Taking Disciples

Jessica didn't care about Peter leaving either. She hadn't planned to be a good employee anyway. Walking back to the entrance, she asked Trish, "Trish, are you really going to keep kneeling here?"

Trish said firmly, "I have to learn kung fu!"

Jessica said unhappily, "Why? What's so great about kung fu?"

Trish glared resentfully at Jessica. If she weren't her own sister, she would have punched her already! The world was deeply unfair. Things some people might never obtain no matter how hard they struggled were casually handed to others, who even looked disgusted by them! For example, that damned brat Jessica Jones.

Just as Trish was about to say something, Madame Gao came out and said, "The BOSS wants to see you. Come in."

Trish scrambled to her feet in delight and asked, "Are you willing to take me as your disciple?"

Madame Gao smiled. "You're in luck. The BOSS plans to take both of you as his personal disciples."

Trish was stunned. "That young man? Is he any good? Doesn't kung fu get stronger with age?"

"He's far stronger than I am."

Madame Gao said no more and walked inside with her cane. Trish hurried after her, while Jessica followed behind with an unhappy expression. "That guy may be powerful, but why should I become his disciple? I don't even want to learn kung fu!"

"If she doesn't want to become a disciple, then you should leave too."

Madame Gao turned and said to Trish Walker. Trish Walker froze. So she was just an add-on? That guy really isn't a good person.

Jessica couldn't bear to see Trish disappointed. Gritting her teeth, she said, "Fine, I'll become his disciple. But I don't have money to learn kung fu!"

"A true master-disciple relationship doesn't require payment. On the contrary, the master gives money to the disciple. Master, master, like a teacher, like a father. But you certainly wouldn't understand that, so I won't waste my breath."

Madame Gao shook her head and led the two into the tea room in the back courtyard, where Wang Bert was already waiting.

When the two women approached, Wang Bert, seated at the head of the room, lightly waved his hand. Two cups of tea, glowing faintly red, flew steadily toward them—his qi, wrapped in the power of the Dragon Soul, could now be projected outward.

The two women were startled and hurriedly caught the cups. Madame Gao shouted, "Kneel and offer tea to your master!"

Jessica was reluctant, but Trish's eyes lit up when she saw Wang Bert's display. She immediately knelt down, then copied the kung fu movies by raising the cup over her head with both hands. "Master, please drink tea!"

"Good girl!"

Wang Bert nodded in satisfaction, took the cup, and drank a sip. He then set it aside and looked at Jessica. Jessica curled her lips, knelt down, and halfheartedly raised her cup. "Master, please drink tea."

"Not such a good girl!"

Wang Bert took the cup and drank a sip as well. Then he said, "All right. Trish Walker, Jessica Jones, from this day onward, you are disciples of my sect. You must obey the Door Rules. Uh, the Door Rules?"

"You don't even know what your own Door Rules are?"

Jessica mocked. Even Madame Gao was speechless. The Blood God had clearly decided to take disciples on a whim.

"How could I not know?"

Wang Bert said, "The Door Rules are simple: disciples of the same sect must love and support each other. Also, protect this world!"

"They really are simple. Looks like I won't need to fear being punished by copying the Door Rules in the future. There are only a dozen or so words total!"

Jessica sneered. Trish was also somewhat speechless. Had she joined the wrong sect? This looked like a complete amateur operation! "Since you put it that way, I'll grant your wish. Copy the Door Rules a thousand times for me!"

Wang Bert said this, and Jessica became furious. "Why?"

"You asked for it yourself. How is that my fault?"

Wang Bert waved his hand. "All right, that's everything. Get up. From now on, come to the teahouse every night at eight to train. If you can't come because something comes up, call ahead. Understand?"

"Understood!"

Trish nodded repeatedly, looking extremely excited. She could finally learn kung fu!

Seeing Trish so happy, Jessica said nothing more. She had to stay here and work off her debt anyway! What kind of master extorts his own disciples?

Then Trish and Jessica stood up together. Wang Bert smiled at Trish. "Trish, you've been very obedient, so I'll prepare a gift for becoming my disciple. You'll receive it when you go to work tomorrow."

"Thank you, Master!"

Though she said that, Trish didn't think much of it. Wang Bert offered no further explanation and turned to Jessica. "As for you, you haven't been obedient at all. Besides copying the rules, you also have to clean the entire teahouse!"

"Why?"

Jessica was deeply dissatisfied. Trish hurriedly stopped her, then said to Wang Bert, "Master, I want to take Jessica back to celebrate. Can she come to work tomorrow instead?"

