Sincerity is the Ultimate Skill

After leaving his teacher's residence, Lin Chen went to the kitchen and met Steward Zhang.

Steward Zhang readily agreed, even joking that when Lin Chen served meat in the cafeteria, he should give him an extra portion too—consider it looking after one of their own.

Steward Zhang also knew that Lin Chen's strength had reached four hundred jin.

As the Martial Hall's steward, he was able to learn of any movement within it at the first opportunity.

The current Lin Chen had the potential to cultivate Essence Energy within two years.

And with Instructor Yu seemingly giving Lin Chen special instruction, Steward Zhang was even more eager to befriend him.

After bidding Steward Zhang farewell, Lin Chen left the cafeteria. On his way back to the dormitory, he ran into Zhao Jingchuan and the other four.

Seeing the five of them, Lin Chen took the initiative to step aside.

"Junior Brother Lin, today is our rest day. I'm treating everyone at my family's restaurant. Why don't you join us?"

Lin Chen had not expected Zhao Jingchuan to take the initiative to greet him. After pondering for a moment, he agreed. "Then this junior brother will gladly accept."

An opportunity for a free meal could not be passed up.

Lu Yongfeng and the others looked at Zhao Jingchuan in confusion. They did not understand why he had invited Lin Chen. Even if Lin Chen's strength had reached four hundred jin, there was still a vast gap between him and them.

But since Zhao Jingchuan was the host today, they were in no position to say anything.

The group left the Martial Hall. They encountered several students along the way, and when those students saw Lin Chen walking with the five of them, they all cast strange looks his way.

Clearly, the other Martial Hall students thought the same way.

Lin Chen might have shocked them today, but he was still some distance behind Lu Yongfeng and the other five.

Lin Chen silently walked at the back, listening to Zhao Jingchuan and the others discuss martial arts academies in the county town. He had no place to join the conversation.

He could only sigh. This was the gap between them!

While most students were striving to cultivate Essence Energy within two years, these people were already considering which martial arts academy in the county town they should choose.

Cheng Ying's goal was the Seven Stars Martial Arts Academy, while Xu Botao preferred the Quaking Mountain Martial Arts Academy. The two discussed which academy was stronger, while the others occasionally chimed in with their own suggestions.

Lin Chen listened quietly. No one mentioned him, as though everyone had simply ignored him, and he was happy enough with that. His goal was to mooch a meal, and besides, he had gained plenty of useful information from their conversation.

The Seven Stars Martial Arts Academy Cheng Ying wanted to join was famed for its Seven Stars Fist Technique, while the Quaking Mountain Martial Arts Academy Xu Botao favored was strongest in Hard Qigong.

A quarter of an hour later, the group arrived before Zhao Family Restaurant.

Zhao Dongyang stood at the entrance. Seeing his son and the others approach, he smiled warmly. "Jingchuan, these must be your fellow disciples."

He had been the one to ask his son to arrange this meal, and he knew the family backgrounds of these young men well.

Lu Yongfeng was the young master of Lu Family Pharmacy; Cheng Ying was the young master of Cheng Family Cloth Shop...

In business, what mattered was connections.

Lu Yongfeng and the others introduced themselves as well, addressing him as Uncle Zhao or Elder Zhao.

"Elder Zhao, this nephew is Lin Chen."

"Worthy Nephew Lin!"

After Lin Chen gave his name, confusion still flickered in Zhao Dongyang's eyes. Jingchuan had never mentioned a student named Lin Chen before.

But as a businessman, Zhao Dongyang did not reveal the slightest thing on his face. He warmly led everyone into the restaurant and straight upstairs to a private room.

Six cold dishes had already been laid out on the table in the private room.

Braised beef, fennel beans, wine-marinated fish, pickled century eggs, cold mixed Indian aster, and a plate of pastries Lin Chen did not recognize.

Good heavens!

The cold dishes alone were more lavish than all the food at his home.

Lin Chen had been in this world for nearly a year, and this was his first time eating at a restaurant. In the original owner's memories, the most delicious food had been the tofu pudding from the tofu shop in town.

Whenever Father Lin took the original owner into town to sell fish, he would spend two copper coins to buy him a bowl of tofu pudding from the town's tofu shop. That tofu pudding, fragrant with lard and chopped scallions, had already been the finest food in the original owner's memories.

After everyone sat down, none of the others hurried to pick up their chopsticks.

They had not come for the cold dishes.

Lin Chen, however, unceremoniously picked up his chopsticks and started tasting them.

The flavor was indeed excellent.

So this world did not lack good food. Poor people simply could not afford to eat it.

Before long, the waiter brought out a large platter of meat. When it arrived, Lin Chen noticed Yan Dexing, sitting to the side, swallow hard. The others were also staring fixedly at the platter.

"Yesterday, hunters from Clear Mountain Village brought down a black muntjac. I happened to be there collecting game, so I bought it. This stuff replenishes qi and blood. Eat plenty."

