Experience

The midday sun beat down fiercely.

The air was sticky with a layer of heat.

Pedestrians on the road walked in the shade as much as possible, and when exposed, they cursed the bad weather before quickening their pace.

The few rare patches of shade under trees were occupied by wild dogs and beggars.

On the canal boats at the dock, sacks were piled high on the deck, bulging.

On the shore, Chen Feng shouldered a sack of brown rice, sweat pouring down like rain. The stone slabs under his feet were scorching hot, and even through his straw sandals, he could feel the heat crawling up from the soles of his feet.

His coarse cloth gown was already soaked through. Now, with the sack pressing down, the rough burlap rubbed his neck raw.

Each sack weighed a hundred jin, and for each one unloaded, he earned one wen.

The foreman would take a cut, the Canal Gang demanded a "starting work fee," and after a day of back-breaking labor, ordinary porters would only receive seventeen or eighteen wen, barely enough to get by.

"Here, this is yours." After verifying the count, the new foreman handed the wages to Chen Feng.

Chen Feng took them and spread the copper coins in his hand. His eyes quickly scanned them: twenty wen.

His brow furrowed immediately. He had worked diligently. At sixteen or seventeen, he was young and strong, and wages were higher in the heat. After deductions, it shouldn't have been only twenty wen.

The new foreman must have "rounded down" his pay.

Chen Feng didn't say anything more. He understood that if he caused trouble, he might not even get these twenty wen. He could only accept them. Seeing his honest appearance, the foreman was satisfied and left to pay the other workers.

"Sir! This isn't right! How can it be so little?"

"I've counted it clearly, and this is it. Stop making trouble!"

The few porters who questioned the amount were berated, while most chose to accept it silently and swallow the insult.

Chen Feng ignored the commotion behind him and walked away quickly. A mechanical voice sounded in his ear--

[You labored as a porter for one day... Experience +67]

[You were harassed by the foreman and witnessed the harshness of society... Experience +100]

He was momentarily stunned, surprised to receive an unexpected bonus even after being shortchanged.

Chen Feng was not a native of this world.

He had transmigrated from Earth, having died from overwork after pulling all-nighters to rush projects in his previous life.

When he opened his eyes again, he had transmigrated to this world.

After absorbing the original owner's memories, he learned that martial arts existed here. Once cultivated to a certain level, uprooting willows and breaking stones would be child's play.

Powerful martial artists held high status, equal to sages and powerful ministers.

They were aloof.

The reason the Canal Gang could unscrupulously exploit the common people was entirely due to their Gang Leader, whose martial arts were superb. Within the province, no one dared to oppose him, and no one could defeat him.

Let alone the Canal Gang, that was too far away.

Just within Pingcheng, the various gangs, big and small, relied on their martial arts to bully the people wantonly. Every month, they extorted "management fees," causing the people to live in misery.

Fortunately, Chen Feng was not left with nothing.

When he transmigrated, he awakened something called the Experience System.

As long as he accumulated experience, he could continuously break through in martial arts.

Ignoring bottlenecks.

The method to obtain experience was simple: experience various new things. He had tried it. Even climbing the wall of a children's school to secretly listen to lessons could increase experience.

It was just that the amount was small.

Moreover, the more he experienced the same thing, the less experience the system would give. For example, if he worked as a porter doing manual labor, on the first day he could gain hundreds of experience points, but it would gradually decrease afterward.

When he first arrived in this world, his experience increased rapidly. It only slowed down after he adapted.

Chen Feng silently recited, summoning the system.

An attribute panel floated before his eyes, and only he could see the text on it—

[Name: Chen Feng]

[Experience: 12275]

[Cultivation Technique: Simplified 24-Form Tai Chi Fist (Perfected)]

A martial art was divided into five stages—Initial Glimpse, Minor Success, Proficient, Perfected, and finally, Perfect.

"I didn't expect the Tai Chi Fist taught in high school in my previous life to be considered a minor martial art. It made my body a bit stronger and gave me more strength to move things. It didn't take much experience to raise Tai Chi Fist to Perfected. Perhaps I had a certain foundation before?"

"I vaguely feel that after reaching Perfected, there might be some changes, but there are no other buttons on this panel... Forget it, I'll study it slowly later."

"It's been almost two months since I came to this world, and I've finally saved enough money to practice martial arts. The next step is to go to a martial arts school and become a disciple. Whoever wants to do this porter job can do it."

Walking on the road, Chen Feng carefully put away the money he had saved, which amounted to nearly three taels. In such chaotic times, one must not easily reveal wealth. What if he encountered some ruffians with wicked intentions? He hadn't become a martial artist yet, and two fists against four hands was not enough.

