[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-rising-from-obscurity-my-martial-path-comeback":3,"chapter-rising-from-obscurity-my-martial-path-comeback-rising-from-obscurity-my-martial-path-comeback-chapter-7":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Rising from Obscurity: My Martial Path Comeback",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2265842,4424,"Chapter 7: The Pitiable","rising-from-obscurity-my-martial-path-comeback-chapter-7",7,"\u003Cp>After leaving Yu Jiaoxi’s courtyard, Lin Chen returned directly to the training ground.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gu Fei pulled out two steamed buns from his pocket and handed them to Lin Chen: “Didn’t eat yet?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Mm.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lin Chen didn’t bother with formalities; he took the buns Gu Fei offered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though these buns were deducted from Gu Fei’s family’s food supply, as brothers, he wouldn’t hold such a strict account.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Chenzi, what do you mean by ‘work-study’?” Gu Fei asked curiously while Lin Chen bit into the bun.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yu Jiaoxi found me a job helping out in the mess hall—it covers my meals.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Working in the mess hall?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gu Fei was stunned, his eyes widening instantly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Chenzi, don’t be foolish.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though they’d done plenty of labor back in the village, after entering the martial hall, they still harbored a quiet sense of superiority.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>More importantly, doing dirty, exhausting work in front of the other students would surely invite ridicule—he feared Lin Chen couldn’t bear it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing Gu Fei’s concern, Lin Chen reassured him calmly: “Didn’t I get mocked for half a year already? Didn’t I tell you the story of the martial legend?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“That’s different! You told me the story of ‘Don’t look down on the poor youth’—even if mocked, you never did manual labor.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“It’s the same thing. The more I’m mocked now, the sweeter it’ll be when I succeed in martial arts and turn the tables.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“That’s true… but…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Enough. I only got Yu Jiaoxi to agree after much effort—I can’t back out now even if I wanted to.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hearing this, Gu Fei scowled and muttered: “Your grandfather really is a piece of shit.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the morning, Yu Yongnian came to the training ground, watched the students train for a while, then left—but before departing, he told Lin Chen he could go straight to the mess hall at noon.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lin Chen knew Yu Jiaoxi had already arranged it with the mess hall supervisor.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Near mealtime, Lin Chen bid Gu Fei farewell and left fifteen minutes early.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Arriving at the mess hall, he requested to see the supervisor and gave his name.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yu Jiaoxi did indeed give instructions. Fine—you’ll serve the students their food and eat with them.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Thank you, Supervisor Zhang.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Don’t thank me—it’s Yu Jiaoxi’s favor. Remember him, not me.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Supervisor Zhang waved his hand; there were many tasks in the kitchen, and the hardest and dirtiest was collecting and washing the students’ bowls and chopsticks—but he wouldn’t assign Lin Chen such grueling work.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though Yu Jiaoxi only said to give Lin Chen a chance to work, the specifics were up to him as supervisor, yet he couldn’t possibly make Lin Chen do the worst, filthiest jobs.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At mealtime, Lin Chen stood at the beef window, holding an iron ladle.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Brother, how many jin of beef?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Brother? Aren’t you that… what’s-his-name?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Brother, my surname is Lin.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Lin Brother, sorry, I forgot—give me two jin of beef.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lin Chen nodded and scooped two ladles of beef onto the student’s tray.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Brother, how many jin of beef?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To every student, Lin Chen smiled and called them “Brother,” his gaze calm and open.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The martial hall students, however, were surprised to see Lin Chen at the window, their expressions tinged with shock—but none mocked him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lin Chen had no feud with them; even if they resented him, they kept it to themselves, never showing it to his face.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Brother Zhao, how many jin of beef?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhao Jingchuan stared at Lin Chen, surprised: “Lin Brother, why are you doing this?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yu Jiaoxi took pity on my poor family and let me help out here to cover my meals,” Lin Chen replied naturally.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I see. Then, Lin Brother, please give me ten beef bone sticks.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Brother, wait a moment.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lin Chen turned, fished out ten beef bone sticks from another iron basin. No wonder he was one of this cohort’s few wealthy students—generous to a fault. Beef bone sticks weren’t sold by jin; each was thirty wen, so ten cost three hundred wen.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The meat on the bones was sparse, but the marrow inside nourished qi and blood better than beef itself—only a handful of students in the martial hall could afford them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhao Jingchuan took his bone sticks and left. After serving several more students, Gu Fei appeared before Lin Chen and winked: “Give me two jin of beef.