Rebirth of Poisoned Empress, by 颜若优雅

Chapter 23

Shen Liang's worries were not unfounded. There had been people trailing after him since he left the Marquis Manor, and it wasn't only one group of people. However, Pei Yuanxian's subordinates had successfully sent them away after Shen Liang had paid a visit and left Luofengju. The only people left who was still monitoring Shen Liang's actions were those sent by Pei Yuanxian. However, even they were left dumbfounded by Shen Liang's disappearance and maneuver of a golden cicada slipping out its shell. When they realized the abnormality, Shen Liang had already left the Taisen House for quite a while.

The four regions of the Imperial City are further subdivided into inner and outer regions. The inner regions of the four urban areas become more affluent, prosperous, and wealthy the more central the region reaches. Hence, the outer stretches of Imperial City were home to those who suffered from poverty and the unfortunate. The Taisen House was located at the boundaries of the inner and outer regions of the city, and Shen Liang easily traveled towards the outer stretches of the Imperial City with his disguise. Mixed among the less affluent crowds and populations, Shen Liang was able to easily meander towards his destination without catching any unwanted attention. No one could tell he was a figure of active debate and topic in the Imperial City.

The outer stretches of the City wasn't only home to those impoverished. After all, it was the Imperial City and as long as the civilians were diligent, earning a living sufficient to provide them and their family a home and food wasn't difficult. It was just that compared to those who resided in the inner regions of the City, they could indeed be considered impoverished.

"Old Wang, today's business was good. Have you sold everything?"

"Not yet. There's still half of pig's worth of pork left that I haven't taken out. Why don't you buy some for today?"

"I sure do want to but have no money."

"Indeed. We've had too much rain this reason. They say the villages outside the City has all faced the threat of floods. The prices of grains and products have only increased, and we almost can't afford it anymore."

At a stretch of seemingly ordinary street, crowds of two and threes conversed and chatted around a meat stall. The man who sold the pork appeared to be in his 30s-40s. He had a strong, fit build with a humble wide grin. Shen Liang stood nearby and watched. A mist emerged in the corners of his eyes as excitement and nostalgia coursed through him. Uncle Wang! It has been a long time. A lifetime, in fact. 

"Boss, I'll take two pounds of meat," Shen Liang headed over after allowing his mood to stabilize. The crowd around the stall gradually dispersed as they saw Shen Liang approach with business. Old Wang raised his head with a hearty grin, "Two pounds, right? A moment, please."

After, Old Wang turned around and headed into his cabin. Soon after, he came back out with half a pork hefted on his shoulders. The man placed the pig down before skillfully cutting out a seemingly appropriate weight of meat. He baled the meat up before handing it to Shen Liang.

"Two pounds of pork will be twenty copper plates. Please receive well."

"En."

Shen Liang didn't reach over to accept the meat. Instead, he felt around in his pocket before grasping onto an item and passing it over to the man. When Old Wang accepted the item, a sliver of light flickered in his eyes, but he still laughed heartily and stated, "Customer, the silver you gave is too much and I'm unable to provide change for it. Why don't you head in for a cup of tea while I change the silver for copper for you?"

"That will be fine."

Shen Liang entered the cabin just like he did in his previous life. But what was different was this time, Shen Liang was able to capture the helplessness that emerged in Old Wang's gaze. In that moment, Shen Liang regretted his actions. He shouldn't have sought them out with the Xuan Tie token. Wouldn't it have been nice to allow them to lead their peaceful, ordinary lives in the outer regions as their existence is gradually erased from history? The ancestors of the Wei Family must have such intentions. Otherwise, why else would the Xuan Tie token have been locked in the Luban box no ordinary person could have ever opened?