"Wasn't it supposed to be a month?"
Deng Qing cupped his hands.
Li Liang looked grim. "You think I'm going back on my word? The northwest's in chaos. The Donghuang Cult's forces have taken three counties in a row, and their spearhead is aimed straight at Qingzhou.
"The County Yamen has been demanding men every day. Grain escorts, city-wall repairs, army reinforcements—everywhere is short-handed.
"My superiors press the County Magistrate, the County Magistrate presses the County Commandant, and the County Commandant presses me. I've pushed your name down the conscription list again and again. This time, you can't blame me."
Deng Qing cupped his hands and said, "I know how much I owe you, Senior Brother. I won't forget it."
Li Liang waved him off. "Spare me the useless talk. Money's what matters."
Deng Qing said, "Within three days, I'll give you an answer you'll be satisfied with."
Li Liang stared at him for several breaths, then said heavily, "Don't think about running. It's far more chaotic outside the city than in.
"Run, and either the government troops catch you and press you into service, or the rebels catch you and make you a two-legged sheep."
"I know."
"Good."
With that, Li Liang turned and left.
At daybreak the next morning, Deng Qing went to Celebration Hall as usual.
Once his work was done, he went around to the back courtyard and found Fan Sheng.
Fan Sheng was watching several apprentices practice their punches beneath the corridor. Seeing Deng Qing approach, he went to meet him. "Good timing. I was just looking for you."
Deng Qing paused. "What did you need me for, Senior Brother?"
Fan Sheng waved a hand. "No hurry. You go first."
Deng Qing cupped his hands. "Senior Brother, I wanted to ask: how exactly do you break through to Skin Tempering First Layer?"
Fan Sheng was not surprised.
It was the question he had been asked most often lately.
He glanced at Deng Qing, his tone gentler than usual. "Skin Tempering First Layer isn't mysterious when you get down to it.
"You use the Tiger-Subduing Fist to build up Qi-Blood, then drive that Qi-Blood against the Skin Membrane. Once the Skin Membrane develops strength and you can take a hit and dish one out, you've entered Skin Tempering First Layer."
Deng Qing nodded.
Fan Sheng continued, "The hard part isn't the movements. It's Qi-Blood. If you have enough, one push breaks through. If you're depleted, you can practice the movements all you like and still be grinding away at nothing."
As he spoke, he pointed west. "Look at Li Cheng and the others. Their movements might not be any more refined than yours, but their families keep them supplied with tonics and meat. They don't lack medicinal wine or massage, either. Naturally, they progress faster."
Deng Qing followed his finger.
Beside the wooden posts, Li Cheng, Zhou Tie, Wang Wei, and the others had just finished their routines. Heat steamed off their bodies, and when the morning wind caught their sweat, faint wisps of white mist seemed to rise from their shoulders and backs.
Li Cheng in particular pressed a palm against a wooden post. The post did not move, but the burlap wrapped around it snapped with the impact.
Deng Qing's heart stirred. "They... broke through?"
"They did."
Fan Sheng said, "They were tested three days ago."
Deng Qing clenched his fists. "What if you're right on the verge of breaking through? What do you do?"
"Take tonics to bolster your Qi-Blood, then make the push."
"And without tonics?"
"Then eat meat. To break through to Skin Tempering First Layer, the fist is the spark, but Qi-Blood is the firewood. Without enough wood, the fire won't catch."
Deng Qing cupped his hands. "Thank you for the guidance, Senior Brother."
Fan Sheng waved a hand. "No need to thank me. You work hard and have a good temperament. Your luck's just poor. It's a shame."
Deng Qing paused, unsure why Fan Sheng had suddenly begun judging him.
Fan Sheng sighed softly. "The people above asked me to tell you: starting tomorrow, you won't need to work the front entrance anymore."
Deng Qing's heart sank. "Senior Brother, did I do something wrong?"
Fan Sheng shook his head. "Word has spread through the hall that Li Liang intends to send you off for corvée labor.
"The people above have arranged for Steward Cai's nephew to take your place."
Deng Qing cursed inwardly. What kind of world is this? Someone even wants to snatch a lousy job that pays nothing.
