Chapter 1141: The Pearl Farmer

As soon as those people ran, the crowd quickly dispersed in a flurry of speculation, and Han Jing could still hear some murmurs of meddlesome gossip from afar.

The young woman immediately knelt down, thanking Han Jing, “Thank you, Sister, thank you, today if it weren’t for you, A zhu might have…”

The elderly man, although badly beaten, tried valiantly to express his gratitude to Han Jing. Han Jing hurried forward to help him up, saying, “Old man, don’t thank me. I realize that instead of helping you, I’ve caused you trouble. So let’s skip the pleasantries and tell me what’s going on. Since I’ve gotten involved, I’ll do my best to help you resolve the problem.”

A zhu and the old grandfather were deeply moved and expressed their gratitude to Han Jing once more.

Upon hearing the girl’s name as A zhu, Xia Wu couldn’t help but be reminded of Zhu’er, even though he didn’t know which Zhu it was. He also stepped forward to help the elderly man, saying, “Don’t worry, we’ll definitely try our best to help.”

The old man thanked them and led them back to his stall. Behind it was a cool pavilion where he ushered them inside to sit.

Han Jing instructed Lan Ling to continue playing with Xiao Xue while she and Xia Wu stayed behind to understand what was happening.

As it turned out, the old man’s surname was Zhu, and he was somewhat notable in Lingzhu Village. However, all these pearl farmers were essentially laborers, and these Cloud Spirit Pearls had nothing to do with them.

What he said was understandable to Xia Wu, because apart from Yunzhu Island being somewhat special, other islands had spiritual ore pits, which also required laborers to mine the ore. These miners generally lacked survival skills and could only rely on labor to make a living.

Similarly, these pearl farmers on Lingzhu Island also had to rely on farming and harvesting, and the pearls wouldn’t grow themselves. The majority of Yunzhu Island’s area was Lingzhu Lake. To sustain themselves, those lacking power and prowess were forced into labor.

Comparatively, these pearl farmers were slightly better off than the miners on other islands.

Although Lingzhu Lake was rich in Cloud Spirit Pearls, it also harbored man-eating creatures — crocodiles. Thus, the pearl farmers had to be cautious to avoid being devoured, while simultaneously finding ways to farm pearls and harvest oysters. Grandpa Zhu’s son and daughter-in-law were unfortunate victims of the lake, and with his wife having passed away early, the grandfather and his granddaughter had only each other to depend on.

Luckily, Grandpa Zhu possessed a discerning eye and had unearthed many high-quality Cloud Spirit Pearls, making their life bearable.

The marketplace inevitably involved competition. Despite the street’s small size, every stall had a patron behind it, and these patrons held interconnected relationships throughout Yunzhu Island. With competition, murky tactics were unavoidable.

The incident began when someone coveted Grandpa Zhu’s discerning eye and attempted to lure him away. But Grandpa Zhu was an honest man, incapable of betraying his patron. Consequently, they plotted against him. Initially, they devised ways to falsely accuse him, making him owe money he couldn’t repay, and then targeted his granddaughter Little A Zhu, all in a bid to compel Grandpa Zhu to comply obediently.