The next day!
Lin Yan received some news at home.
The leader of the Three Heroes Gang, Wei Hai, its vice-leader Liu Song, and more than a dozen core members had all been slaughtered overnight.
At once, the image of his master surfaced in Lin Yan's mind.
His master had told him not to concern himself with the Three Heroes Gang. He had originally thought his master simply did not take the gang seriously, but he had never expected that his master had already decided to move against them at that time.
It seemed he was still too kind!
Lin Yan was certain that even if his master had not made the move, it had to have been one of the senior brothers at the martial arts school.
There were not that many coincidences in the world. He had killed Zhao Kui, then told his master about it, and that very night the Three Heroes Gang had been wiped out.
What a pity. There goes another source of sponsorship.
While feeling grateful for his master's protection, Lin Yan also felt a pang of regret.
With the Three Heroes Gang gone, he did not even know where he would find sponsorship in the future.
By now, he had only one hundred and fifty taels of silver left.
That money was nowhere near enough for three rounds of Skin Polishing.
Although his master had waived the cost of three jars of secret medicine for him, three jars were far from sufficient. Moreover, three rounds of Skin Polishing required not only applying secret medicine externally to restore the meridians, but also taking pills internally to drive qi and blood into them, continuously enlarging them.
"There's no need to rush the three rounds of Skin Polishing. With the northern part of the city growing more chaotic by the day, it's time to consider moving."
With his strength as a second-round Skin Polisher and his status as a martial arts school disciple, the gangs would not collect protection money from his family. But a gentleman did not stand beneath a dangerous wall. It would still be best to take his aunt and little brother to live in the eastern or southern part of the city.
When Lin Yan told his aunt about it, Liu fell silent for a long while. This time, she did not refuse.
After her nephew had learned martial arts and made something of himself, neither the former Clear Water Gang nor the Three Heroes Gang had collected protection money from their family. Yet, at the same time, the neighbors who had once been on good terms with them had begun looking at their family differently, and had often gossiped about them behind their backs.
Some things the neighbors did not say in front of her, but children could not keep secrets. Mo'er had heard plenty from the children his age on the street and would come home to tell her.
"Don't buy anything too big. There aren't many of us. As long as we can fit inside, it'll do."
"Don't worry, Auntie. I know what I'm doing."
Lin Yan agreed. Moving was not something that could be settled in a short while. First he had to obtain his aunt's consent and find a suitable residence. Even if they moved, it would not be until after the New Year.
"Little brother, how have your studies been lately?"
Lin Mo, who had been preparing to sneak out, trembled all over at those words. He put on a fawning smile. "Brother, Teacher says I'm already very good. I'm even recognizing characters faster than you did back then."
The corner of Lin Yan's mouth twitched. When Teacher had taught him back then, several others had studied alongside him, and he had not received any special treatment. But Teacher had certainly devoted more attention to his little brother. If Little brother were still slower than him despite that, Lin Yan would have to consider whether there was something wrong with his intelligence.
"Recognizing characters isn't enough. You have to write them, too."
Having Little brother recognize and write characters was not merely for the sake of his future martial arts training. It was also to temper his temperament.
When a family was poor, the eldest son took the perilous road, while the second son took the steady one.
His own path in martial arts could only be forged through daring ventures, but his little brother would not need to suffer such hardships in the future. He only needed to move forward steadily.
"Do I still have to write when it's this cold?"
Lin Mo was somewhat unwilling, but under Lin Yan's glare, he ultimately returned to his room obediently.
Liu watched from the side, a look of gratification in her eyes.
Only the two brothers, Yan'er and Mo'er, remained in the Lin Family. As the elder brother, Yan'er had practically taken on the role of their father.
The old Yan'er had not been mature enough, but ever since taking up martial arts, his conduct had increasingly come to resemble that of their elder brother from back then.
After watching his little brother write for a while, Lin Yan stopped hovering over him. He bid his aunt farewell. He still had two mu of medicinal fields left to harvest in Qingtian Town, where he was responsible for guarding the fields.
Before leaving the city, Lin Yan went to a broker's office in the eastern part of the city and found one of the brokers there to show him residences in the east.
His martial arts school disciple's uniform ensured that he did not encounter anyone looking down on him.
"Young master, this residence is the most suitable. Although it's only a single-courtyard property, it has four rooms, which is more than enough for your needs."
"Houses in the eastern part of the city have been changing price every day lately. If you wait until after the New Year, I'm afraid they'll rise by quite a bit more."
Lin Yan looked at the quiet residence. It truly was very suitable, but the price made his heart ache.
A single-courtyard residence cost two hundred taels. All the silver on him was not enough.
"Young master, is there something you're dissatisfied with? I can look for something better," the broker continued when he saw that Lin Yan had not responded.
"I'm satisfied with everything except the price."
The corner of the broker's mouth twitched. "Young master, this really is the lowest price in this alley. If you want anything cheaper, you'll have to choose a more remote area."
"Let's look around some more."
Lin Yan neither agreed nor disagreed. A salesman's mouth is a deceiver's ghost.
