trained in combat.

“Hey!”

One of them struck first, shouting as he charged at Sixxi. His large fist was about to land on Sixxi’s face.

But in the blink of an eye, Sixxi tilted his head aside; the punch whooshed past him. Using the attacker’s momentum, Sixxi swept out a leg, tripped him, and with a swift left hand, sent him flying sideways.

“Bang!” The man crashed heavily to the ground, face-down in the dirt.

The other man circled behind Sixxi, aiming for a sneak attack.

“Bang!”

“Ah!” he screamed in pain as Lin Feng kicked him from behind, sending him sprawling forward onto the muddy yard, face-down.

Lin Feng grabbed a stick and cursed, “You two idiots! You only know I’m an idle good-for-nothing, but haven’t you heard I have a fondness for beating dogs? Didn’t you do your homework before coming here?!”

He then furiously beat their upturned backs.

The two cried out, begging desperately, “Young Master Lin… please spare us! Young Master Lin, have mercy!”

Lin Feng stopped swinging the stick.

“Go back and tell your Miss Liu—if she wants to break off the engagement, fine. But she must come here herself and ask me nicely. Otherwise, she can forget about it for the rest of her life!”

“Y-yes…”

The two painfully scrambled to their feet. One wiped the mud from his face. “Young Master Lin, what about the annulment document...?”

Lin Feng said coolly, “Leave it with me for now. Let your Miss Liu come pick it up in person. If she behaves well, I will naturally sign it for her. Got that?!”

“We... understand...”

“Now get out of here!”

Covering their sore backsides, the two fled as fast as they could.

Xiaodie walked over and said, “Big brother, you don’t actually want to marry that Miss Liu, do you?”

“I’m not marrying her—not a chance! I just want to show her that even though I’m down and out now, I’m still the young master!”

Lin Feng glanced toward Tian Xier, who was standing silently nearby. He thought to himself, surely his impressive display just now must have left an impression on her.

He immediately put on a gentle smile. “Little sister, that’s how you deal with bad people.”

Tian Xier nodded nervously, thinking this Lin brother looked refined and handsome, but was actually quite fierce—and he even had a fiancée. Plus, he had something going on with his father’s concubine...

Could he be a wolf in sheep’s clothing?

“Alright comrades, today I’ll teach you how to make five-spice peanuts.”

The three of them thought: comrades?

“Big brother, you mean the three of us?” asked Xiaodie.

“Yes. From now on, the task of frying five-spice peanuts will be yours.”

Sixxi and Xiaodie had basically mastered the process from Lin Feng’s previous attempts, only needing to refine the seasoning, details, and heat control.

Tian Xier was a newcomer, but she was very diligent. Yesterday, when she saw the five-spice peanuts Lin Feng was selling, she knew it was his exclusive secret recipe. Few would share such secrets, but Lin Feng didn’t hold anything back, which deeply moved her.

Her earlier image of Lin Feng beating people with a stick replaced the beastly persona she had imagined entirely.

Under Lin Feng’s guidance, the three took turns trying their hand, with Lin Feng finishing the batch.

By the time they were done, they had fried the last ten pounds of peanuts.

“Xier little sister, can you ask your mother to gather more peanuts from nearby villages? Same price as before.”

“Okay, I’ll tell her right away.”

“Tell her to get as many as possible!”

“Got it, Lin big brother.”

Tian Xier returned soon after. “Lin big brother, my mother says she’s already scoured several nearby villages. She and my father and brother will split up to collect from other villages and towns. Don’t worry, we’ll have a good amount by this afternoon.”

Lin Feng nodded. He trusted the Tian family’s efficiency. They promised it would definitely arrive by this afternoon, not tomorrow.

“My mother asked if you’re still collecting poultry or anything else?”

“You probably don’t have much left to collect now.”

“My father said sheep might still be possible. He knows a few shepherds in the mountains and can ask around.”

“We’ll discuss that in a few days. For now, we focus on selling five-spice peanuts,” Lin Feng said. “Let’s head to town to sell.”

“Master, how much should we bring?”

“Take it all!”

They packed over thirty pounds of five-spice peanuts into boxes on a small cart. Sixxi pushed the cart as the three set off for town.

When they arrived, they saw that the group who had copied their lucky draw promotion was back, though far fewer people had gathered than the day before.

Though the money involved was small, if people participated every day, it would add up to a considerable sum for ordinary townsfolk. Especially those who had never won and kept hoping for the lucky fairy’s arrival—many had likely given up and preferred to spend that money on two pounds of pork instead.

Still, the purchasing power in town was impressive. The lucky draw had raised the price to ten wen per try, yet many townsfolk still took part.