Promise!

Chapter 45, Steady

"In our Diannan Prefecture, the east and south of the city are the territory of our Shen family. The north of the city is the sphere of influence of the government. As for the west of the city, it used to be occupied by a few small gangs, a mixed bag of good and bad. Half a year ago, the Medicine King Gang suddenly rose up and unified this area. Now it is considered the territory of the Medicine King Gang."

Ping Yongfeng said this first to give Zhuang Jin an idea of ​​the city's sphere of influence, and then he said, "The missions and errands of my Shen family can be roughly divided into five areas.

The first place, the east and south of the city, is the old sphere of influence of our Shen family. We have been operating here for a long time. Even now, working here is extremely safe and the benefits are lucrative. However, ordinary people are not allowed to go there.

The second place, my Shen family headquarters, is safer, and because of this, the salary is lower;

The third place is the medicinal fields outside the city. As mentioned earlier, you have to face exotic beasts, but it is relatively safe, with a very low casualty rate, slightly better pay, and some hidden benefits in the form of exotic beast meat.

The fourth place is the north of the city. Although the north of the city is under the influence of the government, my Shen family and the Medicine King Gang are now fighting each other, and there is no lack of open and covert fighting between our two families here. The job remuneration here is higher, and there are generous rewards for beheading people, but the casualties are slightly higher;
The final location, south of the city, bordering the west, near the Medicine King Gang, is where the battles between the Shen family and the Medicine King Gang are most intense, and it's also the most dangerous. Of course, the rewards here are also the best, with kill rewards as well... Put it this way, if you survive here, you'll definitely kill a lot of Medicine King Gang members, so you'll never run out of money... Some of our Shen family warriors who've hit a bottleneck also fight here, seeking breakthroughs..."

Zhuang Jin listened and secretly divided these five areas into five categories:
The east and south of the city have very low risks, which can be ignored, and are lucrative, making them the best locations.
The Shen family headquarters is the safest and has basically no risk, but the salary is low and there is no profit;
The medicinal fields outside the city have low risks, slightly higher pay, and the benefits of exotic animal meat;

In the north of the city, the intensity of the fight with the Medicine King Gang is relatively low, with medium to high risks, but the pay is high, and there is money to be made for beheading people;

The south of the city is close to the west of the city and borders the Yaowang Gang. It is a high-risk, high-paying area where you risk your life to make money.

"Basically, everywhere, the risks and benefits are roughly equal. There won't be too many unreasonable things. If there are really high-risk, low-paying tasks, report them to the supervisory department, and they will be revised quickly."

Ping Yongfeng continued, "I know that you're learning martial arts this month and are rewarded with a mission of your own choosing, but realistically, you can only choose from the last four locations. The first three areas, east and south of the city, are not among those safe and lucrative missions that appear on your list."

Zhuang Jin nodded in understanding, knowing that this was the way of the world. The Shen family recruited martial artists in order to face the pressure from the Medicine King Gang and train cannon fodder to fill the gap. In terms of closeness, the old man of the Shen family was definitely the most trustworthy.

He pondered in his mind and had already made a decision: "Besides the best areas in the east and south of the city, with the exception of the south of the city near the west, bordering the Medicine King Gang, which is the most intense battlefield and cannot be chosen, the other three places look good, especially the medicinal fields outside the city. They are low-risk, have slightly higher pay, and also have the benefit of exotic beast meat."

"So, the medicinal fields outside the city are indeed good, but... I choose the Shen family headquarters!"

Yes, it is the Shen family headquarters, not the medicinal fields outside the city!
"Although the risk in the medicinal fields outside the city is extremely low, the pay is slightly higher, and there are also benefits such as exotic beast meat, it still has risks. What if something goes wrong?"

What if Zhuang Jin accepted a mission to the medicinal fields outside the city and encountered a powerful monster, and was either killed or disabled, who could he turn to for justice?

"Regardless of people or things, we must grasp the main contradictions and secondary contradictions. Currently, I am facing a situation where I am not short of money, but I lack a safe environment and time to realize my potential."

"Now that we know the main contradiction, we should focus on it and not be distracted by side temptations! If we try to take advantage of the seemingly slightly higher treatment and benefits offered by the medicinal fields outside the city, we might end up losing more than we gain... To some extent, this is also a gamble. Although it seems like we have a better chance of winning and are unlikely to lose, if we don't gamble, we will never lose!"

Zhuang Jin hates the novels and stories where the protagonists can just stay calm and practice, but they insist on taking risks and going wild... In reality, if you dare to go wild, you will really die!

