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

"It's alright, those good-for-nothings can't hurt me."

Li Xin tugged at his lips and said softly, casually reaching out to cover the marks on his collar where the spear had slashed his collar.

"That's good, that's good. Our young master will be invincible sooner or later."

However, they outnumber us and have the upper hand. Unless we're forced into a corner, there's no need for us to fight for temporary dominance; after all, there's plenty of time in the future.

Zhuang Hongxiu smiled broadly, hesitated for a moment, and then gently persuaded him.

That makes sense.

Li Xin changed the subject: "What about my elder brother and the others? They were secretly following behind us earlier, but thankfully nothing went wrong."

As soon as the words left his mouth, he heard his front door creak open a crack, and the group of people stealthily slipped inside in the darkness.

Yang Fan lagged behind, put down his package, and closed and bolted the door.

"Hongxiu, Yue'er, come here. Oh, Xiaohu isn't asleep either. Come here and meet your new friends."

This is Qiao'er, surnamed Fang. The young girl has a fiery temper and a sharp tongue, but she is also clever and extremely kind to her friends.

This is Dong Zhu. He is kind-hearted and honest, so please don't bully him.

From now on, they will be family, just like Yang Fan and Xiao Hu. Let's all get along well.

Hongxiu, these girls are all following you, learning literature and martial arts, and they're building their foundation with you first.

I don't expect you to be able to write or do math, but at least you should be able to read a newspaper. As for martial arts, let's start practicing.

"Don't worry, young master, I understand."

Zhuang Hongxiu stepped forward and curtsied. Seeing that the newcomers Qiao'er and Dong Zhu seemed a little awkward, she went over, took Qiao'er's hand, and chatted with her for a few moments. She then reached out and patted Dong Zhu's head…

Soon, the group relaxed, each offering their own words of comfort.

They assigned rooms to the east and west wing rooms and settled the group of little ones in.

Everyone gathered together and had a belated dinner.

After the children had all fallen asleep, Li Xin said, "Let's calculate how much silver we have."

Li Cheng scratched his head and chuckled, "I can't count, so I won't. I haven't practiced my stance yet tonight."

"Alright, alright, go practice standing meditation."

Li Xin said irritably.

He knew that his elder brother must have felt powerless tonight and was anxious to improve his strength quickly.

Think about it too.

The older brother certainly didn't want his younger brother to be the one fighting to the death every time, while he could only watch helplessly.

"Perhaps, after some time, he will realize that human strength has its limits. Hard work alone is not very effective."

Zhuang Hongxiu sighed.

Li Xin shook his head, "Look at you, so young yet so old, what are you lamenting about? In a while, once I learn a skill, I can help you improve your martial arts by leaps and bounds. Hmm, you too, I'll guarantee you'll become a master."

Really?

Zhuang Hongxiu's previous air of old-fashionedness vanished instantly, replaced by bright, sparkling eyes.

"Of course it's true, we don't lie to our own people."

"Pinky promise".

Zhuang Hongxiu completely forgot about the difference between superiors and inferiors and even dared to stick out her little finger.

The skin on the little finger is delicate and fair, with veins as fine as silk threads, clearly visible under the light.

"childish."

Li Xin pushed her little finger away and turned to open the package.

In his heart, he was thinking that, according to legend, Erlang Shen's eyes were as sharp as lightning, and he was most famous for his three eyes.

And the Monkey King, that monkey, was also famous for his fiery eyes.

Whichever one activates the eye technique, one's eyesight will undergo a complete transformation.

By then, if they could clearly see the martial arts skills and physical weaknesses of their elder brother Li Cheng and Hongxiu, and train them accordingly, their martial arts would improve by leaps and bounds.

He who knows others is wise; he who knows himself is enlightened.

In terms of interpersonal relationships, this means having a keen understanding of the ways of the world.

When applied to martial arts, it demonstrates a commanding perspective and keen insight.

If one truly acquires eye-tracking techniques like "insight," even the title of "Master" wouldn't be enough to describe them.

That is the ultimate secret technique for cultivating power.

……

"Not counting these gold and silver pieces, the gold and silver alone, converted into silver, would amount to 1,300 taels..."

After a long period of counting.

Zhuang Hongxiu finally let out a slow breath.

Even with her perspective, she felt this was no small sum.

This only represents a small portion of the magistrate's official income; it does not include his family's estates and properties, as well as various hidden and untraceable assets.

"Young master, the money for buying the medicine is almost enough."

Originally, I could have gone to all the pharmacies to stock up these next few days; the sooner the better. However, I'm worried..."

"There's nothing to worry about. Is that what you're thinking? Nancheng isn't lacking in experts or troops."

However, unless those people are stupid, they won't make the same mistake again.

Li Xin was very certain of this.

In tonight's battle, he destroyed one of the six fortresses of the Southern Camp.

Furthermore, they killed half of the elite troops and commanding officers of the Southern Camp headquarters.

This is like back in my previous life, when I wiped out an entire police force. I also wiped out half of the Major Crimes Unit and the Special Duties Unit.