"Since you're pleading for her, I'll let her off this once!"

Wang Bert nodded. Jessica snorted. This guy was clearly much nicer to her sister than to her!

Trish was delighted. After thanking him, she excitedly left with Jessica. Once they were gone, Madame Gao asked in confusion, "Blood God, the Blood Clan has plenty of skilled fighters. Why take them as disciples?"

"The Blood Clan are born villains. We need some humans to speak for us!"

Wang Bert didn't elaborate. He said, "Madame Gao, I'll leave their training to you!"

"Aren't you teaching them?"

Madame Gao was stunned. Who handed their disciples off to someone else? "You do it. I have things to do at night!"

Wang Bert shrugged. What a joke. So many beautiful women in the city were waiting for him. How could he possibly spend two hours every night teaching disciples?

That wasn't the lifestyle of a rich man!

Having successfully become a disciple, Trish had a wonderful dream that night. She dreamed that she had become the most popular Super Hero, with countless reporters competing to interview her, countless fans cheering for her, and countless TV Stations inviting her as a guest...

However, when Trish woke up, she discovered that reality was brutally cruel—she had become famous, but not in the way she wanted! "Former child star suffers mental breakdown and begs on her knees outside a teahouse? Daily Bugle, I'm suing you!"

The moment Trish saw the article, she angrily tore the newspaper apart. Having started as a child star, she knew exactly what such negative news would bring! People would mock her like crazy, the radio station would suspend her show and shelve her, and as for when she could make a comeback, that would depend on luck!

Trish's career faced a major crisis!

"Calm down, calm down. As long as I come up with a good excuse, I should still have a chance to turn things around. Uh, environmental protection, a protest, or performance art?"

Trish paced anxiously through the living room. She wanted to discuss it with Jessica, but no one answered when she called. She knew that damned brat Jessica had probably gotten drunk again.

"Damn it!"

Trish furiously tossed away the phone. Just as she was wondering whether she should take time off and lie low for a few days, the station manager suddenly called. "Trish, why aren't you at work yet? Get to the station now!"

Trish wanted to explain, but the station manager hung up as soon as he finished speaking. Helpless, Trish could only tidy herself up, put on sunglasses and a scarf, and head to the radio station!

The moment she arrived at the station entrance, Trish saw a large crowd of reporters waiting outside. She hurriedly had the driver take her to the Backdoor, then slipped into the company in secret!

As soon as she entered, a female host who didn't get along with Trish immediately came over and asked with fake concern, "Trish, why are you here? If you're sick, you should stay home and rest properly!"

Trish cursed, "You're the sick one. That article was complete nonsense!"

"Trish, if you're sick, you need treatment. You can't run away from it!"

The female host mocked coldly, "Otherwise, who knows what other embarrassing things you'll do?"

"When have I ever embarrassed myself?"

Trish gritted her teeth. Just as she was about to argue with the woman, the station manager's secretary called out, "Trish, the station manager wants to see you as soon as you arrive!"

"Okay!"

Trish hurriedly agreed, glared at the female host, and strode toward the station manager's office. The surrounding coworkers looked at her with both pity and glee. In their eyes, Trish was most likely about to be shelved! "Trish, I'll host your show for you from now on. No need to thank me. It's what I should do."

The female host burst out laughing behind her. Trish wanted nothing more than to turn around and smash a hole in her head with her high heel. That woman was unbearable.

Trish took a deep breath and calmed herself down. Then she knocked and entered the station manager's office!

"Station manager..."

Trish had intended to explain herself properly, but the station manager spoke the moment she opened her mouth. "Trish, your program is being upgraded into a social affairs show. There's a major interview at noon. Familiarize yourself with the materials immediately!"

"Station manager, my program... huh?"

Trish came back to her senses and asked in utter disbelief, "Station manager, you're upgrading my program?"

Trish Talk was an entertainment talk show. Simply put, it discussed domestic matters, relationship troubles, and such on the radio. She had always wanted to host a current affairs and social issues program, but the station manager had never agreed, because only big names could host that kind of show! Trish had never imagined that after such a scandal, not only had the station manager not removed her, he had even upgraded her program. Was she dreaming? If so, please let this dream never end!

The station manager glanced at Trish and said, "Trish, this was ordered by an important person above. You didn't know?"

"An important person?"

Trish was stunned. She had known some important people in the past, but ever since she had faded from fame, who would still care about her?

