From a slave to the Great Qian Martial Saint

"That son of a bitch Gu Chengze! That damned bastard!"

The next morning, Chen Shi returned to the Marquis's residence with dark circles under his eyes, cursing all the way.

He was promoted to the ninth rank, and Cui Nong celebrated with him last night. After finishing a pot of wine, the two of them were already slightly tipsy, and before they knew it, the atmosphere had become lively.

But it was locked!

The iron underpants acted like a guardian deity, preventing Chen Shi from ultimately breaking through to the final step.

After a night of tossing and turning, they became even more agitated, causing Chen Shi and Cui Nong to have a poor night's sleep.

"We have to get our hands on it!"

After cursing Gu Chengze, Chen Shi secretly made up his mind: forget about indentures and mid-grade Yellow Rank martial arts, the most urgent thing right now is to get the key as soon as possible!

He was fed up with being turned away at the door every time.

But how could Gu Chengze possibly be willing to hand over the key?

As Chen Shi pondered this, he arrived at the second gate. He was on duty in the morning as usual. Glancing inside the gate, an idea popped into his head.

steal?

It's not like it's a money box key, so Gu Chengze probably wouldn't hide it too well. Besides, Chen Shi wouldn't even need to steal the key; he could just make a rubbing with mud and then have a copy made outside the mansion.

Thinking of this, Chen Shi couldn't help but feel excited. At that time, he could open Cui Nong's lock whenever he wanted!

But then, Chen Shi frowned slightly.

The question is, how did he get into the inner courtyard, and what opportunity did he find to steal the key?

"Brother Chen."

Just as he was pondering this, the servant on duty suddenly called out to him. He looked around warily and whispered something.

"You'd better be careful from now on."

"Um?"

"I heard that Lu'er has returned."

"Lu'er..."

Chen Shi was taken aback, and couldn't help but think of it.

That's right. Gu Chengze punished him by sending him to the manor for two months. Judging by the time, it should be about time for him to come back.

Lu'er was punished because of him, and when she left, she made a harsh statement saying that she would kill him when she returned.

"Thanks for reminding me."

Chen Shi thanked the servant, his expression solemn.

Lu'er himself is not a threat; what Chen Shi fears is his background.

Lu'er was not only Gu Chengze's personal servant, but also a servant born into the household, with deep roots in the Jing'an Marquis's mansion.

It is said that his grandfather had served the late Marquis, and therefore held some influence with the old lady. His father, Jia Shun, as the manager of the library, not only wielded considerable power but was also a seventh-rank military officer!

It should be noted that Du Yueming and Zhang Xiaotian are only eighth-rank martial artists, seventh-rank martial artists. If they were outside, they would be considered someone important.

In reality, within the Marquis's mansion, Lu'er was merely a servant, but outside the mansion, many people respectfully addressed him as Young Master Jia.

If Lu'er is determined to make things difficult for Chen Shi, it will indeed be a problem.

"Oh my! Look who's here! Isn't this Chen Shi?"

Just as I was thinking about this, a strange voice suddenly rang out, and not far away, Lu'er was walking towards us with several servants.

Chen Shi frowned; this man really couldn't be talked to.

It's not that Lu'er is easily nagged, but he came to find Chen Shi as soon as he got back!

"Brother Lu'er".

The servant on duty who had just reminded Chen Shi immediately greeted Lu'er with a smile.

There were supposed to be three people on duty in the morning, but one of them happened to be out on a mission.

Lu'er ignored the man and looked at Chen Shi with a gloomy gaze.

Chen Shi also glanced at Lu'er and had to admit that she was much darker and thinner than before, which meant she had indeed suffered a lot at the manor in the past two months.

"snort!"

A moment later, Lu'er let out a heavy, cold snort, her eyes filled with resentment.

"Two months, do you know how I've spent these two months? Do you even know?!"

"Hoeing the ground."

"I'll hoe your mother!"

Lu'er was instantly enraged and almost couldn't help but go up and fight Chen Shi.

But he forced himself to suppress it, and a strange, smug smirk crept onto his lips.

Immediately afterwards, Lu'er looked around and went straight to a large blue stone at the base of the wall.

