Two Scholars in One Family

Tap, tap, tap...

Under the heavy atmosphere, footsteps sounded outside the hall.

Everyone looked toward the sound to see the third young lady of the Wu Family, dressed in a cyan silk dress.

Wu Zhiai crossed the threshold and stepped into the inner hall, where Yin Tianqing walked up to greet her.

"Master Yin, I came this morning regarding the matter of Chen Mo."

Wu Zhiai spoke with a graceful and composed demeanor.

Yin Tianqing's expression was slightly complex. "Chen Mo, he..."

At this moment, Yin Shanshan also stood up and moved a few steps closer, afraid of missing a single word.

Wu Zhiai continued, "Chen Mo is currently at the Wu Family and is doing very well. I came over just to let you know, Master, so you wouldn't worry."

She did not mention any details in her words; this was partly to stop the gossip and speculation, and partly to shake the martial resolve of Chen Mo's fellow disciples.

As for potentially exposing Chen Mo's location, the Wu Family's internal composition was far more complex than that of Tianqing Martial Hall.

With Chen Mo at the Wu Family, the Hansha Gang would inevitably find out sooner or later.

Yin Shanshan vaguely heard these words, and her clenched hands relaxed slightly.

Yin Tianqing also smoothed his brow and replied, "That is good, that is good. Thank you for making a special trip, Third Young Lady."

Wu Zhiai waved her hand. "Chen Mo is an important person to the Wu Family; this is my duty. Since the message has been delivered, Master Yin, I will not disturb everyone's training any further."

"Third Young Lady, let me see you out."

Yin Tianqing escorted Wu Zhiai out of the hall.

Ji Chang, who had been worried, was now jubilant. He threw a few punches with great vigor before returning to his footwork practice.

On the side, Zhou Pi quietly exchanged a look with Luo Heng. "He really is hard to kill."

The latter shrugged indifferently. "Relying on others is not as good as relying on oneself. Being strong yourself is the most powerful asset! He is just someone with mediocre talent; are you afraid your potential won't surpass his?"

In a narrow alley on the west side of Black River Town.

Chen Bao's family gathered around the dining table to begin their midday meal.

Today, Chen Mei's husband, Wang Jing, had also come, bringing along some fine wine and dishes he had picked up while out handling cargo.

Wang Jing worked for the Wu Family, and while his monthly salary wasn't massive, it was enough for the family to enjoy some luxuries.

Old Master Chen stood up, his back hunched, and gestured for Wang Jing to take the seat of honor, but the latter declined.

The group was halfway through their meal.

Chen Bao spoke up, "A-Jing is truly capable. It is Mei's good fortune to have married you, and we are all basking in your reflected glory!"

Wang Jing replied modestly, "It is because Mei is virtuous, and because you, Father-in-law, raised your daughter well."

The people around the table all chimed in with laughter.

"During next month's Martial Examination, our Chen Hang will set off in glory. When he returns as a Martial Scholar, he'll bring great honor to our family!"

Chen Bao had downed two cups of wine, his face flushed, and he spoke with spittle flying across the table.

Old Master Chen also wore a joyful expression, as if he could already see the streets filled with gongs and drums welcoming a Martial Scholar, with neighbors lining up to offer gifts.

Chen Hang, however, managed a forced smile, feeling troubled inside.

He had reached Ming Jin three months ago, but had made no progress since, placing him at the very bottom of the Ming Jin disciples at Panshi Martial Hall.

He knew in his heart that to pass the Martial Examination, one needed the strength of Dark Jin.

But since the whole family seemed to have already counted the Martial Scholar title as theirs, how could he dare to reveal the truth?

"I... might not necessarily pass," Chen Hang said, scratching his head.

Chen Bao shouted, "You, you are good at everything, but you are just too humble!"

At this, Chen Mei began to fan the flames from the side. "That's right, that's right. What kind of strength does our Xiao Hang have? It's nothing like that useless Chen Mo, or that Chen Lan who can't even find a man."

