The weather was gradually turning cold, though noon was warm and pleasant.
Yang Jing sat on an old square stool, leaning against the doorway of the main room, basking in the sun while considering his plans from here on.
“Feng Lei, don’t say any more. Our family has no intention of selling the land.”
Suddenly, the sound of an argument came from outside the courtyard gate. Several of the voices were very familiar—they were clearly his grandfather’s and grandmother’s.
“Hm?” Yang Jing frowned and rose to his feet, about to go out and take a look.
He had only just stood up when he saw his mother, Liu Cuiling, tie on a gray cloth apron and hurry out with a kitchen knife in hand. Even then, she did not forget to warn Yang Jing, “Jing’er, don’t come out. Wait at home.”
Yang Jing did not actually hide inside. He followed her to the courtyard gate. Liu Cuiling glanced at Yang Jing, who had come after her, and said nothing. She merely shifted her body to stand in front of him.
In front of the courtyard gate stood five men, all dressed in coarse cloth short jackets and trousers. The burly man at their head had his chest bared, a tuft of black hair on it, and a vicious look on his face.
Having received the original body’s memories, Yang Jing knew who these people were. They were all local ruffians who bullied the countryside. The black-haired strongman at their head was named Feng Lei, and the other four were his lackeys.
“Yang Shouzhuo, don’t refuse a toast only to drink a forfeit.
“Those two mu of your family’s northern fields are now surrounded by Master Ning’s land. I advise you all to know what’s good for you and open your eyes.
“There are some people you can afford to offend, and some you can’t.
“Master Ning is merciful and is willing to pay for your land. If it were some other rich and powerful master who took a liking to your fields, he could use any little trick he pleased, and not only would you fail to keep those two mu of good land, you wouldn’t even get a single copper coin.”
Feng Lei crossed his arms in front of his chest, emphasizing the thick muscles on them, and threatened them with a smile that did not reach his eyes.
When the Yang family heard Feng Lei’s threats, their faces turned slightly pale.
They knew very well that Feng Lei was not exaggerating. In this day and age, some landlords and local tyrants would stop at nothing to annex land.
“My patience has its limits.” Feng Lei snorted coldly. “Master Ning said he’ll give you another month to think it over properly. After a month, Master Ning won’t want these two mu of yours anymore. When that time comes, hehe—”
Feng Lei’s fierce gaze swept across the faces of the Yang family one by one, the meaning of his threat self-evident.
Standing at the gate of his own courtyard, Yang Jing also heard Feng Lei’s words clearly. “So this is courtesy before force? After a month, if the Yang family refuses to sell those two mu of good land to that Master Ning, I’m afraid these people will start using harsher methods.”
Feng Lei turned around, and his gaze finally landed on Yang Jing, who was standing partly behind Liu Cuiling. Under Yang Jing’s gaze, he slowly curled his lips, revealing a cruel sneer.
He knew that the Yang family brat had entered a martial arts school in the city, and originally he had had some scruples.
But half a month ago, this Yang family brat had actually been frightened unconscious in an old residence. Feng Lei knew that old residence too. It only looked a little eerie; there absolutely could not be any ghosts there. Back when he had fallen on hard times, he had even slept in that abandoned house for several nights.
With such a weak will, even if the Yang family brat really practiced martial arts, he would never amount to anything. Sooner or later, he would be expelled from the school.
The misgivings in Feng Lei’s heart immediately lessened greatly, and he became more willing to press the Yang family further.
This brat is so cowardly. Maybe if I glare at him, I can scare him stiff. Such a thought rose in Feng Lei’s mind. Then he withdrew his gaze, raised his left arm, and waved lightly. “Let’s go!”
As soon as he spoke, the four lackeys followed Feng Lei away, leaving only the Yang family in front of the courtyard gate.
Only then did the neighbors dare to gather around and offer comfort, while also cursing Feng Lei and those villains for aiding a tyrant.
After a few brief words, Old Master Yang Shouzhuo called everyone back into the courtyard.
Once they returned home, everyone looked weighed down with worry.
Feng Lei’s threats just now had cast a shadow over all their hearts.
Old Master Yang Shouzhuo took out a tobacco pipe, frowned, and sat on the steps before the main room, puffing away with a patter.
