Chapter 203: Mastiff Fist's Solicitation: Recruiting a Son-in-Law

A carriage broke through the cold wind and charged into the flat land outside Gongliang City.

Huff, huff—the hot air spraying from the horse's nostrils was like billowing white mist, and following it, sweat beads the size of soybeans dripped onto the ground.

"Tie Niu, don't tire the horse out; stop and feed it some soybeans and fresh water."

Tie Niu silently reined in the packhorse, pulled out a handful of soybeans to stuff into the horse's mouth, and then scooped a full ladle of fresh water from a wooden bucket to offer it.

The packhorse drank greedily and heartily, making loud slurping sounds.

Zhou You jumped off the carriage, casually pulled out a broken arrow embedded in the wooden board, and tossed it to the ground.

The journey back to the city from his old home felt like a lifetime ago compared to just a few months prior.

Everywhere there were gangs of bandits demanding grain and iron wealth, or even wanting to slaughter their horses for food.

In these chaotic times, this trade was also competitive; there were regular soldiers wearing leather armor and carrying blades, and also part-time robbers holding farm tools, of varying quality.

Zhou You let Tie Niu protect his parents while he stepped forward to drive them off, wave after wave, endlessly.

In short, the return journey became very slow, and they almost didn't have enough food to eat.

They even encountered a crisis once, where the interface triggered a Trial Task: Escape.

This task was of a group-combat level, activating the Battlefield Perspective, with dense red dots numbering in the thousands.

Zhou You felt his scalp tingle, turned his head, and left, having Tie Niu take a detour to avoid them.

This scale was no longer a small skirmish, but the rhythm of refugees forming an army; it was more than enough to lay siege to a city.

Among these red dots, there were also particularly bright and large red dots, which were specifically marked martial arts masters of fist techniques.

Could it be another bandit group on the scale of the Moun Stronghold? Zhou You couldn't even care about the Trial Task and thrillingly avoided this large-scale group of enemies.

Only when there wasn't a single red dot left on the interface did he finally heave a sigh of relief.

Seeing Gongliang City again, he felt it was quite an achievement; if it had been anyone else, they would have died on the road long ago.

The packhorse ate the beans and drank the water, recovering some of its stamina.

Zhou You got off to walk, letting Tie Niu lead the carriage slowly into the city, while his parents sat in the carriage to continue resting.

The city gate tunnel was tall and deep; every time he walked inside, the sound of the wind vanished, and the light became dim.

The sound of the horse's hooves was exceptionally distinct! Zhou You suddenly stopped his steps, "Tie Niu, wait here for now, I'll go up ahead and be right back."

At the city gate directly in front, stood a burly old man, who was none other than... Bao Tiefeng.

Mastiff Fist martial arts master Bao Tiefeng was blocking him at the city gate for no reason; there must be some purpose! If things went poorly today, something might happen.

Tie Niu received his hint and guided the carriage to the exit position; if anything went wrong, the carriage could gallop away.

"Is Bao Shifu waiting for someone?"

Bao Tiefeng admitted it directly, "Indeed, I am waiting for you, Winged Tiger Zhou You."

He waved his hand, and a wild dog curled up in a corner of the wall not far away moved, stood upright on the spot, and revealed its true appearance.

It was actually a living person draped in a dog skin, lying on the ground so lifelike that anyone who saw it would only think it was an ordinary wild dog.

Following Bao Tiefeng's order, the person in the dog skin bowed respectfully to him and turned to leave.

"This is the Dog-Stealing Technique under my Mastiff Fist sect; in order to wait for your specific return date, I had him wait for nearly 100 days."

100 days—that meant he had started waiting three months ago.

Zhou You got straight to the point, "Zhou You is under the Jian Xiong Martial Arts Hall, and Bao Shifu leads the Mastiff Fist sect; you and I have no dealings, may I ask what business you have that requires your presence?"

"Zhou You, do you know that you are facing a great disaster?"

Bao Tiefeng's opening remark was nothing but alarmist posturing. Zhou You was not surprised, but instead let out a breath; it was just empty intimidation, so it seemed there was no danger.

