Stability, Part One

"Good. I wasn't discovered." Chen Biao was a thug and a scoundrel to begin with. If he had spotted the money pouch at Wei He's waist, with that much money, he would definitely have been seized by greed.

Wei He wound through the city streets until he reached a district of single-story houses near the Inner City.

From one of the large courtyards came frequent shouts from vigorous training.

A plaque hung above the courtyard gate, bearing the words: Huishan Fist Zheng.

Knock, knock, knock.

Wei He stepped forward and knocked.

After waiting a while, the wooden door was pulled open from within, revealing a face covered in fleshy folds.

"Who are you? What do you want?"

"I'm here to learn boxing." Wei He spoke in a low voice.

"Did you bring money?" The man looked him up and down.

"I did."

"Come in."

The wooden door swung wide open, and Wei He strode inside.

In the courtyard, more than a dozen bare-chested men were hugging stone blocks as they repeatedly trained their strength.

Under the shade of a tree, a gaunt old man with a goatee leisurely sipped tea from a cup.

"Boy Wei? What, have you saved enough money?" The gaunt old man glanced at Wei He and spoke.

"Old Zheng, I have." Wei He had come here many times before. Because he had always been focused and sincere, and had even voluntarily run errands for the old man several times, he had left a fairly good impression.

Of course, a good impression was one thing, but learning boxing here required money. There was no possibility of doing it for free, so nothing had come of it.

But now that he had enough money, Old Zheng was naturally willing.

"It's good that you have enough. For the poor, the only path is learning boxing and kicking.

And boxing and kicking are all you can learn. Why? Because weapons are too expensive, and palm techniques, finger techniques, and the like aren't nearly as deadly as fists." Old Man Zheng stroked his beard and spoke calmly.

"Only by learning boxing can you change your life! Only by mastering it can you have a chance to change your fate!"

"Teacher speaks wisely!" Several men nearby hurriedly flattered him.

Wei He said nothing. He swiftly took out his money pouch, held it up with both hands, and bowed as he offered it over.

By evening.

Wei He wore a brand-new gray cloth training jacket, gray trousers, and a pair of thousand-layer-soled cloth shoes.

A conspicuous Zheng character was embroidered over his chest.

This outfit was the exclusive training uniform for apprentice disciples under Old Man Zheng.

The last red gleam of the setting sun slowly vanished at the mouth of the alley.

Wei He headed quickly toward home. His face was calm, but he was deeply worried inside.

Second Sister Wei Ying was alone at home, and he feared something might happen to her.

Though he was not the original Wei He and did not feel especially deeply attached to this family, they were family in the end. They had lived together for so long.

He hurried across a street and turned through several alleys. Before long, Wei He arrived once more at the entrance to the alley before his home.

Just then, three figures stood at the alley entrance, bent over as they smoked dry tobacco.

The tallest and burliest of them had a crew cut and a face full of fleshy folds. His eyes were fixed straight on Wei He's house. No one knew how long he had been staring.

This man was Chen Biao.

The other two were also tall and strong. One glance was enough to tell that they ate well. They were sturdy and not to be trifled with.

The sound of Wei He's approaching footsteps alerted the three men who had been watching.

Chen Biao turned around. When he saw Wei He dressed in the Zheng family's training uniform, surprise appeared on his face. He stared deeply at the Zheng character on the uniform.

He removed the dry tobacco pipe from his mouth, glanced at Wei He, then turned and walked away without a word.

His other two lackeys hurriedly followed him away as well.

Both of them had also noticed the Zheng character on Wei He's chest.

Clearly, they recognized his current status.

Old Man Zheng of Huishan Fist was no nameless figure in the area. He was also a force not to be underestimated.

Wei He calmly watched the three leave. If he faced the three of them alone, he definitely could not beat them.

But things were different now. With this tiger skin draped over him, Chen Biao and the other two likely would not dare act rashly for the time being.

Still, Chen Biao had been watching Second Sister Wei Ying for more than a day or two. Wei He did not know how long this tiger skin of his could frighten the other side into restraint.

And as for Old Man Zheng, he was willing to accept anyone as long as they paid. Asking him for help would be no different from a fool dreaming in broad daylight.

This was purely a relationship of paying money to learn a craft. One should not expect anything else.

And if Eldest Sister did not return for a long time, once Chen Biao's group no longer had her deterrence hanging over them, they would definitely have ideas again.

"So I still have to train hard and rely on myself."

He quickly walked to his own door, took out his key, unlocked it, and entered.

Wei Ying was curled up in a corner, not daring to move at all.

Only when she saw it was him did she rise with tears brimming in her eyes and come closer.

"Little He. I almost, almost thought I'd never see you again!" She burst into tears.

"It's fine. I'm back. It's fine now." Wei He comforted her in a low voice.

"Chen Biao was right outside the door. He kicked and stomped at it, waiting there for ages. I didn't dare make a single sound!" Wei Ying tearfully explained.

Wei He said nothing, but his gaze grew increasingly cold and calm.

"I understand. Don't worry, I'll handle it. Starting tomorrow, come with me to Huishan Fist. I've spoken to Teacher and asked him to let you go over with me to help with some daily chores. It's just that, regarding wages..."

"I'll go! I'll go even without pay! I really can't stay here any longer! When you weren't around, Chen Biao came several times a day. I was afraid to tell you. Before, I was afraid it would affect you, so I didn't dare say anything."

Wei Ying explained through tears, her emotions somewhat agitated.

She knew that few people nearby were unaware of Old Man Zheng's Huishan Fist school.

If her younger brother could truly establish himself there as support, it would give her an immense sense of safety.

"Then it's settled. We'll go tomorrow." Wei He spoke seriously.

He had already engraved Chen Biao and the other two deep in his heart. It seemed Second Sister had suffered no small amount of fright and bullying while he was away.

