Are You Deaf? I Said My Talent Has No Limits Chapter 143 : Chapter 143

Chapter 143. An Old Acquaintance

A ridian-Opening Pill?

A flicker passed through Xu Yuan’s expression, and he nodded. “That’s right.”

Zhao Qiusheng’s eyes lit up at once. He hurriedly said, “Then could Master Xu... could you sell one? Don’t worry, I’ll pay in silver. Four hundred tales, how about that?”

As he spoke, he added a little nervously, “It’s just that I’m a bit short on cash right now, so I would need three months to pay it all off...”

Xu Yuan frowned slightly.

A ridian-Opening Pill was highly effective for martial artists below the sixth ridian. He had no use for it himself, but it was an excellent thing to give as a gift or exchange for resources.

If he traded it for silver, he really would be taking a loss.

But looking at Zhao Qiusheng’s face, full of hope, he suddenly rembered the care this man had shown him back when he was still in the outer courtyard.

In the end, that old kindness was sothing he still had to rember.

“Don’t worry, Uncle Zhao.”

Xu Yuan smiled faintly. “It’s only a single ridian-Opening Pill. I’ll bring it to you when the ti cos.”

At those words, Zhao Qiusheng’s face instantly filled with wild joy. He was so excited that even his voice began to tremble.

“This... this is truly many thanks, Master Xu, many thanks!”

He cupped his hands over and over again, looking as if he wanted to kowtow on the spot.

Ever since breaking through to the fourth ridian and gaining a certain amount of authority, he had already built connections with quite a few high-level martial artists. If he could enter the fifth ridian, then his ability to network upward would rise another step.

Xu Yuan waved a hand and said nothing more.

...

After leaving the Affairs Hall, Xu Yuan continued on toward the outer courtyard.

There was soone he wanted to see.

Feng Xiao.

That old martial instructor, who had once cut such an imposing figure in the outer courtyard, now had even more white in his temples than before.

The outer courtyard looked much the sa as ever, and that instructor’s room was still unchanged as well. When Xu Yuan pushed open the door and entered, Feng Xiao was seated behind the desk, holding a yellowed booklet in his hands, reading sothing unknown.

Hearing the sound, he reflexively raised his head.

Then his whole body froze.

“Xu... Battle Overseer Xu?”

Feng Xiao hurriedly rose to his feet, flustered and at a loss, about to bow. But Xu Yuan stepped forward and pressed a hand to his shoulder.

“Instructor Feng, there’s no need for such formality.”

That single address of “Instructor Feng” made Feng Xiao’s eyes grow slightly hot.

To be honest, with his current horizons and cultivation, he could hardly be of any help to Xu Yuan anymore.

Each ti the young man received another promotion, all he could do was quietly send over a gift of congratulations and then watch that figure walk farther and farther away.

He had thought that, sooner or later, this bond between them would fade with ti.

But Xu Yuan’s attitude had never changed.

The two sat facing each other by the desk, chatting casually.

Feng Xiao spoke of how things had been lately in the outer courtyard, spoke of amusing stories about the younger martial trainees, spoke of how an old friend of his had passed away a few days ago, and guessed that he himself would probably soon be assigned to the Level Four zone as well.

Xu Yuan listened quietly, nodding from ti to ti.

When he was about to leave, he took several jin of treasure fish out of his bundle and set them on the desk.

“Instructor Feng, take good care of your health.”

Feng Xiao looked at the departing figure and did not move for a very long ti.

...

After leaving the outer courtyard, Xu Yuan returned to the Affairs Hall once more.

He found Zhao Qiusheng and casually gave him a quiet instruction.

“Feng Xiao has been getting on in years. He has taught for Shangyang Residence for many years, so let him remain in the outer courtyard from now on. That way, he won’t have to run around everywhere anymore.”

Zhao Qiusheng nodded repeatedly and agreed without hesitation. Inwardly, he was becoming more and more satisfied with Xu Yuan’s conduct.

Talent was important, of course, but the quality of rembering kindness and repaying it was far rarer.

Once all that was settled, Xu Yuan left Shangyang Residence, got into a carriage, and headed in another direction.

He had been away from ho for so long that it was ti to go see his elder brother again.

...

The carriage moved through the city and soon stopped in front of a small courtyard house.

By now, this little courtyard had already been bought by Xu Zheng.

He had been doing well at the Fu Cloth Shop, and his monthly stipend had increased by quite a bit as well.

Though the courtyard was not large, it had been kept spotless. Wintersweet had been planted by the wall, and strips of cured at hung beneath the corridor eaves. There was a faint air of everyday life in the air.

When Xu Yuan entered, he saw his sister-in-law, Madam Zhang, sitting in the courtyard enjoying the sun.

And unlike before, her belly was already slightly swollen. She was clearly pregnant.

“A-Yuan, you’re back!”

The mont Madam Zhang saw that it was him, she was both surprised and delighted, imdiately rising to her feet to hurry toward the kitchen.

Xu Yuan stopped her with a smile. “There’s no need to trouble yourself, Sister-in-law. I only ca to have a look.”

A short while later, Xu Zheng also ca back from the cloth shop.

The two brothers sat down together in the main room. Madam Zhang brought over tea, then went into the kitchen to busy herself with preparing a al.

At the dinner table, the atmosphere was originally harmonious, but Xu Yuan could see that Xu Zheng’s brows carried a trace of worry from beginning to end.

Seeing that, Xu Yuan set down his chopsticks. “Big Brother, is sothing wrong?”

Xu Zheng hesitated for a mont, but in the end, he still opened his mouth.

