Buyout

At the earnest invitation of Bi Father and Bi Kai, Zhuang Jin went out to eat with them.

The Shen Family kept its Martial Students under closed management. They were not allowed to leave without cause; if they had urgent business, they needed to obtain a temporary exit permit. But once they became Formal Martial Artists, they could come and go freely with a One-Striped Servant waist badge.

Bi Father's name was Bi Fuwan. He looked a little over forty, somewhat short—half a head shorter than Zhuang Jin. His hair was meticulously groomed, he wore a small mustache, had a slight paunch, and was dressed in black cotton clothes.

Judging from the man's attire, Zhuang Jin did not think he looked particularly wealthy. He guessed that Bi Kai's two self-paid meals earlier had probably been due to Chang Hetong's connections. Yet this uncle and nephew also seemed rather strange; they did not look especially close. Putting himself in their shoes, if he were Bi Kai's uncle, he certainly would not have merely arranged two self-paid meals. He would have gone to the Training Ground and the dormitory to visit once or twice, to show his support for Bi Kai.

Though he pondered these matters inwardly, he was not tactless enough to ask. He merely said, "Brother Bi, are you feeling better?"

"Brother Zhuang, just call me Kai Zi. The doctor said I'm fine. I just need to rest for two days." Though Bi Kai said so, his voice was quite hoarse.

"This is all thanks to you, little brother. If not for you last night, my son would have... Later, please allow my son and me to properly thank you." Bi Father spoke earnestly.

"What are you saying? It was only a small effort. Since I saw something like that happen, I naturally could not stand by and ignore it." Zhuang Jin exchanged polite words.

The three of them arrived at a restaurant not far from the Shen Family, one Bi Father had reserved in advance, and took their seats.

Zhuang Jin noticed that the father and son were exceedingly courteous, giving him every measure of respect and sincerity. As an elder, when Bi Father reached the table, he stood to one side with Bi Kai and waited. He said that today was meant to thank Zhuang Jin, and insisted that Zhuang Jin sit first before he would take his own seat. Even after sitting down, he only rested half his backside on the chair. For an elder to treat a junior to such an extent, there was truly not the slightest fault to pick in his etiquette.

The waiter served tea and brought over some pastries.

Bi Father invited Zhuang Jin to help himself first. Then he asked about their martial training. When the conversation turned to what had happened last night, he expressed his gratitude at length once more. After five cups of tea, the real meat of the matter finally arrived. He rose with Bi Kai, carefully took out a ten-tael silver ingot from his robes, and placed it before Zhuang Jin with both hands. "Little Brother Zhuang saved my son. This is a small token of my regard. Please accept it, and do not think it too little!"

Ten taels of silver was indeed no small sum! An ordinary strong laborer, such as a porter at North-of-the-City Wharf, could save three or four qian of silver a month after food and drink and already be considered doing well. That was assuming he was unmarried—one man fed, the whole family full. Most ordinary households in the city did not have total savings beyond that amount.

"Father!" Seeing his father's actions, Bi Kai instinctively cried out.

He felt that his father's words, paired with the way he was offering the silver, made it seem as though he wanted to buy out the debt of gratitude outright. It did not feel quite right.

At his words, Bi Father turned to glance at Bi Kai. Courteous and respectful before Zhuang Jin, he looked sternly imposing before his own son. One look was enough to make Bi Kai dare not speak again. Clearly, he had long established great authority over his son.

Seeing this, Zhuang Jin suddenly understood something. Bi Kai's showing off and boasting in the dormitory, as well as the trouble it had caused last night, might have had much to do with being suppressed in his home environment for too long.

Thinking this to himself, he also rose and said, "Uncle Bi, what are you saying? When an elder bestows a gift, one dares not decline. This junior will shamelessly accept it."

Why would he refuse? He had saved Bi Kai through his own ability. He could accept this money with a clear conscience, openly and without shame!

Besides, by accepting it, he was doing Bi Father a favor! Once he took the money, Bi Father would no longer keep this debt of gratitude constantly on his mind, unable to eat or sleep in peace because of it... On the contrary, if he refused and did not let them repay his kindness, they might suspect that he wanted something greater—that he intended to hold this favor over them and make difficult demands. Then great kindness would turn into enmity!

