Players: All NPCs in the Sect Are Moles

Just then, an angry curse rang out from the courtyard. The "beggar" kicked over a nearby water basin. "What rotten luck! Fucking rotten luck!"

"I must’ve forgotten to check the almanac before heading out. Not only did I barely make any money, but I also had to stuff myself with dry steamed buns! I’m about to burst! If I’d known it would be like this, I would’ve just stayed home and balanced my books."

In the courtyard, the "beggar," now clad in a brocade robe, was still muttering curses.

...

On the rooftop, Lin Qingfeng watched the scene unfold below, then turned to Su Ling’er.

"See that, Junior Sister? The people who give him alms work themselves to the bone all day just to earn a few copper coins. They probably make less than he does begging on his knees for a day."

"In this mortal world, the human heart is devious. What you see on the surface is rarely the truth. As for able-bodied people who choose to live by begging... well, you should think carefully about that."

Su Ling’er fell silent. She watched the wealthy man below adjusting his robes, her mind reeling in confusion.

’A rich man... could actually swallow his pride and pretend to be a beggar? Or could it be... that he became rich *by* begging?’

It seemed her perception of the world was expanding, little by little.

Lin Qingfeng’s voice grew more solemn. "What you witnessed today is merely a petty deception. While it’s fraud, at least it doesn’t cost lives. However, your acts of seemingly kind charity can make illicit operations profitable, breeding things that are truly dark."

"Do you understand, Junior Sister?"

’So... I was the one who was truly ignorant and naive. Even though Senior Brother walks the Demonic Path, his understanding of the world’s wickedness is far more profound than that of a supposed righteous disciple like me.’

She took a deep breath and bowed her head. "I was blind. I was nearly deceived by surface appearances..."

’Sigh. It’s a miracle you’ve survived this long without being scammed into counting the money for your own kidnapper.’

Lin Qingfeng reached out and gave her a light flick on the forehead. "When you have some free time, you should go check out the west side of the city."

’The west side of the city?’ Su Ling’er’s interest was piqued. She recalled that when she was young, her family had forbidden her from going there. They said it was a dangerous place, entrenched with martial arts factions and full of unruly pugilists who did nothing but fight and kill.

’Driven by curiosity, she had once snuck over to a street corner on the west side to take a look, only to be spotted by the household steward. He had promptly hauled her back, and her father had grounded her for some time afterward.’

’For Senior Brother to mention it... could there be something happening on the west side that I’m unaware of? It seems I know far too little about the very city I grew up in...’

...

The two of them descended from the rooftop, returning to the bustling street they were on before. Lin Qingfeng opened his sect channel and saw two green dots clustered together on the regional map of Anhe City.

It was Zhang San and Li.

[Lin Qingfeng]: What are you two up to?

[Zhang San]: Guild Leader! I’m begging! Just reminiscing about the bitter past to appreciate our sweet present, you know? Remembering our old life in the Nine-Stream Sect! But begging here is decent. You don’t have to worry about your bowl getting snatched!

[Li]: I’m selling steamed buns next to him! This way, when people want to give him a bite to eat, I can make a sale. Guild Leader, you wanna come over and make it rain? It just doesn’t feel right otherwise.

A grin spread across Lin Qingfeng’s face. ’Well, well. A new game, and they’re still up to their old tricks. So much potential, I see a bright future! How could I not participate and show my support?’

So, Lin Qingfeng turned to Su Ling’er and said, "Come, Junior Sister. Let me show you how your senior brothers beg!"

He led Su Ling’er over to the spot where the previous beggar had been, only to find that two different people had taken his place.

Su Ling’er peered at them and, after a moment, recognized them as disciples of the Guixi Sect. She vaguely recalled seeing their relatively normal-looking faces during the sect’s opening ceremony.

One of the disciples, dressed in rags even more tattered than the previous beggar’s, was on the ground with a broken bowl, wailing.

"Please, spare a little something, kind people! Just a few copper coins!"

"I haven’t eaten in so many days! Please, I’m begging you!"

Meanwhile, the other disciple had set up a small stall next to him with a wooden cart piled high with fluffy white steamed buns and several jugs of fresh water.

A wooden sign next to the stall read: "Steamed Buns, Five Cents Each. Fresh Water, Two Cents."

Lin Qingfeng pointed at the scene, giving Su Ling’er a live demonstration.

"See that? Begging has to be a combo deal."

"If you’re a beggar and you run into a persistent patron like me who insists on giving you food, you’d just scare them off, right?"

"But look at this setup. Even if someone buys a steamed bun to give him, the money ends up right back in our own pockets. It’s just moving from the left hand to the right. Keeping the profits all in the family."

"You have no idea. Back in the day, begging was such a huge pain for us."

Lin Qingfeng wore an expression as if recalling a painful past he couldn’t bear to look back on.

"That stupid bowl... it was always getting stolen! If you dared to doze off for a second while begging, you’d wake up, and poof! Your meal ticket would be gone."

"In our guild... ahem, our sect, some people got themselves iron rice bowls specifically to keep them from being stolen." He gestured with his hands. "Do you have any idea how expensive a normal bowl is? An iron rice bowl is the way to go!"

Lin Qingfeng shared these amusing anecdotes from the previous game with her, a hint of nostalgia on his face.

Su Ling’er, however, was growing more and more confused.

’Speaking of which, what on earth did our sect *do* before all this? While I’ll admit your actions since we entered the city don’t exactly scream "Evil Cultivator," they’re still just so... odd!’

’And isn’t an iron rice bowl more valuable? Why would that be *less* likely to get stolen?! Hey! I thought the full-service funeral parlor was the extent of your business operations. I never imagined you once made a living by begging!’

’Besides, are we cultivators even supposed to be doing this stuff?! Shouldn’t we be focused on things like seeking justice and vanquishing evil?’

’Even for people of the Demonic Path, this seems wrong. What kind of lives did you all lead before? And how did you end up becoming... this?’

Hearing all this, Su Ling’er felt a pang of sorrow.

’So... a man as astonishingly brilliant as Senior Brother once had to worry about his shabby bowl being stolen? He even had to resort to begging just to survive?’

Looking at Lin Qingfeng, who smiled while recounting such a bitter past, Su Ling’er felt a surge of sympathy.

’So Senior Brother wasn’t born a monster. He too was once a poor soul struggling to survive in this mortal world...’

Just then, Lin Qingfeng stepped forward. He straightened his posture, instantly resuming the air of an absurdly wealthy merchant, and pulled a large pouch of money from his sleeve.

He untied the pouch, grabbed a huge handful of copper coins, and showered them over his two sect-mates.

CLATTER-CLATTER— The copper coins rained down into the disciples’ broken bowls and all over the steamed bun cart.

"Making it rain. You’re welcome."

"Everyone for me, and I for everyone."

"Thank you, great benefactor! Thank you!"

The surrounding passersby all stopped in their tracks to watch.

"What a good man!"

"Wait, I remember him. Wasn’t he the one who gave a pile of steamed buns to that other beggar just now?"

"Yes! That’s right! It was him!"

Su Ling’er: "..."

’Is Senior Brother... staying true to his roots?’

’Even now, with his peerless Cultivation and fine brocade robes, he can still reminisce about that wretched past without a trace of resentment.’

’Such open-heartedness, such ease in facing his past... Could this be the nature of Senior Brother’s Dao Heart?’

’Although... she had to admit, the act of throwing money around still made him look like a member of the nouveau riche, and she still found the whole begging thing a bit humiliating...’

...she no longer dared to jump to any easy conclusions.