Gou Zai Wu Dao Chao Shi Xing Nian Da Gong

Qingshan County, south of the city, Xingcang Street.

There was a tailor shop facing the street with a sign that read "Zhou's Tailor Shop" hanging above the door. The black paint on the sign was cracked and the corners were slightly damaged, making it look quite old.

There were no customers in the shop, except for an elderly man with gray hair and beard who sat alone behind the counter, deep in thought.

"Have I... traveled through time, or awakened some wisdom from a past life?"

The old man suddenly muttered something to himself, a look of confusion on his face.

His name was Zhou Fugan, and he was originally an old tailor struggling at the bottom of society.

But today, something extraordinary happened to him.

Today is his sixtieth birthday, and he specially summoned his children to announce a momentous event that could change the fate of the family. Unexpectedly, it ended in a bitter falling out between his children. He was left alone in the shop, growing angrier and angrier, and before he knew it, he had fainted.

When he woke up again, he was surprised to find that he had awakened his past life's wisdom, and his mind was filled with all the memories of his past life from birth to death.

In that memory, he was born in a powerful and peaceful country with skyscrapers, airplanes, and trains, where people lived in peace and contentment. He was a worker with a large family, and he died just after retiring, without even having the chance to experience the benefits of his newly issued senior citizen free card.

Memories from both lifetimes intertwined and influenced him deep within his consciousness, and for a moment, he couldn't tell whether he was a retired worker in a peaceful and prosperous era or an old tailor in this chaotic world of martial arts.

"No, I am who I am, I am the same person in this life and the last."

Soon, Zhou Fugan's expression hardened, and he suppressed his wild thoughts. If he continued to dwell on this, he might develop a mental breakdown.

But then he felt a deep sense of regret.

"Why didn't this innate wisdom from a past life awaken sooner?"

Now, deeply influenced by his past life's wisdom, he has undergone a complete transformation, and his vision and knowledge are far beyond what the old tailor who only knew about the three-foot-wide tailor shop used to be.

"If I had awakened sooner, I wouldn't have lived such a difficult life!!"

Zhou Fugan sighed, his face full of regret. With his previous life's perspective and knowledge, even in this martial arts world, he would have been able to change the fate of himself and his entire family.

……

"If we had had this vision earlier, we wouldn't have ended up with our children and grandchildren turning against each other today."

Zhou Fugan shook his head and gave a self-deprecating smile as he recalled what had happened during the day.

The things that happen during the day are actually not complicated.

The reason was that a few days ago, he took his two grandsons to a martial arts school to have their bones checked. As a result, both grandsons were found to have martial arts aptitude, but both had inferior bone structure—they could learn martial arts, but the hope of achieving something in martial arts was small.

However, after much deliberation, he decided to take a gamble and send his grandson to learn martial arts.

This is because martial arts are revered in this world. Martial artists who have mastered their skills possess strength far exceeding that of ordinary people, and their social status is far above that of commoners. If an ordinary family can produce a martial artist, it is equivalent to an instant upward social leap, where even their relatives and friends rise to prominence.

Take himself as an example. He opened a tailor shop, and everyone praised his skills. How come he struggled to make ends meet his whole life?

Because there are no martial artists in the family. No matter how good their skills are, they can't get high-priced orders from the gentlemen in the upper district, and even if they do, they can't keep them.

This world is so unfriendly to ordinary people.

The exorbitant taxes levied by the government and the blackmail by gangs are like mountains weighing down on ordinary people, making them feel like they are walking on thin ice. If they encounter even the slightest obstacle, they may end up with their families destroyed and their lives ruined.

Most of the money he earned was handed over to the government, and what he kept for himself was barely enough to make ends meet. He had to save every penny to afford martial arts training.

In addition, there was corvée labor. This was forcibly imposed by the government, and not only did the laborers have to bring their own travel expenses, but it was also fraught with danger, like the Grim Reaper taking their souls. Many of those who performed corvée labor died on the job. Moreover, corvée labor often lasted for several years, and even if they returned alive, their families would be devastated without their breadwinner, and they might not live to see their husbands return.

His eldest son, Zhou Guangshun, went to perform corvée labor for the family. He was gone for more than half a year and there was no news of him. His fate was unknown.

If a family could produce a martial artist, most of these exorbitant taxes and extortions would be reduced, and corvée labor could be exempted. He might even be qualified to enter the upper-town circle, tailoring clothes for those gentlemen, greatly increasing his income, and giving his family a real chance for a better future.

