Open a Detective Agency Together

A long string of titles painted the picture of a true professional.

But in Lin Xiaosu's eyes, he was nothing but a fancy pillow stuffed with straw.

Different perspectives and different standing inevitably led to completely different opinions.

Ms. Sun quickly looked through all the information, delight appearing on her face. "Now this is what you call a teacher. If Curator Zhou can really invite him over, I can introduce a few more people to you."

"Then it's settled. I'll message him right now."

The message was sent, and a reply soon came back: "Sure!"

From beginning to resolution, the whole disturbance in this office took only half an hour.

Old Zhou and Ms. Sun both thought this was a setback known only to the two of them. But they were wrong.

Lin Xiaosu had not only heard their entire conversation; he had also seen the messages on the phone.

What about Miao Ruolan?

She appeared to be practicing a horse stance ten meters away, but her expression had changed, shifting along with the conversation inside...

After class ended and the children dispersed, Miao Ruolan entered Old Zhou's office and smiled shyly. "Curator Zhou, I've given it some thought, and I still feel I'm not suited for this job. Thank you for thinking highly of me, but I think I'll pass starting tomorrow. There's something going on at home..."

Old Zhou was ecstatic inside, but he still had to put on a hesitant expression...

After exchanging a few polite words, he went along with it. "You've taught fifteen classes here. As we agreed before, fifty yuan per class, for a total of seven hundred and fifty yuan. Take it."

Miao Ruolan accepted her half-month's pay—seven hundred and fifty yuan.

The pay was very low, yet even at such low wages, she still could not handle the job.

Miao Ruolan tilted her face toward the sky and gently let out a breath.

She walked lightly out of the Fighting Gym, greeting the elderly security guard before leaving.

Outside, two students also took the initiative to greet her. She patted their heads, her face full of warmth. Once the two children got on the bus, however, the friendly smile vanished from Miao Ruolan's face. She sighed soundlessly, then turned toward her little electric scooter...

A man stepped out from behind a tree beside the scooter and smiled faintly. "Ruolan, I'm Lin Xiaosu, Li Diandian's classmate and neighbor."

Miao Ruolan stopped and sized him up. A smile gradually appeared on her face. "I know you. Dian Dian always talks about you in front of me. Why are you here?"

"I came specifically to find you."

"Has Dian Dian come back?"

"No. She won't be back anytime soon..."

Lin Xiaosu repeated what he had told his second aunt the night before. Miao Ruolan fell silent for quite a while before smiling softly. "That's wonderful. She's the one best suited to join the national fighting team. She's finally found the path that suits her best."

Lin Xiaosu said, "Yes, she's found the path that suits her best. What about you? Where is your path?"

Miao Ruolan's eyes shifted lightly. "What? Are you worried I'll starve to death?"

As her eyes moved, Lin Xiaosu suddenly noticed how lively they were. With that slight turn, they seemed capable of making people forget how ordinary her features were.

"How could that be? If an expert like you could starve to death, then society would be too terrifying!"

Miao Ruolan fixed her gaze on his face, looking thoughtful...

"I was inside just now! Other people can't see how powerful you are, but I can!" He kept his voice low.

Miao Ruolan gently exhaled. "I actually saw you too."

"You didn't just see me. You also heard Old Zhou's conversation with Ms. Sun." Lin Xiaosu said, "Extraordinary sixth sense—that's also the power of ancient martial arts, isn't it?"

"Ancient martial arts are boundless in their power. I only know a little of the basics. The worst part is that this era has no place for ancient martial arts."

"No, this era encompasses everything. There are no skills it cannot accommodate, only placements that don't fit!" Lin Xiaosu said. "I came to find you today because I want to work with you on something."

"What?"

"I want to open a detective agency. I can't do it alone, so I want to find a partner."

Miao Ruolan was astonished. "A detective agency? What does that do? Private detective work?"

"Yes!"

"Is that allowed? I thought only foreign countries allowed it?"

"The regulations have changed. Great Xia allows it, but not many people are willing to do it. Or rather, not many people have the ability to do it." Lin Xiaosu said, "But we can!"

Miao Ruolan was tempted...

She possessed a whole body of skills, but she had no platform.

Her circumstances were actually even more difficult than Li Diandian's.

Li Diandian specialized in external fighting arts, something people could see and feel. The country also had combat sports programs, so her path was broad. Even if Li Diandian was a little reckless and loved courting disaster, she could still return to a small county town, open a Fighting Gym, and teach people how to fight.

Modern combat sports were attractive to students' parents.

They got people moving and strengthened the body.

But what about her, Miao Ruolan? Ancient martial arts were very special and incredibly difficult to learn. They simply were not something children whose goal was physical exercise could learn.

Children could not endure that kind of hardship.

Even if the children could endure it, their parents would not want them to. Everyone only believed in what they could see. Who would believe in vague, intangible internal true qi?

