Work

That morning, at 8:50 a.m.

Chen Feng arrived at a small chain supermarket called Yong Le Fu.

It did not occupy much space, less than a hundred square meters.

The shelves held all kinds of snacks, drinks, and daily necessities. Besides those, there was a sausage grill beside the checkout counter and rows of cigarettes behind it.

"Excuse me, what would you like to buy?" The cashier was a woman in her thirties, dressed in a white shirt and black slacks. Seeing Chen Feng approach, she asked out of habit.

"Hello, I'm looking for Manager Liu."

Chen Feng spoke, then added why he was there. "I arranged a nine o'clock interview with her for a cashier position. Is she here?"

"Oh, so you're Chen Feng."

To Chen Feng's surprise, the woman before him smiled.

"I'm Liu Fang. Hehe, I did not expect you to be so punctual."

As she spoke, she looked Chen Feng over from head to toe.

He wore a black short-sleeved shirt and shorts. It was not particularly formal, but the young man looked cheerful, and his eyes were bright.

Secretly nodding, she had already made up her mind. She quickly raised a hand in invitation. "Come, Chen Feng, this way. Let's sit down and talk."

"Aunt Zhang, could you cover the register for a moment?"

Led by Liu Fang, Chen Feng walked to a sofa lounge beside the supermarket shelves, next to the floor-to-ceiling windows.

"Sit down. Don't be so formal."

"Thank you, Manager Liu."

"Oh, just call me Sister Liu."

"There really aren't many young people willing to work at supermarkets these days. And you're even a college graduate. That's impressive."

The two chatted back and forth, and there happened to be few customers in the supermarket at the time.

Before long, Chen Feng learned that Liu Fang was the manager of Yong Le Fu's chain supermarkets in the nearby area and oversaw three locations.

This store was one of them. It had four employees, working two shifts from eight in the morning to midnight.

One of the cashiers had suddenly resigned, leaving them short-handed, so Liu Fang had personally been filling in for several days.

There were no surprises.

They were eager to hire someone, Chen Feng was young and presentable, and he had said that he had previously interned as a cashier.

So, several minutes later, Chen Feng got his first job in this world.

The monthly salary was three thousand yuan. One meal a day was provided while on duty, and he would work six days a week with one day off.

He could adjust his days off, received a monthly shopping allowance of three hundred yuan, and got an additional employee discount.

"Do you have any questions? If not, we'll settle this now," Liu Fang asked. It was obvious that the supermarket was truly short on staff.

"Sister Liu, I have a special request."

Chen Feng spoke at the right moment. He did not mention boxing, only claiming that he had other matters to attend to during the day.

"Could I only work the shift from four in the afternoon to midnight?"

The martial arts hall's Sanshou class ran from one to three-thirty in the afternoon. Chen Feng had to keep that time free.

"Oh?" Liu Fang froze for a moment. She did not expect Chen Feng to make such a request.

She did not mind it. Instead, her eyes lit up, and she nodded. "No problem, Chen Feng."

"Aunt He happened to mention switching shifts recently. She wants to leave earlier in the afternoon to pick up her grandson from school. Isn't this perfect?"

"I'll talk to her about it later."

Chen Feng let out a breath of relief. He had already prepared himself to be refused.

Without further nonsense, they chatted for a few more moments before he followed Liu Fang to the checkout counter to familiarize himself with the process.

"For product prices, it's enough to have a general idea. Scanning the barcode will bring them up automatically."

"Supermarket members receive different discounts depending on their level. Entering their phone number will calculate it automatically."

"And when things are quiet, help organize the items on the shelves."

Liu Fang explained patiently, while Chen Feng nodded lightly.

Because he had interned as a cashier during summer vacation in his previous life, he quickly became familiar with the payment process. Before long, Liu Fang was smiling as she repeatedly praised him.

"Young people really learn fast."

"How about this, Chen Feng? Can you come directly to take over the shift at four this afternoon?"

"Yes."

Seeing her urgency, Chen Feng nodded.

Starting work earlier meant earning money earlier as well.

Satisfied with his attitude, Liu Fang immediately registered his employee information and his three-hundred-yuan free shopping allowance.

At the same time, she kept him for lunch.

One-thirty in the afternoon.

Chen Feng appeared at the martial arts hall right on time.

Rubbing his round belly, he found that the supermarket's meals were quite good.

Two meat dishes, one vegetable dish, and a soup. Someone delivered meals punctually every day at noon and in the evening.

Of course, he was not sure whether Liu Fang had specially prepared extra food because she saw that he was there. In any case, he had eaten his fill.

"Now, it's time to absorb it properly."

His eyes bright, Chen Feng could not wait to practice boxing.

He quickly went to the locker room, changed into the clothes he had brought, and entered the practice field.

"Yo, you're here."

Lin Hao, wearing a white sleeveless T-shirt, spotted him from afar. A light sheen of sweat covered his face, as though he had just finished warming up.

"Yeah, you're early today." Chen Feng nodded and looked around the room. The other trainees were also arriving in twos and threes.

"Ah, it's nothing. Being idle is being idle."

"Besides—"

Lin Hao replied with a smile, but before he could finish, a thud rang out.

Following the sound, Chen Feng saw the burly, powerfully built Xu Dongtai punching a sandbag.

Thud!

Thud!

The dull impacts echoed as the hanging sandbag, which weighed nearly a hundred kilograms, swayed continuously.

The sight drew plenty of attention. A few female trainees even looked over with burning eyes.

"As expected of Dong Ge!"

"With a punch like that, he could blow up a sandbag!"

Xu Dongtai's lackey, Zhou Xin, deliberately praised him loudly and exaggeratedly. He even lifted his chin and glanced at the other trainees around him with smug eyes, as though he had caused the commotion himself.

Some were displeased, but others had sharp looks in their eyes. Watching Xu Dongtai practice, their intense competitive spirits were stirred up.

"That Xu Dongtai tested at 89 kilograms of punching force last month."

"Looking at him now, he's probably already at the level of Amateur Fourth Dan."

Lin Hao clicked his tongue in amazement. Chen Feng did not answer, but his gaze turned a little more serious.

Amateur Ninth Dan and Professional Seventh Grade were Earth Star's ranking system for fighters.

It took strength, reaction speed, speed, and even actual combat ability into account before making an overall assessment.

The amateur ranks went from First Dan to Ninth Dan, from low to high.

The professional ranks went from First Grade to Seventh Grade, from low to high.

Many City Boxing Tournaments required competitors to possess the corresponding rank certificate, or they would not be allowed to participate.

"Amateur Fourth Dan... The punching-force standard is at least 90 kilograms."

Watching the explosive force behind Xu Dongtai's punches, Chen Feng's eyes flickered.

The punching-force requirement for Amateur First Dan was 60 kilograms.

After that, every rank increased by 10 kilograms.

As for Professional Grade, the minimum started at 200 kilograms.

At this thought, Chen Feng's eyes flickered.

He clearly remembered that when the original owner had first entered the martial arts hall for testing, one punch had not even reached 50 kilograms.

But now, with an introduction to Sanshou and his increased strength attribute—

Chen Feng was also curious about what level he had reached.

"After class, I'll go test myself properly."

With the thought settled, Chen Feng's gaze gradually calmed. He soon walked alone to a corner.

Before that—

Boom!

Back to practicing!