I Start with a Mysterious Island

Chapter 420: Chapter 302: It’s Human Nature to Sympathize with the Weak

Then, the bushy-bearded man, who was the leader, spoke to the carter.

"My brother is seriously injured. We need to find a good clinic to treat him, and it’s going to cost at least this much. And I’m already asking for less than we need..."

"But I really can’t afford that much for treatment! My family’s entire savings is fifteen thousand Copper Coins, at most. Even if I sell our few acres of poor land and everything else of value, it would only be forty thousand Copper Coins," the carter said, his face a mask of misery.

When the bushy-bearded man and his lackeys heard the carter could come up with forty thousand Copper Coins at most, their eyes lit up. They then exchanged a subtle glance.

Then, the bushy-bearded man said to the carter, "Fine! Forty thousand Copper Coins it is. As for the remaining five thousand, we brothers will cover it for you."

"I..." Hearing this, the carter opened his mouth, then closed it again.

"What? You’re not willing to pay just forty thousand Copper Coins while we cover the rest?"

"If I give you all forty thousand Copper Coins, I’ll lose my home. My wife and children will starve to death..."

"That’s not our problem. You can figure out what to do afterward on your own.

After all, you knocked my brother half to death. If you don’t scrape together the money for his treatment, he could die..." a burly, cold-faced man said.

"..." The carter fell silent.

The bushy-bearded man and his lackeys exchanged another glance, after which he said,

"Sigh, fine! We won’t make it hard for you. I don’t want your family to starve because of this medical bill either...

How about this? Just give us thirty thousand Copper Coins. We’ll figure out the rest ourselves.

If you still don’t agree, then my only choice is to take you to the magistrate’s office. And once we’re there, the treatment fee you’ll have to pay won’t be just thirty thousand Copper Coins."

"Don’t take me to the magistrate’s office! I’ll give you the thirty thousand Copper Coins." Seeing the bushy-bearded man lower the price by another ten thousand, the carter’s resolve wavered. Coupled with the threat of the magistrate’s office, he immediately agreed.

"You guys take Liu to the clinic for treatment first. I’ll go with this man to his house to get the money..." the bushy-bearded man said to his lackeys. They nodded and turned toward their companion, who was lying motionless on the ground.

The instant his lackeys turned around, the angry expressions on their faces vanished, replaced by smug smirks.

The carter looked utterly defeated, as if he had aged several years in a moment. The bushy-bearded man following him, however, was in high spirits.

When they reached the carriage, the carter was about to explain the situation to Lin Li, tell him he wouldn’t charge a fare, and ask him to find another ride.

But just then, Lin Li, who was standing on the carriage with his arms crossed, suddenly let out a cold laugh.

"Tsk... Who would’ve thought? So this world has people who run extortion scams too."

With that, he leaped down from the carriage.

"Huh?" The defeated-looking carter was stunned when he heard Lin Li’s words. "An extortion scam?!!!"

Lin Li looked at the dumbfounded carter and, ignoring the bushy-bearded man’s darkening expression, continued.

"That’s right, an extortion scam. Believe it or not, if I go over and check on that guy you supposedly knocked half to death, I can make him jump right up, alive and well."

The carter glanced at Lin Li, then at the grim-faced, bushy-bearded man behind him. He quickly scurried over to Lin Li’s side and asked nervously in a low voice, "Sir, are these people really running a scam?"

"Mm," Lin Li nodded with absolute certainty, looking with disdain at the bushy-bearded man and his lackeys, who had turned back to glare at him.

Seeing Lin Li’s confidence, the carter’s own courage grew. He said to Lin Li, "Sir, could I trouble you to make that man get up, then?"

Just as the carter was asking Lin Li to help make the man—the one who’d been sent flying and now lay motionless on the ground looking half-dead—get up, the bushy-bearded man’s four lackeys exploded, shouting angrily at Lin Li.

"Who the hell are you? Sticking your nose where it doesn’t belong?"

"Kid, there are people in this world you can’t afford to provoke."

"Didn’t your parents ever teach you? Don’t be a busybody when you’re away from home."

"Scram, now! Or you’ll regret it."

The carter had still harbored a sliver of doubt about what Lin Li said. But now, hearing the bushy-bearded man’s four lackeys furiously cursing Lin Li, his suspicions were completely dispelled.

If these men were to ask him for treatment money now, the carter wouldn’t pay a single coin.

As his four lackeys hurled abuse at Lin Li, the bushy-bearded man cursed inwardly. ’This is bad.’ He glanced at the change in the carter’s expression and knew this situation had just gotten a lot harder.

’If there weren’t so many people watching, I’d give those four a real tongue-lashing.’

"Didn’t you say he was seriously injured in the accident and is unconscious? If that’s the case, what’s the harm in letting me take a look? There’s no need to get so worked up," Lin Li said with a smile to the four flustered lackeys.

The surrounding crowd of onlookers began to murmur, pointing at the bushy-bearded man and his group.

"I thought it was just an accident! But looking at it now, it really might be an extortion scam."

The crowd’s whispers reached the ears of the bushy-bearded man’s group, causing their expressions to turn ugly.

"Boss, what do we do now?" one of the burly men asked, sidling up to the bushy-bearded man and whispering.

"What else can we do? We have to bite the bullet and let him check. If we don’t let this busybody take a look now, it’ll just confirm we’re running a scam.

But don’t worry. As long as Liu plays dead and doesn’t move, we still have the upper hand," the bushy-bearded man whispered back.

The lackeys had been thinking their scam was about to fail.

But hearing their boss say this, it seemed the situation wasn’t completely out of control. Their eyes lit up, and they spoke to Lin Li with renewed arrogance.

"Kid, since you want to check on our brother, go ahead! But if he’s not like you say he is, we won’t let you off easy."

After speaking, the four incredibly arrogant lackeys cracked their knuckles, producing a series of sharp CRACKS.

The meaning was obvious. If Lin Li checked the man on the ground and he remained unconscious, they were going to teach him a lesson.

"Sir." The carter, at his core, was a simple, honest farmer. Seeing these fierce-looking brutes acting like they were about to beat someone up, he grew fearful and called out to Lin Li in a panic.

"It’s fine, don’t be afraid. With scammers like these, you can’t show any fear... The more timid you act, the more arrogant and smug they become."

Lin Li ignored the malicious threats from the brutes before him, calmly reassuring the panicked carter.

The bushy-bearded man didn’t threaten Lin Li like his lackeys had. Hearing Lin Li’s words of reassurance to the carter, his gloomy eyes narrowed, a cold glint flashing within them.

"This young man is really brave! I hope he’ll be okay."

"Sigh, I doubt it. Those guys are so confident. I have a bad feeling about how this will turn out for the young man."

"Those men are built like brick walls. Their arms are thicker than this kid’s legs. If he checks and it’s not like he said, he’s definitely going to get a beating. He’ll probably be laid up at home for a couple of weeks."

It’s human nature to sympathize with the underdog.

In the eyes of the onlookers, Lin Li, who was far from muscular, was clearly the weaker party compared to the five burly men. So, naturally, everyone began to worry about him.

......