A Skill to Call One's Own

The autumn air was crisp, and the weather fair.

Jiang Yun Prefecture lay in the south of Great Wei, where the climate was warm—warmer than in the other prefectures.

Even with winter approaching, many pedestrians on the roads still wore short sleeves and shorts.

Afternoon.

Pedestrians streamed back and forth through Songyi City.

Hundred Tastes Street was one of Songyi City's most prosperous districts.

It gathered delicacies from every major prefecture of Great Wei and claimed that one could taste a hundred flavors of the world here.

That was why it was called Hundred Tastes Street.

"Good!"

"Wonderful!"

Thunderous cheers erupted within Bi Dan Teahouse.

On the Storytelling Platform, the young storyteller spoke in a measured, captivating cadence.

"Night had fallen deep, and all sounds lay hushed.

Just as Ning Caichen was about to fall asleep, he sensed someone entering his room.

He hurriedly sat up. When he saw who it was, he was stunned—it was the pretty young woman from the household in the north courtyard. He vaguely remembered that her name was Xiaoqian.

Ning Caichen asked in surprise, 'How did this young lady come to this humble scholar's room?'

Xiaoqian gave a bewitching smile..."

"..."

Smack!

With a strike of the wooden clapper, the storyteller concluded the day's tale. "To know what happens next, listen in next time!"

"Ah!"

"That's it?"

"No way, it was just getting good!"

"Young sir, tell us another segment! It's still early!"

The patrons throughout the teahouse spoke up, saying they had not heard nearly enough.

Behind the Storytelling Platform stood a scholarly youth of sixteen or seventeen.

The youth had decent features, though his skin was somewhat dark, and he looked rather thin and frail.

Dressed in a blue shirt and bearing the air of a scholar, he exuded youthful literary spirit.

"No, no. If I keep going, my throat won't hold up."

Lin Zheyu waved his hand as he spoke.

His voice was somewhat hoarse. After speaking for more than two hours, his throat could barely endure any longer.

"What am I supposed to do now? I won't be able to sleep tonight."

"That young sir is too cruel, stopping right here of all places."

Amid the patrons' reluctant cries, the youth cupped his hands in salute and stepped down from the platform.

"Young sir, you are truly gifted. To think you could write such a fragrant and sensual tale—even someone my age cannot help but yearn for it after listening."

The teahouse manager said with a smile.

The manager's name was Wu Yinghe. He was a plump middle-aged man who wore the look of a smiling Buddha all day long.

"You flatter me. I'm only scraping together a living."

Lin Zheyu waved his hand and accepted the silver coins the manager handed over.

"These one hundred and thirty-eight copper coins are tips from the guests, and these one hundred coins are today's wages."

"Seeing how hard you worked, I raised your pay a little." Manager Wu Yinghe said with a smile.

More than ten days ago, Lin Zheyu had recommended himself as a storyteller, saying that if he did not tell the story well, he would not take any money.

At first, Wu Yinghe had been rather unwilling.

After all, Lin Zheyu was too young and lacked life experience. No matter how one looked at him, he did not seem capable of telling a good story.

However, Wu Yinghe was kindhearted. Seeing Lin Zheyu's miserable appearance and his refined manner of speech and conduct, knowing he was a scholar, Wu Yinghe had allowed him to give it a try.

After all, if he was no good, he would not be paid.

Unexpectedly, though the youth's storytelling skills were merely average, his stories were extraordinarily captivating.

Ever since Lin Zheyu had begun telling stories here, more and more tea patrons had come by reputation, drawn by his excellent tales.

The teahouse's business had grown more and more prosperous.

"Thank you, Manager."

Lin Zheyu left Bi Dan Teahouse and walked along Hundred Tastes Street.

Delicacies lined both sides of the street in dazzling abundance. Their fragrances seeped into his nose, making Lin Zheyu's index finger twitch with appetite.

It had been over a month since he came to this world, and he had already adapted to life here.

Whenever he recalled the miserable days when he had first arrived in this world, Lin Zheyu still felt lingering fear.

The city where the original owner had lived was conquered by the Rebel Army. His family had been wealthy merchants of Jiu Nan City, and after receiving advance word, they had relocated together.