He was a man of principles, and he understood Bi Father's meaning. Once he accepted these ten taels of silver, the favor of saving Bi Kai last night would essentially be settled. It would be as though nothing had happened. From then on, even if he encountered some difficulty, he would not ask Bi Kai for help.

Watching Zhuang Jin accept the silver, Bi Father seemed to understand that Zhuang Jin had grasped his meaning. He quietly let out a breath, as though a heavy burden had suddenly been lifted from his shoulders.

He was using silver to repay the favor precisely for his son's sake. After all, it was a life-saving debt. Now that both Zhuang Jin and his son had become Formal Martial Artists, he feared that someday Zhuang Jin might come to Bi Kai with some matter and ask his son to risk his life in repayment of this favor.

With these ten taels of silver, my purse is much less tight. At least I won't have to worry about Cultivation Provisions for the next month or two of martial training. Zhuang Jin felt a faint joy in his heart as well.

In truth, Bi Father feared owing him a favor and wanted to compensate him with silver. Did Zhuang Jin not wish for exactly the same thing?

To Zhuang Jin, even if the Bi Family was somewhat better off than ordinary households, a favor from such a family was of little use to him. It was far more practical to turn it into cash. After all, if his Golden Finger truly had no bottlenecks, what he needed most urgently was silver. Only with silver could he buy Cultivation Provisions and turn his potential into reality.

In a sense, this was a mutual pursuit.

The gentleman was willing and the lady was willing; naturally, host and guest were both thoroughly pleased. Because they had come out early, by the time they had drunk tea and eaten lunch, it was only half past noon. Bi Father thanked Zhuang Jin once more and departed, while Zhuang Jin returned to the Shen Family with Bi Kai.

"Brother Zhuang," Bi Kai said, his face reddening somewhat, "my family only has a Cloth Shop. It's not some particularly great business... Overseer Chang from last night really is my uncle, but he's a distant relative. We're not all that close..."

Zhuang Jin understood what Bi Kai had left unsaid. His earlier boasting in the dormitory had contained some exaggeration; his family was not truly that wealthy. At the same time, he also understood Chang Hetong's earlier behavior.

Bi Kai continued, "My family's Cloth Shop wasn't passed down from my grandfather either... Back in my grandfather's day, the family was only average, and there were many children. My father became an apprentice at someone else's Cloth Shop... He spent most of his life saving up until he managed to acquire this one shop, and things improved a little. Then all those relatives came crawling over. My father has seen too much of people clinging to him for favors, which is why he's like this."

"My father hasn't had it easy either. He runs a Cloth Shop, and it looks glamorous on the surface, but when dealing with officials and Gangsters and Underworld alike, he often has to swallow his broken teeth along with his blood... That's why my father sent me here to learn martial arts."

Listening, Zhuang Jin nodded slightly and silently thought, no wonder.

He had been wondering why Bi Father's behavior had felt so contradictory. Calling it neglect would not be right: his attitude and etiquette had been impeccable, and one could feel his genuine gratitude. At least, with Zhuang Jin's discernment, he had seen no falsehood. But calling him sincere did not entirely fit either: he had used ten taels of silver to buy out the favor directly, as if terrified that Zhuang Jin might latch onto him. The approach had seemed somewhat improper.

Once Bi Kai explained it, Zhuang Jin understood. Bi Father's experiences had shaped him into this sort of person.

"Ten taels of silver are no small amount to my family either... But it definitely isn't enough to repay the favor... I know, Brother Zhuang. I still owe you... If anything comes up in the future, just tell me."

Though Bi Kai was emotional and spoke somewhat incoherently, Zhuang Jin understood what he meant. He could also see that after last night, after walking once through the line between life and death, Bi Kai had truly grown up. A fall into the pit, a gain in one's wit.

Sure enough, people cannot teach people; only events can teach them in a single stroke. He waved a hand. "Kai Zi, no need to say more. I understand what you mean, but there's no need. Truly, there's no need."