Moreover, martial artists have a much higher social status and earning power than tailors. If his grandson succeeds in martial arts and accumulates wealth over two or three generations, the Zhou family might very well become a prominent family in the upper district.

It was with this ambition that he had prepared to take out his life savings, and have his children tighten their belts to add a little more, to raise twenty taels of silver to send his second grandson, Zhou He, to a martial arts school.

Why not send both grandsons there?

Because he had no money. He could only scrape together enough for one person's tuition. And twenty taels of silver only covered tuition and six months' worth of room and board; what about after six months?

Furthermore, martial arts training is extremely taxing on the body, requiring extra meat consumption for nutrition and the use of potent tonics to aid in training; otherwise, the training will not only fail but also harm the body. And there's no way to cover these expenses.

As for why he chose his second grandson, that was purely out of favoritism.

The eldest grandson, Zhou Sheng, is the son of the eldest son, Zhou Guangshun, and the second grandson, Zhou He, is the son of the second son, Zhou Guangcheng.

He used to favor his second son, saving all the good things for him. Like this tailor shop, which he intended to leave to his second son, and he was also going to pass on all his tailoring skills to him. He usually lived with his second son.

Therefore, he favored his second grandson more.

As for his eldest son, he sent him to work on a boat to fish early on. After he finished his studies, got married, and started his own family, he bought him a sampan so that he could separate from the family and start his own business.

Therefore, given that the two had similar aptitudes, he would not hesitate to give the opportunity to learn martial arts to his second grandson, Zhou He.

Not only that, he also asked his eldest son's family and his third daughter's family to pool money to support Zhou He's martial arts training.

This caused the eldest grandson, Zhou Sheng, and his eldest daughter-in-law, Zhang Xiufen, to disagree. They started arguing on the spot, saying that since the head of the household was supposed to perform corvée labor for the family, it should be the second son who went, and that Zhou Sheng should have the opportunity to learn martial arts.

The second daughter-in-law, Li Qiuhua, disagreed and started arguing with the eldest daughter-in-law.

The daughter, Zhou Guiyun, had never wanted to contribute any money, and took the opportunity to stir up trouble, ultimately turning what should have been a joyous birthday banquet into a bitter one.

He was so angry he almost died.

Fortunately, fate gave him a chance, allowing him to broaden his horizons through a dream.

"Now that I have the opportunity to make up for my past mistakes, I will give this opportunity to learn martial arts to Sheng'er."

Zhou Fugan thought to himself with a complicated expression.

He used to be biased, only having eyes for Zhou He. Now, thinking about it carefully, sending Zhou Sheng to learn martial arts was actually the best choice.

Both grandsons were of inferior aptitude, but Zhou Sheng was sixteen and Zhou He was fourteen.

Zhou Sheng is older and more sensible, with a steady temperament and the ability to endure hardship, so it would be more appropriate for him to learn martial arts now.

Zhou He is young and quite spoiled at home. He can't endure hardship. If we let him learn martial arts now, he probably won't work hard and it will be a waste of money. It would be better to let him train for a few more years and then let him learn martial arts.

Furthermore, the family had previously been assigned to perform corvée labor, and it was agreed that the two sons would take turns. The eldest son, Zhou Guangshun, had already gone twice, so it was definitely the younger son, Zhou Guangcheng, who should go this time. However, he sided with the younger son and forced the eldest son to go a third time.

Based on this alone, the family owes the eldest son a debt, and the opportunity to learn martial arts should be used to compensate Zhou Sheng.

In this way, the second son's family couldn't say anything, and if they insisted on making trouble, it would be unreasonable. He would never tolerate this now.

As the head of the family, his fair dealings are conducive to family harmony. As the saying goes, a harmonious family brings prosperity, and with a harmonious family, everything is possible.

……

Just then, Zhou Fugan suddenly felt a flash in his mind, followed by the appearance of a virtual interface.

"What is this?"

He was taken aback, but after regaining his composure, he looked at it more closely.

His photo was printed at the top of the virtual interface, and his name and other information were written below.

Then, a sudden inspiration struck him, and he instantly understood the purpose of this thing.

"Senior Citizen Free Card: No Cost, Same Benefits!"

After carefully examining the virtual interface several times, Zhou Fugan's eyes gleamed with admiration.

"This must be the cheat code mentioned in that memory! It's said that with this, cultivating martial arts is a piece of cake!"

"This is truly an opportunity given to me by God!"

"My grandsons, I'll send both of you to learn martial arts from now on."

"However, before that, your grandfather must first become powerful!"