His mother, Liu Cuiling, lowered her head and went into the kitchen to prepare lunch.
“If it really won’t do, then we’ll sell those two mu of good land. It just so happens Jing’er needs money for his martial arts practice too,” the old master said, tapping his pipe.
“The situation is stronger than we are. Master Ning wants to join up all the land north of the village into one piece, so he must have his eyes fixed on our two mu. Sigh.” Grandmother Qin sighed.
“Let’s wait and see. Didn’t Feng Lei say he’d give us another month? We’ll look for connections and see if we can get Master Ning to raise the price a little,” the old master said with tightly furrowed brows. “On Yan’er’s husband’s side, I think they have some connection with the steward of the Ning household. Later, have Yan’er go ask around.”
“All right, I’ll have Yan’er ask.” Grandmother Qin nodded. When her gaze fell on her grandson standing to the side, her heart felt a little steadier. “Once Jing’er succeeds in martial arts, what are a few mu of land worth? Perhaps our family might even enjoy a life like the Ning family’s.”
Yang Jing listened to his grandfather and grandmother’s conversation, and his heart sank slightly.
Over several generations, the Yang family had accumulated twenty-two mu of farmland, five mu of which were good fields and seventeen mu poor fields. With so much land, they ranked highly in the village.
But in order to support Yang Jing’s martial arts training, they had sold it until only the last two mu of good fields and ten mu of poor fields remained.
It was only because the Yang family had a fairly solid foundation that, even after selling so much land, they could still support the family’s daily life.
But now, those two mu of good fields had still been targeted by the local tyrants.
“Father, Mother, Jing’er, come eat.”
His mother, Liu Cuiling, poked her head out of the kitchen and called to the three people in the courtyard.
Soon after, the food was carried from the kitchen to the stone table in the courtyard, and the family gathered around it to eat.
Yang Jing also sat down beside his grandfather and looked at the food on the stone table.
In his bowl was gleaming white rice.
In everyone else’s bowls, there was coarse rice mixed with some wild vegetables.
There were also two dishes on the table. On a small plate lay seven or eight pieces of pork ribs. On another small plate were steamed wild vegetables of an unknown kind, and in a small bowl were some pickled vegetables.
“Jing’er, eat meat.”
Old Master Yang picked up the small plate of ribs and placed it directly by Yang Jing’s hand. Then he picked up a blackish-green cornbread that looked very hard, took a bite, and put a strip of pickled vegetable into his mouth.
Yang Jing looked at his grandfather, grandmother, and mother eating only those wild vegetables and pickles that were clearly unappetizing. His heart felt a little sour, but after interacting with them over this period of time, he knew he could not persuade his family otherwise. He could only accept it.
Knock, knock, knock.
Just as the four of them were eating, someone knocked on the courtyard gate.
Their expressions all changed, worried that the villain Feng Lei had returned.
“I’ll go take a look.” Liu Cuiling put down her chopsticks and was about to stand.
“Don’t you go. Old woman, you go,” Old Master Yang said, looking at Grandmother.
Grandmother Qin was not stout, but she was somewhat tall. It was only that her back had already become a little hunched, making her seem shorter. At this moment, she wore a coarse blue shirt washed nearly white, and her graying hair was loosely coiled with an old wooden hairpin.
Grandmother nodded, rose briskly to her feet, and walked lightly to the courtyard gate. Peering through the crack, she immediately let out a breath of relief and turned her head to Old Master Yang. “It’s the eldest’s family.”
After saying this, she opened the courtyard gate.
Two figures walked in from outside.
One was a middle-aged woman with a sallow complexion. Her hair was tied messily behind her head with hemp rope. The brown robe on her body was covered in patches, and the cuffs were so worn that the cotton wadding showed through.
Beside the middle-aged woman was an equally thin youth. Because he was too gaunt, his cheekbones protruded slightly, and his lips had little color. However, his back was very straight at the moment, and his gaze fell on the food atop the stone table—more precisely, on that small plate of ribs.
“Father, Mother.”
“Grandfather, Grandmother.”
The middle-aged woman and the thin youth bowed to Old Master Yang.
