Chapter 27

"What? You don't want it?"

Su Xuan looked at Huang Zhong playfully and tentatively reached out to take it back.

Huang Zhong subconsciously pulled his hand back, then reacted, and sheepishly handed the two techniques back to Su Xuan: "I want them, but I feel I cannot afford them! Lord, you should take them back!"

"How about I ask you for them when I have earned enough merit for you one day?"

Huang Zhong immediately thought of a compromise.

"Get out of here!"

Su Xuan waved his hand dismissively, didn't take the two technique manuals, and said: "Just take what I give you; why be so pretentious?"

"If you feel you owe me, then practice diligently, strive to break through to 'seeing the spirit without damage' as soon as possible, so you can establish more merit for me;"

"Your current strength is not strong enough; I hope you can be as strong as possible;"

"It would be best if you could become the number one martial general in the world; that would be the best."

Only by practicing early can Huang Zhong break through to 'seeing the spirit without damage' early!

Currently, Huang Zhong is already at the peak of the Gangjin level.

And he has been stuck there for 3 years.

Because of Huang Xu's illness, his martial path had not only stagnated over the past 2 years but even showed signs of regression.

Fortunately, now that Huang Xu has been cured, Huang Zhong's mindset has also recovered, even better than before, and his cultivation has stabilized.

And he has started to progress again.

This is very good.

"Yes!"

Huang Zhong was inexplicably moved, held the technique manuals in his hands, nodded heavily, and said solemnly: "I will certainly not fail the Lord's expectations!"

That afternoon,

"Young Master, a young man named Wen Pin has come to the residence to find you."

A servant from the Su residence rode a horse in a hurry to this manor, found Su Xuan, and reported.

"Oh? Wen Pin has already arrived?"

Su Xuan was overjoyed: "Let's go! We will go back to see him right now!"

Before leaving, he looked at Huang Zhong and asked: "Do you want to go with me, Hansheng?"

"Hmm...."

Huang Zhong pondered for a moment and finally nodded: "Very well! I will go with the Lord!"

He was mainly afraid that Wen Pin would be stubborn and refuse Su Xuan's recruitment because Su Xuan currently held no official position.

That would be a huge loss for both the Lord and Wen Pin.

Huang Zhong would absolutely not allow it.

In his view, Su Xuan was a hero, and a generous hero; Wen Pin could only best realize his own value by following Su Xuan.

"Haha! Then I will trouble you, Hansheng! Let's go!"

Su Xuan saw Huang Zhong's thoughts, was happy, greeted Huang Zhong, told the instructors in the barracks, and rode off in a hurry.

It took ten minutes to reach Deng County and enter the Su residence.

Su Xuan met Wen Pin in the living room.

This was a young man who looked to be in his early twenties, his appearance carrying a sense of steadiness within his heroic spirit; one look and you could tell he was not a rash character.

"Hansheng!"

"Zhongye! Haha!"

As soon as Wen Pin and Huang Zhong saw each other, they both smiled and walked toward each other, embracing.

Wen Pin then politely bowed to Su Xuan: "You must be Young Master Su Xuan! Wen Pin, Wen Zhongye of Wancheng, greets you!"

"Zhongye, you are too polite! Please take a seat!"

Su Xuan returned the bow, invited Wen Pin and Huang Zhong to sit, then looked at Wen Pin and said directly: "Zhongye, I won't waste words; a chaotic era is coming, and I hope you can come to help me."

"Hmm? A chaotic era?"

Wen Pin was stunned by Su Xuan's direct words and asked in confusion: "What exactly is this chaotic era the Young Master speaks of?"

Su Xuan immediately told Wen Pin about the Taiping Dao and added: "According to my estimation, in a year or a year and a half, when the Taiping Dao's scale reaches the limit of what various forces can tolerate, they will inevitably raise the banner of rebellion;"

"Currently, the military preparedness in the imperial court and various places is lax; suddenly, they will inevitably be unable to easily suppress this large-scale rebellion;"

"At that time, the imperial court will inevitably issue an edict, allowing righteous men in various places to recruit local volunteers to participate in suppressing the rebellion;"

"And this is our opportunity to establish merit!"

"Only by seizing this rare opportunity will we have the chance to soar to the sky, establish merit, and achieve a reputation;"

Speaking of this, Su Xuan paused, looked at Wen Pin, and said: "To be honest, Zhongye, you must have felt the difficulty of wanting to enter officialdom these past few years, right?"

"Indeed!"

Speaking of this, Wen Pin also nodded with a frustrated and indignant expression: "Without a sufficient family background, wanting to get ahead in this era is far more difficult than I imagined;"

"But you, Young Master, I heard you were already recommended as a Filial and Upright candidate last year; logically speaking, you shouldn't need to go to the battlefield to desperately fight for opportunities, right? Why are you....."

"Haha!"

Su Xuan looked up and laughed: "Why do I still do this, right?"

Wen Pin nodded.

Su Xuan continued: "Because, according to the normal process of being recommended as a Filial and Upright candidate, I am afraid it would take more than three years or even longer for me to become a County Magistrate;"

"Not to mention other official positions."

"Although my Su clan of Nanyang is better than those below, we are not as good as those above; the glory of our ancestor Su Wu has long been exhausted and is not enough to support my ambition; at most, it is barely enough to maintain the family business!"

"This is not what I want!"

"Therefore, I must seize this rare opportunity to soar to the sky;"

"And this requires talented people like Hansheng and you, Zhongye, to help me succeed!"

"We can be considered mutually achieving; I have the money, food, and resources to provide you with the stage you want; it just depends on whether you are willing."

Wen Pin fell into deep thought.

This kind of matter cannot be decided easily with one word.

In the end, it is because Su Xuan's current status is a bit awkward, as he has not yet entered officialdom.

At this time, Huang Zhong, who was to the side, became a bit anxious and hurriedly looked at Wen Pin: "Zhongye, are you willing to believe me?"

"Hmm?"

Wen Pin looked up at Huang Zhong in a daze and then smiled: "I am naturally willing to believe you, Brother Hansheng!"

"Then don't hesitate! Agree!"

Huang Zhong waved his hand: "My Lord Su Xuan is a hero of the ages and will inevitably achieve a great career in the future;"

"Furthermore, the Lord is also an extremely generous person; I have only joined for a few days, and I have already obtained several top-tier military books and one top-tier martial arts technique;"

"If you join, as long as you have enough merit and as long as you are loyal enough, I believe the Lord will not be stingy in bestowing these upon you as well;"

"The techniques we learned from our teacher back then, as well as our own family techniques, were not perfect; now that such a good opportunity is right here and the Lord is so sincere, what else do you have to hesitate about?"

Huang Zhong had an expression of "hating that iron cannot become steel."

It made Wen Pin feel a bit wry.

However, he did listen.