Legendary Son-in-Law: The Man with Poison Talismans

There are 67 random teleportation scrolls. These are rare and not commonly found on the market. It must have taken a lot of effort to collect 67 of them.

The 10 repair points of the special repair potion was just right. It was a heavy bag, enough to repair all his equipment hundreds of times and last for several years without any problem.

There was also a yellow stone in the bag, about the size of a pebble, translucent all over, like a drop of solidified amber. Holding it in my palm, I could feel a faint warmth, and it shimmered with light, sometimes bright and sometimes dim.

Lin Mu picked it up and looked at it: [Magic Blood Stone (Large), restores 1 point of health and 1 point of mana every 6 seconds].

It's much stronger than the small fragment of the Demon Blood Stone he had.

After reading it, Lin Mu raised an eyebrow, equipped the Demon Blood Stone (Large) directly, and then opened the exquisite mount pouch.

The space inside was quite large, with ten tall horses neatly arranged in the gray space. Their coats were glossy and their manes were thick. They were much taller than his two yellow horses and were clearly not ordinary.

Lin Mu put the two bags away, looked up at Jiang Hetang, and said in a nonchalant tone, "Still a little short, right?"

Jiang Hetang's smile froze for a moment, but quickly returned. He nodded and said sincerely, "Young Master Lin, it's not that I'm making excuses. As you know, there are people hoarding and speculating on blessing oil, causing prices to skyrocket. Even if you have money, you can't buy it. The Jiang family has already scavenged everything it could, and this is all we have."

He paused, then said, "Random teleportation scrolls are also hard to buy. I've already sent people to Mengzhong and Fengmo to collect them. I hope Young Master Lin can grant me some more time."

Jiang Hetang's expression didn't seem fake.

Lin Mu thought for a moment. He'd already given most of it to himself, so he figured he might as well give him an extension. He nodded casually, "Okay, don't keep me waiting too long."

Jiang Hetang nodded repeatedly, his smile deepening as if he had breathed a sigh of relief: "Young Master Lin, rest assured, I, Jiang, guarantee this with the reputation of the Jiang family. If it's a day late, I'll pay you an extra day's interest."

Lin Mu nodded.

Jiang Hetang continued to smile, and with a gesture to the side, a servant handed him the gold-embossed booklet.

He opened the booklet, pointed to the blank space on the last page, and said politely, "Young Master Lin, please sign and affix your seal. This will serve as proof of today's compensation."

Lin Mu glanced down at the contents of the booklet. It was nothing more than a certain date, a certain amount of money that the Jiang family had paid Lin Mu, how much was still owed, and how much interest would be charged daily for overdue payments. There was nothing wrong with it.

I've got the money and the goods, so let's sign.

He picked up a brush, signed his name in the booklet, and then pressed his fingerprint on it.

Jiang Hetang took the brush, signed his name and pressed his fingerprint on the booklet, then closed it and solemnly handed it to the servant beside him, as if he were completing a solemn ceremony.

The newspaper editors were writing furiously with their pens, as if they wanted to write down every single detail.

Lin Mu frowned, and they wrote it down; Lin Mu picked up his teacup and took a sip, and they wrote that down too; Lin Mu put down his teacup, and they still wrote that down.

The pen tip poked into the paper, almost tearing it.

After signing, Lin Mu put down his brush, stood up, glanced at Jiang Hetang, and said in a nonchalant tone, "Don't keep me waiting too long."

Jiang Hetang nodded repeatedly, his smile deepening: "Don't worry, Young Master Lin, I certainly will."

Lin Mu didn't say anything more, clasped his hands in a fist salute, and turned to leave the main hall.

Jiang Hetang escorted him to the door, then to the screen wall, and finally to the gate, all the way with a smile on his face, saying "Take care," "Watch your step," and "Come visit often when you have time," offering a whole string of polite words, as if he were saying goodbye to an old friend he hadn't seen for many years.

Lin Mu didn't even turn his head. He strode out of the alley and mounted his horse.

Jiang Hetang stood at the gate until Lin Mu's figure disappeared at the alley entrance before he stopped smiling, straightened his back, and turned back to his residence.

The gate slowly closed behind them. The gatekeeper peeked out, then withdrew.

The smile on Jiang Hetang's face was gone, replaced by an indescribable gloom, as if he had just finished doing something he had to do, and was holding his anger in his heart, but couldn't show it on his face.

His pace quickened, and the wind from the hem of his robe made the lanterns under the eaves sway.

The servants bowed their heads, pressed themselves against the wall, and dared not utter a sound.

Lin Mu left the Jiang residence and walked into the alley.

