Chapter 42: Skill and Tao

In the early morning, Old Man Yao rose from his bed and strolled leisurely into the courtyard.

The water vat had already been filled and the courtyard floor swept clean, yet Chen Ji was nowhere to be seen.

Old Man Yao looked up at the crows in the apricot tree; one of them pointed toward the gate with its wing.

His gaze traveled past the corridor toward the outside of the medical clinic, where he saw Chen Ji holding a long bamboo broom, sweeping the stone path in front of the clinic.

Yesterday was the Double Ninth Festival, and while the streets of Anxi were littered with dogwood and trash, the area in front of the Taiping Medical Clinic was spotless.

He asked in confusion, "What time did this kid get up?"

The crow gave a caw.

"The third quarter of the Yin hour? He really does wake up earlier than a rooster," Old Man Yao looked around. "He works so efficiently that I won't even find an excuse to give him a beating."

The crow cawed again.

Old Man Yao nodded. "He is indeed sensible... You don't need to keep finding ways to praise him; I know."

He walked to the doorway and said with a sidelong glance at Chen Ji, "You're being so diligent it's making me a bit uneasy. It wasn't your turn to work today; why did you do it all?"

Chen Ji leaned on the massive bamboo broom and said with a smile, "I was idle anyway. It's my own home, after all; it feels better once it's cleaned up."

Old Man Yao studied Chen Ji suspiciously. "You were being all polite with me yesterday, so why are you suddenly trying to act familiar today?"

Chen Ji responded, "There must be some new changes."

Old Man Yao fell silent for a long time. "Regarding She Dengke... what are your plans?"

While sweeping the ground, Chen Ji responded, "I can't exactly kill him... Master, do you think Senior Brother She is a bad person?"

"No."

"Exactly, you don't think he's a bad person either," Chen Ji sighed. "Of course I will keep this matter in my heart, but if you ask me to truly kill him, I might not be able to bring myself to do it."

Old Man Yao said calmly, "You are not a good person, nor are you a bad person. A person like you might not live long in this martial world. The inheritance of the Mountain Lord might end with you."

Just as he spoke, the sound of galloping hooves came from the end of Anxi Street.

Old Man Yao and Chen Ji turned to look and saw a carriage speeding toward them.

When the carriage arrived at the clinic's entrance, Princess Baili, the little monk, and the Heir jumped down one after another. The Heir's face was covered in rouge imprints, and he reeked of alcohol.

The three of them ran toward the Taiping Medical Clinic with their heads down, not forgetting to greet Old Man Yao as they ran: "Good morning, Imperial Physician Yao!"

"Good morning, Imperial Physician Yao!"

Halfway through her run, Princess Baili suddenly doubled back and stuffed an oil-paper package into Chen Ji's hand. "Here, I promised you. I'm off!"

The three of them arrived at the backyard in a frantic, stumbling rush. The Heir shouted, "Little monk, this time it's your turn to step on me... Oh, never mind!"

The Heir looked toward the wall, where a wooden ladder had been set up at some unknown time.

He muttered under his breath, "The toll wasn't wasted; this kid is quite decent. Looks like he's one of us martial folk!"

Princess Baili glanced back at Chen Ji on the street before turning to climb the ladder and vault into the Prince's Mansion. "Quick, quick, quick! Master Wang's morning lesson is about to start."

Imperial Physician Yao stared blankly as the three of them climbed into the mansion, then turned to Chen Ji. "You set up the ladder?"

Chen Ji nodded. "I took their money to provide some convenience."

Imperial Physician Yao said expressionlessly, "With you here, the Taiping Medical Clinic is becoming less and less peaceful."

At that moment, a drunken cursing drifted from the end of Anxi Street: "Hongyi Alley is full of ingrates! When they have money, they call me Lord Dog, but when they're broke, they call me Liang Dog! I only failed to pay them three times before they kicked me out! Now that I'm bringing the Heir over, won't they be bowing and scraping?"

Another voice said dully, "Brother, your name is Liang Dog'er anyway; they didn't call you wrong."

