And so, ard with his 'rchant' disguise and his bag of treasured spices, Han Yu set off on another 'business trip' to the ghostly man, hoping that this ti, he wouldn't get caught.
At the gate, however, he promptly t Guard Shen, who was diligently performing his daily duties.
"Good afternoon, Guard Shen," Han Yu greeted, putting on his best impression of an innocent little boy.
"Going fishing again?" The guard eyed the gear slung over Han Yu's shoulder.
"Yeah, I want to get more today. I just might be able to sell so for extra money too." Han Yu spoke with the conviction of a hardworking young entrepreneur.
"Good, good. You should work hard and live honestly." Guard Shen nodded approvingly, letting him pass without further question.
Not many people fished in the river at this ti of year. The water was too cold for commoners, and cultivators and warriors had far more lucrative ways to earn money than standing around with a fishing pole. To Guard Shen, Han Yu's determination to fish despite the conditions was nothing short of admirable.
Unaware of the guard's thoughts, Han Yu hurried toward the forest. Having now morized the route, he quickly reached the ghostly man's lair.
"Mr. Ghost! I'm back!" he announced cheerfully.
Sniff.
The mont he stepped into the clearing, a powerful stench assaulted his nose.
"Damn, is this a slaughterhouse or sothing?!" Han Yu gagged, covering his mouth and nose with his sleeve.
Lying before him were ten corpses of various beasts. He recognized the common wolves, similar to those from before, as well as a couple of Broad-Horned Deer. But what really caught his eye was the gigantic tiger sprawled out in the center.
"Heavens! Such a big tiger?!" Han Yu nearly stumbled in shock.
He had seen warriors and cultivators bring back tigers before, but none as massive as this one. It was at least twice the size of a normal tiger, with claws that looked more like daggers than anything found in nature.
Yet, despite its once-mighty presence, the fearso beast now lay dead, its lifeless eyes frozen in an eternal stare at the empty sky.
"Mr. Ghost hunted all these?" Han Yu gulped. He had expected the man to bring back one or two animals—maybe three at most. But this? This was overkill.
"This is too much! The at will spoil before we can even finish it!" Han Yu lanted, his mind imdiately shifting to more practical concerns.
"We need to process this imdiately and start drying the at," he muttered to himself, already ntally calculating the work ahead.
But then he paused, suddenly realizing sothing crucial.
"Wait... where is Mr. Ghost?" Han Yu glanced around, suddenly wary. "He isn't out hunting for more, is he?"
Normally, he wouldn't mind—after all, free at was free at—but at this rate, it would all just go to waste! They didn't have the ans to store so much at once.
Sigh.
Letting out a deep sigh, Han Yu decided it was best to start working.
'Selling beast jerky shouldn't be as big of a problem, right?' he thought as he grabbed his knife and got to work.
Selling fresh beast at required all sorts of legal nonsense—licenses, taxes, and supply chain questions. But dried at jerky? That was practically street food. No one would ask too many questions about its origins.
'Maybe Dan Hu and Fat Kui will know a way to sell it in small portions without raising suspicions,' he mused. As long as they didn't suddenly try to sell an entire tiger's worth of jerky, things should be fine.
With the war intensifying, at supply lines had been disrupted, making it harder for commoners to get affordable protein. Most people relied on dried at for their rations, but even that had beco scarce.
'This might just be a niche we can tap into...' Han Yu's eyes glead at the thought of potential profits.
Rip. Rip. Rip.
Fueled by the visions of silver coins dancing in his mind, he skinned the beasts with renewed enthusiasm, even humming a happy little tune. If soone had walked in at that mont, they might have thought he was preparing for a grand feast instead of elbow-deep in blood and guts.
Ti passed, and Han Yu was so engrossed in his work that he failed to notice the approaching footsteps.
Snap.
The sudden sound of a breaking stick jolted him to attention.
'I won't fall for it this ti!' Han Yu thought triumphantly. Unlike last ti, he was ready. With a quick turn, he jumped up, brandishing his knife. "HYAA!"
Standing before him was none other than the ghostly man, another fresh corpse slung over his shoulder.
The two stared at each other. The ghostly man's expression was blank as ever. Han Yu, however, had a very distinct look of soone who had just made a complete fool of himself.
"What are you doing?" the ghostly man asked, his voice as deadpan as ever.
"Uhh... butchering," Han Yu replied, trying to salvage so dignity.
"Fine." The ghostly man dumped the new corpse onto the pile with a heavy thud. "Do this one too."
Han Yu's jaw nearly dropped.
"Wait! I can't do all this by myself! Help !" he pleaded, waving his bloodied hands for dramatic effect.
"No."
The refusal was imdiate, cold, and absolute.
"Please! Or it'll take too long! I won't be able to train!" Han Yu tried another angle.
"Not my problem. Just be fast." The ghostly man remained unmoved.
Han Yu narrowed his eyes. Fine. If reason wouldn't work, he would have to deploy his ultimate weapon—bribery.
"But then again..." Han Yu let out a theatrical sigh. "I won't be able to cook for you either."
The ghostly man's fingers twitched.
Han Yu smirked. He had him now.
"And I even bought spices this ti! Imagine—fresh, juicy beast at, cooked to perfection with a special blend of aromatic spices..." Han Yu trailed off, letting the ghostly man's imagination do the rest.
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