Underhanded Means

The neighbors heard the commotion and came out one after another to watch. Seeing the scene, they all sighed in regret.

"Before Chen Qilang passed away, how thriving was that pharmacy of his? Who would have thought that only a few years after his death, it would have fallen so low?"

"Blame no one but him for harboring delusions of making his son a martial artist. If he hadn't sent his younger son off to learn martial arts and spent away all his savings, things would never have come to this."

"See that? This is what happens when you send your son to learn martial arts."

"..."

As Chen Rui listened to the neighbors pointing and whispering, grief and fury surged in his heart. His eyes reddened as he glared at the people blocking the doorway and shouted, "We agreed on thirty percent interest. I borrowed two hundred taels, and after one month, principal and interest came to two hundred and sixty taels. Where did five hundred taels come from?"

The leader sneered. "Thirty percent interest? Is that supposed to satisfy beggars? Look carefully—the note clearly says one hundred percent interest. And last month was an intercalary month. You were one day late, so that counts as half a month's interest. Five hundred taels in all. Not a single copper less."

"What?"

Chen Rui was shocked and enraged. "We agreed on thirty percent interest. The note said... you... this note is fake..."

"Fake? Open your dog eyes and take a good look. Isn't that your signature? Isn't that your seal?"

At the mouth of the alley.

The coachman said to Chen Ming, "I've seen that man before. He's one of Old Ghost Xiao's men from Wanli Gambling House. His name is Scarface. He specializes in usury and often tampers with loan notes. Once you borrow their money, they'll never let you off easily. They'll gnaw you to the bone and suck out the marrow, until they've eaten you clean, bones and all."

"Young Master, shall I go back and ask my young master to step in?"

Chen Ming politely declined. "There's no need to trouble Brother Deng. I'll handle it myself. This is far enough."

He got down from the carriage and walked inside.

At that moment, Chen Rui stared at the writing on the loan note, his eyes wide with disbelief, his whole body trembling.

It truly was his handwriting.

But it had clearly been thirty percent interest before. How had it become one hundred percent?

Just then, Scarface stepped forward and grabbed him by the collar, roaring, "Have you seen it clearly? Pay up now."

"I..."

Chen Rui was humiliated beyond measure, and with his collar choking his neck, he could not speak.

"Let go."

Suddenly, a furious shout exploded beside Scarface's ear. Startled, he heard a vicious wind rushing in from behind him. Without thinking, he spun around and struck backward with his palm.

As a professional debt collector, he was naturally no mediocre fighter. His practical combat experience was exceptionally rich.

The next instant, a tremendous force crashed into him. His face changed in shock. He immediately let go and rolled across the ground, narrowly and miserably evading the killing blow.

He scrambled to his feet and saw a young man in his early twenties. Instantly furious, he snarled, "Who are you? How dare you interfere in Wanli Gambling House's business?"

Chen Ming shielded his elder brother behind him and said coldly, "My name is Chen Ming. He is my elder brother. Go back and tell your boss not to use such disgraceful tricks in front of me."

"You're Chen Ming?"

Scarface's expression flickered uncertainly.

Of course, he knew that Chen Rui had a younger brother who had trained in martial arts for several years, but was said to have poor talent and mediocre strength.

Who the hell had said this man's strength was mediocre?

Inwardly, he cursed the person who had gathered that information until they were drenched in abuse.

Judging from that strike alone, this man was absolutely no weaker than he was.

His gaze gradually turned vicious. "Hmph. The black words on white paper are written plain and clear. You brothers either repay the money, or use this house as collateral."

The moment those words fell, Chen Rui's face changed drastically.

Chen Ming's expression darkened as well. "So there's no peaceful resolution today, then."

Scarface waved a hand, and his underlings took out wooden clubs, iron rulers, and other weapons, surrounding them with vicious looks on their faces.

"Second Brother!"

Fearing his younger brother would suffer, Chen Rui grabbed hold of him.

A wise man did not fight when the odds were against him.

Yet he could not hold him back at all. Chen Ming had already launched himself forward. He charged into the crowd as though entering an empty realm, and in the blink of an eye, seven or eight burly men armed with weapons had all been knocked to the ground.

