Chapter 440: Industrial Crisis! (4k)

The sunlight was just right.

Chishan reared its head, snorting hot breath, its streamlined muscles rippling as its short crimson fur shimmered with silver.

Liang Qu kicked free of the stirrups, dismounted, and told the two attendants at the gate to go announce his arrival.

He had just crossed the threshold.

The news spread like wings, flying through the entire martial arts school.

The apprentices on the second training ground abandoned their rest, surging out like a tide.

The line for medicine distribution stirred, everyone eager to catch a glimpse of the school's legend.

A few apprentices took action and stepped forward—immediately others seized the chaos to cut in.

Tensions flared in the line, voices rising in argument.

The cook in the kitchen banged his iron spoon against the barrel, shouting for those cutting in to get to the back.

The poor boy sitting on the flowerbed was closest to the gate and snatched the front position first.

Amid the sea of heads, a tall young man strode toward the training ground—his bearing noble, his frame imposing, two waist plaques hanging from his belt, his steps full of vigor; even his appearance outshone the several senior brothers who usually taught by a wide margin!

Is that Brother Liang?

His eyes blazed like torches, his hand gripping the red horse.

A powerful aura surged toward them.

Perfectly matched their inner fantasies.

The legendary Brother Liang—a true man!

Heart pounding, hands trembling.

As he drew near, the apprentices flushed slightly, nervously greeting him.

"Brother Liang!"

"Good morning, Brother Liang!"

"Hello, Brother Liang!"

"Mm, good morning! Hello!"

Liang Qu passed through the corridor, nodding to each in turn, but noticed apprentices continuously gathering behind him—he was puzzled.

Are they all so enthusiastic?

Isn't the school usually less crowded when I'm not around?

"What are you all clustering for? Spring is the season for growth, and the morning is the time to act—how many times did you stand Zhuang today? How many times did you practice your forms?"

"Zhou Zhiyong, Zhang Xiaoming! You two were late by fifteen minutes this morning—why aren't you training? Are you wasting your time here? You paid to be here—your first duty is to yourself!"

"And you, Song Qiu Yifei, Yu Faxian—you're all from the second courtyard. What are you doing over here in the front courtyard?"

His voice cut through the clamor.

Hu Qi stiffened his face and called out each name sharply.

Xiang Xiang Zhangsong waved his hand, urging the front few to return quickly.

"Did you hear what Brother Hu said? Go back and stand Zhuang, train—spring governs the year, morning governs the day. Your energy is highest in the morning—don't waste this precious time."

"If you break through today and hone your skills, tomorrow you can join the River Office—maybe you'll even get assigned to work under Brother Liang!"

"The two senior brothers are right—everyone, go back and train."

Liang Qu echoed a few times.

Chen Jie and Li Li Libo came over from the second courtyard to help disperse the crowd.

The apprentices who had come to gawk dispersed, and order was restored to the training ground.

Liang Qu smiled: "Today's school is unusually lively—over a hundred people, right? More than when I came a few days ago."

Hu Qi shook his head.

"Master will arrive this afternoon, so everyone's here to make an impression. Normally it's only seven or eight tenths full. Add your sudden appearance, and all the second courtyard apprentices rushed out to gawk—it just looks like more."

Xiang Xiang Zhangsong chuckled: "In our sect, only Master and Brother Liang have this kind of draw. If Lu Gang, Yu Gang, or even Xu Xu Yue came, none would draw this much."

"Me?" Liang Qu descended the steps, turned, and brushed dust off his clothes. "Do I really have that much influence?"

Hu Qi and Xiang Xiang Zhangsong each stepped forward, brushing away the yellow dust.

The three senior brothers sat together on the corridor steps, their shoulders shaded by trees, chatting idly.

Light and shadow interweave.

Xiang Xiang Zhangsong pointed to a row of apprentices standing Zhuang.

