Chapter 307: Accepting a Disciple and Observing the Ceremony

The Winged Tiger Zhou You has taken on a Disciple.

After the news spread, an insider retorted, "What Disciple? It's clearly his brother-in-law!"

Qi Fengzhang values this Senior Brother highly; to win him over, he even offered a clanswoman in marriage, making many young martial artists envious.

There are even rumors that Lu Jianqing, who also hails from the Jian Xiong Martial Arts Hall, once made a request to Qi Fengzhang, thinking he could receive the same treatment.

The one he had his eyes on was Feng Zi!

Unexpectedly, Qi Fengzhang decisively rejected Lu Jianqing, having no intention of winning him over at all.

Anyone with a discerning eye knows that Lu Jianqing is the mantle-inheriting successor of Wang Laohu and will inherit the martial arts hall or even join a sect in the future.

The Qi Family cannot buy off such a person, nor is there any need to fall out with Wang Laohu over it.

The Tiger Grand Duke's heartfelt wishes could only be cast into the flowing water.

People in the martial arts circle who know about Zhou You's situation secretly sigh that this kid is lucky; give him twenty years, and he will be another Wang Laohu.

Some even refer to Zhou You as 'Little Tiger' unconsciously, to distinguish him from Wang Laohu.

Wang Jianxiong opened a martial arts hall in Gongliang City with the backing of a noble family, and now Zhou You has one too, having a close relationship with the powerful Third Young Master of the Qi Family, and is even set to become his brother-in-law.

Wang Laohu took a son of the Qi Family as a Disciple, and Zhou You has done the same.

Comparing the two, they are surprisingly similar; the path Zhou You is walking now is a 1:1 replica of Wang Laohu.

"It's a good thing those two master and disciple had a falling out, otherwise, in a few decades, where would there be any room for our styles in the Gongliang City martial arts circle? It would all be dominated by his Tiger Fist alone."

The masters of various martial arts halls sighed repeatedly, regretting only that they had no such talent under their own tutelage.

It would be one thing if his progress in practicing fist techniques were fast, but his ability to scheme is just as strong; after being expelled from the martial arts hall, he quickly climbed up the relationship with a noble family scion, and his luck is good too—the Qi Fengzhang he attached himself to turned his fortunes around and replaced his elder brother Qi Fengxiao's position.

With strength, means, and luck, he has no shortcomings, quickly achieving a hundred-fold leap and rising above hundreds of thousands of his peers in Gongliang City!

This is the outside world's view of Zhou You.

After Zhou You's parents heard the rumors from outside, they felt like a wage earner who had won the first prize in the lottery—dazed and unable to believe it.

Their son is getting married, and the partner is from the Qi Family, a great clan in the city; Heavens, is this a dream?

People around them say it's true, and their son hasn't denied it, yet they still can't believe it.

Sigh, sometimes being too happy isn't good either! Zhou You tried every way to persuade his parents not to be nervous, as nothing was set in stone yet.

He began to take the impact of this matter seriously, picked a date, and invited a few friends and relatives to observe the ceremony.

"Everyone look, this is my Disciple, Qi Qingdi."

A small banquet was held at home, and only fellow Disciples were invited; there were no other outsiders.

The oil peddler Song Fugui is now a wealthy-looking boss, sporting a handlebar mustache, white and plump.

Although business has been hard to do lately, there is no sign of decadence on his face; he is all smiles when meeting people, and his demeanor is quite festive.

He sent a vat of sesame oil as a congratulatory gift, top-quality oil that is golden orange.

"Senior Brother Jiang Hua, I didn't expect you to come too."

Compared to their last meeting, Jiang Hua's complexion is even paler; his gift is a golden crown, crafted in the shape of a lotus flower from pure gold.

He coughed and said, "I just returned from Fucheng and came as soon as I heard the news."

After saying a few words, he pointedly told Zhou You, "Move as soon as possible; Fucheng is a good place."

He had also received news and was reminding Zhou You to prepare an escape route as soon as possible, to move to Fucheng before Gongliang City falls.

Zhou You nodded, "We shall meet in Fucheng later, and I will gather with Senior Brother Jiang then."