Chen Rui was dumbstruck.

Hadn't they said his younger brother's martial arts were terrible? How could he be this formidable?

Not good!

Seeing Chen Ming easily knock all his men down, Scarface realized that he had gravely underestimated the man's strength. Cold sweat immediately broke out on him.

"Now, now, let's discuss this properly... Aah—"

In only two moves, he took a kick to the thigh. The searing pain made him scream, and he collapsed to the ground, unable to rise again.

In the blink of an eye, everyone who had come to cause trouble was sprawled across the ground.

The onlookers all stared in utter stupor.

Hadn't they said Second Young Master Chen was useless?

Hadn't they said his talent was too poor, and that his master had thrown him out?

He was already this powerful?

"Get lost, all of you."

With a sharp rebuke from Chen Ming, the bruised and battered thugs hauled Scarface up and fled from the place in a headlong scramble.

Then he cupped his hands in a full circle toward the surrounding neighbors and said, "Sorry for causing everyone trouble. Once this matter is resolved, I will certainly come to each of your homes and apologize."

Without waiting for them to recover, he pulled his elder brother back into the house and shut the door.

Chen Rui looked at his younger brother with a complicated expression. "It was all thanks to you today. Otherwise, I truly wouldn't have known what to do."

For the first time, he felt glad that his younger brother had learned martial arts.

Chen Ming asked, "How did you get mixed up with people like that?"

"I needed money urgently at the time and truly had no other choice. Someone introduced me to them, and I borrowed two hundred taels for an emergency. Who could have imagined..."

"Who introduced you?"

"A business friend."

"Don't associate with that person anymore."

"Mm, I understand."

Chen Rui was still uneasy. "Will they come again?"

Chen Ming shook his head. "Not over a few hundred taels."

For such a small amount of money, it was unlikely that the owner of Wanli Gambling House would be foolish enough to fight him to the bitter end, a martial artist of no small strength.

Those usurers surely knew how to settle their accounts.

As the two brothers talked, they arrived at the rear courtyard.

There, the maid in patched clothes stood guard at the courtyard gate with a stick in hand, looking terribly nervous. Only when she saw the Eldest Young Master and Second Young Master did she breathe a sigh of relief. She hurriedly hid the stick behind her back and stepped forward to greet them.

Elder Sister-in-Law Wei Shi heard the commotion and poked her head out from the room. Seeing her husband and brother-in-law, she hurried over and anxiously asked, "Where are those villains?"

Her young son, Chen Lide, clung tightly behind her, scissors in hand, looking as though he was ready to fight someone to the death at any moment.

Chen Rui had eyes only for his wife and quickly reassured her, "Second Brother drove all the villains away."

"Really?"

Wei Shi was half-convinced and half-doubtful.

"Of course it's true. I saw it with my own eyes."

While they were speaking, someone knocked at the outer door.

Wei Shi jumped in fright and hurried behind her husband, her face pale with terror.

An aged voice came from outside. "Is Chen Dalang home?"

The maid said tremblingly, "It sounds like... Granny Ai from next door."

Wei Shi recognized the voice too. "It really is Granny Ai. Hurry and open the door."

When the door opened, it was indeed Granny Ai. She carried freshly pan-fried cakes in her hand and, smiling warmly, pulled Wei Shi inside to talk.

Chen Ming went straight back to his room and opened the panel.

Level: 7

Current Points: 3002

Cultivation Method: "Iron Horse Stance" (Fourth Layer 3/1000+)

Martial Skills: "Three Powers Fist" (Mastery 27/500+), Bagua Saber Technique (Beginner 55/100+)

He had finally saved enough points.

Just now, those thugs who had delivered themselves to his door had given him a wave of experience points.

"Add!"

He added one thousand points to the "Iron Horse Stance," raising this stance technique to the Fifth Layer.

Level: 9

Current Points: 2002

Cultivation Method: "Iron Horse Stance" (Fifth Layer 3/2000+)

Martial Skills: "Three Powers Fist" (Mastery 27/500+), Bagua Saber Technique (Beginner 55/100+)

Chen Ming's body crackled and popped as a powerful force surged forth.