Starting with Xingyi Quan, it swept across the chaotic world.

Lu Li took in everything from afar.

He noticed something was wrong early this morning. The outer city of Lin'an, which used to be stinking and full of sewage, had become clean and tidy overnight.

Even gangs and members of the Reincarnation Cult have vanished without a trace, as if they have evaporated from the face of the earth.

He then knew that something big was about to happen.

Therefore, I came to the main road leading to the inner city and saw this scene.

"Governor?" Lu Li frowned.

He knew too little information and had no idea what the governor's specific purpose was in coming here.

He had originally planned to buy a house in the inner city as soon as possible to prepare for the chaos of the times, but now it seems he has to wait and see.

Lu Li glanced at the Wei family servant, but chose not to meddle. Instead, he quickly returned to the White Crane Martial Arts School.

Whatever the governor's purpose in coming here, he must seize the time to practice martial arts, both for the upcoming martial arts examination and so that when the world descends into complete chaos, he won't become a nameless skeleton by the roadside.

Lu Li checked the startup panel:

[Destiny: Heaven rewards diligence]

[Mastery of Liuhe Zhuang Gong (109/2000)]

[Xingyiquan Minor Success (961/1000)]

【Thunderbolt Leg Skills (367/1000)】

"As long as I master Xingyi Quan during this period, my martial arts skills shouldn't be too much of a problem," Lu Li pondered for a moment.

As far as he knew, there weren't many people in each martial arts school who had mastered their own style of boxing. Even if all the hidden strength practitioners from all the martial arts schools were combined, there were only about twenty people.

Although there are still some "unaffiliated" martial arts masters in Lin'an City, the martial arts examination has explicit regulations...

Those who are 35 years of age or older are not allowed to participate in martial arts training.

He's also thirty-five years old in the other world...

Lu Li knew that the imperial court was selecting potential geniuses, but the age of thirty-five was also a threshold in the other world, which made him chuckle.

"I still need to hurry up and master Xingyi Quan as well."

Lu Li returned to the Baihe Martial Arts School and, upon arriving at his familiar spot, began practicing Xingyi Quan diligently.

As night fell.

The refugees, who had been confined to their homes during the day, emerged from the dark alleys, like rats searching for leftover food on the ground.

……

On the other side, lanterns were lit one after another in the inner city, and some even set off fireworks, giving off a sense of a peaceful and prosperous era.

Among them, the Wei residence was the most bustling.

Today, the Governor-General of Liangjiang is visiting, and the Wei family and a group of landlords and gentry have given him great face by hosting a grand banquet.

Outside the banquet, inside the Wei residence, the "gifts" presented by gentry and landlords from both the inner and outer cities of Lin'an were piled up like mountains, making it difficult for the guests to find a place to stand.

Amidst the clinking of glasses and lively conversation, dozens of scantily clad dancers struck seductive poses, arousing the lustful desires of many soldiers.

At the banquet, everyone sat at their respective tables. Master Wei sensibly gave up the main seat and humbly took a side seat himself.

When a chef brought out the final, grand dish, Master Wei finally spoke with a smile:

"Braised carp with noodles, a recipe from Yanjin."

Looking at his hometown dish, Zhang Chuanting didn't show much appetite, but he still smiled and responded:

"That's very thoughtful."

After some casual conversation, Zhang Chuanting, who had little appetite, spoke up:

"Since Chuan Ting is appointed Governor-General of Liangjiang, he will have to rely on your great assistance."

Master Wei nodded secretly upon hearing this:

"You flatter me, Commander. It is our duty to share the burdens of the nation."

Master Wei spoke first, and the other three families in the inner city, as well as the county magistrate and the county assistant, nodded in agreement.

"Since we are paid by the emperor, we should naturally be concerned about the affairs of the state."

"What are you saying, Commander? If there's anything we can do to help, please don't hesitate to ask."

Hearing one voice after another, Zhang Chuanting's expression relaxed considerably, and a genuine smile appeared on his face.

"Gentlemen."

He stood up, clasped his hands in greeting, and greeted everyone from left to right—whether they were lords of the inner city, county officials, or gentry and landlords from the outer city who had fought tooth and nail to get in.

"To be honest, the military pay in the two Jiang regions is insufficient. His Majesty is concerned about the affairs of the nation, and the national treasury is empty, so it is impossible to allocate funds. Today, I have come here to raise funds for the military pay."

