He achieved the pinnacle of martial arts starting with breaking through the limits of Tiger Fist.

Jiang Lin first took Liu Hanzi and Chen Sanlang back to the village entrance, and then sailed to the fish market himself, as he needed to sell these dozens of kilograms of fish as soon as possible.

At this time, there are no preservation methods, and if the time is delayed, the fish will be stuck with you.

Jiang Lin lives in a village called Shaziwan, which has more than 200 households, but there is no fish market. The fish market is located five or six miles downstream, and it is the only fish market within a radius of more than ten miles.

Drifting downstream, Jiang Lin rowed his boat and arrived at the fish market dock in no time.

He first sorted out the catch in the cabin, filling a bamboo basket to the brim.

Jiang Lin carried his basket out of the boat and saw a wide-open space in front of him, with a dozen sampans and several covered boats lined up and moored on the shore.

Barefoot fishermen moved back and forth. Because it was still early, the area in front of the fish market wasn't too noisy. The smell of fish mixed with the smell of mud wasn't pleasant, but Jiang Lin was already used to it.

"Hey, Lin-ge'er, you've had quite a haul today!"

Some familiar fishermen greeted him, and Jiang Lin responded casually:

"They're just grass carp, not worth much."

As he walked towards the entrance of the fish market, he was stopped by two men dressed in short-sleeved shirts.

Jiang Lin was sensible and knew that this was a so-called "entry fee." Nowadays, gangs were rampant and domineering, and every fisherman was inevitably exploited.

He quickly pulled out ten coins from his pocket and handed them over. The gangster took them, weighed them in his hand, and said:

"Not enough, I need twenty coins."

Jiang Lin frowned. In the past, the entrance fee was ten coins, but today it was twenty coins. What was the reason for this?

The other party didn't explain, but pointed to Jiang Lin's prominent basket, and without saying a word, just stretched out his hand.

Jiang Lin had no choice but to suppress his anger and take out ten coins again. Just as he was about to hand them over, a figure walked past him.

"Hey, it's Brother Meng, come in quickly."

The man, known as Meng Ge, nodded amiably and went straight into the fish market.

Jiang Lin was allowed to pass after paying an extra ten coins, and he walked right behind the man.

Jiang Lin knew this man, named Liu Meng. He had heard that Liu Meng had studied martial arts and reached the level of "Kou Guan" (a martial arts master). Although he was not a true martial artist, he was capable of protecting himself in this fish market and could even avoid paying the entrance fee.

Looking at the figure in front of him, it would be a lie to say he wasn't envious. Jiang Lin could only secretly make up his mind, and his desire to learn martial arts grew even stronger.

At the fish stall, Liu Meng placed his fish basket on the cutting board and said loudly, "The grass carp weighs more than twenty-eight jin, so we'll charge you twenty-eight jin."

The stall owner didn't weigh the fish; he just lifted the fish basket, thought it was about right, and started calculating the price directly.

Liu Meng took the money and left without even glancing at the stall owner. Then it was Jiang Lin's turn to catch fish, but the stall owner carefully put the fish on the scale and weighed it.

"Thirty-four pounds and eight ounces, I'll give you thirty-five pounds, but that's because we're acquaintances."

Jiang Lin nodded without saying much. Grass carp cost five coins per catty, so thirty-five catties would be one hundred and seventy-five coins, equivalent to two or three days' catch for an ordinary fisherman.

In truth, Jiang Lin knew that he had been taken advantage of. Having fished for many years, he could roughly estimate the weight of the grass carp in the basket; it was definitely a full forty pounds.

But that's just how things are in this godforsaken place; there's no fairness to speak of.

You ask why I didn't go to other fish stalls? Well, this stall is only ripping you off by five pounds because we're from the same village. If it were anywhere else, they'd rip you off badly.

Unless you have a strong enough fist like Liu Meng did before, you'll be constantly bullied.

In today's chaotic world, might trumps rules, and rules trump the law. If you have no ability, don't blame others for taking advantage of you.

There are three hurdles before becoming a martial artist, known as the "passing the gates." Each pass brings a transformative change. Passing all three passes allows one to challenge the threshold of becoming a martial artist, marking the beginning of becoming a superior person.

Let alone martial artists, even someone like Liu Meng, who only failed the test once, can live a much more comfortable life than ordinary people.

Various thoughts flashed through Jiang Lin's mind. He could only grit his teeth and secretly calculate that now that his fishing skills were highly proficient, he could earn money much faster. He would have to work even harder in the future. He didn't want to live this damn life for another day.

Jiang Lin rowed the boat back to the village. Just as he arrived at his doorstep, Aunt Wang from next door called out to him.

"Lin-ge'er, your old man came by earlier and said he wants you to go back to the old house."

Jiang Lin thanked him, went back into the house to hide the money he had earned from selling fish, and then went out to the old house.

