Tomb Raider: The man is in the Nine Gates, but the system insists it's the Primordial Era.

These two osmanthus trees were planted in the old Wu family house by Wu Laogou's grandfather's generation or even earlier ancestors.

It only blooms once a year in July.

Each time it blooms, its fragrance far surpasses that of most osmanthus trees outside.

It's only early May, how come it's suddenly blooming?

Old Wu turned his head again, but the handsome young man and beautiful young woman in front of the Wu mansion were no longer there.

Only the puppy, San Cun Ding, was left, barking and being forcibly held by the gatekeeper.

"Hey, weren't they blooming just now? Why have they stopped?"

"It's already withered? It's not like it's an ephemeral flower, what's going on?"

"Am I seeing things? But the fallen petals and the flower buds on the branches are really there!"

"Fifth Master, do you know what happened?"

"..."

Old Wu took the puppy, Three-Inch Ding, from the servant's hands, and strode back to the main hall with a serious expression: "What happened today, do not make a fuss about it, and do not let it get out!"

"Yes!" The servants nodded hurriedly in agreement.

……

"You're still so adorable to animals." Huo Xian'er looked at Su Mu beside her with a smile.

Su Mu shook his head and smiled, "There's nothing I can do, I was born with an overwhelming spiritual energy. By the way, Xian'er, do you know who bought my family's house before? Now, what would it cost to buy it back on the market?"

Huo Xian'er hadn't expected Su Mu to ask this question. After thinking for a moment, she frowned and said, "I've heard my aunt mention this before..."

Su Bozhong of the Su family was originally a very famous chivalrous figure in this area.

In the old days, they made a living by escorting goods on horseback, and they had a group of brothers who would follow them to the death.

Su Bozhong was a righteous man, and everyone in and around Changsha knew him, and most of them were on good terms with him.

Huo Jinxi was young at the time and had not yet succeeded as the head of the Huo family.

One day, Su Bozhong, who was returning from escorting goods, heard fighting sounds coming from inside the Huo family's house in front of the gate.

Upon entering, they saw that the Huo family was being exploited by bandits who used to perform magic tricks to roam the martial arts world, but in reality, they were thieves who engaged in robbery, plunder, and kidnapping. They were taking advantage of the Huo family's vulnerability to bully and kill everyone.

How could Su Bozhong, who valued loyalty above all else, tolerate such dirty dealings being presented to him?

So, without bothering to call his brothers, he charged in alone with a sword and a horse.

The result can be imagined.

Unable to overcome nature's power, Su Bozhong fell to a hail of blades.

After the escorting brothers reacted and rushed in to kill the bandits, only the young Huo Jinxi remained of the Huo family.

"...It's strange, but your aunt said that your father's brothers seemed to suffer some kind of retribution afterward. None of them had a good ending. Not long after, they all died violent deaths, and none of them survived."

"Furthermore, your mother, who has always lived a life of luxury and comfort, has also strangely contracted an incurable serious illness, and so have you. Is it really true what your aunt said, that good people don't get good rewards?"

Huo Xian'er told everything she knew about the Su family in one go.

The reason I didn't tell Su Mu before was that Su Mu was already physically weak at the time, and I didn't want him to die on the spot from anger.

"As for your old house, everyone knows that it was bought by the Huang family when they were gaining influence. Over the years, the Huang family has accumulated a lot of real estate, and many of them are old houses of many people in the city."

"Um?"

Su Mu seemed to have experienced a singularity, clinging tightly to the phrase "the old house of many people" and letting it linger in his ears.

Aside from the Su family's affairs.

Huo Xian'er, who often interacted with Su Mu, would chat about other people's affairs in the city.

There used to be a Bai family in Changsha, but they gradually disappeared due to the power of the Nine Gates.

Or perhaps, a young man from the north parachuted into Changsha, became the new city's defense commander, and even took over the nine gates, becoming the head of the nine gates, Zhang Dafoye.

A wandering swordsman, enraged by being humiliated in the street by the Sixth Master of the Nine Gates, killed so many that the Sixth Master was terrified and was promoted to a high position, and so on.

Su Mu had heard about the Huang family, which ranked fourth among the Nine Gates, from Huo Xian'er.

"Tell me about the water locusts."

"You know about Fourth Master's nickname? Hehehe, no one in the city dares to call him that to his face; it's all used to insult him behind his back."

Being targeted by that guy is like being leeched on your bone; you can't get rid of him no matter what you do. He's not someone to mess with.

The Hong, Huang, and Huo families are old and powerful families in the city. Although they don't get along, they still treat each other politely on the surface.

The Huang family was just a relatively mediocre family before, until Shui Huang emerged and they began to rise to prominence.

At this time, rumors circulated that the Water Locust even looked down on the Buddha, and it seemed that he also had private dealings with officials.

As for buying property, I don't recall ever hearing of him engaging in forced sales. After all, most of the owners of those old houses in the city were families who had made their fortunes before, or at the very least...”

As Huo Xian'er spoke, she subconsciously thought of what had happened to Su Mu's family.

Ordinary wealthy families who have made their fortunes would not easily sell their ancestral homes, unless they encountered a difficult situation like Su Mu's.

Su Mu pondered, "So, in other words, every household in those families experienced the same strange events as my family—the entire family died suddenly and tragically, and then they were all acquired by him as a matter of course?"

Huo Xian'er suddenly became a little hesitant: "There's something else, but I hope you won't take it to heart. After all, it's a mysterious matter, and no one can really explain it."

"Speak," Su Mu nodded with a serious expression.

"My aunt said that, according to folklore, the Huang family had a powerful sorcerer who was behind all the trouble. It's because before the disaster, someone found a bundle of hair tied with red thread on the roof beam while cleaning the ancestral home."

They said it was some kind of curse or spell. Oh well, what's done is done. Su Mu, don't think about it. The Huang family is powerful and wealthy; dealing with them won't be easy. Don't risk losing your life that you've worked so hard to recover from.

"You're the only male left in the Su family, and you haven't even produced an heir to carry on the family line yet..."

Huo Xian'er suddenly blushed, her face turning as red as an apple.

To ward off evil.

Lu Ban's Art.

Before we knew it, noon had arrived.

Without any concrete evidence or answers, Su Mu, led by Huo Xian'er, arrived at a restaurant called "Yu Lou Chun".

"This name..." Su Mu looked at the signboard above the restaurant's entrance.

Huo Xian'er nodded: "The Fifth Master Dog we just met mentioned that the food and drinks here are indeed quite good, especially the spicy roast chicken."

Huo Xian'er couldn't help but swallow as she thought about the delicious food.

Su Mu weighed the money in his pocket: "Well, it must be quite expensive, right?"

Huo Xian'er raised her head and stepped forward: "Well, a meal like this costs about five silver dollars."

"How many?"

"The cheapest one is five yuan a meal, what's wrong? Oh, don't worry, I won't let you treat me, I have money."

"I have it too, but..."

"..."

Su Mu recalled an incident he had mentioned during a casual conversation with Uncle Beard and others.

One silver dollar is enough for their people to eat for a month, and every three to five days they can occasionally have a meal of meat and oil.

What kind of lousy restaurant is this, Yulouchun? They dare to charge five silver dollars for a single meal?