Hearing this, Jiang Hua knew what was what; he understood that Zhou You did not intend to fight to the death in one place. Then, the Lazy Tiger Shi Gaofei arrived as well.

This Senior Brother carried a few catties of dark, dried meat, "Junior Brother Zhou, sorry to intrude, here."

Zuo Shier, who was nearby, thoughtfully stepped forward to take the dried meat he brought, looking at it curiously for a moment.

Zhou You was also curious; this Lazy Tiger Senior Brother dared to show up, wasn't he afraid of being punished by Wang Laohu later?

After Shi Gaofei took his seat, Zuo Shier quietly reminded Zhou You, "What he brought is tiger penis."

Those dried, long strips of meat were indeed tiger penises.

There were a full forty or fifty of them! Zhou You turned his head to look in Shi Gaofei's direction; the other party noticed and nodded at him, signaling him to enjoy them to his heart's content.

It isn't easy to get so many tiger penises; it is a gesture of goodwill, regardless of the value.

Before long, the invited guests had all arrived; only Shen Sijing had matters at home and sent someone to deliver a gift.

"Qi Qingdi, you are my Double Body Tiger Form Fist's... well, my first founding Disciple. These are all your elders; come and offer a toast and pay your respects."

The guests were all a bit unnatural; the other party is a scion of the Qi Family, regardless of whether he is of the main or branch line, his status is far more noble than theirs.

Fortunately, Qi Qingdi is sensible; he raised his wine cup to pay his respects with a very sincere attitude.

The atmosphere gradually became harmonious!

At the banquet, Zhou You remembered Shen Sijing and immediately said, "It's a pity Senior Brother Shen isn't here..."

As soon as these words were spoken, the atmosphere instantly turned cold.

Zhou You sensed that there was something going on and hurriedly asked, only to learn that the Shen Family Trading Firm had encountered trouble, and it was a big one.

Recently, rebel armies and rogue soldiers outside the city have been sweeping across the land, attacking manors and towns, almost like locusts.

Gathering points everywhere have fallen one after another, their wealth looted, and the common people have become refugees.

At the most dangerous times, standing on the city walls of Gongliang City, one could see the bloody scenes of rebel soldiers burning settlements and executing those who resisted.

It looks like the rebel soldiers are about to kill their way to the outside of the city.

The two great noble families have issued a 'War Order'; the city's resources and manpower are to be unified and allocated, obeying the overall situation, and those who disobey will die.

Anyone holding a War Order is qualified to guard a section of the city wall and allocate resources within the city.

"War Order."

Zhou You remembered the token in his sleeve and recalled that this thing was called by that name? Anyone who can obtain a War Order is a local powerhouse in the city, such as Wang Laohu, Mao Laoliu, and other martial arts hall masters; they have Disciples and followers, and when organized, they are an army, and they are good at sticking together, with extremely strong combat power.

Secondly, there are the major trade guilds, which have sufficient resources and manpower and are also qualified to accept a War Order.

As a member of the Merchant Guild, the Shen Family Trading Firm originally only needed to contribute some money, grain, and manpower.

However, in these chaotic times, order has collapsed, and the situation of big fish eating small fish is common.

This time, 3 War Orders were distributed within the Merchant Guild, and the holder of one of them intends to annex the Shen Family Trading Firm.

This firm is named Hongmao Trading Firm, and the proprietor is named Zhang Hongmao, who is in his early fifties; he once wanted to arrange a marriage with the Shen family, but his only son was foolish and obese, so the Shen family's younger sister truly could not look upon him and refused.

At the time, there was no unpleasantness, but who would have thought that Zhang Hongmao was someone who held a grudge, biding his time until today to act out.

He has already used the name of the War Order to forcibly demand the confiscation of the Shen Family Trading Firm, seizing the Shen family's shops, capital, and warehouses.

That is not all; the old man proposed to "renew the former connection," and this time, the one marrying the Shen family's younger sister is not his foolish son, because the foolish son has long since taken a wife, so the groom has been changed to himself.

The old rascal delusions of reaping both wealth and beauty; he is old in years but not in heart.

(End of this chapter)