Republic of China Era: Entering the Dao through Divine Strike.

With his temperament and abilities, if he were a few years older, he would naturally roam freely throughout the world, and no one knows how high his achievements would be.

I've managed to snag such a pair of big, thick legs.

I no longer worry about dying in the street one day.

Zhuang Hongxiu didn't say something in detail: she followed her mother and trained hard in the sweltering summer and freezing winter.

Now I have mastered the control of Qi and blood.

Although she looks delicate and weak, even ten or so men couldn't subdue her.

The Wing Chun style passed down from the Leung family is characterized by its speed, agility, and rapid advance towards the center.

Especially in listening to and striking, when countering and breaking moves, the most important thing is the brain's reaction and the speed of the strike, which is to seize the initiative.

She witnessed Li Xin's actions in the alley courtyard firsthand and understood their significance better than anyone else.

His reaction time is so fast that if you try to land a hit, you might not even be able to touch the hem of his clothes before you get hit.

This is still before learning the true essence of the boxing technique and understanding the power of the internal force.

If we wait until he has undergone the transformation of tendons and bones and the refinement of strength with blood, we can't even imagine how strong he will become.

With someone protecting me like this, I can walk around with my head held high from now on, right?

At least, I won't be bullied anymore.

Li Xin helped her up, his body trembling slightly.

He discovered that another ray of golden light had flown out from Zhuang Hongxiu's body.

"So easily moved? It seems I guessed right. The closer and more trusting someone is to you, the easier it is to inspire their faith."

Having gained and lost, lost and gained again, amidst these emotional rollercoasters, Zhuang Hongxiu lost gold coins again. Compared to this, ability wasn't actually that important.

"Hongxiu, we'll talk about the other eighteen masters later. I'll give you a task first."

See that house over there? The one with white walls, green tiles, and two trees in the yard. They're in a hurry to sell. Are you confident you can negotiate a lower price?

He has keen eyesight and hearing, and can easily find out secrets.

I had been standing there for a while and had already heard people arguing in that courtyard.

The owner of the courtyard seemed to want to sell the house at a low price, consolidate assets as soon as possible, and use his connections to relocate to another area.

According to his steward, the market is currently in turmoil, and staying in the capital could be life-threatening.

Even if his life is safe, he will lose his official position.

But the women in the outer quarters of the house were unwilling, and they were crying and sobbing...

This annoyed the owner, who scolded them repeatedly.

"Leave it to me. That place is a courtyard with nine rooms in the middle. It's in a good location and the environment is quite quiet."

Before the naval battle, even three hundred taels of silver might not be enough to buy it…

Zhuang Hongxiu spoke with confidence, seemingly referring to her expertise.

The call for reform is now very strong, and a change of regime is imminent.

Many officials and businessmen were living in constant fear. In addition, as chaos gradually broke out in the capital, while the prices of daily necessities soared, the market prices of permanent properties such as houses and shops plummeted.

"One hundred taels, at most one hundred and twenty taels, I can get it." She looked coldly at the mansion, like an eagle eyeing a sparrow.

As expected of a former daughter of an official family, her family owns numerous businesses.

I'm still considering whether I can afford it.

She had already calculated the price.

Li Xin estimated his own silver reserves.

The spoils from these several battles combined seem to amount to only a little over 140 taels.

After buying the house, I'm finding it a bit difficult to make ends meet.

But not buying it doesn't seem right either.

When practicing martial arts in the future, should we also find an open space?

Renting isn't actually that cost-effective. Renting a large, detached house like this isn't much cheaper.

It was mainly determined by the current situation.

Li Xin looked at the house more carefully. The courtyard in the middle was about 80 square meters, and the total building area was about 200 square meters.

There are four rooms in total on both sides, three main rooms on the north side, two rooms in the back row, and a shopfront has been converted on the left front.

"Besides living in it, you can also open a shop."

Thinking of this, Li Xin immediately made a decision: "Let's go back. You go take a shower and change your clothes. It's still early. Let's see if we can negotiate the house deal first."

As he walked, he said, "By the way, at Master Cheng's martial arts school, it seems like all the students are just teenagers. They seem to be teaching stance training and the Swimming Palm technique."

Are there any shortcuts to learning the real training and fighting methods?

"There are shortcuts, but it's better to make others seek your help than to ask others to ask you. Young Master, with such talent, if Third Master knew, he would surely beg and plead to take you as his disciple."

After all, their family had been competing with the Yin family of Beichang for many years, and they had never produced a martial arts champion, thus being consistently outshone. They also wanted a worthy successor.

"Aren't the disciples of the Cheng family good enough?"

“It’s not that it’s impossible. The Seven Outstanding Students of the Cheng Family are all excellent and have a great reputation in the capital. But have you ever heard the saying: Of the Seven Outstanding Students of the Cheng Family, Fei Yan is the most virtuous?”

"What do you mean?" Li Xin asked, slightly puzzled.

Zhuang Hongxiu laughed and said, "It means that Master Cheng has one son, five male apprentices, and one daughter."

These seven people are all very capable, but the most capable is her daughter, Cheng Feiyan.

She covered her mouth and laughed as she said this.

This era was nothing like the open-minded Han and Tang dynasties; women's status was at its lowest point in history.

Many families, both large and small, confine their female members to their homes, rarely venturing outside.

The most outstanding disciple of a famous martial arts school is actually a daughter.

It's easy to imagine how much regret Master Cheng felt.

"So she's a heroine! How old is Cheng Feiyan?"

