Small Group

After Feng Xiao left, he left a group of laborers to practice on the spot.

At this time, Fatty Wang walked over, glanced sideways, and said:

"Have you memorized it clearly? You only have this half-hour of free time each day. After practicing, you go to work, don't delay important matters."

He didn't have much hope for these laborers to achieve anything.

Look at what they ate every day?

Where would they have the extra energy to refine and clear their meridian bottlenecks?

However, this was a matter for the higher-ups to discuss, and he didn't dare to comment privately.

Watching Fatty Wang walk into the kitchen, the laborers' eyes became even more determined. Their relaxed emotions tensed up again.

Xu Yuan recalled the movements and slowly practiced and consolidated them. When they were almost in place, he thought about performing the entire set.

Unexpectedly, at this moment.

A thin laborer walked over, his face showing the shrewdness of a market vendor, and he said with a fawning smile:

"Brother, my name is Chen Sanli. How about we practice together?"

Xu Yuan was stunned. He looked up in other directions.

Seeing that the laborers and maids who had performed on stage earlier were surrounded by many people, he immediately understood.

He shook his head and said to himself:

"I'm sorry, my mind is a bit slow. I haven't fully grasped the movements Master Feng taught earlier, so I won't mislead you."

Chen Sanli wanted to say something more, but he saw Xu Yuan had already moved to another corner, clearly not wanting to team up with him.

He touched his nose, his smile undiminished. Anyway, he was just trying his luck.

After all, time was tight, and being more proficient was always good.

Xu Yuan watched the other person leave, his mind clear. In his previous life, his family was poor. During the holidays, he had done many jobs like sales. He had seen all kinds of people.

That person spoke nicely, saying they would practice together, but only a few of them had performed on stage. Wouldn't he be giving individual guidance then?

His calculations were obvious. There was no friendship or benefit involved, and he just wanted to waste others' time teaching him.

Not to mention.

If he didn't practice well in the end, who would he blame?

For laborers, this was an opportunity that could change their fate. The consequences of any mistakes would not be good.

After Xu Yuan practiced a few moves, two more people came, saying they wanted to give him money to guide them, but he turned them all away.

The reason was naturally his fear of taking risks for such a small amount of money.

"Brother, my name is Li Shan. What should I call you?"

Suddenly, a rather sturdy laborer walked over with a simple and honest smile.

Seeing that the other person had also performed on stage, Xu Yuan nodded and introduced himself: "Xu Yuan."

"Brother Xu, Master Feng teaches too quickly, and there are always some places that are not very familiar. How about we verify with each other?"

"That's right. We are now the people who understand the staked practice the most, so we should naturally integrate it."

The maid also quietly squeezed in, her voice crisp. After speaking, she bowed, revealing a slightly delicate face.

"My name is Sun Rong. I hope the two young brothers can guide me."

Xu Yuan raised his eyebrows and pondered for a moment. He felt that this way was actually quite good. He also had some unclear points, so he agreed:

"Alright, let's team up and practice together."

The three formed a small group and practiced with great spirit.

In fact, when it came to practicing, Xu Yuan didn't have much to help with. The two of them had already received guidance on stage and only had a few places they didn't remember clearly. After a few pointers, they practiced on their own.

However, it did play a complementary role.

And outside of the three of them.

Many laborers and maids were also watching and learning. Xu Yuan had nothing to hide, and he couldn't practice with his door closed.

But unless their talent was extraordinary.

Imitating from afar was naturally not as effective as Feng Xiao personally identifying and correcting mistakes.

During the process, some people bravely came forward to ask questions, but Xu Yuan and Sun Rong ignored them.

If you think this book is good, remember to add it to your bookshelf to avoid losing it next time.

Only Li Shan generously went over and pointed out the mistakes of each person one by one.

Seeing that someone could teach, a large group of people immediately swarmed over to ask for guidance, and Li Shan did not refuse.

Xu Yuan and Sun Rong exchanged glances and both shook their heads.

