Four or five burly men stood in front of her, the leader being a young man in a silk shirt with slanted eyes, waving a fan in his hand and leering at her.

"Miss Liu, why bother? Paying back debts is a matter of course. Your father owes our master one hundred taels of silver. If he doesn't pay today, we'll take your clinic as collateral!"

"One hundred taels? It's clearly fifty taels!" the woman exclaimed angrily.

"Besides, my father paid back twenty taels last month! This is extortion!"

"Last month is last month, but with interest compounding this month, it'll be a hundred taels, won't it?" The slanted-eyed man chuckled.

"Miss Liu, if you really can't pay back the debt, why not go and work as a maid in the master's house? That way you can pay off the debt and at least have a decent meal. Wouldn't that be the best of both worlds?"

"Don't even think about it!" the woman gritted her teeth. "Even if I die, I'll never set foot inside the Zhang family's gate!"

"You won't listen to reason, so you'll have to suffer the consequences!" The man with the slanted eyes darkened. "Smash it! Drag this old bastard out!"

The burly men swarmed forward. The woman desperately tried to stop them, but was pushed to the ground, her forehead hitting the corner of a cabinet, and blood immediately flowed from her forehead.

"Shuang'er!" The old doctor struggled to get out of bed, but coughed up a mouthful of blood.

The man with the slanted eyes walked up to the woman, bent down, and pinched her chin: "Liu Rushuang, don't push your luck. In this Sanhe Ferry, there's no one our master can't get. Today, you have no choice but to comply..."

Before he could finish speaking, his wrist was suddenly grabbed.

"Snap!"

With a sharp crack, the man with slanted eyes screamed as his wrist bent at an odd angle.

He was in so much pain that his face turned deathly pale. When he turned around, he saw a young man in an indigo robe standing behind him, his eyes as cold as ice.

"Who...who are you?!" the slanted-eyed girl screamed.

Lin Feng ignored him and looked at the woman on the ground: "Are you alright?"

Liu Rushuang covered her bleeding forehead, stared blankly at him, and shook her head.

"Damn it! Get him! Cripple him!" the slanted-eyed man roared furiously.

Four burly men pounced on them.

Lin Feng opened his slanted eyes, his figure flashing like lightning as he cut into the crowd.

He didn't draw his knife, only his fists and feet. But these seemingly fierce burly men were like clay chickens and earthen dogs in front of him. In just a few punches and kicks, they were all lying on the ground, clutching their arms and legs and howling in pain.

The man with the droopy eyes turned pale and tried to run away. Lin Feng kicked him in the back of the knee, and he fell to his knees with a thud.

"Hero... Hero, spare my life! I... I was just following orders!"

"On whose orders?"

"Master Zhang...Master Zhang! The richest man in Sanhe Ferry! Good sir, don't meddle in other people's business, you can't afford to offend Master Zhang!"

"Master Zhang?" Lin Feng looked at Liu Rushuang.

Liu Rushuang struggled to her feet, supporting her father, and said bitterly, "It's Zhang the Skinflint from the west of town! He lends money at exorbitant interest rates, seizes land by force, and drives people to their deaths! Half the shops in this town were seized by him through trickery and coercion!"

The man with the slanted eyes quickly replied, "Miss is right! It was all Master Zhang's doing! It has nothing to do with me!"

Lin Feng kicked him to the ground and stepped on his chest: "Go back and tell your master that I will pay off the debts of the Liu Family Clinic for him. Tell him to bring the IOU and come to the clinic to collect the money tomorrow at noon. If he dares to cause trouble again, or try anything else—"

He stomped his feet, and the bones in his chest creaked and popped, the pain almost making him faint.

"I demolished his Zhang family compound. Get out."

He loosened his grip, and Diaoyan and his men scrambled away.

The crowd erupted in low cheers, but quickly dispersed. Master Zhang wielded too much power in the town; no one dared to openly applaud him.

Lin Feng walked up to Liu Rushuang, looked at the wound on her forehead, and took out some wound medicine from his pocket: "Apply the medicine yourself. How's your father?"

Liu Rushuang took the medicine, but disregarded her own health, first checking on her father: "Father, how are you?"

The old doctor gasped, "I...I'm not dead yet. Thank you...thank you, brave warrior..."

Liu Rushuang said, "Then...that one hundred taels of silver..."

"I have it," Lin Feng said. "I'll take care of it tomorrow. Don't worry."

After saying that, he strode away.

Liu Rushuang stood at the door, watching his figure disappear around the street corner, then looked at the mess inside the house, and tears streamed down her face.

