Outside the window.
Lin Zheyu took a deep breath.
He concealed himself in the darkness.
His hand reached into his pocket and pulled out a black knuckle duster, slipping it onto his fingers.
A knuckle duster, also known as iron fist or iron four-finger, is a weapon specialized for martial arts, which enhances the punching power when worn on the fingers.
He had killed before.
Back when he was with the refugees, Lin Zheyu had taken down more than one person who tried to steal his food.
Now that he knew these guys intended to harm him, how could Lin Zheyu let them go?
Lin Zheyu clenched his fists, feeling conflicted.
He just wanted to live a peaceful and tranquil life, away from all conflicts.
But this world was cruel; if you didn't harm others, you'd become a target.
After the people inside finished discussing their secret plans, they didn't leave immediately; instead, they brought out some wine and started drinking.
The houses in the outer city weren't as densely packed as those in the inner city.
There were considerable distances between houses, some even surrounded by fields, standing alone.
As the moon rose, a gentle breeze blew.
It was already winter, and the weather was chilly, but Lin Zheyu didn't feel cold with his current physique.
The three of them drank until late at night before stumbling out of the house.
These guys had good alcohol tolerance, after drinking for so long they only showed slight signs of intoxication, swaying slightly as they walked.
It seemed like the house was a temporary base for the three of them. After drinking and chatting, each of them went their separate ways.
"One by one, I should take care of the weaker ones first, then deal with the big guy," Lin Zheyu thought to himself.
He silently followed the thinnest and weakest one, swiftly dealing with him, then moved on to the other two.
"Sigh, it's so cold even after drinking. I need to wear more clothes."
"When we rob that kid, we'll have enough money to buy some warm clothes."
Walking down the path, Wen Biao chuckled to himself.
He was timid, greedy for Lin Zheyu's silver coins yet fearful of unexpected incidents.
Burp—
Feeling relieved after burping, Wen Biao felt much better.
Under the moonlight, a black figure quickly approached him.
"What the..." Before Wen Biao could react to the shadow, a fist, clad in knuckle duster, struck his temple.
The tremendous force made Wen Biao dizzy, and the sharp protrusions of the knuckle duster pierced into his temple.
He tried to scream for help, but his mouth couldn't produce any sound as a cold, rough hand covered it tightly.
Lin Zheyu tightly covered Wen Biao's mouth with his left hand, pinning him against his chest, while his right hand quickly struck, pounding towards the temple.
After three consecutive punches, there was no more movement from his embrace. Lin Zheyu stopped his actions. His fists and clothes were stained with blood.
Watching the lifeless body, his arms trembled slightly, but his eyes showed a hint of determination.
In this chaotic world, good people didn't live long.
Exhaling a long breath, Lin Zheyu suppressed his emotions.
He moved his feet, swiftly heading towards another direction.
Since he had started, he would clean up anyone who could pose a threat to him.
Lin Zheyu didn't want to be constantly harassed by a bunch of rats from the stinking ditch.
On the other side, Yan Ling was feeling a bit dizzy from drinking. He staggered, using the moonlight to find his way home.
"I'm coming home late again, my wife will nag me."
"What does a woman know? Times are tough, and earning some money is hard. If this plan succeeds, it could support us for a year or two."
Muttering to himself, Yan Ling stood by the ditch, unzipping his pants.
When you drink too much, nature calls.
With a shiver, Yan Ling murmured, "Why is it so dark?"
Bang—
Gurgle, gurgle—
A sharp pain struck from his forehead, and Yan Ling fell into the ditch, struggling to get up, only to be firmly held down by a large hand.
Bubbles gurgled in the ditch, and in a moment, all was quiet.
These two were just ordinary people, without any martial skills. Their bodies weren't as strong as Lin Zheyu's, so it was easy for him to deal with them.
"Only one left."
Lin Zheyu looked indifferently at the man who had fallen silent in the stinking ditch.
