Chapter 62: Not Putting Up with This Bullshit
In the courtyard, Chen Ming took a sip of wine and casually said, “Brother Deng, it just so happens I’ve got something I’d like your help investigating.”
“What is it? Go ahead and say it.” Deng Ziyang was in rare high spirits and had drunk a few extra cups.
“You know Wu’s Martial School, right? Do you know how the previous headmaster died?”
Deng Ziyang slapped the table and said, “You’re asking the right person. Lately, I’ve gone through quite a few old case files, and I just happened to come across that one.”
Chen Ming refilled his cup and asked, “So who was it that killed him?”
“It was his top disciple Wu Yao, who was also his adopted son. Wu Yao always thought he’d inherit the school, but in the end, the master chose Liu Fu, who had joined the latest. Wu Yao became resentful, poisoned his master, and fled with the martial school’s secret manuals. He’s been missing ever since.”
So he really was murdered by his own disciple.
Chen Ming continued, “And after that? What’s the story behind the headmaster’s daughter dying suddenly on her wedding night?”
Deng Ziyang sneered, “Sudden death? That’s all fake. The truth is, the girl didn’t want to marry Liu Fu and eloped with someone else on her wedding night.”
“So that’s what happened.”
Chen Ming downed the cup in front of him, finding the taste especially bitter going down.
Now, everything finally connected.
Old Liu’s life was truly tragic...
His master was dead, poisoned by a disciple who was also his adopted son. He had fallen out with his other senior brothers. And in the end, the woman he loved eloped with another man.
No wonder his mentality had collapsed—drinking all day, letting the martial school go to ruin.
…
“Senior Brother.”
Deng Ziyang drained his cup, and before long, they had emptied the whole jar of wine. He finally got to the point. “I came today to say goodbye.”
Chen Ming was surprised. “You’re being transferred somewhere?”
He shook his head and said quietly, “I’m planning to go out and roam the world.”
“Huh?”
Chen Ming was taken aback. “What about your position at the Six Doors Authority?”
“I’m quitting.” Deng Ziyang lifted his head and drank heavily. “I’m not putting up with this bullshit anymore.”
“……”
Chen Ming didn’t know what to say.
All that effort to pass the martial exam, and now that he’d finally secured a post, he was just walking away?
Ever since his father died, Deng Ziyang hadn’t been quite himself. Chen Ming hadn’t expected him to actually go through with such a decision.
He asked solemnly, “You’ve thought it through?”
Deng Ziyang nodded firmly. “I’ve thought it through.”
“Alright. No matter what you decide, I’ll support you.”
Chen Ming understood that feeling all too well.
In his previous life, after graduating college, he had joined a major company.
The pay was decent, but the two years he worked there were extremely painful.
Eventually, after much struggle, he resolutely quit. His family didn’t understand and didn’t support him, which left him feeling deeply frustrated.
Chen Ming knew—what Deng Ziyang needed now was someone who understood him.
Deng Ziyang looked touched, but said nothing. He simply told the maid to bring more wine.
Tonight, they would drink until they couldn’t walk.
…
…………
The next day, Deng Ziyang left. Alone, with nothing but a bundle and a sword. He didn’t tell anyone, and no one knew where he had gone.
It wasn’t until two days later, when Zhuang Xiaotian came looking for Chen Ming, that he found out why Deng Ziyang had suddenly quit.
Deng Ziyang’s immediate superior had always disliked him—because he came from a gang background, he was constantly being targeted and given a hard time.
That day, Deng Ziyang finally snapped, lashed out at his superior, and quit on the spot.
Zhuang Xiaotian sighed. “Sigh… Big Brother is the kind of man who seems bold and straightforward, but deep down, he’s incredibly proud. He’s not cut out for working in the Six Doors Authority… And he didn’t want to rely on you, so he had no choice but to leave for distant lands.”
Chen Ming knew… there was one more reason.
