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

The Empress glanced at her and smiled: "I'd like to meet this Lin Mu another day. He's the first person in all these years to make my sister say the words 'I've been waiting'."

However, a faint worry suddenly appeared between Gu Qingyi's brows and eyes.

Lin Mu was a son-in-law who had married into another family. If the young couple were happily together, what kind of person would she be if she interfered? Although she was unwilling, she also felt that this way of thinking was wrong. For a moment, her mind was in turmoil, and her brows furrowed more and more tightly.

The Empress glanced at her and understood. They had grown up together since childhood; she could tell what was on her mind just by her sister's slightest frown. That unspoken understanding didn't need words; a single look was enough.

She put down her teacup, her voice soft but carrying an undeniable certainty: "Sister, there's no need to worry. This world belongs to me. I decide who is the son-in-law. What does love matter? If I want him to release the people, does he dare refuse? If all else fails, let that old bastard Qin Zhengchuan come to the palace, and I'll speak to him personally."

Gu Qingyi looked up abruptly, her face changing drastically: "Royal Sister! This is absolutely unacceptable! What would Brother Lin think of me if that happened?"

Her voice rose in panic, all traces of her previous composure vanished. She was completely flustered, her fingers twisting her sleeve until her knuckles turned white.

Seeing her sister's expression, the Empress couldn't help but sigh. She reached out and took Gu Qingyi's hand, patting it gently, her tone softening: "Alright, alright, I won't say anymore. Do whatever you want, I'll do whatever you want, is that alright?" As she spoke, the Empress laughed first.

Gu Qingyi was stunned for a moment before realizing that her elder sister had done it on purpose, just to make fun of her. She was both embarrassed and angry, and pounced on the Empress, tickling her: "Elder sister! You did it on purpose!"

The empress couldn't dodge in time and was tickled so hard she burst out laughing. She begged for mercy, "Good sister, good sister, please spare me! I won't, I won't do it again!"

She laughed and shrank back, her golden crown tilted to one side, her dragon robe crumpled into a mess, she looked nothing like an emperor.

Laughter filled the hall, the candlelight flickered in the breeze, and the gauze curtains swayed gently, creating a scene that was both erotic and alluring.

-

When Lin Mu woke up the next day, the sun was already high in the sky.

Sunlight streamed through the window, casting a golden glow on the floor. He stretched in bed, feeling much of his fatigue dissipate, and a sense of comfort seeped into his very bones. He sat up, quickly dressed, and went out the door.

In the corridor outside, Chunxing was leaning against a pillar, fast asleep. Her little head bobbed up and down like a chick pecking at rice, and a glistening drool hung from the corner of her mouth.

Lin Mu walked over quietly, squatted down, plucked a blade of grass from the flowerbed next to her, and gently waved it in front of her nose.

Chunxing wrinkled her nose, waved her hand, mumbled something, and fell asleep again. Lin Mu suppressed a laugh, moved the grass stalk to her ear, and gently brushed it away.

Chunxing shrank her neck from the itch and waved her hand again, but still didn't wake up. Lin Mu scanned her again, this time more forcefully.

Chunxing suddenly opened her eyes, her eyebrows shot up, and she was about to yell, "How annoying! Can't you see I'm sleeping? Are you blind?" But when she saw the smiling face in front of her, she swallowed the words back.

"Young Master!" She was both surprised and delighted. The anger on her face instantly turned into a smile, and then she puffed out her cheeks. "Young Master is so mean! He comes to bully Chunxing as soon as he wakes up!"

Lin Mu chuckled and gently patted her head: "Who told you to sleep here? What if you catch a cold?"

Chunxing rubbed the spot where she had been slapped, chuckled twice, then suddenly remembered something, grabbed Lin Mu's sleeve, and pulled him toward the kitchen like a treasure: "Young master, come quick! I've got something good to show you!"

In the kitchen, the stove was piled high with sesame seed cakes, stacked neatly layered, numbering at least two hundred. Next to them were several jars of pickled vegetables, a jar of chili oil, and a basket of washed fruit.

Aunt Liu was asleep by the stove, still clutching a rolling pin in her hand, her face covered in flour. Hearing the noise, she opened her eyes, saw Lin Mu enter, quickly stood up, rubbed her eyes, and greeted him with a smile, "Hello, son-in-law!"

