Starting with Xingyi Quan, it swept across the chaotic world.

The Lu family's old residence.

Old Master Lu sat in the dimly lit main room, puffing on his pipe, his eyes fixed on the door without blinking.

My second aunt sat to the side sewing shoe soles.

A while ago, in order to support Lu Hengwu, his family was almost starving. Now, his second aunt has to work hard, spinning thread and weaving cloth.

There's nothing we can do; what can we do when we have a money-devouring monster at home?

You have to find a way to get by.

"It's already noon, and that bastard still won't get up." Old Master Lu felt increasingly annoyed listening to his second son, Lu Zhili's, loud snoring.

"If I had known, I should have let him work in the fields with me from a young age. What's the point of him going to school? He's developed such a spoiled and pampered personality!"

My second aunt sat to the side without saying a word, just busy sewing shoe soles.

She was naturally dissatisfied with her husband, but she still held onto hope.

As long as his precious son can pass the martial arts exam, his current hard times will eventually pass.

Seeing that his daughter-in-law did not speak, Old Master Lu spoke again:

"Shouldn't the results be released by now that the martial arts exams are over? Why hasn't Xiao Heng come back for days?"

These past few days, he has been eagerly awaiting news that Lu Heng has been admitted to the martial arts program.

Who would have thought that Lu Heng would vanish without a trace after participating in the martial arts exam?

"Could something have happened?" Old Master Lu took off his pipe and exhaled a puff of white smoke.

He suddenly thought of a bad possibility:

"Or did that kid fail his exam and is too ashamed to come see us?"

As soon as she finished speaking, Auntie Second paused in her shoe-sewing, her expression freezing.

"Father...you're overthinking it..."

"Xiao Heng... he studies so hard every day, and we've given him a lot of money... how could he not pass the exam?"

"Maybe he went to celebrate with his fellow students at the martial arts school and hasn't been back for a few days...that's...that's normal."

My aunt was clearly losing confidence; as she spoke, her voice grew softer and softer.

Old Master Lu remained silent.

To support Xiao Heng's martial arts training, his family had already emptied their pockets. They had accumulated a lot of debts in the past, but because Xiao Heng was learning martial arts and might pass the martial arts examination, the debt collectors hadn't come to collect.

If Xiao Heng really fails the exam, those people will definitely come to collect their debts, but where would their family get the money to pay them back?

What will become of their family then?

Old Master Lu was eagerly waiting; he desperately hoped someone would come and tell him good news.

Perhaps his wish came true, for he did indeed see someone hurrying toward his home, followed by a large group of people.

"Grandpa, Grandpa!"

"Great news! A truly joyous occasion!"

Hearing the clamor of congratulations from afar, Old Master Lu immediately stood up, losing even his appetite for a cigarette.

"It's a hit! It's a hit!"

A middle-aged man ran over excitedly to congratulate him.

"What did you win?!" Old Master Lu asked excitedly.

The middle-aged man was breathing heavily, ignoring the dryness and pain in his neck:

"The results of the martial arts examination were announced today, and your precious grandson has passed with flying colors—he's a martial arts scholar! This is truly a joyous occasion!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the pipe in Old Master Lu's hand fell to the ground with a "thud".

Seeing the earnest look on the person in front of me, and seeing so many people bringing things into the house and offering their congratulations, I was struck by their earnestness.

Old Master Lu knew that these people couldn't possibly be there to tease him, and that none of this was fake!

A surge of ecstasy instantly welled up inside him, rushing straight to the top of his head.

"Oh my god! My grandson got it!"

"Hahahaha..." Old Master Lu was so excited that he forgot about his unsteady legs and wanted to dance with joy.

But the middle-aged man stopped him.

The old man is getting old and his health isn't good enough for dancing?

Now that Xiao Heng has passed the imperial examination at the county-level, he doesn't want his grandfather to die in front of him.

The second aunt, standing nearby, also had her eyes shining, but she restrained herself and only asked excitedly:

"Who saw the rankings? Are they even real?"

"It's true, it's true! It was Old Xiao from Meizifang who went to check it out, and he spotted Lu Heng's name right away!" the middle-aged man explained.

As soon as she finished speaking, Auntie's joy was no longer restrained, and she too became ecstatic:

"I must thank Old Xiao properly when he arrives!"

