Opening the Channels

Upon hearing this, the Martial Students filed out of the house and headed for their assigned Training Grounds.

Zhuang Jin and Xiong Lei followed them out, quietly calculating. "There are one hundred and twenty people in each Martial Student Recruitment. Fifteen people to a room makes eight rooms total. I just found out that every two rooms share one Training Ground, so these one hundred and twenty people are divided among four Training Grounds."

They soon arrived at the Yellow Rank Number One Training Field. A sign ahead bore a huge character for "Martial," while weapon racks stood on either side, displaying all manner of weapons.

A young woman in a lake-green dress waited at the edge of the Training Field. She looked no more than sixteen or seventeen, her small round face still carrying a hint of baby fat. Two wooden buckets sat beside her, filled with steaming medicinal soup. Its fragrance spread through the air, refreshing the heart and mind. "Come collect your Qi Channel Opening Soup here! One bowl per person!"

Zhuang Jin and Xiong Lei hurried over to join the line. Zhuang Jin then noticed the single Willow Leaf Pattern on the girl's shoulder and understood that she was a Third-Class Maid of the Shen Family Outer Courtyard. He had just been about to ask Xiong Lei about the Qi Channel Opening Soup when voices rose from the crowd.

"Qi Channel Opening Soup is precious stuff. If we want to Grasp Blood Qi through martial training and cultivate Inner Breath, we have to rely on it!"

"Exactly. I heard it from my father too. Without Qi Channel Opening Soup, you can't cultivate anything worthwhile. Most of the one tael of silver we paid probably went toward this."

"Ah, I came too late and ended up at the back. What if there isn't any left by the time it reaches me? Even getting a little less would be a huge loss!"

Zhuang Jin and Xiong Lei stood around the middle of the line. Zhuang Jin rose onto his toes and saw that each person's portion was roughly six-tenths of a bowl, just reaching a brown ring around the Middle-Top Lot of the bowl. The girl ladled it out swiftly and with remarkable precision.

Soon, it was the turn of a plump, rather tall Martial Student. He stepped forward with an ingratiating smile. "Sister, give me a little more! Just a little more!"

"Everyone gets the same amount." As she spoke, the girl poured a ladleful into his bowl.

"Come on, Sister, don't be stingy. I'll do it myself!" As he spoke, he took the bowl with one hand and directly reached toward the ladle with the other, seemingly intending to scoop some for himself.

"Ah!" Every Martial Student Song Lan had encountered before had been respectful. At most, they would tease her verbally and ask for a bit extra. She had never expected this man to actually make a move. Startled, she dropped the long ladle into the bucket with a slap, splashing out some of the medicinal soup.

Zhuang Jin glanced sideways at the scene. Seeing that no one in the line intended to step forward, he sighed inwardly. If he had already received his Qi Channel Opening Soup and his own interests were not involved, he certainly would not meddle in this business. The thought would not even have crossed his mind. Unfortunately, there were no ifs.

He swiftly weighed the consequences of intervening. The benefit is that I might earn the goodwill of this girl, a Third-Class Maid of the Shen Family. The price is offending this plump Martial Student.

Though this fat Martial Student's shameless behavior did not look like the sort bred by good upbringing or a powerful background, Zhuang Jin still glanced at the man's clothes and shoes to confirm once more that he was someone Zhuang Jin could afford to offend.

—It was not that he was being mercenary. Lowly and weak, treading on thin ice to survive, such a mindset had already become instinct.

Zhuang Jin ran through all this in his mind in no more than an instant. Once he made his decision, he immediately stepped forward and seized the fat Martial Student's wrist. "Brother, you've gone too far!"

"Yeah. What skill is there in bullying a woman?" The fat Martial Student's other arm was also grabbed—by Xiong Lei.

When he saw Zhuang Jin act, he instinctively stepped forward as well.