"Go out and prepare."

The station manager said no more, because he thought Trish was playing dumb. He hadn't expected Trish, who had always kept herself respectable, to take this path too!

Perhaps that was the fate of female stars in the entertainment industry!

Holding the materials, Trish returned to her office in a daze. Seeing her expression, the people outside all assumed she had been shelved. Some felt sympathy, while others sneered! When Trish returned to her office, she found a woman so beautiful that even she felt Jealousy waiting for her. She asked, "May I ask who you are?"

Natasha said, "I'm your master's secretary. Your master asked me to tell you that you must put your heart into the upcoming interview. After some time, he'll transfer you to the TV Station to launch a dedicated program!"

"My master? Who?"

Trish was stunned. She had only become a disciple yesterday and still hadn't fully processed it. Natasha was speechless. That master and disciple pair didn't seem reliable at all.

"You mean the owner of Dragon Subduing Teahouse?"

Trish suddenly came to her senses. "He's the one who got my program upgraded?"

Natasha nodded. "Yes! He said this is his gift for becoming his disciple!"

"A gift for becoming his disciple? Right, he did say he would give me one, but I never expected such an incredible gift."

Trish was even more astonished. She couldn't help asking, "Is my master very powerful?"

Natasha smiled. "He's all right. He's only a little richer than Tony Stark, and he owns shares in several of the country's major broadcasting companies!"

"What?"

Trish sucked in a cold breath. This was far beyond merely all right. How many people in America were richer than Tony Stark? Had she just grabbed hold of a golden thigh? Trish was immensely glad that she had truly knelt yesterday. Heh, if word of this got out, the entrance to Dragon Subduing Teahouse would be packed with people kneeling! At the very least, everyone in this company would go kneel there! This woman looks like she knows nothing. Why did Bert Wang take her as his disciple? What exactly is he trying to do?

Natasha pondered in secret, then said, "All right, Trish. Review the materials first. Besides you and the person involved, the interview will also include the famous Black guest Martin!"

"Martin? So this is a racial discrimination incident?"

Trish snapped out of it and briskly began flipping through the materials. A moment later, she asked in surprise, "Osborn Corporation?"

Natasha said, "Yes. Your task is to attack them. The harsher the better. Don't worry about anything—your master will have your backs!"

"I've wanted to go after a giant corporation like this for a long time!"

Trish said excitedly. She carefully read through the materials again, then went out full of energy to find someone to write her script!

The moment she stepped outside, Trish discovered that everyone was looking at her. But unlike before, their gazes were now filled with envy, Jealousy, and deep confusion!

Clearly, the news had already spread.

Trish gave a proud snort, held her head high, and clicked her heels as she headed for the station manager's office. Everyone she passed looked eager to please, with none of their earlier mockery remaining.

This woman was a future big name. As for the host who had mocked Trish earlier, she had hidden in the restroom and didn't dare show her face! Heaven and hell really are so close together!

Trish sighed inwardly. She had thought today would be hell, but because of her master, it had turned into heaven! Master, thank you!

At noon, the interview officially began. Trish asked the somewhat nervous Max, "Mr. Max, you said that you were responsible for designing the city's power grid, but according to the information I found, your name isn't on it!"

Max said angrily, "They stole my achievements. The people at Osborn Corporation have always bullied me. A few years ago, on my birthday, not only did they refuse to congratulate me, they even made me work overtime."

Trish knowingly asked, "Mr. Max, why did the people at Osborn bully you?"

Following Natasha's instructions, Max answered, "Because I'm Black. They discriminate against me. If I were white, I'd already be a department manager! I'm the best engineer in the country!"

Guest Martin immediately said with an angry expression, "Max, what did you say? The people at Osborn actually went that far?"

"That's right, the people at Osborn are exactly that awful. In fact, there are almost no Black people in Osborn's upper management. They're all white!"

Max shouted, "I'm going to sue them! I'm going to take back my achievements! I'm going to get fair treatment!"

"Really? Is this true? It's hard to imagine that a company like this still exists today!"

Martin shouted, "Max, I support you suing them. Don't be afraid of them. All the Black people in America stand behind you, and we will all support you. The era when white people could bully us however they pleased is over!"

With someone fanning the flames behind the scenes, this "racial discrimination" incident quickly escalated. That very day, several Black groups went to Osborn Tower to protest, while major TV Stations aired the news one after another. Osborn Corporation was immediately overwhelmed, and even its stock price plummeted sharply.