An Old Steed in the Stable

"Dad, you should have taken the shortcut sooner!"

"I did it for your sake. That route was a bit too difficult for you!"

"I'd rather take that route than spend the whole time with my heart in my throat!"

Using ropes to climb the cliffs and make their way up and down the mountains, then passing through several narrow forest trails, Zhang Xuezhou had already caught sight of lights in the distance after just one short day.

It was a sight Zhang Xuezhou rarely saw.

In Zhang Household Village, everyone went to bed as night approached. During special hunting seasons, they would light a bonfire for sacrificial rites, but when had he ever seen lights hung high like these?

"Is that Hibiscus City?" Zhang Xuezhou asked.

As they drew closer, Zhang Xuezhou saw the gate tower beneath the lights.

The walls of Hibiscus City were more than twenty meters high, but Zhang Zhong had mentioned that they were not particularly imposing. The walls far away at the frontier were at least fifty meters high; those were truly formidable strongholds.

Atop the gate tower, dozens of red-armored soldiers patrolled with constant vigilance, while soldiers below kept calling out to hurry people along.

Dusk was giving way to night, but it was still within the permitted hours for entering the city.

The lights hanging atop the gate tower served as both a reminder to hurry and a warning. Once the lanterns hung high above were taken down, the city gates had to be shut, and no one would be allowed through except under special circumstances.

Zhang Xuezhou and the others arrived at Hibiscus City very late, but they could just barely make it in before the gates closed.

Traffic through the city gate was heavy. Apparently, everyone liked to leave it until the last moment, and vendors selling farm produce kept streaming out.

"This is Hibiscus City," Zhang Zhong said with a nod. "Houses in the city are extremely expensive, and so many things needed for daily life have to be bought. Without a steady stream of money flowing in, it would be hard for us to live here."

Zhang Zhong pointed to the many vendors.

These vendors, constantly hurrying along the road, were among those who could not afford to live in the city.

It was not just because of housing prices, but also because living in the city required a constant outlay of money.

There could be no wild boars to hunt in Hibiscus City, nor were there fertile fields to farm. So much depended on the major grain merchants continually buying and selling supplies.

To live in the city, one needed much, much more than a house...

This was a place where Zhang Zhong had struggled to adapt and survive. Seeing the familiar city again, he could not help feeling somewhat downcast, and when he answered Zhang Xuezhou's question, he found himself mentioning life in the city.

"Making money is really too hard!"

Zhang Xuezhou nodded in sympathy.

Zhang Zhong was not the only hero brought low for want of a single coin. Zhang Xuezhou was in the same boat, and Zhang Weimeng, Song Fengying, Zhang Manqian, and the others were no exceptions. Every one of them had stumbled over money.

No matter how gifted one was at cultivation, or how skilled at martial arts, painting, or other pursuits, without the ability to turn those talents into money, one would still be penniless when the time came.

In that respect, there was no difference between reality and the world of his dreams.

Zhang Xuezhou could not help reflecting that what occupied his thoughts by day visited his dreams at night. Through Zhang Zhong's mouth, everything he fretted about day after day had been spoken aloud.

Seeing the dejection on Zhang Zhong's face, with none of the spirit he had shown while holding Zou Bugui under his control at the Nine-Foot Daoist Temple, Zhang Xuezhou could not help sighing.

"Daoist Nine-Foot said the Body Fragrance Pills were very valuable. How about we sell one for some money?" Zhang Xuezhou suggested in a low voice.

He entered the city against the flow of the crowd, continually pushing aside the baskets and other things that bumped into him.

Thinking about their situation, Zhang Xuezhou could not help racking his brains for ways to make money.

Life in Hibiscus City was expensive. Even if he went to stay with his aunt, he could not eat at her table for free. He would have to contribute if he wanted to live there in peace.

His abrupt arrival would inevitably disrupt her life. A short stay would be all right, but a long one was bound to cause friction.

Zhang Xuezhou also needed to think about finding a place to study and cram the relevant knowledge, filling in the gaps left by his education in Zhang Household Village.

All of this required a source of money.

And after settling Zhang Xuezhou in, Zhang Zhong and Lady Yourong would most likely leave, either to seek pills for Realm Entry or to trace the whereabouts of the people from Zhang Household Village. They could hardly help him over the long term, much less provide him with a source of funds.

