Hundred Birds Paying Homage to the Phoenix, Hongsheng Cart Company

"Master Xin, I can't take this money."

Qin Geng spoke solemnly and pushed the cloth bundle back.

"Hear me out."

Master Zhu Xin did not take the bundle. He took a sip of wine instead, his gaze drifting as though toward some distant place.

"I've met all kinds of people in my life. When I was young, I had a family and children of my own. But this world eats people. My son joined the Broadsword Society and got shot dead by a foreign rifle. My daughter married far away in Shandong, then vanished on the road to the Northeast... In the end, all that's left is these old bones."

Master Zhu Xin's voice was even, betraying neither joy nor grief, but Qin Geng felt a weight settle in his chest.

"I figured that when my legs finally gave out, I'd curl up in some ruined temple and wait for the Black and White Reapers to come for my soul. But I can't take this money with me, and burning it would be a waste."

Master Zhu Xin turned. His clouded old eyes gleamed as he stared hard at Qin Geng.

"Xiao Wu, you're a dragon. Being a carriage driver is too small a life to hold you. I can see you're going to do great things."

"I'm not giving it away for nothing. Take what I've saved. Call it a bargain."

"You'll arrange my funeral."

Qin Geng's heart jolted. Looking at the gaunt old man before him, he felt something catch in his throat.

"Master Xin..."

"How can you say that?"

"Back at the wharf, if you hadn't warned me, Uncle Xu and Uncle Jin might have been beaten to death by those men from Yi He Shantytown. I'd have suffered badly too. I haven't forgotten what you did for us."

"You're in good health. Don't talk like that. Besides, when that day does come, I still can't take your money. I, Qin Geng, will make sure everything's properly arranged. I'll even smash the mourning basin and carry the funeral banner!"

Qin Geng refused to take it, no matter what.

"Quit talking nonsense!"

Master Zhu Xin glared at Qin Geng and shoved the money back with startling force.

"And when I'm gone? Will you burn these silver dollars for me? You'll end up spending them anyway."

"But... I can't spend them now."

Qin Geng was growing anxious.

"Stop playing the fool!"

Master Zhu Xin waved a hand. "I don't ask for a grand spectacle like Hundred Birds Paying Homage to the Phoenix. But I want a proper funeral troupe to sing me off. Someone to smash the basin, mourners to weep, paper offerings—nothing left out. Make it grand and lively. Let the whole neighborhood hear that old Zhu went out with dignity!"

"Take the money and make more with it."

"When I finally kick the bucket, you'll put up twenty silver dollars and send me off in style!"

"And if you die halfway there, then I misjudged you. Consider the money a burial gift!"

Master Zhu Xin was a clear-eyed man. He knew Qin Geng stood at the crucial threshold where a fish became a dragon. What he lacked was the silver to carry him over.

For Qin Geng now, those ten silver dollars were life-saving water, a ladder to the heavens.

The "funeral arrangements" were simply a reason for Qin Geng to accept the money, a step down that preserved his pride.

Deeper down, Master Zhu Xin really was securing a final resting place for himself.

He had no children. If he died, someone might roll him in a straw mat and dump him in a paupers' graveyard.

But he trusted Qin Geng with it. He knew the young man had backbone and kept his promises.

Qin Geng fell silent.

He understood what Master Zhu Xin meant.

The old man was helping him, and entrusting himself to him.

"Master Xin."

Qin Geng drew a deep breath, clasped his hands, and bowed solemnly to Master Zhu Xin.

"I'll take the money."

"I'll remember what you've asked of me. As long as I'm alive when that day comes, never mind twenty silver dollars—even if I have to turn South City upside down, I'll send you off in glory!"

"Good!"

Master Zhu Xin slapped his thigh, his face breaking into a smile of genuine relief. "Hearing you say that makes my whole life worthwhile!"

They drank a few more bowls of wine.

Before Qin Geng left, Master Zhu Xin seemed to remember something. He caught Qin Geng by the arm and offered some quiet advice:

"Xiao Wu, from here on, hard fists alone won't be enough."

"The world's getting more chaotic. You need a place where your word is law."

"Once you've caught your breath, set up a cart company. Let the elders from your shantytown run it. Xu Chun is shrewd, Jin He is capable, and Ma Laifu knows how to deal with people. They're all good hands. Once you've built a reputation, put your name on the business and collect your share. Grow it bit by bit."

"The way things are going, this world will only get more chaotic. Without power or influence, all your skill makes you is hired muscle. You need a place where your word is law, and a group of capable men who answer only to you. That's how you establish yourself."

"I understand."

Qin Geng nodded firmly.

Early the next morning, at Hundred Herb Hall.

Qin Geng ordered ten portions of Bone-Strengthening Powder outright.

Zheng Tonghe studied the obvious improvement in his bearing and vigor, then nodded thoughtfully. He had an assistant wrap the medicinal ingredients and even threw in an extra packet of leftover herbs for a medicinal bath.

With that supply of medicine in hand, Qin Geng could finally set his mind at ease.

The days that followed were nothing but grueling, relentless training.

By day, he pulled his cart at the wharf, using Step-Sensing Danger to feel every inch of ground beneath his feet and Old Horse Knows the Way to check it against the map in his head.

At night, he returned to the shanty, soaked in a medicinal bath, held his stance, and practiced his punches.

The power of the Bone-Strengthening Powder burst through his body. Together with the forms of Xingyi Dragon and Tiger, it washed through his sinews and bones again and again.

Time flew, and soon it was November fourteenth.

November fourteenth.

Just past noon.

The winter sun held a rare hint of warmth, leaving everyone pleasantly drowsy.

In a sheltered corner of Xun River Wharf, Qin Geng squatted beside the wall with several carriage drivers he knew, waiting for the afternoon passenger boat to dock.

By then, the sharp edge he had once carried so openly had drawn inward.

He wore a short jacket faded pale from washing. His muscles stood out, but his build was lean and taut rather than bulky, like a leopard's.

[Profession: Martial Artist (Level 8)]

[Experience: 62/80]

Those were his current panel stats.

In just half a month, with Bone-Strengthening Powder and training that bordered on self-torture, he had forced his way to level eight. Only two levels stood between him and the legendary threshold of Bright Force.

But he could clearly feel the bottleneck approaching.

The Bone-Strengthening Powder's effects were fading fast.

At first, one dose had set his blood surging all night. Now he drank it and felt nothing after half an hour at most.

And as his body grew stronger, his digestion became frighteningly voracious. Medicine alone was not enough; he needed vast amounts of meat to make up the deficit.

It was like when braised offal had gradually stopped filling him up.

Looks like I need to get Dragon-Tiger Decoction for my medicinal baths.

Qin Geng turned it over in his mind.

Aside from his martial training, his progress as a carriage driver had gone smoothly.

Over the past half month, he had pulled his cart through every street and alley in Tianjin.

Apart from the restricted parts of the foreign-controlled concessions, the entire map of Tianjin had lit up in his mind.

He knew which alleys offered shortcuts, which intersections hid potholes, and when each shop opened—better than constables who had worked those streets for decades.

As he pondered, Li Gou suddenly sidled up to him with a conspiratorial look.

"Hey, Brother Wu, Uncle Xu, have you heard? A new cart company's popped up in the city. It's called Hongsheng Cart Company, and it's going head-to-head with Ping'an Cart Company!"

Li Gou's face shone with excitement over the gossip, spittle flying as he spoke.