Chapter 3 Neighbors Adding insult to injury
Chapter 3 Neighbors Adding insult to injury
The courtyard of Jianxiong Martial Arts School has three entrances and three exits, divided into the inner courtyard, outer courtyard and back house.
The owner of the academy, Wang Jianxiong, lives in the back house and teaches skills in the inner courtyard. Core disciples can enter the academy from the outer courtyard all the way into the inner courtyard.
The inner court disciples are the face and pillars of the martial arts school, and are the apple of Mr. Wang’s eye.
As for the outer courtyard, one is just a disciple in name only, and the relationship with the master is maintained only by the tuition fee of twenty taels of silver per month.
The eldest senior brother Lu Qiang is also a disciple of the inner courtyard. He teaches skills on behalf of his master in the outer courtyard and is obviously highly valued by his master.
"Master, here comes the new apprentice Zhou You."
Lu Qiang brought Zhou You to the gates of the outer and inner courtyards.
Zhou You looked at the two doors in front of him, which led to the inner courtyard of the core of the martial arts hall, and the four words "enter the hall" emerged in his mind.
Apprentices in the outer courtyard are at best attending a martial arts school and are not even qualified to set foot in the inner courtyard.
Zhou You could only meet the owner of the hall, his nominal master, at the gate of the outer courtyard.
Only those who become inner court disciples are qualified to stay with the master and learn real skills.
Joining the martial arts school now is just his first step.
"understood."
An old but energetic voice was heard.
Zhou You looked in the direction of the sound and saw the lobby door hundreds of meters away.
On the five steps, under the eaves, a thin fifty-year-old man sat on a mahogany chair.
He held a pipe in his left hand and a tea bowl in his right hand, and he took a puff of cigarette and a sip of tea slowly and leisurely.
The old man was the owner of the martial arts gym and a famous martial artist in the city, Wang Jianxiong.
He is a legendary figure who has made a great name for himself in Gongliang City with his "Tiger Subduing Fist".
Although it was far away, the overwhelming aura made it difficult to breathe.
Wang Jianxiong gives people the feeling of a skinny tiger with dormant ferocity.
Zhou You was not surprised but happy, and was glad for his choice. Only by following such people could he learn real skills.
"Kowtow three times and you will be accepted as my disciple."
Wang Jianxiong's eyes swept across Zhou You without lingering for a moment.
There are countless young men in the city who want to join the martial arts school, but most of them are eliminated due to lack of qualifications.
Even if they meet the requirements to enter the museum, they cannot hold on for long and have to leave sadly.
Practicing martial arts is the most painful journey. If you can't persist, you will become a mediocre person like everyone else.
Today's scene has happened countless times in the martial arts gym, the only difference is the boy kneeling on the ground.
Wang Jianxiong didn't even remember Zhou You's appearance, he was certain that the other person was just a passerby.
Zhou You did not hesitate, he knelt down and shouted, "Disciple Zhou You, I pay my respects to the Master."
Lu Qiang took out a wooden plaque with the six words "Disciple of Jianxiong Martial Arts School" engraved on it on the reddish-red hardwood.
"Hanging it at the door of your home can prevent nuisances, but you must return it after leaving the martial arts gym."
"According to the rules of the martial arts school, if you fail to learn the Subduing Tiger Fist within 100 days, you will be expelled from the school immediately and your tuition will not be refunded."
"After getting started with boxing skills, you can enter the outer courtyard and become a formal apprentice."
One hundred days is three months.
Zhou You took the wooden sign. This was the main purpose of his trip.
Jianxiong Martial Arts School has a strong enough reputation to protect his family.
Once this wooden sign is hung at the door, neither the Wild Fox Gang nor the Crazy Horse Gang will dare to provoke it.
Three months is the novice protection period he fought for himself.
Zhou You wanted to thank Wang Jianxiong again, but the door had already slowly closed.
He thought that one day, he would cross this threshold and stand in the inner courtyard to meet the other party.
"Big Brother, can I pay one month's tuition first?"
Zhou You had 50 taels on him, and he spent 5 taels on the registration fee, leaving him with 45 taels, which he could not spend all.
