The afternoon he broke through to Clear Force became a turning point in Chen Yuan's martial arts career.
When someone from the Gu Family asked him to come over, Chen Yuan had no idea what it was about.
In the side room, he saw Huang Yan, whose expression was somewhat grave, and Gu Ye, who remained as inscrutable as ever.
Chen Yuan cupped his hands in greeting. "Manager Gu, Senior Brother Huang."
Gu Ye waved for him to sit, then slowly began:
"Chen Yuan, you've performed well these past two months. We should have continued investing in you.
However, because of the Gu Family's financial situation, I regret to tell you that our support for you ends here. Starting next month, you'll have to fend for yourself."
Chen Yuan's heart gave a sudden leap. Had he been cut?
This was completely unexpected. Only Yu Yan had performed better than him, and just half a month ago he had defeated Cao Yan and Gao Mingchang one after another. His stipend had even been raised to seven taels.
The Gu Family was so wealthy. Were they short seven taels of silver?
Besides, if they were cutting people, shouldn't they have cut Cao Yan and Gao Mingchang? Surely they weren't foolish enough to look only at bone structure and ignore performance?
A jumble of thoughts rushed through his mind. He realized this wasn't as simple as the Gu Family being short on money. Someone was definitely pulling strings behind the scenes!
Who could it be? Hard to guess.
Chen Yuan fell silent for a moment, then slowly asked, "Has this been decided for certain?"
Gu Ye nodded and said seriously, "Though it's rather sudden, this is the family head's decision. It cannot be changed."
"Then... do I have to pay anything back?" Chen Yuan asked.
He was worried the Gu Family would demand back the silver they had given him over the past few months. That would be a real pain.
Gu Ye smiled.
"Don't worry. Supporting you was a risk from the start. If we tried to take the money back whenever someone failed, who would still be willing to serve the Gu Family? Consider it a chance to build goodwill."
Chen Yuan let out a breath of relief and cupped his hands.
"Thank you for nurturing me, Manager Gu. I'll remember this. If there's ever anything I can do for you, I won't refuse."
One thing was one thing, and another was another. Though the Gu Family had acted dishonorably by suddenly cutting off his support, they had given him the capital he needed to get started.
Without the Gu Family, he would have struggled to get this far in such a short time. Chen Yuan was still grateful.
At his words, Gu Ye fell silent, looking at Chen Yuan with a trace of regret.
He hadn't expected Chen Yuan not only to keep his emotions in check and refrain from cursing the Gu Family as faithless, but to speak of repaying their kindness instead...
He was sensible and knew right from wrong. That was rare.
What a pity to lose such a talent.
Gu Ye spoke again. "You should thank Master Huang. He negotiated to preserve the rest of this month's stipend, so your support won't end immediately."
Chen Yuan nodded, then cupped his hands to Huang Yan. "Thank you for speaking up for me, Senior Brother. I'll remember this."
Huang Yan waved it off and said coolly, "I only said what needed to be said. Yu Yan had the nerve to ask me to go to Master and get the money back? I couldn't sink that low, and neither could the Gu Family."
Chen Yuan's gaze sharpened. So it really was connected to Yu Yan.
Huang Yan continued with a word of advice:
"Chen Yuan, you have half a month to get your bearings. If you want to keep practicing martial arts, you must break through the Skin Realm within that time. Then you can find a faction to take you on, earning money while you train.
"If you can't find a suitable faction, come to me. I, Huang, have a few friends here in Qingyuan County and can introduce you to one or two."
Chen Yuan nodded firmly. "Thank you, Senior Brother! I'll train hard and do my best to break through the Skin Realm as soon as possible."
This fit perfectly with his plans.
Now that the Gu Family had abandoned him, he had no choice but to find another backer.
And the most basic requirement for finding one was to become an entry-level martial artist.
Huang Yan was willing to introduce him to a faction as soon as he broke through the Skin Realm. He had done all he reasonably could to help his fellow disciple.
Huang Yan gave a quiet acknowledgment, then reminded him:
"This isn't your fault. Don't think less of yourself.
"You defeated Gao Mingchang and Cao Yan. Whether it was hard work or insight, both are part of your talent.
"Keep your mind steady. Don't let this affect you. I believe breaking through the Skin Realm won't be difficult for you. I'll be waiting for the day you come to find me."
Chen Yuan was deeply moved. "I won't let you down, Senior Brother."
This senior brother truly had his best interests at heart.
After talking a little longer, they wrapped things up, and Chen Yuan took his leave.
In the side room, Gu Ye looked at Huang Yan, who had been exceptionally "helpful," and teased him.