The original owner had been hit on the head with a blunt object after drinking.

Died unexpectedly in his first life.

He was able to live a second life because of that.

Thinking of this, Chen Feng tucked the money pouch into his embrace, covered it carefully, and quickened his pace towards home.

He arrived home half an hour later.

Chen Feng's home was located in the Slums of Pingcheng. The alleyways were dark and narrow, the corners damp and moldy. As soon as one entered, a stench would hit them – the smell of numbness and decay.

The people living here were the lowest of the low in Pingcheng, struggling on the brink of life and death, barely clinging on.

The time for the Summer Tax was fast approaching. A large portion of the people here would be unable to pay, and would ultimately be conscripted into the army. Women would be sent to work, and men would be sent to the front lines. The war in the north was intense, and there were rebellions in various regions. The army had a huge deficit.

However, even if they survived the Summer Tax, there were still the Autumn Tax and the Winter Tax. All sorts of miscellaneous and exorbitant taxes also emerged during this time of dynastic upheaval.

This didn't even include the Management Fee collected by the Gang every month. If they didn't pay, they would be forcibly sold into servitude and become slaves.

As soon as Chen Feng arrived home, he saw a ferocious-looking Strongman, accompanied by several lackeys, loitering in the alley. The Strongman's face was covered in thick flesh. Upon seeing Chen Feng, he yelled at the top of his lungs.

"Kid! Get over here quickly!"

This person's name was Liu Dabiao, a leader in the local Gang, the Black Tiger Gang. He was responsible for collecting the "Management Fee" in this area.

Chen Feng feigned a look of fear and quickly stepped forward, lowering his head and smiling obsequiously. "Master Biao, why have you come? Didn't we just pay this month's Management Fee..."

Liu Dabiao interrupted impatiently, "The Gang Leader's father is celebrating his birthday. This is a gift of filial piety. Twenty Wen per person, not a single bit less!"

Twenty Wen! So greedy!

Chen Feng was shocked. He had just received twenty Wen in wages, and they were already coming to demand it. Could they have come specifically for him?

He glanced out of the corner of his eye at the other residents near his home. Either their doors were tightly shut, with sounds of crying coming from within, or their doors had already been smashed open...

Chen Feng's thoughts raced. Those neighbors had most likely suffered because they couldn't pay.

Twenty Wen was the daily income of a young laborer like him.

How could people living in the Slums just produce that amount of money on demand?

"Master Biao, look... I truly don't have any money. Could you give me a few more days? I'll definitely make up for it later."

Chen Feng put on a pitiful act, looking like a pauper.

After Chen Feng pleaded poverty, Liu Dabiao grinned, revealing a mouth full of yellow teeth. "There are no such rules! If you don't pay now, I'll break your legs!"

Chen Feng then tremblingly took out a small, tightly tied cloth bag from his embrace. He opened it, revealing twenty-two Copper Coins inside.

He painfully counted out twenty wen and handed them to Liu Dabiao.

Liu Dabiao took them, weighed them in his hand, and asked, "Aren't you a porter at the dock? How do you only have this little money?"

"It's that damned new foreman, he embezzled my wages!" Chen Feng said indignantly.

Liu Dabiao glanced at Chen Feng's slightly bulging clothes, a trace of greed flashing in his eyes. "Why is your chest so full? What good stuff are you hiding? Don't you want to share a little with me?"

Chen Feng had no choice but to take out... the coarse cake he had just bought from his chest.

He said with great heartache, "Master Biao, this is the dinner I just bought. How about I share a bite with you?"

"..."

"You'd better keep it for yourself."

Liu Dabiao sized Chen Feng up a few times. Seeing that he truly had no money left, he said, "Alright, you've passed."

Then he roared, "Anyone still alive, one and all, don't forget next month's management fee! Let's go."

After roaring, Liu Dabiao tugged at his clothes, spat on the ground, and led his subordinates away.

After they left, the alley was filled with wails—all poor families, having paid twenty wen in tribute money for nothing, would likely go hungry for several days.

However, Chen Feng did not pity his neighbors.

He had personally witnessed a family whose male members were all taken away for conscription. The remaining women were then humiliated, suppressed, robbed, and became an outlet for everyone's emotions by these same people from the lower class... eventually being driven to suicide.

The original owner, because he was young and strong, and alone with no attachments, was feared by them, otherwise, he would have been completely devoured long ago.

In this society where people eat people.

Either you are the hunter, or you are the prey.

"It seems I need to become a martial artist sooner rather than later to achieve some stability. I'll report to the martial arts school tomorrow!" Chen Feng touched his hidden money pouch, his thoughts drifting.