As the two came in, Yang Jing and his mother Liu Cuiling also stood up.
Liu Cuiling looked warily at the ragged mother and son, especially when she noticed the youth’s gaze fixed on the ribs on the table. Her expression sank slightly.
“Sister-in-law is here,” Liu Cuiling said blandly.
Yang Jing’s gaze also fell on the two people who had entered the courtyard.
He had received the original body’s memories, so naturally he also knew the identities of the two before him.
Old Master Yang and Grandmother Qin had raised two sons and one daughter: the eldest uncle Yang Guang, Yang Jing’s father Yang Gang, and the younger aunt Yang Yan.
Among the three children, Old Master Yang favored his younger son the most, which was Yang Jing’s father, Yang Gang. When the family separated, most of the family’s fields and possessions were given to the second son.
After the separation, he and Grandmother Qin also lived with the second son.
Some days ago, the government had been escorting grain and fodder to the front lines in Caozhou to the east and had recruited some strong men locally to help transport it. The pay offered was quite high.
Considering Yang Jing, this bottomless pit of expense, his father had discussed it with the family—though before they had reached an agreement, he disregarded the family’s objections and signed up for the grain escort team directly.
It was only several days after the escort team left that Old Master Yang found out his eldest son, Yang Guang, had actually also signed up to join that same grain escort team.
The mother and son before them were his eldest uncle Yang Guang’s wife, Madam Xue, and son, Yang An.
“You haven’t eaten yet, have you?” Old Master Yang said, looking at the two of them. “Sit down and eat with us. Old woman, move over and let the eldest’s wife and Little An sit there.”
Old Master Yang knew the situation in his eldest son’s household. Even if they were not at the point of being unable to open the pot, they were not far off. Otherwise, his eldest son, who had always been honest and dutiful, would not have signed up for the team transporting grain to the Caozhou front.
Madam Xue and Yang An sat where Old Master Yang arranged. Whether by coincidence or not, this spot was directly opposite Yang Jing and also the farthest from the plate of ribs.
“Brother An, eat some meat.”
At this moment, Yang Jing pushed the plate of ribs by his hand forward. A natural smile appeared on his face as he looked at his older cousin Yang An.
Having received the original body’s memories, Yang Jing knew that the reason his eldest uncle’s family was now living so miserably was also related to his own family. Back then, when the family separated, Old Master Yang had given most of the good and ordinary fields to his second son Yang Gang’s family, while the fields and belongings given to his eldest uncle’s family had been very few.
If not for the fact that Yang Jing’s martial arts training cost so much, their family would have been living much better than they were now.
Yang Jing’s sudden action made everyone freeze.
His mother Liu Cuiling frowned, a trace of anxiety flashing in her eyes.
Old Master Yang also paused slightly.
In these times, how precious was meat? Old Master Yang had only intended to let Yang An and his mother share a meal. He had not planned to let them eat meat. In this family, only Yang Jing was qualified to eat meat, because Yang Jing was practicing martial arts. Once he achieved success in martial arts, the entire clan would be able to rise with him. What would change was the family’s future.
Madam Xue and Yang An were both extremely surprised.
They had not expected Yang Jing to take the initiative to let them eat meat.
In the past, whenever Yang Jing saw them, although he had not shown it openly, there had been an invisible arrogance about him. He would never take the initiative to speak.
“I—I won’t eat it.” Yang An shook his head and took a bite of the dry, hard cornbread in his hand. “You should eat it. You’re practicing martial arts. You need meat.”
Yang An had originally longed to eat meat, but Yang Jing’s sudden courtesy instead made him become reserved. After saying his refusal, he wanted nothing more than to punch himself twice.
But in the next moment, he saw a pair of chopsticks pick up a piece of rib and bring it before him, placing it atop the cornbread in his hand.
Gulp.
Yang An swallowed. Then he raised his head and looked at Yang Jing opposite him, astonishment flashing in his eyes.
“Little An, eat, eat.” Old Master Yang waved his hand. Although he felt it was somewhat a pity to let Yang An eat that rib, seeing the two brothers seem so much closer, he also felt very comforted.
“Madam Xue, did you come here for something?” Old Master Yang turned his head to Madam Xue and asked.