"The ones from Yixing Town. There are several big towns beside Pingyang Prefecture, each with its own martial arts school."

"But the most apprentices come from Yixing Town—they'd rather walk ten or more li every day than attend their own town's school. They insist on coming here."

"When apprentices from a place grow numerous, they band together. Yixing Town has the most, so their group is strongest, louder, more noticeable."

"Your story spread because of them—and kept growing. Especially among those from poorer families—they all see you as their goal, their role model!"

"Huh?"

Liang Qu laughed.

From fisherman to River Office official, his many deeds were indeed remarkable.

He never imagined that, with the encouragement of his fellow Yixing Town apprentices, he had become a legend within the Yang Family Martial Arts School.

"No doubt, it's working well," Xiang Xiang Zhangsong slapped Liang Qu's shoulder, thumb pointing outward. "With your name out there, even after Pingyang became a prefecture, our school's numbers barely dropped—while other schools… never mind the distant ones, do you remember Master Pang?"

"Can't forget—he has a Zhuanggu disciple working under me."

"Master Pang's apprentice numbers have nearly halved."

Liang Qu froze.

"Halved?"

"Yes," Hu Qi added. "Since becoming a prefecture, not just the towns, but even within the city, eight new martial arts schools have opened."

Xiang Xiang Zhangsong said: "Brother, guess how many of those eight schools have a Great Martial Artist?"

Liang Qu thought.

"Three?"

Xiang Xiang Zhangsong spread his five fingers.

Liang Qu gasped: "Five! How so many?"

"Exactly that many! Five schools officially have Great Martial Artists—but most aren't as strong as our Master, just middle or lower tier. Only one is roughly equal to our Master, and like him, only comes a few days a month."

Hu Qi added: "Master changed his schedule—used to come at month's end, now every ten days. I think it's a response."

Liang Qu frowned: "Eight schools, five with Great Martial Artists? That ratio's too high."

Is competition in the prefecture this fierce?

Are all families with Great Martial Artists opening schools?

Xiang Xiang Zhangsong said: "Because their schools are different from ours and Master Pang's. Their top apprentices get selected—not as direct disciples, but to take jobs within the Great Martial Artist's family."

Damn.

Job placement!

Liang Qu's heart lurched—he instantly understood why Master's school was falling behind, why surrounding schools were struggling.

"They're not martial arts schools at all—they're workforce training centers."

From Pingyang Town to Pingyang County, now to Pingyang Prefecture, two waves of outsiders have officially passed through.

But the two waves were utterly different.

The first was the Demon Hunting Bureau, the Three Judicial Offices, and the River Office officials sent by imperial order—powerful, all second-generation, their overt and covert strength no weaker than the second wave, even stronger.

But they came as individuals, with no industrial interests—paid by the court.

The second wave, by contrast, consisted mostly of families relocating, needing to support entire households.

Naturally came industrial invasion—logistically more complex, tied to interests, far more aggressive!

The sharp drop in local martial arts school apprentices is the direct evidence.

Each family's industrial chain must expand—they can't rely solely on their own kin; they must absorb outsiders reasonably.

So when big families open martial arts schools, their core purpose is entirely different from Yang Yang Dongxiong's, who runs one for profit.

They don't aim to profit from the school.

That income is optional.

The key is cultivating talent and absorbing them into their own ranks—to ensure fresh blood and vitality!

Liang Qu asked: "Senior brother, are their tuition fees cheaper than ours?"

Hu Qi turned his head: "How did you know?"

"Because their goal isn't money—it's recruitment… I guess the teaching quality is pretty average?"

"Not sure—we can't sneak in to spy. But I and Xiang Zhangsong noticed it's lax. Others say only veteran apprentices show stances, and the newcomers copy blindly, with no one caring if they learn right or wrong. Even if someone gets injured, they won't help unless you pay dozens of taels."

