Clothed in Rags, Sharing a Robe with His Brother

In the late autumn season, the autumn rain fell continuously, and the temperature gradually froze.

Before the dilapidated thatched cottage.

Before the sky had brightened, Li Xiaofan was already throwing punches. He was bare-chested, his skin slightly reddened by the freezing cold, and hot steam rose from his entire body.

Punch after punch struck out, seeming as if they could beat away the chill in the air so that he would not feel cold.

On his lower body, he wore a pair of coarse cloth trousers that were covered in patches and slightly loose, the trouser legs stained with mud that had already dried into filth.

"Ah-ge, why don't you put on some clothes too? I'm inside the house and I'm not cold, you mustn't freeze yourself sick."

Inside the thatched cottage, a crude wooden window was pushed open to reveal a delicate, youthful face.

He was named Li Xiaofan and was Li Xian's younger brother. He had draped a long, patch-filled cotton-padded jacket over his shoulders, his body curled up.

"Ge isn't cold, look, I'm steaming all over. The two of us only have one upper garment, your constitution is weak, you wear it."

"Besides, I'm practicing fist techniques and martial arts. If I ruin the clothes, we won't have anything else to wear."

Li Xian smiled to comfort him, though a trace of bitterness welled up in his heart.

He knew ancients were poor, but he didn't know they were this poor—they couldn't even afford clothes to wear!

Half a month ago, he transmigrated into this world and merged into one person with the original owner "Li Xian", their memories from two lives overlapping.

This place was the Great Martial Dynasty, the Southern Heaven Region, Qiongtian Prefecture, and Qingning County.

The original owner's mother had died early, and his father had originally been a hunter whose right hand was bitten off by a bear, after which he became dispirited. Later, he contracted a gambling addiction, gambled away the family fortune, and committed suicide.

What was finally left to the two brothers was merely a dilapidated thatched cottage... and a single piece of clothing stripped off their father's body!

Winter was approaching, and it was freezing cold... The two brothers had no idea how they would survive it.

"Ah-xiong, I won't take the examinations anymore. The Lin Household is recruiting domestic servants, and I... I want to go sell myself into servitude."

On Li Xiaofan's youthful face appeared a precociousness different from ordinary people.

"You're not taking the exams?" Li Xian's brows furrowed. "With such good talent, you're just going to waste it like that?"

"Ge!" Li Xiaofan lowered his head and said with a miserable voice, "After Dad died, they took everything away. We aren't allowed to hunt, we can't farm, and we can't survive."

"The Lin Household is recruiting domestic servants. I'm good at arithmetic, so I'll definitely be able to secure a decent errand. When the time comes, if I please the steward, he might even reward us with some shattered silver pieces. Not only will the two of us have clothes to wear, but we might even... get to eat meat!"

Saying this, Li Xiaofan forced out a trace of a smile.

"Stop talking." Li Xian didn't even look back, practicing his fist techniques over and over again while a flash of irritation crossed the bottom of his heart. "If anyone's going to support someone, it's your ge supporting you, it's not your turn to support me."

"But..."

"There are no buts."

Blood is thicker than water; the original owner's memories and his own memories had blended together like milk and water, indistinguishable from one another, and this familial affection naturally continued as well.

Li Xian was Li Xiaofan's ge, an ironclad older brother.

The fist technique Li Xian practiced was called the "Wild Ox Fist". It was an incomplete manual with only three forms.

Each time he practiced it, a surge of hot current would be born within his body, refining his flesh and blood. It was the only thing left behind by their gambling addict father that could be considered property.

Ah-di is right.

If we could go up the mountain to hunt, why would my brother and I be facing the predicament of starving and freezing to death? This era... diligence cannot bring wealth!

If I want to survive, I must make some sacrifices. Ah-di is young, and the scholastic examinations are imminent—he absolutely cannot give up at a time like this!

Only if Ah-di passes the exams can we truly get ahead in the world!

Within a radius of several dozen miles in Qingning County, every blade of grass, every tree, every mountain, and every stone already had an owner.

Li's late father had originally been a hunter for the Luo Household, and by going up the mountain to hunt, he could earn a share of meager profits.

Occasionally, he could cut off some meat from the game to taste. Unfortunately, before Li Father died, he owed massive gambling debts, and the Luo Household had switched to hiring other hunters.

Debts of the father passed down to the sons... The Li brothers still owed a sky-high debt to this day.

The sky gradually grew bright.

Li Xian was bare-chested as he walked out of his home, instructing as he left, "Ah-di, I'm going to dig some wild vegetables for breakfast. Study hard and don't go outside and catch a cold."

Li Xiaofan watched Li Xian's back, his eye sockets somewhat moist as his fingernails dug into his palms, murmuring to himself, Ge, I won't let you down. Once I pass the exams to become a Celestial Official, the two of us will have good lives! I want to find you a pretty wife and give you the best!

Li Xian didn't go pick wild vegetables; instead, he came to the [One Accord Manor] outside Qingning County's city.

This manor covered a vast area, and rumor had it that an extraordinary big figure lived there. Hundreds and thousands of servants inside and outside the manor all served her alone!

Several dozen people were already lingering here, all of them in tattered clothes with barely enough to cover their bodies. Li Xian let out a silent sigh; such was the era, it wasn't just his brother and him suffering alone.

"Come, come, come. Those wanting to sell yourselves into the manor, line up in a row and avoid crowding. We in One Accord Manor don't want any unruly beasts."