—Perhaps even Xiong Lei himself had not noticed the shift in his mindset. When he had first entered the Shen Family and explained the servant ranks to Zhuang Jin, he had regarded Zhuang Jin more from above. It was not that he looked down on Zhuang Jin; he merely saw himself as the elder brother, looking after Zhuang Jin as his younger brother. But after collecting their bedding and avoiding a possible disaster, he had gradually begun to take Zhuang Jin as the lead without even realizing it, his mindset changing from looking down to looking up.

This was perfectly normal. Not just among friends—even among lovers, husbands and wives, parents and children—there had to be a primary and secondary in a relationship. Either the east wind overwhelmed the west wind, or the west wind overwhelmed the east wind. Why, even children who peed in the mud and played with it had to decide who was the eldest and who was second!

Back to the matter at hand. With Zhuang Jin and Xiong Lei firmly gripping him from both sides, Qian Wende's body looked strong but was in truth soft fat. He struggled but could not break free, and the curses at his lips were swallowed back down. He could only say resentfully, "You two, don't meddle in other people's business!"

"This isn't someone else's business. If you eat more and take more, everyone else naturally gets less soup. What if someone fails to become a true martial artist and stay because they were short by this little bit? What then?" With a single sentence, Zhuang Jin broadened the matter, turning it into a conflict between Qian Wende and all the Martial Students.

The other Martial Students had already disliked Qian Wende, but they had not wanted to be the bird that stuck its head out. Now that Zhuang Jin and Xiong Lei had taken the lead, they all voiced their support. Those who had yet to receive their Qi Channel Opening Soup were especially fervent, afraid that Zhuang Jin's words would come true.

"That's exactly right! This fatty can't eat more and take more!"

Some who knew Qian Wende directly called out his name. "Qian Wende, it was bad enough when you used to trick children in the alley out of their food. You still behave like this after coming to the Shen Family?"

"Exactly. Take a look at where you are. Is the Shen Family a place where you can run wild?"

Qian Wende was also someone who knew when to bend and when to stretch. Seeing that he had incurred everyone's wrath, he immediately backed down. With a conciliatory smile, he cupped his hands. "I know I was wrong, I was wrong. Please forgive me, everyone!"

"Little Sister Lan, what happened?" At that moment, a gentle, melodious voice suddenly sounded.

Zhuang Jin looked over and saw another young woman in a lake-green dress. Her shoulders were slender, her neck long, and though slim, she was not bony. Her brows curved gracefully and her eyes were lovely; every glance shone with vitality. Only her slightly protruding front teeth counted as a minor flaw in her appearance. Yet Zhuang Jin did not pay much attention to her looks or bearing. His gaze fell upon the three Willow Leaf Patterns on her clothing.

That meant she was a First-Class Maid of the Shen Family Outer Courtyard!

The entire Martial Arts Practice Field fell quiet the instant the girl appeared. Many Martial Students glanced sideways at her. Like Xiong Lei, they had received instructions from elders at home and clearly understood the weight carried by a First-Class Maid of the Shen Family Outer Courtyard. A First-Class Maid in the Outer Courtyard was equivalent to a Three-Insignia Servant, and a Three-Insignia Servant of the Shen Family was surely a Three Meridian Warrior.

Of course, that did not mean this First-Class Maid of the Outer Courtyard was herself a Three Meridian Warrior. Maids and servants had different standards. It simply meant her status was what it was. If she wished to make an example of someone by killing the chicken to scare the monkeys, she had the authority to drive Qian Wende out.

Qian Wende was no fool. Though his parents had never told him about the Shen Family's servants and maids, he could tell from everyone's reactions that this newcomer was no ordinary person. He knew the matter had become serious. Thinking that his itchy hand might result in him being driven out—and that his father would probably beat him to death if he returned home like that—cold sweat broke out across his back.

