"I didn't get mad, I just got even, my violence didn't stem from anger, but a way to resolve the conflict and reestablish peace more in my favor." - Lin Si, 8, to her mother, when attempting to explain why she got into a tussle.
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Li Junlong gazed into the room, to see a wine jar on the bed desk, along with a bit spilled over the ground messily, the room smelling of alcohol everywhere, and on the desk, next to it, a sachet, overflowing with silver and gold.
Madam Wang, couldn't you have cleaned it a bit earlier like I asked…Li Junli despaired.
"Li Junli." he spoke slowly, pronouncing his entire name, Li Junli always got scared when he didn't call him didi. "Where did you go last night?"
"Em, gege, gege, no need to get scared, nothing happened, nothing," Li Junlong had already strode into the room, picking up the gourd and shaking it, to find it mostly empty, and as he gazed back, a strange, rather murderous, look in his eyes, Li Junli shrank. "No, no, I really didn't drink it either, okay, it was just lent to me to try by someone, nothing more, nothing more, didn't drink!"
He fingered through the money, "did you get this from our treasury?" He didn't particularly mind, but he had the key on his person at all times, plus, shouldn't his brother ask him if he needed funds, he'd love to spoil his little brother with more money if he wanted it. Did his little brother not trust him enough to ask him for money? Was his allowance too little? In fact..he had been a bit negligent on that part, since his little brother never went out alone, obviously he'd never considered leaving any money to him other than a couple hundred silver. Afterall, if he was there, why not just have him pay? He figured his brother also only knew how much things cost from books, and what people told him.
Li Junli instantly automatically got incredibly possessive of his first earnings in his life, he actually managed to roll his chair over, placing his hand on the gold, weakly pushing Li Junlong away. Junlong, not wanting to hurt him, complied, as Li Junli, quickly fingered out a golden tael, throwing it into Li Junlong's hand. "There, that's yours, the rest is mine, MINE, I earned it! Rightfully! honestly!"
Li Junlong glanced at him disbelievingly. "You earned this?"
"Well, I mean….yeah, yeah I did!" he pulled it all into his lap, several coins scattered across the ground.
Li Junlong glanced at him pathetically. Is this what kids were like when they got their first pay check? wait, was he even a kid anymore, he was 17! He sighed. "Sun'er"
Li Junli glared at Sun'er, but his glare was a thousand times less fierce than Li Junlong's.
Sun'er threw himself onto the ground. "Forgive me, master, forgive this servant, this servant tried his best to stop him!"
Li Junli glared at Sun'er fiercely. How dare you just throw me under the rug like that! See if I let you win any weiqi matches in the future!! -he didn't anyway
"Master, young master just requested that I accompany him down the mountain a little ways, this servant really couldn't refuse, please forgive this servant!"
He was already slamming his head into the ground on hands and knees, but Junlong's wrath was hardly quenched. After all, his brother couldn't move anywhere without someone else's help. If Sun'er hadn't wanted to leave, they wouldn't have left.
"And," he growled, wrath coating his throat. "What did you and 'young master-'" oh no, he's calling me young master now- "go down the mountain to see?"
"Not far! Not far! Not even 20 strides down the mountain!"
"..." why did this guy never say what he asked for.
Sun'er realized he wasn't saying enough. "Long Wen!" he shouted. "We went to see Long Wen!"
Li Junli gave him a mental thumbs up, this guy was quite smart actually.
"And we placed bets in the arena and ate snacks!"
…I take it back, I take it all back. Dive face first in a mud pool, Sun'er.
"You…went to an underground arena??" At this point, Li Junlong wasn't even mad, but just…confused. His little brother, making bets in an underground arena?
"No, no, it's not like that!" Li Junli was quick to explain. "Ask Long Wen, he started a new acti'ity, to arganize the peo'le in line!" His words began to slur at the end, it seemed all the stress had caused his nerves to once again fail a little, unenabling his lips from moving properly. Li Junlong instantly got distressed and worried, striding over to bend down and pick up the coins on the ground, packing them back into the bag on his lap, he gripped his hand gently.
