Chapter 5: Youying, Leaving the Prison

Chen Mu hurried out.

He didn't want to stay any longer in the City Guard Headquarters; the atmosphere there was too oppressive.

However, just as Chen Mu rounded the front courtyard and returned to the towering City Guard building, a glimpse from the corner of his eye caught sight of a person in a white Flying Fish Suit¹ standing on the fourth-floor terrace of the building.

Although they were quite far apart, he could still make out that it was a woman, and her appearance seemed rather youthful. Even if the rumors of her beauty that could "cause fish to sink and birds to fall"² were exaggerated, they were not entirely baseless.

"Is that the Chief Constable of the Southern District?"

Chen Mu quickly averted his gaze after a brief glance.

Among the four districts – East, South, West, and North – only the Southern District had a female Chief Constable. However, no one dared to underestimate this Chief Constable because of this. After all, while patrol leaders might ascend through connections and constables might only be half-baked, a dignified Chief Constable, who governed the entire City Guard Headquarters of the Southern District, couldn't possibly hold that position without both backing and personal strength.

He couldn't help but think of the "Inner Techniques"³ rumored to exist in this world, apart from the various external martial arts like saber and swordsmanship.

As far as he knew, Inner Techniques did exist, but the difficulty of cultivation and the various requirements were far higher than external martial arts. A single dose of medicinal powder could cost dozens of taels of silver, making the practice of Inner Techniques almost like burning money, which is why it wasn't widely spread.

However, the truly strong individuals were those who practiced Inner Techniques. Even if one reached the peak of external martial arts and cultivated a saber technique to the point of manifesting "Saber Force,"⁴ allowing them to fight ten opponents at once, that would be the limit. But those who practiced Inner Techniques had abundant internal energy and enduring stamina. Legends even spoke of them being able to fight a hundred or even a thousand enemies!

"This Chief Constable must be a powerful expert who practices Inner Techniques. It's a pity I can't get my hands on the cultivation methods for Inner Techniques."

Chen Mu shook his head.

He wasn't interested in how beautiful the Chief Constable was. Only the methods of internal cultivation mattered to him. He wondered if the system could use experience points to forcefully elevate his cultivation of Inner Techniques.

His thoughts drifted for a moment, but Chen Mu quickly regained his composure. He shouldn't be aiming too high right now. First, he needed to perfect the Gale Saber Technique and then find a way to advance further. Once he had a certain level of strength and status, he could then try to seek out methods of internal cultivation.

Chen Mu quickly left the City Guard Headquarters.

Meanwhile, Chief Constable Xu Hongyu, standing on the terrace of the City Guard building, gazed down at the entire headquarters with a hint of worry in her eyes. Her gaze swept over Chen Mu's departing figure without pausing, just like the countless constables who passed by like flowing water every day. He didn't attract her attention in the slightest.

...

Chen Mu walked home without stopping.

Because the City Guard Headquarters was quite far from his home and it was getting late, even if he was wearing the uniform of a constable, walking at night was still unsafe. He might accidentally witness something, encounter something, and get caught up in some trouble, only to end up as an unnoticed corpse in a ditch the next day.

Chen Mu quickened his pace and arrived home while the sky was still bright. Chen Hong had been waiting anxiously.

Seeing Chen Mu finally return, she hurried to meet him.

"Third Aunt."

Chen Mu nodded at Chen Hong and said, "The jailer accepted the silver. He said he wouldn't make things too difficult for Cousin within a month or two, but after that, we'll have to think of another way."

Hearing Chen Mu's words, Chen Hong finally breathed a sigh of relief. "That's good, that's good..."

She had been thinking about rescuing Zhang Hai these past few days, but she had hit a wall everywhere and couldn't find anyone who could intercede. Now, taking a step back, she was fortunate that the jailer was easy to talk to, and at least Zhang Hai's life was temporarily safe. As for what would happen in a month or two, they could only take things one step at a time.

Chen Mu helped Chen Hong sit down.

"Third Aunt, don't worry too much about this. We'll cross that bridge when we come to it. Maybe things will turn around in a few days."