"Hold on, hold steady, don't drift!" he warned himself secretly.

"It seems you have made up your mind."

Ping Yongfeng looked at Zhuang Jin and waved his hand, saying, "Don't tell me. I'll just remind you one thing: the Shen family recruits martial artists to counter the pressure from the Medicine King Gang, not to entertain you. Whatever you choose, remember not to slack off on your martial arts training." At this point, his expression grew slightly solemn, and he lowered his voice, "According to a secret rumor circulating within the inner courtyard, there's an unspoken rule for you martial artists. After breaking through to the official martial arts level, if you don't break through the second classic within three months, or the third classic within six months... you'll be forcibly assigned to a place south of the city, close to the Medicine King Gang."

"Even now, let alone you, some of the old people in the outer courtyard of the Shen family who have no potential for breakthroughs have been transferred to the south of the city or near the west of the city to fill that gap. Only I, who have been in the Shen family for many years, have been kind to others, and have some connections, can temporarily... Sigh!"

Ping Yongfeng sighed softly as he spoke, then looked at Zhuang Jin and said, "However, Zhuang Jin, you are extremely talented, so you don't have to worry about this for now. I understand the minds of those people above you when it comes to a talent like you. They will probably wait until your potential is exhausted and you're stuck at a bottleneck for a long time before transferring you there."

Although the Shen family asked these warriors to practice the Black Evil Skill, which is positioned as a consumable, there are differences between consumables. A talented consumable like Zhuang Jin is called a "high-level consumable", and naturally they will not be used until their potential is realized to the maximum extent.

Zhuang Jin felt a little strange when he heard this: "You want to wait until my potential is exhausted and I'm stuck at a bottleneck? But the problem is, it seems that I don't have a bottleneck at all!"

"Especially since I'm practicing the Black Evil Technique. This quick-fix method, which allows for rapid breakthroughs while squeezing out potential and hindering future breakthroughs, isn't suitable for others, but it's perfectly tailored to me. Who knows, maybe one day I'll be able to find a way out of the impossible, jump off the chessboard, and become a chess player from a chess piece..."

However, he immediately suppressed this thought. Now was far from the time to think about those things.

Well, in a nutshell: the future is promising, but for now we need to survive.

He chatted with Ping Yongfeng for a while, and when he was about to leave and say goodbye to go practice martial arts, Ping Yongfeng took out two taels of silver as compensation for the wine and food that Zhuang Jin brought. But in fact, even if the conversion of exotic beast meat was included, it was still far less than this number.

"Master Ping, what are you doing?" Zhuang Jin refused to accept it.

Ping Yongfeng said, "I'm happy that you've broken through to the Second Scripture. This is a small token of my appreciation, just as a gift to you. You know, I've been stuck at a bottleneck for many years, and I stopped refining Black Yuan Powder a long time ago. I still have plenty of money on hand."

In fact, it was not impossible for him to give more, but the reason of a gift was not enough, and he knew that Zhuang Jin would not accept it.

Hearing Ping Yongfeng's words, Zhuang Jin pondered for a moment before accepting it. He then bowed respectfully to Ping Yongfeng and said, "Thank you, Master Ping!"

Ping Yongfeng accepted the gift calmly and looked at Zhuang Jin. "I'm thirty-six now, and only at the Second Scripture Realm. I'm just a Second Scripture Servant of the Shen Family. I'm experienced and have some connections, but connections are based on strength. You're also at the Second Scripture Realm now. If you encounter something difficult to solve, I probably won't be able to help you."

"It's just about money. If you have any difficulties, you can come to me. I think I can still help you."

As he spoke, he firmly grasped Zhuang Jin's wrist and said, "I'm stuck at the bottleneck between the second and third sutras. I don't think I'll be able to break through in this lifetime. But you have great hope. If you have the chance in the future, please take a good look at the higher levels of martial arts for me."

Although Ping Yongfeng had more utilitarian motives towards Zhuang Jin at the beginning and wanted to establish a good relationship with her, people are all kind-hearted. As they got along better, he appreciated Zhuang Jin more and more, and now he has gradually developed real feelings for her.

Zhuang Jin was slightly moved when he heard this and bowed to Ping Yongfeng again.

He is not an idealist. He knows that there is no truly pure emotion in the world, even between parents and husband and wife. How can he ask for more from others?
I will just keep this friendship in my heart and repay it when I have the chance in the future.

……

(End of this chapter)