The newcomer was around twenty-five or twenty-six, dressed in a half-worn short jacket of blue cloth. His face was ordinary, but his eyes were unusually bright, and he was looking Chen Ye over with a somewhat appraising gaze.
Several sturdy men followed behind him, all rubbing their fists and eyeing Chen Ye with hostility.
Seeing this, the noodle stall owner tactfully withdrew to one side, afraid of bringing trouble down on himself.
Chen Ye's heart skipped a beat, but he showed nothing on his face. He merely gripped the bench beneath the table and said calmly, "Friend, I don't know what turf you're talking about."
The young man grinned, revealing two rows of slightly yellow teeth. "Friend, if you're working the streets, don't pretend you don't know what I mean. That little 'lift' you pulled outside the Welcome Guests Tower just now was on someone else's turf."
Lift? Someone else's turf?
Chen Ye raised an eyebrow, vaguely grasping what the man meant. "Lift" probably referred to how he had just "taken" the drunkard's money pouch, while "turf" was likely a term for territory or a target.
"So he's a fledgling. He doesn't even know the slang," a man with triangular eyes beside the young man sneered.
The young man in the lead waved a hand, silencing his subordinate's mockery. Still looking at Chen Ye, he said, "Friend, that drunk you dipped is a friend of mine. When he got back, he found his money pouch was gone. There weren't many coins in it, but he couldn't let the loss of face stand, so he came to me."
Chen Ye's heart sank. He had thought he'd been discreet enough, yet they had come looking for him so soon.
He quickly considered how to respond. The other side had the advantage in numbers. If they attacked, his only way out would be to overturn the table, then retreat to the front of the stall and use the pot of scalding noodle broth to fend them off...
While he was still weighing his options, the young man grinned. "Relax, we didn't come looking for you with any ill intentions. Let me introduce myself first. I'm Fang Tao, a Shaojun of the Rong Character Gate."
The Rong Character Gate? Shaojun?
Now Chen Ye was truly confused. Of course he knew these were jianghu terms, but the little page had always been a servant in the Lin household. How could he have come across such things?
Seeing his reaction, Fang Tao sighed. "Looks like you really are an outsider, kid. You don't even know the basics of the jianghu, yet you dare come out lifting. You've certainly got guts."
Chen Ye remained silent. Suddenly, he took out the money pouch he had just filched and put it on the table.
"It's right here. After I took it, I only ate one bowl of noodles. I haven't touched a single coin of what's left."
To his surprise, Fang Tao didn't even glance at the pouch. Instead, he looked at Chen Ye with interest.
"Your hands are good, but your technique is unpolished. And since you don't know anything about the jianghu, did you teach yourself?"
Chen Ye pondered briefly, then nodded. "Yes!"
Although the talent had come from taking up the profession, he had earned it through his own efforts.
Fang Tao's eyes grew even brighter. Though he hadn't seen it himself, the beggars had said that from the moment this kid got up to the moment he left, only a few flicks of a finger had passed. Even they hadn't clearly seen his movements.
It seemed the kid really did have some talent.
"I can see you're worth cultivating. Interested in joining my Rong Character Gate? Follow me, and I can't promise you fine food and drink, but at least you'll have enough to eat and a roof over your head. You won't have to stake your life on a meal like you did today."
Chen Ye was somewhat surprised. He had thought they would give him a beating as soon as they found him. After all, he had encroached on their turf and broken their rules.
He hadn't expected them to try to recruit him.
Truth be told, Chen Ye was tempted.
It wasn't just because he had nowhere to go. More importantly, if he wanted to advance in his profession, he had to keep practicing it.
But relying on himself to figure things out was too inefficient and too risky. If he hadn't been lucky today, he would probably have come to grief already.
Joining Fang Tao would not only give him a place to stay, but also let him study the craft systematically. It was undoubtedly his best choice for now.
But first, he had to get things straight.
"What does the Rong Character Gate do? And what's a Shaojun?" Chen Ye asked after a moment's thought.
At that, Fang Tao and the men who had come with him all laughed.
"All right, since you don't know anything, I'll explain," Fang Tao said.
"There are many schools in the jianghu these days, but they can broadly be divided into the Eight Great Schools: Jin, Pi, Cai, Gua, Heng, Lan, Ge, and Rong. As for what trade each school represents, I'll explain that to you another time. Just remember that the Rong Character Gate is the collective name for our Thieves' Sect."
"As for Shaojun... The Rong Character Gate is divided into four major branches: Scaling Heights, Opening Dens, Brushing Walls, and Picking Lines. I'm the Shaojun of the Brushing Walls branch. Understand?"
Chen Ye finally had a rough understanding of the jianghu as it stood. Only then did he ask in all seriousness, "What rules are there after I join?"
Hearing the question, Fang Tao knew it was settled, and the smile on his face grew a little more sincere. "There are rules, and they're iron laws. Our Rong Character Gate has three things we do not steal!"
