When Lin Yan returned home, his aunt had not come back yet. As usual, he continued practicing the Stance Technique in the courtyard.
Half an hour later, his aunt and younger brother still had not returned. Lin Yan stopped training, put the rice on to cook, then went out.
"Auntie Liu, have you seen my aunt?"
"Auntie Zhang, have you seen my little brother?"
"Your aunt went that way. I think she's gone to visit her family."
Visit her family?
As he listened to the neighbors, Lin Yan pondered. Unlike the Lin Family, which had few relatives, his aunt had plenty on her side. She alone had four brothers.
The Liu Family was not wealthy, but with so many siblings, they carried some weight on the street—far more than the Lin Family, at least.
Lin Yan did not know the Lius well, though. In his memory, members of the Liu Family had visited every year before his uncle was conscripted for labor. After his uncle disappeared and his aunt moved away with him, he had never seen them again.
Why would Auntie visit her family now?
Had she gone to borrow money?
A possibility suddenly occurred to Lin Yan. His next step was to learn a Skin Polishing technique at a martial arts hall. His aunt knew little about martial arts, but once he began training, she would surely ask around. She would learn how expensive it was to become a disciple, and fear that the family's savings were not enough.
If they were not enough, she could only borrow.
Lin Yan hurried toward the Liu Family home, but met his aunt and younger brother halfway there.
"Yan'er, what are you doing here?"
Liu was surprised to see her nephew. Then she smiled. "I took Mo'er to visit my family. We were delayed a little. Let's go home now."
His aunt hid it well, but Lin Yan could tell from his younger brother's expression that something was wrong.
Mo'er could never hide what he felt. His face was full of anger.
Since his aunt did not want to talk about it, Lin Yan did not press her. "Auntie, I came to tell you some good news. Zhang Wei works at the Might-Vast Escort Agency, right? One of the escorts there heard I'd built up my strength in four months. He recommended a martial arts hall to me and even gave me fifty taels."
"Fifty taels?"
Liu stopped walking. "Yan'er, is that true?"
It was no wonder she doubted him. A family like theirs would need more than ten years to save fifty taels.
"Of course it's true." Lin Yan nodded. "Auntie, fifty taels is a lot to us, but to a martial artist, it's nothing. He earns over twenty taels a month. He thought I had talent, so he was willing to support me. Once I've made something of myself through martial arts and earned some money, I'll pay him back."
"That gentleman is so kind. Yan'er, you must train hard and not let him down."
Liu's expression turned solemn. Then she added, "We have some money at home too. I'll give it to you as well."
"Thank you, Auntie."
"What are you thanking me for? You and Mo'er are the only two brothers left in the Lin Family. The family's money is there for you to spend."
They returned home and ate dinner.
"Little brother, come outside."
While their aunt mended clothes indoors, Lin Yan took his younger brother outside.
"Tell me what happened when you and Auntie visited her family today."
Lin Mo hesitated, then shook his head. "Brother, Mother told me that if you asked, I could only say nothing happened."
Lin Yan's mouth twitched. "Then I won't ask. You can tell me on your own. That way, Auntie won't blame you."
"Brother, you always know what to do."
Lin Mo tilted his head and thought it over. Deciding his elder brother made sense, he immediately said, his face full of anger, "Mother took me to Grandfather's house today to borrow some money. My uncles happened to find out. Not only did they refuse, they scolded Mother too. They said she was turning her elbow outward and didn't think of the Liu Family as her own."
As Lin Yan listened to his younger brother, his face darkened.
Perhaps they thought Lin Mo was too young to understand. The Lius had made no attempt to hide their words in front of him.
In their eyes, Lin Yan's uncle had disappeared after being conscripted for labor. With his aunt in charge of the household, her loyalties should have lain with her birth family. She should have told them before selling the fields and house. The Liu Family had many mouths to house and needed the space.
But his aunt had not told them, for a simple reason. She knew that if she sold to her family, they would offer less than the market price. They might not even pay the full amount, finding some excuse to put it off for years until the matter came to nothing.
Even now, the Lius still coveted the house his parents had left behind.
No wonder Auntie rarely visits her family. She doesn't want them eyeing what we have.