“Still unmarried, a year or two older than Nunu, young master, do you want to…” Zhuang Hongxiu looked over in surprise.

"I didn't mean to."

Li Xin glared at her and quickly added, "I was just curious about how skilled she was at such a young age. I also saw a woman named Wang Erya on the road earlier. She was also young and very skilled, and I was just a little impressed."

"I understand, young master is referring to Wang Jingya of Yuanshun. She is known as the tigress and is ranked among the Eight Beauties of the Capital along with Cheng Feiyan. Of course she is amazing. People say that they are women who are not inferior to men."

At this point, Zhuang Hongxiu sighed, her voice slightly low, clearly recalling her own drifting life.

Li Xin knew that his newly acquired maid was wallowing in self-pity again.

I'm interested in asking who the Eight Beauties of the Capital are, but I'm also a little worried that Hongxiu might think I'm a lecherous slut, which would damage her image.

He decided not to ask any more questions and simply led her back to the inn.

After buying a house, you need to find a decent job; it's not right to always rely on bad people for support.

Of course, the most important thing is to find a way to become a disciple of the Cheng family.

This Master Cheng had an excellent reputation in history; he sympathized with the lower classes and had a fiery temper.

I don't know how well he teaches his apprentices, but at least I admire his character.

Of course, one cannot follow the example of other young people who apprentice under a master, spending three years building a foundation, then three years doing odd jobs, before finally receiving the true skills.

The cucumber dish was already cold.

Just as Zhuang Hongxiu said, you have to make the other party take it very seriously. Moreover, you can't cause any resentment; it's best to let it happen naturally.

……

Chapter Fifteen: Tranquil Thoughts, Talented and Beautiful

Just as Li Xin and Zhuang Hongxiu were discussing the "Eight Beauties of the Capital".

The woman they were constantly talking about, who was just as capable as any man, was getting a little anxious.

At the Yuanshun Escort Agency's martial arts arena, Wang Jingya finished performing a set of the "Wind and Cloud Six Harmonies Saber" technique, and cheers came from the sidelines.

On the contrary, the middle-aged man sitting far away under the flowering tree put down his teacup and couldn't help but shake his head.

This man had a long face and a broad forehead, with bright and piercing eyes. He sat upright on a stone bench, exuding an air of unwavering composure.

It was Wang Zhengyi, the chief镖头 (bodyguard/escort) of Yuanshun镖局 (escort agency), also known as "Big Knife Wang Wu" (Big Knife Wang Wu).

Even without a knife in his hand, his fierce and sharp aura was enough to make people afraid to look him in the eye.

"Xiaoya went out for a while, but something happened. She seems a bit distracted."

He sighed, "Her swordsmanship lacks focus. Although she managed to make the sword move with her body, she didn't manage to make her body move with her breath. She's clearly distracted. Changming, what do you think?"

"Father, don't make things difficult for Uncle Ming. Nothing happened on the way."

However, this time my daughter has met a promising talent. I'd like to persuade him to become our disciple and carry on our Liuhe Dao (Six Harmonies Knife) tradition.

Unfortunately, we lost them at the city gate and haven't been able to find them since; we've been looking for them all day...

Senior Brother Yan and Junior Brother Qiu's swordsmanship isn't very good, and they're not very well-informed either. I'll have to find them for a proper training session next time.

"Good apprentice?"

Wang Zhengyi became interested. "How good is it? Xiaoya, don't give me that look."

Changming, Xiaoya is being silly, are you going to join in his silly antics?

I don't know if she found a good apprentice, but she's definitely hiding a lot of important information.

One knows one's own daughter best.

Xiaoya has grown bigger and bigger with training, but it would be wrong for anyone to think that she is not quick-witted.

In reality, this girl is very shrewd; she's adept at avoiding the important issues and setting traps.

Before you know it, even you, her father, could be fooled by her.

The lineage of the Six Harmony Saber technique at Yuanshun Escort Agency is indeed facing a generational gap...

The disciples under his tutelage lacked the necessary resolve and courage; there was simply no one capable of carrying on the mantle.

The only daughter, however, practiced very well and unexpectedly grasped the essence of internal and external harmony, understanding the true meaning of swordsmanship.

But after all, she's a delicate young lady...

Escorting goods is a job that involves braving wind and rain.

When we talk about enduring hardship, we really mean enduring hardship.

He only had this one precious daughter, how could he bear to let her spend her days wandering between the white mountains and black waters, mingling with those rough men who licked blood from the sword?

Wouldn't it be better to marry into a good family, live a peaceful and happy life, and be a good wife and mother?

Unfortunately, one of the biggest problems in the world is that children often don't become the kind of people their parents expect them to be.

The more you try to stop her from doing something, the more she'll do it.

The girl said she had found a promising apprentice, and he was naturally interested, but he couldn't just accept her without a clear explanation.

Gu Changming glanced at Wang Jingya and decided to tell the truth.

Chief Escort Wang is rough on the outside but meticulous on the inside, and has a deep understanding of the situation. No lie can fool him.

"Here's what happened: I met three siblings on the road. The eldest brother was sixteen or seventeen, the second brother was ten, and the youngest sister was about four or five."

Such a group, wanting to join a caravan by the roadside and seek a safe journey, wouldn't be a problem...

“At sixteen or seventeen, if they have good aptitude and are agile, they are not unteachable,” Wang Zhengyi nodded.

"No, Er Ya is talking about the ten-year-old."

Gu Changming chuckled.

"What can you tell from a ten-year-old? Could it be that he has exceptional talent, with twin dragon spine bones?"