Quickly conquer the martial arts world, and let your fists dominate the heavens!

Chapter 164 Reunion with the Fire Fox, Armored and Legs Scissors!

Guangqumen.

A few months ago, Fire Fox followed Chen Zhan's instructions, took the money, went to Beiping, rented a courtyard, and practiced standing meditation every day.

Every day I would go to the street to buy a newspaper, and in the afternoon I would squat at the entrance of Guangqumen and wait until evening before leaving.

She eagerly awaited Chen Zhan's arrival.

He didn't see the person he was looking for, and he didn't recognize many words on the newspaper, but he knew to ask someone. The woman who sold large bowls of tea often helped him explain them.

Therefore, he knew that Chen Zhan had not been arrested, otherwise the Japanese would have publicized it extensively, and it would have been in the newspapers.

A month later, it still hadn't arrived.

I'm anxious, but there's nothing I can do. Chen Zhan gave me a lot of money, but if I just sit around and do nothing, it probably won't last long.

He had been a homeless man since childhood, could do anything, and had a sweet tongue; he could persuade a father and daughter who sold large bowls of tea with just a few words.

I worked there, serving tea and water, washing dishes and making tea.

They provide meals every day and give you four copper coins.

He didn't even need to pay, he still had a few silver dollars, and with meals provided, he wouldn't have any expenses, which would last him at least six months, until he could rent out the small courtyard.

The large bowl of tea is located at the entrance of Guangqu Gate. Just a few dozen meters into the city, Fire Fox can see people coming and going through Guangqu Gate at a glance.

Moreover, Guangqumen, commonly known as "Shawomen", is located near Tongzhou. During the Republic of China era, it was an important passage for goods from the eastern suburbs, including agricultural products and handicrafts, to enter the city, and it was also the only gate for those heading east to Tianjin.

People flock here every day; the tea business is booming.

A pot of broken tea leaves, with two jujubes, can make seven or eight bowls. Add water and more tea, and you can easily make dozens of bowls.

Guests were willing to spend a copper coin to drink a bowl of hot tea to quench their thirst and ward off the cold.

After following for five days, the fire fox thought to itself, "This business is really lucrative. I can earn hundreds of copper coins every day, which is much more profitable than dealing in newspapers."

The tea stall didn't have any assets; the tables, chairs, and benches were all the worst quality, and the stove and teapot were worth a little money.

What he didn't know was that this location, the most conspicuous spot at the entrance of Guangqumen, was not a place where one could set up a stall at will.
Although Beiping was more stable than the Northeast, it was not a time of peace and prosperity.

Green Gang, Hung Gang, Taiping Society, Huanglian Sect.

The Green Gang and the Hung Gang are alright; they are not local forces, and although they have branches, they keep a low profile.

The remaining two are local and peripheral, originating from the land of Yan and Zhao, ruthless and fearless.

Moreover, gangs and martial arts schools are inextricably linked. Martial arts schools are the public business, but behind them are gangs. This is an unwritten rule. Otherwise, if you don't have real skills, you simply can't control the people in the gang.

Many years ago, the Boxer Rebellion, the Big Sword Society, and the White Lotus Sect were all composed of martial arts practitioners.

Wang Wu owns a security escort agency called Yuanshun, Li Cunyi and Cheng Tinghua both have martial arts schools, and Cheng Tinghua also owns an eyeglasses shop.

The tea stall had only been open for a few days when the Taiping Society came knocking, demanding protection money.

The father and daughter weren't stupid; they naturally understood.

They hand over 70% of the money, and each day they hand over 70%, which is 70 copper coins.

Only then did things settle down.

The little fox squatted to the side and watched as the fierce-looking Taiping Society took away 70% of the profits without doing anything.

This incident overturned his thoughts from a few days ago: you can't make any money from a big bowl of tea! Only the boss makes money!
A tea stall charges seventy copper coins. Along this street, there are at least seventy or eighty stalls on both sides, selling their wares.

This is still a street. There are nine inner gates, seven outer gates, and four gates of the Imperial City in Beiping, totaling twenty gates. There are stalls on both sides of the street at each gate.

How much can you collect each day?

The little fox thought to itself, "These bastards are so ruthless. A 70/30 split is practically robbery."

"If I wanted to be the boss, I wouldn't do it this way. It would cause a huge uproar and resentment in no time. That's not a long-term solution. A steady, gradual approach is the way to make money."

The little fox had long harbored the ambition to become the leader.

Days passed, and two more months went by until the father and daughter could no longer bear the increasingly demanding protection fees and decided to close down.

We watched as our share of profits increased from 70% to 90% of our revenue.

Ninety percent of the revenue was taken away, leaving only ten percent. After accounting for the losses of tea and dates, the company lost money at the end of the day.