The Giant Tiger Gang was currently embroiled in internal strife.
The three brothers were already at the stage of drawing blades in their battle for the position of gang leader, throwing the entire gang into chaos and disorder.
He probably couldn’t bear to see the Giant Tiger Gang become like that, so he left—out of sight, out of mind.
The two of them were drinking in the courtyard again, and Zhuang Xiaotian was sitting in the very spot Deng Ziyang had occupied a few days earlier.
After drinking silently for a while, Zhuang Xiaotian let out a breath of turbid air and brought up another matter. “Lately, quite a few martial artists have arrived in the city. Many young experts, all here for Lord Zhao’s martial gathering. You’d better be careful.”
Chen Ming said with a hint of anticipation, “That’s perfect. My greatest wish in this life is to spar with the best fighters under heaven.”
As long as they were weaker than him.
Zhuang Xiaotian shook his head. “Big Brother was right. You’re a martial arts fanatic. Oh, by the way, your Junior Sister is back—she came with the people from the Xiaoshui Sect.”
Junior Sister?
“You mean Huo Qianqian?”
“Yeah. I was assigned to guard the city gates yesterday, checking the identities of martial artists entering the city. I happened to come across a group from the Xiaoshui Sect. One of them was named Huo Qianqian. I heard others mention that she’s Master Huo’s granddaughter. That would make her your Junior Sister, right?”
As he spoke, a flicker of admiration passed through Zhuang Xiaotian’s eyes. “That Xiaoshui Sect is made up entirely of female disciples. One of them is named Xiao Zhuyun—she looked like a fairy descending to the mortal realm.”
It was the first time Chen Ming had heard him praise a woman like that, and it piqued his curiosity a little.
In terms of beauty, Huo Qianqian definitely counted—she would be considered the flower of the department in a modern university.
Zhang Xinyi and Zhong Shuyu were on a similar level.
Aside from them, he hadn’t seen many truly stunning beauties.
Maybe it had something to do with the circles he moved in—most of the people he interacted with were from the lower rungs of the martial world.
In a wuxia novel, they’d be background characters not even worthy of a name—mostly men.
Actually, there were female martial artists too, but most of them were not young. And as a man, trying to make friends with female martial artists and even spar with them—it would just seem inappropriate no matter how you looked at it.
He teased, “What, fallen for her?”
Zhuang Xiaotian gave a self-deprecating smile. “How could I? I looked into it. She’s eighteen this year and already a Seventh Grade expert. She’s the Xiaoshui Sect head’s most favored disciple. Someone like that—how could I dare hope? I heard a bunch of noble sons from Jiangzhou are all smitten with her. Some even followed her here.”
Chen Ming suddenly realized, “So, she’s here for the martial gathering too?”
“Of course. This is a martial gathering hosted by Commander Zhao. For sect disciples and noble heirs, it’s the perfect opportunity to make a name for themselves. Unlike us, those born into prestigious families really care about reputation.”
Chen Ming nodded in understanding.
When people read wuxia novels as kids, they found it silly that characters would value reputation more than life itself.
But after growing up and entering the internet era, seeing how internet celebrities and influencers earned tens of millions, even hundreds of millions per year, it became clear—fame could be monetized.
It was the same in ancient times, just that the methods of monetization were different.
Take himself, for example. When he was at the Ninth Grade, it was extremely hard to find someone willing to spar with him. Whoever he asked, their first reaction was always to refuse.
But once he reached Eighth Grade and made a name for himself through that battle at the Martial Arts School Guild, he met many like-minded individuals and gradually built up a bit of a reputation.
Now that he was a Seventh Grade martial artist, it had become much easier to connect with others of the same level. Over the past few days, he had visited nearly every Seventh Grade martial artist in the city.
Once he became more familiar with them, if he proposed a sparring match, at least a third would probably agree.
If not for the reputation he had built up over the past year, things wouldn’t have gone nearly so smoothly.