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lin Chen’s expression didn’t change, but when he scooped the two ladles into the beef basin, he pressed down harder.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Those two ladles added several liang extra.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The two brothers exchanged a silent smile, understanding passing between them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Oh? Stopped training and came to the mess hall to do menial work?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhang Tao appeared before Lin Chen again. Lin Chen’s expression didn’t change—he knew why Zhang Tao disliked him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jealousy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhang Tao’s family wasn’t well-off either. When he saw Lin Chen scooping beef broth, he couldn’t bring himself to do the same—so he developed a twisted envy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He’d encountered plenty like this in his past life.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In his past-life class, when selecting impoverished students for aid, one classmate with a poor background, ashamed and afraid of ridicule, refused to apply for assistance—then mocked those who did.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Such people—dying for face, suffering in silence, truly powerless!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Want meat?” Lin Chen ignored Zhang Tao’s taunt and asked directly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Give me two jin of beef,” Zhang Tao snorted. Other students waited behind him—he dared not delay.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lin Chen lifted the iron ladle, scooped a portion from the full porcelain basin, then shook his wrist slightly—several pieces fell back into the pot.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhang Tao’s expression shifted from initial delight to fury.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Two jin done. Next.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lin Chen didn’t care about Zhang Tao’s reaction. He hadn’t given him less—he’d given him more at first, making Zhang Tao think he’d scored a deal, then snatched that illusion away.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He now understood: holding the ladle had its advantages.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With familiar students, he could give a little extra—a few liang more—and the mess hall wouldn’t care.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After all, the mess hall had no scales; one ladle meant one jin.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Done yet? Hurry up and move!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just as Zhang Tao was about to explode, the students behind him urged him impatiently. Faced with their irritation, Zhang Tao quickly stepped aside, clutching his tray and leaving in sullen silence.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Watching this, Lin Chen felt only contempt.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A man with extreme sensitivity and low self-worth, who seeks to satisfy his vanity by bullying those poorer than himself—a coward who picks on the weak. Such a man would never achieve anything in martial arts.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The academy had sixty students; Lin Chen finished serving them all in fifteen minutes, yet he still stood at the window for another fifteen minutes—some students returned to their dorms after training to change into clean clothes before eating.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After the mess hall closed, Lin Chen carried the remaining beef back to the kitchen to eat with the cooks.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The beef basin still held three or four jin left.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Eating already? Perfect timing.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Supervisor Zhang appeared right on cue, stepping inside.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Supervisor Zhang, join us—we’ve got leftover beef today,” Chef Wang greeted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I’ve already eaten. No need.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Supervisor Zhang waved off the offer, stepped forward, glanced at the table, then looked at Lin Chen: “Little Lin, you need to strengthen your body through training—eat more beef.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Thank you, Supervisor Zhang,” Lin Chen replied with sincere gratitude.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Alright, eat up. I’m just checking in—I’ll be off then.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Supervisor Zhang came and left quickly, but his words left the kitchen staff with varied expressions. Chef Wang thought for a moment, then picked up the largest piece of beef and shoved it into Lin Chen’s bowl.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Little Lin, eat up. If there’s leftover beef tomorrow, just take it—don’t be polite.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then Chef Wang glanced at the others: “Little Lin needs meat for training. Don’t compete with him for it.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I’m an old man—eating more meat won’t help me. All of it’s for Little Lin.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Little Lin, eat well. If you truly succeed, we’ll all share in your glory.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Regardless of their true motives, after Supervisor Zhang’s words and Chef Wang’s command, everyone pushed food toward Lin Chen.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lin Chen didn’t refuse—he came to the kitchen to eat beef.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This favor came from Yu Jiaoxi; if he acted too virtuous and pretended to be humble, it wouldn’t be cleverness—it would be stupidity.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chef Wang looked at the remaining beef and understood: from tomorrow, he’d buy one or two more jin.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of Chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",1408,"2026-06-19T20:25:56.550Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","589dc74c7c90a80ad4d3146041af21bbf8f62a652b8304b5b411930c9d877e5a","rising-from-obscurity-my-martial-path-comeback-chapter-8","rising-from-obscurity-my-martial-path-comeback-chapter-6",591,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Frising-from-obscurity-my-martial-path-comeback-cover.jpg"]