Chapter 13: The Picture of the Hungry Tiger

"You child, you aren't careful even when wearing clothes, you've torn such a long hole."

Zhou You Niang worked with needle and thread, complaining incessantly, "This fabric is really nice, did the martial arts hall issue it?"

This set of clothes was a gift from a Senior Brother in the Inner Courtyard; the fabric was excellent, and the craftsmanship was also extraordinary.

"Stop talking about the child, the market isn't peaceful, old Li's family was robbed yesterday."

Zhou Laodie puffed on his pipe, "There are still fried crispy fruits in the pot, take them out and eat."

"After you finish the fried crispy fruits, there is also a chicken stewed in the pot; you use up a lot of energy practicing martial arts now, you need to eat your fill when you come home."

Zhou You lifted the pot lid, and a wave of oily fragrance rushed toward his face.

He picked up a piece of golden, crispy fried dough, and every bite in his mouth was a taste of satisfaction.

Fried crispy fruit is a type of deep-fried wheat snack; it is crispy when it enters the mouth and overflows with oily fragrance, and the family can only afford to have it during festivals and holidays.

Because it requires high-quality white flour and consumes a lot of oil to make, it is only available during festivals and holidays.

It's neither a festival nor a holiday, so why make fried crispy fruit to eat?

"A few days ago, a young oil peddler came to the door; the oil he sold was very cheap, and he even gave an extra half-ladle for free."

"I heard him say he is your friend."

As soon as Zhou You heard this, he knew it was Song Fugui; this guy is truly a good friend.

"Yes, he is my friend, we met at the martial arts hall."

Mother mentioned, "The oil peddler has a sweet tongue, calling me 'Auntie' every other word, but his health isn't very good, he walks with a limp."

Zhou You ate the fried crispy fruit in silence; he knew the reason behind it.

After Song Fugui left the martial arts hall, he returned his wooden token to the Big Senior Brother.

The guys who previously feared the martial arts hall's reputation swarmed in like flies smelling blood, extorting him even more ruthlessly than before.

In order to protect his family business, Song Fugui fought several fierce battles and drove those thugs away.

During this time, he was constantly covered in wounds, big and small, yet he still had to walk the streets and alleys to sell oil.

"It's not easy, I think that oil peddler is about the same age as you, You'er."

Mother said softly.

"In this day and age, whose family has it easy?"

Zhou Laodie sighed amidst the swirling smoke, "In two more months, if You'er cannot become a full member, our family will also face a catastrophe."

Tu Laosan has made no moves so far, not because he suddenly turned into a good person, but because he is waiting for an opportunity.

Once Zhou You is expelled from the martial arts hall, the Zhou Family's destruction will not be far off.

"His father, don't say that, this clothing fabric and the needlework are what young masters wear."

Mother finished mending the clothes and couldn't help but ask Zhou You, "Where did it come from?"

"A Senior Brother from the Inner Courtyard, his family does business and runs a trading firm; I heard his surname is Shen."

Zhou Laodie slapped his thigh, "The boss's surname is Shen, and his third young master joined the martial arts hall to learn boxing; isn't this a coincidence?"

After all that, that generous Senior Brother from the Inner Courtyard was actually the son of Zhou Laodie's boss.

"You'er, our family shouldn't accept favors for nothing; find a time to thank him in person."

Zhou You nodded in agreement, but he was thinking to himself.

With his, Zhou You's, future potential, what's wrong with accepting a few pieces of clothing from him?

If there is an opportunity in the future, he will surely repay it a hundred or a thousand times over.

The family ate the fried crispy fruit and chatted about the recent turmoil in the city.

Su Cheng suffered from famine and was plagued by bandits; after it fell, a large number of refugees left their homes and fled to Gongliang City.

The scene Zhou You saw on his way home earlier was merely the tip of the iceberg.

"The second manager of our trading firm took advantage of the chaos to drive down prices and bought a young maiden for 5 taels of silver to be his concubine."

"The second manager is nearly fifty; isn't that ruining the girl?"

"What do you know? At least she'll have a bite to eat and won't starve to death."

When Zhou Laodie said this, he suddenly thought of something, "You'er, how about we buy you a wife too?"