"Slap!"

The bamboo chopsticks in Wang Jing's hand dropped heavily onto the table, his expression turning dark.

The room fell into sudden silence.

The few of them looked at each other, and finally, the Old Master said timidly, "A-Jing, are you... full? Have some more, have some more."

"That's right, did you have a rough day with the cargo? Don't pay any mind to those commoners," Chen Mei also urged.

After the air remained frozen for a few moments, Wang Jing spoke slowly, "Chen Mo is a guard at the Wu Family. When the caravan encountered bandits that night, it was Chen Mo who killed the bandits and saved everyone."

The Old Master and Chen Bao were left stunned.

What did he mean, Chen Mo killed the bandits?

Chen Mei recalled the scene she had seen in front of the Hua Pavilion that day. She hadn't believed it then, but now that Wang Jing had mentioned it himself, she had no choice but to believe it.

"He must have just been lucky to step onto the path of martial arts; he is still far inferior to Chen Hang," she insisted.

Wang Jing felt his anger rising upon hearing this. "You are going too far!"

He stood up abruptly, startling Chen Hang so much that he didn't dare to move.

Chen Mei was also frightened, letting out a soft sob as her eyes turned red.

"I used to think that Chen Mo was as useless as you all described," Wang Jing said, pausing for a moment.

"But I happened to meet him at the Wu Family today. Although we didn't spend much time together, I can be certain that he is upright and diligent, and he is certainly not the coward you claim him to be!"

Facing Wang Jing's reprimand, two lines of tears streamed down Chen Mei's face, smudging her makeup, yet she dared not make a sound.

The hunched old man wore a complex expression and spoke up to mediate: "Oh, you are all brothers and sisters; how can one be better or worse than the other? Wouldn't it be better if you both passed the exam?"

Two scholars from one family would be a celebrated story anywhere.

However, he seemed to have forgotten his past prejudices against Chen Mo and Chen Lan.

Seeing the old man speak, Wang Jing did not press the issue further. He sat down slowly and glanced at Chen Mei. "Do not say such things again in the future!"

Seeing that Chen Mei dared not reply, the old man spoke for her: "Rest assured, Ah Jing. Chen Mei is just blunt and didn't mean it. She definitely won't say it again."

After this incident, the group sat trembling, not daring to lift their chopsticks, and a layer of grease soon formed over the dishes.

Chen Hang, who had originally wanted to ask his brother-in-law for money to buy medicine, dared not bring it up either.

Wu Family, Blacksmith Room.

Chen Mo exhaled a breath of stale air.

His sweat-streaked face glowed brightly under the reflection of the furnace fire.

He had only forged two iron billets in half a day, but in terms of precision, they were much better than when he was in the Iron Furnace Room.

An inch of refinement meant an inch of strength.

Each iron billet seemed to transform into a stream of insight, flowing like starlight in his mind, which then converted into a sliver of the essence of the Dragon-Subduing Stake Technique.

"I should have consolidated my progress at the mid-stage of Ming Jin by now."

Aside from the Dragon-Subduing Stake Technique, he had not neglected the Fuhu Fist.

Now, Chen Mo had not only mastered the Sand-Raising Style and the Flowing Cloud Attack but had also begun to integrate every move.

"Creak—"

The door to the Blacksmith Room was pushed open gently.

A figure in a cyan dress stepped into the room.

"How is your recovery coming along?" Wu Zhiai asked as she entered.

Chen Mo shook his arms. "Much better than this morning."

"I went to the Tianqing Martial Hall to inform your master that you are at the Wu Family."

As she spoke, Wu Zhiai found a dirty wooden stool and sat down, her dress draping over the seat.

"Also, there has been no movement from the Hansha Gang. If there is, I will tell you immediately."

Chen Mo nodded in thanks.

Wu Zhiai changed the subject. "The Wu Family has a collection of martial arts manuals. Are you interested?"