Inside the hidden compartment were several silver notes, along with some loose silver taels and gold and silver jewelry.
Zhao Ya, wearing gloves, picked up these silver notes to take a look.
These silver notes were all issued from Yunxiao County's largest Silver House, the Treasure Communication Bureau.
The largest denomination was one hundred taels, the rest mostly being twenty or thirty taels, totaling around three hundred taels.
Zhao Ya naturally didn't hesitate and took all these silver notes with a smile, putting the remaining loose silver taels and gold and silver jewelry into the pre-prepared deer hide pouch.
"Is this all?"
"Honorable hero, that's really all. The Black Snake Gang is just a small, insignificant gang with no steady income. These silver notes have been accumulated over many years," Fan Hao said with a bitter face.
But Zhao Ya could tell from Fan Hao's restless eyes that he was still hiding something.
He didn't hesitate, raising his hand to thrust the short knife into Fan Hao's thigh.
Blood spurted out, and Fan Hao screamed in pain.
"Are you still unwilling to tell the truth?" Zhao Ya said coldly, while slowly twisting the knife.
Fan Hao's chubby face turned pale with pain, and his whole body trembled uncontrollably.
"Mercy, great hero, I'll speak, I'll speak!"
Fan Hao realized he had encountered a genuine killer today, and if he dared to hide anything else, Zhao Ya would really kill him, so he had no choice but to confess everything.
It turned out there was a movable floor tile next to the hidden compartment under the bed, and removing the tile revealed an oilcloth bundle.
"Open it," Zhao Ya ordered, stepping aside to stand behind Fan Hao to prevent any traps inside the oilcloth bundle.
Seeing Zhao Ya's caution, Fan Hao silently cursed in his heart, but had to endure the pain and obediently open the oilcloth bundle, revealing a book inside.
By the light in the room, Zhao Ya saw a few words on the cover.
Lightweight Grasshopper Skill.
It was actually a Lightweight Secret Manual.
Zhao Ya held back his inner excitement, taking the manual with his gloves, and flipped through it, finding some secrets of the lightweight skill recorded inside.
However, it was different from what he imagined, like flying over eaves and walls, or Stepping on Snow Without Leaving Traces.
It seemed more like a Body Technique manual.
Although it couldn't make one fly with just a toe touch after learning, it would greatly enhance the agility and running speed.
This was exactly what Zhao Ya needed right now.
He stored the manual away as well, then looked at Fan Hao in front of him.
Fan Hao shivered with a start, hurriedly waving his hands, "Mighty hero, there's really nothing else, this manual is my treasured possession. I relied on it to establish a foothold in East City and created a little Black Snake Gang."
"Now it's yours, I ask for nothing more. I just beg you to spare my life, and I will be grateful forever, doing good deeds and never committing wrongdoings again."
At the end, Fan Hao was sobbing uncontrollably.
If it were someone else, they might have been moved by pity.
But after these few days of investigation, Zhao Ya had already figured out the details of the Black Snake Gang.
Despite Fan Hao's mediocre skills, the crimes he committed were numerous.
Especially his bestial admiration of women, rarely did a woman he set his sights on escape his clutches.
Over the past few years, no fewer than twenty or thirty decent women had been driven to their deaths by him.
So Zhao Ya just chuckled coldly upon hearing this.
"These things were originally mine, what have they got to do with you?"
"Yes, yes, the noble hero is right...."
Fan Hao nodded frantically, but just then, he caught a glimpse of a flash of knife light from the corner of his eye.
Suddenly, Fan Hao felt his head lighten, and he actually saw the ceiling above and a blood-red cavity.
Damned, not trustworthy at all!
This was Fan Hao's last thought, and then he sank into darkness.
Thud!
Blood splattered, and the dead body fell to the ground.
Zhao Ya checked once more, ensuring he hadn't left any traces, then turned to leave for the front yard.
At this time, the guard dogs in the front yard were still asleep.
Zhao Ya originally intended to burn down the Black Snake Gang headquarters but was dissuaded by the surrounding low-slung shantytown.
If there were a fire, the nearby ordinary people would be affected as well.
Anyway, the Black Snake Gang members were all dead, and Zhao Ya was sure he hadn't left a trace of himself, so he left the matter for others to worry about.
Zhao Ya climbed over the wall and disappeared into the endless night.
By the time he crossed Wuxiang City and returned home, it was almost the fourth watch.
Zhao Ya tidied up a bit, stored the full deer hide pouch, then lay down and fell into a deep sleep.
He slept soundly until Zui'Er called him over after cooking, only then Zhao Ya woke up.
After breakfast, Zhao Ya advised Zui'Er that he might be back late tonight, so she should eat and lock the door early without waiting for him.
Then he took some things from the deer hide pouch and went to the Escort Agency.
Everything at the Escort Agency was as usual.
But by the afternoon, an explosive piece of news quickly spread.
"What? The East City Black Snake Gang was wiped out in a single night? That's fantastic, that bunch of scum deserved it long ago."
"It's retribution, retribution. I wonder which passing hero helped us poor folks take revenge!"
For a moment, the common folks who had suffered under the Black Snake Gang couldn't help but cheer.
However, when this news reached the Changlong Escort Agency, the reaction was rather lukewarm.
After all, the Black Snake Gang was just a bunch of riffraff at best, and the people at Changlong Escort Agency were at least half Jianghu people, naturally looking down on this gang.
Zhao Ya observed secretly, discovering indeed few people cared about the Black Snake Gang's demise.
The Six Gates only dispatched a few people to collect Fan Hao and the others' bodies, treating it as a trivial matter.
After all, in these times, Jianghu vendettas were rampant, and a few deaths were nothing unusual.
Especially since those who died were just a bunch of background-less, identity-less thugs, no one paid attention.
Only then did Zhao Ya feel at ease.
In the evening, as expected, Tan Dong called Zhao Ya. The two grabbed a bite outside, then disguised themselves, covering their faces with black cloths, and headed to the Ghost Market in the south of the city.
Upon arrival, it was still early, with only a few sparse stalls around, displaying some bizarre animal meats.
"These are all fake, mostly made from wild chicken or dog meat, fooling inexperienced saps. Eating them would only give you diarrhea, with no real effect," Tan Dong explained.
Zhao Ya nodded and then shifted his gaze from the stall displaying a corpse resembling a flood dragon.
Their imaginations were rich indeed!
Daring to openly sell flood dragon meat like this?
As the night deepened, more stalls finally appeared.
Tan Dong led Zhao Ya on a circuit around the market, eventually stopping at a particular stall.
The stall displayed the same Earthworm Dried Meat that Tan Dong had once given to Zhao Ya.
The vendor, wearing a mask, did not greet the customers.
"What's today's price?" Tan Dong asked.
The vendor held up three fingers.
Tan Dong frowned, "It's more expensive again?"