A Martial Saint Among Men: From Joining a Martial Arts School

The next day. Noon.

Chu Xuan followed Ren Yan to a private room in the restaurant.

As soon as I entered, a middle-aged man with a prosperous face stood up to greet me warmly. It was Ren Yan's father, Ren Mingcheng!

Chu Xuan also learned from Ren Yan that Ren Mingcheng was in the spice business, which was of medium size in Qingshan City. No wonder he could raise Ren Yan to be so plump and healthy and even send him to the martial arts school to learn martial arts.

But it seems they lack the strength to hire martial artists as retainers!

"This humble one, Chu Xuan, greets Master Ren!" Chu Xuan was the first to bow and pay his respects.

"You flatter me, you flatter me!" Ren Mingcheng quickly stopped Chu Xuan, saying, "Nephew, you're too kind. I, Ren Mingcheng, am just a small merchant; I can't possibly accept the title of nephew. If you don't mind, just call me Uncle Ren!"

"Uncle Ren!"

Chu Xuan clasped his hands in a fist salute once more.

"Haha, my dear nephew, please come and sit down!" Ren Mingcheng warmly invited Chu Xuan to sit down, and then instructed the waiting staff to serve the dishes.

Soon, dishes were served one after another.

All the dishes were meat, and the portions were quite generous. Clearly, Ren Mingcheng knew that Chu Xuan was a martial artist and needed a lot of meat to nourish himself, which is why he specifically chose these dishes.

The group chatted casually while eating.

Of course, it was mainly Ren Mingcheng who asked questions, inquiring about Chu Xuan's situation and his experience in learning martial arts, etc., while Chu Xuan answered in an orderly manner.

The chubby Ren Yan was eating.

It seems that his mission was to bring Chu Xuan here.

Of course, Ren Mingcheng was also careful with his questions, avoiding sensitive topics such as Chu Xuan's physical constitution. It's possible he already knew the situation from Ren Yan.

After some casual conversation, we were almost full and satisfied.

Ren Mingcheng, having gained a basic understanding of Chu Xuan's situation, went straight to the point: "Nephew, you must have already learned from Ren Yan why I invited you here today. I intend to sponsor your martial arts training; what do you think?"

Chu Xuan was somewhat surprised to hear this.

It was actually a grant!

He had heard the word "funding" from Ren Yan before, and thought that the kid didn't know the difference between "funding" and "offering," but Ren Mingcheng couldn't possibly not know.

Hiring a retainer requires a contract! Although the relationship isn't one of employment, it's a cooperative one. If Ren Mingcheng hires Chu Xuan as a retainer, Chu Xuan must act when needed!

Otherwise, he would have to return double the amount of silver he had previously received! Moreover, his reputation would be ruined, and no one would hire Chu Xuan again!

But funding is different; there aren't as many restrictions!

In other words, when the Ren family encounters difficulties, they turn to Chu Xuan. Chu Xuan can choose to help or not; as long as the excuse is reasonable, no one can criticize him.

Of course, the Bai family's sponsorship was an exception!

Because the two sides were in very different statuses back then, there is no comparison with today.

Ren Mingcheng is not the Bai family anymore, and Chu Xuan is not the same Chu Xuan he once was! If Ren Mingcheng were to make demands like the Bai family, it wouldn't be a donation, but an insult.

Chu Xuan asked, "Uncle Ren, are you sure you want to provide financial assistance?"

"Yes! It's a grant!" Ren Mingcheng nodded in confirmation and chuckled. "Nephew, to be honest, my Ren family is a small family, not comparable to the Bai family, and we don't have as many troubles to solve."

"Of course, we don't have the resources to hire a martial arts master as our retainer!"

"The reason I offered to sponsor my nephew is twofold: firstly, to thank him for taking care of Ren Yan; and secondly, to establish a good relationship with him."