Chapter 55 I'm Thinking About My Son-in-Law

Looking at the sesame cakes, Lin Mu felt a warm and tender feeling in his heart. He turned to look at Chunxing; the little girl had dark circles under her eyes and a piece of cloth wrapped around her finger, probably from cutting it while chopping vegetables.

"Thank you for your hard work." Lin Mu took out two gold coins from his Qiankun bag and gave one to each of them.

Aunt Liu took the gold coin, her eyes lighting up. She opened her mouth, speechless for a moment. Last night, she had been grumbling to herself about how Chunxing had tricked her into staying up all night for just two silver coins. But now, all her resentment had vanished.

"It's no trouble at all!" Aunt Liu clutched the gold coins tightly, beaming from ear to ear. "Young master, you're too kind. It's nothing to worry about with such a small task. It's all I should do!"

Lin Mu put the sesame seed cakes, pickled vegetables, chili peppers, and fruit into his Qiankun bag one by one, and casually asked, "Where is Miss?"

Chunxing followed behind him, holding a cloth to wipe the stove. Upon hearing this, she replied, "Miss left early this morning, saying she was going to level up. She was supposed to leave yesterday, but... she was delayed by what happened yesterday."

When she mentioned "that matter," her voice lowered, and she winked and leaned closer to Lin Mu, whispering, "Young Master, that guy surnamed Jiang didn't come today. He'll probably need to recover from his injuries for a few more days." She chuckled twice, "He still wants to compete with you for the young lady? Dream on! Good luck, Young Master! Once you and the young lady consummate your marriage, I'll..."

Halfway through her sentence, her face suddenly turned bright red, her voice grew softer and softer, and the last few words stuck in her throat, unable to come out. She twisted the hem of her clothes with her fingers, her head almost buried in her chest.

Lin Mu raised his hand and gently patted her head, saying with a hint of reproach, "What are you thinking about?"

Chunxing covered her head, her face blank. Thinking Lin Mu was asking her a question, she instinctively answered, "Thinking about my son-in-law..." Before she could finish, the image of Lin Mu standing up from the bathtub last night inexplicably flashed into her mind again. Water droplets trickled down his shoulders, revealing his broad shoulders, narrow waist, and well-defined muscles. Her already flushed face burned even hotter, turning as red as a boiled shrimp, her neck turning completely red. She wished she could disappear into the ground.

Lin Mu was also embarrassed by her reaction, his hand hanging in mid-air, not knowing where to put it.

Aunt Liu watched from the side, covering her mouth tightly, her shoulders shaking as she tried to suppress her laughter until her face turned red.

Lin Mu couldn't stand it any longer, so he said, "I'm going out for a bit," and fled from the kitchen as if escaping.

As he walked in the courtyard, the scene from earlier kept replaying in his mind, and he couldn't help but shake his head and smile.

You're so young and already behaving badly. I treated you like a servant, and you actually wanted to sleep with me...

In the kitchen, Aunt Liu finally couldn't hold it in any longer and burst into laughter, tears streaming down her face.

Chunxing was startled awake. She stamped her feet, puffed out her cheeks, and said, both ashamed and angry, "Aunt Liu! You're still laughing! Be careful, or I'll make my son-in-law take that gold coin back!"

Aunt Liu quickly covered her mouth, but her shoulders were still trembling. After a long while, she managed to choke out, "My dear little aunt, that's equivalent to three months of my wages! Please, please don't..."

Chunxing snorted, turned and ran outside, but suddenly remembered something when she reached the door.

The son-in-law woke up but hadn't eaten yet! She slapped her forehead, turned back, and brought out the food she had prepared that morning and kept warm on the stove. Rice, braised pork, and vegetable and egg drop soup were all placed into the food box, and she ran towards Lin Mu's house with it.

She ran to the door and saw Lin Mu washing up. He smiled when he saw her carrying a food box in.

"Young Master, dinner is ready." Chunxing set the food on the table, her head down, not daring to look at him, the tips of her ears still red.

Lin Mu didn't say anything, and sat down to eat.

Just then, Chunxing remembered something and said, "Oh right, we didn't have much dough left last night. I went to the storeroom to get some, and I ran into Miss there picking out gifts."

Lin Mu paused, his hand still holding the food. He guessed Lin Mu had gone to deal with yesterday's matter; after all, the person was injured at the Qin residence, and the Jiang family needed an explanation. Lin Mu nodded, said nothing, and continued eating.

After finishing his meal, Lin Mu pushed away his bowl and chopsticks, stood up and stretched his limbs, and said to Chunxing, "I'm going out to buy something."

