Extravagance

"Junior Brother Xu, you really should have accepted. Becoming a son-in-law to the Liu Family is nothing to be ashamed of."

Once the two were out the door, Wu Yongfeng spoke up.

Xu Yang did not know what the Liu Family signified, but Wu Yongfeng knew it all too well.

Compared to the Liu Family, the Huang Family was truly not in the same league.

The Huang Family was merely in the inner city, but the Liu Family was a major clan within that inner city.

"The inner city?"

Xu Yang's gaze sharpened. He had lived this long without ever entering the inner city, knowing only that it was the true gathering place for the powerful and wealthy of Qingyuan County, a place where every inch of land was worth an ounce of gold.

However, he felt no regret; even if it were the County Magistrate's household, he could not bring himself to marry into it as a live-in son-in-law.

Besides, even if he had agreed, he doubted he would be marrying a true young lady of the house; it would likely be one born of a concubine or from a branch family.

Being a live-in son-in-law was already undignified enough; what status would he have in the Liu Family if he married a concubine's daughter?

Following Wu Yongfeng through the streets and alleys, Xu Yang entered the inner city for the first time. What he saw before him felt like an entirely different world.

The wide streets were swept spotlessly clean, and everyone looked spirited and vigorous; there were no beggars to be found, nor anyone dressed in rags.

It was a scene of joy and harmony.

"This is where people are meant to live!" Xu Yang sighed.

"If one day I can bring my family to the inner city, I would die content," Wu Yongfeng muttered, clenching his fists.

In a place like the inner city, even a Qi-Gathering martial artist would find it difficult to afford a home.

The Liu Family's residence was built with immense grandeur; the gatehouse alone was over two zhang wide, featuring both a main entrance and side gates, with courtyard walls stretching for dozens of meters.

Two stone lions, taller than a man's head, sat on either side, while four burly men with long sabers at their waists stood guard. They possessed a sharp, refined air and keen gazes—one look was enough to tell they were trained.

"We aren't going to be stuck guarding the front gate, are we?" Xu Yang asked, feeling uncertain.

"I shouldn't think so. No matter how arrogant the Liu Family is, they wouldn't have a Qi-Gathering martial artist stand guard. These men are likely those who failed to reach the Qi-Gathering stage."

Wu Yongfeng stepped forward, produced Sun Tao's letter, and cupped his hands. "Brothers, we are disciples of the Wei Yuan Hall. We were introduced by Senior Brother Sun Tao to apply as retainer martial artists. Please, help us pass this along; this is our letter of introduction."

The four guards looked at Xu Yang and Wu Yongfeng. One of them immediately stepped forward to take the letter and said, "Please wait a moment, I will go inside and report this."

With that, he didn't wait for Wu Yongfeng to respond, turning and walking through the side gate.

"The master's house has many rules; outsiders are not allowed in without permission. Please wait a moment, gentlemen; there should be a result soon."

Assuming there were no surprises, these two young men would likely become retainer martial artists for the Liu Family, so the remaining three guards explained the situation to them, noting that it wasn't a deliberate slight, but simply the Liu Family's rules.

"Please follow me, gentlemen."

After waiting for a while, the guard who had left returned, led them inside, and soon arrived at a side hall.

In the center sat a middle-aged man sipping tea, with another man who looked a few years older standing behind him.

Seeing Xu Yang and Wu Yongfeng appear, the man drinking tea set down his cup and stood up, letting out a hearty laugh. "Welcome, talented youths of the Wei Yuan Hall. I am Liu Yong, the steward of the Liu Family's internal affairs."

Xu Yang had assumed that for a matter as significant as hiring retainer martial artists, the Liu Family would at least send a true head of the household, not just an internal affairs steward.

He couldn't tell if they were being looked down upon, or if this was merely a trivial matter to the Liu Family.

"Greetings, Steward Liu!" the two said in unison, cupping their hands.

"Please, sit!"

After Liu Yong invited them to sit, he called out, "Someone, bring tea!"

Once he sat back down, Liu Yong looked at the two. "Which of you is Xu Yang, and which is Wu Yongfeng?"

Xu Yang and Wu Yongfeng stood up again to identify themselves.