In fact, if Zhang Hai's incident had happened a little later, after he had become a patrol leader, he would naturally have some authority. It was even possible that, at his age, if he could cultivate "Saber Force," he could directly catch the attention of someone like the Chief Constable.

Then, there would truly be a chance to get Zhang Hai out of prison. But perhaps this was his destined tribulation, and Chen Mu currently had no way to deal with it. He wasn't even willing to get involved, so as not to disrupt his well-considered plans.

Chen Hong sat there, composing herself.

After all, her age was there. Upon learning that Zhang Hai was temporarily safe, she quickly calmed down.

"Mm, we can only take things one step at a time."

Chen Hong also sighed and said, "I spoiled him since he was a child... Xiaomu, it's getting late. Why don't you and Yue'er come to my house for dinner?"

Chen Mu saw a glimmer of hope in Chen Yue's eyes, but he still shook his head and said, "No, it's getting late. If we eat dinner, it will be dark by the time we finish, and then we would have to stay the night at Third Aunt's house. It's too much trouble."

Chen Hong waved her hand and said, "No trouble, no trouble. Just come to my house... um..."

As she spoke, Chen Hong suddenly paused, as if she had thought of something. She hesitated for a moment, but then continued, "Xiaomu, do you remember Youying? She's the daughter of Xiaoh's fourth uncle. She came to your house when she was a child."

Chen Mu was slightly confused.

This memory was a bit distant, from before he came to this world. However, he did have all the memories from before, though they were somewhat blurry.

Hearing Chen Hong mention it, he searched through his mind and found the image of a little girl.

"I have a vague impression. What about her?"

Chen Mu asked.

Chen Hong pondered for a moment and said, "Youying, that child... her father passed away last year, and now she lives with me. She's also of age, and you haven't started a family yet. I was thinking, why not arrange a marriage for you two? What do you think?"

Chen Yue listened from the side, blinking her eyes.

Chen Mu initially wanted to refuse, but after thinking for a moment and recalling some memories of "Zhang Youying" – she seemed to be a pretty cute little girl when she was young – he thought about it and said, "I don't want to start a family in the next two years, and I haven't seen her in many years. I don't know what she's like now."

Chen Hong smiled and said, "She's a grown woman now, not inferior to Yue'er at all. Hmm... it's fine if you don't come today. I haven't talked to Youying about this yet. I'll go back and talk to her first."

Having said that, seeing that it was indeed getting late, Chen Hong stood up to leave. Chen Mu held Chen Yue's hand and walked her to the door.

After Chen Hong's figure disappeared, Chen Yue tilted her little head and looked at Chen Mu.

"Brother should find a sister-in-law too."

Chen Mu closed the door and reached out to pat her head.

"No rush."

In fact, right now was not the right time. After he had mastered his saber skills and become a patrol leader, even if he had the thought, it would be fine to be more selective. But then he thought, at that time, with status, there would be many people seeking favors. It wouldn't hurt to take a look now.

Chen Yue whispered, "When Brother has a sister-in-law, you won't want me anymore."

Chen Mu laughed upon hearing this. "How could that be? Yue'er is the most important."

After coaxing the little girl into the house, Chen Mu went into the woodshed and continued practicing his saber techniques.

...

As dusk fell, Chen Hong quickened her pace and soon arrived at a spacious street, entering a courtyard.

The courtyard wasn't large, just a small one with a single entrance. Besides the main gate, there were three rows of houses, each with four rooms, totaling twelve. Although they seemed a bit old, they were still fairly clean.

The people who lived in this kind of courtyard were generally not those with power or influence. They were just slightly better off than the poor underclass. Typically, a family of four or five would live here.

As soon as Chen Hong entered the courtyard, a rather greasy middle-aged man approached her with a worried expression.

"How did it go?"

He was Zhang Hai's father, a fairly well-known "Butcher Zhang" in the marketplace. He made a decent living by slaughtering pigs and cutting and dividing meat. However, Zhang Hai's incident had left him with no solutions.

After all, he was just a butcher. At most, he delivered meat to some "masters" regularly and knew a few low-ranking individuals. When it came to matters involving the City Guard Headquarters and the prison, he was completely helpless. Even thugs, thieves, and even some gang members wouldn't have the ability to get someone out of prison.