"Sister Yun!" The Third-Class Maid addressed as "Little Sister Lan" was named Song Lan. Seeing the newcomer, she seemed to find a pillar of support at once. She called out and hurried over, whispering the whole story into the other girl's ear. As she spoke, she gratefully glanced toward Zhuang Jin and Xiong Lei.

When Qian Wende saw this, how could he not know she was lodging a complaint? Knowing he could not sit still and await death, he dropped to his knees with a thud and repeatedly kowtowed, tears and snot streaming down his face. "I lost my head! Lard blinded my heart and made me do such a bastardly thing! Please spare me just this once, Sisters!"

Seeing Qian Wende's pathetic state, the Martial Students all secretly felt greatly satisfied.

The others felt this way, and Song Lan, the person directly involved, even more so. After making her complaint, she had originally wanted Sister Yun to teach him a harsh lesson. But seeing Qian Wende in such a state, she hesitated again.

Chen Yun saw Song Lan's expression and knew that she had softened. Since the person directly involved felt that way, Chen Yun could not simply play the villain for nothing. Still, this man needed to learn a lesson. Ignoring Qian Wende, she brought Song Lan over to thank Zhuang Jin and Xiong Lei.

"It was only right." Naturally, Zhuang Jin would not claim credit arrogantly.

"Y-yeah, it was only right!" Xiong Lei seemed especially nervous. He scratched his head awkwardly, looking simple and foolish.

After thanking them, Chen Yun finally looked at Qian Wende, who was still kowtowing. "Everyone receives the same amount of Qi Channel Opening Soup. Drinking more does more harm than good. You will understand that in time."

"And," she paused before adding, "during the first Martial Student Recruitment, one Martial Student drank an extra half bowl. The Martial Arts Instructor was present at the time and broke his hand before driving him out... You should thank these two young gentlemen for stopping you. Otherwise, you would have made a grave mistake just now."

"Yes, thank you, Brothers." Hearing this, Qian Wende realized that he had finally cleared this hurdle. Naturally, he agreed with whatever she said and thanked Zhuang Jin and Xiong Lei.

"It's nothing."

"No big deal, haha."

Both Zhuang Jin and Xiong Lei waved their hands. Unlike Xiong Lei, who had not thought much about it, Zhuang Jin silently admired how thoroughly Miss Yun handled matters. By bringing up this incident, she was likely not only warning Qian Wende and the other Martial Students, but also preventing Qian Wende from bearing a grudge against them and removing future trouble on their behalf.

After Chen Yun left, Song Lan continued distributing Qi Channel Opening Soup to the Martial Students. Zhuang Jin and Xiong Lei returned to the line as well.

"Brother Xiong!" Seeing Xiong Lei staring blankly at Chen Yun's departing back, Zhuang Jin patted him on the shoulder.

"Ahem." Xiong Lei turned back in embarrassment, but a moment later, he could not help stealing another glance.

Seeing his lovestruck look, Zhuang Jin shook his head slightly but said no more. That Miss Yun truly was the most beautiful woman he had seen since coming into this world.

Did he like her?

Naturally, he did. Food and sex were human nature; liking pretty girls was only natural. But he knew that, as he was now, he had no right to entertain such fantasies. He knew even better how painstakingly he had schemed and how much he had given just to gain this opportunity to learn martial arts. Learning martial arts was his first priority now.

Soon, it was Zhuang Jin's turn. Song Lan thanked him again and ladled him a bowl of Qi Channel Opening Soup.

After receiving their Qi Channel Opening Soup, Zhuang Jin and Xiong Lei went to one side to drink it. The soup tasted slightly bitter. Once swallowed, it caused a faint stabbing pain in the Five Viscera and Six Entrails, like tiny knives lightly scraping against them. Then his entire body heated up, and a warm current flowed toward his Four Limbs and Hundreds of Meridians.

This Qi Channel Opening Soup is no simple thing. Zhuang Jin suddenly recalled Miss Yun's words that drinking too much Qi Channel Opening Soup did more harm than good, and quietly pondered them.