"I hope that you will all share the nation's burdens."

As soon as the words were spoken, the lively banquet instantly became deserted, so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

No one spoke, but several gazes swept over Master Wei, and many people were waiting for him to make a decision.

Seeing that no one spoke for a long time, the smile on Zhang Chuanting's face gradually disappeared.

Upon seeing this, Master Wei coughed lightly:

"As we've said before, it's our duty to share the nation's burdens... but I wonder how much silver the Commander-in-Chief requires?"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Chuanting's expression softened considerably, and he spoke with a serious face:

"At least 500,000 taels of silver are needed, and even then, 300,000 taels would be necessary to alleviate the immediate crisis..."

Everyone was shocked by the number, and many were speechless.

They came here today hoping to broaden their horizons, and it would be best if they could gain the governor's favor. However, if the governor is here today to take money from their pockets...

Some people have already started thinking about sneaking away.

But before they could take any action, they were stopped by the guards brought by Zhang Chuanting.

Those guards were all experts in internal martial arts.

Some of them even reached the Transformation Realm!

"Commander... it's not that we're unwilling... it's just that the world is in too much chaos lately, and we don't have much money or supplies!"

"Yes, Commander... We don't have much money or grain on hand, and we have to bribe the court every year, so it's really hard to continue."

"Recently, there have been monsters roaming the official roads, making it difficult for us to do business..."

The local gentry and landlords in the city complained one after another.

The so-called sharing of the country's burdens and loyalty to the emperor and patriotism were nothing but empty lies. They really didn't expect Zhang Chuanting to make them bleed so badly.

It's better to spend money on the country than to have another pretty young concubine.

As he listened to the complaints of one landlord and gentry after another, Zhang Chuanting's smile vanished completely, replaced by a somewhat gloomy expression.

He knew perfectly well that most of the wealth of these landlords and gentry came from the military garrison system.

The imperial court allocated a portion of land to military households for management, but after being embezzled by officers, it was sublet to these landlords and gentry.

The stronger the warrior, the more families rent more resources. With more resources, the families become stronger, and some families stand out from the crowd.

Take, for example, the four major families within the inner city of Lin'an.

Looking at the unmoved landlords and gentry, Zhang Chuanting took a deep breath to suppress his anger:

"The Liang bandits in the south have risen up again. To be honest, the purpose of raising funds and supplies this time is to fight the Liang bandits. If we are defeated, the consequences will be unimaginable."

Upon hearing this, most of the people turned pale.

They knew all too well who Liang was.

The so-called Liang bandits were actually a group of rebels who had revolted a few years ago. Their leader proclaimed himself King of Liang, hence the name Liang bandits.

"Didn't the Commander-in-Chief almost wipe out the Liang bandits three years ago? How come they've come back again?"

A local gentry member spoke up in a panic.

"I heard that the Liang bandits just started their rebellion a few days ago. How come it's only been a short time since then that we need the Commander-in-Chief to lead troops to suppress them?"

"How could the uprising have started so quickly?"

"Damn it, you wretched peasants! Why do you have to rebel when you can live a perfectly good life!"

The sounds came in waves, but soon fell silent.

Looking at the silent crowd, Master Wei took out a five-hundred-tael silver note and stepped in to smooth things over, saying:

"Five hundred taels of silver, a small token of my respect."

With Master Wei's investment, several other families followed suit, which also spurred wealthy households in the outer city to contribute.

Five hundred taels.

Five hundred taels.

"Three hundred taels."

"..."

"Fifty taels."

As the amount of donated silver dwindled, Zhang Chuanting's expression grew increasingly grim. He looked at the thin stack of silver notes his men had collected, which appeared to be less than three thousand taels.

Zhang Chuanting grabbed the silver notes, walked out of the house, and pointed to the mountain of congratulatory gifts piled up in the courtyard. Among them were calligraphy and paintings, antiques, old ginseng, and even precious medicines that would benefit martial artists at the Transformation Realm.

He spoke up:

"These are for Zhang Chuanting."

He then held up the stack of silver notes:

"These are what you gave to the Great Yong Dynasty!"

His tone grew increasingly impassioned:

"What use is Zhang Chuanting to me if the Great Yong Dynasty falls?"