"This stone is getting in the way, I'll move it to another place."

As he spoke, Lu'er suddenly grabbed the stone with both hands and lifted it up. The stone was not small; it was estimated to weigh at least three or four hundred pounds.

"Wow, that's strong!"

"As expected of Brother Lu!"

Immediately afterwards, the other servants cheered.

Lu'er took a few steps before putting the stone down. She then came to Chen Shi, her expression becoming increasingly smug.

Chen Shi looked at Lu'er without saying a word, his face remaining calm.

"I'll tell you!"

Seeing that Chen Shi did not react, Lu'er scolded him and could only talk to herself.

"For the past two months, I have been practicing martial arts. Heaven rewards those who work hard, and I am now a ninth-rank martial artist! In fact, I should thank you. If you hadn't harmed me, I probably wouldn't have been able to put in such hard work and reach the ninth rank so quickly."

"You're welcome."

"...Damn it! You think I'm really thanking you?!"

"congratulations."

"Respectfully..."

Lu'er opened her mouth, then jumped up and down in a fit of rage.

What he wanted was for Chen Shi to be shocked, frightened, and filled with regret, so that he would kneel down and beg for forgiveness. Not this indifferent and unresponsive reaction, which would be a complete disregard for him.

"Damn it! I'll kill you right now!"

Unable to contain her anger any longer, Lu'er cursed and swung her fist at Chen Shi.

Chen Shi's gaze darkened, and he was already secretly preparing.

Squeak!

Just then, the second gate suddenly opened, and Yun'er came out.

He glanced at the two of them and said something directly.

"Second Madam invites you two in."

"What does Second Madam want with me...?"

Lu'er's fist was still raised in mid-air when she was taken aback.

Chen Shi didn't say much and followed Yun'er inside.

Lu'er snapped out of her daze, frowned, and followed.

A moment later, the two came out again.

Lu'er looked at Chen Shi with eyes that seemed to spit fire, but she did not make another move.

Xiao Fengxiao called them in just now to warn them not to fight each other and become a laughing stock in the other courtyards! If word got out, it would make her seem like she was incompetent in managing her subordinates.

Finally, Xiao Fengxiao said sternly, "Whoever starts trouble will be in for a beating!"

With Xiao Fengxiao having given the order, Lu'er dared not make a move.

Chen Shi remained calm, clearly indicating that Xiao Fengxiao was intentionally helping him resolve the problem of Lu'er.

With Xiao Fengxiao backing him up, at least on the surface, Lu'er wouldn't dare to cause him any more trouble.

As for what happens behind the scenes, Chen Shi can only be careful.

"Chen Shi! You think you're all set just because Second Madam is backing you up? Dream on! Just you wait, when the household orders are placed in a few days, see how I deal with you!"

Lu'er glared at Chen Shi, said one sentence, and then turned and left.

As Chen Shi watched Lu'er walk away, his brows furrowed slightly.

Order date? What does that mean?

Every September, the manor would invite examiners from the government to assess the ranks of the manor's warriors.

The servant next to him offered an explanation, then clicked his tongue in amazement.

"Lu'er can lift stones weighing hundreds of pounds. He'll definitely be ranked as a ninth-grade martial artist in this evaluation. It's truly enviable."

"Such a thing actually happened."

Chen Shi's eyes widened slightly, his face showing surprise.

He hadn't expected that the rank of a martial artist needed to be assessed by the government; he had originally thought that his own cultivation level was sufficient.

Further inquiry revealed that only those whose ranks were assessed and recognized by the government could enjoy official preferential treatment.

For example, a ninth-rank military officer had the privilege of not having to kneel before officials, not being punished, and being exempt from corvée labor, which was basically equivalent to that of a scholar!

For those at the eighth or seventh rank, the treatment is even better.

Even within a marquis's mansion, if the indenture is held by the master, the servant is no longer called a slave, but a "retainer"!

"so……"

After listening, Chen Shi nodded secretly. Since that was the case, why didn't he also give his opinion?

While happy, Chen Shi was also puzzled. What did Lu'er mean by saying that he would make him pay?