Xu Yang expected Liu Yong to mention the matter of the live-in son-in-law, but he did not; instead, he spoke of the monthly stipend.

"I assume you both learned of the monthly stipend from Brother Sun Tao, but I must reiterate it nonetheless."

"For a standard retainer martial artist, the Liu Family provides a monthly stipend of five taels. However, if you perform meritorious service, there will be rewards, and during festivals, there will be holiday bonuses."

"Of course, as your cultivation improves, your stipend will change accordingly."

"As for what you are required to do, it is not much. Most of the time, you will reside in the manor to ensure its security, and occasionally you will be required to accompany the young masters or the master of the house as bodyguards..."

Liu Yong spoke at length, and the latter part was essentially indoctrination—nothing more than demanding loyalty to the Liu Family and the masters, insisting that even if they died, they must not let any harm come to their employers.

He promised that if they were injured or killed, the Liu Family would take responsibility.

Naturally, he also mentioned the benefits: the Liu Family owned numerous industries, and they could purchase many items through the family that were otherwise unavailable on the market.

Finally, Liu Yong said sternly, "If you two have no questions, then it is settled."

The two naturally had no objections; they had come here to sell their services.

Xu Yang had already repaid Zhou Shunchang's money and still had seven or eight taels left, but after this month, he would have to pay the apprenticeship fee to the Wei Yuan Hall again. Without income, he wouldn't be able to afford it.

Liu Yong stood up. "Please follow me; I will take you to the Retainer Courtyard."

The two followed Liu Yong deep into the Liu Family grounds. Along the way, they encountered many people, but they were mostly maids and servants; they did not see a single member of the Liu Family itself.

"There are many womenfolk in the manor. If you have nothing to do in the future, try to stay within the Retainer Courtyard."

Along the way, Liu Yong rattled off quite a few of the Liu Mansion's rules.

The two of them chimed in with nods, and soon they arrived at a courtyard.

The courtyard was vast, somewhat resembling the training grounds of Wei Yuan Hall, equipped with all manner of weaponry from blades and spears to staffs and clubs.

Several burly men were standing in horse stances within the yard; seeing Liu Yong appear, they hurriedly broke their stances and gathered around.

"Steward Liu, are these the new recruits?" the middle-aged man in the lead asked, cupping his hands toward Liu Yong.

Aside from him, the remaining four were youths about the same age as Xu Yang, appearing to be around seventeen or eighteen.

Liu Yong smiled and gestured toward Xu Yang and Wu Yongfeng, saying, "These two are Xu Yang and Wu Yongfeng. I'll have to trouble Brother Zhang to show them the ropes."

The man addressed as Brother Zhang shook his head and replied, "It is my duty."

Brother Zhang's name was Zhang Bo. Liu Yong had introduced him on the way here; he was a powerhouse at the Great Accomplishment stage of Qi Gathering, just one step away from Marrow Cleansing. He was the leader of these retainers, and they would be under his command from now on.

At this moment, the man who had been standing behind Liu Yong walked over, carrying several sets of clothes along with two waist tokens.

This was the standard attire for Liu Family retainers. From now on, whenever they were in the Liu Mansion, Xu Yang and Wu Yongfeng would be required to wear these, and the waist tokens would serve as their credentials for entering and exiting the estate.

Liu Yong departed shortly after.

Zhang Bo then took Xu Yang and Wu Yongfeng to assign them their rooms and told them to change into their uniforms.

Truly extravagant! Xu Yang sighed.

The Huang Family and the Liu Family were simply not on the same level; the Huang Family could only afford to support Lu Ren, and they couldn't even afford one more person beyond him.

Of course, the Huang Family likely had other martial artist retainers, but certainly not many.

Yet, looking at the rooms here just now, there were over thirty of them, which meant the Liu Family likely had twenty or thirty retainers like him.

Furthermore, Zhang Bo had explained that the martial artist retainers serving the Liu Family were divided into shifts, with about five or six people per shift. There were four shifts in total like theirs, each responsible for ensuring the safety of the Liu Mansion and remaining on call during different time slots.

The two of them changed into their uniforms and stepped out of their rooms.