Your Grandson Has Made Something of Himself!

Only then did Zhou Yu grin as she went over to untie the bundle and take out the ma shi. But after taking one, she first gave a piece to Zhou Tian, who was lying on his side in bed, then one to Zhang Fang, then one to him. Only after that did she pick up a broken piece for herself and bite into it. Blissfully narrowing her eyes, she said, "Brother, it's delicious, so delicious! Is this taste... sweetness?"

Zhou Chen froze. Seeing her satisfied look, his nose stung slightly. He nodded hard. "Yes! From now on, our family will have more and more sweetness!"

As they spoke, there came another knock at the door. Zhang Fang went to open it and found the woman with the mole at the corner of her mouth from before. Standing at the doorway, the woman wore a broad smile and eagerly tried to promote her daughter, but Zhang Fang coldly refused and drove her out on the spot.

Once the woman had left, Zhang Fang immediately cursed, "Pah! A broomstar with a mole at the corner of her mouth, no blessing in her life! Yesterday, when she learned your father was injured, she deliberately mocked us. She said you'd wasted silver practicing martial arts and accomplished nothing, that even getting your father treated would be difficult, and once your father lost his job at the Fishery, our family would be finished!"

"She even said she was lucky she hadn't married her daughter into our family. Pah! Who does she think she's looking down on? Just look at her! I wouldn't take her daughter if she begged me to! Three-legged! She walks like a crab!"

Seeing his mother curse with such high spirits, Zhou Chen chuckled.

His mother had never dared speak like this before. Now, she had confidence.

All these changes had come from his becoming a Martial Warrior.

But he absolutely could not become smug over this small achievement. Practicing martial arts was like rowing upstream: if one did not advance, one fell back. He could not slacken in the slightest. He had to strive to break through to higher realms of martial arts—not only for himself, but also for those standing behind him.

At lunch, Zhang Fang hardened her heart and boiled all the delivered meat in a huge pot, then made another pot of mixed-flour steamed buns.

Looking at the glistening, oily meat in the basin, Zhou Yu drooled, swallowing mouthful after mouthful.

Zhou Chen first filled a bowl for Zhou Tian and placed it by the bedside. Then he returned to his seat and said with a smile, "Stop staring. Eat!"

"Woohoo!"

Only after Zhou Yu got permission did she start shoveling large mouthfuls of meat into her mouth. Though it was so hot that she hissed and tears nearly fell from her eyes, she still refused to spit it out.

"Look at you, no ambition at all!"

Zhang Fang scolded her fondly, yet secretly wiped away a tear with the back of her hand. Zhou Tian, meanwhile, leaned half against the headboard and silently ate his meat. He ate loudly, not daring to lift his head.

That night, Zhou Chen ate a full three big bowls of meat before he felt half full.

"After becoming a First-Rank Martial Artist, my digestion and absorption have improved. My appetite has doubled compared to before!"

Zhou Chen rejoiced inwardly.

This meant he could eat more Black Meat. The efficiency of converting Miasma Poison every day would greatly increase, and he would accumulate more Mist Incense each day!

He was simply poor as a church mouse right now and desperately needed money!

"That old man robbed me of ten taels of silver back then. Now it's time for him to pay it back with interest!"

Zhou Chen was just that petty. Now that he had enough strength, he wished he could settle the score on the spot. He never left vengeance overnight!

News of Zhou Chen becoming a Martial Warrior swiftly reached the old residence of the Zhou Household in Qingtian District.

When the household had split, Zhou Tian's eldest uncle had monopolized this house on the grounds that, as the eldest son, he had to support Old Master Zhou in his old age. Anyone with eyes could see that he merely wanted to grab a larger share of the benefits.

And Old Master Zhou, biased to the bone, as usual remained silent in the face of his eldest son's inch-by-inch demands.

It was not only during the division of the household. From childhood to adulthood, Old Master Zhou had always favored the eldest branch in every way. Whenever there was meat or vegetables, the eldest branch usually received them first, and only the leftovers went to Zhou Tian's side.

Old Master Zhou never even hid this. He repeatedly said before outsiders, "I favor my eldest grandson. So what? That younger grandson has been dull since childhood, a stuffy gourd just like his father. He can't even speak properly. What great prospects could he possibly have? Have you heard the saying, 'Within three generations, a child who revives the family will emerge'? Zhou Ping is that child!"

Zhou Tian had a quiet temperament. When Old Master Zhou scolded him once or twice, he endured it out of gratitude for Old Master Zhou's care in raising him. But Old Master Zhou was always belittling Zhou Chen right in front of him, whether there was cause or not!

That was something he truly could not endure!

So, using the household division as an excuse, he moved out in a fit of anger and did not return even once a year.