For a moment, Zhang Xuezhou could not help feeling that the world in his dreams was following in the footsteps of his real life. He did not even have the option of receiving a remote transfer to cover his living expenses.

"Who would we sell it to? How would we explain where it came from? How would we guarantee its medicinal properties?"

Zhang Zhong casually asked a few questions, and only then did Zhang Xuezhou realize that even with a mountain of gold in hand, one still needed the ability to sell it.

Without the strength and status to match, there was no way to get started.

Even if they possessed rare pills, they could not sell them. Pawnshops would not accept pills of unknown origin either.

"Your aunt's family is well-off. Supporting you for a year or two shouldn't be a problem," Lady Yourong said with a forced smile. "We'll simply come back for you when we return!"

"We'll be back soon," Zhang Zhong said with a nod. "Perhaps it won't take long. We might find a lead in ten days or half a month!"

"Just make sure you don't get into trouble in Hibiscus City," Lady Yourong cautioned.

"I always behave myself!"

Zhang Xuezhou thumped his chest as he gave his word.

His word was quite trustworthy. After all, Zhang Xuezhou had kept a highly regular schedule for more than a decade and rarely did anything that caused trouble. He could not go out at the times when trouble was most likely, so even if he wanted to stir some up, he could not.

Lady Yourong nodded repeatedly at his promise.

Apart from being a bit of a weakling, there was nothing wrong with Zhang Xuezhou.

And during this time, Zhang Xuezhou's weakness had been fully remedied.

Zhang Xuezhou was now strong, no different from the sons of the many hunters, and he was most likely stronger than the many pampered, delicate young people in the city.

What was more, Zhang Xuezhou was a cultivator who had reached Realm Entry.

Although Zhang Xuezhou's Realm Entry was of little use, with that distinction, he could be considered a rare genius among youths.

Lady Yourong could only regret that Zhang Xuezhou had not been born into a wealthy household. Otherwise, his achievements would surely have gone beyond this.

As she pondered all of this, countless thoughts passed through her mind.

The closer she came to her elder sister's home, the more complicated her feelings grew, and her steps slowed.

She had never regretted marrying Zhang Zhong, but when she compared her life with her sister's life in the city and thought of Zhang Xuezhou living under another's roof, she had too much on her mind. When they were apart, she missed her sister, but when they met, there were all sorts of awkwardness.

"Zhou'er is so outstanding. What do you have to hang your head about?"

Zhang Xuezhou stared wide-eyed at the sights around Hibiscus City, calculating various plans to make money. Zhang Zhong, preoccupied with thoughts of his own, also noticed that Lady Yourong was lost in thought.

After a few seconds of reflection, he understood what was behind it all.

That prompted Zhang Zhong to speak.

He pointed at Zhang Xuezhou, a few steps ahead of them.

"You should be proud, and you should hold your head high. We're no worse than anyone else, and we must give it a try, to see if we can find a great road that will send us soaring into the heavens!"

Zhang Zhong spoke very softly, but his words undoubtedly rang like a great echo in Lady Yourong's ears.

An old steed may lie in its stable, but its ambition still reaches a thousand miles. Zhang Zhong was getting old, but the dream of his youth had never changed.

Zhang Zhong had lacked too much in the past, but now, all he lacked was a Qi and Blood Pill to let a martial artist force his way into Realm Entry.

As long as Zou Bugui's words were true, the efforts Zhang Zhong had devoted his life to would certainly not stop at Realm Entry.

Only if they went far could their son stride forward after them, and perhaps go even farther.

Zhang Zhong would not exchange the extra Body Fragrance Pills in his keeping for money. Instead, he would look for a way to move them through the black market until he obtained the Qi and Blood Pill he needed.

That was the proper way to use the Body Fragrance Pills.

As for the presence of the Ten Yin Holy Son within his body, Zhang Zhong could no longer concern himself with so much.

To him, there was little difference between concealing it with the Body Fragrance Pills for half a year and concealing it for a full year.

If he and Lady Yourong forced their way toward Realm Entry, they would most likely be able to eliminate the Ten Yin Holy Son's presence and sever whatever might follow from it.

That would also give them the initial capital to truly step into another social class.