After the family split up, I achieved martial arts sainthood.

Zhenwei Martial Arts School, outside the main gate.

The crowd was so large that the entrance to the martial arts school was completely blocked.

Even though it was nearly noon, the sun was shining brightly, and the weather was getting hotter, many people were sweating profusely from being crowded together, but they were unwilling to leave.

"How did the results come out? When will they be available?"

"Does it really take this long for the Zhou family martial arts school disciples to defeat the Zhenwei martial arts school disciples? Hopefully, something unexpected will happen?"

"Nonsense! What kind of accident could happen? Master Zhou is a martial arts graduate, and a great teacher produces great students. His disciples are bound to be skilled as well."

"That's right, that's right, but don't talk nonsense. I bet five hundred coins that Zhou's Martial Arts School will win."

"Of course, I also bought eight hundred coins."

"You two aren't the only ones buying Zhou's Martial Arts School. Everyone here is, isn't they? With a betting opportunity that's obviously profitable, who wouldn't bet their entire savings?"

"Haha, that's true! It's just a pity the odds are too low."

"You should be grateful! The Green Forest Gang has only taken in money and never given it back for so many years. This time they've done a good deed, so keep the money you made..."

The crowd, chattering amongst themselves, made the area outside Zhenwei Martial Arts School even more noisy and chaotic.

Mentioning the betting odds run by the Qinglin Gang gambling dens, many people became even more excited and thrilled.

"See? I told you so! Buying Zhou's Martial Arts School was a sure thing."

On the outskirts of the crowd, Gu Qi waved his folding fan and looked at Liu Mei beside him with a smile: "Although the odds are a bit low, as long as you bet heavily, the returns can still be considerable."

"Uh-huh!"

As Liu Mei listened to the heated discussion around her, an excited smile appeared on her usually harsh face.

"Father is really amazing. He earned thirty taels of silver for our family with ease. He's much better than that bastard Gu Xin."

Gu Hong imitated Gu Qi by shaking his folding fan and also started to laugh.

"What's this? If your mother were willing to borrow some more money from your uncle's family to bet, our family could make even more today. We might become rich overnight and move directly to the inner city to enjoy a life of luxury."

Gu Qi shook his head with some regret; they clearly had the chance to defy fate today.

"Oh dear, I didn't know either. If I had known, I would have gone to my parents' house."

Liu Mei was also filled with regret at this moment, feeling remorseful all the while.

"Can we still get it replaced now? If so, let's go back and get some more from Grandpa, and then we can get it replaced as soon as possible."

After grieving for a while, Liu Mei looked at Gu Qi and asked him a question.

"It's probably too late..."

Gu Qi glanced at the gate of Zhenwei Martial Arts School and shook his head helplessly: "There's no suspense in Zhou's Martial Arts School fighting Zhenwei Martial Arts School. If nothing unexpected happens, we should have a result soon."

"oops!"

Liu Mei sighed with regret; her initial excitement had dampened considerably.

"Clang!"

Just then, the tightly closed doors of Zhenwei Martial Arts School were suddenly pulled open.

Zhou Feng, the master of Zhou's Martial Arts School, hurriedly walked out of the school with three disciples.

"It's out! It's out!"

"It's the master of the Zhou Family Martial Arts School!"

"How was it? What was the result? Mr. Zhou, you won, didn't you?"

"Hahaha, congratulations, Mr. Zhou! Congratulations, Mr. Zhou!"

"As expected of a martial arts master, a great teacher produces great students. He defeated Zhenwei Martial Arts School so quickly..."

Once they could see Zhou Feng and his companions clearly, the long-awaited crowd swarmed around them.

Everyone was excited and kept offering their congratulations.

The crowd looked at Zhou Feng and his group with eyes full of respect.

Unexpectedly, upon hearing their flattery and congratulations, Zhou Feng and his three disciples' faces turned frighteningly gloomy.

Zhou Feng, who was leading the team, was especially enthusiastic, almost dripping with emotion.

"Get out of the way! Get out of the way!"

The four of them mounted their horses, impatiently dispersing the crowd as they spurred their horses away at high speed.

"What... what's going on? Master Zhou doesn't seem very happy?"

"What's wrong? You're not happy even though you beat someone?"

"This...could it be that we've lost?"

"How is that possible? That's a martial arts master! How could his disciples possibly lose to a bunch of peasants?"

The crowd noticed Zhou Feng's unusual behavior, and their initial excitement turned into suspicion.

"Yay! We won! We won!"

Just as they were all in disbelief, cheers and jubilation erupted from inside Zhenwei Martial Arts School.

The enthusiastic cheers, undisguised and unrestrained, were clearly heard by everyone stuck outside the museum.

"What... Zhenwei Martial Arts School won?"

"How is this possible? Zhenwei Martial Arts School actually beat Zhou's Martial Arts School?"

"My God! The Zhou Family Martial Arts School actually lost? How could the Zhou Family Martial Arts School possibly lose?"

"Isn't Master Zhou a martial arts graduate? A martial arts graduate, what a powerful figure! How could his disciples be anything but excellent? How come..."

The crowd was stunned, as if struck by lightning.

The people they gathered were almost all people who had emptied their pockets to buy Zhou's Martial Arts School.

The Gu family of three, who were feeling regretful on the outskirts of the crowd, were stunned and looked completely lost.

"Gu Qi, you bastard, give me my money back!"

After a moment of distraction, Liu Mei snapped out of it and flew into a rage, tearing at Gu Qi's clothes like a madwoman.

That money was all saved from the relief food she had cut back on for the bride and groom years ago.

……

Gu Xin was unaware of the commotion outside the martial arts school.

Amidst the enthusiastic cheers of his senior brothers, Gu Xin was lifted up and tossed high into the air in celebration.

"Alright, alright, fellow seniors, let's find a different way to celebrate!"

After being tossed around a few times, Gu Xin stopped the apprentices and, once on the ground, called out, "Let's go to Baiwei Restaurant and order a few tables for a feast. We'll eat meat and drink to celebrate. The bill's on my junior brother, how about it?"

Baiweilou is the largest restaurant outside Qingyuan County. It's very popular and the food is delicious.

Gu Xin used to sell most of his hunting catches to Baiweilou.

A table at Baiweilou would cost at least five taels of silver.

This price pales in comparison to the price of Tianxia Zhen in the inner city; they are not even in the same league.

However, even in the outer city, it was considered extremely expensive, making it unaffordable for ordinary farmers.

However, Gu Xin was thinking about the five thousand taels of silver that would be coming into his account soon, so he didn't care about these mere few dozen taels of silver at all.

"Junior Brother Gu, are you serious?"

"The dishes at Baiweilou are quite expensive."

The apprentices were all surprised, their expressions a mixture of anticipation and doubt.

All they've ever tasted in their lives is the aroma of Baiweilou.

They didn't even have the chance to lick the swill from Baiweilou Restaurant.

"Hey, don't worry, I'm a man of my word! I'm going to the backyard to get the money, brothers, please wait a moment."

Gu Xin patted his chest confidently and then turned and walked towards the backyard.

He had spent almost all his money on gambling, and the few loose silver coins he had left were not enough to book a table at Baiweilou Restaurant.

Therefore, he planned to borrow some money from his master, Yang Wei.

He would go to the gambling den to exchange the money later, and then return it to his master.

Not only do they have to pay it back, they have to pay it back double.

We must take good care of our master!

Gu Xin pursed his lips and walked confidently towards Yang Wei's room.

Upon learning of Gu Xin's purpose, Yang Wei handed him a fifty-tael silver note without saying a word.