All the heavens begin with the love in the courtyard.

This scene is rather strange. Judging from the thickness of the blanket, it doesn't look like something a beggar would use. And when did this originally filthy City God Temple become so clean?

And the neatly arranged quilt gave off an eerie feeling.

The group looked at each other in confusion, and the bearded leader, also puzzled, shouted to the people keeping watch.

"Where are they? Where are they? Weren't they all supposed to be in the City God Temple? Where did they all go?"

The crowd looked at each other, none of them knowing how to answer the question. Seeing that no one answered him, the bearded man snorted and scolded the crowd.

"What are you waiting for? Take all those nice blankets back! We'll talk about it next time we run into those brats!"

Upon hearing their leader's words, everyone placed their torches outside the door and rushed into the City God Temple to grab the blankets. More than a dozen people rushed forward without distinguishing between themselves and others, all revealing mouthfuls of yellow teeth. Today's haul was pretty good. In this era, a thick cotton blanket was worth a lot of money, let alone such a thick blanket.

Even the bearded man was no exception. He had just picked up a quilt and was calling for everyone to go back when they didn't see that a group of little devils quietly walked to the torches placed by the wall outside the City God Temple and poured water on them with the water jugs they had prepared in advance, instantly turning the surroundings into darkness.

Suddenly, shouts of killing arose all around, and stones were thrown into the City God Temple. A cry of pain rang out from inside. The bearded man was hit by a stone and, in pain, he threw off his blanket and shouted.

"Rush out! Throw away your blankets and rush out!"

Everyone threw off their blankets and began to rush outside in the dark. When they finally emerged from the City God Temple, they found it completely empty, without a single ghost in sight. It was just too dark outside to see anything clearly.

Bai Jingqi had no intention of confronting them head-on. They were all a group of teenagers, and familiarizing themselves with the terrain was one of their training subjects. Now, fighting on home ground, they already had the advantage of terrain.

The bearded man was quite experienced, so he quickly ordered his men to find torches and light them first. However, after searching for a long time, they couldn't find a single torch in the corner. Now, everyone was bitter and could only grip their weapons tightly, preparing to charge forward in the dark.

The bearded man was a little flustered, but he was tall and strong, and there were more than a dozen people on his side. He called for everyone to form a circle and carefully headed back the way they came.

But after taking only two steps, they heard someone scream "Ah!" The person next to him quickly bent down to help him up. When he touched the person's stomach, he saw that it was wet and covered in blood. Following the blood, he found a long spear. Everyone was so frightened that they cried out in alarm.

Hearing his men's description, the bearded man was also terrified. He quickly ordered them to leave it alone and for the rest of the men to gather together again and hurry up this time!

With no other option, the men groped their way forward in the darkness. But in the dark, they couldn't move too fast. After only a few steps, they heard two cries of pain around them. When they asked, they learned that the men had fallen into a pit. Clearly, the other side had been prepared. Now, the men were even more uneasy and could only shout to bolster their courage.

Little did they know that these shouts gave them precise location information, and soon after, several more spears flew in, hitting the group of people who were huddled together.

Now the bearded man was completely terrified and shouted for everyone to scatter and flee, hoping that as many people as could escape, they would be saved!

And so a scene of rabbits chasing wild dogs unfolded in the darkness of the night. As screams of agony continued to pierce the air, all other sounds ceased.

Finally, Bai Jingqi stood in front of the bearded man, quietly waiting for him to run towards him, panting heavily.

The other person clearly didn't know what was ahead; he only knew to run forward desperately, unaware that he would be going to his death in the next second.

Bai Jingqi raised the long knife in his hand, squatted down and leaped up. In the darkness, without a sound, a head fell from the neck of a man who was 1.8 meters tall. The bearded man's body was still running forward, but as he ran, his body collapsed to the ground and died, completely silent.

Chapter Twelve: The Old Man Passed Away

After the old man left, Bai Jingqi looked around and could no longer hear any more sounds of pursuit. He finally breathed a sigh of relief. After three months of training, he had finally turned these little rabbits into carnivorous animals that could bite!

