Cherish the Present

Besides.

Even if he was anxious, it was of no use.

The class divisions in this world were far more rigid than in modern times. By his strength alone, it was difficult for him to cross them.

If not for his Second Aunt, who served as a concubine in the Huang Residence, helping him this time, he would never have gotten his hands on a Health Cultivation Technique rarely seen even in outside bookshops.

After arriving in this foreign world and awakening the memories of his former life, Wei Tu had not failed to consider changing his fate.

But—

Going into business?

In a society where officials reigned supreme, small handicraft businesses were manageable. But once it involved major trade, powerful lineages would inevitably descend to seize it.

Without the corresponding status to protect one's property, it was simply the road to courting ruin and death.

Becoming an official?

First, he would have to enter a private school to study, obtain a clean identity, find a stipend student to stand surety for him, then take the Imperial Examinations and fight his way out from among a thousand troops and ten thousand horses before he would be qualified to earn scholarly rank.

Wei Tu had lived two lives and possessed the boon of innate wisdom, so he could be considered clever.

Yet compared with the prodigies of the surrounding ten li, he was far inferior.

And these village prodigies often exhausted their entire lives without obtaining even the rank of xiucai, ending instead with the miserable lives of old examination candidates.

Memorizing the Confucian classics was merely the basic skill for the Imperial Examinations. The real difficulty lay in understanding the Confucian commentaries, whose vast number of words far exceeded the classics themselves. Without an excellent memory, it would be hard to earn scholarly rank through the examinations even in a lifetime.

If the essay questions were simple, where would all the various methods of cheating in the Imperial Examinations have come from?

Hidden notes, tiny writing with mouse-hair brushes, carrier pigeons delivering messages, cheating through chamber pots...

Besides.

Studying cost money. Supporting a full-time scholar who did no productive work was no easy task!

If the Li Residence were not supporting two young masters in their studies, the main branch's life would not be so tight that they ate meat only twice every ten days.

Without a Golden Finger.

Wei Tu knew that he possessed only middling talent and would find it impossible to turn his life around.

Of course, Wei Tu had not completely lain flat these past years. He had struggled from being a mere tenant farmer to becoming the Li Residence's stableman, already becoming a model for many country folk.

His food was decent.

He held status before the master's household.

This was already the life many country folk dreamed of.

Time slipped away in the blink of an eye.

Seven days soon passed. As agreed, Wei Tu handed the illustrated manual of the "Turtle Breath Qi Cultivation Technique" to the Huang Residence's gatekeeper and had him deliver it to the Ruan Family martial instructor.

As for the contents of the manual, although Wei Tu had already memorized them thoroughly, he still copied them out with paper and brush to be safe, keeping the duplicate hidden on his person.

After doing this.

Wei Tu's life returned to tranquility. Every day, he fed horses, chopped firewood, and swept the courtyard.

The only difference was that whenever he had a spare moment, he began practicing the Turtle Breath Qi Cultivation Technique's Stance Training.

Even.

It was no longer merely nine practices a day.

Instead, he practiced ten or eleven times a day.

This was Wei Tu's only chance to cross the boundary of class and change his own fate. Naturally, he would not neglect it.

"Do everything humanly possible, then heed Heaven's decree."

"Hard work never fails the one who puts their heart into it."

Whenever he wanted to give up or slack off, Wei Tu silently encouraged and cautioned himself.

One month.

Two months.

Until three months had passed.

That evening, after Wei Tu completed the Turtle Breath Qi Cultivation Technique's movements, he finally discovered a trace of something unusual within his body.

It was already late autumn, close to winter. The night frost was cold and heavy, yet Wei Tu did not feel the slightest chill. Instead, he felt streams of warmth flowing through his limbs and bones, nourishing his physique.

It felt like soaking in a hot spring.

"The Health Cultivation Technique has not even reached major mastery, yet warmth has already arisen within my body. Then... the Qi Sensing Realm must be extraordinary!"

Wei Tu was delighted.