He held up three fingers.
"First, we do not steal money needed to save a life."
"Second, we do not steal a chaste woman's hairpin."
"Third, we do not steal gift money for weddings or funerals."
"These three iron laws were handed down by our founding master. Anyone who dares break them will be dealt with under the gate's rules. At best, they'll lose a finger. At worst, their hands and feet will be crippled and they'll be expelled from the gate!"
By the end, Fang Tao's expression had turned solemn.
Chen Ye's heart tightened too, but this also showed that they weren't too bad. At least they had lines they wouldn't cross.
So he nodded. "All right, I'll join."
"Good!" Fang Tao laughed heartily, then patted him on the shoulder. "Come on, let's get you acquainted with home first."
Fang Tao led Chen Ye through several pitch-dark alleys to a fairly spacious shared courtyard.
The courtyard gate stood ajar, with pinpricks of lamplight and a hubbub of voices spilling out.
When they pushed the gate open, they found the courtyard bustling with activity.
Quite a few people lived there, young and old alike.
They were gathered in groups of two or three. Some drank and talked from the heart, while others played board games and chatted.
Several middle-aged women were also mending and washing clothes beneath the lamps.
The sight startled Chen Ye. It looked nothing like a thieves' den; it was more like a lively extended family.
When they saw Fang Tao, the people stood up one after another. "Shaojun!"
"Shaojun, you're back!"
"Mm, let me introduce him. This is a new brother. His name is..."
"My name is Chen Ye!" Chen Ye introduced himself.
"Right, Chen Ye. We're all family from now on, so look after him."
"You got it, Shaojun!" everyone answered.
The people seemed accustomed to newcomers joining them. After exchanging a few cheerful words, they went back to their own business.
Fang Tao then assigned Chen Ye a small room in a corner of the courtyard and gave him a set of bedding that wasn't too old.
"Get some good rest. Starting tomorrow, I'll teach you some skills."
With that, Fang Tao turned and left.
Chen Ye lay on the hard bedboards, listening to the noisy sounds of everyday life in the courtyard, and let out a long breath.
At least he had a place to stay now.
Half a year passed in the blink of an eye.
Night deepened, but the shared courtyard was still lively.
"Brother Chen, come on! A few new girls just arrived in Little Black Alley. The brothers have pooled some money. Want to go have some fun together?" A scar-faced man hooked an arm around Chen Ye's shoulders, a lewd grin spread across his face.
Chen Ye was no longer as thin and weak as he had been half a year ago.
Over the past six months, he had eaten his fill and slept well. Though the food was plain, his body had still developed rapidly.
He had not only grown much taller, but his features had matured as well. His handsome face even had a somewhat scholarly air, making him look a little out of place among the rough men.
He smiled and politely declined. "No, Brother Li, you go ahead."
"Don't want to spend the money? Don't worry, it won't cost you a thing. I'm treating!" the scar-faced man said with a smile.
A young man nearby teased, "Come on, with Brother Chen's pretty face, why would he need to pay? He only has to stand in Little Black Alley, and those girls would be crying and clamoring to pay him instead, wouldn't they?"
Everyone burst into laughter again.
Chen Ye merely smiled and said no more.
Once the men had left with their arms around one another's shoulders, the courtyard grew much quieter. Chen Ye returned to his small room and shut the door.
The oil lamp in the room gave off a dim light, but he paid it no mind.
He brought over a basin of freshly boiled water, steam rising from it. Then he took a deep breath, fished a copper coin from his robes, and flicked it with a finger. The coin fell into the scalding water with a plop and quickly sank to the bottom.
Chen Ye's gaze sharpened. He thrust his index and middle fingers into the boiling water, quick as lightning, precisely caught the coin at the bottom of the basin, and swiftly pulled them back out!
The whole process took no more than the blink of an eye. Not even a trace of moisture clung to his fingers, much less a burn.
This was a method specifically for training finger dexterity and speed, called Fishing Coins from Boiling Water.
He practiced dozens of times, stopping only when the water in the basin gradually cooled.
Chen Ye then flipped his wrist, and a small knife appeared between his fingers. It was only three inches long, thin as a cicada's wing, and incomparably sharp.
The knife darted nimbly between his fingers at great speed, now like a swimming fish flicking its tail, now like a nimble snake flicking its tongue. Its cold gleam flashed in a dazzling display.
He had never slacked off over the past six months, learning techniques from the old thieves by day and secretly putting in extra practice at night.
But he had always concealed his abilities, showing only an above-average level in front of others and never revealing his true strength.
Just as he was absorbed in practice, the familiar screen of light suddenly appeared before his eyes.
[Name: Chen Ye] [Profession: Petty Thief (lv5)] [Talent: Lingering Fragrance on the Hands] [Skills: Deft Hands lv7, Swift Blade lv6] [Notification: Petty Thief (lv5) has reached the maximum level. Advance and change professions?]