"Eldest Uncle also said we've been able to live in peace because they're around. If Mother won't help her family, they'll cut ties with her. Then the street thugs will come after us."
Lin Yan narrowed his eyes. His aunt had raised him and his younger brother for years without suffering much harassment, and he could not deny that the Liu Family was partly responsible. But that did not give them the right to covet his family's property.
"I know what happened. Don't bring it up in front of your mother."
"Mm. I won't." Lin Mo looked up at him. "Brother, they say people who learn martial arts get really strong. Can you help me beat up Second Uncle and our cousin someday?"
"Beat up your second uncle?"
"Yes. He scolded Mother the worst today. He even said our cousin is learning martial arts at a hall too, and he'll definitely amount to more than you."
Lin Mo was not close to those cousins. Whenever he visited his grandfather's house, they said bad things about his elder brother and told him to stay away from him.
But he was no fool. Besides, his mother often told him he was a member of the Lin Family. Now that only he and his elder brother remained, the two brothers had to help each other.
"All right. Once I've made something of myself, I'll take you to beat up your cousin."
Lin Yan rubbed his younger brother's head. For his aunt's sake, he would not go out of his way to target the Liu Family once he achieved something in martial arts. But they could forget about taking advantage of him.
Early the next morning.
After breakfast, Lin Yan prepared to go to the Yang Family Martial Arts Hall.
Liu gave him a money pouch. The scattered pieces of silver inside came to nearly thirty taels, twenty of which had come from the Cai Mansion.
"Don't worry. My employer will pay my wages soon. We have enough for the household expenses." Seeing Lin Yan hesitate, Liu smiled and reassured him.
Lin Yan did not make a fuss. He took the pouch and said goodbye to his aunt.
His younger brother clamored to go along and see the martial arts hall, but his aunt held him back. In the end, he could only watch Lin Yan leave with longing eyes.
When Lin Yan reached the Yang Family Martial Arts Hall, a sturdy man was sitting at the gatehouse. After hearing why he had come, the man led him inside.
In the front courtyard, Lin Yan saw a group of boys about his age practicing stances under the blazing sun.
"They all joined the hall as beginners and haven't completed Foundation Cultivation yet. You've already completed it, little brother, so you don't need to keep practicing the Stance Technique."
Seeing Lin Yan look toward the boys, the man leading him explained who they were. Then he brought Lin Yan to the middle courtyard.
There were plenty of people on its training ground too, but they were clearly older. At a glance, Lin Yan could tell that, apart from one or two who looked his age, the others were several years older.
"Master, someone's here to become a disciple."
Beneath a pine tree beside the training ground stood a middle-aged man in a somewhat worn indigo hemp shirt. Its collar hung casually open, revealing the smooth contours of his chest. His black baggy trousers had been washed pale.
This was Yang Qingfeng, the master of the Yang Family Martial Arts Hall.
"If you want to join my hall, the apprenticeship fee is sixty taels. The hall provides food and lodging for the first month. After that, you can pay to continue eating and staying here, or make your own arrangements outside."
Yang Qingfeng glanced at Lin Yan. His expression barely changed, and he did not even ask how long it had taken Lin Yan to build up his strength.
In martial arts training, what mattered most, at its heart, was money.
"This junior has brought enough."
Lin Yan readied his banknotes and pieces of silver to hand over, but Yang Qingfeng raised a hand to stop him.
"If you join my Yang Family Martial Arts Hall, you must obey its rules. There are three."
"First: You may not pass on the hall's techniques without my permission."
"Second: Fellow disciples may not attack one another without cause."
"Third: Whether or not you succeed in martial arts, you may not join a gang."
"Now, do you still wish to join my hall?"
Lin Yan did not hesitate. "This disciple does."
Yang Qingfeng nodded and accepted the money Lin Yan offered. "From today onward, you are a disciple of my hall."
"This disciple, Lin Yan, greets Master."
Lin Yan performed a disciple's salute. Yang Qingfeng's tone softened a little. "What Stance Technique have you been practicing?"
"Rock Stance."
Yang Qingfeng frowned slightly and asked, "How long did it take you to build up your strength?"