Yet they still could not escape disaster.

On the road to the Central Plains, they encountered bandits, and the original owner was separated from his parents and relatives.

After wandering about for many days, mixed in with the refugees, he arrived in Songyi City.

Not long after arriving in Songyi City, the original owner could no longer hold on, and Lin Zheyu took over his body.

When he had first arrived, Lin Zheyu's stomach was full of dirt, tree bark, and weeds. He suffered for days without being able to relieve himself.

It was not until one day, when he drank dirty water and came down with diarrhea, that he felt somewhat better.

Even so, he had nearly lost his life because of it.

"I really have to thank Miss Ren Qingying of the Ren Residence. Without the thin porridge she gave out, I probably would have kicked the bucket right after being reborn."

Lin Zheyu sighed with feeling.

The Ren Family was a famous clan in Songyi City. Ren Qingying was beautiful and kindhearted, a living bodhisattva in the eyes of many refugees.

If they had not repeatedly cooked porridge outside the city to provide relief, Lin Zheyu certainly would not have survived.

"It smells so good!"

Walking down the street, Lin Zheyu sniffed the air, and his stomach rumbled.

He felt the money in his pocket and suppressed the urge to buy something.

He had only just saved up a little money. He could not squander it carelessly.

In this world, aside from storytelling, Lin Zheyu could not find any good way to earn money.

Originally, full of lofty ambition, he had thought he could rely on the thinking and knowledge from his previous life to make a name for himself in this world.

But reality's cruelty quickly woke him from that dream.

After several attempts, Lin Zheyu discovered that he could do nothing at all.

Fortunately, he had loved listening to Old Guo's storytelling in his previous life. Through constant exposure, he had picked up a few rudimentary insights.

In the end, relying on stories from his previous life, he managed to get himself a job as a storyteller.

His storytelling technique was average, but his facial expressions and ability to convey emotion were excellent, and his stories were excellent.

All in all, he did fairly well and managed to scrape together a living.

"I've saved a little over one tael of silver now. I wonder if that's enough to learn a martial art."

"These times are too chaotic. Without clan or kin at my side, it's all too easy for a lone man to be bullied."

Lin Zheyu tightened his grip on the silver in his pocket.

He had been robbed several times already.

Because he was alone with no relatives to rely on, he had suffered no small amount since coming to this world.

Even if he reported it to the authorities, the government office had countless matters to deal with. How could they bother over such a trivial matter involving Lin Zheyu?

Fortunately, in these chaotic times, he was not entirely without something to rely on.

Lin Zheyu looked at the data within his consciousness. This thing had existed ever since he came to this world.

Heaven Rewards Diligence

Name: Lin Zheyu

Source Power: 1

Skills: None

It had appeared in his mind after he came to this world.

As long as Lin Zheyu worked hard enough, every time he trained his body and pushed past its limits, he could gain one unit of Source Power.

Source Power could be used to improve skills.

He had tried it once a few days ago. After pushing past his body's limits that time, his entire body had ached for a week before he recovered.

"Ordinary training movements don't count as skills. I wonder whether Martial Arts in this world count."

Lin Zheyu thought to himself.

The level of force in this world was formidable.

Before Jiu Nan City was taken by the Rebel Army, the original owner's family had kept quite a few martial artists. Those with formidable strength could take on ten men alone without difficulty.

Unfortunately, the original owner had been a frail scholar who cared only about earning scholarly honors and had not learned the slightest martial art.

After crossing Hundred Tastes Street,

Lin Zheyu traveled several more li. Passing the Square, turning through streets and alleys, he arrived at the far more run-down Bai Shan District.

This place was far from Songyi City's central area. It belonged to the Outer City, and only the poor lived here.

Having just arrived and lacking enough silver, Lin Zheyu could only rent a small room here as a temporary measure.

Fortunately, his storytelling had gradually begun to take off, and he had saved quite a bit of silver. It was time to move into the city.

"It reeks."

Pinching his nose, Lin Zheyu could barely stand the smell of Bai Shan District.

The stench of sweat, urine, feces, fermenting garbage, and more mingled together, brewing into a nauseating, foul odor.