As Jiang Lin walked along, he pondered. He had been in this world for over a year and hadn't had much contact with the old house.

After his father Jiang Dachuan died, they had even less contact. Of course, Jiang Lin was happy with this. He wondered what kind of trouble it was that Jiang Lin suddenly called him over today.

The old house was only two miles away, and it was sunset, just dinnertime.

The old house had a courtyard, and although it was surrounded by earthen walls, it was still considered respectable in the village. Jiang Lin knocked on the door and entered, just as the family was getting together. The banquet was only halfway through, and it was a lively and warm scene.

"Lin-ge'er is here! Please sit down, please sit down."

As her aunt beckoned Jiang Lin to come forward, she moved a chair and set out a bowl and chopsticks.

"Thank you, Auntie."

Jiang Lin took his seat, but did not touch his chopsticks. Instead, he looked at the old man of the Jiang family.

"What does Grandpa want with me?"

Upon hearing this, Old Master Jiang frowned deeply. Ever since his father died, this boy's personality had changed drastically, and he exuded a sense of aloofness that made him unpleasant.

The old man considered his words carefully before slowly speaking:

"I was planning to talk about this after dinner, but since you asked, I might as well lay it all out now."

After a pause, the old man looked at Jiang Lin and continued, "Jiang Ping has reached a crucial juncture in his martial arts training, so I've called everyone here today to discuss it."

Jiang Lin turned his head to look at his cousin, who was his third uncle's child. He had been sent to Changning County to learn martial arts before the Lunar New Year, and it had been more than half a year since then.

My eldest uncle's family only has two daughters, both of whom are now married. My third uncle's family only has Jiang Ping as his only son, who is usually quite spoiled.

"Jiang Ping is a promising child; he successfully passed the test early on, and now he's planning to try again. To be on the safe side, we'll need quite a bit of herbal medicine to help him..."

Having said that, everyone understood the old man's intention: he wanted money.

"Ping'er learning martial arts is a big deal for our family. You will all benefit from it in the future, so you will have to pay for it." With one sentence, the old man settled the matter.

As soon as she finished speaking, her aunt burst into tears.

"Father! We have no money! My wife and I work ourselves to the bone just to make ends meet, how could we possibly save any money?"

The old man became irritated upon hearing his aunt's cries.

"Shut up. What are you wailing about?"

As soon as the old man spoke, the aunt immediately shut up, not daring to utter a sound and could only secretly wipe away her tears.

As the eldest daughter-in-law of the Jiang family, she only gave birth to two daughters. This aunt has never had much status in the family, and her husband dares not say a word.

Third Aunt chimed in, "Sister-in-law, if Ping'er becomes a martial artist, will she forget your kindness? You and your brother don't have a son, so won't Ping'er take care of you in your old age? You'll have your time to enjoy life then."

Third Uncle also chimed in, "Ping'er has been filial since she was little, and she will never forget your kindness."

Jiang Lin rolled his eyes. His third uncle's son had been cold-hearted since childhood. He would hide away even when eating a sweet potato. It was better to expect a sow to fly than to rely on him.

"That's settled then. How much do you think you can contribute?" The old man made the final decision.

"I only managed to get one or two ounces, and that's all we have left at home."

Having no other options, the aunt could only stammer out a word.

"Not enough, at least three ounces."

Grandpa Jiang was very dissatisfied with the number his aunt had reported, and then turned his gaze to Jiang Lin.

"Lin-ge, tell me, how much can you offer?"

I don't have a single penny.

Jiang Lin looked at the old man and spoke clearly.

"Your third uncle hosted a banquet today and specially invited you over for dinner. How can you talk to him like this?"

Jiang Lin looked down at the table, where only scraps of food remained. He was speechless. Was this how you invited someone to dinner?

"Grandpa, my father is dead. He died in Yunmeng Marsh along with the Long family's fleet."

Grandpa Jiang paused, his voice lowering, "What does this have to do with your father?"

Jiang Lin raised his head to meet the old man's gaze. "My father died! The Long family paid ten taels of silver in compensation, but I didn't get a single penny."

"The money for Ping-ge'er's martial arts training tuition was earned by my father with his life. My family has already paid for that money."

Jiang Lin's piercing gaze stung the old man's heart, leaving him speechless.

"I also want to learn martial arts, Grandpa."

"Lin-ge'er, how can you talk to your grandfather like that? Two years ago, your grandfather had someone examine the bones of you two brothers, and they said you only have average to below-average physique. What future can you have by practicing martial arts?"

"Your father is dead, and your third uncle is heartbroken. Your father and I were brothers."

Jiang Lin slowly stood up and looked at his third uncle. "Heartbroken? Third uncle, do you even have a heart? If you did, how could you bully a child like me who has no parents? Has your conscience been eaten by dogs?"

Jiang Lin didn't continue the farce and got up to leave.

Behind me came the old man's violent coughing, mixed with my aunt's curses.