Supreme Martial Venerable: Starting with the White Ape Cloak Hammer skill point allocation

Chapter 98 The Prefecture (Please Subscribe)

When the first rays of sunlight fall on Gaoshan County in the early morning.

A carriage had already left the city just as the city gates opened.

No one saw him off, and no one cared.

The news that Zhou Yuan had been burned by the subterranean fire and had become a cripple had already spread among the major forces in Gaoshan County.

Prosperity followed by decline is a phenomenon that has existed since ancient times.

Before long, no one will even remember the name Zhou Yuan anymore.

Zhou Yuan was in a great mood, sitting in the carriage.

After so much effort, we have finally escaped the quagmire of Gaoshan County.

Looking at Zhuo Changyu, who was sleeping soundly on his lap, Zhou Yuan gently stroked her hair, feeling a sense of peace in his heart.

The house in Gaoshan County was sold, the maid was given money and distributed, and even the carriage was rented from a carriage company.

They appeared to be destitute, having left their hometown with barely any decent luggage, but no one knew that they were carrying a huge sum of more than 20,000 taels of silver.

There is also the property deed for a house in Jiangzhou Prefecture.

This is the compensation that Shenbing Valley gave him. Even though Tong Jin is dead, the origin of this house is clearly traceable and there are no problems.

Only after the carriage disappeared on the official road did two figures hurriedly appear at the city gate.

"It's still too late."

Gao Da said with some annoyance.

"I have already resigned from my post as magistrate. I will be going to the prefectural capital to take the imperial examination in a few days. If I have the opportunity, I may be able to see you again, sir."

Zhou Shundao.

"Perfect timing, I'm going too, let's go together, at least we'll have someone to talk to on the way."

Gundam Road.

Both of them felt that they might never have the chance to see Zhou Yuan again. Zhou Yuan's bones and tendons were burned, his martial arts future was ruined, and he probably wouldn't humiliate himself by participating in the martial arts examination again.

They eat when hungry and drink when thirsty, and sleep at night and travel at dawn.

More than half a month later.

A dilapidated horse-drawn carriage rattled along the official road.

"Master, Madam, we have arrived at Jiangzhou Prefecture."

Coachman Old Xu cracked his whip and said in a light, cheerful voice.

The trip took nearly two months and was quite tiring, but Madam Zhou was kind and gave him a reward of one hundred taels of silver, which was equivalent to his income for several years.

This job was a pleasant experience.

A young couple leaned out of the carriage; they looked like they had stepped out of a painting, like a divine couple.

Although they had traveled together for a long time and seen each other, Lao Xu still couldn't help but admire those two faces every time he saw them.

"Is this Jiangzhou Prefecture?"

Zhuo Changyu's voice carried a hint of excitement, "When I was a child, my father told me that Jiangzhou Prefecture was more than ten times larger than Gaoshan County, and its prosperous areas were a hundred times more prosperous than the county."

"It is indeed a magnificent city."

Zhou Yuan looked at the outline of the giant city slowly emerging on the horizon in the distance and nodded.

Even from a great distance, a powerful and profound aura was already overwhelming.

This Jiangzhou Prefecture was larger than any city Zhou Yuan had ever seen. Its city walls were twenty or thirty feet high and were all made of neatly cut giant stones.

Banners fluttered on the city walls, and fully armed soldiers stood guard, exuding a fierce aura. Among them were many skilled warriors who had breached the city walls three or even four times.

The moat outside the city connects directly to the Yangtze River, and the waterway enters the city through a sluice gate. Boats come and go on the water in an endless stream, making it exceptionally prosperous.

As the carriage gradually entered the city, the prosperity of the prefecture was immediately apparent.

The streets were bustling with people, and vendors and shops lined the roadside, their shouts echoing everywhere.

Compared to Gaoshan County, this place is bustling and vibrant.

They watched with great interest as the carriage soon stopped at the entrance of an alley.

"Old Xu, you must be tired from your journey."

Zhou Yuan carried Zhuo Changyu down from the carriage, put the bundle on his back, and gave Old Xu a reward of five taels of silver.

Old Xu left, expressing his deepest gratitude.

Zhou Yuan and Zhuo Changyu then walked hand in hand to the front of a courtyard.