"Four months."
Yang Qingfeng showed no surprise that Lin Yan had done it in four months. With enough money, forget four months—ten days or half a month would do.
"You can stop practicing Rock Stance. From now on, practice the Mountain Splitting Fist I'm about to teach you. Watch closely."
He's going straight to teaching me a Skin Polishing technique?
Lin Yan was astonished. He had imagined having his bones examined and his aptitude tested, but none of that had happened.
Was Master simply a man of action?
Yang Qingfeng walked to a sandy patch in the courtyard. He lowered his body slightly and took a starting stance somewhat like Rock Stance, his right fist drawn back beside his waist.
The other disciples gathered around as well, their eyes fixed intently on their master.
Yang Qingfeng's right fist shot straight forward, like a taut bowstring suddenly released.
The movement was not fast. It was even somewhat heavy, yet as his fist cut through the air, it made a short, muffled whoosh, as though it had truly forced aside the weight of the air.
At the end of the punch, the muscles of his forearm twisted slightly, evoking stone rolling down a mountain and splitting apart.
Yang Qingfeng demonstrated the form once, teaching the methods of breathing and exerting force as he went. Then he lowered his arms and looked at Lin Yan. "Did you understand?"
Lin Yan shook his head honestly.
Yang Qingfeng did not seem surprised. "Follow me, move by move."
Imitating his master, Lin Yan learned one move at a time.
"Here, at the center of your chest. Keep it loose and open. Don't hold your breath tight."
At some point, a switch had appeared in Yang Qingfeng's hand. He swept it past Lin Yan's abdomen. "Here, at your lower abdomen. Relax naturally. I didn't tell you to stick your belly out."
"Your knee's too far forward."
"Your hips have gone stiff again. That's a horse stance."
"Your left shoulder's too high."
"You're not putting enough force into the arm swing. Straighten it."
Like a nimble snake, the switch in Yang Qingfeng's hand struck precisely wherever Lin Yan's movements were off. He stopped only when Lin Yan performed every movement correctly.
By the end of that round, Lin Yan was drenched in sweat.
"Do you remember what I just taught you?"
"This disciple is slow-witted. I haven't remembered it all."
Lin Yan answered honestly. By the time his master had taught him the breathing method toward the end, his mind had turned to mush. He had retained none of it.
"At least you're honest."
Yang Qingfeng was rather surprised. He had taken on many disciples over the years. Plenty of new disciples had failed to remember everything but claimed they had, either to make a good impression on him or to save face.
He never exposed them.
The martial path was difficult enough. Those who pretended to understand out of vanity would struggle to make anything of themselves on it.
Besides, he knew such disciples would ask the older ones for help in private. Sooner or later, they would learn it.
Or they would watch from the sidelines when he taught a new disciple, as some were doing now.
Once Lin Yan had rested and collected himself, Yang Qingfeng began instructing him again.
"Remember it now?"
"There are still parts of the breathing method I haven't remembered."
"Remember it now?"
"This disciple is slow-witted. I've forgotten some of the middle."
"What about now?"
"This disciple is slow-witted..."
On the training ground, the disciples who had stopped to rest or turned toward the commotion wore strange expressions.
This was the first time they had seen anyone make Master teach him ten times in a row.
He's got some nerve.
Wasn't he afraid of displeasing Master by appearing so foolish?
Lin Yan noticed none of the looks around him. His mind was wholly absorbed in grasping the Mountain Splitting Fist. Whenever the slightest point remained unclear, he asked until he understood it.
With the Martial Dao Tree's help, getting started with the Mountain Splitting Fist would not be hard.
He could rely on the Martial Dao Tree, but he could not make a habit of depending on it.
After fifteen rounds, Lin Yan finally managed to stumble through the complete Mountain Splitting Fist form.
Yang Qingfeng showed no impatience despite having taught it so many times. Since he had accepted the apprenticeship fee, he would fulfill his duty to teach.
"You've got the beginnings of it. Practice the Mountain Splitting Fist well, and try to master the basics soon."
With that, Yang Qingfeng walked away. It was the first time teaching a disciple had left him a little thirsty.