Translator: AnubisTL
Shengtian, as the most prosperous city in Maple Country, always had a constant stream of people at its four city gates.
Especially during the summer, the number of merchants traveling from various places reached its peak, forming long queues outside the city gates. It took quite a while before it was finally Li Qing's turn to enter the city with his carriage.
The journey back was expedited because he was carrying a little tiger, only about a month old, which needed to be fed milk. As a result, the return trip took less than two days.
"Roar! Roar!"
The little tiger had been hungry for over a day and was now constantly whining and complaining to Li Qing.
"Sigh, you're such a glutton. From now on, I'll call you Fantong," Li Qing said with a bitter smile as he picked up the little Fantong. The cub kept waving its tiny paws in the air, perhaps expressing dissatisfaction with the name.
TL/N: Xiao Fantong or Little Rice Bucket because of the tiger's appetite.
When Li Qing first found Fantong, it was on the verge of death, barely clinging to life.
Li Qing had initially taken it with him just to give it a try, but after feeding it milk, the little tiger quickly regained its vitality and started bouncing around, full of energy.
"They say those who survive great calamities are destined for good fortune. You'll have a comfortable life following me from now on," Li Qing chuckled as he set Fantong down and casually scratched its head.
Soon, the carriage passed through the city gate inspection. After tipping the guards a few taels of silver, Li Qing smoothly re-entered Shengtian.
For private carriages, the inspections were generally lenient, mainly checking for illegal goods like smuggled salt or iron, which were taken very seriously in Maple Country.
Upon returning to Shengtian, Li Qing didn't rush back to his blacksmith shop. Instead, he first went to Quanshan Medicine Hall to retrieve the Five Venoms he had stored there.
Afterward, he found a shop in the city run by a merchant from the grasslands, specializing in dairy products. In this era, dairy products were considered a luxury, rarely consumed even by wealthy families.
Due to the difficulties in preservation and transportation, milk was much more expensive than meat of the same weight.
To ensure Fantong grew up healthy, Li Qing ordered a batch of fresh goat milk from the grassland merchant, requesting daily deliveries to his blacksmith shop.
"Sigh, I don't have much experience raising tigers. I guess raising a cub is similar to raising a cat—start with milk and switch to meat when it's old enough to eat it," Li Qing muttered to himself, slightly frustrated, thinking that raising this little one to adulthood would likely cost him a fortune.
Fortunately, he wasn't short on money at the moment. If he ever ran low, he could always make a trip to the World of Eternal Night and bring back some valuable items.
He could afford to raise a little Fantong.
Besides, the main reason he brought the little tiger back was to have a reference object when practicing the Fierce Tiger True Intent Diagram in the future.
His battle with the fierce tiger at Small Jade Ridge had taught him a lot. Having a tiger by his side would likely accelerate his progress in this martial art.
Although Li Qing couldn't help but wonder if this little milk-drinking tiger, raised in a domestic environment, would ever possess the same ferocity as its mother. "Grow up quickly! I'm not raising you for nothing!"
Back at the blacksmith shop, Li Qing let the little tiger, which had been quietly nestled in his arms, out to roll around on the ground.
After feeding the lamb some goat milk and hastily setting up a makeshift tiger den, Li Qing left it alone.
Next up was the real plan—brewing wine!
At the Taoyuan Tavern on the neighboring street, Li Qing had just walked in when he overheard several patrons boasting while drinking.
"Whoa, you wouldn't believe it, but that female chiliarch from the Wu Li Army is ruthless—nothing like a woman. She's already killed four or five troublemaking External Strength Martial Artists in a row."
"The Green Rainbow Heroine has been fighting alongside the army since she was young, mastering a superior internal martial art passed down in her family. Naturally, she's fierce, especially the Qian family..."
"Tsk tsk, a woman who shows her face in public—she's definitely got some spice."
"Heh, buddy, I'd advise you not to say that to her face. The guy she killed the day before yesterday was teasing her about her figure right in front of her..."
"Hiss!" The tavern's rough-and-tumble crowd collectively sucked in a sharp breath.
Of course, there were also those who looked disdainful, always underestimating how far a woman could go in martial arts.
After listening for a while, Li Qing knew exactly who they were talking about. In the Wu Li Army, there was only one female chiliarch—who else could it be but Qian Hong? Li Qing continued to pay attention to the recent events in Shengtian, making sure nothing particularly noteworthy had happened, before getting down to business.
"Proprietor, what's the strongest liquor you have here?" Li Qing leaned on the counter and asked.
Clearly, the proprietor had answered this question countless times. Without hesitation, he replied, "The strongest liquors we have here are Nine Brew Spring, Burning Blade, and Three Bowls Down! Even seasoned martial artists dare not drink too much of these. Which one would you like, sir?"
"Give me five jars of each, and deliver them all to the blacksmith's shop on Chiming Street next door," Li Qing said calmly.
Whether it was Tiger Bone Nourishing Wine or Five Poisons Blood-Activating Wine, both recipes required strong liquor—the stronger, the better.
This time, Li Qing had prepared a lot of tiger bone material, so he needed a considerable amount of wine. Brewing a dozen or so jars in one go wouldn't be a problem.
Hearing Li Qing's large order, even the proprietor was taken aback. He immediately looked at Li Qing with a different expression.
"Sir, are you sure you want that much?"
"What? Don't you have enough in stock?" Li Qing asked with a half-smile.
"Hahaha, of course not! As I said, our tavern lacks anything but a stock of wine!" The proprietor laughed, then rubbed his hands together and added, "It's just the price..."
Clink! Li Qing pulled out a gold bar, its gleaming hue making the proprietor's eyes widen.
"Money isn't an issue. Just get the wine delivered as soon as possible. Oh, and remember to send two jars of Winter Plum as well."
"Ah, right away, sir! I'll have the waiter deliver it immediately!" The proprietor beamed with delight.
Winter Plum was a famous and potent wine in Shengtian. Li Qing had always enjoyed it—strong, yet not as harsh on the throat as other liquors.
After completing the transaction, Li Qing leisurely strolled out of the tavern.
He clearly noticed that after he left, the tavern suddenly became somewhat quiet.
Most of the people frequenting the tavern were from the martial world. By purchasing a large amount of alcohol and flaunting his wealth, he was bound to attract the attention of many who had ulterior motives.
Although Li Qing could have avoided this issue by buying a jar of wine every now and then, a mere hundred or so taels of silver would never draw the attention of an Inner Strength martial artist.
Now that his martial skills had improved significantly, even among Outer Strength martial artists, he could be considered one of the best. Naturally, he wasn't as fearful as before.
'This is a good opportunity to test my current level and see how well-behaved these martial artists are now that the Wu Li Army is stationed in the capital.'
Li Qing thought to himself, his steps becoming increasingly light.
Everything was going according to plan.
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(End of the Chapter)
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