Zhou You almost choked; he pounded his chest and shook his head repeatedly, "No rush."

"You old fool, why can't our You'er find a good daughter from a decent family? Why would he need to find a refugee?"

Mother was angry and kept complaining about the terrible idea Zhou Laodie had.

Zhou Laodie muttered that many refugees were originally from good families, and many women were well-educated and sensible; it was a perfect opportunity to pick up a bargain.

Besides, there was no need to prepare a dowry; one could just give the silver and bring her home to consummate the marriage.

"Dad, I said no rush; our martial arts hall says that when you are young, you must preserve your Original Yang. You don't understand Original Yang; in layman's terms, it's being a virgin."

Mentioning being a virgin made his parents nervous again; they were just practicing martial arts, why would it lead to having no descendants?

Zhou You was sweating profusely as he spoke, finally managing to smooth things over.

When he returned to his room to sleep that night, Zhou You discovered something extra in the room.

"Dad, Mom, why is there an extra painting on our wall?"

When Zhou You first entered the room, he was so startled he almost turned around and left.

It turned out to be a painting of a fierce tiger on the wall; at first glance, it looked lifelike, as if the fierce tiger with hanging eyes and a white forehead was about to jump off the wall.

An invisible sense of ferocity and murderous aura rushed toward his face!

His mother's answer came to his ears.

"An old man passed by the day before yesterday; he didn't look like a refugee, he was a scholar."

"He was extremely hungry and came to the door to beg for a meal."

"Your mother is a soft-hearted person and gave him two leftover coarse-grain buns; the old gentleman had quite a bit of backbone, saying he wasn't a beggar and insisted on paying, but he couldn't even pull out a single coin."

He took out the paper and brush he had on him and drew a picture on the spot.

Zhou Laodie had been a shop assistant at the firm for most of his life, so he still had some discernment.

He pointed at the painting on the wall, "You'er, this brushwork is quite good; if we sold it in the shop, it would be worth at least 2 taels of silver."

"Come to think of it, we still made a profit."

Zhou You examined the content of the painting: jagged rocks, withered grass like sinews, and a thin tiger crouching among the rocks and tangled grass, patiently waiting for prey.

This Meng Hu Quan was extremely hungry; the fur on its body had lost its luster, and its thin bones were stark.

However, it remained Dormant with patience, its pair of eyes dim and deep, concealing a terrifying explosive power.

Any prey that entered the Meng Hu Quan's line of sight would be pounced upon and devoured until not even the bones remained.

It was truly worthy of being the king of all beasts, a top-tier predator in the food chain.

Zhou You was stunned by the momentum rushing toward his face, and only after a long while did he let out a breath, "A fine painting!"

This painting was titled the Hungry Tiger Crouching Picture, and there was a line of poetry in the blank space.

"Just like a fierce tiger lying on a desolate hill, hiding its claws and teeth, enduring."

The Tiger-Subduing Fist of the Jian Xiong Martial Arts Hall imitates the spirit and posture of a fierce tiger hunting and pouncing on its prey, fierce and sharp.

During the cultivation process, one even uses tiger bones as medicinal ingredients to strengthen the body.

Zhou You had only been learning for a month and had used 4 patches of tiger bone ointment, yet his physical fitness had already improved significantly.

Tiger skin, tiger bones, and tiger sinews all possess a level of toughness far exceeding the ordinary.

The knife strike from the refugee's sneak attack had only scratched the surface of his vest; such endurance was something he would never have dared to imagine in the past.

Now, seeing the Dormant Meng Hu Quan on the painting, a sense of resonance rose in his heart.

Was he not just like the Hungry Tiger in the painting, clearly possessing a soaring fighting spirit, yet forced to endure for the time being due to his current circumstances?

Once the opportunity arrived, he would be able to fully display his strengths and become a king that shocks all beasts.

That night, after Zhou You fell asleep, he dreamed of that Hungry Tiger, Zang in the desolate hills and jagged rocks, a pair of dim eyes watching him.

Zhou You was not afraid; he knew he was not the prey, and that Meng Hu Quan was his very self.

At the same time he fell asleep...

Under the moonlight, the Hungry Tiger Crouching Picture hung quietly, the tiger's eyes emitting a faint, indistinct glimmer.