"So you get what you pay for…"

As a sect substitute, martial arts schools have many advantages:

They serve the masses, increase the base of lower-class martial artists, prevent local power consolidation, reduce centralization difficulty, and allow sects to reap benefits by absorbing top talent from these schools.

But talent can't be fully absorbed.

Especially those with some talent but not enough.

Big families open martial arts schools precisely to absorb this group—and expand their influence, court alliances.

Once preliminarily screened, the rest? They don't care. If you train wrong by copying veteran apprentices, you're just "not smart."

Yet this "not-so-secret" screening-style school system delivers a crushing blow to Yang Yang Dongxiong's profit-driven school.

After all, it's cheap, and on the surface, it seems more promising—as for those who get injured in training…

Humans are driven by profit; no one cares, and everyone harbors Jiaoxing psychology, none believing they or their child might be the untalented one who gets eliminated.

"Can't our martial arts school assign jobs?"

"Where would we assign them? Our master didn't come from a wealthy clan with vast estates—he just runs this school, doesn't engage in business, and only has loose ties with the herbal merchants' guild. Are we supposed to shove everyone into government offices?"

"This won't work."

Liang Qu was puzzled.

He knew how well the two senior brothers taught.

Yet bad money drives out good—such is the world.

With Liang Qu's story as an example, the school could hold on for a while.

But we know our own situation—there's no way to replicate it.

In a few years, if no one else succeeds in copying it, the school will become an intangible castle in the air, its appeal naturally fading as people gradually turn to reality.

Yang Shi is indeed more skilled than other school masters, but he rarely participates directly in teaching—it cannot be the key attraction of the school.

Xiang Xiang Zhangsong and Hu Qi understood this.

Long silence.

Liang Qu's eyes lit up.

"I have two ideas!"

Xiang Xiang Zhangsong asked: "What ideas?"

"One is that we partner with Shanghu Academy—they send two teachers, so students can learn phonetics and character recognition during their breaks!"

Xiang Xiang Zhangsong frowned: "If we hire academy instructors, won't our costs go up?"

"Raise the tuition too—just a little. Academy education isn't cheap because they teach so much: essay writing, calligraphy, classical texts and histories."

We only add one new subject—charge two or three taels of silver, just teach character recognition, nothing else!"

And run large classes—one teacher instructs dozens of students. The teacher lectures as he pleases; students learn on their own below. No need for individualized teaching—don't care who learns well or not."

As long as they put in effort, three months is enough to recognize many characters. Unlike martial cultivation, which doesn't guarantee success, literacy benefits you for life!"

Hu Qi and Xiang Xiang Zhangsong fell into thought.

Many students aren't like Liang Qu—privileged disciples who get chances to study at academies, learn medicine at clinics, broaden their horizons, and develop fully.

Many who enter this school learn only a single fist form.

Everything is taught by rote—do exactly as shown, no need to understand secret manuals or meridians. They still leave illiterate, neither high nor low in status.

In contrast, literacy is genuinely useful—it's a real skill!"

Hu Qi asked: "What's the second idea?"

Liang Qu scratched his temple.

"I actually have a business—farming."

Xiang Xiang Zhangsong frowned: "Farming? How much profit can you make from one mu of land? Many students' families farm already—if they graduate and just go back to farming, isn't it all wasted?"

"I grow medicinal herbs—black-spotted frogs, golden-thread leeches, and rice together. The scale is still small, still experimental, but the planting season is coming soon."

Once this year's harvest is in, I'll definitely expand—might even need to buy land in other counties."

Transporting, guarding, and distributing large quantities of herbs requires manpower. If I can recruit from the school, that'd be perfect."

In my view, combining both methods—teaching literacy while offering alternative career paths, plus building reputation—will give us far greater advantages than any other school!"

Hu Qi spoke up: "Brother, I have one question."

"Senior brother, please ask."

"If we teach literacy, can't other schools copy us? Aren't we just helping them?"