They would pay huge tutoring fees and watch their children train through the coldest days of winter and the hottest days of summer, only to gain absolutely nothing. Never mind whether they could bear to see their children suffer—the key was that they would feel like they had thrown all that money into the Blackwater River without even a ripple.

So Miao Ruolan's path was extremely, extremely narrow.

All signs showed that if she depended on this to make a living, she would most likely starve to death.

What happened today was proof enough.

And now, Lin Xiaosu had extended an invitation to her...

"I don't know anything about this line of work. I might not be able to do it." Though Miao Ruolan was excited inside, she was an honest person.

"I do!" Lin Xiaosu said.

"Then... what can I help you with?"

"What you can do is extremely important. In the detective business, offending people is unavoidable. If someone comes knocking one day, wanting to crack my skull and wreck our operation, you can step up and protect our detective agency!"

Miao Ruolan burst out laughing. "Nonsense. How could there be so many situations that require fighting?"

"When there's no fighting, you can manage the finances, watch the shop, and take cases."

The smile disappeared from Miao Ruolan's face. Even her lively eyes no longer looked lively as she gazed quietly at him. "Are you serious?"

"I've always been serious!"

Two little flowers seemed to slowly bloom in Miao Ruolan's eyes. "Then, Boss, how much are you planning to pay me?"

"How much can you accept?"

"Two thousand... Fifteen hundred is fine too! Per month!" Miao Ruolan said.

Lin Xiaosu smiled. "Your demands are really low. Unfortunately, even at such low pay, I won't agree!"

Miao Ruolan did not quite understand...

Lin Xiaosu said, "I already told you: we're partners. So I'm not your boss. We're both shareholders, with equal rights. We split the earnings equally and share the rent and utilities."

Miao Ruolan understood. "That won't do. It really won't. I don't understand this business at all. I can't do much..."

"You can help me fight! If it comes to that..."

"Even if I fight, my help isn't worth much. You saw it just now—I'm only worth fifty yuan a class..."

"That's because Old Zhou has no eye for talent!"

"Anyway... anyway... I can't take advantage of you!"

"Then can you let me take a little advantage of you?"

The moment Lin Xiaosu's last sentence came out, the conversation abruptly stopped...

Miao Ruolan's lips parted halfway, but not a sound came out.

Lin Xiaosu's gaze shifted, and inwardly he cursed. Fuck!

Had he said the wrong thing? Had it caused a misunderstanding?

"Forget it, I'll be frank!" Lin Xiaosu chose his words carefully. "I'm... ahem... interested in ancient martial arts. If possible, and I mean if possible..."

Miao Ruolan's heart seemed to suddenly drop from the clouds back to the ground. "You want to learn ancient martial arts?"

"Ahem... I also know that the old saying goes, 'The art should not be lightly passed on.' But this is modern society, and many things have changed. If no one learns such a miraculous method, then in the words of the ancients, it would be like a pearl gathering dust. That would be a pity too."

Miao Ruolan smiled...

Her smile was infinitely pure...

Lin Xiaosu could not interpret her smile, but he could tell it was definitely not mockery.

Miao Ruolan said, "This is modern society, and many things really have changed. You'd never imagine it, but my father once had a crazy idea. He wanted to put my family's Spring Return Skill online for everyone to practice."

Lin Xiaosu was dumbfounded. "Why?"

"It started with something that happened five years ago..."

Five years ago—no, the incident had actually begun ten years ago.

Ten years ago, a young man obsessed with ancient martial arts found her father and begged him to teach him martial arts.

What did her father say?

He had always dreamed of passing down this inherited martial art. Few people learned martial arts in modern society, so when one finally appeared, he was overjoyed. He accepted the young man as his disciple on the spot and taught him with great care.

But after practicing for a full five years, the young man had still learned absolutely nothing.

Gradually, the young man became impatient.

In the end, he even fell out with her father and told people everywhere that her father was a fraud—that he had deceived him for five whole years, cheated him out of over a thousand yuan in holiday gifts, and even swindled four old hens from him.

Her father was furious. He went to the man's home himself, returned all the holiday gifts and four large hens, then went home amid the villagers' ridicule and smoked in the courtyard all night.

Early the next morning, the old man found Miao Ruolan, who was still in college at the time, and asked with red-rimmed eyes, "Daughter, can we put the Spring Return Skill online?"

Miao Ruolan had not understood at all back then. "Dad, why?"

The old man said, "I refuse to believe that not one person in all of Great Xia can master it! As long as an outsider succeeds in learning it, then our Miao Family won't be frauds!"

Living among his fellow villagers, the old man cared deeply about his reputation. He truly could not bear being branded a fraud.

So he had actually dreamed of having someone come learn the Spring Return Skill.

What nonsense about not passing the art on lightly? He wanted to pass it on, but he simply could not find anyone...

Therefore, Lin Xiaosu wanting to learn the Miao Family's Spring Return Skill was not a problem at all in this new era...

Lin Xiaosu laughed. "So you mean I can go home with you right now and pay respects to my martial arts master?"