Hearing Zhao Dongyang's words and seeing Yan Dexing and the others swallow, Lin Chen understood. This Black Muntjac Meat was either extraordinarily delicious or a great tonic. Most likely the latter.

In that case, he would not stand on ceremony.

"Thank you, Uncle. Then I'll have a taste."

While the others still could not quite bring themselves to act, Lin Chen was the first to move his chopsticks. He picked up a huge piece of meat and placed it in his bowl.

Not bad. The Black Muntjac Meat had quite a chew to it, with a sweet aftertaste. Soon, Lin Chen felt his abdomen grow hot.

The effects were this quick?

Lin Chen raised an eyebrow and murmured inwardly, System Panel!

Name: Lin Chen

Profession: Martial Artist

Qi and Blood: 2008/3000

Fate: [When the Water Flows, the Channel is Formed]: In the Martial Arts First Realm, persevere steadily and advance step by step; Break Through Like Bamboo, with no bottleneck to trouble you.

In just a few breaths, his qi and blood had increased by 5 points. This was the first time he had seen his qi and blood rise on the same day.

Previously, his qi and blood would only change after he woke up the next day.

When Lu Yongfeng and the others saw him start eating—especially when they saw Lin Chen reaching for a second piece—they stopped holding back as well. If they remained reserved, the Black Muntjac Meat would be gone.

Zhao Dongyang watched the young men wolf down the food with a smile, entirely unsurprised. Black muntjac meat was a great tonic; this one platter was worth ten taels, and even then, it was not necessarily available for purchase.

"There's also soup made from black muntjac bones. Try some later. This uncle won't disturb you youngsters any longer. Jingchuan, keep your fellow disciples company."

Zhao Dongyang knew that with an elder like him around, these young men would not speak freely. And if they did not speak more, how could they draw closer to one another?

Once the elder left, the atmosphere in the private room relaxed. Yan Dexing wanted to say something, only to find Lin Chen reaching for the ladle to serve himself meat soup again.

The moment he moved, the others followed right behind. Apart from the sounds of eating, the private room fell completely silent.

No one wanted to be the last person left without even a mouthful of soup.

"Has Junior Brother Lin never eaten at home?"

Once the soup was gone, Yan Dexing finally found an opening to speak. His words were full of disdain toward Lin Chen.

"As you senior brothers know, my family circumstances are ordinary. At home, we used to eat nothing but boiled stews. Not to mention seasonings, my mother could not bear to add much oil or salt. This is my first time eating dishes this delicious, so I lost my composure somewhat."

Lin Chen's answer was utterly sincere, leaving Yan Dexing unable to say a single word of the mockery he had planned.

What?

Did he have no face? No pride?

He just laid bare his family's hardships like that?

Instead, the others were somewhat moved by Lin Chen's words.

They asked themselves: if they were in Lin Chen's position, they definitely would not be able to speak so frankly.

"When Junior Brother Lin helped out in the cafeteria, this senior brother greatly admired you. To be honest, I don't think I could do what you did."

Zhao Jingchuan sighed. Lu Yongfeng and the others nodded in agreement. If they were in Lin Chen's place, they truly would not be able to swallow their pride and serve food in the cafeteria before students they knew.

"This junior brother's family is poor. I could only exchange that for the cafeteria's beef."

Lin Chen spoke earnestly, without hiding anything. The next moment, he stood and clasped his fists toward them. "It is precisely because this junior brother is poor that I refuse to give up any chance to increase my qi and blood. If I have acted improperly today, this junior brother apologizes to all of you senior brothers."

As soon as he finished, without waiting for their reply, he continued, "Being able to eat a meal like this once in my life has already satisfied me. I dare not disturb you senior brothers any further, so this junior brother will take his leave. Senior Brother Zhao, thank you for the feast!"

Lin Chen left naturally, but in the instant he turned around, Lu Yongfeng and the others caught the disappointment in his eyes.

The private room instantly fell silent.

A few breaths later, Zhao Jingchuan sighed again. "Junior Brother Lin hasn't had it easy either. Who knows how much unseen hardship he endured before his strength increased by four hundred jin."

"Martial arts have never been easy. What Junior Brother Lin is to us today is no different from what we are to those children of great families in the county town." Xu Botao nodded, deeply empathizing.

When everyone's gazes finally settled on him, Yan Dexing looked helpless. "I... I only said one thing to him. I didn't mean anything else."

Yan Dexing was miserable—utterly miserable.

How had these people started blaming him? It was not as though he had said anything particularly nasty.

After leaving the private room, the corners of Lin Chen's lips curled upward slightly. Little brat, trying to play mind games with me? Senior Brother Yan, you're still too green.

Now do you understand why Sincerity is the Ultimate Skill?

I only gave you a tiny demonstration. If I really went all out, you'd probably wake up in the middle of the night, slap yourself, and say, "I really deserve to die!"