Chunxing opened her mouth, wanting to ask what to buy, but then swallowed her words. She was used to it now; she wouldn't ask about things she shouldn't ask about her son-in-law. She just followed him to the door and whispered, "Come back soon, son-in-law."

Lin Mu responded and strode out of the Qin residence.

Lin Mu left the Qin residence, mounted his horse, and rode along the street towards the outskirts of the city. The horse's hooves clattered on the bluestone slabs, and a cool morning breeze blew in his face.

As he rode his horse, his mind raced over and over the conversation he had with Gu An over the past two days.

For Lin Mu, poetry and songs were just a pretext; what truly mattered to him were the conversations about the rules governing the world.

Just like when a player enters a new private server, they always need to check which NPCs, maps, and functions are available. Otherwise, they'll be completely clueless while others have received group gift packs, are wielding a newbie red sword with +9 luck, wearing experience badges, using experience scrolls, and spending a little money to activate Berserk Power and Sand City Donation, their attributes multiplying.

Some people, however, enter the game without looking at anything and go straight to the map. They get beaten up a few times before reluctantly coming back to study and figure things out. By the time they figure it out, other players' levels and equipment have already left them far behind.

And this is what happened in the cabin that day:

“Brother Gu,” he asked casually, holding a teacup, “monsters keep producing equipment and gold coins in this world, so why aren’t they piling up? After all these years, they should be overflowing in the market.”

Gu An was taken aback for a moment, giving him a strange look, as if she hadn't expected him to ask that. But she quickly regained her composure, thinking that Lin Mu was probably alone since childhood, without anyone to guide him. So she began to explain earnestly.

She spoke in great detail, and as she went on, seeing Lin Mu's eager expression, she unconsciously became more and more detailed, even breaking down common knowledge that she thought everyone knew into words.

“There is a manor west of Bich City,” Gu An said, holding his teacup and speaking slowly and deliberately. “In the manor, there is an ancient furnace that can melt equipment and gold coins into Spirit Gathering Pearls or Special Repair Water. After using a Spirit Gathering Pearl, the user will gain some experience points. Special Repair Water can be used to perform special repairs on all equipment.”

As Lin Mu listened, he thought to himself, "There's a manor in the game too. I wonder if it's the same." He had seen the location of the manor in that "Complete Map" book before, but he was too busy leveling up to think about it much then.

Gu An continued, "Often, 1 gold coin can only be used to smelt 10 experience points or 1 point of equipment durability repair. And both of these items can only be used after level 20."

"So all the excess equipment and coins were melted down. The imperial court even organized large-scale melting down operations regularly to stabilize the market. Although the melting down process was very inefficient, wealthy families spared no expense to upgrade their levels, especially some family patriarchs who wanted to extend their lifespan. So, you could send any equipment you didn't need to the manor to sell. The purchase price was slightly lower than the market price, but the advantage was that they would buy whatever the equipment was worth in terms of melting down, without being picky or afraid of being ripped off."

"As for top-quality equipment, the better the attributes, the higher the smelting efficiency and the higher the purchase price."

Lin Mu nodded, thinking about the conversion between coins, and then asked, "One gold coin can only be smelted to produce 10 experience points, so what about 100 silver coins?"

“The value of gold, silver, and copper coins is determined by the smelting effect of the furnace,” Gu An said. “The spiritual energy produced by smelting one hundred copper coins is equivalent to the smelting effect of one silver coin, and one hundred silver coins are equivalent to the smelting effect of one gold coin.” She paused and added, “The manor is royal property, so you must not act recklessly there.”

Lin Mu didn't respond to that question; he certainly wouldn't make a fuss over nothing. Instead, he asked, "What about the Illusionary Demon Stone and the Blood Qi Stone?"

Chapter 56 The Manor, the Demon Blood Stone

“These can all be combined. Three of the same type can be combined to create a higher-level one. Two Illusionary Magic Stones of the same level plus two Blood Stones of the same level can be combined to create a Blood Stone of the same level.” She paused, her gaze falling out the window as if recalling something. “As far as I know, the most powerful Blood Stone currently available can restore one point of health and one point of mana per second.”

-

As Lin Mu pondered this, he spurred his horse westward.

There was an open area to the west of Beech City. Lin Mu could see an inconspicuous little house standing alone in the middle of the open area. It had gray walls and black tiles and looked no different from an ordinary farmhouse.