"Young master, you're a martial artist. If you aren't afraid of trouble, I really do have a cheaper residence here. It only costs one hundred taels."
When the broker saw Lin Yan look over, he explained, "There's another residence in this alley. The original owner offended someone, and the whole household was thrown into turmoil. But you're a martial artist, young master. If the house falls into your hands, those local ruffians certainly won't dare cause trouble. There's nothing to worry about."
"No need."
Lin Yan refused outright. If local ruffians could still cause trouble in the southern part of the city, the person behind them was no ordinary figure. Although he was a martial artist, there was no need to make enemies over a residence.
The broker was momentarily at a loss for words. After several breaths of silence, he said, "If your money is temporarily tied up, young master, given your strength, you can pay one hundred taels first. As long as you pay the remaining one hundred taels within a year, there will be no interest. If it exceeds a year, one-tenth interest will be charged each year."
A mortgage in another world?
Lin Yan was speechless. After finally arriving in a world of martial arts, he still had to shoulder a mortgage.
But with one year interest-free, the loan was manageable.
"All right."
Afterward, Lin Yan followed the broker to the office, paid the money, and signed the deed. Each party kept one copy.
As for the title deed, that was simple. The original owner had long since deposited it with the broker's office, so it was a private deed.
The title deed already recorded several previous owners of the residence, somewhat like a ledger-style private contract.
Ordinary people mostly used private deeds for private transactions. The broker's office served as guarantor and witness. If one wanted to convert it into an official deed, one had to go to the government office and pay a deed tax.
Lin Yan had no intention of paying that money. With the martial arts school behind him, even if he ran into trouble in the future and someone refused to recognize the title deed, his little brother could take it to his master, and his master would stand up for him.
"When I come by next time, the residence must be cleaned out."
"Rest assured, Young Master Lin. I'll arrange for people to clean it right away. I guarantee that when you come, you'll find the residence spotless."
Qingtian Town.
When Lin Yan returned this time, only Ji Ming and he remained in the entire town's guard team.
"Lin Yan, the employer has already improved your benefits. They'll be issued in a couple of days."
Ji Ming cheerfully brewed Lin Yan a cup of tea. "If I hadn't been waiting for you, I should have returned to the city first thing this morning."
"Sorry for the trouble, Captain Ji."
"There's no need to be so formal between us. Just call me Big Brother Ji."
Ji Ming's attitude toward Lin Yan had clearly grown much warmer. Lin Yan did not find him mercenary, either. Everyone was like that.
If one wanted people to draw close, one had to show them one's value.
"There are only twelve days until the New Year. If you have a lot of things to handle at home, you don't need to stay here. When the time comes, just have the farmers send the medicinal crops from those remaining two mu of land to the warehouse. Nothing will happen."
The medicinal farmers of Qingtian Town had worked for the Tang Family for more than a year or two. They knew what they should and should not do, and the warehouse staff would have the final say as well. There was no fear of the farmers daring to cause trouble. At most, without anyone watching over them, they might waste a few hundred wen more.
But the Tang Family would not pursue such a small loss over a second-round Skin Polisher.
"Thank you for your understanding, Big Brother Ji. But I still have to stand this final shift properly."
Lin Yan accepted Ji Ming's goodwill, but he had no intention of returning early. It was only a matter of delaying a few days. Since he had accepted the guard duty, he had to do the job properly.
After the two finished a pot of tea, Ji Ming truly left. The guard team of Qingtian Town was now reduced to Lin Yan alone.
"First, I'll refine the Martial Fruit, then I'll try to make another trip into Great Fog Mountain."
After returning to his residence, Lin Yan looked at the Martial Fruit belonging to Zhao Kui within his mind.
[Martial Fruit: four years, nine months, thirteen days]
"Zhao Kui really did attempt to break through to second-round Skin Polishing twice. This is the longest period I've obtained so far."
Lin Yan was very satisfied with the time Zhao Kui had contributed. With a thought, the Martial Fruit fell from the tree.
Spring passed and winter came, four cycles in all.
Lin Yan gradually gained enlightenment. The golden threads in the veins of the silver leaf belonging to Mountain Splitting Fist in his mind began to spread continuously, gradually staining more than half of it.
The next day.
As expected, the Tang Family sent someone with Lin Yan's monthly allowance and a bottle of Tendon Changing Pills.
In addition, there was an invitation, inviting Lin Yan to attend the Tang Family's year-end banquet.
After seeing off the Tang Family's messenger, Lin Yan immediately took a Tendon Changing Pill and continued cultivating.
However, after only an hour, his meridians began to ache faintly.
The third round of Skin Polishing trained the meridians. The method of exerting force and breathing differed from before: it guided qi and blood into the meridians.
After he applied the secret medicine prepared by his master, the cool sensation seeped through his skin and into his meridians. Only then did the pain slowly dissipate.
After a full day, the Martial Dao Tree had grown very little.
At this rate, relying solely on secret medicine and Tendon Changing Pills, he feared he would need more than two years to complete the third round of Skin Polishing.
He was still short of money. He wondered whether his master could find him a good marriage, so he could live off his wife.