The courtyard walls are made of blue bricks, and the gate is made of ebony. It looks clean and tidy.

Tong Jin wasn't lying to him; the location of the house was indeed excellent. Although it was on the edge of the inner city, it was quiet and safe, and the water outlet was right behind the street. "From now on, this will be our home."

Zhou Yuan and Zhuo Changyu exchanged a smile, then held hands and stepped through the gate.

After looking around inside and out, the two became increasingly satisfied.

Although the courtyard is not large, it has a well and trees.

There is still space for Zhou Yuan to build a forging furnace.

After resting for a while, Zhuo Changyu got busy cleaning.

Zhou Yuan wanted to help, but Zhuo Changyu used the excuse that his injuries hadn't fully healed to force him into a chair.

Watching Zhuo Changyu bustling about inside and out, Zhou Yuan felt a warm feeling in his heart and thought to himself.

He needs to hurry up and buy two maids. He's not short of money now, and he can't let Zhuo Changyu do all that work.

With these thoughts in mind, Zhou Yuan silently brought up the system panel.

Name: Zhou Yuan

[Free Points: 100]

[Realm: Blood Transformation Realm]

功法：白猿披风锤圆满、八方雷音圆满、白猿通臂拳圆满、八步赶蝉圆满、断水刀法圆满（1000/5000）、兽王金身第四重（120/10000）、烈火兵元诀未入门（0/3000）】

Skills: Advanced Blacksmithing, Basic Weapon Forging (600/3000)

[Equipment: Plum Blossom Hidden Arrow]

He had been traveling for more than half a month, and coupled with his injury recovery, he had become somewhat lax in his training.

The daily reward has dropped to 100 points per day.

However, he still managed to improve the Eight Steps to Catch the Cicada to perfection, and his Water-Cutting Blade Technique also made great progress.

However, because his burns had not yet healed, he had not been able to cultivate the Fiery Soldier's Essence Technique.

The Blazing Fire Soldier Technique places extremely high demands on the body; he must cultivate it in his prime.

"The regenerative power of the Beast King's Golden Body is indeed extraordinary. In just over half a month, the area I deliberately burned has almost recovered. In another two or three days at most, I will be fully healed."

Zhou Yuan pondered to himself.

If he hadn't cultivated the Beast King Golden Body to the fourth level, such severe burns would almost certainly never have healed.

Now, the once terrifying wound has only left a faint red mark, and it will disappear completely in a few days without leaving a scar.

Practicing hard skills is difficult, but once mastered, the benefits are countless.

"The martial arts examination will be held in three months, which is enough time for me to master the basics of the Fiery Blazing Army Technique."

The Beastmaster's Golden Body needs to be upgraded further for better security.

"Besides, I need to pick up the forging business again; in the prefecture, I need a way to make a living."

Twenty thousand taels of silver seems like a lot, but if you just sit around and eat it all up, it won't last long.

His martial arts training is quite taxing; if he doesn't exercise restraint, he could easily spend one or two thousand taels of silver a month.

Moreover, if he doesn't have a source of income, his extravagant spending will easily attract the attention of those with ulterior motives.

Didn't Tong Jin already notice something unusual before?

"Changyu, stop busy. Let's go out for a stroll, find a brokerage firm to buy two maids, and we also need to hire a cook."

While we're at it, let's see if we can find a blacksmith.

Zhou Yuan called to Zhuo Changyu, and the two locked the door and walked out onto the street.

"Manager Zhu, this is top-quality charcoal. I've been burning it for a full half month. Could you give me a little more?"

A young man, covered in dust and hunched over, pleaded.

"Charcoal is this price. If I didn't feel sorry for you, I could buy it from anywhere else."

Manager Zhu said calmly, "I'll give you ten more coins, and you can unload the charcoal into the shop for me."

"Thank you, Steward Zhu, I'll unload it right away."

The young man thanked him repeatedly, laboriously unloaded the basket full of charcoal from the cart, and then bent over to carry it into the shop.

This is a blacksmith shop that uses a lot of charcoal on a regular basis, making it a major customer.

As they were moving things, Steward Zhu suddenly jogged away.

The young man subconsciously looked up and saw Manager Zhu, acting like a lackey, accompanying several people into the shop.

