Subtlety 1

Lin Sheng walked to the window and stood beside Xiayin, his expression calm.

"What do you think about what happened this time?"

The calmer he looked, the more fiercely anger surged in his heart.

He had lived two lifetimes, yet he'd nearly been driven into a corner by such a minor problem.

That was right.

He'd been driven into a corner.

He could certainly handle himself in a fight. Four or five people wouldn't be a problem.

But what if there were a dozen? Twenty? Or a hundred?

If he could get away, that would be lucky enough, let alone defeat them. And they had guns, too.

Besides, he had family.

With the White Card Gang's power—a gang entrenched across the entire city—if they made a move, his family would be affected in every way.

And then, what good would it do if he could fight as well as he liked?

Xiayin pressed her lips together and watched Lin Sheng.

She didn't understand what he was getting at.

She'd always admired Teacher Lin, but this time, the problem had gone beyond what individual fighting ability could solve.

"Teacher, it's over now. The White Card Gang has agreed to leave us alone. Let's put it behind us and leave it at that."

There was a quiet maturity in Xiayin's voice. Perhaps this incident had finally shown her what was truly worth relying on when it mattered most.

Lin Sheng sensed the change in her.

Perhaps this unexpected ordeal had made all three of his students a little more mature.

But that wasn't what he wanted to see.

"Yes, we've settled things this time. Thanks to Russell's grandfather, we're safe for now.

"But what about next time? If we run into trouble we can't handle, will we have to go to Russell's grandfather again?"

Lin Sheng spoke calmly, though there was something strange beneath his words.

"This was just a one-off. It won't happen all the time, Teacher." Xiayin shook her head.

"I just want to try handling trouble with our own strength, instead of relying on you elders every time." Lin Sheng's tone was mild.

"Our own?" Xiayin was stunned.

"Yes. No family, no connections—just what we can do ourselves." Lin Sheng nodded.

Xiayin froze.

His words echoed in her mind like a spell.

She suddenly recalled how, growing up, she'd relied on her family's influence to resolve nearly every problem she encountered.

Very rarely had she solved anything through her own abilities.

It had practically become a habit.

And it wasn't just her. Perhaps Russell, Madilan, and everyone else in their circle had grown used to it as well.

They rarely thought about making a name for themselves through their own efforts.

It wasn't that they didn't want to. It was just too difficult. Whatever they did, their family's mark was stamped all over it. Often, they relied on their family's influence without even realizing it.

"What do you want to do, Teacher?" Xiayin was silent for a long while before asking.

"First, we compete and win some prizes. Then we use the publicity to start a training school. I'm good at practical swordsmanship. Russell can teach close-quarters combat. Madilan is good at management, and you can handle the purchasing."

Lin Sheng assigned everyone roles based on their strengths.

Xiayin opened her mouth. She did have plenty of connections, and she'd been helping her family manage business affairs for years. Handling purchasing would be easy.

What she hadn't expected was that Lin Sheng would come up with such a concrete plan so quickly.

"But in Huaisha City, not many people are likely to be willing to pay for training. It'll be hard to get this off the ground." She wasn't some hot-blooded kid who'd jump in after a few inspiring words.

She was practical and levelheaded. When it came to business, she never brushed things aside or tried to muddle through.

Lin Sheng smiled.

"We'll charge very little. We'll teach people how to protect themselves, and the tuition will go toward improving their diets. We're not doing this to make money."

"Then how will we make a profit?" Xiayin was taken aback.

"For now, it'll be enough if we can support ourselves." Lin Sheng smiled. "Celine is fairly stable, but the public safety isn't great.

"And it's a port city with a lot of people coming and going. If tuition isn't too high, I'm sure plenty of people will be willing to give it a try."

"How will we advertise?" Xiayin asked again. She seemed to be starting to understand.

"We don't need to advertise. There's no need to expand too quickly. It's fine if we start with a small number of students." Lin Sheng wasn't trying to bite off more than he could chew.

He was about to take the college entrance exam and didn't have time to teach too many people. Besides, he needed to set aside time every day to try meditating on the Gray Seal.

Since obtaining the Sanctuary, he'd meditated several times, but hadn't seen any results.

Xiayin wasn't sure what Lin Sheng had in mind.

But if they started small, it should be fine.

"I'll wait and see. If you want to do this, the club can provide a venue for free." She thought it over before answering.

In her view, Lin Sheng had clearly been affected by what had happened with the White Card Gang.

But you couldn't build an organization just by training a few students.

Students weren't gang members. They had families and parents, and they were young. Who would be willing to risk life and limb for him?

Lin Sheng didn't mind that he hadn't convinced Xiayin. He asked her to call the other two and pass the idea along, then settled comfortably into a chair in the lounge to drink tea while he waited.

Before long, just as he'd expected, Russell and Madilan rushed over.

They hurried up the stairs to the second floor.

"Teacher, I think this is a great idea! Let's do it together!" Russell was the first to shout.

"I've wanted to start my own business for ages! We can use the club's facilities whenever we want! I can teach hand-to-hand combat and shooting myself!"

He was visibly excited, clearly thrilled by Lin Sheng's proposal.

Madilan was much more practical. He sat to one side and began discussing the details with Xiayin.

Lin Sheng sat in his chair and calmly sipped his tea.

Russell's reaction was just what he'd expected. And Russell was the key to the whole proposal.

He was the club's largest shareholder. As long as he agreed, they could easily handle a lot of the practical matters.

As for the other two, it would be great if they agreed, but it didn't matter if they didn't.

What surprised him was that half an hour later, both Xiayin and Madilan agreed to join forces and start the training school.

"Teacher Lin, since we're going into this together, we need to work out the terms first. How will we divide the shares and profits?" Xiayin asked seriously.

"And though profit isn't our main goal, we can't afford to lose money ourselves. We need to think those things through carefully," Madilan added.

"We'll divide things based on how much each of us contributes," Lin Sheng said simply.

"That works." Xiayin nodded. "The real core of this venture is your practical ability, Teacher Lin. If you make a name for yourself in this competition, getting started afterward should be much easier."

They quickly began working out a plan. First, they would register a company and trademark, then settle on the admission requirements, how to recruit students, the tuition, and the curriculum.