Bai Jingqi sheathed his sword, picked up the severed head from the ground, and slowly walked towards the City God Temple, carrying it in one hand.

Along the way, people gradually gathered behind him. Bai Jingqi glanced around and saw several people supporting each other, occasionally groaning in pain. Clearly, some people had been injured in the battle just now.

This is normal. Although they have been training for three months, they are still just teenagers. Bai Jingqi ordered several torches to be lit, and the firelight illuminated the surroundings.

Bai Jingqi stood on a rock, holding the bearded man's head, looking down coldly at the group of teenagers. After everyone had gathered, Bai Jingqi raised the head in his hand. In the firelight, the bearded man's head looked terrifying, and his two eyes seemed to be about to bulge out.

However, unlike more than three months ago, the crowd was no longer crying out of fright. Instead, they stared at the bearded man's head with hatred in their eyes and remained silent, waiting for Bai Jingqi's reprimand.

"Brothers, did you enjoy the killing just now?"

The crowd looked at each other in bewilderment, and finally someone echoed the call.

"That was satisfying!"

Immediately afterwards, led by Wang Er, everyone shouted in unison.

"That was satisfying!"

Bai Jingqi waved his hand, signaling everyone to stop, and then shouted again.

"The more you sweat in training, the less you bleed in war. Starting today, double the training. I will train you hard. What will you do if you encounter the enemy again?"

Wang Er raised his blood-stained long knife and led the shouting.

"Kill the motherfucker!"

Bai Jingqi picked up the severed head, threw it high into the sky, and shouted.

"Yes! Kill his mother!"

Having said that, he drew a long sword from his waist and slashed at the falling head, slicing off half of the head's face before it rolled into the grass.

In this battle, all fourteen members of the opposing team were killed, while five of their own were injured, three of whom were seriously wounded. One of them was stabbed through the chest and was on the verge of death. Bai Jingqi could only helplessly watch the boy die in agony.

After this battle, only twenty of the group of teenagers remained, and two of them needed to recuperate for a while.

Bai Jingqi was also helpless about this. He didn't know how many of these teenagers would still be alive two years later. In any case, every battle was a growth experience, and they also demonstrated the prestige of the City God Temple teenagers.

Indeed, from that day on, everyone in the capital knew one thing: the City God Temple was a bit eerie, and several groups that tried to take advantage of them were wiped out.

In addition, since these young beggars neither fought for territory nor caused trouble, and went out early and returned late every day, people gradually regarded this place as a new sphere of influence. All sorts of people from different walks of life no longer dared to make a move on these teenagers without a reason.

After this battle, Bai Jingqi began to add combat and assassination skills to their training, and also ordered a batch of custom-made small daggers from the blacksmith shop for everyone's self-defense.

During this time, Bai Jingqi was also thinking about what kind of talents he should train in the future, and how he should protect himself. He gradually made some plans in his mind.

Over the next two years, he will select from these twenty people. Some of the more talented teenagers will stay on as the core of the future team after the two-year special training, and may even become instructors for the next batch of teenagers.

For some teenagers who lack this talent, he would have them establish social gangs around the capital, such as local beggar groups, or perhaps have them join some shady gangs.

Bai Jingqi will try his best to establish long-term relationships with these people, and they will be left to their own devices, making them peripheral members of his organization.

If I were to actually implement a special forces ace training program in the future, there would likely be hundreds, or even more, of these eliminated peripheral members.

Of course, Bai Jingqi did not plan to build such a training camp in the capital two years later. Fortunately, there were only about twenty people, and the place was remote. If the number of people was too large, it would inevitably arouse suspicion.

If he really plans to establish an organization in the future, he will go to some remote villages in the surrounding area to find a few bases. In this era of impending chaos, he must make some preparations.

Bai Jingqi had no ambition to conquer the world. He just wanted to live a more carefree life in the future. In the future, he would have a family to support. If he didn't have any military protection, just like in the original story, the Bai family would be treated as easy prey by various forces, who would take advantage of him. Just thinking about that kind of miserable life was frustrating.

