The monthly trial was held once every month at the martial arts school.
On that day, Master's Wife would personally attend and preside.
The disciples paired off and sparred in earnest. Whoever took first place would receive a generous reward prepared by the school.
Lu Chen asked curiously, "I wonder what the prize is for taking first place in the monthly trial. Brother Jin, do you know?"
"Of course. The prize is a Plum Blossom Pill, one of the school's secret medicines."
"What does it do?"
Jin Ming rubbed his chin. "I'm not sure exactly what it does. I've only heard that it's much more potent than the medicinal broth we drink every day. Over the years, nearly everyone at the school who's broken through to External Force has been one of the few who took first place in the monthly trial."
"I see."
Lu Chen's eyes lit up a little.
Jin Ming saw what he was thinking and shook his head with a smile. "I'd advise you not to set your sights on that Plum Blossom Pill. There are hidden dragons and crouching tigers at the school. It won't be easy to win."
"I know what I'm doing." Lu Chen nodded.
That afternoon.
Jin Ming came by again to invite Lu Chen out for a drink.
Lu Chen said he had something to do and politely declined.
He wasn't exactly lying. It was the end of the month, after all—the day to collect protection money.
In this world, ordinary people had to pay grain and taxes to the court, and they could hardly avoid paying protection money to the gangs that ruled their neighborhoods.
On Sheep Pen Street, Lu Chen didn't charge a fixed amount. He set the fee according to the business:
Those who made their living through manual labor paid 150 copper coins a month.
Food vendors paid 240 copper coins a month.
Shops with storefronts paid 300 copper coins a month.
Once they'd paid, Lu Chen guaranteed their businesses would be left in peace, and no one would dare cause trouble.
Of course, this only kept the petty ruffians and scoundrels at bay.
If they truly offended someone with connections, even Lu Chen couldn't protect them.
The street's business owners were willing to pay. Otherwise, if someone ate without paying and walked off after setting down their bowl, or a thief stole something and slipped it into his clothes before vanishing into the crowd, who could they complain to?
Beat him up? He'd come back every day to wreck their business.
Report him to the authorities? Who at the county yamen would care about such trivial nonsense?
Compared with Han Lao Wu, Lu Chen was already a kind man.
When that man came around, every household's protection fee would be at least three times higher. On festivals, the first and fifteenth of every month, they'd have to add another twenty percent as a show of respect. That was what it meant to suck the marrow from people's bones.
Even though Lu Chen was so generous, when collection day came each month, there were always people on the street who couldn't pay the full amount.
Some would rub their hands together and grin apologetically, saying business had been slow and money was tight, but they'd make up for it next time. Others would search every pocket, come up with just a few copper coins, and say sheepishly, "This is all I've got... Please take it for now."
Lu Chen usually didn't make an issue of it. He'd nod slightly, wave a hand, and let them go.
It was the same this time. Lu Chen went from shop to shop collecting, but most people only paid half or put him off until next month. Some asked to pay later; others simply owed him.
The Blind Man said coldly, "These people are just taking advantage of your kind heart, Big Brother. When Han Lao Wu was around, who dared to fall behind by even a single coin? They didn't even wait for him to come knocking. They all bowed and scraped as they brought the money straight to his residence."
Lu Chen smiled and reassured him:
"As long as we have enough. Now that we've got the lottery stall, we make far more from it than we ever did from that protection money."
The Blind Man was still a little indignant.
"Big Brother, let me handle collections next time. I guarantee they won't dare come up a single copper coin short."
Before meeting Lu Chen, the Blind Man had worked with Baldy and Miao Lao San, making a living by collecting debts and payments.
The ferocity of their methods was famous throughout South City.
"No need." Lu Chen's expression turned serious. "Our business is rooted in this neighborhood, after all. If we sour things with the locals over collections, they'll hold a grudge, and business at our stall will plummet. That would be throwing away a watermelon just to pick up a sesame seed."
After hearing that, the Blind Man fell silent, grumbling no more.
Night fell. The north wind howled, and the cold cut to the bone.
The wind grew stronger by the moment, buffeting the window paper until it rattled.
Lu Chen heated the kang, wrapped himself in a thick quilt, and sat beside the kang table. A few coins lay scattered across the tabletop, with a jug of baijiu and a plate of sliced braised pork liver beside them. He took a sip of liquor and chewed a piece of liver, sorting the copper coins one by one without hurry.
