Republic of China era: A hundred-year-old still practicing martial arts? Is that right?

Bai Xiaonian, looking puzzled, caught up with Lin Ji, who had already taken a step forward: "Do you have other things to do? Do you need my help?"

"Go to the management office," Lin Ji replied simply.

"The administration office?" Bai Xiaonian was a little confused and quickly asked, "What are we going there for?"

"Find a job." Lin Ji turned his head and saw the surprise on Bai Xiaonian's face, then chuckled, "Apply for the position of doorman at the martial arts hall."

"A doorman?" Bai Xiaonian didn't understand. "Why would someone want to be a doorman? Gone with the shadow puppetry?"

"The Martial Arts Hall is a great place. It provides food and lodging, and even pays wages. But I'm not sure if they'll even want an old man like me. I'll give it a try for now."

Lin Ji strode forward, a calculating mind taking hold of him.

Whether there's a chance or not, let's give it a try. If a ban is really issued, and we can get this job at the martial arts academy, it will be another way to learn martial arts.

Bai Xiaonian couldn't figure out what Lin Ji was up to, so he could only obediently lead Lin Ji toward the manager's office.

The office room was not large.

Inside, there was an eight-immortal table.

A middle-aged man with a goatee and glasses was hunched over a table doing accounts, muttering to himself:

"This damned martial arts ban!"

"How many fewer students will the martial arts academy admit each year?!"

"Those are all piles of pure white silver dollars!"

Hearing footsteps, the goatee raised his head, sized up Lin Ji and his companion, and frowned: "What are you doing here?"

The man's tone was slightly impatient as he continued working on his abacus.

"I'm applying for the doorman position," Lin Ji said, bowing slightly.

"Applying for a doorman position?"

The man stopped using his abacus, glanced at Lin Ji, and burst out laughing:

"Old man, you look to be seventy or eighty years old, right? Can you even walk steadily? Don't let the wind blow you down in front of the martial arts hall one day. We don't have the spare money to buy you a coffin."

Lin Ji patted his chest. "I may be old, but I'm still very healthy. Sweeping the floor or guarding the door is no problem at all."

The goatee curled his lip, clearly not believing Lin Ji's words.

He waved his hand, pulled out a piece of white paper, and handed it over:

"Alright, alright, I got it. Write your personal information here. There are a lot of applicants, so it will take a few days to get the results. Go back and wait for news."

Lin Ji took the pen and ink and wrote his information on the pre-prepared form on the paper, his handwriting was beautiful and vigorous.

Bai Xiaonian watched from the side, and he always felt that the old man was definitely not after money; the old man was definitely plotting something.

The goatee took the form, glanced at it again, and then looked at Bai Xiaonian next to Lin Ji: "You're a student of the Martial Arts Hall, right?"

Bai Xiaonian nodded, "Yes."

"Alright, if you choose him in a couple of days, then have this kid take him back for you. Okay, go back now!" The goatee waved his hand as if shooing away a fly, then got back to his calculations.

Seeing this, Lin Ji and his companion did not linger and turned to walk out of the management office.

As soon as Bai Xiaonian stepped out of the steward's office, he saw a young woman dressed in the uniform of the Martial Arts Hall walking towards the office and saying:

"Hello, Instructor Gu!"

Lin Ji looked up and saw that the woman was about twenty-three or twenty-four years old. She was tall and straight, with sword-like eyebrows and bright eyes. Her long black hair was neatly tied behind her head, and her black training clothes were rolled up at her forearms, revealing her sleek and firm wrists.

"Mm." The woman nodded and walked past the two men toward the manager's office.

Just as she was about to enter the office, the woman stopped and turned to look at Lin Ji a few more times.

As soon as the goatee saw her, he immediately stood up from his chair, his face beaming with smiles: "Instructor Gu, are you here to get the warehouse key? I'll get it for you right away."

"Hmm." Instructor Gu took the keys and casually asked, "What did that old gentleman do?"

"I'm applying for the position of doorman," the goatee said with a fawning smile. "But I'm too old; I don't quite fit our hiring criteria."