Bai Jingqi's true purpose was to plan ahead.

Half a year passed in the blink of an eye, and Old Master Bai finally reached the point of exhaustion. He was emaciated and could only lie in bed to prolong his life.

Bai Jingqi has been spending as much time as possible at home with his grandfather during this period. Judging from the situation, his grandfather's days are likely to end within the next two weeks.

During this time, the Bai family was unusually depressed. Everyone had a feeling that the old man might not last much longer. The two brothers, the eldest and second eldest, were truly heartbroken. With the old man gone, the Bai family would be completely without a leader.

Meanwhile, Lao Bai San remained as carefree as ever. Almost a year had passed since Gui Wu's incident, and he had completely given up on it. Gui Wu's disappearance had not caused the slightest disturbance, and even his own uncle, Prince Zhan, had no intention of searching for him. Clearly, Prince Zhan had severed all ties with his nephew.

Bai Sanye was actually quite happy about the old man's impending death. He used to be scolded like a dog every day, but now that the old man was gone, no one would care about him anymore. When his elder brother took over, he could easily make some extra money on the side. He would eventually recoup the 10,000 taels of silver that Guiwu had lost.

During this period, the old man seemed to have a sudden burst of energy before death, and his spirits suddenly improved. On this day, he called the whole family to his bedside. Looking at his large family, the old man was extremely reluctant to leave, but he knew that his lifespan had come to an end and this was how his life would end.

He waved to Bai Jingqi, who quickly squeezed in front of his grandfather, felt the old man's pulse, checked his condition, and finally sighed before speaking to him.

"Grandpa, if you need anything, just say so. The whole family is here now!"

Grandpa Bai and Bai Jingqi exchanged a glance. The grandfather and grandson both knew what the other was thinking; they were probably on their last breath.

Grandpa Bai then took Bai Jingqi's hand and addressed everyone in the room.

"After my death, the eldest son will temporarily take charge of the family affairs. Once Jingqi turns sixteen, all matters, big and small, of the Bai family will be handed over to Jingqi. From then on, Jingqi will be the head of the Bai family, and all matters concerning the Bai family will be decided by Bai Jingqi!"

Although the old man had often spoken highly of Bai Jingqi and loved him dearly, his dying words still shocked the entire Bai family. After all, Bai Jingqi was only a six-year-old child, yet the old man had already arranged for the next head of the family. This left the three Bai brothers feeling ashamed.

After Old Master Bai finished speaking, he looked at Boss Bai and waited for his reply.

The eldest son of the Bai family was actually weak-willed and had no objection to his father's arrangement. He stepped forward, knelt in front of the old man, and sobbed as he spoke.

"Father, don't worry, I will follow your instructions. From now on, Jingqi will be in charge, and I will have no objections."

Seeing his eldest son in this state, Old Master Bai felt a mix of emotions. He realized that he was truly unsuitable to be the head of the family. He could only hope that nothing unexpected would happen to the Bai family before Jingqi grew up.

Old Master Bai then took a liking to Second Master Bai and Third Master Bai. As Bai Jingqi's adoptive father, Second Master Bai naturally had no objections and stood aside obediently without saying a word.

On the contrary, Bai Laosan's face was as ugly as if he had eaten shit. He did not expect that Old Master Bai would pull this trick before he died. After this little monster takes charge, he can forget about making money.

Old Master Bai naturally knew what his third son was thinking, but at the moment, he didn't have the energy to scold him. His eyes swept around the faces of the many younger members of the Bai family. Although there was some reluctance on his face, he had no regrets. He then spoke again.

"From now on, the Bai family must be loving and united. You three brothers must support each other. My biggest worry is the third brother. Eldest brother, you need to take better care of the third brother. You need to keep track of the family's finances and expenses. If you can't manage it, then let Jingqi manage it. Do you understand what I'm saying?"

Mr. Bai nodded quickly, having no objections to any of the old man's arrangements.

