The Martial Saint rose to power starting as a substitute bridegroom.

Li Yuan frowned.

He thought and thought, but couldn't think of any "fierce and menacing" friends.

Has Meng San's affair been discovered?

Looking back on the whole process, it seems there's nothing I've missed.

I even wasted one or two taels of silver.

Or perhaps, it is the "Aren" that Meng San relies on so much?

So fast?

That's unlikely.

who can that be?

Thinking too much is pointless.

Li Yuan came out of his house.

The person knocking on the door was a burly man dressed in coarse cloth and short clothes. Behind him, a carriage was already parked.

Upon seeing Li Yuan emerge, a middle-aged man in his forties alighted from the carriage. He bowed to Li Yuan and asked, "Are you Li Yuan, the martial arts master?"

"I wouldn't dare. And who are you...?" Li Yuan's heart pounded, but he kept his expression calm.

I've never seen this person before.

"I am Ding Zhen of the Sihai Society. From now on, the Sihai Society will take over the area around Lanshan Town." As the middle-aged man spoke, he took out a money bag from his sleeve and stuffed it into Li Yuan's hand. "Martial Arts Master Li, this is a small token of our appreciation from the Sihai Society and myself. It is nothing but a token of our respect."

Li Yuan felt relieved.

It turns out to be the Four Seas Association.

This is a visit to "pay respects to the powerful."

The term "paying respects to influential figures" refers to the practice where, after a gang takes over a new territory, they visit all the prominent figures in the new area and present them with gifts.

It is a sign of respect, but also a test to gauge the situation.

If the two sides cannot reach an agreement, and a fight breaks out in the future, they can be described as "first courtesy, then force".

Ding Zhen must have done a lot of work behind the scenes to find himself.

"You're too kind, Chief Ding."

The purse held in his hand contained about ten taels of silver.

If this money is not accepted, it basically means that the two sides have not reached an agreement.

Seeing that Li Yuan had accepted it, Ding Zhen breathed a sigh of relief.

"If I may ask, Brother Li Yuan, would you be interested in becoming a retainer of my Four Seas Society?"

Li Yuan's heart skipped a beat.

I have heard that many martial arts school disciples take up positions as retainers in small gangs outside the martial arts world.

"Brother Li Yuan, rest assured, it won't affect you. We won't bother you on ordinary days; just do your part for the Four Seas Association when needed."

"Eight taels of silver are offered monthly."

Li Yuan's heart stirred.

This price is quite generous.

Ding Zhen's sincerity is evident.

But Li Yuan had something else on his mind.

Gang members fight and kill each other all day long to seize territory, with one faction rising and another falling, and the king changing hands frequently.

Who knows if Sihai will be the next Black Tiger Gang?

When faced with a life-or-death crisis, would he also take up arms and fight for someone else, risking his life?

Even if that's not the case, when the Lion Gang, Monkey Gang... or Elephant Gang replaces the Four Seas Society, won't they take their anger out on Lan Jie'er and the others when they find out that they were once worshippers of the Four Seas Society?

These are all issues that must be considered.

The risk is too great.

This silver was really hot to the touch.

"Chief Ding, please allow me to consider this."

Ding Zhen understood the meaning behind Li Yuan's words and was slightly taken aback, but he quickly smiled and cupped his hands in greeting, "Alright, the doors of the Four Seas Society are always open to Brother Li Yuan."

"Then I won't bother you any longer. I'll take my leave."

Li Yuan watched the departing carriage and finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Thank goodness.

Inside the carriage, Ding Zhen's burly attendant grumbled, "Boss, he's just a peasant. Is it really necessary for you to condescend to him like this?"

"You don't know anything!"

Ding Zhen slapped him on the back of the head.

"A peasant?! He's the only Ming Jin martial artist in the entire Blue Mountain Town!"

The burly follower, despite being slapped, still felt aggrieved.

But upon hearing that the young man was actually a Ming Jin martial artist, he was instantly shocked.

