Chapter 15: Arrangements

The old man opened the iron box again, picked up a bit of medicinal powder with his fingertip, and observed it carefully. After a moment, he returned the iron box to Su Tang and said softly, “Young Master Su, just do as they said. However, you must be careful yourself.”

“What?” Su Tang almost could not believe his ears. “Are you saying… that I should put the powder in the water well?”

“Do not put it in there,” the old man said. “We would be fine, but I am afraid it would ruin the water quality of Little Forest Castle.”

Su Tang could not accept this result. You people might not care about life and death, but I don’t want to kick the bucket this early. Besides, there were so many people throughout Little Forest Castle; one small mistake could affect everyone.

After being stunned for a moment, Su Tang gave a forced laugh and asked, “How… should I address you?”

“My name is Xue Jiu,” the old man said. “Because I am missing a finger, my friends jokingly call me Xue Jiu. If Young Master Su does not mind, you can just call me Uncle Jiu.”

“Uncle Jiu.” Su Tang followed his lead. He weighed his words carefully and spoke slowly, “Now they are in the open and we are in the dark. Should we make some arrangements in advance, just in case?”

This time it was Xue Jiu’s turn to be stunned. After a pause, he asked back, “Young Master Su, what kind of arrangements do you have in mind?”

Su Tang sighed. The other party could be indifferent, but he could not. Since he was already on the boat, he had to find a way to keep the boat sailing smoothly. Therefore, he decided to offer his strategy.

“It is very simple, Uncle Jiu. It is like a fight to the death between two people; of course, one must be good at using the surrounding environment and use everything available. Winning makes you a hero, but losing makes you nothing!”

Xue Jiu looked around with a puzzled expression. He did not find anything that could be used.

“Uncle Jiu, look up. Do you see that main beam? It is very sturdy,” Su Tang said. “We can take down the large pot from the kitchen and place it on the beam. We pour in boiling oil and tie it with an iron chain. Then, as long as someone pulls it gently, the boiling oil will pour down.”

Su Tang walked to the door and pointed while explaining, “Since we are using a trick, we must use a series of tricks! Boiling oil alone is not enough. When they see their companions hit by boiling oil, they will certainly panic and dodge to the sides. We will dig several pit traps here and here, with sharpened bamboo sticks standing in the pits, and then sprinkle half a foot of lime. That will ensure they suffer!”

“Once they discover the pit traps, the remaining people will be even more panicked. They will instinctively look for something to lean on.” Su Tang patted the wall with his hand. “This will be their support. Only by leaning against a thick, solid wall can they regain a sense of security. First, we use wooden strips to build a frame, then cover it with paper and paint it white. They will not see any flaws. Uncle Jiu, have your men hide inside, and then suddenly break through the wall. It will definitely be a success in one blow!”

“I estimate that if we work from now until tomorrow morning, we should be able to finish the arrangements. Perhaps… some fish will slip through the net, and that will be up to Uncle Jiu.”

Xue Jiu’s eyes went blank as he listened. The middle-aged man who had been dozing off opened his eyes at some point and looked at Su Tang with interest. Ke’er, who was standing by the wall, was also in a daze. Boiling oil, lime… when did the young master become so wicked!

Su Tang could not be blamed for this. The scenery seen by a person over one meter tall and a super giant over a hundred meters tall, as well as their understanding of the world, were certainly completely different.

It was already impressive that Su Tang could think of these things in such a short time. If the attackers were a dozen ordinary people, he would certainly ensure they never returned. But if the attacker was a hundred-meter-tall super giant, all of Su Tang’s arrangements would be like child’s play.

Although he had heard the general information about this world from Shang Bin, Su Tang only knew that those who practiced Martial Formula were Martial Artists, and those who practiced the higher-level Battle Formula would be promoted to Battle Fighters. Above that were Grandmasters who could change the world’s landscape. However, Su Tang had no way of knowing exactly how strong the combat power of Martial Artists and Battle Fighters really was.

Su Tang had finished explaining. Seeing that Xue Jiu still had no reaction, he had to remind him, “Uncle Jiu?”

“Ah…” Xue Jiu woke up as if from a dream. He looked at Su Tang with a strange gaze and coughed dryly. “Young Master Su, this… it really does not need to be so troublesome. You just need to raise the flag and lure them here.”

“What?” Su Tang felt some irritation. Did he just waste all that talking? Sure, acting cool is not a crime, but if you are determined to act cool while letting others bear the danger, that is not right! Even if you are very powerful and have enough confidence, wouldn’t it be better to make a few arrangements and win easily? Do you have to do it the hard way?!

“Young Master Su, let me say a few words,” the middle-aged man said with a smile. “My brother Xue is very powerful. In a thousand-mile radius, there are really very few people who can catch his eye. So, please rest assured.”

Su Tang looked at Xue Jiu, then at the middle-aged man, his heart full of helplessness. A thousand-mile radius… aren’t you afraid of twisting your tongue?!

“However… Young Master Su, you had better evacuate the servants and house-staff in the castle first. The bandits are coming for us. If you suffer any damage, we would feel bad about it.”

After all that talking, this was the only sentence that sounded human! Su Tang sighed again. One can underestimate the enemy in strategy, but must value the enemy in tactics, no matter who they are. But he had talked for so long and they simply would not listen. What else could he do?!

“Then… when should I raise the flag?” Su Tang asked.

“Anytime,” Xue Jiu smiled.

Su Tang realized that he and this Xue Jiu, who never stopped acting cool, would have nothing in common. He gave a bitter smile, gave a wink to Ke’er, and walked out the door.

Just as Su Tang left, the curtain of the inner room was lifted. The girl, who looked as pure as a porcelain doll, walked out and said in a soft voice, “He is quite fun.”

Xue Jiu’s expression became solemn, and he bowed respectfully. “He is indeed a quirky child. This time, we owe him a favor.”

“What kind of favor is this?” the middle-aged man smiled. “Is it worth you asking for benefits on his behalf? Besides… can he even handle the benefits we give?”

“Zhou Jin, go keep an eye on him. Do not let anything happen to him,” the girl said indifferently.

The middle-aged man was stunned for a moment, then realized that she wanted him to protect Young Master Su in secret. He hurriedly said, “Understood.”

The girl turned back into the inner room. The middle-aged man gave a bitter smile and then gave Xue Jiu a thumbs-up. He truly admired this fellow, who had always known exactly how to handle the mood of those above. Asking him to protect Su Tang was most likely an expression of her inner displeasure, thinking his words were a bit harsh. Had he known this, he would have helped say some nice things too!