boyutpedia Chapter 226 1 Laugh's Encounter
Chapter 226 1 Laugh's Encounter
Chapter 226: Yixiao's Encounter
The next morning!
Guaou! Guaou!
Countless messenger gulls appear across the oceans around the world, each carrying a large quantity of newspapers printed with the latest breaking news.
On an unnamed island, there was a sparsely populated market town with a narrow street running north to south, lined with low houses built of mud bricks. Scattered along the street were a few hunters selling fruit and food.
Almost no one walking on the street stopped at the hunters' stalls selling their wares; their faces appeared dull and lifeless.
Guaou! Guaou!
Splash!
Just then, the cries of news-distributing seagulls suddenly echoed from the sky, followed by a flurry of newspapers being generously scattered by them. The news-distributing seagulls' orders were to spread this news across the ocean at all costs.
Newspapers rained down from the sky like a shower of petals, a truly spectacular sight. However, almost no one on the street paid any attention to the newspapers falling beside them, continuing their aimless walks.
Snapped!
A newspaper landed squarely on a fruit stand. The slight noise attracted the attention of the vendor, but when he looked up and saw no one at his stall, he looked down again. The vendors largely ignored the newspaper now spread out on their fruit stand.
Tap! Tap! Tap!
Just then, a series of sounds, like the thumping of a white cane on the ground, rang out from afar, drawing the fruit stall owner's attention. His face instantly lit up with a smile.
"Sir, how much fruit would you like? My fruit is big, sweet, and juicy—I guarantee you'll be satisfied!"
It was as if it were a set of familiar phrases, fluently uttered by the fruit stall owner, who then looked at the customer in front of him with anticipation.
At that moment, the fruit stall owner finally saw the person clearly: an elderly man who was blind.
"Shopkeeper, I have a favor to ask. Could you please read this newspaper to me?"
The blind old man smiled, pointed to the newspaper covering the fruit, and spoke calmly to the fruit stall owner.
"Huh? You didn't come here to buy fruit? Go away, what are you doing here if you're not buying fruit? If you want to read the newspaper, take it and go read it somewhere else. Don't interrupt my business!"
Upon hearing the blind old man's words, the fruit stall owner's smile vanished instantly, replaced by a look of disgust and disdain.
As he spoke, he waved to the blind old man, but then a look of helplessness appeared on his face as if he had remembered something.
Snapped!
The fruit stand owner suddenly emerged from behind his stall, grabbed the newspaper from the fruit, shoved it into the blind old man's arms, and then forcefully pushed it away.
"Here you go! This newspaper is for you. Hurry up and get out of here, don't stand here and delay your business!"
Da da da!
The blind elderly man was shoved and pushed back several steps by the fruit stall owner, his white cane frantically jabbing at the ground.
"Ugh!"
Sensing the fruit stall owner's obvious intention to drive him away, the blind old man sighed softly, clutching the newspaper in his hand.
Tap! Tap!
Snapped!
"Huh? Why are you grabbing me?"
Just then, a pedestrian happened to pass by the blind old man, but the old man grabbed him. The pedestrian asked with a puzzled look on his face.
"Young man, I have a favor to ask. Could you please read this newspaper article to me? Ahem, of course, I will reward you handsomely!"
The blind old man said almost the same words to the passersby, except that he added a heartfelt thank you at the end.
"Ok?"
The pedestrian first glanced down at the newspaper in the blind old man's hand, then at the old man's white eyes, and then remained still, but did not leave.
"Hehehe! I was being presumptuous!"
The blind old man sensed the unusual atmosphere around him, and then seemed to understand something. He first handed the newspaper to the passerby, then reached into his pocket and pulled out a hundred-yuan bill.
When the passerby saw the banknote in the blind old man's hand, his eyes lit up instantly, and he reached out to take it, but the old man dodged him.
"Hehehe! Could you please read the contents of the newspaper to this young man? Consider this money as payment."
The blind old man's face remained smiling as he spoke calmly, though a hint of helplessness crept into his tone.
"You... alright, alright, I'll tell you what's in the newspaper, but don't try to back out!"
The pedestrian's face was filled with longing for money, but when he unfolded the newspaper and held it in front of him, he immediately stopped, because he realized he couldn't read.
"This...this..."
"Bro?"
"Oh dear, sir, the fellow you've found is illiterate. How about I read it to you?"
Just then, the fruit stall owner strode up, glanced at the banknotes in the blind old man's hand, and then, while speaking, reached out to snatch the newspaper from the passerby's hand.
"You bastard, what are you doing? This is my business, get the hell out of my way!"
At this point, the pedestrians understood perfectly well that the fruit stall owner was trying to steal their business, and they immediately flew into a rage, raising their hands to strike the fruit stall owner.
boom!
"Ouch! You dare hit me? I'll fight you to the death today!"
The fruit stall owner, not one to back down, turned around, pulled a fruit knife from his stall, and began shouting as he stabbed the pedestrian.
Immediately, the two began to fight back and forth. At this moment, the blind old man standing to the side had lost his smile, and his expression became serious.
boom!
Suddenly, the blind old man raised his cane and tapped the ground. Instantly, a powerful pressure emanated from the ground, startling everyone around. Even the two people fighting in front of him stopped, staring at the old man in shock.
"Gentlemen, I only want to know the contents of this newspaper, why are you all doing this? Whoever can tell me, that's all I need!"
Snapped!
Just as the blind old man finished speaking, and before the onlookers could react, the fruit stall owner grabbed a newspaper from the ground and began reading aloud.
"In the year 1522 of the Sea Calendar, the legendary pirate Shiki the Golden Lion appeared in the Calm Belt, the first half of the Grand Line, adjacent to the East Blue. Dozens of islands floating in the air were home to countless ferocious beasts that had been enlarged by drugs. According to reliable sources, Shiki the Golden Lion wants to use these islands to rule the seas!"
"However, the great pirate Shiki's ambition to rule the world was shattered last night by the chivalrous Mu Chong, who had a bounty of one billion Berries! The clash between the new generation and the old generation's powerhouses ultimately ended with the fall of the old era, which can be described as..."
"That's it!"
Just as the fruit stall owner was about to continue reading with great emotion, the blind old man suddenly interrupted him!
The old man then handed the banknotes to the fruit stand owner without saying a word, turned and left! Leaving behind a bewildered crowd and a young pedestrian with a face full of anger.
Tap! Tap! Tap!
The blind old man, leaning on his cane, walked forward slowly and calmly, seemingly without emotion, but the smile on his face revealed his true feelings.
"Hehehe! Brother Mu, Brother Mu! Your growth has truly surprised this old man! First you repelled Marine Admiral Kizaru, and now you've brought down the great pirate Shiki the Golden Lion. Amazing!"
The "Little Brother Mu" mentioned by the blind old man is Mu Chong from the big news, and the blind old man is Yi Xiao, who has been teaching Mu Chong for more than two years.
"Hehehe! The first half of the Grand Line? The Calm Belt adjacent to the East China Sea? Brother Mu is heading east, where is he going? I really look forward to meeting Brother Mu!"
With a smile and a gaze fixed on the distance, newspapers carrying major news have appeared in every corner of this vast sea.