By the time Li Shan finished teaching others and came back, half an hour had passed, and the laborers had to go back to work.

As Sun Rong was leaving, she complained to Li Shan:

"Brother Li, we already have so little practice time, and you're teaching others too. How much time are you wasting like this?"

Li Shan was stunned for a moment, then smiled wryly, "I can't help it. They're all friends from the same dorm. I really can't refuse them. I'll just squeeze in more practice time at night."

Xu Yuan secretly shook his head. This person was indeed kind-hearted, but he was using his kindness in the wrong place.

This was a critical period for laborers to change their fate. Everyone else was trying to double their practice time, yet he was actively throwing it away.

"You..."

Sun Rong stomped her foot indignantly, said no more, and turned to leave.

"What about Sun Rong?"

Li Shan looked at Xu Yuan, completely bewildered.

Xu Yuan just shrugged, not saying much.

Their friendship was still shallow. If he said anything inappropriate, it would only damage their relationship.

Li Shan didn't think much of it and rubbed his abdomen with his left hand, sighing, "This cultivation technique really consumes a lot of energy. I just ate this morning, and it's all gone in such a short time."

Xu Yuan nodded, deeply understanding this.

After completing a full set of the桩功 (stretching exercises), his energy and vitality drained away like water, as if he had run a two-kilometer weighted cross-country race. Hunger surged, making him feel like he could devour a whole cow.

"Just eating vegetarian won't cut it anymore. I need to have some meat. Otherwise, I'll just get more and more tired, and my efficiency will be low."

After Li Shan said this, he made plans to meet Xu Yuan again and then went to his assigned area to start working.

Xu Yuan turned and looked around.

The reactions of the other laborers varied.

Most of them were struggling with indecision, wondering whether to grit their teeth and spend money on a few meat dishes to supplement the intense consumption.

Those with families were thinking about whether they could get some support from home. Those without families could only exert all their strength on their bodies.

In addition, Xu Yuan even saw one or two people showing confident expressions, and the words "Meridian Nourishing Soup" occasionally popped up in their conversations.

"Even the family backgrounds of the laborers are different."

As Xu Yuan sighed, he was also a bit confused.

Logically speaking, if they had such family backgrounds, why would they come to be laborers? Why not go to the front courtyard to become Martial Students directly?

The key was that they would have plenty of time to practice.

During lunchtime, when he curiously asked Li Shan about it, the latter grinned and explained in detail, "You're asking about this? It's best to be able to study martial arts in the front courtyard, but the cost is very high. It's one or two taels of silver per month. If you don't break through to the First Meridian Realm by the end of the term, you still have to pack your bags and leave."

"In comparison, Meridian Nourishing Soup is only two qian a bowl. Although it's still expensive, it has many benefits for martial arts practice..."

At this point, Xu Yuan nodded and continued along the same line of thought, "So, those families with some financial means, but not a lot, will send their children to the Shangyang Family as laborers."

"If they have the opportunity to practice martial arts, they'll pool their money. If they don't have the aptitude, they'll honestly work as laborers. If they do well later, they can climb to some positions. After all, relying on the Shangyang Family, this big tree, is always better than those miscellaneous jobs outside. It can be considered a cost-effective choice."

Seeing that he understood immediately, Li Shan praised, "Brother Xu is very intelligent. This phrase 'cost-effective choice' is very fitting."

"For us, we don't have that many options. When we encounter an opportunity, we seize it. Even if we don't get much, we won't be left with no path."

"The Shangyang Family also does this. Every few months, they recruit a batch of new laborers and regularly assign them to various positions based on their aptitude. The good ones climb up, and the less capable ones go to serve those clansmen and Martial Masters."

"This Shangyang Family really values talent," Xu Yuan thought to himself, and couldn't help but sigh. Cultivating martial arts is purely a money-burning endeavor. Whoever has more money has more chances and ways to succeed.

It was clear that these laborers with some financial means were at least one step ahead of many others in the first stage of finding Blood Essence.