"You should rest, rest, for now, I'll go take care of things."
"No!" Li Junli protested. But he didn't dare say more lest his lips compromise him only… "dun't sto- it!"
His brother left.
Arriving outside, the sun had already reached noon, and no one stood outside the gate other than Long Wen and another man currently at the booth, purchasing some slips of paper before catching sight of Li Junlong and quickly departing.
He strode over to Long Wen.
"You…" He placed his hand down on the table, looming over Long Wen. Long Wen didn't back down. He grew up around brute martial artists. He ignored his attempts to intimidate.
"Yes, my lord?"
"What did you do out here?" He waved his hand to the currently empty path.
"Well, I…" Long Wen scratched his ear, trying to come up with a good way to explain the new system.
In the meantime, Li Junlong glanced over to the new sign, reading it in its entirety, he quickly caught on to what was going on, and how it worked.
"What is this…?"
"Well, I started a business…"
"Do I not pay you enough?"
Long Wen was silent.
Li Junlong sighed. "But isn't this my land, why are you taxing my land?"
"Haha, about that," he shuffled through the documents under his desk, pulling out the deed. "Apparantly it was public land, so I bought it, ahahah."
Li Junlong glanced at it, then glanced back at his now neighbor
"You…have really….done interesting things here recently."
"Yes, actually, this new system is very good!"
"I'd like you to abolish it."
"Yes?"
"I'd like it removed." He turned to walk back to his home. But Long Wen leapt to his feet, running in front of him.
"Wait!" He stopped in his track, Long Wen immediately straightened. "Think about it, isn't this more efficient for you? You only have to fight strong people now!" He decided to avoid the topic that it was his land, he could do with it what he wanted since, well, the plaque system was still dependent on Li Junlong, and Li Junlong could easily bully him into selling the small deed.
"I don't need it."
Long Wen's expression became complicated. "Your problem, the reason you even take up these battles, besides making bread, isn't there that? And it's not like normal martial artists would even know, but this system, after spreading word of it, not only martial artists have come, others as well! Perhaps a chance that a wandering herb gatherer or alchemist might pass by, and I might offhandedly inquire…"
Li Junlong considered. This was reasonable, there really wasn't any reason to actually abolish it anyway, other than a little noise that couldn't even be heard from the inner courtyard, it only made his fights more efficient, and brought more people from all around the world to help him in his search. "Fine." he finally agreed. Long wen heaved a sigh of relief, heading back to his booth. "Although, there is one thing I would like to know…" turned back around, his voice back to a normal conversive tone. "That lady who just entered, do you know anything about her?"
She was of the Lin family, he knew of several Lin family branches, even an incredibly famous alchemy pill refining one. But judging from her attire, manners and disposition, it wasn't likely she was part of that one. So to really judge why she came here now, although it seemed like trying to grab old relations once they caught success, he still liked to double check everything. Besides, what if she were to remain persistent?
Long Wen instantly grew nervous. Did he catch on that she was the one who spread the ideas? No, no way he guessed it, right, she looks innocent, weak and dumb, right? He quickly shook out the idea. "I don't know much about her, but she was penniless when she first came, barely able to fork out enough money to buy a plaque and a meal. Luckily she and the one behind her banded together, and thus things went smoother for her…" It was hard to tell him who she was without saying that she made herself rich in less than two weeks. "Other than this, I only know that everything she owns is on her back, and she didn't even have a mat to sleep on when she first arrived. Ah, and she's quite skilled in martial arts, but you probably already know this.."
To his surprise, Li Junlong frowned here. "Yes, I know." He said, in an annoyed tone, turning away to walk back to his residence. He was getting a bit dizzy because of all the movements after being wounded internally, he needed a couple hours of meditation and closed door practice to stabilize his qi and repair his internal organs. It seemed..he would have to use one of their recovery pills as well, since the internal bleeding still hadn't stopped since it started earlier. His body was definitely in a mess. That girl..she was dangerous.