Over this period, he had asked around about martial instructors' cultivation. Even the blade-wielders praised throughout the countryside merely knew some Martial Arts Techniques, could swing a few strokes of a broadsword, and absolutely did not possess his current realm of "fearing no bitter cold."

Though his Health Cultivation Technique had progressed, Wei Tu did not relax his focus. He continued practicing his Stance Training until his muscles were exhausted and his strength spent, only then returning to his kang bed to rest.

Turtle Breath Qi Cultivation Technique (21/100): Practice nine times daily, and it will be completed in five years.

Before sleeping, Wei Tu closed his eyes and checked the Health Cultivation Technique's progress. Seeing that it had already exceeded one-fifth, he was greatly satisfied and soon fell asleep, snoring away.

The next day, early morning.

Wei Tu rose early and began working in the Li Residence.

He fed the horses and chopped firewood. After laboring for nearly an hour, Wei Tu discovered that his body remained cool and dry, without the slightest bead of sweat forming on his forehead.

His physical constitution had improved by a great margin.

"Wei, First Madam is looking for you." A plain-looking young maid emerged from the inner residence and called out to Wei Tu.

"First Mistress is looking for me?" Wei Tu froze for a moment.

He was an outsider. When he had been young, he could still move about the inner quarters, but once he grew older, it had been forbidden.

Otherwise, he would not have asked Xinghua to request leave for him last time.

Great households had no shortage of etiquette.

Even if First Mistress summoned him, she needed a reason.

"I heard from Cai Xia that when First Mistress and Master went to bed last night, they spoke of you and Xinghua. She may be willing to grant permission." Chun Lan covered her mouth as she laughed, leaned close to Wei Tu, and lowered her voice.

"When the time comes, you'll have to give me wedding money." she teased.

"Really?"

"First Mistress is going to agree to my marriage with Xinghua?"

Joy rose in Wei Tu's heart as well.

He had not expected that, just as his Health Cultivation Technique broke through, another happy event would come knocking at his door.

"Let's go." Wei Tu set down the axe in his hand and followed Chun Lan through the moon gate into the Li Residence's inner courtyard.

Three months ago.

Three months later.

Although Wei Tu's life circumstances had changed enormously, and he carried the Late Bloomer destiny, he would certainly make something of himself in the future.

He would not remain a stableman forever.

Yet Wei Tu did not look down on Xinghua, the kitchen maid, because of this, nor did he think a maid of the Li Residence was unworthy of him.

Fawning over the high and trampling the low was the common state of the world.

However, Xinghua had been close to him since childhood in the Li Residence and had often looked after him in daily life. It could be said that she was the person closest to him in this world.

Wei Tu's heart had not yet become so cold and callous.

Moreover.

Wei Tu did not think too highly of himself either. Mastering the Health Cultivation Technique did not mean that he would find immortals in the future and embark upon the path of immortality.

The Health Cultivation Technique prolonged one's life, but after living beyond a hundred years, one would still eventually exhaust one's lifespan and die.

Grasping the present was the true path; reaching too high and chasing distant dreams was not advisable.

Walking straight through the courtyard and passing several covered corridors, Wei Tu arrived at the Li Residence's main hall.

After entering the inner quarters, Wei Tu kept his head lowered the entire time out of strict observance of etiquette.

Only after entering the main hall did he raise his eyes slightly and survey the people within.

Seeing that only female family members were present and that Master was nowhere to be seen, he let out a breath of relief.

Master Li Yaozu was renowned throughout the surrounding villages as a "sharp-tongued man." His words were harsh, his nature miserly, and even when he had no reason, he could twist things until they sounded justified.

He was not easy to get along with.

First Mistress Madam Li was the opposite. She was gentle by nature, capable in managing the household, and widely praised as a virtuous woman.

Madam Li sat upright in the seat of honor, dressed in plain cloth robes, with an indigo cross-collar jacket over them and woven shoes and socks tied with white ribbons on her feet.

She was dressed with great simplicity.

She raised her teacup and took a light sip. "Wei, you have been with the Li Family for six years now. During these six years, the Li Family has treated you well enough."

PS: Two updates a day. There will be another update tonight.