Divine Tang Era

At the entrance of the Mo Family Martial Arts School.

Xu Dan didn't come to learn martial arts; he came to find Dong Yeyu.

The sounds of martial arts practice echoed from inside the martial arts school. After standing outside for a moment, he walked to the side. Outside the government compound, an elderly man with white hair stood guard. Seeing him approach, he politely asked, "Young man, what brings you here?"

"Old man, I'm looking for Dongye fish," Xu Dan replied.

"Wild Fish! He's busy with his little donkey in that yard over there. You can just go over there," the old man said, pointing to the side.

Xu Dan thanked the old man and walked towards a small courtyard on the left in the direction he pointed. As he walked, he pondered: Isn't Dong Yeyu's surname Dongye? Why is he called Yeyu? Could his surname be Dong? Does such a surname even exist?

He only knew that some people had the surname Dongfang and Dongguo, but he didn't know that anyone had the surname Dong.

"Little donkey, when I have money, I'll definitely get you a good leg, so you won't always be limping and making people laugh at you. If I have even more money, I'll replace all the wood on your body with top-grade secret refining materials, so you'll never have to worry about it breaking down again."

Inside the courtyard, Dongye Fish removed the lame leg of the big black donkey and repaired it.

The door wasn't closed, and Xu Dan walked to the door and knocked.

Dongye Yu turned around when she heard the voice, saw him, and stood up to greet him. "You're here. Just tell me what you want to make. As long as I know how, I'll make something that will satisfy you. Look at my donkey. Who in the government compound doesn't envy it?"

"This isn't urgent. You take the cartload of salt to my place first," Xu Dan said.

"What do you need so much salt for?" Higashino asked curiously.

"To pickle something."

Thinking of the golden yak he brought back, Dongye Yu said, "Okay, I'll bring it over for you right away."

"Is it available now?"

"Of course." Dongye Yu was afraid he wouldn't believe her, so she led him to the back. A large storage room was filled with mineral salt, and the ground was covered with a thick layer of white frost.

"Why are there so many?"

"Usually when I go to haul salt, I haul many truckloads. One or two truckloads are easy to sell, but if I haul more, the price won't go up in Jingning City. So I just leave the goods here and wait for the price to go up before I sell them. Sometimes, my fellow apprentices and neighbors come to buy from me, so I don't have to worry about selling them," Dongyeyu explained.

Hearing his words, Xu Dan finally understood why there was so much salt here.

To be honest, what Dongye Yu did was considered selling smuggled salt. If caught by the government, he would be severely punished and imprisoned, and in serious cases, he could be beheaded.

However, Jingning is located in a remote border region where the laws are not so strict, and with the Mo Clan Martial Arts School behind him, no one bothered him.

Looking at the large chunks of salt in the room, Xu Dan thought for a moment and said, "Could you grind this salt into powder? If you can grind it into salt powder, I don't mind paying a higher price." It's too much trouble to do it yourself. Dong Yeyu has been in Jingning for so many years, he should have a way.

Sure enough, upon hearing his words, Dongye Yu immediately promised to grind it into powder for him.

This is not a difficult task. There is a large millstone nearby. We can have a donkey pull it and it will be done in less than half a day.

Xu Dan came here mainly for this matter, since the salt he sells is cheaper. Buying it from a store would cost at least three times more, and with that money, he could buy many other things. As for the tricycle, he hasn't drawn up the blueprints yet; he'll wait until Dongye Yu brings the salt over before considering that.

Leaving the government compound, I passed by the Mo Family Martial Arts School.

Hearing the sound of disciples practicing their boxing inside the martial arts hall, he thought for a moment and went in.

Since I'm already here, I might as well register and come back tomorrow. Last time I went to Mingfeng Tower, the owner recommended the Mo Family Martial Arts School, so it must have something special about it, otherwise he wouldn't have recommended it.

The martial arts school was very large. On the left was a training ground where a group of people practiced their boxing; on the right were various equipment for training the body, such as stone locks, iron chains, wooden stakes, and so on.

Seeing someone enter, a man who had been watching his disciple practice his martial arts walked over and asked, "Young master, what brings you here?"

"I want to come to the academy to learn martial arts," Xu Dan said.

"In that case, please come in." Lu Shizong then led him along the side corridor to the backyard, introducing himself as they walked: "My master's surname is Mo, and his given name is Jian. He is a direct descendant of the Mo family. I am the master's disciple, the seventh in line, and my name is Lu Shizong. Everyone calls me Seventh Brother. If you enter the family, you can call me Seventh Senior Brother."

