Chapter 12: Changes

“After putting in so much effort and shedding so much sweat, I’ve finally gotten on the right track.”

Su Mu let out a slow breath.

He summoned the panel again, and the content on it had quietly changed.

【Name: Su Mu】

【Identity: Hunter (Commoner)】

【Points: 0】

【Martial Arts: Fubo Saber Technique (Minor Achievement), Archery (Entry)】

His points had been cleared, but in their place, the Fubo Saber Technique had reached the stage of Minor Achievement.

Minor Achievement in a saber technique might be nothing to a true expert.

But for Su Mu, who had climbed from a mere hoodlum to where he was today, he knew how much bitterness he had endured and how much sweat he had shed.

Minor Achievement meant he had taken another big step forward on the right path.

Minor Achievement meant he could join the South City Office as a bailiff at any time.

Minor Achievement meant he could even make a living now as a guard for a wealthy family.

“The next step is Major Achievement. Only with Major Achievement can one be considered a somebody in this South City, and even as a guard, one could become a leader.”

Su Mu said to himself, “The revolution is not yet successful; I must continue to work hard.”

He focused his thoughts on the Fubo Saber Technique, and a prompt appeared in his mind.

Major Achievement requires three hundred points.

“That’s fine, less than I expected.”

Su Mu breathed a sigh of relief. With his current status and profession, he would only need one hundred and fifty days to save up three hundred points.

“Should I go and try to become a bailiff?”

Su Mu thought to himself, “With my current saber skills, passing the South City Office’s selection shouldn’t be a problem. If I become a bailiff, the increase in points should be faster.”

After much deliberation, Su Mu didn’t sleep soundly all night. At the crack of dawn the next day, he got up and headed toward the South City Office.

Just as Su Mu arrived outside the South City Office, he happened to run into a large group of bailiffs in black uniforms walking into the office in a disheveled state.

Su Mu raised an eyebrow slightly.

He had arrived late and only saw the last few bailiffs entering the office, appearing to have blood on them.

“Brother, what happened here?”

Su Mu squeezed into the crowd of onlookers, picked a man who looked easy to talk to, and asked with a smile.

“Heh, the South City Office went out of the city to suppress bandits and lost, that’s what.”

The man chuckled, looking rather gleeful.

“They’re usually so arrogant; they finally got what was coming to them?”

“Who’s to say? They can only bully us commoners. When they run into those vicious bandits, aren’t they just beaten to a pulp?”

Another man nearby added in a low voice.

Su Mu’s heart skipped a beat as he thought of what Liu Feng had said earlier about the South City Office recruiting bailiffs.

Could it be that they sent the newly recruited bailiffs out of the city to suppress bandits?

Isn’t that just sending them to their deaths?

Su Mu seemed to understand something, and his original intention to apply for the position of bailiff was suddenly cast in doubt.

It was one thing that the reputation of constables and bailiffs wasn’t good.

But if it was this dangerous, Su Mu would have to think it over carefully.

With this in mind, Su Mu turned and walked toward Liu Hai’s house.

Liu Feng had joined the South City Office not long ago, and he wondered how much he knew.

Just as he reached the entrance of the alley where the Liu family lived, Su Mu knew there was no need to go find Liu Feng for information.

Because he could already hear the wailing coming from the Liu house.

Outside the house, a group of neighbors had gathered, whispering among themselves.

Su Mu only listened for a moment before he knew what had happened.

Liu Feng had been sent back by people from the South City Office early this morning.

What was sent back was a corpse that had already breathed its last.

“The Liu boy is still considered lucky. I heard that the boy from the butcher Zheng’s family in Pingkang Ward didn’t even have his body returned.”

As the discussion drifted into his ears, Su Mu felt a chill run through his entire body.

When Liu Feng came to invite him to participate in the South City Office selection that day, he had actually been somewhat tempted.

If he had gone with Liu Feng at that time, would he now be a corpse just like him?

The waters of the government office were too deep. With his current Minor Achievement in saber skills, if he were to step in rashly, he feared he wouldn’t even be able to make a splash.

“Being a bailiff is too dangerous. I’d better honestly remain a hunter and wait until my saber technique is perfected before considering improving my status.”

Su Mu thought to himself as he walked away.

“Although the ceiling for a hunter is limited, I feel that there is still room to dig deeper.”

…………

The loss of troops and officers in the South City Office was like the sky falling for some families, but for most people in the South City, it was just fodder for conversation after tea and meals.

They continued to live their lives as they always had.

Su Mu dismissed the idea of becoming a bailiff and continued to sprint down the path of becoming the best hunter.

One day, Su Mu set out early with his bow and arrows toward the outskirts of the city, when he was suddenly stopped by Sun Dazhao.

“Little Su, there’s a good job, are you interested?”

Sun Dazhao said with his signature smile on his face.

“Many thanks for looking out for me, Master Sun.”

Su Mu bowed and said, “It’s just that I only know how to hunt, and nothing else…”

“It’s hunters they’re looking for.”

Sun Dazhao laughed, “Constable Xing from our South City Office wants to find a few hunters to do some small tasks. Once the job is done, there’s a reward of twenty taels of silver.

This is much better than hunting. Are you in or not?”

For an ordinary hunter, earning one or two hundred wen a day was considered lucky.

Good fortune like the time Su Mu earned three taels at once was something he might not encounter even once in several months.

Twenty taels of silver was almost equivalent to two or three years of earnings for a hunter.

But Su Mu did not agree immediately.

He keenly captured a piece of information.

Constable Xing of the South City Office!

Although he didn’t know this Constable Xing, there was only one head constable in the entire South City Office, and that was a big shot who could rank in the top five of the office.

Most importantly, all the constables and bailiffs of the South City Office were under his command.

First, the massive recruitment of bailiffs, and now looking for hunters…

Su Mu intuitively felt that danger was already looming.

“Master Sun, it’s not that I don’t want to give you face, but I accidentally injured my leg yesterday. If I go to do errands for Constable Xing, I’m afraid I’ll ruin the Constable’s important business.”

Su Mu politely declined.

“Injured your leg?”

Sun Dazhao didn’t doubt Su Mu’s words; after all, other hunters were scrambling for such a good deal of twenty taels of silver.

It was only because Sun Dazhao felt that Su Mu was skilled and usually respectful to him that he thought of him.

In Sun Dazhao’s view, Su Mu had no reason to refuse.

“That’s a real pity. Such a good opportunity is hard to come by. If you could earn these twenty taels, your wish to buy a house in Wuling City would be fulfilled.”

Sun Dazhao said with a look of regret, “What a pity.”

“Who’s to say it isn’t.”

Su Mu also put on a look of annoyance, “It’s all because I’m not up to the task.”

Watching Sun Dazhao’s shaking back disappear around the corner of the street, the smile on Su Mu’s face faded, replaced by a grave expression.

Although he didn’t know what had happened in the South City Office, he now had a strong sense of crisis.

“He has already set his sights on hunters, and I am one of the best hunters in the South City. I might have dodged it this time, but next time, it might not be so certain.”

Su Mu said to himself, “I didn’t expect that even by not participating in the bailiff selection, I couldn’t avoid this unprovoked disaster. It is too difficult for a small person to control their own destiny. I must practice my saber technique to Major Achievement as soon as possible!”

(End of chapter)