The person leading the group seemed to be the shop owner, and the customers were a man and a woman.

The young man only caught a glimpse of a back view, a hint of doubt flashing in his eyes.

Why does that back view look so familiar?

However, he immediately shook his head.

"I must be seeing things from burning charcoal. Changyu is in Gaoshan County, how could he be in the prefectural capital?"

"Selling this cart of charcoal will cover Dad's medical expenses, but we'll have to wait a bit longer for the eldest son's injury to heal."

As the young man struggled to carry the baskets, he thought to himself, "Fortunately, the Pang family has fallen, so no one will want to take our lives anymore."

Although the eldest son is crippled and can forget about taking the martial arts exam, he still has the title of martial arts scholar.

He heard Steward Zhu's obsequious voice and couldn't help but think to himself, "What do you mean?"

"I used to have a lot of sycophants like that around me."

Another place in the prefectural city.

A young man with a ferocious expression snatched a money bag from a woman's hand.

"You dare use my money to help your deadbeat father and your two poor brothers?"

Qin Wu slapped Zhuo Changqiong across the face. "My money is all for martial arts training. If you dare touch a single penny more, I'll beat you to death!"

"I----"

Zhuo Changqiong covered her face.

She had been living in the prefecture with Qin Wu for some time now. During this time, Qin Wu sold off all her dowry and jewelry, and started beating her without warning.

A few days ago, she met her father and two brothers and discovered that Zhuo Changying had squandered all his family fortune in order to rescue his father and brothers.

Although the people were rescued, the three ended up on the streets, making a living by selling charcoal.

Zhuo Wangsun was seriously ill, and Zhuo Changxiong's leg was also lame, so they relied solely on Zhuo Changying to support them.

Upon discovering the Zhuo family's current state of decline, Qin Wu became even more ruthless, beating and verbally abusing Zhuo Changqiong at will.

He even brought back some disreputable women in front of Zhuo Changqiong to make fun of her.

"I thought you were the eldest daughter of the Zhuo family? Bah, you're nothing but trash now!"

If it weren't for my past feelings, I would have divorced you long ago!

Qin Wu cursed.

"Divorce me."

Zhuo Changqiong collapsed to the ground, weeping bitterly.

She suddenly realized that perhaps her sister's choice was right. Marriage shouldn't be based solely on family background. If she had married the right person, she wouldn't be in this predicament today.

For someone like Changyu, with a harmonious marriage, what does it matter if they eat simple food and drink plainly?

"Is Madam Zhou dissatisfied with the conditions I offered?"

A middle-aged man smiled broadly and said, "We can talk about anything."

Zhuo Changyu turned his gaze away from the window and was about to meet Zhou Yuan's gaze.

"It's nothing, I just saw a somewhat familiar figure, I must have been mistaken."

She shook her head and said, "Boss Cao, although we have just arrived in Jiangzhou Prefecture, we have already inquired about the market conditions here."

A weapon forger earns at least six taels of silver per month, and also receives a bonus for each weapon he forges.

You're only giving me four taels of silver, and the profit share is only two mace of silver. This price is far below the market price.

Besides, Dewang Forge is just a small shop in Jiangzhou Prefecture. Other blacksmiths might not even look at it, and it won't be easy for you to hire other blacksmiths.

She paused, her pretty face slightly flushed, "You've seen my husband's skills. I won't ask for an exorbitant price. The basic wage is six taels of silver a month. We'll take one tael of silver for every ordinary weapon he forges. If my husband is able to forge powerful weapons in the future, we can discuss the price separately."

This was the case back in Gaoshan County. Zhou Yuan was in charge of forging weapons, while Zhuo Changyu was in charge of selling them. She came from a merchant family and was very familiar with the business.

"Brother Zhou, you've really married a wonderful wife."

Cao Deli, the owner of Dewang Furnace, said with a wry smile, "My Dewang Furnace is indeed short of weapon forgers, so this is the price. However, I have a condition: Brother Zhou, you must forge at least three ordinary weapons every month."

Zhuo Changyu glanced at Zhou Yuan. She was in charge of the negotiations, but the final decision still rested with Zhou Yuan.

"make a deal."

Zhou Yuan smiled and said slowly.