Realms In The Firmament

Ye Xiao sighed and said, “Ning, even though you have to observe that… assassination ethics, you can always ask for help from your friends, right? Let’s assume that there are 20 thousand people and five thousand are crippled. Including residence, medicine, food, it should be no more than fifty thousand taels of silver per month. Am I right?”

Twenty thousand people, fifty thousand taels, that meant two and a half taels for one person. It didn’t sound expensive though. The price of commodities in the Land of Han-Yang wasn’t high. Normally, a family of four would need no more than ten taels per month. That was no more than three taels per person. Ye Xiao made it two and a half per person. It was more than enough for those people.

Ning Biluo was quiet for a while before he said, “Basically they were just like normal people, but many of them need special care. Some of them need medicines all year. The cost of the medicine is already huge. In fact, two hundred thousand would be just enough.”

“Two hundred thousand? Well it is not that much. Two hundred thousand per month; about three million a year and thirty million for ten years…” Ye Xiao coughed. He realized that it might not be a huge number for himself.

However, it was really quite a heavy burden for an assassin who killed for living. Ning Biluo also needed money for their cultivation…

It was truly too much of a burden for him!

To make it clearer, try to understand it this way. One tael of silver was equal to a thousand copperplates. One copperplate was more or less like one yuan, so one tael silver was equal to a thousand yuan. A hundred taels meant a hundred thousand yuan. Ten thousand taels meant ten million. Two hundred thousand taels per month meant two hundred million yuan every month!

That was the number to feed those people.

That was about three billion yuan per year.

Maybe he could make it for the first year, but what about ten years later?

Like Ning Biluo said, to carry on till death, how much was that? What a huge number would it be?

In fact, it was an unbearable burden, no matter it was on whom. For Ye Xiao, it might not be a big problem for him to spend dozens of million for now, maybe even billion would be nothing serious, but that was because he had just earned a lot from the auction.

Several months earlier when he was just reborn, he had worried about just dozens of taels. Times have truly changed!

“Ning, I can solve your problem. I have quite a lot of money right now…” Ye Xiao seriously said.

He really wanted to help him. Ning Biluo was a good man. Even if he couldn’t return the favor, Ye Xiao would be happy to do it. It was a good thing to do after all.

Ning Biluo was quiet again as he said, “Lord Ye, you saved my life twice. I cannot return the favor already. If you help me again, I truly cannot owe it anymore.

“A favor is always most difficult to return. I owe them a huge one already. Do you want me to owe more to you?”

Ning Biluo said with a smile, “I don’t think I can accept any help from others now. I would rather earn some money by myself.”

Ye Xiao solemnly spoke, “Indeed, it is difficult to return a favor. However, have you ever thought what would happen to them after you die? You said you will take the responsibility until you don’t need to. Maybe you know it, or maybe you don’t. There are two aspects on your words. If you can return the favor before you die, it will be a wonderful thing. But if you cannot, if the one you should return the favor to is still alive while you are already dead, what then? Do you want to take the responsibility to your next life?”

Ning Biluo’s face turned dark. He was silent.

Ye Xiao’s words were harsh and cruel.

However, it was a problem Ning Biluo had to face sooner or later.

Ning Biluo was known as the No. 1 Assassin in the world. It was no doubt. However, even the No. 1 Assassin would die. If Ye Xiao didn’t save him, he would have already died twice.

[If I die, how do I take the responsibility I promised that I would?

What will happen to those people?

Most of them are ill and disabled. They cannot feed themselves.

If I die, what happens to them?

Will they die with disease? Die starving? Die in misfortune?

No matter how they will die, they die because of my death They die with sorrow!]

“So, you shouldn’t turn me down. I don’t ask anything in return anyway,” Ye Xiao seriously said.

“You…” Ning Biluo looked up at Ye Xiao. He wanted to say that what he was afraid of the most was that Ye Xiao never asked for anything in return.

[It will make me feel I am in debt forever.

You never ask anything back in return. That is a huge burden on me. Why can’t you just want something from me!]

Ye Xiao waved his hand and said, “Alright, alright. Don’t look at me like that. I don’t like it. Look, Ning. Let me hire you. I will pay you for what you will do for me. I hire you to help me solve my problem now. That makes us have an employment relationship. How does it sound?”

And then he bitterly laughed. “I believe you clearly know what situation I am in. We are on the edge now, and I am pulling you in with us this time. You may lose your life because of it. Let’s just say, I ask it as a return of the favor I did for you!”

He waved his hand to stop Ning Biluo while he wanted to say something. He said, “Let’s try to deal with the situation this time. If we fail, what does all the money mean to me? Let me give you some before everything ends. You can take care of those people on your side first. At least you wouldn’t need to worry about them anymore. You don’t need to take that burden with you to your next life. Even though you don’t take it now, if we die in this disturbance, my money will be taken by others. It is better you get it than others do… Wouldn’t you agree?”

Ning Biluo heard it. He thought it was reasonable. He owed Ye Xiao two life-saving favors after all. It made no difference to owe him more anyway. If he could take care of those people that he had to, he could just hand over his life to Ye Xiao. No matter what, his life was saved, so his life was given. That was fair.

…