"Of course, of course..." the middle-aged man replied with a smile, though he seemed somewhat embarrassed.

He ran so fast because he wanted to be the first to deliver the good news, and maybe he could even get some extra reward from the Lu family.

just now……

Well, it all came to benefit Lao Xiao in the end.

"Grandpa Lu, this is an old hen that our Zhou family is sending you!"

"This is a basket of eggs from our family..."

"Grandpa Lu, isn't it a coincidence? Today, I couldn't sell any of my pig's head or this big piece of fat. It's really fate that it's coming to your family. Hang it up quickly, and I'll give Xiao Heng a good meal later..."

"Oh, sir! These are the bracelet and ring you pawned a year ago. Please keep them safe!"

Neighbors and neighbors came one after another to present gifts.

Everyone knows that the Lu family is so poor they're barely able to afford food, so naturally they send them extra food.

As for the other party returning the gift?

They didn't care at all; why would they want to cause trouble for Master Wu's family?

The Lu family's former creditors also came over, smiling obsequiously:

"Mr. Lu! You don't need to repay the money you borrowed last year!"

Hearing the repeated addresses of "Grandpa Wu Xiucai" and "Master Lu," and the compliments about "having taught his grandson well," Old Master Lu couldn't stop smiling.

In an instant, the pent-up stress of the past few days vanished completely, and Old Master Lu seemed to have become ten years younger.

Lu Zhili was also awakened by the noise. Looking at the large group of people gathered in the room, he was somewhat confused: "What's going on?"

"What's wrong? The results are out!" Auntie said, a mix of exasperation and amusement in her voice, "Our son passed the exam!"

hum!

In an instant, joy washed over Lu Zhili's mind.

"My son has become a martial arts scholar, so doesn't that make me the father of a scholar? I've become a master too! Hahahaha..." Lu Zhili laughed loudly.

"Look at you, so pathetic..." His second aunt rolled her eyes at him.

I wanted to ask him to show some scholarly demeanor, but before I could even speak, I was pulled aside by several women of the same generation who were trying to get close to him.

A woman with a fawning expression:

"Look at Zhili, he must have been taught by our little sister. She really did a great job!"

Someone else chimed in:

"Yeah, yeah, if you have the chance, girl, you should talk to my sons about it too..."

Upon hearing this, the second aunt couldn't help but become arrogant, and said in a tone of someone who had been through it all:

"Of course, you have no idea how much I contributed to this family during Xiao Heng High School..."

Then she really started to launch into a long speech...

Until one of the older women couldn't take it anymore and changed the subject:

"On such a joyous day, why are there no members of your first and third branches of the family?"

As soon as she finished speaking, her second aunt snorted coldly:

"Look, look, a close neighbor is worse than a distant relative; the ancients were right!"

"However..." Second Aunt then adopted the air of a wealthy lady from a prominent family, "Blood is thicker than water, and now that Xiao Heng has passed the high school entrance exam, I will remind him in the future to take good care of the first and second wives..."

Upon hearing this, those around praised the second aunt for being reasonable and magnanimous.

Then she criticized the eldest and third wives for not coming to offer their congratulations.

"Oops, I'm still a step too late!"

When Lao Xiao arrived at the Lu family's old residence with Xiao Jiba, the Lu residence was already bustling with noise and crowded with people.

But some people still made way for him, since he was the one who brought the news.

"Congratulations, Mr. Lu!" Old Xiao kept offering his congratulations, then took out a money pouch: "This is some lucky money, not much, but I hope Mr. Lu will accept it!"

Grandpa Lu smiled as he accepted the money pouch and said with a smile:

"I heard it was you who brought the good news. You really went to great lengths this time, thank you for your hard work."

"Yes, yes, yes."

Old Xiao nodded and said, "Grandpa Lu, you're too kind. I just happened to see the list and that's why I brought the news out..."

Upon hearing this, Old Master Lu smiled and nodded, then suddenly asked:

"What was my grandson's ranking this time?"

Old Xiao was taken aback, and nudged the stuttering boy beside him:

"Old Master Lu is asking you a question. Quickly tell me, what rank did you get this time, Scholar?"

Upon hearing this, the stutterer stepped forward and said:

"Congratulations...Master Lu...Master Lu Li has passed the martial arts examination with flying colors...ranking twentieth in the second class!"