We bear people have power

Guan Bo unwittingly became a hanger-on for a caravan called Heshun, and even after successfully entering the city, he was still somewhat confused.

"Brother, you've come to Sicklehammer City to make your fortune too, haven't you? I've seen plenty of young people like you who come here to try their luck after hearing all sorts of rumors, but being so impulsive won't do. Sicklehammer City doesn't have many rules, but they're strictly enforced. If I hadn't helped you out just now, you'd probably be locked up in jail and fed to the worms." The man in the long robe who had helped Guan Bo deceive the gatekeeper said warmly to Guan Bo.

"Thank you for your help. May I ask the shopkeeper's name?" Guan Bo replied politely.

Judging from his attire, this man seems to be the manager of a caravan; addressing him as "Manager" would be appropriate.

"Hehe, no need to be polite. Everyone has their share of troubles when they're out in the world. We business people believe in making money through harmony, and doing a good deed every day is also a way to accumulate merit. I'm the manager of the Heshun caravan, you can call me Lao Liu or Manager Liu."

"Manager Liu, I am Guan Bo. I've come from out of town hoping to try my luck. I wonder if Manager Liu could give me some pointers on how to make money in Sicklehammer City?" Guan Bo said directly.

This was actually a bit abrupt. Who would easily tell others how to make money? Only a naive young man would ask such a question. He was currently playing the role of a reckless young man who knew nothing, and these words made him seem even more naive, or rather, simple-minded.

Upon hearing Guan Bo's words, Manager Liu's smile widened, and he explained, "This Sickle Hammer City is practically a goldmine, with plenty of opportunities to make money. But don't rush, first follow our caravan and do some simple jobs. The wages are just small change; I'll teach you how to make big money later."

Upon hearing Manager Liu's words, Guan Bo felt that the man was plotting something bad, so he couldn't help but use his innate supernatural ability to sense the man's thoughts.

"This fool deserves to be used by me. Once this is over, he'll be the perfect scapegoat."

These words flashed through Manager Liu's mind, but his smile remained bright. Guan Bo was quite impressed by his ability to say one thing and mean another.

Just as they were about to continue trying to figure out what he was talking about, they noticed that Steward Liu had started to get busy. The Heshun caravan wasn't very large, but it still had about a hundred people and several cartloads of goods.

Now that we're in the city, the trading of various goods—some need to be settled on the spot, some need to be stored in warehouses first, and some are sold directly to the residents of Sicklehammer City—is quite complex and requires a great deal of knowledge.

Manager Liu was busy dealing with these mundane matters, and no matter how Guan Bo tried to sense things, he couldn't uncover any information. Since there was nothing urgent, Guan Bo played the role of a simple-minded and rough man, and began to help out in the caravan, albeit clumsily.

Although a bit clumsy, he was quite strong and helped a great deal. Whether the steward Liu was sincere or not, he praised Guan Bo a few times and then gave him a string of cash as a reward. This was copper coin commonly used in the Tang Dynasty, and it was also a hard currency in the Western Regions; a string of cash was definitely a considerable sum.

The more this happened, the more Guan Bo became convinced that Liu was up to something big, and the more curious he became about why this Manager Liu had "picked" him up in the caravan.

When Guan Bo returned to Sickle Hammer City, it was already dusk. So, shortly after entering the city and unloading most of the goods, the He Shun caravan began arranging lodgings.

This caravan was quite wealthy; instead of choosing a large dormitory that could accommodate dozens of people, they opted for several expensive guesthouses in Sicklehammer City as their lodgings.

Since cement was developed, Sicklehammer City began a planned transformation. Various government buildings were the first to be converted into high-rise buildings with reinforced concrete structures. Of course, the so-called steel bars were far from reaching the strength of later generations, but even if a building with no more than eight stories was constructed using bricks, there would be no safety issues.

After the government building was renovated, Sicklehammer City began to renovate the houses of its residents with cement. Sicklehammer City has plenty of open space, so old houses didn't need to be demolished; new houses were built directly on the open spaces with foundations laid.

The first people to settle in Sicklehammer City were also the lucky ones who were the first to move into these cement houses. The vacant old houses were then renovated by the discerning residents of Sicklehammer City, and then rented out entirely to these caravans.

However, these individual guesthouses are much more expensive than large dormitories where dozens of people are crammed together. This Heshun caravan actually arranged for over a hundred people to stay in ten guesthouses, which was quite expensive for just one night.

However, this action brought cheers from the Heshun caravan members, as it was a comfortable experience they had never had before.

Guan Bo and the other workers from the caravan also stayed at a guesthouse. The house wasn't big; it was originally meant to house a family of five. But it had been divided into several rooms specifically for rent, so Guan Bo's group of ten people only had two people per room, making it quite spacious.

After a long day, everyone was eager to collapse into bed, but one southerner insisted on taking a bath.

“You southerners are so strange. Aren’t you afraid of catching a cold from bathing every day?” one of the caravan’s hangers-on, with slightly blond hair, said.

Judging from his hair color, he looks like he's of mixed race. But these days, having mixed-race heritage isn't something to be proud of; in fact, it's easy to be looked down upon by Han Chinese from the Tang Dynasty.

"I'm used to it back home; I feel uncomfortable if I don't wash for a day. By the way, where's a well around here? I'll go fetch some water." He didn't mind and started looking for a bucket to fetch water.

But after searching for a long time, apart from the chamber pot used for night soiling, I couldn't find a wooden tub for bathing.

"That's strange. Don't the people of Sickle Hammer City take baths? Do they all wash in the waterways outside their houses? What about the women?" the southerner asked curiously.

"You ignorant fool, what do you think Sickle Hammer City is? If you dare to bathe in the spiritual spring waterway outside, you'll be caught and fed to insects right away. You think that's just ordinary mountain spring water? That's spiritual spring water flowing from the dragon vein, one sip can cure all diseases and prolong life!" the half-bearded man mocked.

"Really? Such a treasure, yet it's circulating everywhere. Are all the people in Sickle Hammer City fools? If I secretly fill a couple of jugs and sell them, wouldn't I be making a huge profit?" This southerner clearly didn't believe it.

"Hey, if you don't believe me, try a sip yourself. The tea on this table is brewed with spiritual spring water. As for you saying you're selling it, do you think no one has tried it? This spring water only has such miraculous effects in Sickle Hammer City. Outside of this city, it will be no different from ordinary mountain spring water in just a few days."

The southerner was skeptical; since entering the city, he had only drunk water from his own water bag. But when he picked up the teapot on the table and took a sip, his eyes lit up, and he downed the entire pot of tea in a few gulps, as if afraid someone would try to take it from him.

The sight of this embarrassing incident made everyone burst into laughter. In fact, they had all been to Sicklehammer City more than once, and when they first drank from the spiritual spring, they weren't much better off than this guy, but that didn't stop them from making fun of him for their amusement.

Guan Bo didn't agree with everyone, not because he looked down on these poor people who were unloading goods, but because he had discovered something interesting inside the house.

A wooden showerhead, and a small partition enclosed by wooden boards.

"I've only been gone a few days, and you've already set up a shower?" Guan Bo asked in surprise.