"Oh!"

"You think you can just quit like that?"

"I didn't say you could leave, so you can't leave."

The little fox hid in the corner, the father and daughter's tea stall was kicked over, the sun was about to set, and people who came in through Guangqumen originally wanted to have some tea and rest, but seeing this scene, they all left.

In this chaotic world, who wants to cause trouble as soon as they arrive in the city?

The leader of the three members of the Taiping Society had a dark red birthmark on his cheek, which looked rather frightening.

The two men behind him were unremarkable, ordinary gang thugs.

The little fox had been a wanderer since childhood and knew the importance of protecting himself. Besides, he had practiced standing meditation for several months and his strength had increased a lot, but he still couldn't beat a big, burly thug.

Hiding in a corner, watching the scene unfold before me.

Old Zhang was punched and kicked until he fell to the ground. Little Zhang's older sister rushed over to check on her father's injuries, and the three of them stole his money bag.

The little fox wasn't surprised at all by this.

Although he was only eleven years old, he had seen it many times, from Henan to Tianjin, and then to Beiping, the gangsters, bandits and bullies in various places were all the same.

However, this time the outcome was different.

The three thugs were all knocked to the ground, howling in pain, before they could last three rounds against a beautiful woman.

The threats were all exactly the same: "Damn it? We're from the Taiping Society. If you dare to hit us in this area, you just wait!"

The three of them got up and ran away.

The money bag was naturally left behind.

Ruan Zhi smiled and didn't take it seriously. The Taiping Society had influence in Beiping, but the Bagua Sect was not bad either. They often discussed their close relationship with each other.

There are too many relatives and friends in the martial arts world, and if you're willing to talk about it, there's always some connection.

If you're unwilling, then let's settle things with martial arts.

Ruan Zhi bent down and said a few words, then walked towards him, which startled the little fox so much that it got up and ran away.

A wise man does not stand within a walled enclosure, nor does a woman!
"Fire fox, huh? Why are you running away! Do you think I'd hit a kid like you?"

The little fox stopped when she heard her name called, turned around and looked at the smiling face, the delicate smile under the bright sunlight, and showed a hint of embarrassment: "Sister, do you know me?"

Ruan Zhi walked up; she wasn't one to stand on ceremony.

Reaching out, he pressed down on the little fox's shoulder, twisted his grip, and laughed:

"Okay, you do have a solid foundation in Xingyi. You haven't practiced the San Ti Shi for long, but it's very solid. You didn't choose the wrong person."

“My name is Ruan Zhi. Come with me. Chen Zhan asked me to come find you.”

The little fox didn't move.

Ruan Zhi turned around and asked, "Why aren't you leaving? Don't you believe me?" "It's not that I don't believe you, but Master told me to wait for him here every day. What if we leave and he comes today?"

"Uh, that makes sense. How long do you wait every day?"

"The sun sets."

Ruan Zhi looked at the sun; it was just afternoon. Winter days are short and nights are long, but there were still more than two hours before it got dark.

"Sister Ruan, let me help you tidy up first."

The little fox went over to help the father and daughter pack their things. Old Zhang wasn't very old, but he was quite strong and took the blows without any serious injury.

They barely even complained.

These days, if you run into gang thugs, you should be grateful if you don't get seriously injured.

"Hey, little fox, here's your copper coin for today. We're going to move to a different place from now on. The Taiping Society is exploiting us to the point of exhaustion; we can't keep going like this."

Old Zhang is literate, but not just in a simple way. He even talked about things like "draining the pond to catch all the fish," which the little fox didn't understand.

He thought to himself, "No wonder Sister Zhang can read the words in the newspaper."

However, based on the context, the little fox understood the general meaning: it meant they couldn't come here anymore.

"Yes, Uncle Zhang, please be careful in the future. I have to wait for someone here and can't help you anymore."

The little fox was very polite. The Zhang family father and daughter had been very important to him these past two months; otherwise, he didn't know how he could have wasted two months in the capital.

"Go set up a stall near Dongbianmen and say you know the third daughter of the Cheng family. The gangs there won't give you any trouble."

Dongbianmen was located in the northeast of Beiping. Because it was close to Chaoyangmen and Dongzhimen in the inner city, it was a convenient passage for residents in the eastern part of both the inner and outer city.

Hence the name.

Dongbianmen is close to Dengshikou and relatively close to Baguamen, so the gangs in that area all give face to Baguamen, and many of them are even disciples of Baguamen.

Hearing Ruan Zhi say this, and having witnessed her skills, Old Zhang and his daughter quickly thanked her and agreed.

Even if there's less foot traffic, it's better to have someone protect you than to have 90% of your money taken away.