Madam Xue raised her head and said, “Father, I wanted to borrow some money from you. Little An… Little An also wants to practice martial arts. It’s just that the apprenticeship fee his father and I saved for him is still short by six taels of silver. I wanted to borrow six taels from you.”
After Madam Xue finished speaking, everyone present froze.
Pfft.
Liu Cuiling could not help laughing aloud. She looked at Madam Xue and shook her head. “Sister-in-law, do you think just anyone can practice martial arts? How could it be that simple? Practicing martial arts requires innate aptitude. Without aptitude, even if you practiced for a hundred years, you wouldn’t accomplish anything. Back when Jing’er became a disciple, his aptitude was specially examined first. Only because he was qualified to practice martial arts did he successfully enter as a disciple.”
Grandmother Qin, standing to the side, also nodded at this time. “The second son’s wife is right. If practicing martial arts were so easy, there wouldn’t be only a few people in our village who practice it. And besides… besides, the cost of practicing martial arts is too high. With Little Jing alone practicing martial arts, our family has already had to sell oxen and land. We can’t withstand Little An practicing martial arts too…”
Old Master Yang fell silent for a moment, then nodded.
He did not speak, but his attitude was self-evident.
Clearly, he did not support Yang An practicing martial arts, nor did he have silver to lend Madam Xue.
“Father—” Madam Xue could not help growing anxious when she saw this.
When the family split back then, the old master had only given the eldest household six mu of land. Over the years, after encountering several hardships, they had sold another four mu. Added to the poor harvests these past two years, the household’s grain was almost gone, and life was tight. As Yang An gradually grew up, relying on those two mu of land alone could not support the family at all. But whether they wanted Yang An to become an apprentice in the city or practice martial arts, they needed money.
Her husband had gone to the Caozhou front, and she did not know when he would return.
Now, her father-in-law was already Madam Xue’s only hope.
“Aunt, why not let Brother An practice with me first? Although I can’t teach him my school’s martial arts, I can teach Brother An some methods to temper his body, qi, and blood. It can count as laying the foundation first. When you’ve saved enough money later, he can formally take a master. With a foundation by then, his progress will also be faster.” Yang Jing looked at Madam Xue and spoke.
As his voice fell, the courtyard went quiet.
Yang An, who had not spoken all this while, suddenly raised his head. His eyes, filled with surprise and joy, stared fixedly at Yang Jing. He had never imagined that Yang Jing would actually be willing to teach him martial arts. It was as if he were seeing this younger cousin for the first time.
Madam Xue was stunned, and then she could not help becoming excited as well.
At this moment, Liu Cuiling frowned tightly, turned her head to Yang Jing, and said with a stern expression, “Jing’er, don’t fool around. You’re at a critical time in your martial arts training. How can you divide your attention? The most important thing for you now is to practice your martial arts well. Only when you have ability can you take care of the family. Only then will you not have failed the expectations of your grandfather, grandmother, uncle, aunt, and your father and me!”
“Mother, I know what I’m doing.”
Yang Jing shook his head and explained to his mother, “What I’ll teach Brother An are only some simple methods to temper the flesh, qi, and blood. The main thing will still depend on Brother An’s own effort. It won’t delay my own martial arts practice. Besides, the school master has said that the process of teaching others is also a process of reviewing and deepening one’s own mastery. It will only benefit me, not harm me.”
Liu Cuiling looked at Yang Jing half-believingly. “Really?”
“Really!” Yang Jing smiled and nodded.
Liu Cuiling said no more and looked toward Old Master Yang.
Although the old master was advanced in age, his status in the family was still the highest. Many major decisions depended mainly on him, including the family split back then, Yang Jing’s martial arts training, and the later sale of land.
“Mm—” Old Master Yang pondered for a moment and finally nodded. “All right. For the time being, Jing’er, you will teach An’er martial arts. But remember, you must not delay your own training. Only if you practice martial arts well will our family have a future.”
“Yes, Grandfather,” Yang Jing said with a solemn nod.
“Jing’er, you come home on the first and fifteenth of every month to collect silver. Then use that time to teach your brother martial arts,” Old Master Yang said.