I agreed to be a kept man, but I'm still being punished by the system.

When it was time to leave work, Lin Yang immediately got up and headed to Su Man's office.

He knocked on the door.

"Enter."

Suman was reviewing the documents without looking up.

"Mr. Su, do you need to work overtime tonight?"

She put down her pen and looked up at Lin Yang.

Those clear, cold eyes still seemed to hold a trace of moisture from last night's passionate encounter, but her tone had already regained the authority of a director.

"Not today."

"I have some personal business to attend to and need to go to Shipai Village in the south of the city," Lin Yang said.

Su Man raised her eyebrows slightly.

Shipai Village?

The name of that place held memories of moving with Lin Yang, and of those thugs stepping on her Volvo S90.

Her gaze lingered on Lin Yang's face for a moment, but in the end she didn't ask any more questions and simply nodded slightly.

"Then let's go home."

Lin Yang took Su Man back to the Junfu Hotel.

At the hotel entrance, he watched that capable figure disappear behind the revolving door before getting back into his car, taking out his folding phone, and sending a message to Chen Wanjun.

I have something to do tonight, I'll be going to the south of the city, so I'll have to take care of dinner myself.

The message was sent successfully.

He tossed his phone onto the passenger seat, stepped on the gas, and the dark blue Cayenne merged into the evening traffic jam.

During the evening rush hour in Huahai City, the main roads turned into an endless river of red lights.

Lin Yang glanced at the brand-new Huawei smartwatch on his wrist; the screen displayed the time: 18:30.

There was still an hour and a half until the agreed time of 8 o'clock.

On the navigation map, the dark red sections representing congestion almost take up the entire screen.

The low growl of the Cayenne's V6 engine sounded somewhat irritating during the stop-and-go traffic.

Lin Yang held the steering wheel with one hand, his gaze sweeping across the roadside, where a familiar, huge yellow "M" sign came into view.

McDonald's drive-thru lane.

Without hesitation, he turned on his turn signal and drove over.

A few minutes later, the expensive leather seats were filled with the aroma of hamburgers and French fries.

Lin Yang slowly moved through the traffic while eating his dinner.

The scene felt incredibly incongruous.

Finally, at 7:55 p.m., the Cayenne entered the southern part of the city.

The narrow, damp alleyways of Shipai Village were simply too small for this enormous vehicle.

Lin Yang found an empty spot by the muddy roadside at the entrance of the village and parked his car.

As soon as he got out of the car, several young people squatting by the roadside smoking were drawn to the luxury car, their eyes filled with undisguised scrutiny.

Lin Yang ignored them, locked his car, and followed the location sent by Liu Shanshan, plunging into the maze-like urban village.

The air was filled with the smell of cooking fumes and household garbage.

He walked through several narrow alleys, barely wide enough for one person to pass at a time, with a dense network of crisscrossing power lines overhead that almost completely blocked out the last bit of daylight.

Just when he thought he was about to reach the end of the village, the view suddenly opened up before him.

A row of tall walls suddenly appeared before our eyes.

Blue bricks and gray tiles, flying eaves and brackets.

Against the backdrop of the chaotic and dilapidated buildings that seem to shake hands with each other, this antique building appears out of place, even somewhat eerie.

Lin Yang couldn't help but complain inwardly.

Holy crap, building a grand mansion in a slum, what kind of twisted sense of humor is that?

He walked around the high wall for a while and found the location he was looking for.

The two heavy vermilion doors were tightly closed, and two huge red lanterns hung on them, emitting a dim yellow light.

Lin Yang reached out, grasped the cold brass door knocker, and knocked on the door.

"Thump, thump-thump".

A moment later, the door opened a crack, and an old man with gray hair, wearing a traditional Chinese jacket, poked his head out, his cloudy eyes scrutinizing Lin Yang.

"Mr. Lin, right?"

Lin Yang nodded.

The old man then fully opened the door and stepped aside to make way for him.

"Come in, please. The Third Miss has already given instructions."

As soon as Lin stepped inside, it felt like he had entered another world.

Outside the door lies a dirty and chaotic urban village, but inside is a completely different world.

The courtyard is deep and secluded, with artificial hills and flowing water, and the air is filled with the faint scent of sandalwood and the damp smell of earth. A winding path leads into the depths, and in a sizable pond beside it, dozens of brightly colored koi carp are swimming leisurely.