Just then, Big Yellow, who had gone a long time without offal, started barking at him from beneath the corridor.
Deng Qing glared at Big Yellow, then turned to leave.
As he passed the kitchen, Chef Zhao poked his head out. "Little Deng, where are you going?"
"Uncle Zhao, I'm heading back."
"You've done your work today. You can't just work and leave without eating."
Warmth stirred in Deng Qing's chest. Chef Zhao must have heard that someone was taking his place, too.
He did not refuse. Inside the kitchen, steam billowed while cabbage soup bubbled in the pot.
Chef Zhao handed him two coarse-grain flatbreads and ladled out a big bowl of soup. Then he scraped the bottom of the pot and fished out three slices of fatty pork, dropping them straight into Deng Qing's bowl.
Several odd-job workers saw it and stared.
Deng Qing stood on no ceremony and ate in big mouthfuls.
Afterward, he moved to clear away his bowl and chopsticks, but Chef Zhao pulled him aside and told him to just go. "No matter how chaotic the world gets, people still have to eat. If someone eats pork, there'll be offal.
"You can even stomach intestines and lungs. I refuse to believe you'll starve!"
Deng Qing froze. That's right. If I can't afford meat, surely I can scrape together enough for offal?
His supply from Celebration Hall was gone, but it was not the only place in Everjoy County that slaughtered pigs.
The name Five Blessings Butcher Shop immediately sprang to mind.
Five Blessings Butcher Shop stood at the South Ward Entrance.
There were plenty of butcher shops in Everjoy County, but Five Blessings Butcher Shop had the biggest name.
Deng Qing had heard Chef Zhao mention in passing that its owner, Wu Yun, had come out of Celebration Hall years ago. Relying on his strength and knife skills, he had opened the shop.
When Celebration Hall did not slaughter pigs but needed meat, it usually bought from Five Blessings Butcher Shop.
By the time Deng Qing reached the South Ward, thick ice covered the puddles in the street. Passersby hunched their necks and shuffled along, their white breath billowing like steam from opened steamer baskets.
Outside Five Blessings Butcher Shop, work was in full swing.
Several large pots stood outside the shop, sending up bursts of white steam.
Someone was sharpening a knife, someone else was washing a chopping block, and another worker was dragging half a pig inside.
Deng Qing watched from the doorway for a moment, then stepped forward. "Excuse me, do you need another pair of hands?"
A worker scraping bristles off a pig looked up at him and waved him away. "No. Off you go."
Deng Qing headed toward the courtyard beside the shop. He had barely reached the entrance when a commotion broke out inside.
"Hold it down!"
"The rope's come loose!"
"Get out of the way!"
A fat pig had broken free and charged out of the back courtyard, grunting.
The pig was hefty and strong, its body slick with water. It kicked off on all four hooves, knocked over a wooden bucket, and charged straight toward the shop entrance.
The workers scattered. Deng Qing stood right by the door, and when the pig bore down on him, he barely had time to think. He planted his feet, swept his arms together, and shot them out like lightning, clamping them around the pig's neck and front legs.
Bang! The brute force drove Deng Qing half a step backward, his soles scraping two tracks across the ground.
He clung to it for dear life. His shoulders dropped, his hips sank, and his whole body came down like a falling boulder, pinning the fat pig to the ground by sheer force.
The pig struggled a few times, its grunts fading. Several workers stared at Deng Qing wide-eyed.
Just then, a burly man emerged from the back courtyard.
He was around thirty, tall and broad, with a fleshy face. His sleeves were rolled to his elbows, and he held a boning knife.
He told the workers to drag the pig away, then spotted the wooden tag at Deng Qing's waist. "From Celebration Hall?"
Deng Qing hurriedly cupped his hands. "Deng Qing, an apprentice at Celebration Hall. Greetings, Senior Brother Wu."
Wu Yun nodded. "Need something from me?"
Deng Qing answered honestly, "I don't have the strength to train, and I can't afford meat. I came hoping to get some pig offal."
"How much?"
"I don't have any money."
The warmth vanished from Wu Yun's face. "How are you buying offal without money? Don't start telling me we're fellow disciples.
"If that's how we're counting, half of Everjoy County can claim a connection to Celebration Hall."