Fortunately, I didn't say anything harsh on the spot.

Otherwise, leaving a bad impression on that old man Mingjin would be like shooting yourself in the foot.

Ding Zhen solemnly declared, "Instruct all brothers that from this day forward, the offerings to the mountain god for Brother Li Yuan's family... will be completely waived!"

"yes!"

......

A few streets away, the Li residence.

Li Canghai gently closed the courtyard gate, shook his head, and sighed.

"What's wrong, husband?" Li Tao asked with concern when she noticed his expression was off.

"The Black Tiger Gang is gone, and now the Four Seas Society has arrived. The offerings to the Mountain God have been gone round and round. When will this ever end?"

Just now, the henchmen of the Four Seas Society took away another tael of silver worth of incense offerings for the mountain god.

Those men held gleaming blades in their hands; he had no room to bargain.

Li Tao remained silent.

She hesitated for a while before speaking again: "Master, a message came from the martial arts school saying that Hao'er is at the critical stage of breaking through to the Ming Jin realm and needs ten taels of silver to buy some kind of Qi-nourishing powder to help him..."

"Ten taels?!"

Before he could finish speaking, he was interrupted by a loud shout from Li Canghai.

"Ever since Hao'er joined the martial arts school, he's been asking for money every other day! Does he think I'm a money-printing machine?!"

He swayed slightly, then grabbed the door frame to steady himself.

"That one tael of incense money we just handed over was squeezed out of this month's accounts!"

Li Canghai's brows furrowed into a knot.

Li's grocery store is a small business. It looks glamorous on the outside, but he knows better than anyone how much money it actually makes.

Nowadays, gangs are clashing and there is unrest everywhere. People have no money and are trying to save as much as possible.

The shop hasn't made any money for quite some time now.

"Father, I know all this, but Hao'er... is the hope of our whole family." Li Tao's voice was hoarse, as if it were being squeezed out of her throat. "The martial arts examination is about to begin, and this is a crucial moment for him. Can you bear to abandon him?"

She paused, then suddenly took off the jade bracelet from her wrist—it was her only dowry when she got married, and after wearing it for twenty years, the warm jade color had long been soaked with her body heat.

"If all else fails, just use this bracelet as collateral..."

The voice grew softer and softer, and the last syllable trembled.

"No way!" Li Canghai said firmly. "If people find out that my Li family is resorting to pawnshops to make a living, where will I, Li Canghai, put my face?!"

Li Taoshi shuddered, clutching the bracelet tightly in her hand, it digging painfully into her skin. "Then... what should we do?"

Li Canghai did not answer.

He picked up a sliver of fine tobacco, put it into the pipe, lit it, and took a deep drag.

a long time.

Yes, once Hao'er breaks through his cultivation level and becomes a martial artist, how dare those mere gangsters bully him?

If one passes the martial arts exam in the future and becomes an official, what does this little bit of money matter?

While I was still hesitating, a knock came at the door.

Boom boom boom!

Li Canghai impatiently opened the door, only to be immediately forced back half a step by a strong fishy smell.

Standing outside the door was Gu Laoqi, dressed in tattered clothes and emaciated.

He was in his fifties, his body was hunched over like a shrimp, his face was sallow, and his eyes were sunken.

The knuckles were large and deformed, and the nail crevices were filled with black grime that could not be washed off over the years.

That's a characteristic of people who are constantly hungry and have to do hard labor in the river.

"Master Li..."

Gu Laoqi bowed respectfully, his voice trembling slightly.

Seeing Li Canghai's furrowed brows, he subconsciously moved the snakeskin bag containing the fish back a little.

"What brings you here?" Li Canghai covered his nose, his brows furrowing even more. "No way! Don't even mention money to me right now, I have no money!"

He mistook Gu Laoqi for someone who came to borrow money.

