Chapter 11: Fire at the Li Family Village, Information Refreshed

Qin Wang, feeling hot all over after eating the treasure fish, began practicing Taizu Long Fist energetically. After over an hour of intense practice, he was drenched in sweat but still felt a strong, heated sensation throughout his body, his energy and vigor greatly enhanced.

"No wonder it's called the Golden-Finned Red Carp! The increase in vitality is immediate!" Qin Wang continued practicing Taizu Long Fist to digest the fish's energy, feeling quite satisfied.

His intelligence indicated that this was not just any red carp but a Golden-Finned Red Carp, worth far more than just two taels of silver. However, he didn't dare eat the remaining half just yet. He covered the fish, continued practicing Taizu Long Fist, and waited for the intelligence update at midnight.

"Fire! Fire!" Suddenly, as Qin Wang practiced, he heard distant cries. Looking out the window, he saw flames lighting up the night sky in the direction of the Li Family Village. The air was filled with the sounds of wailing and panic.

"The Li Family's estate really caught fire. Retribution!" Qin Wang muttered, watching the flames in the distance. The cunning and greedy Li Laocai had finally met his end, and his grand estate was now burning.

Reflecting on how he had orchestrated this outcome, Qin Wang felt a sense of satisfaction. His revenge was complete. However, he still needed to secure the 850 taels of silver to consider it a full success. The Li family's lands, though, were now out of reach.

According to his intelligence, Li Laocai's first wife and eldest son had perished in the fire, leaving only his youngest son, Li Tianxin, who was not even his biological child. With no legitimate heir, the Li family's estate would, according to the laws of Da Cang, pass to the nearest kin, his sister Li Chunxia. If she survived, she would inherit the lands and properties.

"How did such a huge fire start suddenly? It's said to have started from the mourning hall. Anyone inside must be dead by now. The Li family is finished," the villagers gossiped as they watched the blaze from outside the estate. Some, holding water buckets, tried to fight the fire, mostly tenants of the Li family who felt compelled to help lest they face repercussions later.

In his mud-walled thatched cottage at the east end of Qingniu Village, Qin Wang ignored the fire and continued practicing Taizu Long Fist.

Ding!

[Daily Intelligence Refreshed!]

[Today's Intelligence!]

1) You ate half a Golden-Finned Red Carp yesterday, gaining significant energy and doubling your vitality.

2)Your increased vitality means you'll reach the third-tier realm in 70 days instead of 90.

3) You watched the fire at the Li Family Village yesterday. The fire burned most of the estate, and the Li family is now extinct, with only Li Chunxia left to inherit.

4) You are now a suspect in the arson investigation led by Zheng Kecheng.

5) Li Yunhai, whom you met yesterday, will use the two taels of silver to send his son to school tomorrow.

6) Your medical skills will reach the entry level in five days.

7) There is a half-pound Golden-Finned Red Carp in the reeds of the Black River tributary.

8) Bai Fenghuan wants to eat candied haws and roasted chestnuts.

9) Yan Po has 220 taels of silver hidden in a wall cabinet in an east-side house in the county.

10) Six people, including Li Laocai, died in the fire, making the Li Family Village a haunted place.

"My strength has nearly doubled!" Qin Wang nodded, feeling the increased power from digesting the fish's energy. Practicing Taizu Long Fist for over an hour had greatly enhanced his physical capabilities.

"I'll reach the third-tier realm in 70 days? Eating half the fish sped it up by 20 days?" Qin Wang realized that consuming treasure fish could significantly boost his progress. "I need to make more money to buy treasure fish and medicines to get stronger faster."

"Li Chunxia will inherit the Li family's lands?" Qin Wang frowned, considering how to divert Zheng Kecheng's suspicion away from himself. He needed a plan.

"My medical skills will improve in five days?" This pleased Qin Wang. Having medical knowledge would be highly useful.

"There's another Golden-Finned Red Carp in the Black River tributary? But I can't swim. That fish will have to wait," he sighed, lamenting his inability to catch it.

"Bai Fenghuan wants candied haws and roasted chestnuts? I should get some for her," he thought. She had been kind to him, and strengthening their relationship would be beneficial.

"Yan Po has 220 taels of silver hidden in a county house? Excellent!" Qin Wang's eyes lit up. He needed to find an opportunity to retrieve the silver and eliminate the old hag, who had caused so much harm.

"With the Li family estate burned down, the place will be deserted. I can retrieve the 850 taels hidden under Li Laocai's bed," he realized, but he had to act quickly before others did.

"To get stronger, I need more silver!" Qin Wang resolved. His edge lay in the intelligence updates he received daily.