"I will tell you one thing: after you left Gongliang City, Wang Laohu took Lu Jianqing to Dayin Mountain."

"It doesn't matter if you don't know Dayin Mountain; I'll tell you, Wang Laohu came out of Dayin Mountain."

"He took Lu Jianqing and used old friendships to try to recommend Lu Jianqing to return to the sect."

"Dayin Mountain is a sect with a Martial Arts Master sitting in command; it has a boundless future, far more promising than any martial arts hall."

Bao Tiefeng said this and then asked Zhou You, "In the future, when Lu Jianqing has hopes of becoming a Martial Arts Master, how will you handle his revenge?"

It was common knowledge that Zhou You had beaten Zhong Shaoying to death, forging an irreconcilable feud with Lu Jianqing.

Wang Jianxiong had exhausted his efforts and used his connections to pave the way for him, allowing Lu Jianqing to have a higher platform for development.

Such biased behavior was, to a certain extent, abandoning Zhou You and watching coldly as he went to his death.

"Zhou You, Wang Laohu's intentions are not hard to guess; you are the whetstone he left for Lu Jianqing."

Bao Tiefeng said nonchalantly, "A tiger is a king, and there can only be one king; he has already chosen Lu Jianqing, so no matter how excellent or outstanding you are, you no longer catch his eye."

Zhou You listened in silence for a long while, then said, "Bao Shifu is thoughtful, but I could have learned this news after returning to the city; since you came specifically to tell me, what is your true intention?"

"Nothing else, I just cherish talent."

Bao Tiefeng took a Property Deed from his sleeve, "The house your family is renting, I have already bought it and am giving it to you."

"Wang Laohu doesn't know how to cherish you, but I know you are a rare talent; transfer to my sect!"

"I will impart my lifelong martial arts to you, and the future of the Mastiff Fist will not necessarily be weaker than the Jade Tiger Art."

"If you don't trust me, I can marry my daughter to you, establishing a father-in-law and son-in-law relationship, just like Wang Laohu and Lu Jianqing."

Upon hearing this, Zhou You suddenly asked, "How many daughters does Bao Shifu have?"

"One; her husband died not long ago, and she is living as a widow at home."

Good heavens, in order to win over Zhou You, he would just slaughter his son-in-law and marry off his daughter again.

Between gifting property and marrying off a daughter, his sincerity was full.

Zhou You felt the rebellious bone at the back of his head stirring; he wasn't afraid of not knowing the value of goods, he was afraid of comparing goods—he really should let his master see this.

He sighed, "Bao Shifu, not only is your fist technique formidable, but your way of doing things is also very sharp; this junior admires you."

Bao Tiefeng was stunned, then laughed, "What is your decision?"

"Apologies, changing masters and defecting is a great taboo; although Bao Shifu's conditions are good, they cannot trade for me being notorious and reviled by thousands for the rest of my life. Furthermore, the risk of being your son-in-law is too high; I still want to live a few more years."

Zhou You cupped his fists and said sincerely.

So what if they truly fell out; he had killed two Martial Masters in succession, accumulating enough confidence.

Let alone Bao Tiefeng, he was not even afraid of his master, Wang Laohu! Bao Tiefeng stared into his eyes and said after a long while, "Good, I like loyal Disciples the most; you should consider it further."

As soon as he finished speaking, he flicked the Property Deed, and the thin sheet of paper instantly became as hard as a steel plate, spinning into the ground at Zhou You's feet.

"Accept this small profit!"

After saying this, he turned and left, leaving no trace in the city gate tunnel.

Zhou You looked at the Property Deed worth a thousand gold; this was a hot potato, and it would be difficult whether he accepted it or not.

The matter of Bao Tiefeng blocking him at the city gate would reach Wang Laohu's ears by the next day, and this Property Deed was undoubtedly ironclad proof confirming their private interaction.

This move was ruthlessly open and aboveboard, forcing Zhou You into a dead end.

(End of this chapter)