As for those truly powerful masters, he wasn't qualified to ask for their help.

"Alas."

Chen Hong sighed, first followed Butcher Zhang into the house, and then explained the situation.

Upon hearing this, Butcher Zhang first felt a slight relief, then sighed again and said, "yyour nephew has been a constable for so many years, yet he doesn't know any important people who can help... When your elder brother was still alive, I told you not to let your nephew become a constable. In this world, without family background, money, or power, being a constable won't earn you much money, nor can you advance. It's not as good as joining those gangs and fighting for your life. Maybe you could make something of yourself that way."

Chen Hong wiped her tears and said, "Being a constable is a stable job. We don't ask for much money, as long as he's safe and sound... Besides, without Xiaomu, we wouldn't even be able to get the silver into the hands of the jailer."

Butcher Zhang shook his head. "Forget it, let's not talk about it anymore. Go call Youying for dinner."

Before Chen Hong could go out, a young girl of about sixteen or seventeen walked in. She had a rather heroic appearance with a teardrop mole under her eye. As soon as she entered the room, she asked, "Aunt, you're back. How is Brother Hai?"

Chen Hong explained Zhang Hai's situation again.

Zhang Youying sat down and listened, offering words of comfort. "At least he's alright for now."

However, she kept half a sentence to herself – Cousin Zhang Hai was quite overweight, and perhaps this stint in prison would be a good thing, as he might lose some weight. Of course, such a flippant remark couldn't be said aloud.

At the same time, she secretly shook her head. She had long felt that Zhang Hai, who was uneducated and spent his days fooling around, would eventually get into trouble. She had once kindly reminded him, but he didn't listen to her, so she gave up. She just didn't expect it to happen so suddenly.

Fortunately, it didn't implicate her family or herself.

Chen Hong sat there, grieving over Zhang Hai's situation for a while. It wasn't until Zhang Youying brought the food to the table that she came to her senses. She remembered something and asked Zhang Youying, "Youying, it's been many years since you and Xiaomu last saw each other, right?"

Zhang Youying thought for a moment, and the image of a young boy, Chen Mu from her childhood, surfaced in her memory. Although she hadn't seen him since then, she could vaguely imagine what he might look like now that he was older. He should be more pleasant-looking than Zhang Hai, but it seemed he wasn't very intelligent. Back then, she had asked him a question about counting chickens and ducks, and he was completely stumped, unable to answer at all.

Chen Hong suddenly bringing up Chen Mu made her immediately understand her intention.

Therefore, she remained silent, just looking at Chen Hong and waiting for her to continue.

Sure enough, Chen Hong went on to say, "Xiaomu is a good kid. Although his family is a bit poor, he's a constable with a stable job. You're also of age, and I think..."

"Aunt, I'm not ready to get married yet."

Zhang Youying blushed slightly and said, "Besides, I know some reading, writing, and arithmetic. I'm hoping to find a job as a bookkeeper in the future. Brother Mu is a constable, so he probably doesn't need a bookkeeper, right?"

Although she rarely left the house, she still had some understanding of the world outside. For low-ranking constables, if they had a powerful family, they could spend money to pave their way up the ranks or go to the Inner City to learn martial arts and develop their skills. But if they had nothing, there was basically no chance of advancement, and their salary was just enough to get by.

She knew how to read, write, and do arithmetic, and she was also good-looking. Even if she didn't marry into a powerful family, she should at least marry a restaurant owner, pawnshop boss, or someone similar. She could spend her days writing and calculating... It was best to avoid marrying relatives.

"This..."

Chen Hong felt awkward upon hearing this.

Butcher Zhang shook his head and said, "Youying is quite good at reading, writing, and arithmetic. She's never made a mistake in the accounts for my meat sales. What could she do if she married your nephew? Stop meddling. I'll help her find a suitable match someday. We can't let her down."

Zhang Youying lowered her head obediently and said nothing more.

Seeing this, Chen Hong could only sigh helplessly and drop the subject for now.