"Master Li, I didn't come to borrow money." Gu Laoqi hurriedly waved his hand, his sleeve slipping down to reveal a ring of old scars on his wrist, cuts from rocks while going down to the river. "I was delivering goods to the fish market today and stopped by to see Yuan-ge'er... It's been a while since I've seen him, I miss him terribly..."

As he spoke, a glimmer of light appeared in his cloudy eyes, as if he were reminiscing about something from the past.

Smear the soles of your shoes hard on the ground to avoid making a mess of the yard when you come in.

"He's not here!" Li Canghai interrupted him impatiently. "He's married into the Zhou family at Jing'an Private School!"

Gu Laoqi was stunned.

"That brat actually turned against me for the sake of learning martial arts!" Li Canghai suddenly perked up, his voice rising several decibels. "Guess what? The martial arts school won't accept him! Haha, this is truly gratifying!"

His face changed from a worried expression to a smile that made his eyes crinkle.

Marrying into another family...learning martial arts...

Gu Laoqi's head was buzzing.

"Then... I won't bother you any longer..."

He didn't know how he escaped the shadow of the Li family's prestigious reputation.

Yuan Ge'er is a good boy.

He was obedient and sensible from a young age. While other children ran around the village, he would squat by the river and help him sort the fishing nets. His little hands were marked with red lines from the net lines, but he never complained of the pain.

But he never had a single good day.

His biological parents disliked his fate and abandoned him in the countryside when he was just a month old, ignoring him for more than ten years.

In winter, without a cotton-padded coat, he huddled in a haystack, shivering; in summer, he had a high fever, which he could only endure.

Now that he's grown up and been taken back, he originally thought Yuan Ge'er would have a good life.

But unexpectedly, in the end...

Marriage.

Gu Laoqi knew all too well the weight of those two words.

In his youth, he had worked as a day laborer for wealthy families and had seen those sons-in-law who married into the family, walking with their heads down, smiling and talking obsequiously, and having no choice but to endure being bullied.

He'll never be able to hold his head up high again.

He walked to a corner, squatted down, and took out a pipe from his pocket.

My hands were shaking so badly that it took three tries to light it.

Plop, plop.

The rising smoke blurred his vision.

In the distance, the Zhou family mansion was faintly visible in the twilight.

This is the location he found out.

He gazed into the distance and sighed softly.

He looked down at his worn-out clothes, patched upon patched, with frayed edges on the cuffs.

He sniffed the fishy smell on his shoulder again; it was the indelible smell of poverty.

Forget it, I'd better not go in.

To avoid the host family thinking he was a poor relative who came to borrow money, which would make things even more awkward for Yuan Ge'er later.

In the flickering light of the fire, a pot of dry tobacco was finished.

His brows furrowed even deeper, and the lines at the corners of his eyes looked as if they had been carved with a knife.

In an instant, I felt as if I had aged ten years.

Twilight Quadruple.

He stood up, his figure like a crumpled, withered leaf, blending into the shadows at the street corner.

There are three blocks from Wutong Lane to the dock square.

One of them is Qinhuai Street.

Bright lights and bustling activity.

The air was filled with the mellow aroma of aged Shaoxing wine, mixed with the scents of various cosmetics, layer upon layer, weaving an invisible net.

This is a place full of joy, frequented by high-ranking officials and nobles dressed in splendid attire, adorned with brocade robes, jade belts, and glittering jewels.

Everywhere was filled with laughter and music, and even the air felt warm.

But all of this had nothing to do with Gu Laoqi, who was walking close to the wall.

He tried his best to hide his figure in the shadows of the eaves, as humble as a rat that couldn't stand the light.

Suddenly looking up at the horizon, a pale crescent moon hung above the gilded signboard of the Drunken Fragrance Pavilion. The moonlight and the lamplight reflected each other, but could not penetrate the darkness where he was.

Upstairs in the private room, the sounds of drinking and playing drinking games drifted out, creating a lively atmosphere.