It turned out that over the years he had spent at the Fu Cloth Shop, he had accumulated quite a bit of experience and built many connections. He had also managed to save a little money, and so he had begun to entertain the idea of starting his own business.

But when he truly went around making inquiries, he discovered that opening a cloth shop was far more difficult than he had imagined.

Store location, supply channels, wages for assistants... every single one of those required money. The silver he had saved was not even enough to cover the deposit on a shopfront.

“So now I’ve ended up in an awkward position.”

Xu Zheng gave a bitter smile and shook his head. “If I quit my job, I’m afraid I’ll lose everything. But if I don’t, I can’t help feeling unwilling to accept it...”

Xu Yuan frowned. “Did you quit your work at the cloth shop?”

“No, no, I didn’t.”

Xu Zheng hurriedly waved his hands. “But doing business is far harder than I originally thought. Could it be that I just don’t have the fortune for comrce?”

Looking at his elder brother’s hesitant, overly cautious manner, Xu Yuan suddenly gave a soft laugh.

Xu Zheng and Madam Zhang both looked at him, confusion on their faces.

“Big Brother.” Xu Yuan picked up his teacup, took a sip, and said in a calm voice, “If you’re short on money, you should have just said so earlier. I’m doing fairly well in Shangyang Residence now. I have more than enough resources to let you make a few mistakes.”

Xu Zheng froze, then quickly waved his hands again. “No, no, no, how could that be right? I want to rely on my own ability...”

“Ability?” Xu Yuan cut him off with a half-smile. “Do you have connections, experience, and ideas?”

Xu Zheng nodded. “Those... I do.”

“Then that settles it.” Xu Yuan set down his teacup. “The only thing you lack is silver.”

Xu Zheng still wanted to refuse, but Xu Yuan persuaded him in just a few words.

And as it happened, did Zhao Qiusheng not owe four hundred taels? Using that as his elder brother’s starting capital could not have been more fitting.

...

Xu Yuan stayed in the little courtyard for two days, occasionally offering Xu Zheng so advice.

At the sa ti, he also left a word with Zhao Qiusheng, telling him to deliver the money to his elder brother’s ho when the ti ca.

On the night before he left, the two brothers sat facing each other in the courtyard and drank quite a lot of wine.

With drunken eyes, Xu Zheng patted Xu Yuan on the shoulder and slurred, “A-Yuan, don’t worry, just go out there and make your way... I’ve got things at ho... your sister-in-law, the child, I’ll take good care of them all...”

Looking at that face flushed red from drink, Xu Yuan suddenly rembered those days when the two of them had squeezed together in their broken-down old house, splitting a single stead bun between them.

He smiled softly, but said nothing.

At dawn the next morning, before the sky had even brightened, Xu Yuan quietly left.

The carriage rumbled forward, passed out through the city gates, and headed toward the Level Four zone.

...

The Level Four zone was sowhat different from the Level Three zone.

It lay within the outer city area of Prefecture City. The territory was larger, and the situation was far more chaotic.

There were several tis more martial artists patrolling the streets than in the Level Three zone. Every one of them looked alert, and their armor rang sharply as they moved.

Xu Yuan lifted the carriage curtain and looked at the unfamiliar streets outside the window, silently calculating his next steps.

Very soon, the carriage ca to a stop in front of a residence.

The gates of the estate stood wide open, and a middle-aged man stood there with his hands behind his back, smiling as he looked in this direction.

He looked to be just over fifty, slightly plump, with a kindly face. Yet in those eyes was a trace of shrewdness.

This was none other than Qin Chuan, the eight-ridian Chief Overseer of the Level Four zone.

“Battle Overseer Xu!”

Qin Chuan quickly ca forward with a beaming smile. “I’ve long heard of you. We’ve finally been waiting for you to arrive.”

Xu Yuan stepped down from the carriage and cupped his fists in return. “Chief Overseer Qin is too courteous.”

The two exchanged a few pleasantries, and then Qin Chuan drew Xu Yuan inside. Along the way, he asked after his well-being with such exaggerated warmth that it was almost excessive.

Xu Yuan dealt with him with a smile on his face, but inwardly he was on guard.

Just as Zhao Qiusheng had said, this man truly was an expert at smooth deflection and polished diplomacy.

After a few more empty courtesies, Xu Yuan was preparing to take his leave. Having just arrived, he needed to go familiarize himself with his own station first.

But Qin Chuan grabbed him by the arm and said with a cheerful smile, “Battle Overseer Xu, don’t be in such a hurry to leave. Wait a little longer. There’s another seven-ridian martial artist coming, so we can welco him together.”

Xu Yuan’s brow lifted slightly. “Soone else is coming?”

That was true. In the battle where the Bai Family and the authorities had joined forces, Shangyang Residence had lost two seven-ridian martial artists and one eight-ridian martial artist.

Naturally, those vacancies now had to be filled.

But with most of Shangyang Residence’s forces already concentrated in the Level Four zone, where else could they still pull manpower from?

Xu Yuan did not ask further. He rely stood quietly at Qin Chuan’s side and looked toward the estate gates.

About half a stick of incense later, a carriage slowly approached.

The curtain was lifted, and a familiar figure stepped down.

The mont Xu Yuan saw that face clearly, he gave a slight start.

The newcor had obviously seen him as well. His footsteps halted, and the expression on his face instantly turned colorful.

There was shock and surprise, and also a trace of awkwardness and wariness that was difficult to describe.

That man was none other than Yang Cang, the chief overseer of the dicinal fields.

...