Each one is incredibly valuable.

This display suggests that the owner is either very wealthy or of high status.

"Mr. Lin, please come with me to the backyard."

The old man led the way, and Lin Yang followed behind, passing through the brightly lit front hall.

In the backyard, Liu Shanshan and her spoiled younger brother Liu Lusheng were standing behind an elderly man with gray hair, dressed in a dark Tang suit.

The old man had a smile on his face and a calm demeanor, but a glint of shrewdness was hidden in his cloudy eyes.

He spoke first, his voice booming: "Welcome to my humble abode, Mr. Lin."

"I am Liu Laohu, the head of the Zhisong Hall of the Huahai Hongmen."

Lin Yang took a step forward, instinctively wanting to reach out his hand.

But Liu Laohu simply clasped his hands together and performed a traditional martial arts salute.

Lin Yang immediately realized what was happening and followed suit by clasping his hands in return.

"Lin Yang greets the Hall Master."

Liu Laohu stroked his chin and looked Lin Yang up and down with a smile: "Mr. Lin, you are truly a young hero. At such a young age, you already have such skill."

As soon as he finished speaking, a figure walked out from the corridor next to him.

He was a middle-aged man around forty years old, dressed in a black kung fu outfit, with slightly bulging temples and sharp eyes.

Beside him followed a dejected Black Bull, his left arm in a splint and slinged around his neck with a bandage.

The middle-aged man's gaze swept over Lin Yang, a hint of contempt creeping onto his lips.

"He's obviously all show and no substance, with only mediocre skills, yet he dares to challenge us."

Liu Laohu seemed to have just noticed him, his face showing just the right amount of surprise.

"Oh, Master Guo, what brings you out here?"

He turned to Lin Yang and introduced him: "This is Guo Huai, a master of Hung Kuen from Southeast Asia."

He then introduced Guo Huai: "This is Lin Yang, Mr. Lin."

Lin Yang clasped his hands in a fist salute again: "Master Guo."

Guo Huai merely snorted coldly, not even bothering to lift his eyelids, completely ignoring the favor.

Hung Kuen?

Lin Yang mentally activated the emergency call system.

"Is Hung Kuen considered kung fu? Can my intermediate-level fighting skills defeat it?"

[Martial arts is a collection of various unarmed combat techniques. Its data model includes both modern and traditional martial arts, including but not limited to Hung Kuen. The host can sense and recall response strategies from the implanted memory information.]

A complex yet clear stream of information flashed through Lin Yang's mind in an instant, all about Hung Kuen's power generation techniques, footwork characteristics, and ways to counter it.

He immediately felt reassured.

In the brief moment between his conversation with the system, Liu Shanshan quietly moved to his side, lowered her voice, and breathed softly.

"Black Bull is Master Guo's apprentice. You injured his apprentice, so he definitely won't give you a good look."

Lin Yang understood.

At this moment, Liu Laohu stepped forward, playing the role of peacemaker, his smile unchanged.

"Since Mr. Lin has come for the position of Red Pole of my Zhisong Hall, then please have a match with Master Guo and let your strength speak for itself."

Lin Yang met his gaze, his tone crisp and decisive.

"That's natural."

"Alright!" Liu Laohu clapped his hands. "Come with me, there's a practice room downstairs, it's very spacious."

The group followed Liu Laohu through the corridor and into the main building of the house, arriving at a staircase leading underground.

A chilling aura swept over us.

The basement level of the house is an extremely spacious training room.

The floor was covered with thick solid wood flooring, which made a dull sound when stepped on.

On the walls hung various weapons, including swords, spears, and halberds, which gleamed coldly under the lamplight.

In the corner, there are sandbags, wooden dummy dummies, and all kinds of modern fitness equipment.

A faint smell of sweat and medicinal oil wafted in the air.

Liu Laohu walked to the center of the training room, made a "please" gesture, and looked at Lin Yang and Guo Huai.

"Let the two of you have a contest here."

He then added, "The two masters should stop when they've reached a point of no return; please don't get too worked up."

His voice was still loud and clear, and he had a smile on his face, but there was no smile in his cloudy eyes.

That old fox.

Lin Yang sneered inwardly.

They put it nicely, but they were just afraid that someone would die, which would be difficult for the authorities to explain and would tarnish their auspicious place.