After walking a few dozen steps, he turned the corner of the alley and, as if possessed, went back for another look. The vermilion gate of the Jiang residence was already closed, and the plaque above the gate gleamed golden in the pale sunlight.

He looked away, shook his head, still somewhat incredulous.

Jiang Hetang's transformation is too drastic!

As he walked, he recalled what he had seen and heard at the Jiang residence.

The house was truly enormous, several times larger than the Qin residence. Just the winding corridors, moon gates, and screen walls almost made him lose his way.

The servants saw quite a few things, keeping their heads down and walking close to the wall, their steps as light as a cat's, without uttering a sound.

The main hall looked lively, with guests filling the room, creating quite a grand spectacle.

But Lin Mu coldly observed that all the guests were outsiders invited by Jiang Hetang, including people from the Chamber of Commerce, newspapers, and idlers who seemed to have appeared out of nowhere.

We didn't see a single member of the Jiang family, not even the women or the young men.

The real Jiang family was quiet and unassuming, like an empty shell with only servants and the master.

Lin Mu thought about it for a while, then shook his head again.

Never mind, he's already taken what he was owed, and they haven't deliberately delayed paying him. Whatever tricks the Jiang family plays, it's none of his business.

He took out the newly acquired steed from his storage bag and mounted it.

What is a zouma (走马)?

It's a horse specially trained to walk with the same leg on the same side, so it runs smoothly and steadily, saving the horse's energy and making it more comfortable for the rider. It eliminates the bumpy, sore feeling of riding a yellow horse.

The horse galloped along the bluestone road, its hooves making a light and even rhythm, like stepping on a drumbeat, one beat at a time, neither hurried nor slow.

Lin Mu sat on the horse's back, his body barely swaying.

He stroked the horse's glossy mane, thinking to himself that he couldn't possibly use ten horses. Asking for them in the first place was just asking for the moon, but he didn't expect the Jiang family to actually give them to him.

Forget it, don't scare Jiang Yanzhou anymore when you see him in the future. Just extort him directly. Look how scared the kid was when he used the Demon-Subduing Finger to his crotch.

He sighed, thinking that now that he had a large sum of money, staying in an inn was not safe enough. He needed to find a place to stay in Bichon. It wasn't because of any obsession with buying a house, but just for convenience.

After riding my horse through several streets, I arrived at a shop with a sign that read "House for Sale".

Chapter 181 Buying a House

Lin Mu dismounted, put the horse into the brocade pouch, and pushed open the door to go inside.

The bell on the door jingled once, and the shopkeeper behind the counter looked up. Seeing a customer come in, he quickly put down the teapot in his hand, walked around from behind the counter, and looked Lin Mu up and down with a big smile.

Her gaze lingered on his ghostly battle suit for a moment, then her smile deepened, and she bent down slightly: "Sir, looking to buy a house?"

Lin Mu nodded and walked to the counter. The shopkeeper quickly took out a sheepskin map from the cabinet, spread it out on the counter, and weighed down the four corners with a paperweight, for fear that the wind would blow it away.

The map was densely marked with the streets and alleys of Beach City. Every alley, every bridge, and every well was clearly drawn. Houses for sale were circled in red, with their area, layout, and price noted next to them in neat handwriting.

The shopkeeper traced his finger across the map, introducing each location one by one.

"This place is in the south of the city. It has two courtyards and a small garden. It's close to the bustling city and convenient for shopping, but it's a bit noisy during the day. It costs 1100 gold coins."

He moved his finger up, "This place, in the north of the city, is a detached house with three main rooms and two rooms each in the east and west wings. There's an old locust tree in the yard, which is nice for cooling off in the summer. It costs 1300 gold coins."

He moved his finger eastward again, "This place, east of the city, by the river, is quiet. It's not a big place. Once you enter the courtyard, there are three main rooms, but no side rooms. The courtyard is spacious, with a few bamboo stalks planted there. It costs 900 gold coins."

He pointed to several more places, some cheap, some expensive, some big, some small, explaining each one until his throat was dry. He picked up the teapot on the counter, took a sip, and continued talking.

Lin Mu frowned after hearing this. He thought to himself, "No wonder this is the capital city; even I think the housing prices are expensive."

However, once you enter the courtyard, there are three main rooms, which is enough for him to live in by himself. But now that he has money, why should he live in a small house in one courtyard?

His gaze swept across the map, then suddenly landed on a familiar street in the south of the city.

The streets and alleys were densely marked, with houses of all sizes crammed together, and the winding alleys crisscrossing like a spider web. One place was circled in red, with the words "Qin Mansion" written next to it.

He pointed to that spot, his voice not loud, but with an indescribable emotion in his tone: "How about this place?"