The manor gates opened, and a middle-aged man holding a long whip walked out. He shouted casually, yet his voice shook echoes far away.

This person was named Luo Fang and was the steward of One Accord Manor. Following behind him were seven or eight flunkeys, all of them large in stature and neatly dressed.

The crowd shoved and pushed, and suddenly a man tumbled to the ground.

"Slap!"

Luo Fang's brows furrowed, and he flicked his whip, striking the man's body. Instantly, his skin split open and a large gush of blood flowed out. He didn't even manage to cry out in misery before he was beaten unconscious.

Luo Fang cursed, "You dog thing, I told you to stand properly in line, didn't you hear me? Carry him away. Letting a person like this enter the manor would dirty the mistress's eyes!"

Two strongmen behind him hoisted the man up and tossed him by the roadside like a wild dog.

Li Xian turned his head to look and sighed silently. This fellow probably had no way to survive now. This steward and his few attendants all possessed freakishly great strength.

In my memories... it seems martial artists are quite capable?

Li Xian didn't dwell on it, standing honestly within the crowd.

Luo Fang shouted, "Our manor doesn't raise idlers. The mistress has a heart of compassion and is a character like a celestial being. Seeing that winter is approaching, she knows full well that many people won't be able to survive."

"As it happens, our manor is lacking manpower. I'm giving you a path to survive, and you must cherish it. If you miss this village, you won't find this shop anymore."

Luo Fang paced back and forth, lifting his chin and puffing out his chest with unmasked superiority.

"Now recruiting thirty handymen, and there are over thirty of you here... Hmm... the few at the very back, you can leave. There's no share for you."

Hearing these words.

A woman in the rear thumped to her knees on the ground, weeping and wailing, "Great master, great master, I beg you to show some mercy... My baby has no milk to drink, as long as you let me enter the manor, I'll do anything, I beg you."

"Scavenge elsewhere. A cheap life, starving or freezing to death—what does it have to do with me?" Luo Fang shouted coldly, driving the woman away.

Seeing that the woman was pitiful, Li Xian was powerless to help and could only watch with indifference.

The remaining people entered the manor in order to register their basic information. Even as domestic servants, they were divided into different ranks.

Handymen who had just entered the manor like Li Xian were the lowest, most humble existences. Handymen who had entered earlier couldn't help but puff out their chests when looking at them.

"The servitude price is five hundred and twenty-five cash, plus a set of handyman's cloth clothing. Food, clothing, lodging, and board are all provided within the manor. In addition, you can collect a stipend of fifty cash each month. If you have no objections, sign the indenture of servitude."

The accountant looked at the handymen and said indifferently.

The handymen were wild with joy, scrambling to sign. Li Xian, however, felt a wave of sorrow—a human life was truly so worthless.

Looking at the indenture of servitude, he gritted his teeth and wrote his own name.

"Oh ho, your handwriting is not bad." The accountant raised an eyebrow, giving Li Xian a few extra glances.

After signing the indentures, they each collected their servitude money and handyman's clothes.

"I'll give you the afternoon. Go home if you need to go home and share the good news with your families. Starting tomorrow, you won't be permitted to leave the manor without authorization."

Luo Fang said to the group of handymen. Feeling it wasn't enough, he cracked his whip against the air, producing an explosion like firecrackers.

"Also, don't think you can take the money and run. The advantages of my One Accord Manor aren't so easy to take advantage of!"

"Ah-di, I'm back."

Li Xian returned to the thatched cottage and shouted a few times.

"Ge, where are the wild vegetables? Why did it take so long to pick wild vegetables?" Li Xiaofan's thin, small body was completely wrapped inside the long cotton-padded jacket.

The two brothers shared a single piece of clothing; Li Xian wore the trousers and Li Xiaofan wore the jacket.

"What wild vegetables? We're eating some meat today," Li Xian smiled, taking out some pork he had just bought back from the market.

The amount wasn't much, but it was enough for the two brothers to taste the flavor of meat.

"Ge! You..."

Li Xiaofan's body shook, having already guessed the reason.

Li Xian laughed heartily. "I sold myself into One Accord Manor as a servant, and I got a full five hundred and twenty-five cash, plus a set of clothes."

"It's just that from now on, I won't be able to come and go easily. The two of us brothers will have a good meal. Dad's clothes... I'll take them off for you to wear, and there's still five hundred cash left over."

"You study hard, and I'll work in the manor. If there's any money left over, I'll find another opportunity for you."

Li Xiaofan's eyes moistened. "Ge... you..."

Li Xian laughed boldly, gently patting Li Xiaofan's head. "I'm your older brother, I still need to bear this bit of responsibility. You have a photographic memory—that's a skill your ge can't hope to match."

"That's right, I've had some new insights regarding the Wild Ox Fist recently. I'll practice it a few more times for you to see, you must remember it, it'll count as a bit of self-defense skill."

Li Xiaofan wiped his tears and nodded heavily. "Okay."

Li Xian struck a pose in the room and threw a punch, resembling a wild ox charging.

Suddenly—

[Struck punches ten thousand times, your will is resilient, your intent unyielding, awakened fate-pattern · Heaven Rewards Diligence]
[Every bit of effort will surely yield a return.]
[Wild Ox Fist — Remnant Form]
[Proficiency: 456/500 Initiation]
[Description: The fist wind is unpretentious, its momentum like an ox, refining flesh and blood. There are no shortcuts to this fist technique, only "hard work" itself.]