After the father and daughter had finished packing, Chen Zhan led Bai Wu through Guangqumen and immediately saw Little Fox and Ruan Zhi resting by the tea stall.

Seeing Chen Zhan arrive, the little fox excitedly rushed over, "Master, Master, are you alright? You've finally come!"

Chen Zhan hasn't changed his appearance, but he's wearing a felt hat and bowing his head slightly. His wanted poster was issued a long time ago, and although it hasn't been withdrawn, not many people remember what he looks like.

I patted the little fox's head; it had grown a little taller, but it wasn't obvious.

"Not bad, it seems you've been practicing the horse stance and the three-body stance well."

"Of course, I practice for an hour every day, I dare not practice more than that." The little fox was happy when she saw Chen Zhan. She had been worried about him before, which made her taciturn and unwilling to speak.

When Chen Zhan saw Ruan Zhi, he smiled and said, "You're here, which means Ningzhen and the others arrived safely. Are they alright?"

Ruan Zhi shook her head: "No, my older sister was very worried about you. I'm just glad you're alright."

Chen Zhan introduced the two to Bai Wu. Ruan Zhi was very beautiful and charming, so much so that he dared not look directly at her. On the contrary, the little fox was very approachable.

Both of them came from humble backgrounds and had very similar experiences.

Before being taken in by Sister Hua, Bai Wu had been a wanderer for many years, begging and doing odd jobs.

Moreover, they are now considered Chen Zhan's apprentices, making their relationship even closer.

Old Zhang and his daughter, seeing the group chatting, knew they were no ordinary people, so they didn't rush to close their tea stall and even poured Chen Zhan a large bowl of tea.

Chen Zhan and Bai Wu were indeed thirsty from their journey.

The broken tea leaves still had a little flavor, and the dates had a subtle sweetness. The freshly boiled water, when poured out, produced billowing white steam, which looked very tempting.

Bai Wu tried to blow on it, but was burned and gasped for breath.

Everyone laughed.

Chen Zhan picked up the tea, seemingly oblivious to the rising steam, and without the slightest hesitation, drank it all in one gulp, swallowing even the tea leaves.

"Damn, aren't you burning up?" Ruan Zhi couldn't help but blurt out.

Chen Zhan exhaled a cold breath: "What are you saying, young lady?"

He didn't explain that water at 80 or 90 degrees Celsius was no different from lukewarm water to him.

With proper training of the internal organs and marrow, the five internal organs become like refined iron, and the blood flows like a great river.

This temperature is nothing; chewing on metal is no big deal, but that would be a bit crazy, neither beneficial nor necessary.

During the process of "training the internal organs," eating iron stones and gravel can also help improve the digestion of the five internal organs and play a certain role.

There's no need for that now.

Since they were drinking tea, Old Zhang quickly came over and said:

"Gentlemen, we must hurry. The Taiping Society people you just beat up are here."

"We dare not provoke the Taiping Society, and we don't want the stuff."

After he finished speaking, he grabbed his daughter and tried to run away.

None of these things matter. Losing money is nothing, but being beaten to death or maimed is the end of the world, a lifelong tragedy.

Chen Zhan glanced at Ruan Zhi, but didn't have time to explain.

The Taiping Society has arrived: "It's over there, that woman! She's very skilled in martial arts, Ran-ge, be careful."

The plot was cliché, and Chen Zhan understood it without hearing any explanation.

The three who were beaten earlier had bruises on their faces, but they didn't bring many people with them, only two more.

The leader was a young man with a unique hairstyle featuring bangs swept to one side, exuding an arrogant and wicked charm.

The young man glanced at Chen Zhan, gave a wicked smile, blew on his bangs, and walked to the stove without saying a word. He kicked the stove hard, his leg trembling with the wind, displaying astonishing power.

Honeycomb briquette stoves can be used for both heating and boiling water for making tea.

With one kick.

The outer sheet metal instantly shattered, and the scorching red-hot coal briquettes exploded into small pieces, rolling through the air and heading straight for Chen Zhan.

"Ah!~"

Out of fear, the Zhang father and daughter kept staring in that direction and were the first to cry out in surprise.

Chen Zhan glanced around and also saw the leg.

"Wearing a robe and having legs cut off?"

The young man with bangs crossed his legs, scissor-like, sweeping kicks. His skill was pure, unlike that of an apprentice who had only learned a few moves before going out into the martial arts world. Instead, he had the feel of a seasoned practitioner.

Judging by his age, he's only in his early twenties; he's probably a highly skilled disciple of the Pigua sect.

However, the methods used were rather ruthless; don't blame them for being too harsh and stifling a young genius.
Chen Zhan thought to himself, and then he made his move.

(End of this chapter)