Seeing that the old man had added a lock to his body even on his deathbed, Bai Laosan became increasingly irritated. He pouted and remained silent. He already had a plan in mind: once the old man died, he would propose dividing the family property. The Bai family would be divided into three branches. As for that little monster, you can worry about your own share. Humph!

After saying these words, Old Master Bai's breath became faint, and he completely lost his spirit. He lay on the bed, his eyes vacant, tightly holding Bai Jingqi's hand.

Bai Jingqi sighed inwardly and whispered something in the old man's ear.

"Grandpa, I promise to protect the Bai family and I will never let the Bai family fall. You can go in peace!"

Old Master Bai's gaze finally settled on Bai Jingqi's face, and a smile finally appeared on his lips. As he smiled, he fell completely silent.

Bai Jingqi slowly released the old man's hand, stood up, and then turned to the crowd.

"The old man has passed away; let's begin preparing for his funeral!"

After saying that, he strode out of the crowd, leaving behind a group of Bai family members kneeling on the ground, wailing and crying.

He had long been prepared for the passing of Old Master Bai. The old man was his greatest support in this world, because it was because of the old man's existence that he was able to act recklessly in the Bai family all these years.

Now that Old Master Bai is gone, my identity has returned to that of the eldest son of the second branch of the family. Although the old man said that he would hand over the Bai family to me when I turned sixteen, there are still nearly ten years to go, and many things can change. Who knows what the future holds?

Bai Jingqi sighed silently. He still had some feelings for the Bai family, after all, he was born here as a baby and gradually came to accept himself as a member of the Bai family.

At this moment, I identify more with the name Bai Jingqi than with the name Zhang Peng that is deep in my memory. Time is the most terrifying thing; it can slowly change all of a person's habits.

The old man's funeral was held in a grand manner, with people from all walks of life in the capital coming to mourn him. Even the Zhan Prince's Mansion sent a funeral couplet. Although the Bai family and the Zhan Prince's Mansion are now enemies, the old man Bai had spent his life practicing medicine and selling medicine, saving countless lives. He probably didn't even know how many people he had saved. But these good deeds were finally reflected after his death.

After Old Master Bai was buried, the Bai family finally returned to peace. Bai Laosan also had a few days of tranquility, and Bai Jingqi resumed his daily life, studying, exercising, and then sneaking out in the middle of the night to train the group of teenagers.

Bai Jingqi did indeed learn a lot from Ji Zongbu, including horseback riding, swordsmanship, boxing, and legwork. He began to learn everything, but in Bai Jingqi's opinion, most of his skills were not as good as what he already knew. However, he never refused Mr. Ji's teachings and learned whatever he was taught.

In addition to learning martial arts from Mr. Ji, Bai Jingqi also studied academic subjects. He could sense that some of the knowledge Mr. Ji taught was gradually instilling ideas of loyalty to the emperor and patriotism. Clearly, the other party wanted to reform and educate him from a young age, turning him into a future pillar of the nation.

Bai Jingqi didn't react or offer any opinions. He learned whatever the other party taught him. He already had an adult mindset, and this kind of education certainly couldn't change his thinking. The reason he was so obedient was naturally because he didn't want Mr. Ji to feel threatened.

He also tried to see if he could turn the tables and explain some radical ideas to Mr. Ji, but after learning about Mr. Ji's life, he was basically certain that it would be very difficult for him to betray the Qing Dynasty.

Because he was educated from a young age according to the Qing Dynasty's system, his concern for the country and its people was directed towards the Qing Dynasty. He was constantly thinking about how to change the current state of the country.

As for Bai Jingqi, it's better to just accept it and be Mr. Ji's student. For Bai Jingqi, he needs the identity of Ji Zongbu as his teacher, and as for the knowledge he has, good or bad, he can judge for himself.

After a year of training, the group of teenagers at the City God Temple have all grown much taller than last year, and their demeanor is gradually changing. When Bai Jingqi teaches them academic subjects, he also teaches them some life lessons and the changing world. These teenagers seem to have been enlightened and are greatly shocked.