Chinese Martial Arts: My Super Beast Clone

For the next ten days or so, Yangcheng unexpectedly calmed down.

There was no movement from the Black Dragon Society, as if the deaths and disappearances of the six men had never happened. However, Lin Hai learned from his conversation with Ma Liu that recently, many groups of Japanese ronin had appeared in the concession, especially at night, when it was almost impossible to see any lone Japanese ronin on the streets.

Lin Hai's daily life returned to normal, with him practicing boxing and stance training every day, leading a regular and fulfilling life.

On this day, Lin Hai was practicing his boxing in the inner courtyard of the martial arts school when his senior brother, Chen Wu, strode in.

"Junior Brother Lin, stop practicing, Master is calling you," Chen Wu said with a smile.

"Senior Brother," Lin Hai said, pausing his fist stance and wiping the sweat from his brow with the towel hanging around his neck, "What did Master want to see me about?"

"Good news." Chen Wu kept it a secret for a moment, "Master wants you to change into some clean clothes and go out with him."

Although Lin Hai was somewhat puzzled, he nodded and quickly returned to his resting place to change into a short-sleeved shirt.

When he came out, Lu Zhengchuan was already standing in the center of the courtyard.

He was still dressed like an ordinary old man, with the brass pipe he never let go of in his hand, only today he was wearing a decent black silk jacket.

"Master," Lin Hai called out respectfully.

Lu Zhengchuan nodded, took a drag of his cigarette, and exhaled a smoke ring: "Let's go."

The three of them walked out of the martial arts school together, and Chen Wu had already called a rickshaw at the door.

Once they were in the carriage, the driver pulled it along at breakneck speed.

"Master, where are we going?" Lin Hai finally couldn't help but ask out of curiosity.

Lu Zhengchuan leaned back in his chair, squinted, and said calmly, "Go to Guangfu Restaurant."

Guangfulou?

Lin Hai thought for a moment. It was one of the top restaurants in the inner city, with extremely high prices. Ordinary people might not be able to afford to eat there even once a year.

"Is someone treating us today?" Lin Hai guessed.

Chen Wu, standing to the side, explained with a smile, "Junior Brother, it's not as simple as treating someone to a meal. There's a conflict between the Iron Arm Boxing Gym and the Zhenwei Martial Arts Gym. The night before last, they got into a fight at the dock over territory, and weapons were used, resulting in many injuries. Today, the owner of the Iron Arm Boxing Gym asked someone to ask Master to step in and mediate between the two sides."

It turns out he was acting as a peacemaker.

Lin Hai understood.

In Yangcheng, there are dozens, if not hundreds, of martial arts schools and clubs of all sizes. Friction is common, often stemming from disputes over territory, students, and reputation. But when things escalate to the point of violence and bloodshed, things become serious.

In such situations, a respected elder with sufficient influence, influence, and a relatively neutral stance is needed to mediate.

As a veteran in the martial arts world of Yangcheng, Lu Zhengchuan is undoubtedly the best candidate.

"I brought you out here so you could broaden your horizons." Lu Zhengchuan's eyes were still narrowed, and his voice came from the smoke. "The path of martial arts is not just about blindly practicing. You should also learn about human relationships and the rules of the martial world."

"Yes, Master," Lin Hai said solemnly.

He understood that his master was consciously promoting him and bringing him into the real martial arts circle of Yangcheng.

The rickshaw soon stopped in front of Guangfulou.

Guangfulou is a three-story Chinese-style building with flying eaves, bracket sets, carved beams and painted rafters. Two large red lanterns hang at the entrance, making it exceptionally grand.

However, the atmosphere today seemed rather tense.

At the entrance of the restaurant, two groups of people stood, all dressed in short, tight-fitting clothes, with muscular builds and unfriendly eyes staring at each other. Although no one made a move, the tension in the air could be smelled from a distance.

Upon seeing Lu Zhengchuan get out of the car, a middle-aged man in a long robe, who looked like he was in charge, immediately greeted him with a beaming smile.

"Master Lu! You've finally arrived! The private room upstairs is ready, and both managers are here, just waiting for you!"

The steward bowed and scraped as he led the way. When they reached the end of the third-floor corridor, the steward stopped in front of a carved wooden door, gently pushed it open, and stepped aside to make way.

"Master Lu, please."

Lu Zhengchuan didn't speak, and stepped into the private room. Lin Hai and Chen Wu followed closely behind.

This was an extremely spacious private room, with several landscape paintings and calligraphy hanging on the walls, and a round mahogany table in the center. Two people were already seated at the table.

The one on the left is burly, wearing a dark blue short jacket, his arms as thick as two tree stumps, the clothes stretched taut by his muscles. The one on the right wears a gray long robe, his figure is relatively well-proportioned, but his temples are bulging, his hands are covered in calluses, and his knuckles are large.

Upon seeing Lu Zhengchuan enter, the two stood up simultaneously.

"Senior Lu." The two clasped their hands in greeting and welcomed Lu Zhengchuan in.

Lu Zhengchuan nodded slightly, walked to the head seat, pulled out a chair, and sat down. Lin Hai and Chen Wu did not sit down, but instead stood on either side of Lu Zhengchuan behind him.

Chen Wu's lips moved slightly as he spoke to Lin Hai in a very low voice, "The one on the left is Wang Meng from the Iron Arm Boxing Gym, and the one on the right is Liu Zhendong from the Zhenwei Martial Arts Gym. Both of them are at the advanced stage of Ming Jin."

Lu Zhengchuan glanced at the two of them and said, "Please sit down."

Wang Meng and Liu Zhendong sat down as instructed, but as soon as they sat down, their eyes met in mid-air, and the atmosphere instantly became tense.

"I heard about what happened the night before last," Lu Zhengchuan said calmly. "There was quite a commotion at the Shiliupu Wharf. Since you've asked someone to find me today and want me to be the middleman, let's follow the rules of the underworld and talk things out openly. Wang Meng, you go first."

Upon hearing this, Wang Meng slammed his hand on the table, causing the water in the teacup to spill out.

"Senior Lu, this really isn't my fault!" Wang Meng pointed at Liu Zhendong across from him, his voice booming. "Those three warehouses at the Shiliupu Wharf have always been the 'security' of our Iron Arm Boxing Gym. The rule is that we get paid monthly, and everyone's been getting along fine. But Liu Zhendong, he resorted to underhanded tactics, instigating those warehouse owners to cut off my monthly wages and then handing over the security duties to his Zhenwei Martial Arts Gym. I sent a few of my disciples to argue with him, and Liu Zhendong had his men attack me, breaking my eldest disciple's leg! Senior Lu, you be the judge! This is destroying someone's livelihood, cutting off their source of income!"

Liu Zhendong sneered and straightened the cuffs of his long gown: "Wang Meng, stop trying to play the victim. The warehouses in Shiliupu are public property; it's their business to hire whomever they want. You, the Iron Arm Boxing Gym manager, take 30% of the profits every month, and people think you're greedy, so they come to us instead. You can't keep your customers, so who can you blame?"

"Bullshit!" Wang Meng roared, pointing at Liu Zhendong's nose. "If you hadn't secretly reduced your cut to 20%, would they have switched? You're breaking the rules of Yangcheng, maliciously stealing our business!"

"I earned the food through my own abilities," Liu Zhendong retorted. "If your men caused trouble at the warehouse and broke their legs, it's because they weren't skilled enough; you can't blame anyone else."

The two argued back and forth, their voices growing louder as they fought.