Heaven rewards diligence; he fought his way through chaos to become a saint.

Xiao Hua glanced sideways at Meng Zhaoting, straightened his sleeves, and said slowly and deliberately:

"Meng Zhaoting, logically speaking, as your closed-door disciple, I am more esteemed than you. Before breaking through to the Inner Strength realm, you called me 'Junior Brother'... I won't argue with that. But now that I've reached the Inner Strength realm, isn't it a bit inappropriate for you to still call me 'Junior Brother'?"

Meng Zhaoting stood there, stunned. He considered himself to have a good relationship with Xiao Hua, so he opened his mouth but couldn't say anything for a long time.

"Master... Senior Brother Xiao..."

Meng Zhaoting finally called out "Senior Brother" under the watchful eyes of everyone.

Hearing this, Xiao Hua nodded in satisfaction, his gaze casually sweeping over everyone.

Everyone immediately bowed and clasped their hands in greeting.

"Senior Brother Xiao!"

"Congratulations, Senior Brother Xiao, on your second attempt..."

Amidst the flattery of the crowd, Xiao Hua straightened his clothes and stood proudly.

His gaze unconsciously fell on a secluded spot in the courtyard, but the figure seemed oblivious, continuing to practice his stance training.

In the following days, the martial arts school became exceptionally lively.

Wealthy families came in droves to offer their congratulations to Xiao Hua.

Since breaking through to the Dark Force realm, Master Yang no longer prevented him from going out.

Therefore, every evening, a horse-drawn carriage would appear on the side of the martial arts school, inviting Xiao Hua to a banquet.

Some people recalled that when Xiao Hua first arrived, he was covered in patches, thin and pitiful, and he was paid ten taels of silver to attend school there.

Now, every evening, people wait for him to rest before going to listen to his music.

Some of the poor disciples in the academy were filled with envy, because Xiao Hua's attire was no longer just ordinary black tight-fitting clothes, but often brocade robes and jade garments.

Faced with the adoration of the masses, Xiao Hua's network of acquaintances was also different from before. She would often return reeking of alcohol, telling other disciples about the powerful and influential people she had met that day.

Ye Ci ignored this.

He knew that it wouldn't be long before he broke through to the Dark Force level.

The ones who were upset were Meng Zhaoting and the others. They were disciples in the inner courtyard who were considered to have the potential to break through to the Dark Force realm and who also considered Xiao Hua to be their friend.

However, they did not break through as quickly as Adam Silver, and they appeared to be clearly distinct from each other.

Nowadays, Xiao Hua only keeps company with Qi Wang, Jiang Ding'an, and others.

Jiang Ding'an was a lively person, and he never tired of attending banquets and listening to music. Even without Xiao Hua, he often went out drinking, and these past few nights he had been indulging in debauchery.

Ye Ci didn't think Xiao Hua had stolen their friendship. The escort agency was supposed to maintain good relations with wealthy families, and Senior Brother Jiang was also expanding their business.

What truly worried Ye Ci was that the time for the martial arts competition was drawing ever closer.

Two days left.

The plaster figure will find itself.

Ye Ci considered how to avoid this martial arts competition.

That night, Ye Ci was planning to rest when Jiang Ding'an returned drunk and barged into Ye Ci's room.

"Senior brother!"

"Call me Big Brother!"

"..." Ye Ci looked at his flushed face and smelled of alcohol, and said helplessly, "Big brother."

"Hey! I've come to have a chat with you."

Jiang Ding'an patted Ye Ci on the shoulder: "You're not getting any younger. Your senior brother will find you a girl to marry, and we'll have a big, healthy son..."

"???"

Ye Ci felt there was something wrong with her words, so she sighed deeply and said, "You should drink less..."

"You sit down too."

Jiang Ding'an sat down on the bed with a swagger, quite excited, and patted Ye Ci, saying, "It's settled then! Several wealthy families asked me today if I had any suitable candidates, and I naturally thought of you first. I know those girls; they're pretty and come from very good families. If you marry them, you won't have to worry about your health issues anymore; they'll definitely take care of you!"

"Yanbinlou Restaurant, it's my treat, brother. You set the time, and all three girls must be there at the same time. You can choose..."

"Just tell me which one you like, and your senior brother will be the matchmaker... In Songjiang County, if you want to marry a girl, you don't even need to pay a bride price!"