After comforting Second Sister, Wei He fetched several buckets of water from a nearby stream and filled the water vat.

Then, together with Wei Ying, he began preparing their luggage for the next day's trip to Huishan Fist.

The sky gradually darkened. Moonlight rose and shone in through the window.

Wei He lit the oil lamp and had Second Sister finish mending the remaining clothes. Then he carefully reviewed everything he had done. Only after confirming there were no problems did he blow out the lamp and lie down to sleep.

As he slept, he was suddenly awakened in the middle of the night by a rustling sound.

Opening his eyes, Wei He quietly climbed out of bed and looked at Second Sister on the other bed. She was sleeping soundly.

He softly walked to the window, gently opened a crack, and looked outside.

In the alley outside, a line of ordinary civilians dressed in all manner of clothes, their eyes shining with a somewhat frightening brightness, followed two tall, thin men and women in white as they hurried past the window.

"Rebirth into ultimate bliss, rebirth into ultimate bliss, rebirth into ultimate bliss."

These people kept muttering that same sentence. Different accents from different places, yet identical words. Gathered together, they formed an inexplicably strange, irritating sensation.

Wei He quietly shut the window, not daring to look any longer.

He recognized many of those passing by. Quite a few were neighbors living nearby. He simply had not expected them to have such a hidden side.

Uncle Zhao from the nearby blacksmith shop, Sister Feng who sold steamed buns, Shopkeeper Xue from the pawnshop—all of them were in the procession, their expressions devout. No one knew what poison they had fallen under.

Wei He quietly moved away from the window and returned to bed without saying a word.

The procession gradually moved farther away, and its sounds slowly became difficult to hear. For the rest of the night, Wei He slept in a daze.

Only when dawn was nearly breaking did he rise on schedule, wake Second Sister, and quickly set off with her luggage and their remaining money for Huishan Fist Zheng.

Right now, he knew nothing and certainly could not defeat Chen Biao and the other two. Besides, in times like these, all manner of trouble sprang up one after another. Learning real skills properly was the path to self-preservation.

Wei He attached great importance to this martial arts training.

He possessed an ability like the Boundary-Breaking Pearl, and with chaos coinciding with the times, he naturally knew that learning martial arts was the greatest safeguard at a time like this.

When the two left home, the weather outside was still somewhat cold and gloomy, and the sun had not fully risen.

Wei He led Second Sister on a detour, taking another slightly longer route back to the Huishan Fist courtyard.

Early in the morning, waves of strength-training shouts already rang out from the courtyard.

Wei He stepped forward, knocked on the door, and gave his name.

"Coming." Before long, the heavy wooden door slowly opened.

A pockmarked man looked at Wei He, then turned to glance at Wei Ying. His originally somewhat lazy expression immediately became enthusiastic.

"Come, come. The old master is already drinking tea. You must be Junior Brother Wei He, right? Not bad, not bad. My name is Cheng Shaojiu. I rank third here! Just call me Third Senior Brother."

The pockmarked man introduced himself with great warmth. Yet his eyes kept drifting unconsciously toward Wei Ying.

Wei He secretly laughed. Martial artists had abundant qi and blood, strong male hormones, and always tended to react this way when they encountered beautiful women.

He did not mind it and led his somewhat nervous, frightened Second Sister through the door.

"Third Senior Brother, I'll go pay my respects to Master first. We can talk afterward." He spoke sincerely.

"Fine, fine!" Cheng Shaojiu answered with a smile.

The moment Wei Ying entered, she drew many gazes from the men training their strength in the courtyard.

Together with Second Sister, Wei He approached Old Man Zheng and bowed.

"Master Zheng, I've brought my sister. You can arrange whatever work you have for her." Wei He said.

Old Man Zheng glanced at Wei Ying. There was no unusual look in his eyes. He merely felt that she seemed Honest and Dutiful, so he nodded.

"Let's make this clear first. You said yourselves that you don't need wages, right?"

"Yes, we said it ourselves." Wei He hurriedly replied.

"Fine, then. From today onward, you'll train boxing here with me, while your sister will be responsible for cleaning, cooking, and laundry. No problem?

"However, the tuition you paid is only enough for one year of study. After that, you'll have to renew separately. Understand?"

Old Man Zheng's small eyes swept over Wei He from top to bottom as he spoke coldly.

"This disciple understands." Wei He nodded.

"Of course, if your aptitude is decent and you master everything I teach you, I'll continue teaching you what comes after. As long as it's within this one-year period, that is."

Old Man Zheng waved a hand, summoning a hired middle-aged woman to lead Wei Ying around and show her the way and the work.

Then he stood up and circled around the standing Wei He once.

"Bear with it."

The moment he finished speaking, he reached out and pinched, catching a rib beneath Wei He's armpit.

Hng!

Wei He's entire body went numb, and half his body nearly lost all feeling.

"Not bad." Old Man Zheng nodded. "Neither good nor bad aptitude. Though you're a little old, you can still master the foundational work."

"Yes." Wei He hurriedly answered. "I'll leave everything to Master's judgment."

Seeing that Wei He's attitude had been good from beginning to end, and that he had even brought along a free hired laborer, Old Man Zheng's mood improved somewhat.

"Very well. Since you've only just entered the school today, I'll tell you what martial arts training actually trains, why we are stronger than ordinary people, and why we can fight."

Wei He immediately assumed an attentive expression.

Perhaps because Wei He was literate, Old Man Zheng paced around once, returned to sit in his high-backed chair, and lifted his teacup for a sip.

Several people nearby who also seemed to have just joined the school gathered over as well, their faces showing interest.

Old Man Zheng cleared his throat, coughed several times, and opened his mouth.

"My mouth's a little dry. Go get me some tea snacks."