Chance Encounter

At Wei Shi (1 p.m.), Ping Yongfeng arrived on time. He taught the Martial Students about meridians, Acupoints, and the first of the Twelve Principal Meridians, the Hand Yangming Meridian. Then he led them through the Black Fiend Stake Stance twice before instructing them to practice on their own and leaving.

Zhuang Jin had more or less figured it out. After the Martial Arts Instructor had been crippled during the last Martial Student Recruitment, this instructor would not hold anything back. But as Xiong Lei had said, he would only do his duty—expecting anything more was wishful thinking. They still had to rely on themselves!

Time slipped away amid the tedious training.

By You Shi (5 p.m.), Zhuang Jin noticed that some of the Martial Students who had eaten the free lunch were pale and could no longer keep training. Those who had paid for their meals were doing somewhat better.

Yet quite a few did not seem tired at all. These people had not performed the Stance Training correctly, so it had basically been ineffective. Naturally, they would not be tired.

Zhuang Jin understood this deeply. If the Black Fiend Stake Stance was done properly, one could feel the blood and qi flowing through the body. After one round, it felt as though one had run one or two li, with a light sweat breaking out. If one had maintained the correct stance and practiced until now, one's body would inevitably ache as if one had done frog jumps for several li.

At the edge of the Training Ground, more and more Martial Students sat down to rest and chat. Only a small number, including Zhuang Jin, still persisted in training.

After dinner, Zhuang Jin felt some of the fatigue leave his body and returned to the Training Ground to continue practicing. There were also three or five other Martial Students there, each training on their own without speaking.

As for the rest, they had returned to their dormitories. That was understandable. After training all day, who would not be exhausted? Extra practice required willpower.

After practicing for half a shichen, the three or five Martial Students left one after another. The Martial Arts Practice Field was about to be locked, so Zhuang Jin finally prepared to return to the dormitory. On the way, he ran into Miss Yun. She was carrying a stack of booklets and had only just nodded in greeting when Xiong Lei appeared by the roadside, scratching his head and grinning foolishly. "Hehe, what a coincidence. Sister Yun, let me help you?"

Seeing Xiong Lei's clumsy acting, Zhuang Jin could not help twitching at the corner of his eye. What coincidence? I can barely bear to expose you.

Then he thought of something else, and his expression turned strange. No wonder he did not come practice Stance Training with me after dinner—he was preparing for a chance encounter. That stretch after lunch was probably the same... This kid really knows how to act.

Still, Zhuang Jin neither approved nor disapproved of what Xiong Lei was doing. For them, martial training was the foremost priority right now. If they could not stay after a month, then no amount of currying favor would help. After all, one was a butcher's son, while the other was a First-Class Maid in the Shen Family Outer Courtyard. Their statuses were as far apart as clouds and mud; there was not the slightest possibility between them.

Chen Yun gently declined Xiong Lei's offer of help. She walked with the two of them for a short stretch before taking her leave.

Only then did Zhuang Jin say, "Brother Xiong, martial training should still come first."

"Cough, cough!" Xiong Lei coughed twice, looking somewhat embarrassed as he changed the subject. "Jinzi, did you know? Plenty of people still have not grasped the Stance Training. They are paying other Martial Students to teach them!"

Seeing that Xiong Lei did not take his words to heart, Zhuang Jin gave a slight shake of his head and let it go. A reminder was already a gesture of goodwill; saying more might hurt their friendship. There was no need to force his way into another person's Karma. Better to respect another's fate. So he went along with the topic. "Really? Has anyone approached you?"

Xiong Lei nodded. "Two Martial Students came to me, but I refused. There is not much money in it, and it is troublesome. Why would I do that?"

"That makes sense. If you take their money and they fail to see results after your guidance, would they not suspect you of holding something back? If they ultimately fail to become true martial artists and remain behind, they may even bear a grudge. That would be far too big a burden to carry."

Talking as they went, Zhuang Jin and Xiong Lei returned to the dormitory. The other Martial Students had already washed up and were chatting idly.

The moment the two entered, someone came up to them. "My name is Wang Rui. How should I address you two brothers?"

"Zhuang Jin."

"Xiong Lei."

"I wonder, how did your Stance Training go today? How did it feel? Have you found any clue about Grasp Blood Qi?"

Zhuang Jin found the question somewhat strange. Why did it feel so much like comparing answers after an exam in his previous life? Then he felt baffled. Did he even know this person? Why was he so familiar, asking around like this?

Still, with a thousand people came a thousand different sorts. Zhuang Jin did not want to offend anyone for no reason, so he answered vaguely, "I have not found any clue yet."

Xiong Lei's eyes flickered, and he said the same, "Yeah, I did not feel anything. It is too difficult."