"Shuang'er," the old doctor said weakly, "this strong man... is a good person. But that Master Zhang... is no saint. A hundred taels of silver, he can't just take it out like that. Tomorrow... I'm afraid there will be more trouble."

Liu Rushuang wiped away her tears, her eyes resolute: "Father, no matter what, he saved us. If something really happens tomorrow, your daughter... your daughter will stand with him."

Lin Feng returned to the inn and briefly told Su Wanyue about the clinic.

Su Wanyue frowned and said, "That Master Zhang doesn't sound like a good person. One hundred taels of silver, you..."

"I have the money," Lin Feng said. "I took some from Liu Laosan's treasury. But tomorrow probably won't be peaceful."

"Are you going?"

"Yes." Lin Feng nodded. "We can't ignore injustice when we see it on the road."

Su Wanyue grasped his hand: "I'll go with you."

"You stay at the inn."

"No." Su Wanyue shook her head. "I am your wife. Wherever you are, I will be. Besides, I am also a woman. If Miss Liu is injured, I can take care of her."

Looking into her determined eyes, Lin Feng finally nodded: "Okay. We'll go together first thing tomorrow morning."

The following day at noon.

Su Wanyue stayed by Liu Rushuang's side and gently held her hand.

Liu Rushuang smiled slightly at her, then looked towards the entrance—Lin Feng stood at the entrance of the clinic, arms crossed, leaning against the door frame, gazing at the street.

"They're here," Lin Feng suddenly said.

A jumble of footsteps came from the street corner, numbering no less than twenty.

First came a small blue cloth sedan chair carried by four men. The curtain was lifted, and a middle-aged, fat man with a protruding belly and a mustache, wearing a dark brown silk robe, emerged. It was none other than Master Zhang.

He was followed by a dozen or so servants, each wielding sticks and iron rulers, their brows furrowed and eyes blazing. The stalker with the slanted eyes also arrived, one hand clamped to his neck by a wooden board.

Liu Rushuang stepped forward, straightening her back: "Master Zhang, it's only right to pay back debts. Yesterday you said you owed one hundred taels, and today we have it ready. Where's the IOU?"

"IOU?" Master Zhang narrowed his eyes, looked Liu Rushuang up and down, his gaze lingering on her face and body, and lewdly chuckled.

"Miss Liu, you've become even more beautiful. One hundred taels? That was yesterday's price. Today, it's three hundred taels."

"Three hundred taels?" Liu Rushuang's face paled. "You...you've gone too far!"

"This is outrageous!" Master Zhang's smile vanished, his eyes turning sinister. "In this Sanhe Ferry, whatever I say goes! If you can't come up with three hundred taels, you'll have to come to my Zhang mansion as a maid to pay off your debt!"

"Don't even think about it!" Liu Rushuang gritted her teeth.

"That's not up to you." Master Zhang waved his hand. "Take him down!"

The servants rushed forward. But just as they reached the door, Lin Feng made a move.

He moved swiftly through the shadows of the staff, his fists, elbows, knees, and feet striking precisely at the joints and soft ribs.

There were no fancy moves, only practical combat techniques used in the military. The sounds of bones breaking and screams filled the air, and in the blink of an eye, seven or eight servants lay on the ground, clutching their arms and legs and groaning in pain.

The remaining people were frightened and retreated hastily.

Master Zhang's expression changed, and he finally looked at Lin Feng properly: "Kid, you've got some skills. State your name, which gang are you from?"

"Just passing through," Lin Feng said calmly. "I'll pay off the Liu family's debt of one hundred taels for them. Give me the IOU, and the transaction is complete. We're even from now on."

"One hundred taels? Are you deaf? I said three hundred taels!"

"I said, one hundred taels." Lin Feng stared at him, enunciating each word clearly, "Not a penny more."

Master Zhang felt uneasy under his gaze, but he couldn't back down in front of everyone.

He forced himself to remain calm and sneered, "In this world, mere brawling is useless. Do you know who I am? My cousin is the Assistant Magistrate of Luzhou Prefecture! Killing you is as easy as crushing an ant for me!"

"The Assistant Prefect of Luzhou?" Lin Feng laughed, a cold laugh. "Such a high-ranking official. Do you know who I am?"

Master Zhang was taken aback: "You...who are you?"

"Lin Feng, the garrison commander of Shuofeng City, a fifth-rank Wude General." Lin Feng took out the somewhat worn bronze waist tag from his pocket and flashed it in front of Master Zhang.

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