It was late at night, around midnight.
After seeing off Gu Junrong and the others, Chen Ming sat in his room reading, while a pot of yellow wine was warming on the clay stove beside him, filling the room with its aroma.
As a modern person, he valued privacy and didn't need anyone to serve him at night. Chunxiang and Xiaxiang, the two maids, had separate quarters, leaving him alone in the courtyard.
Suddenly, the window was pushed open from the outside, and a woman's voice came through, "From now on, at least we don't have to fight outside the alley."
A shadow flipped inside—it was Zhong Shuyu in black night-clothes.
Chen Ming seemed to have expected her; he had prepared two cups and said, "You could come in through the front door."
Zhong Shuyu retorted, "How can we have a secret meeting at night and walk through the front door?"
She sat boldly on the stool opposite him, staring at the pot of yellow wine while swallowing a bit, "Where did you get this wine?"
"Home-brewed."
Chen Ming lifted the pot and poured her a cup.
Zhong Shuyu drank it in one gulp, her eyes lighting up, praising, "Good wine."
"Aren't you afraid I poisoned it?"
"Why would you poison it?" Zhong Shuyu giggled, "If you wanted to kill me, you'd have done it already. And if you wanted my body, adding some aphrodisiac might spice things up—it's a pleasure of the bedchamber."
Having just drunk the wine, her eyes carried a touch of allure.
Chen Ming knew she wasn't a proper lady, but such bold words still threw him off a bit.
In the past ten months, Zhong Shuyu would seek him for sparring every few days. Over time, he noticed a pattern—every first, fourth, and seventh day of the month, she'd come, like visiting the market.
After nearly a hundred bouts, even though they seldom chatted, they became quite familiar.
Sitting down and chatting like this was a first for them.
He said, "Your drinking tolerance is low; you start talking nonsense after just one cup."
Zhong Shuyu disappointedly replied, "I thought you were different from other men, but it turns out you're just as dull." With that, she picked up the wine pot and drank directly.
Chen Ming sensed she was acting unusually today but didn't ask in accordance with their tacit understanding.
In these ten months, he never asked about her affairs.
Nor did she ask about his, maintaining a pure practice partnership.
Their relationship lasted this long precisely because of this unspoken understanding.
Zhong Shuyu finished the pot of yellow wine in one go, wiped her lips, and drew her sword, "Come on, today I must win against you."
Chen Ming picked up the long sword resting nearby and followed her out of the courtyard.
"Watch my sword."
They began sparring in the courtyard.
...
After thirty-odd moves, Zhong Shuyu suddenly exclaimed angrily, "I'm done."
Chen Ming stopped, puzzled, looking at her.
Zhong Shuyu glared at him, "You always hold back for me; doesn't that annoy you?"
She had sparred with two senior brothers; initially, they were patient. After a few times, they started making excuses to avoid her. Even her senior brothers acted like this.
Yet this man sparred with her every few days without a trace of impatience, always composed, tirelessly sparring past fifty moves before narrowly defeating her.
It was the same every time.
Even though his skills far surpassed hers, he didn't need even ten moves to win.
Initially, Zhong Shuyu was motivated by a sort of mischievous curiosity, wanting to see how long he would endure. A month passed, three months passed, six months passed…
He remained unchanged.
Unknowingly, she began liking this feeling. Chen Ming's encouraging eyes, his breadth, his inclusiveness, guided her, inspired her…
It was something she had never experienced from anyone else.
"Why are you so good to me?"
When Zhong Shuyu asked this, tears welled up in her eyes.
Chen Ming was puzzled, thinking, we're just practice partners, what are you imagining?
Zhong Shuyu had come this far, so she decided to go all the way, "I'm leaving, going somewhere far away. I don't know when I'll be back or if I'll ever come back…"
Chen Ming thought for a moment and said, "Then I wish you a safe journey, miss."
Zhong Shuyu saw he was still so dense and got so angry her face turned red. Biting her lip, she finally summoned the courage, "Do you… want me to leave?"
Wait, you're serious?
Chen Ming felt his scalp tingle, and could only answer bravely, "Whether to go or stay is a decision the young lady should make herself."
A gust of wind blew, causing tears hanging on the corner of the girl's eyes to fall.
With a clatter.
The long sword fell, and the girl turned to run away, covering her face.
Chen Ming watched her figure vanish into the night and sighed.
This was the second sword she had left here, truly wealthy.
Thinking about the only person willing to spar with him having left him in a huff, he felt somewhat regretful.
...
The next morning, Chen Ming sat with his elder brother, sister-in-law, and nieces and nephews for breakfast.
Niece Chen Lirong was almost two years old, still cared for by a wet nurse, being fed some meat porridge.
Nephew Chen Lide had grown a year and sat upright, looking composed despite the delicious food on the table, although his secret swallowing didn't escape Chen Ming's keen sense.
It seemed this fellow was a natural foodie.
Only after Chen Ming sat did everyone start eating.
After finishing the meal, the two brothers went to the study.
Chen Rui expressed some concern, "Er'lang, I heard Inspector Sun sent people over yesterday. Was there some unpleasantness?"
"Yes."
"Was it about the Martial Arts Hall Association?"
Chen Ming felt a bit of relief as it showed his elder brother had matured since a year ago and was aware of the family's current crisis.
"Big brother, you know about it. Don't worry, I have a way to handle it."
Seeing he had a plan, Chen Rui dropped the topic, "That's good."
He believed Er'lang could manage it well.
Just then, someone hurriedly ran in from outside, "It's bad, a group claiming to be from the Martial Arts Hall Association has forced their way in, saying they want to seek justice from the second young master."
They're quick to come.
Chen Ming was a bit surprised and said to his elder brother, Chen Rui, "I'll handle it. You go keep sister-in-law and the kids company."
Chen Rui nodded, understanding he couldn't help with martial matters, and returned to the backyard to comfort his wife.
"Let's go, lead the way."
Chen Ming walked towards the door, feeling a surge of courage.
Over the past ten months, Chen Ming's primary source of experience points came from the group of students he taught, currently numbering twenty-eight. Plus, his occasional spars with Zhong Shuyu. Altogether, in these three hundred days, he gained eighteen thousand experience points.
Of those, eight thousand were allocated to the , advancing his cultivation to the eighth degree.
Seven thousand were invested in the . He reserved over three thousand points for later use.
After nearly a year of silent growth, he could finally openly challenge the martial artists of other martial arts schools.