"The Heir is too much. They came back in a carriage and didn't even bother to pick us up. And they didn't even arrange a place for me to stay."

Liang Mao'er said with suppressed frustration, "Brother, can't you just work steadily for the Liu family? They give you plenty."

"No way... I have three rules for who I won't help: I won't help those who drink and slack off, I won't help the Eunuch faction, and I won't help those who oppose the Eunuch faction... Those old bastards are black-hearted and even blacker-handed; I can't outmaneuver them."

Chen Ji turned to look and saw the chubby Liang Mao'er carrying Liang Dog'er on his back.

"Master, do you know Liang Dog'er?" Chen Ji asked curiously.

"I know him," Old Man Yao sneered. "In the martial world, he is known as the Autumn Wind Swordsman, Liang Dog'er."

"The Autumn Wind Swordsman? Because he practices the Autumn Wind Saber Technique?"

"No, because he loves to wander around looking for handouts."

Chen Ji: *Huh?*

"Master, is Liang Dog'er a professional?" Chen Ji asked curiously. "Why does he depend on the Liu family?"

"Cultivation relies on wealth, companions, methods, and terrain. Just as your cultivation requires ginseng, martial artists require medicine to temper their bodies," Old Man Yao said calmly. "Most paths of cultivation in this world are the same; they burn through money like flowing water. Without backing, you cannot build momentum on your own."

"If Liang Dog'er is already so formidable, why doesn't he just rob the Liu family?" Chen Ji asked.

Old Man Yao scoffed. "The world's resources are held by the officials, the great clans, the Taoists, and the Buddhists; a small amount is scattered among sects like the Luotian Sect. No matter how formidable Liang Dog'er is, he cannot withstand a single charge from three thousand elite cavalry. The Liu family maintains over forty thousand elites in Yuzhou, answering only to Grand Secretary Liu... How many heads does Liang Dog'er have to dare rob the Liu family?"

Liang Mao'er had already approached with Liang Dog'er on his back.

Liang Dog'er opened his eyes drunkenly and pointed at the Taiping Medical Clinic. "We'll stay here! It's close to the Heir; when he goes out to play, he'll definitely bring me along!"

Liang Mao'er looked sheepishly at Old Man Yao. "Sorry, my brother is talking nonsense."

"I'm not talking nonsense!" The disheveled Liang Dog'er jumped down from Liang Mao'er's back and swaggered toward the clinic.

Old Man Yao raised a hand to stop him. "Wait."

Liang Dog'er opened his eyes and swayed as he sized up Old Man Yao. After a long moment, he said in surprise, "Imperial Physician Yao... an old acquaintance! That's even better, we'll stay at your house!"

Old Man Yao remained silent.

Chen Ji felt a bit nervous. He had seen Liang Dog'er draw his blade; that single strike had sliced Lin Chaoqing's bamboo hat with such exquisite precision that it was neither a fraction more nor a fraction less.

He was worried that if such a professional was rejected by his master, he might become a nuisance or, worse, harm his master.

However, before he could decide what to do, he saw Old Man Yao glance at Chen Ji and then say slowly to Liang Dog'er, "Staying at the clinic isn't impossible, but you must teach my apprentice saber techniques. If you teach well, the Taiping Medical Clinic will not only let you stay but also provide your meals."

Chen Ji was stunned.

*Is this still my stingy master?*

Liang Dog'er teased with a grin, "Imperial Physician Yao, you run a medical clinic; why would your apprentice learn the saber? Is business so bad lately that you're looking to manufacture some patients?"

Old Man Yao said unhurriedly, "Just teach; you don't need to worry about anything else."

Suddenly, Liang Dog'er became serious. "Old man, I'm just drunk, not stupid. My Liang family's saber path is not passed on to outsiders."

Imperial Physician Yao said calmly, "I am asking you to teach saber skills, not your family's saber path."

Liang Dog'er looked thoughtful, then burst into laughter. "Deal! Let's go, let's go, Liang Mao'er! We have a place to stay! Let's go in and find something to eat first! It's just teaching some saber techniques; there isn't a single saber in this world that I, Liang Dog'er, cannot teach!"