Marriage talks

"All right, everyone, dismissed."

Ye Xiaoqi waved a hand.

Fu Shaoping followed half a step behind Old Zhan. Only when they reached a corner did Old Zhan let out a long sigh, his face clouded with worry.

"Shaoping, look at the state of me. I'm afraid I won't be much help to you from now on. Still, I'll go to the Mission Hall early every day and keep watch. Whenever a criminal case involving non-martial artists comes up, I'll claim it for you first."

Only Commandants could enter the Mission Hall.

The Martial Suppression Guards could only carry out the assignments their own Commandants gave them.

This was also why Fu Shaoping had stubbornly refused to budge earlier.

From the very beginning.

He had wanted to serve under Old Zhan.

Not long after entering the Personnel Hall, he had spotted Old Zhan in a side hall. As a newly promoted Commandant with a lame leg, Old Zhan probably would not attract many subordinates. Sure enough, that had proved true.

This time.

He had gotten his wish.

"Sir, rest assured. As long as I work diligently, completing one level-nine mission a month shouldn't be a problem."

Rather than team up with people he did not know.

He would sooner ride into battle alone.

Besides.

He was not entirely on his own.

The day's assignments at the Mission Hall had already been distributed, so Old Zhan simply gave him the day off.

After leaving the Hundred Households Office, he spotted Zhou Xinxiang craning his neck outside their new home on East Street, looking toward the office from afar. The moment the boy caught sight of him, he raced into the rear courtyard.

"Sis! Sis! Brother Shaoping's back!"

He entered the rear courtyard.

There, Zhou Pan'er was practicing Ethereal Steps with awkward footwork. At the sight of Fu Shaoping, she stumbled, but luckily, he reacted quickly and caught her.

Concern filled Zhou Pan'er's phoenix eyes as she looked at him.

"Were you assigned to Lord Zhan?"

"I was!"

"That's wonderful!"

Zhou Pan'er's face blossomed into a smile.

Just then.

Madam Jiang called from the main room. Fu Shaoping and Zhou Pan'er went inside together. Upon learning that her son would only be responsible for keeping order in the villages, Madam Jiang murmured a prayer to the Buddha.

Only after Zhou Pan'er went outside.

Did she clear her throat and say:

"Before, we never knew where our next meal would come from, so I was too embarrassed to bring certain things up. Now we have farmland of our own. If you save your monthly pay, you should be able to buy a house in a year or so. You'll have come of age by then, too."

"What I mean is, we should find a chance to speak to Pan'er. It's time the two of you settled your betrothal."

"You might be able to wait a few more years, but Pan'er will be eighteen next year. We can't have people calling her an old maid who can't find a husband. Besides, it doesn't look proper to others, her staying with you without any formal status."

In Green Ox Town.

People who married at sixteen or seventeen were everywhere.

Fu Shaoping and Zhou Pan'er had depended on each other for years, and he had no objection to the marriage.

"I'll leave everything to you, Mother."

"Good. I'll find a chance to speak with Pan'er another day, then choose a date to deliver the betrothal gifts."

After leaving his mother's room, Fu Shaoping saw that Zhou Pan'er had begun practicing Ethereal Steps in the courtyard again. Clearly, her inability to offer much help during their last trip to Seven-Mile Mountain still weighed on her.

"Pan'er, wait. Your left foot should turn a little farther forward."

As he spoke.

Fu Shaoping stepped up and began teaching her the footwork, guiding her hands with his own and placing his feet beside hers.

He demonstrated it several more times himself.

An hour later.

Zhou Pan'er could actually complete all thirty-six steps independently.

Fu Shaoping stared in astonishment.

"Pan'er, your grasp of martial arts is incredible!"

"How could I compare to you? Shaoping, you've already reached the beginner stage in Ethereal Steps. I've only just caught my first glimpse through the doorway."

Even as she spoke, Zhou Pan'er kept practicing.

Fu Shaoping could not help feeling the pressure. Without the Mystic Mandate Codex, he probably could not keep up with Zhou Pan'er's cultivation speed even if he strained with every ounce of strength he had.

He turned and went into his room.

Taking out the Blood Qi Powder he had refined, he began consuming it.

He had refined nine portions in total and given three to Zhou Pan'er. He planned to take four himself and sell the rest at the Black Market, where the purchase price was ten Origin Shells higher than at the Hundred Households Office's Hall of Myriad Treasures.

Together with the five Low-Grade Essence Stones he had just received.

That should be enough to buy fifteen sets of ingredients for Blood Qi Powder.

"Phew..."

He took a deep breath.

Fu Shaoping began swallowing the Blood Qi Powder.

Early the next morning.

Fu Shaoping suddenly opened his eyes.

The codex flickered in his sea of consciousness, revealing a line of text.

Body Tempering Realm Second Level: (20/100)

At the sight of those numbers.

Satisfaction spread across Fu Shaoping's face.

After returning yesterday.

He had not slept all night, cultivating straight through until now.

With four packets of Blood Qi Powder, combined with the cultivation he had accumulated earlier, he had taken another small step forward in the Body Tempering Realm Second Level. Moreover, judging by the pattern.

Once he added points to Tiger Roar Fist.

The next round should add points to his cultivation. Fu Shaoping could not help looking forward to it.

After opening the door and windows.

He discovered that Zhou Pan'er had already begun practicing Ethereal Steps again at this early hour. Bathed in the first rays of sunlight, she completed all thirty-six steps in one flowing sequence. Her speed made it clear that she was now only a hair's breadth from the beginner stage.

Fu Shaoping felt genuinely happy for her.

"Pan'er, don't forget to pick up the clothes from the clothing shop after breakfast."

"I remembered. I told Xinxiang to fetch them first thing this morning."

Naturally, Fu Shaoping did not intend to carry out missions alone.

He planned to bring Zhou Pan'er along disguised as a man. Having done business in the marketplace for several years, she had a keen eye for people. Coupled with a woman's natural attention to detail, she might discover unexpected clues while investigating cases.

Carrying his Martial Suppression Saber, Fu Shaoping headed for the Hundred Households Office.

His steps were swift.

Anticipation stirred within him.

He hoped a case would come up today so he could head out on a mission.

Yet.

Things went against his wishes!

For several days in a row.

None of the assignments issued by the Mission Hall involved keeping order in the villages.

Green Ox Town had nearly a thousand villages under its jurisdiction. By rights, there ought to have been plenty of criminal disputes and other incidents.

Nor was there any punishment to administer at the prison.

Old Zhan did not require Fu Shaoping to remain at the Hundred Households Office, either. Whenever there were no missions, he simply gave him time off.

Fu Shaoping considered it.

The ten days he had agreed upon with the old medicine seller had just elapsed, so he made another trip to the Black Market.

At the same street corner, he found the old woman running her stall again, just as expected. When she saw him approaching, the eyes beneath her mask lit up, and she asked excitedly:

"Fellow cultivator, did you manage to refine the Blood Qi Powder?"

"Yes. Thanks to your good wishes, I was fortunate enough to succeed with five batches."

The old woman remembered that he had only bought ten sets of ingredients.

That meant a success rate of fifty percent.

For a Pill-Refining Apprentice, this was already an excellent standard.

Somewhat excited, the old woman said:

"Fellow cultivator, could you let me see the Blood Qi Powder you refined?"

"Of course."

Fu Shaoping had brought it to sell so he could buy more Blood Qi Powder ingredients anyway. He promptly took out one Grade C packet and one Grade B packet and handed them to the old woman.