"That's why we must partner with Shanghu Academy—have them send instructors, or even just lend us their name."

Other schools can learn literacy too, but there's only one Shanghu Academy in Pingyang Prefecture."

We must emphasize we're jointly teaching characters with the academy—ordinary students will feel the difference."

Xiang Xiang Zhangsong and Hu Qi fell into deep thought.

They knew their younger brother always had brilliant ideas.

If he says he can expand his business, he will.

Xiang Xiang Zhangsong murmured: "Sounds good. In the next couple years, we won't decline much anyway—and your herb fields need time to grow…"

Hu Qi asked again: "What if other schools also borrow the academy's name?"

These two senior brothers really had a lot of questions…

Liang Qu spread his hands.

"I haven't figured it out yet. Zhao Shan and our master are friends—it'll be easier to negotiate with him than outsiders."

Either we secure an exclusive agreement for a few years, pay a large annual fee, or find another way to let the academy share in the profits."

In short, stabilize the first few years—once Pingyang Prefecture's foundation is set, the impression will be cemented. Later, when my business fully takes off, we won't fear outsiders—they'll all be the same."

Xiang Xiang Zhangsong and Hu Qi exchanged glances.

"Better to act now than wait—let's go tell our master!"

"Fine, I was going to see the master to refine the Gang anyway."

Liang Qu stood, brushing dust off his clothes.

"Oh, by the way—I haven't asked you yet: why did you come to the school today?"

"Ha." Liang Qu slapped his forehead. "Almost forgot—I discovered a treasure spot underwater. In about a day or two, it'll manifest a celestial phenomenon."

I came to ask you two to prepare, finish your business, and come along for the spectacle."

Hu Qi and Xiang Xiang Zhangsong: "?"

…

Inside the hall.

Hu Qi and Xiang Xiang Zhangsong sipped tea silently as Liang Qu explained his plan.

"It's a decent idea."

Yang Yang Dongxiong stroked his beard, intrigued by Liang Qu's proposal.

Liang Qu said: "In three months, using rest time between martial training to teach only phonetics—this is more than enough for adults."

We can place two books with phonetic annotations in the school for borrowing. Once students read them thoroughly, they'll gradually learn to recognize and write characters—easy for the instructors too."

Yang Yang Dongxiong nodded: "I'll go speak with Zhao Shan soon."

Pingyang County has become Pingyang Prefecture.

The school truly needs change now—if we wait until it's truly declining and its reputation is fixed, it'll be too late.

"Come, let's go to the back courtyard."

Yang Yang Dongxiong rose; Liang Qu bowed.

"Master, wait—I have another matter."

"What is it?"

Hu Qi and Xiang Xiang Zhangsong perked up.

Here it comes!

They straightened their backs and looked up at their master.

Yang Yang Dongxiong caught their expressions from the corner of his eye, his gaze flickering.

"I recently received news…"

Liang Qu recounted the Tian Shui Chang Qi and the possible manifestation of celestial phenomena, omitting how he obtained the information, speaking only of the outcome.

Silence.

Yang Yang Dongxiong's eyes moved.

"So this is the big thing you mentioned the other day?"

No reaction at all!

Hu Qi and Xiang Xiang Zhangsong were deeply disappointed, slumping back.

Liang Qu nodded.

"One thread won't make a rope; two strands twisted together will. When the phenomenon appears, the water will be full of monsters and beasts scrambling for luck."

I came to ask you for help—and later I'll go to Xu Xu Yuelong—could you help me enclose a few mu of underwater area?"

With a master's help, Liang Qu's experience of the celestial phenomenon is assured—and it benefits others too, mutual aid.

As for whether the competition for the Chang Qi might introduce unforeseen complications…

Liang Qu didn't know Xu Xu Xu Yuelong's level, but without a Grand Master's aid, trying to enter the water and compete with aquatic clans for the Chang Qi…

Would be tough.

Probably won't be considered at all.