"If the Ren family ever encounters any trouble in the future, I would be extremely grateful if you were willing to lend a helping hand. If you are unwilling, that's fine too. Let the Ren family fall into ruin as it may. I only ask that you, my nephew, do what you can to take care of Ren Yan. Of course, this is not a request, but a supplication!"

Chu Xuan understood what the other party meant.

Ren Mingcheng didn't want to hire him to protect his business; rather, he wanted to strengthen his connection with Ren Yan through financial assistance, which would also be a way to leave Ren Yan a way out in the future.

Of course, Ren Mingcheng didn't try to hide anything and made it clear directly.

After a moment of silence, Chu Xuan said, "Uncle Ren should know that my innate talent is only at the lower grade of C, and I'm afraid my future..."

"Hehe, if you had such good aptitude, I wouldn't be the one to sponsor you!" Ren Mingcheng said with a smile. "Nephew, you don't need to worry. As I said, I just want to make a good connection."

"To put it bluntly, they want to achieve big results with little money. They're betting on your future achievements, which will go far beyond this!"

"As for innate talent, it's not absolute! Isn't Liang Qiusong, the third disciple of your Lu Family Martial Arts School's master, the best example? Liang Qiusong's innate talent doesn't seem to be much better than yours, does it?"

Chu Xuan raised an eyebrow, surprised that Ren Mingcheng even knew this.

Liang Qiusong, the third disciple of Master Lu Tong, was only at the C level in terms of innate talent, yet he has already become a martial artist who has mastered the hidden strength. In terms of combat power, he is second only to Master Lu Tong, ranking first among all disciples, and even stronger than his senior brother Wei Hong!

However, Liang Qiusong has not appeared at the martial arts school recently, and Chu Xuan has only heard rumors about him but has never met him in person.

"Since Uncle Ren has put it this way, then I will accept it without hesitation." Chu Xuan cupped his hands in thanks.

"Don't rush to thank me," Ren Mingcheng said with a smile. "My Ren family is a small household and can't afford that much money. We can only give you five taels a month. If you think it's too little, then just pretend I never mentioned it today."

Chu Xuan cupped his hands and said, "This is already a generous gift; how could I dare say it's too little?"

"Haha, then it's settled." Ren Mingcheng was delighted to see Chu Xuan agree, and immediately took out ten taels of silver, saying, "I guessed you might be short of money lately. This ten taels of silver is a two-month subsidy, which I'll give to you in advance. From now on, you'll have to give it to me monthly."

"Thank you, Uncle Ren!"

Chu Xuan accepted the silver, clasped his hands in thanks, and felt a little touched.

I never expected Ren Mingcheng to be so thoughtful.

He is indeed worried about money right now, as not having a temporary post means no income. Although the tuition fee is not urgent, the daily cultivation and supplements still require a large sum of money.

As for the three hundred taels of silver obtained from Xie Hui, they are now completely untouchable!

Ten taels of silver indeed solved his immediate problem!

What's more, the assistance they provided didn't require any return from him.

Chu Xuan didn't say much, but kept this kindness in his heart.

After the meal, Chu Xuan took Ren Yan back to the martial arts school.

In the following days, without having to worry about money, Chu Xuan began his hellish and insane training once again!

The threat from the Three Heroes Gang is like a bomb buried beside him. Although they haven't found anything on him yet, it could explode any day now!

Instead of waiting for the other party to come knocking, it's better to strike first and nip the crisis in the bud!

That evening, Chu Xuan was so exhausted that he almost lost all feeling in his body before he finally stopped to rest.

The next moment, a sense of satisfaction, of finally reaping the rewards of hard work and sweat, filled his heart.

Chu Xuan subconsciously looked at the panel, and a genuine smile appeared on his face!

[Energy Value: 112/500]

[Small Completion of Two-Element Stance (357/3000)]

[Bajiquan Minor Mastery (1/3000)]

Bajiquan, minor mastery, finally a breakthrough!