Chapter 60: Wind and Cloud Inn
Ye Xing sized up the little beggar on the ground. He was a boy of about fourteen or fifteen, dressed in thin, tattered clothes. His body was all skin and bones, and his face was sallow and gaunt. He was clearly suffering from severe malnutrition due to long-term starvation.
’If one could live a stable life, who would choose to wander adrift?’ This sentence floated into Ye Xing’s mind. It was obvious the little beggar had been starving for a long time; if he hadn’t stolen the bun, he probably would have starved to death. Even after stealing just one bun, he was nearly beaten to death. This kind of thing was commonplace on the Martial Arts Continent. Here, there were the rich, but also many orphans and beggars. This little beggar was truly pitiful. A trace of pity stirred in Ye Xing’s heart, and he immediately took out five Silver Coins from his bundle and handed them to the boy.
"Thank you, thank you, big brother." The little beggar clutched his injured right arm and climbed up from the ground, his voice full of gratitude. His face, body, and arms were covered in red and swollen bruises.
"It was nothing, no need to be so polite. Take the money and go to a clinic to get your injuries looked at," Ye Xing said.
"It’s fine, they’re just surface wounds. They’ll be better in a few days. My name is Lu Xiaoyu. Thank you for saving my life, Benefactor," the little beggar said.
"Haha, how could you call that saving your life?" Ye Xing said with an amused laugh.
"It’s true. You’re very generous, Benefactor. These five Silver Coins are enough for us to buy steamed buns for a long time. In the past two days, several of my friends at the temple have fainted from hunger. If we don’t find something to eat soon, I’m afraid we’ll starve to death," the little beggar said very seriously. "I will never forget your great kindness for the rest of my life."
"Then you should hurry and buy something to eat," Ye Xing said.
"Yes. Then I’ll be on my way." The little beggar immediately limped away toward the end of the street.
Ye Xing shook his head, then turned and walked forward as well.
The streets were bustling with crowds, a scene of immense prosperity.
’The Ten Thousand Treasures Tower auction isn’t for another three days. I should find an inn to stay at first!’ After asking a passerby for the location of an inn, Ye Xing immediately turned a corner and continued on his way.
After turning down a street, Ye Xing finally arrived in front of an inn.
’It’s actually the Wind and Cloud Inn!’ Ye Xing’s gaze shifted as he spotted a tall brocade banner standing before the inn’s entrance. On it, the four large, majestic characters for ’Wind and Cloud Inn’ billowed in the wind. The flag snapped and fluttered.
The Wind and Cloud Inn was also one of the continent’s top-tier powers, on the same level as powerful factions like the Ten Thousand Treasures Tower, Jincai Money Shop, and Beast Taming Pavilion. Powers of this level had numerous branches throughout the Martial Arts Continent, their influence spreading across the entire land. The Ten Thousand Treasures Tower primarily dealt in auctions and the sale and acquisition of all sorts of rare treasures. The Jincai Money Shop controlled terrifyingly vast wealth. The Beast Taming Pavilion, naturally, was a faction that dealt in the sale of Demon Beasts. The Wind and Cloud Inn, however, was a motley place. It often attracted all sorts of people, from every walk of life and social class. Many people were accustomed to drinking and chatting idly inside the Wind and Cloud Inn. Therefore, the Wind and Cloud Inn had the most well-informed network. The inn had a special channel for selling information. People who came to the Wind and Cloud Inn generally had one of three purposes: first, to eat; second, to lodge; and third, to buy desired information.
The inn had three floors and was decorated in a simple yet grand style.
At that moment, the inn’s main doors were open, and many people were coming and going. Among them were quite a few Martial Artists, some carrying Great Sabers on their shoulders, others with Sharp Swords at their waists.
On the plaque above the inn’s entrance were also carved the four large characters for ’Wind and Cloud Inn’. On either side was a couplet. The first line read: "From four sides, the winds rise to gather heroes." The second line read: "From eight directions, the clouds move to welcome warriors."
Just as Ye Xing reached the entrance, he heard waves of shouting and clamorous chatter from within the inn, along with the smell of alcohol and food.
Stepping into the inn, he saw that it was incredibly lively. People of the martial world sat at square tables, taking large gulps of wine and hefty bites of meat, discussing the latest strange and significant events in the martial world.
"Shopkeeper, are there any rooms available?" Ye Xing, carrying his bundle on his back and his longsword in hand, walked to the counter and asked the Shopkeeper of the Wind and Cloud Inn.
"Yes, yes, we still have several guest rooms free," the Shopkeeper said hurriedly. "We have three classes of rooms: Heaven, Earth, and Human. A Heaven-class room costs one Gold Coin per day, an Earth-class room costs ten Silver Coins per day, and a Human-class room costs one Silver Coin per day. Which type of room would you like, sir?"
"An Earth-class room will be fine. Here is the deposit and fee for ten days." Ye Xing took out his coin purse, retrieved a single Gold Coin, and handed it to the Shopkeeper.
"Right away!" The Wind and Cloud Inn’s Shopkeeper took the Gold Coin from Ye Xing’s hand. Then, from a row of bamboo racks hanging on the wall behind him, he took down a token and handed it to Ye Xing. "Sir, this is your room token! It’s Room 203 in the Earth-class section on the second floor. The key is attached to the token."
"Alright!" Ye Xing took the token and headed for the wooden stairs.
Arriving at Earth-class Room 203 on the second floor, Ye Xing immediately took out the key and opened the door.
The room was quite spacious, with a large bed, a wardrobe, a table and chairs, and other amenities; it was fully furnished. Ye Xing placed his bundle and luggage in the wardrobe, hung his sword on the wall, then locked the door and left Room 203. He planned to go down to the first floor for a late lunch.
As for whether his bundle and luggage would be stolen from the room, Ye Xing wasn’t worried in the least. The Wind and Cloud Inn was a century-old establishment, and every branch had an expert overseeing it, so there was no need to worry about security. Across all of the Wind and Cloud Inn branches on the entire Martial Arts Continent, only three thefts had occurred in the past ten years. In the end, all three master thieves had vanished from the face of the earth less than three days after their crimes. Therefore, no one dared to cause trouble inside the Wind and Cloud Inn, unless they had a death wish.
Furthermore, fighting was forbidden inside the Wind and Cloud Inn. If anyone fought and damaged even a single table or chair, they would have to pay a huge amount in compensation. The compensation was so high that the vast majority of Martial Artists couldn’t afford it.
Thus, while some Martial Artists might start a fight at the slightest disagreement in other inns, no one dared to do so in the Wind and Cloud Inn. This was the deterrent power of a major faction.
Of course, the Wind and Cloud Inn was still a clamorous place, with many Martial Artists drinking, chatting, and heartily eating meat, making for a very lively atmosphere.
Returning to the first-floor hall, Ye Xing scanned his surroundings and happened to see a table by the window. Only one person was sitting there, leaving three empty seats, so he immediately walked over.