"We had no enmity, but you brought this upon yourselves by targeting me. You deserve to die!"
He didn't rush to deal with the scene. Delayed by these two, Gao Yu had already walked a considerable distance.
Lin Zheyu stamped his feet forcefully on the soil, causing clumps of mud to fly up.
Among the three, only Gao Yu was relatively stronger.
He was a robust fellow, standing at 1.83 meters tall, from a family of hunters. He had practiced rudimentary martial arts in his childhood, but abandoned it as he grew older.
"Hehe..."
Gao Yu walked down the road, chuckling and humming a tune, feeling good.
He had found a good target to strike. After this hit, he would be carefree for a while.
"That kid is quite talented. It would be great if he could make money for me."
Gao Yu muttered, but he knew it was impossible.
Rustling.
The cold wind blew, causing trees to rustle.
Gao Yu tightened his coat and quickened his pace.
It was late at night, best to hurry home. His wife had probably warmed up his bed already.
Whoosh—
A dark figure rushed past, its movement masked by the whistling cold wind.
Coupled with a bit of alcohol, Gao Yu didn't notice anything unusual around him.
Turning a corner, passing by a farmhouse, and walking a dozen meters ahead, everything around became quiet.
It was at this moment that Lin Zheyu's figure erupted.
With knuckle dusters on his fists, he struck towards Gao Yu's temple. This was a vulnerable spot on the human body. A fatal blow here could result in anything from dizziness to instant death.
Bang!
Gao Yu lost his balance and fell to the ground.
Having been born into a family of hunters, Gao Yu had experience fighting wild animals. Despite the pain, he struggled and aimed a kick at Lin Zheyu.
Lin Zheyu dodged to the side, then grabbed Gao Yu's foot with both hands and used his body weight to press down on his head.
Crackling sounds followed as Gao Yu's foot was broken by Lin Zheyu.
Delayed by the alcohol, the intense pain took a few seconds later to register. When Gao Yu opened his mouth to scream, a rough hand tightly covered it.
Thud, thud, thud—
A continuous barrage of punches landed on Gao Yu's forehead. Within moments, he ceased breathing.
Lin Zheyu sat on the ground, panting heavily, trying to suppress the difficult emotions in his heart.
This was the first time he had actively killed someone. Back during his time as a refugee, he had only passively resisted for survival.
Without staying still for long, Lin Zheyu quickly got up.
"Lets quickly clean up."
Although he knew the chances of this murder being traced back to him were slim, it was better to be safe than sorry.
Lifting Gao Yu's body, he found a deserted spot and dumped the bodies of the three.
"So poor, not even a hundred wen on them."
Lin Zheyu shook his head as he counted the silver coins he had found on them.
Back home, Lin Zheyu lit a fire to burn the blood-stained clothes.
He went to the courtyard, washing his body several times, still feeling as though he was covered in the blood.
After having lived a stable life for too long in his previous years and receiving decades of civilized education, attempting to quickly accept the idea of taking lives without any psychological burden proved impossible for him.
Lin Zheyu lay down to sleep, unable to fall asleep and got up to take a shower several times, not falling asleep until late at night.
Cock-a-doodle-doo—
Dawn.
The rooster with a hoarse voice crowed again, waking up Lin Zheyu from his slumber.
He groggily opened his eyes, pulled the blanket over himself, and went back to sleep.
He slept until the afternoon.
Yawn—
Lin Zheyu yawned as he entered the Bidan Teahouse.
"You were out at the Hundred Flowers Pavilion yesterday, why do you look so listless?" Manager Wu teased.
"I miss home.I didn't sleep well last night," Lin Zheyu replied.
He had experienced a night of nightmares, all jumbled up, and hadn't slept well the entire night.
"It's still early, why don't you go back to sleep?" Manager Wu suggested.
"Okay, wake me up when it's time."
Lin Zheyu didn't hesitate; he indeed needed some rest.