As long as you don't spend it, it's absolutely enough.

The words "allowance" directly hit Xie Liu's weak spot, nearly making him jump up. He stammered, "Adjust it again?"

"It must be adjusted!" Wang said firmly. "If I don't adjust it, you won't know how hard it is to earn money, and you'll keep spending recklessly."

"From now on, your monthly allowance will be cut from five wen to three wen."

Xie Liu quickly protested, "No, no, that's too little, way too little. What can three wen even do? I can't even buy a pancake outside occasionally."

Hearing this, Wang grew angrier. "If it's not enough, bring food from home. It's not like you don't know how to cook."

"I knew it. The root of your reckless spending is right here. With a few coins in your hand, you forget your place and squander money without a second thought."

"Your allowance must be cut."

"Three wen, and that's final."

"Starting next month, your monthly allowance will be strictly limited to three wen."

"Only then will you understand that money doesn't come easy."

Xie Liu's face collapsed in despair.

He looked like a criminal sentenced to death, or a fish stranded on the shore, without even a chance to struggle.

"Alright, alright..." Wang saw how utterly disheartened Xie Liu was and tried to console him. "I'm already giving you a decent allowance. As long as you don't spend it, it's absolutely enough."

Xie Liu's mind buzzed.

The words that reached his ears had lost all meaning for critical thinking.

Only instinct remained.

But he sensed something was off.

What did she mean by "as long as you don't spend it, it's enough"?

If you don't spend, of course it's enough.

Not only enough, you could even save it!

"Alright, eat up first. After you're done, get to work. Didn't you say the officers from Pukou City have arrived? Seize this chance to work hard and let them see your diligence. Who knows, they might even give you a promotion."

"The more you earn, the looser our household finances will be."

With that, Wang turned and went back to her room. Xie Liu watched her retreating figure grow blurrier, the confusion in his mind slowly turning into pain.

A dull, throbbing ache.

"Master Xie, Master Xie..."

A subordinate appeared beside him without Xie Liu noticing, until the man called out several times, snapping him back to reality.

"What's wrong?"

"Is there a problem with the sweet potato shipment?"

Xie Liu's face tensed with anxiety.

If even the smallest issue arose and led to a deduction from his monthly pay—even just a few wen—it would be a catastrophe for him.

"No, no..." the subordinate quickly said. "Everything's fine. The sweet potato loading and transport went smoothly. In fact, the officers from Pukou City were quite satisfied."

Whoosh!

Xie Liu let out a long sigh of relief.

Then he asked, "So what's the matter?"

"Why come to me at this hour?"

The subordinate looked mysterious. "Master Xie, let's talk somewhere private."

The two walked one after another out of the courtyard, out of the Xie residence, and into a secluded spot. The area was empty and silent, with a rather eerie feel.

Xie Liu's heart began to pound.

He wondered if this was a plot to rob and kill him.

But he quickly dismissed the thought.

To rob him, the thief would need to find something worth taking.

His pockets would soon be emptier than his face. What was there to steal?

"Master Xie, there's a letter for you."

The subordinate finally explained, pulling a letter from his bosom. "Someone asked me to deliver this to you, sir. I was worried it might be exposed, so I hid it for you first."

He paused, then added, "It's a personal letter from General Zhang Shi."

Xie Liu looked confused. "General Zhang Shi?"

"Who's that? One of General Zhou Xiong's men?"

The subordinate sighed in exasperation. "General Zhang Shi is a court official, a general under Duke Ren Tianye. He's currently near our Pikou City."

"Oh."

Xie Liu nodded, his face emotionless.

The truth was, he was just a low-level laborer who couldn't even hold onto his meager wages. He spent his days calculating if he could save an extra coin, so he had no time to worry about the state of the realm.

Let the world collapse if it must.

In the worst case, he'd end up exactly where he was now.

With a little luck, he might even live better.

Still, he was curious about the letter from General Zhang Shi. He tore open the envelope right in front of his subordinate.

Pulling out the contents, he read line by line.

Gradually, an expression of disbelief spread across his face.

It took him a long moment to close the letter.

The subordinate, who clearly hadn't read the contents, eagerly asked, "Master Xie, what did General Zhang Shi say in the letter?"

"Is the Lord Duke really coming?"

"Will our Luofeng Slope fall under the Lord Duke's jurisdiction?"

Xie Liu nodded instinctively, then shook his head. "General Zhang Shi said he wants me to join them..."

"Master Xie!!!" The subordinate's voice shot up an octave, pure joy bursting across his face like fireworks in the night sky. "This is wonderful news! Incredible news!"

"General Zhang Shi is inviting you to join them."

"From now on, your days of happiness are about to begin."

"Happiness?" Those words clearly struck a chord with Xie Liu. He asked eagerly, "Are you sure there'll be happiness?"

"Of course," the subordinate said with conviction. "Master Xie, haven't you heard? Life under the Lord Duke is truly good."

"They crack down on love-brain thinking and govern with discipline for both the people and the army."

"Everyone says that when the Lord Duke arrives, the blue skies will return."

"How could it not be good?"

The moment the subordinate finished, Xie Liu cut in impatiently, "I don't care about all that. I just want to ask..."

"If I join General Zhang Shi's ranks, will the money I earn all go into my own hands, and not to anyone else?"

"If so, I'll surrender immediately."

"Without a second thought."

At his last words, Xie Liu was practically grinding his teeth.

The subordinate was taken aback.

He hadn't heard of such a policy in the Lord Duke's territory, but he was quick to adapt and extrapolate. "Under the Lord Duke, love must be based on equality."

"Master Xie, your situation is far from equal."

"So I'll bet that under the Lord Duke's rule, you'll feel as refreshed as if you've stepped into a whole new world."

Xie Liu suddenly brimmed with enthusiasm.

Equality!

Under the Lord Duke, there would be equality!

Then what was there to hesitate about?

Just then...

From the darkness, a voice like a lion's roar suddenly erupted.

"Xie!!!"

"Liu!!!"

Each syllable blasted through the night like a giant trumpet, shattering the stillness like a bomb dropped into a dead pond.

The peace was broken.

Xie Liu trembled all over from the fright.