"Master Huang, you really do believe in this junior brother of yours. You're even calling in favors to find him a way forward."
Huang Yan took a sip of tea and said coolly, "We were in the wrong to begin with. Cutting the second-best performer while keeping a heap of dead weight is unheard of."
Then he asked in return, "Besides, if I don't believe in a junior brother with both character and talent, should I believe in a petty schemer like Yu Yan?"
Gu Ye's expression changed. He said sternly, "Master Huang, you can't go around saying things like that. It'll hurt unity."
Huang Yan snorted and rose to leave.
Gu Ye took a sip of tea, then suddenly smiled. He wasn't wrong, after all.
Chen Yuan didn't leave right away. Instead, he asked around the Gu Family for news.
As expected, he discovered what was going on: Yu Yan had become the Gu Family's live-in son-in-law, and his bride was the family head's youngest daughter, Gu Wantong—the young lady Xiaoyu had mentioned.
No wonder the Gu Family was willing to give him up.
Chen Yuan couldn't help admiring Yu Yan. The man had some real talent.
Still, Chen Yuan didn't know whether being abandoned by the Gu Family was a blessing or a curse.
The downside was obvious: he had to find a new place as soon as possible. If he couldn't, he'd be living on the breeze next month.
As for the upside, he would no longer be bound to the Gu Family. He had gained the freedom the Zhou Brothers had talked about.
Whether it was good or bad depended entirely on Chen Yuan himself.
If he had what it took to find a better patron than the Gu Family, then it was definitely a good thing.
Chen Yuan drew a deep breath and headed toward Huo Academy.
Tomorrow, he would exchange for Blood Qi Pills and Skin Strengthening Pills. Breaking through the Skin Realm was a must.
By the time he returned to Huo Academy, it was already dinnertime. Sun Chengjie asked why he had gone to the Gu Family, but Chen Yuan brushed it aside, calling it a minor matter.
And it really was a minor matter.
Though Chen Yuan figured most people would consider it a major one.
Better to have one less thing to worry about.
That night, after finishing his practice, Chen Yuan walked home through the dark. To his surprise, his cousin Cheng Xiaoyu was waiting for him at the gate.
As soon as she spotted him, she pulled him toward the little grove outside the house. Under the moonlight, worry showed on her small face.
"What's with all the secrecy? Got something to hide?" Chen Yuan asked with a laugh.
"Brother Yuan, how can you still laugh?" Cheng Xiaoyu asked, astonished. Then she lowered her voice. "Brother, I know already. The Gu Family has cut off your support. What happened? Weren't you ranked first in last month's assessment?"
Chen Yuan patted her head and said lightly,
"It's nothing. Don't worry. Remember, don't tell your parents yet, or Auntie will worry."
"Brother Yuan, stop pretending everything's fine. And you can't keep this secret anyway. If I hadn't wanted to tell you first, I'd have already told Mother." Cheng Xiaoyu clearly thought this was a huge deal.
She wasn't foolish. She knew martial arts training cost a fortune.
Without the Gu Family's support, even whether he could stay at Huo Academy was in question.
Chen Yuan smiled and said calmly, "The best time to kill a tiger is while it's still helpless and hasn't yet grown. I'm the same. If they'd cut off my support a month ago, I might've been in real trouble. But now, I've grown strong enough to hunt for myself."
Cheng Xiaoyu was completely baffled. What was he babbling about? Wasn't Brother Yuan a person? How had he turned into a tiger? And now he was going hunting?
Chen Yuan smiled and patted her shoulder. "Don't rack your little head over it, silly girl. Give me three days, and I'll sort out my training situation. Come on inside. It's windy out here."
He led Cheng Xiaoyu toward the house.
"Xiaoyu, where are you dragging your brother off to?" Auntie's voice called out.
"N-nowhere," Cheng Xiaoyu replied evasively.
"A-Yuan, is your martial arts training going well? Are you tired?" Auntie asked, turning to Chen Yuan with concern.
Chen Yuan smiled. "It's all right. I'm used to it."
Auntie nodded, then lowered her head and continued sewing by the faint candlelight.
Chen Yuan knew she was making him an autumn jacket.
He said softly, "Auntie, it's late already. You don't need to make clothes for me. I practice martial arts every day, so I'm warm enough."
Auntie kept threading the needle, her voice gentle. "It's no trouble. Wearing something warm is always a good thing."
Chen Yuan smiled and didn't bring it up again. He kept his aunt company, chatting with her about this and that.
They talked about little everyday things. It was all a bit rambling, yet it was what made him feel most at ease.
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