The shopkeeper followed his finger, paused for a moment, looked up at Lin Mu, then looked down again, gently tapping the words "Qin Mansion" with his finger, his tone becoming more cautious: "That place used to be the residence of an Awakened One, but unfortunately, it was just bought by a wealthy mortal merchant a few days ago."

He paused, as if recalling something, "You don't know, that wealthy merchant said that if you stay in the mansion of an Awakened one for a while, maybe an Awakened one can be born into your family. He bought it for a hefty price, a full 30% higher than the market price."

The shopkeeper shook his head, as if lamenting the wealthy merchant's obsession, or perhaps regretting that the house had been sold too cheaply. "Thirty percent! That's a huge sum of money, enough to buy another small courtyard in the south of the city. But he doesn't care. If he can really produce an Awakened One, it's worth any amount of money."

Lin Mu didn't reply. He shifted his gaze from the alleyway and scanned the map again, then pointed to another location: "Are there any bigger ones? The kind with three entrances and three exits?"

The shopkeeper's eyes lit up. He traced the map with his finger for a while, finally pointing to a house marked with a dark red circle. He pressed his finger on the red circle as if afraid it would disappear: "Yes. It's in the east of the city, by the river, not far from the one you just saw. It has three courtyards, a garden, a pond, a rockery, a rear building, and east and west wings—everything you could want. It's just a bit pricey."

He paused, licked his lips, and said, "It will cost 8800 gold coins."

Lin Mu's eyelid twitched. Eight thousand eight?

He glanced at the spot, then at the shopkeeper, but said nothing.

The innkeeper, thinking he thought it was too expensive, quickly explained, "Sir, this house is in a wonderful location. It's by the river, so it's cool in the summer and not cold in the winter. The pond in the garden has running water, drawn from the river, perfect for raising fish and growing lotus flowers. The artificial hill is made of Taihu stones transported from outside the city—slender, porous, and translucent, it has all the qualities. The back building has five rooms in a row, which can be used as a storeroom, guest rooms, or servants' quarters. There are three rooms in each of the east and west courtyards. If you have a large family, you can accommodate them; if you don't have many, they can be left empty. This price is really not expensive."

Lin Mu waved his hand, interrupting him: "Let's see."

The shopkeeper readily agreed, put away the map, and took the key from the wall. His keychain was full of large and small brass keys, which jingled loudly.

He put on his cotton-padded coat, grabbed an umbrella, and led Lin Mu out of the shop.

The two rode their horses through several streets and alleys. The shopkeeper rode an old horse with grayish coat, which walked slowly, forming a stark contrast with Lin Mu's shiny steed.

The shopkeeper would occasionally glance back at Lin Mu's horse, a hint of envy in his eyes, but he said nothing.

Before long, the two arrived at the depths of an alley.

The gate of the mansion was even more imposing than that of the Qin family mansion, with vermilion lacquer and copper rings, and the lintel was bare, without any plaque.

The shopkeeper took out his key, opened the door, and stepped aside to let Lin Mu in.

The house was cleaned very well, with blue bricks paving the floor, spotless.

Lin Mu walked around the courtyard again, looking at the main house, side rooms, back building, garden, pond, and rockery. He was more and more satisfied with everything he saw.

"Let's go with this place," Lin Mu said.

The shopkeeper readily agreed, took out the contract from his pocket, and laid out the pen and ink. Lin Mu pressed his fingerprint on the contract, and the shopkeeper did the same. Eight thousand eight hundred gold coins were counted out from his Qiankun bag and piled up on the stone table in the courtyard, forming a small, glittering heap.

The shopkeeper counted the keys one by one, twice to make sure there were no mistakes, and then handed them over. There was one large key and several small ones, all made of brass, gleaming with a dark yellow light in the dim sunlight.

Lin Mu took the keys, and the shopkeeper took his leave. Lin Mu stood in the courtyard, holding the heavy bunch of keys, and let out a long sigh. The house was ready.

I never imagined that I would become a successful person in this Marfa Empire and live in such a big mansion.

Lin Mu wandered around for a bit before leaving the house, locking the door, mounting his horse, turning a few corners, and arriving at an equipment shop.

The shop is small, sandwiched between a fabric store and a pharmacy. The sign reads "Old Iron Equipment Shop," and the paint is a bit faded, but the entrance is clean and tidy. Two chairs are placed by the door, as if for waiting customers.

There was also a wooden sign standing at the entrance with a few crooked words written on it: “Acquisition, Sale, Smelting, Customization”.

Lin Mu pushed open the door and entered. A strong smell of rust and engine oil wafted out, mixed with the smell of leather and wood, which was not pleasant.