After all, when my father borrowed money, there were many debts of favor that he had to pay. The sooner he paid it back, the sooner he would feel at ease. Lu Qiang nodded, "Okay."
After paying the tuition, Zhou You left the martial arts hall with the wooden sign, feeling relieved.
The future is promising!
When I returned to the neighborhood where I lived, a neighbor shouted from afar.
"Brother You, Brother You, something bad has happened. Your father is quarreling with someone."
Zhou You's heart tightened, thinking that it might be Tu Lao San who came to visit, so he quickly quickened his pace.
A neighbor came to Zhou You's house today, but it was not Widow Li.
Widow Li's wine stall does more business in the evening, so she is still doing business on the street and has not returned home.
The one coming is our neighbor on the right, Mou Laoya, who came to visit with his son Mou Xiaoli.
When Mou Laoyao was young, his situation was similar to that of Zhou Laodie, but he was later surpassed.
The reason was that both of them wanted to work as clerks in a trading company. As a result, Old Man Zhou was selected and Old Man Mou was eliminated.
The salary of a business clerk is generous, enough to provide food and clothing for a family of three, and it is a high-quality job in the eyes of ordinary people.
Although Mou Laoyao found a job later, he always felt that he was outdone by Zhou Laodie, which became a source of worry for him.
When both families had sons, Mou Laoyao actively cultivated his son and sent him to a restaurant to work as a waiter at an early age.
What this family of neighbors is fighting for is their reputation, and they must not be outdone by the Zhou family in this lifetime.
Zhou You has been in trouble recently, so Mou Laoyao's family naturally has nothing good to say about him.
When Old Man Zhou asked to borrow money, his family clearly had enough money, but he used the excuse of not having money. Not only did he refuse to lend him the money, he also ridiculed him in every way.
Now, taking advantage of Zhou You's absence, he came to mock and ridicule me again.
"Brother Zhou, I'm not saying anything bad about you, but you're just too soft-hearted and don't know how to discipline a child."
"Your little Zhou is not doing his job properly and has caused a big disaster, causing you to suffer in vain at your age."
Mou Laoyao said something seemingly fair, but in fact he was mocking Zhou Laodie for having no manners.
Father Zhou puffed on his cigarette and replied, "My You'er is sensible, not like what you said."
Mou Xiaoli on the side chuckled, "Uncle Zhou, your son didn't go to Tu Laosan's house to apologize, but ran away with the money. I saw it with my own eyes."
"Cough, cough, cough!"
Old Man Zhou started coughing violently.
His face flushed, "Mou Laoyao, we have been neighbors for so many years, we will see each other every day."
"Since my family got into trouble, not only have you not helped, you've also repeatedly come to my house to slander me. Has your conscience been eaten by a dog?"
Mou Laoyao's face darkened, "Lao Zhou, why are you cursing?"
"Your son is useless, and your family is about to be ruined. Your life is over."
"I know you have borrowed a lot of foreign debts, and you can't pay them back. If you can't pay the rent, your whole family will be kicked out and have to live on the street."
"If the company knows about this, they will definitely fire you!"
Mou Laoyao's eyes were full of pride. After fighting for a lifetime, he finally waited until Lao Zhou ran into bad luck and fell into complete defeat.
Since Tu Lao San cannot get the money, he will definitely resort to despicable means to harass the Zhou family.
Under such circumstances, it is impossible for the company to continue employing Old Man Zhou.
If a family loses their livelihood, they will starve to death sooner or later.
Old Man Zhou looked at him, his eyes full of shock.
He has been a decent person all his life, preferring to suffer losses rather than offend others, and he has never had a quarrel with anyone.
He never thought that the neighbor he had known for most of his life would hate him so much and wish his family would die.
"Mou Laoyao, get out of here. Get out of my house."
Even honest people get angry sometimes. Old Man Zhou slammed the table, stood up and roared.
Mou Xiaoli stood up with his fists clenched, gritting his teeth, "What do you want to do? Do you want to hit my dad? I'll beat you up..."
Relying on his youth and strength, he was about to push Old Man Zhou to the ground.
A figure stepped forward quickly, kicked Mou Xiaoli in the stomach, and kicked him away on the spot.
Zhou You is back home!
(End of this chapter)