He patted his chest, reeking of alcohol, and boasted, "Brother, this face of mine is your dowry!"

"Please have a seat for a while, please..."

Helpless, Ye Ci went out to the hot water room to get a pot of hot water, and then borrowed some tea leaves from Meng Zhaoting next door before brewing a pot of hangover tea for Jiang Ding'an.

After drinking some tea, the smell of alcohol dissipated a bit. That's how it is for martial artists; their metabolism is faster.

If drinking leads to trouble, Master Yang probably won't allow them to drink.

When he returned, Jiang Ding'an had already taken off his boots and was sitting cross-legged on Ye Ci's bed, counting on his fingers:

"One is the daughter of Manager Huang from the clothing shop, and the other is the daughter of Old Feng from the gambling den. Both of these girls have good figures and large breasts... There is also the Han family from the five major families. She is quite pretty, but her legs are a bit inconvenient. If you value cultivation resources, I suggest you choose the Han family."

The five major families Jiang Ding'an mentioned refer to the Shen, Han, Zhao, Jin, and Zhang families in the inner city. These five families have been deeply rooted in the county for many years. The guards they hire all have the ability of internal strength, and they have private connections with some masters of external strength, and even have dealings with some officials in the prefectural city.

Once you get involved with the five major families, you're considered to be quite well-off in the county. Many Ming Jin disciples in the academy don't have such resources.

It seems that Jiang Ding'an has been quietly exerting his influence behind the scenes.

In Ye Ci's opinion, the woman from the Han family with the leg problem was probably born out of wedlock... Moreover, the reason why these three families agreed to Jiang Ding'an's request was probably because his senior brother was a direct disciple and had the potential to break through to the Transformation Realm.

The marriage proposal was a pretense; it was probably more about valuing his relationship with Senior Brother Jiang.

Indeed, this was the case in reality. Many wealthy families noticed that Jiang's junior brother frequently recommended a junior brother who had never attended a drinking party before, and that's why they were interested in befriending him.

Ye Ci politely declined, saying, "Thank you, Senior Brother Jiang, but I don't plan to get married for the time being... But you, is your wife still waiting for you at home?"

Ye Ci knew that he was already married, and couldn't help but shake his head inwardly. He had a wife but didn't go home, and actually came to my place.

"Sigh! Your brother got married too early, and your sister-in-law is so strict. We even had a fight this morning... That woman is too cruel... If only I could take a concubine, I'd have a gentle wife to keep me company when I'm drunk..."

"I've been through this myself, so let me tell you about the hardships while I'm still a bit drunk. The first thing to do when getting married is to agree with her that she can have concubines."

"I must never have sworn a solemn oath never to take a concubine just because I was attracted to her beauty. Alas... I truly regret it now!"

"Furthermore, the wife should not be a martial arts practitioner, let alone someone who has mastered the art; otherwise, a single incident could cause a huge uproar."

"My wife is so domineering that I'm afraid to go home after drinking!"

He lamented his fate, then said, "Brother, you must never follow in my footsteps. But don't worry, this time, the girls I've found for you are all well-educated, gentle, and virtuous. They don't know martial arts, and each one of them is..."

"stop!"

Ye Ci stopped him from continuing to play matchmaker and changed the subject, asking, "Why have you and your sister-in-law been arguing lately?"

"It's all because of those southern barbarians. Your sister-in-law is from Jiaozhou. A while ago, her brother sent her a letter through someone, saying that he was worried about the danger in Jiaozhou Prefecture and wanted to come and seek refuge with her."

"As the older sister, she asked my father to arrange for a security escort agency to pick me up. These days, which security chief dares to go to Jiaozhou? This morning he made me go there myself… But I have a dinner appointment tonight… Besides, tomorrow is a banquet hosted by the Jin family, one of the five great families. She insists on rushing things, believing everything she hears. Is it going to kill her to make her brother wait a few more days?"

"Ouch..."

He paused halfway through his sentence, then lightly patted his mouth: "If her mother heard this, she'd definitely fight me to the death! Her brother won't die; he'll live to be a hundred!"

"I'll go pick them up! We can leave tomorrow morning."

Ye Ci's eyes suddenly lit up, and he looked at Jiang Ding'an.