As he spoke, the man with the goatee paused, then asked疑惑地问道, "Instructor Gu, do you know him?"

Instructor Gu frowned slightly, as if he wanted to say something, but after a while, he shook his head, "It's nothing, I just feel... that you look a little familiar."

After saying that, Instructor Gu took the keys and left the office.

Inside the office, Goatee was still savoring his conversation with Instructor Gu when he picked up a stack of forms on the table, pulled out the one belonging to Lin Ji, and crumpled up the rest before throwing them into the trash can.

The two walked out of the martial arts hall, and it was already getting dark.

Lin Ji patted Bai Xiaonian on the shoulder: "You go back first. I'll talk to your sister about what happened at the martial arts hall today tomorrow."

Bai Xiaonian spoke earnestly, whispering, "Don't let her worry. Just tell her everything is going smoothly."

Lin Ji nodded in agreement.

Seeing this, the boy bowed and thanked him, then turned and walked towards Dog Tail Alley.

Lin Ji did not return to Dog Tail Alley, but instead headed towards the wealthy family's courtyard in the city, following the direction he remembered.

Having lived for a hundred years, before he opened the "Book of Reversal of Fate," his greatest pleasure was listening to gossip while wandering the streets and alleys.

Therefore, Lin Ji also heard some information about Si Dezhao and knew the approximate location of the Si family's properties.

"Strike first and you'll be strong; strike later and you'll suffer!" Lin Ji walked quickly in the darkness.

"Since you want to lay a hand on this old man, don't blame me for being impolite. I've heard that the Si family's business is shady all these years, so it's a good opportunity for this old man to make some extra money."

Following his memory, Lin Ji indeed found the Si family's mansion. The courtyard was located in the most prosperous area of ​​Jiangcheng, and it was brightly lit even at night.

Lin Ji circled around to a secluded corner, looked around to make sure no one was there, then lightly stepped over the wall and vaulted over. When he landed, he used Tai Chi and Zhan Zhuang breathing techniques in perfect harmony, making no sound at all.

Lin Ji pressed himself against the wall and, using the trees in the courtyard as cover, made his way to the window of the main house.

The room was dimly lit, and Si Dezhao spoke casually, as if discussing something trivial:

"An old man who's practically on his deathbed dares to embarrass me in public."

"Go contact the gang, pay them ten silver dollars, and take his life. Consider it an apology to appease me."

"As for that little bastard, let Tianhu play with him slowly."

The butler hesitated before speaking: "He's just a half-dead old man. Anyone with free time could handle it. Spending ten silver dollars is giving him too much credit."

"Why would I bother with a few spare coins?" Si Dezhao sneered from inside the room. "Killing this kind of lowlife is no different than stepping on an ant on the roadside. Consider the extra money as my burial money for him."

"By the way, that batch of opium is arriving tomorrow. Tell the docks to get ready."

"Don't worry, sir, everything is arranged."

Lin Ji stood outside the window, his eyes cold.

At first, I wanted to leave you some leeway and just teach you a lesson.

But since you wanted to kill the old man, now you've caught me doing this harmful business of selling opium.

Today's events are not only about venting my own anger, but also about ridding the people of a scourge.

Footsteps came from inside the room, and the butler pushed open the door and came out, then closed the door behind him.

After the butler walked away, Lin Ji quietly crept to the door.

Inside the room, Si Dezhao was hunched over a table, occasionally fiddling with the abacus on it.

The crisp sound of the abacus mingled with Si Dezhao's cursing throughout the room.

……

After a while.

Si Dezhao closed the ledger and looked up to rub his sore neck.

A cool breeze swept by, and the flickering flame of the dim oil lamp in the room stretched his shadow on the wall.

Si Dezhao looked up and saw that the door was ajar. He muttered a curse under his breath:

"Old man, you can't even close a door properly."

Si Dezhao stood up and walked towards the door, reaching out to close it tightly.

Suddenly.

Through the crack in the door.

A murky yet icy gaze peered in.