"it is good."

Xu Dan also introduced himself: "My name is Xu Dan, and my courtesy name is Gongzu. You can call me Gongzu from now on, senior brother."

"Um"

Lu Shizong frowned, feeling that Xu Dan was taking advantage of him, but seeing that Xu Dan's expression was genuine, he couldn't help but ask, "You're not even an adult yet, how do you know how to write?"

"My parents are not at home, so when I go out, I choose a name for myself to make things easier."

Xu Dan said casually.

Lu Shizong had a toothache. This was a name given to him by his parents and elders; it was the first time he'd ever heard of someone choosing a name for themselves, especially such a name. Wasn't he afraid of getting beaten up if he went out like this? Although he felt Xu Dan's choice of name was inappropriate, he didn't say anything and simply continued leading Xu Dan forward.

The martial arts school was very large, with a back courtyard that was even larger than the front. In the open space in front of the courtyard, a group of people were practicing swordsmanship.

The sword light flashed with a cold gleam, sometimes like a waterfall cascading down, sometimes like the sun shining brightly in the sky, sometimes like clouds and rain intertwining, ever-changing and unpredictable, its mysteries difficult to fathom.

Standing on the veranda, Lu Shizong watched his fellow disciples intently practicing their swordsmanship and proudly declared, "At the Mo Clan Martial Arts School, the first step is to learn fist techniques to strengthen the body, followed by swordsmanship. Once swordsmanship is mastered, one can roam freely throughout the world." He then asked Xu Dan, "Have you ever studied martial arts before?"

"I've studied it."

"That's good, you'll learn the basics of boxing a bit faster than your fellow students."

Unlike other martial arts schools that forbid their students from practicing other schools' styles, the Mo Family Martial Arts School doesn't have many rules here. As long as you're willing to learn, they're willing to teach you.

Lu Shizong led Xu Dan through the sword-practicing courtyard to the back, in front of the house where the master swordsman was located. He told Xu Dan to wait outside while he went in to report, and then came out to lead Xu Dan inside.

The master of the Mo family martial arts school was not as imposing and powerful as a martial artist; instead, he was gentle and refined, like a well-read Confucian scholar.

"Come here, let me feel your bones." Mo Jian beckoned to Xu Dan.

Xu Dan walked over, and Mo Jian reached out and touched him from head to toe. After a moment, he nodded in satisfaction and said, "Not bad, your skin and flesh are firm, and your bones and muscles are strong. You'll save yourself the trouble of training your body. I heard from Qi Lang that you also learned martial arts. What did you practice? Tell me about it."

"I've only learned Taibao Divine Fist," Xu Dan honestly admitted.

"The Taibao Divine Fist was created by the Duke of Hu in his later years. It's a good foundational skill. Come and try it out."

Xu Dan didn't stand on ceremony and started practicing boxing right there in the room. The sound of his punches was powerful, and his body and mind were in perfect harmony; it looked quite good.

After examining the boxing techniques, Mo Jian nodded and said, "Your boxing skills are good, and your foundation is very solid. However, your internal strength has not yet been integrated into your body, so it's all show and no substance. You should first learn our school's boxing techniques from Qi Lang. Once you have internal strength, come back to see me." After saying that, he let them leave.

"No money required?"

Xu Dan was a little dumbfounded when he went out with Lu Shizong. Was that all?

"Of course you have to pay, but the master doesn't concern himself with money or worldly matters. You can pay him yourself when you go to the person in charge later," Lu Shizong said.

Oh, I see. Xu Dan thought he didn't have to pay.

"Do you have anything else to do now?" Lu Shizong asked.

"No." Xu Dan shook his head.

"Alright. I'll teach you the basic boxing techniques first, and then I'll take you to the manager to pay the fee." Lu Shizong then led Xu Dan to a quiet corner of the courtyard where no one would disturb him, and began teaching him boxing.

"Don't we need to pay first?" Xu Dan asked.

It should be understood that paying money to learn martial arts is a perfectly reasonable thing to do.

If you have to pay after learning martial arts, and then the student doesn't want to pay after mastering the skills, wouldn't the master starve to death?

"No need," Lu Shizong said with a smile. "Some kids came to the school to practice boxing before, but after only two days, they cried and refused to come anymore, and in the end, we had to refund their money. Master found it troublesome and gave them seven days to get used to it. Junior brother has practiced martial arts, so naturally, there's no need for that."

This guy is treating me like a child!

Xu Dan rolled his eyes and ignored him, instead watching him practice his boxing techniques and learning from him.