But people were coming and going from time to time.

Lin Mu dismounted, pushed open the door, and stepped inside. As soon as he entered, he felt a sense of openness and tranquility.

Above them was a high, distant dome, obscuring the sun and moon, yet a soft, shimmering light shone down, illuminating the entire manor.

Beneath my feet was a plaza paved with large, flat blue flagstones, as if measured with a ruler. In the distance stood several tall palaces with flying eaves and bracket sets, their imposing presence rivaling that of the Beech Palace.

This is the manor Gu An mentioned.

The most striking feature was the enormous furnace in the center of the square. Completely black, cast from some unknown metal, its surface was covered with densely packed runes that spiraled from its base to its top. The furnace was octagonal, each side inlaid with a palm-sized crystal of varying colors, with a faint light flowing within them. The furnace chamber was wide open, flames roaring within, and waves of heat billowing from the opening, making one's cheeks burn, yet not a trace of smoke was seen.

Beneath the furnace, eight thick iron chains extended from its base, sinking deep into the ground. Before the furnace stood a stone platform, its surface as smooth as a mirror. An elderly man in a grey robe sat cross-legged beside the platform, eyes closed in meditation, seemingly oblivious to the people passing by.

Occasionally, someone would approach the stone platform carrying equipment or a money bag, respectfully place it on, and step back to wait. The runes on the platform would then light up, the light spreading along the iron chains to the furnace. The flames in the furnace would leap up suddenly, and moments later, everything on the platform would vanish completely, leaving only a faint wisp of spiritual light drifting into the furnace. It condensed into a spirit-gathering bead the size of a fingertip; judging by its size, it wouldn't contain much experience.

There weren't many people in the manor. Occasionally, a few well-dressed merchants would come and go in a hurry, and no one would give him a second glance. Lin Mu found the equipment counter and poured out everything he had collected from his monster-hunting trip in the Woma Forest, along with some minor rare items he didn't need that he had taken from those bandits... piling them all up on the counter.

The manager behind the counter was a middle-aged man in his forties, with a fair complexion and no beard. He wore a dark green robe and remained expressionless throughout, flipping through the items one by one while his fingers flew across the abacus. After a while, the abacus beads clicked and clattered. The manager looked up and said in a flat voice, as if he were reading from an account book: "A total of 38 gold coins and 46 silver coins."

Lin Mu did the math in his head; it was about 50% cheaper than the market price, but it was more convenient. He nodded, took the money, and put the gold and silver coins into his Qiankun bag.

He glanced down at the money in his storage bag: 77 gold coins and 85 silver coins from before, plus the 38 gold coins and 46 silver coins he had just received, now he had a total of...

116 gold coins, 31 silver coins, and a dozen or so copper coins as odds and ends.

Lin Mu didn't leave immediately. He took out two small Illusionary Demon Stone Fragments and two small Blood Qi Stone Fragments from his Qiankun Bag and placed them on the counter: "Synthesize Demon Blood Stone Fragments."

The manager glanced at it and said expressionlessly, "Combination fee: 10 gold coins."

Lin Mu's lips twitched: "So expensive?"

The manager didn't even look up: "5 gold coins are for the materials, and the other 5 gold coins are for the handling fee. That's the rule of the manor."

Lin Mu had no choice but to take out ten gold coins and hand them over. The manager took the money, came out from behind the counter, and beckoned to a young servant next to him. A servant ran over, and the manager handed him four fragments, five gold coins, and a token: "Take this guest to the synthesis furnace."

The attendant took the items, gestured for Lin Mu to proceed, and turned to walk towards the furnace. Lin Mu followed him, crossing the plaza. The closer they got to the furnace, the stronger the heat became. Upon closer inspection, they realized the furnace was much larger than it appeared from a distance. The crystals on its eight walls shimmered with various colors in the firelight, and the flames inside were blindingly white, with a faint, eerie blue hue at the very core that seemed capable of burning through one's eyes.

The attendant led Lin Mu around the furnace to its back. There was a small door leading to a small stone chamber directly opposite the furnace opening. The opening was sealed with an iron grate, through which the flames inside could be seen billowing. In the center of the chamber stood a stone platform, identical to the one in front, its surface covered with runes.

The attendant took out the token, showed it to the guard, went inside, placed the four fragments and five gold coins on the stone platform, and stepped aside.

The runes on the platform instantly lit up, like serpents of light crawling across the stone surface...