In this situation, if the other side doesn't send troops into the city, they can only watch helplessly as this "ruthless bandit" lives a carefree life.

As for whether troops will be sent?

Of course, it's unlikely.

In the eyes of others, he was just an individual, a lone thief on a solo mission, not a force to be reckoned with.

They did not raise any banners or shout slogans of rebellion.

Under such circumstances, no matter how crazy they were, the imperial court would not send troops to surround and kill them.

They can't afford to lose face.

"What's wrong? What happened?"

Seeing that Zhuang Hongxiu's expression seemed a little off, Li Xin asked in confusion.

"That's right, when the young master went out earlier, someone threw a stone over the courtyard wall with a piece of paper wrapped around it."

Zhuang Hongxiu took out a crumpled piece of Xuan paper.

The inscription read: "The Wan Hua Lou has issued a hero's call, inviting masters from all directions. They have also laid down the killing formation 'Azure Dragon Emerging from the Water,' which has become a dragon's den and a tiger's lair; do not act rashly."

……

Chapter Forty-Seven: Staging a Grand Show

"Who sent this message?"

Li Xin looked at the handwriting on the note, his expression shifting slightly.

The calligraphy is strong and elegant, and although the skill in copying model texts is insufficient, it has its own unique style.

The handwriting is bold and vigorous, penetrating the paper.

"He must be a martial artist."

Zhuang Hongxiu frowned slightly and guessed, "I've thought about it for a long time and I reckon the person who sent the letter probably won't be able to show themselves."

Or rather, he didn't want to show himself.

They probably want to help us, but we can't rule out the possibility that they're just looking to sit back and watch the fight, hoping to put the young master on his guard so they can better cripple the Qing family business.

She analyzed it carefully, counting on her fingers:

"In this way, there are two possibilities: one is a neutral force like Yuanshun Escort Agency, and the other is a force closely related to Cheng's Bagua Boxing School."

Another possibility is that the Qinglong Chamber of Commerce intervened, or even that the Feng company extended an olive branch.

It's understandable that the Yuanshun Escort Agency has feelings for her; Wang Jingya has always acted very close to her.

I haven't seen him these days.

It wasn't that the young lady gave up the idea of ​​luring herself to Yuan Shun to learn knife skills.

Rather, she was very busy.

According to a hint from Senior Sister Feiyan, some of the bodyguards from Yuanshun Escort Agency have been protecting certain people recently.

Meanwhile, the escort agency was short-handed because a batch of goods had been robbed and negotiations were needed.

She simply didn't have time to come to Cheng's Martial Arts School to poach talent.

Otherwise, given her personality, she would have already been using all her charm and persuasion, trying every day to seduce him.

Thinking of Wang Jingya, Li Xin couldn't help but smile slightly.

It's quite possible that the girl received the news and sent someone to secretly deliver the message.

Because she had to consider the position of Yuanshun Escort Agency and couldn't afford to antagonize the forces of the martial arts world too much.

Running a security escort agency is all about opening your doors to do business; it all depends on connections.

You can't just fight your way through with your martial arts skills.

With enemies on all sides, how many skilled fighters can a single king-character flag possibly defeat?

Individuals may have biases, but security escort agencies cannot.

They're dealing with "face".

If the escort agency discovers any secret information, it can only convey it secretly, showing goodwill while avoiding excessively offending the Qing family and the forces behind them.

The same principle applies to those in the martial arts world who are on good terms with Master Cheng Yuanhua.

I don't really want to take sides publicly and get involved in this life-or-death struggle.

"It is indeed possible that the Yuanshun Escort Agency and the disciples of Master Yin in the palace exchanged messages..."

Have the personnel of the Qinglong Chamber of Commerce and Fengzihao had any conflicts with Qingzihao recently?

Li Xin practiced martial arts behind closed doors, rarely venturing out except for the Cheng Family Bagua and his own courtyard.

On the contrary, Zhuang Hongxiu would take time out every day to investigate and was able to obtain some useful information...

"The [Feng] group needs no introduction. They'll seize any opportunity to grab territory. They have both cooperation and enmity with the [Qing] group. Given the chance, they'll stab each other in the back; nothing they do would be surprising."

The Qinglong Chamber of Commerce had eight prime commercial properties recently seized by the Angus people under the pretext of opening a church school. Then, the Qingzi Company took advantage of the situation and looted the properties.

They might be powerless against the Angusa people, and wouldn't even dare to hold a grudge, but they harbor deep hatred for a partner like [Qing] who stabbed them in the back. Therefore, the Chamber of Commerce might also send a message.

Hongxiu blinked her big eyes, her brows and the corners of her eyes filled with worry.

They were afraid that their young master might act impulsively and charge forward.

"Don't look at me like that. The situation at Wan Hua Lou is quite different from today's."

Li Xin shook his head and sighed, "Hongxiu, there's something you don't know. This morning in the Cheng family's courtyard, experts from the Blissful Sect came to cause trouble. Their words implied that they were targeting me."

Master intervened and injured Monk Jinzhong. As a result, our courtyard was visited by soldiers again…

He chuckled.

"If we ignore it, the tigers and wolves who were just watching will also join in."