Wealth Stirred the Heart

August arrived.

The weather grew scorching hot.

Even a little boxing practice left him drenched in sweat.

But Li Beichen seemed utterly indifferent to heat and cold.

Day after day, he practiced his fists.

He let the sweat carve his body.

As early as late July, he had reached the stage of Flesh Tempering mastery, able to produce ten consecutive rings.

But Li Beichen had not rushed into the Eighth Grade Muscle Refining stage. He felt his Ninth Grade cultivation had yet to reach its peak.

Normally, practicing the Giant Elephant Fist required reaching Mastery and Integration before one could produce ten consecutive rings.

But the special trait of the Giant Elephant Fist technique granted by the panel had let Li Beichen reach that point early, while still at the Threshold of Mastery.

So in the Flesh Tempering stage, he could cultivate the Giant Elephant Fist to heights other martial artists who practiced it could not reach.

During that time, Wang Er's family also had a joyous occasion: Sister-in-law Wang gave birth to a big, chubby boy.

Li Beichen set aside time to visit and give them a generous gift.

If the world stayed this peaceful, Ram City was not a bad place to settle down.

Market Ward, Meat Trade Association.

Zhou Zhongru looked at the thirty-odd taels of silver before him, a flicker of greed in his eyes.

He had expected Li Beichen's braised offal business to make some money.

But he had not expected that even in its very first month, a tenth of the profits would bring him more than thirty taels in dividends.

The return far exceeded his expectations.

Wealth stirred the heart.

A few hundred taels a month—what would that mean over a year, or ten?

Zhou Zhongru wanted a bigger bite.

Li Beichen's strength as a Ninth Grade martial artist gave him some cause for concern, but what troubled Zhou Zhongru even more was the Like-Elephant Martial Hall.

Meng Juxiang, a Sixth Grade martial artist.

In Ram City, he was a towering figure.

"But... he's only a Ninth Grade disciple of the Inner Courtyard. If I plan carefully and don't take his life, and have that man from the Thunderbolt Martial Hall vouch for me, I shouldn't provoke the fellow."

"A few thousand taels a year would be enough to hire a Sixth Grade martial artist to do my dirty work."

Zhou Zhongru paced back and forth in the association's loft, but in the end, he made up his mind.

"Fourth, deliver this letter to the Thunderbolt Martial Hall first, then invite Consultant Wu Ming over."

"Yes, President."

An hour later, a burly, middle-aged man with a fat head, pig-trough nostrils, and tiny eyes entered the Meat Trade Association.

Unlike Li Beichen, whose muscles were lean and solid, Wu Ming was the sort of martial artist whose muscles were padded with fat.

Zhou Zhongru deliberately lifted one corner of the red cloth covering the silver from the braised offal dividends.

That way, Wu Ming would see it as soon as he came in.

Sure enough, just as Zhou Zhongru had expected, the moment Wu Ming saw the silver, greed showed plainly on his face.

"President Zhou, are you paying this month's attendant fee early?"

"Damned scoundrel!"

Zhou Zhongru cursed at him.

"Wu Ming, I sent this month's money to your residence at the start of the month. What are you playing at?"

Wu Ming's face fell. His eyes stayed fixed on the silver.

"Fifteen taels is nothing. I've already spent it all. President Zhou, I'm a martial artist at the peak of Flesh Tempering who can strike five consecutive rings. Don't you think my attendant fee should go up a little?"

"I heard you gave fifteen taels to some lowly martial arts apprentice in Jinglong District who had only just entered the ranks."

"Sit!"

Zhou Zhongru stared at Wu Ming.

"My dear Consultant Wu, I called you here today for a big job. As it happens, it's about that Consultant Li—Li Beichen!"

Wu Ming looked unconcerned, the flesh on his face twitching.

"You've had me do how many dirty jobs, Zhou Zhongru? Don't beat around the bush. Spit it out!"

"Did Li Beichen offend you?"

"Not exactly."

Zhou Zhongru lifted the red cloth, revealing neat stacks of silver ingots.

"There's more than thirty taels here. It's all dividends Li Beichen sent over."

"He has a business called braised offal. He used the Meat Guild's connections to spread it around, and it's raking in money every day. The monthly profits are at least several hundred taels."

At Zhou Zhongru's words, Wu Ming immediately perked up. His tiny eyes widened.

"That Li Beichen? I heard he was just a penniless hunter who'd only recently entered the ranks. How could he have that kind of ability? Zhou Zhongru, are you trying to fool me?"

"The money's right here. Believe it or not, Wu Ming. If you don't, I'll find someone else!"

Zhou Zhongru pretended to be angry.

"Come on, President Zhou!"

"If you don't give me this job, I'll just stay here and refuse to leave."

Wu Ming chuckled.

"President Zhou, you really are something. More than thirty taels in dividends every month, and that still doesn't satisfy your appetite."

"But I like it."

"His business is just too enviable. A few dozen taels a month—I could hold myself back. But several hundred taels? Who could resist?!"

"Exactly, exactly. No one could resist. Tell me, President Zhou, what do you want me to do this time?"

Zhou Zhongru pondered for a moment.

"Li Beichen is a newly promoted disciple of the Like-Elephant Martial Hall's Inner Courtyard. We can't handle this crudely. We can't strip him bare. If he's sensible, we can still leave him thirty percent of the profits."

"Go make trouble for him first. Let him suffer a little and learn how business is done in Ram City."

"Once his business can't keep going, I'll step in and mediate."

"If he's sensible, he'll hand over some of his profits—and thank me for it."

At Zhou Zhongru's words, Wu Ming scratched his head.

"You really are devious."

"Damned scoundrel! Remember, be careful!"

"Sure, sure. You know how I work, President Zhou. Have I ever slipped up all these years?"

The next day, Li Beichen frowned as he looked at the invitation delivered to his door.

"Meat Guild attendant, Wu Ming? Discussing a business partnership?"

He handed the invitation back to the servant.

"Please tell your master I don't need a partner for now."

The servant looked troubled and opened his mouth to say something, but suddenly felt his heart tighten. He looked up and met Li Beichen's eyes, sharp as a hawk's.

"All right, all right. Sorry to bother you."

The servant fled in panic, as if one more moment might cost him his life.

Before long, however, Wang Er hurried over from Market Ward.

"Brother Wang Er, you're saying someone claimed they'd eaten our braised offal and had nonstop diarrhea, then smashed up the stall?"

"That's right. They were all carrying clubs. They came up and smashed our sign right away."

"Did they have any proof?"

"Nothing at all. They just shouted that our food was filthy and started smashing things."

"How bold! Let's see who they are."

Li Beichen hurried to Market Ward, but all that remained was a scene of wreckage, with only a few workers cleaning up.

"Do you know who smashed up our shop?"

Li Beichen asked the workers.

"Don't worry. I won't let them get away with it!"

Li Beichen had earned the workers' respect. One middle-aged worker stepped forward and spoke quietly.

"Boss, I know who they were. They're those ruffians from East King Temple. They didn't just smash the shop; they also stole dozens of pounds of braised offal."

"They said it was filthy, but they were eating it with grease all over their mouths. Boss, you're a martial artist. You have to teach those thugs a hard lesson."

"Good!"

East King Temple lay west of Market Ward.

Li Beichen took the path three steps at a time and soon reached East King Temple.