At that moment, in the main hall, Old Master Zhou sat in the seat of honor, holding a coarse teacup and taking small sips. His eyes narrowed in contentment, his old face full of satisfaction. "Not bad, not bad. This tea Ping brought back tastes far better than our coarse leaves. That child is thoughtful. He knows to honor his elders. We didn't waste all that money sending him to work at the Chen Residence."

Zhou Tao sat below him and said with a cheerful smile, "Exactly, Father. They say the tea Ping brought back came from the Inner City. It's barely polluted at all, and you can taste proper tea in it. Unlike the coarse tea we buy outside—it's been contaminated by Black Mist, turns pitch-black when brewed, and tastes sour and bitter, like drinking medicine broth."

Feng Yuyun, the eldest aunt, sat to one side, her bloated body squeezed into her chair. She too smiled and said, "Once Ping makes a name for himself at the Chen Residence, maybe he can bring us in to enjoy the good life! The steward who came to pick him up last time said it himself—Old Master Chen values our Ping greatly now."

"He said Ping has a sweet mouth and knows how to please people. He's been sent to the accounts room to learn the abacus from the clerks. In the future, he could at least become an accounts supervisor. That's a fine position where food and clothing are guaranteed."

The more they spoke, the more excited they became, as though they could already see Zhou Ping returning in embroidered robes, surrounded by attendants before and behind him.

Old Master Zhou stroked his grizzled beard, his face creasing into folds with laughter. Glowing with pride, he said, "Back then, a fortune teller once read my fate and said that among my two grandsons, one would surely achieve great things in the future. I did not even ask which one. Did I need to? Ping had a clever tongue from childhood and knew how to read people's expressions. Looking across our Zhou Household, whose child could match that quick-wittedness?"

"Could it possibly be Zhou Chen? That stuffy gourd!"

At this point, Old Master Zhou sighed again and said to Zhou Tao, "Speaking of it, using your younger brother's money was wrong in the end. Once Ping makes something of himself, return the money to him as soon as possible."

"Oh, I know, Father! No need to keep bringing it up. Besides, don't feel guilty. Think about it, Father—what use would that money have been in Chen's hands? Sending him to practice martial arts was just throwing money into the water. Spending it on Ping was the proper thing to do. A Lineage should pull together and support one person going out to make his way!"

"Exactly, exactly! Your younger brother just isn't as clever as you. He couldn't understand such a simple truth. When we went to ask him for money, did you see that look on his face? He simply refused to give it! It made me furious!"

Old Master Zhou set down his teacup. Recalling that day, anger rose on his face. His second son truly did not know what was good for him. They had only borrowed a little money from him—yet he acted as if they were cutting flesh from his body!

His usually obedient second son had somehow learned to defy him!

"Heh, didn't he hand it over after a few punches?"

"I heard Zhou Tian still sent that fool to practice martial arts! Who knows where he got the money! Hmph! A waste of effort!"

Zhou Tao sat with one leg crossed over the other, utterly unconcerned. He exchanged a knowing glance with the eldest aunt across from him. Whenever Zhou Tian's family was mentioned, both of them revealed contemptuous expressions.

From beginning to end, they had never regarded Zhou Tian's family as worth anything.

"Oh, right, Father, I nearly forgot to tell you. My younger brother was injured yesterday and will have to recuperate at home for about a month. Hmph! If he has to recover for so long, there's no need to think about it—the Fishery job will definitely be gone!"

Zhou Tao spoke slowly, with little concern in his tone. Instead, there was a hint of gloating.

When Old Master Zhou heard that Zhou Tian had been injured, he frowned. He had not known about this. He was about to ask what had happened and consider sending over a string of coins to buy medicine.

Feng Yuyun seemed to notice what Old Master Zhou was thinking and hurriedly said, "Father, it's fine. The second one is thick-skinned and tough-boned; he won't die. We need to keep our money. Once Ping is making his way at the Chen Residence, there'll be plenty of places that need greasing. Social dealings all cost money. We have to prioritize him first!"

Old Master Zhou nodded, and the thought faded away.

Just then, a young man came running in from outside, panting heavily and shouting happily, "Old Master Zhou, good news, good news! Your grandson has made something of himself!"

"What?"

Old Master Zhou and the other two immediately stood up. They looked at one another, all seeing delight in the others' eyes. Had Zhou Ping made a name for himself at the Chen Residence?

The man who had come to deliver the good news did not rush to speak.

Old Master Zhou hurriedly took a string of copper coins from his robe and placed it in the man's hand as celebratory money. A few copper coins would have been enough, but this concerned his grandson's great joyous occasion, and he felt he had to show proper importance.