"Isn't that so? I am the same. Hard, so hard!" Upon hearing their answers, Wang Rui immediately seemed to feel that they shared the same affliction. He sighed a few times and left.

The abrupt exchange left the two of them baffled.

But after thinking it over, Zhuang Jin somewhat understood. This person had probably seen him and Xiong Lei receive guidance onstage during the day and become the center of attention, so he had come to inquire about the progress of these two "popular figures." Still, Zhuang Jin could not understand the point of such behavior. What meaning was there in asking about it?

If others were progressing quickly, one would inevitably feel envy and jealousy, making oneself miserable and disrupting one's own rhythm. If others were progressing slowly, at most one could feel smug and gain a little psychological comfort. Could that possibly let one immediately Grasp Blood Qi and refine one's first wisp of Inner Breath?

After questioning the two of them, Wang Rui did not spare the other Martial Students in the dormitory either, asking each in turn. They all said they had not felt anything, and sighs filled the room—until it was Bi Kai's turn.

Bi Kai, the Martial Student who had paid for two portions of the paid meal at noon and eaten both himself, said, "I have felt something. I am confident that I can Grasp Blood Qi and refine my first wisp of Inner Breath within ten days."

At those words, everyone naturally felt a surge of envy and jealousy. Quite a few began flattering and currying favor with him.

Zhuang Jin looked at the circle of Martial Students surrounding Bi Kai and shook his head slightly. He did not go over. He could not even be bothered to remember the names of the other Martial Students.

After one month, over ninety percent of these Martial Students would be eliminated. In his eyes, they were merely people who had once slept on the same communal sleeping platform. Rather than concern himself with others, he might as well review in his mind the Acupoints and meridians he had learned that afternoon.

In another room for Third-Class Maids in the Shen Family Outer Courtyard.

Third-Class Maids shared rooms four to a room. Song Lan was among them. They were all girls of sixteen or seventeen, and after a busy day, the maids rested while chatting and gossiping.

Song Lan told them about how Qian Wende had tried to take more than his share during the day, even snatching at the ladle. After hearing the full story, the other girls denounced Qian Wende—then the conversation veered off course.

"Lanlan, what did the two Martial Students who helped you look like?"

"Mm." Song Lan thought for a moment. "One was rather sturdy, like an ox. The other was handsome, just like a scholar from a storybook, with curved brows and very bright eyes..."

"Really that handsome? I do not believe it—unless you are willing to switch with me tomorrow and let me see for myself," one maid deliberately teased.

Another young maid giggled. "Lanlan is yearning for spring!"

"You are the one yearning for spring! You are!" Song Lan's bun-like cheeks puffed up angrily, but the girl beside her poked her cheek. With a puff, she burst into laughter. "Even if I am yearning for spring, I doubt he would... How could I possibly be worthy of him? If we are talking about the prettiest among the Outer Courtyard Maids, it is still Sister Yun..."

Song Lan was still speaking when she noticed the other girls suddenly cry out, their eyes widening as they fell silent. She instantly realized something and stiffly turned around. Behind her stood none other than Chen Yun, the very person they were talking about, who had come to inspect the rooms.

"Sister Yun." Song Lan let out a small cry, but she was not afraid. Everyone knew that among the First-Class Maids of the Outer Courtyard, Chen Yun was recognized as having the best temper. She was gentle and never got angry at teasing. Just like now—if any other First-Class Maid from the Outer Courtyard had come to inspect the rooms and caught them still awake, chatting and laughing at this hour, they would surely have received a furious scolding. Sister Yun never did that.

Sure enough, Chen Yun looked at Song Lan with an indulgent yet helpless smile, like an elder sister looking at her mischievous little sister at home. She gave her shoulder a squeeze. "Dressed so thinly? The weather has turned cooler lately. You have already washed up, so why are you not getting into bed early? Why are you still chatting here?"

It had been fine before she said it, but the moment she did, Song Lan suddenly felt a chill. She sneezed instinctively, and a tiny bubble of snot popped out. It swelled with the sneeze, then burst with a puff. Yet she seemed not to have reacted at all, her expression blank.

The other three young maids all burst into laughter at the sight.

"You really are something." Chen Yun smiled and shook her head. She took out her handkerchief to wipe Song Lan's face, then watched over the four girls as they got into bed.

"It is late. Time to sleep. You still have to get up early tomorrow!" She went to the window and helped the four girls blow out the lamp before leaving the room.

The night was still. The Shen Family Outer Courtyard, clamorous for an entire day, had quieted down. Only the endless stars of the Milky Way glittered in the heavens, scattering specks of starlight over a small window, where a figure lay awake in bed, still silently reviewing.