Some laughed wildly, some sang off-key, and a girl playfully complained, "Young Master Li, you've lost again. You should drink three cups of wine as punishment!"

Gu Laoqi paused slightly, his gaze inadvertently shifting upwards.

A young figure was sitting by the carved window on the second floor.

Li Hao.

Li Canghai's second son, and Li Yuan's younger brother.

He had met her once years earlier.

His eyebrows and eyes were exactly the same as Li Canghai's when he was young.

It's just more precious and more flamboyant.

Li Hao sat by the window, slightly drunk, his gaze lingering absently on the barely visible neckline of the dancer on stage.

His expression was calm, he held a white folding fan in his hand, his hair was tied up with a blue scarf, and the end of the fan was adorned with a gold-inlaid jade tassel, giving him the air of a young master from a prominent family.

"Speaking of which, Brother Li Hao has also reached the crucial moment of breaking through to the Ming Jin stage," a senior brother said with a smile as he leaned closer. "With your natural talent and aptitude, it's definitely not a problem for you."

"Of course!" another person chimed in, slamming their glass on the table. "Junior Brother Li's talent is undeniable; even within our entire Qingfeng Martial Arts Academy, he's one of the best!"

"Brother Li, when you get to the martial arts academy, you'll have to take good care of us old buddies..."

The compliments were endless.

Li Hao's lips curled up slightly, and he tapped his chin lightly with his folding fan, acknowledging that he had accepted the offer.

He had practiced this posture countless times, so that he wouldn't appear too smug, but also make it clear to others that he was worthy of such flattery.

"I heard," the man pouring him the wine suddenly lowered his voice, a mischievous smirk in his voice, "that your older brother, who was raised in the countryside since childhood, married you to a woman from the Zhou family, with whom you were betrothed since birth? Or did he marry into the family?"

A moment of silence fell over the room, followed by a burst of knowing, unspoken laughter.

Li Hao scoffed, his folding fan swirling open. "The Zhou family is nothing but a fallen household now. Li Yuan? He's just a scapegoat."

"What kind of status and position will Brother Hao have in the future? Will the Zhou family be able to reach him?" Another person raised his glass, the wine sloshing around and splashing a few drops onto the tablecloth.

"I also heard," the man leaned closer, his voice filled with curious excitement, "that your brother has mediocre talent and was rejected by more than a dozen martial arts schools when he tried to become an apprentice..."

Li Hao pursed his lips, gently waving his folding fan, creating a fragrant breeze.

"With his aptitude, he still dares to dream of turning his life around through martial arts?" He paused, a vague emotion flashing in his eyes, which was then suppressed by a cold laugh. "Being turned away is a good thing, it saves him from wasting time and money."

Before I could finish speaking, I suddenly felt a sharp pain in my chest.

It felt like being pricked by a thin needle.

Twenty taels of silver.

To settle the matter, the father gave Li Yuan twenty taels of silver.

He was not satisfied with this matter.

On what grounds?

With his dull, inflexible, submissive nature, he'll never amount to anything in his life!

Twenty taels of silver.

That's enough for him to make friends and enjoy himself for several days at the Drunken Fragrance Pavilion.

He was convinced that the increasing difficulty in getting money from his father was likely due to the deficit of twenty taels of silver.

Thinking of this, he gritted his teeth and snapped the folding fan shut.

"And another thing," he suddenly spoke, his voice not loud, but enough to silence the entire private room. He looked around at everyone, enunciating each word clearly, "From now on, when you talk, stop always calling me 'your brother.'"

"I don't have an older brother."

Outside the window, Gu Laoqi suddenly lowered his head.

He didn't know how he moved his feet, and when he came to his senses, he had already walked out of Qinhuai Street.

The brightly lit building behind him grew farther and farther away, and the laughter and chatter were blown away by the night wind, leaving him alone in the darkness, dragging his leaden legs.

The pale moonlight illuminated his hunched back, casting a long, long shadow on the bluestone slabs.

......