After paying his tuition, he had four taels and six qian left.
A ten-pull cost 1,350 copper coins, so three would cost 4,050.
Perfect. He'd still have a little left over.
Lu Chen summoned the card pool and began to draw.
As expected, he drew from the Martial Arts Card Pool.
His luck wasn't good this time. After three ten-pulls, he hadn't drawn a single purple card.
He did get a relatively rare green card.
Trait Fusion: Fuses two traits into one.
Note: Only traits drawn from the Proud Snow Cold Plum Card Pool can be fused.
So that's how it works. I can only fuse traits drawn from this card pool.
He opened his character page with a thought and scrolled down.
Traits (1/1): Cold Plum Bone-Piercing Force (Purple)
Inventory: Trait Cards—"Cold Resistance" (White), "Cold Plum Force" (Green), "Plum Branch Trembling Shadow" (Purple), "Durability" (White), "Hard Skin" (White), "Grass Root Stomach" (White), "Night Owl" (White), "Nimble Hands" (White).
If he was going to fuse cards, he should fuse high-level ones first.
As it happened, he had two purple cards.
Cold Plum Bone-Piercing Force: Attacks carry a special effect. Those struck feel as if icy needles are piercing their meridians, chilling them to the bone.
Plum Branch Trembling Shadow: Increases attack speed by 20%.
If he could combine these two, the result would surely be extraordinary.
Without hesitation, he used the "Trait Fusion Card."
New Purple Card: Cold Plum Trembling Shadow Force
Effect: Attacks carry an icy-needle effect. Increases attack speed by 20%.
Lu Chen looked at the new card's effect and felt a little disappointed.
So trait fusion merely stacked the effects of two cards together.
He'd thought it might produce some kind of new variation.
But then again, it wasn't bad. At least it freed up a trait card slot.
Besides, his attributes and martial arts progress had improved considerably.
Strength +4, Vitality +7, Fist Technique +2, Hearing +4, Movement +7, Fist Technique +4, Leg Technique +6, Arm Strength +5
Plum Blossom Fist—Incomplete Rudimentary Proficiency 66.9% + 15%
Treading Snow Seeking Plum Rudimentary Proficiency 14% + 4%
His overall strength had increased by a small margin.
Lu Chen felt much more confident about the next day's trial.
He put the remaining copper coins on the table into his purse one by one, then leisurely finished the plate of braised pork liver and drained the last of the liquor from the jug.
Baijiu was the favorite drink of poor men in South City.
It packed a punch and cost little.
In his previous life, Lu Chen had never touched baijiu. He disliked its fiery bite and burning throat, and would only occasionally drink a little beer.
But ever since arriving in this world, he'd gradually acquired a taste for it.
The rich and powerful drank mellow, gentle yellow wine. The poor craved this harsh liquor that burned their throats.
Baijiu might be hard to swallow, but it was no harder than life.
It went to your head quickly and hit hard. After working yourself to the bone all day, if you couldn't use its fierce kick to numb yourself into oblivion at night, those long, burning hardships were almost too much to bear.
The next day.
The martial arts school.
The disciples were already lined up in the courtyard. Two elmwood chairs had been set in the middle, with Master Deng and Master's Wife seated on either side.
"Is everyone here?" Master Deng drawled. His eyes were puffy and his lids drooped, making him look as if he'd spent the previous night carousing somewhere again. His dark circles were so heavy they looked as though they'd been painted on with charcoal.
Liu Qi said quietly beside him, "Reporting to you, Master, everyone is here."
Master Deng waved a hand and yawned. "If everyone's here, then let's begin. The monthly trial follows the usual rules: first place gets a Plum Blossom Pill."
Master's Wife sat quietly to one side. At first glance, she was dressed simply, but a closer look revealed that every detail had been carefully chosen. Seated there, she was like a plum branch after snowfall—cold as frost, yet with a bewitching charm all her own.
Liu Qi brought over a paper-covered lottery box filled with slips bearing numbers. The disciples stepped up one by one, each drawing a slip. According to their numbers, they paired off to fight.
"First pair—"
The two disciples who had drawn the character "One" answered and stepped out, moving forward.
Before you continue