Chapter Fourteen: Conflict

Li Han was his childhood companion, the brother with whom he had shared life-and-death trials. Qin Zhen could endure hardships for the sake of survival, but he would never tolerate anyone bullying his brother.

Qin Zhen was, after all, only a child. His strength was meager, his thin frame no match for the burly Fishhead.

“You dare lay a hand on me? You’ve got guts! Brothers, come teach them some manners!”

Fishhead, furious after being knocked to the ground, shouted for his companions.

Hearing that one of their own had been struck, Fishhead’s gang surged forward. Over thirty men surrounded Qin Zhen, each wielding a wooden club, the situation teetering on chaos.

Liu Quan, unable to bear seeing Qin Zhen suffer, immediately led the villagers from the small fishing village to stand between the children and their assailants.

“It’s all a misunderstanding! Just a misunderstanding!” he pleaded.

Qin Zhen rushed to Li Han’s side, asking, “Han, are you alright?”

Li Han, clutching his head, staggered to his feet. “I’m fine, just queasy.”

He managed a simple, honest smile as blood trickled from his nose. Clearly, the blow had been delivered with deadly intent.

“Misunderstanding, my foot!” Fishhead spat viciously. “Liu Quan, you’ve grown bold, haven’t you? Do you know whose turf this is? You dare cause trouble with us? Looking for death!”

“They’re just kids who don’t know any better!” Liu Quan, though he bitterly hated the ruffian, knew he had to swallow his anger under the circumstances. “Let’s calm down, brother, let’s calm down.”

“And you’ve got the nerve to complain when we take your fish?” Li Han retorted angrily.

“Everyone knows that any fish caught here must be sold to us,” Fishhead sneered. “And if I take them, what of it? If you don’t like it, then don’t fish here in the future.”

The onlookers bristled with indignation, but all feared Fishhead’s power and dared not speak up.

“This beach isn’t yours! What gives you the right?” Qin Zhen demanded in a cold voice.

“My right is that I have connections, and the Boss of Hat Mountain is my brother’s friend!” Fishhead boasted.

At the mention of Hat Mountain, Liu Quan’s expression changed sharply.

Hat Mountain, nearby, was infamous for its brutal bandits. If these men truly had ties to them, today’s conflict would not end easily.

Fishhead seemed to revel in the fear he inspired, and he pointed at the villagers, threatening, “Not one of you will leave with a single fish today! And those two brats who hit me—each will lose an arm!”

As Fishhead and his men closed in with malicious intent, a sharp arrow whistled through the crowd and struck Fishhead in the knee.

He fell in agony, and before he could grasp what had happened, Qin Zhen was at his side.

Qin Zhen held his wooden crossbow to Fishhead’s forehead, his youthful face dark and cold beyond his years.

“Just now, you said whose arm should be broken?”

The sudden turn stunned everyone.

No one expected a child to act with such resolve.

Fishhead, humiliated by being threatened by a child, roared, “Why are you all standing there? Get him!”

His men stirred, clubs raised, ready to rush Qin Zhen.

“Men of the fishing village, follow me!” Liu Quan called. Though shrewd, he never backed down from trouble. He had tolerated these thugs long enough—stealing fish was one thing, but now they were beating people, clinging like rabid dogs. If there was no way out, then let it come to blows!

Just then, a voice rang out, halting both sides.

“Stop right now!”

Scar Brother finally made his appearance.

His face, thick with muscle, darkened as he strode onto the beach surrounded by his men. He stopped ten meters from Qin Zhen, eyes warily scanning the wooden crossbow, then settling on the boy himself.

He drew a deep breath and spoke in a low tone, “We’re not stealing fish—we’re buying. Why make things so difficult?”

Seeing Scar Brother arrive, Fishhead felt emboldened, ignoring the crossbow at his temple and taunting Qin Zhen, “Kid, you’re finished now. I’ll say it right here—”

Before he could finish, a wooden arrow pierced his skull, trailing a line of blood.

Fishhead collapsed, his face still full of arrogance in death.

“Someone’s been killed!” a voice cried out, the oppressive atmosphere spreading across the beach.

Even Liu Quan and the others were stunned. No one had expected Qin Zhen to act so impulsively.

“He injured my brother. He deserved to die,” Qin Zhen said coldly, kicking aside Fishhead’s corpse and aiming the crossbow at Scar Brother.

“If it’s a purchase, shouldn’t the price be renegotiated?”

Scar Brother, worldly as he was, could not help but be intimidated by Qin Zhen’s demeanor.

He stared at Qin Zhen for a long moment before finally saying, “Name your price.”

“From today on, fifty coins per fish,” Qin Zhen declared.

“Impossible!” Scar Brother retorted. Fifty coins per fish would cut his profits in half.

How could he accept?

“You saw today’s catch. The more fish I bring in, the more you earn. How many did you collect in a month before? How much did you make? If you can’t figure it, I can always sell to someone else.” Qin Zhen seemed transformed—decisive, ruthless.

This was a world where only the strong survived.

To follow the rules was to be preyed upon.

Scar Brother wanted to test Qin Zhen’s limits, but the boy’s cold, unwavering gaze made him hesitate.

After much deliberation, he finally conceded.

“Forty coins! That’s my bottom line. If we can work together, we work together. If not, you won’t leave this beach today.”

With his own brother slain, Scar Brother had to give his men some closure.

Qin Zhen lowered his crossbow and said coldly, “Collect the fish.”

At Scar Brother’s signal, his men began gathering the catch.

Throughout the process, everyone held their breath, not daring to make a sound. Only the wind and waves could be heard on the beach.

Qin Zhen showed his sincerity, and Scar Brother reciprocated by ordering his men to pay.

“Bring the money.”

Over a hundred fish, sold at forty coins each, came to more than four thousand coins, filling five or six sacks.

Not all the fish were sold; Qin Zhen kept a dozen for himself.

Before leaving, Qin Zhen pointed at the corpse. “Will you handle it, or should I?”

Such a simple question deepened Scar Brother’s wariness of Qin Zhen.

“I’ll take care of it.”

With that answer, Qin Zhen left without a backward glance.

Fishhead’s men looked at each other in confusion.

“Scar Brother, you’re just letting them go?”

Scar Brother gazed at the hundred fresh fish—if he got them to Jiangzhou City, he could fetch a handsome price.

“Hurry and load the fish onto the carts! If a single one dies on the road, I’ll skin you all!”

“And the body…?”

“Chop it up and toss it in the sea for the fish!”