His eyes flashed with vicious energy. He needed to be careful. Someone so dangerous couldn't be near his brother, he couldn't protect him from someone that powerful. Those he couldn't control, he feared, and her blade, the memory of cold jade against his neck. He rubbed his neck with his finger as he entered back into the courtyard, and headed towards the inner courtyard and his room. And yet, even as he rubbed it, it remained cold. She was too dangerous, he needed to grow stronger. Although he was confident he had the chance to beat her if he were at full strength and in the right mental state, he couldn't guarantee he'd always be that. If he suffered another almost defeat…He shivered, clenching his fist. No, that wouldn't happen. His martial arts, born from a domineering presence, and power were greatly weakened having been rebuffed. This was a martial art that wasn't meant to lose, him losing betrayed the art, and now the back lash was only getting stronger the longer he delayed meditation. No, he wouldn't lose to her again.
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Lin Si found a noodle shop to order herself some lunch, sighing, as she took a seat. She glanced down at the water that was brought over with it. Was she ugly? Was that the problem? Was it her personality? No, it seemed more or less because he hated her family for some reason, most of his insults had been pointed toward her family and not herself. But thinking about her soft father, she doubted he'd have the heart to hurt anyone, much less make enemies with the no. 1 strongest.
She heard a shuffling sound from in front of her, she glanced up to see an old man, clothed in blues blacks and whites sit down across from her. He was older, but he looked like a court scholar, and his beard was coated with grey and white hairs, giving it a mystical feel as he rubbed it gently.
He also ordered some noodles.
She sighed, dismally, turning back to her own. It was a busy day in the city today, but there were few in this small noodle shop due to the time of day, in fact, they were the only ones there.
"What's wrong, young lady?" The old man asked politely, as he loudly slurped up his noodles.
She sighed again. "I'm having trouble making a guy fall in love with me."
"Ah," he considered for a moment. "Can you cook?"
"No."
"Can you write poems?"
"No."
"Do you at least have a steady income or a good dowry?"
"Not really."
The old man sighed as well. A simple rope tied up half his hair, swaying side to side. "What a dilemma, I can see the hardship."
She gave him a rude finger. "Say, old man, this town has really gotten busier, hasn't it?"
"Yes, well, since the Tattered Ghost in the south disappeared and the Demonic City left us alone, the jianghu has gotten far more peaceful and complacent, and then word comes out since yesterday about a competition with rankings, so many have already made their way over, I got here earlier since I was already on the road, heading south."
"Rankings?" Ah, right, last night, they'd added a separate ranking system, besides the plaques to challenge sovereign jingsheng, they'd also added a separate plaque, with an ID on it, which was connected to a new system of ranking. Every person who got a plaque would get 50 points, and one could get as high as 100 points. Every time you beat an opponent you could gain ⅓ or their points, and every time you lost, you would lose ⅓ of your points, the quantity of points would always be rounded down. This was also implemented since she didn't like the plaque expiring system or losing the plaque after fighting Jingsheng. So, as for how long you could keep your points, it was one month of inactivity/no fighting, every month after that, one would lose 1 point until they reached 0 points when they would have to buy a new plaque. Obviously, this way it would make getting to 100 points progressively more difficult over the years, but she'd also put a rule that someone with higher points couldn't challenge someone with more than 6 points lower than them.
This system had just been implemented the night before, so she was at the top of the rankings with about half of the people currently, since she'd won her fight. She now had 66 points.
"Word sure travels fast." She commented, watching all the people flowing through the smaller town, they kept turning toward the hill in the back. The inns would do well tonight.
"Yes, yes," he replied, still loudly slurping. "That's the jianghu for you!"
She sent a piercing look over at the old man, having already paid for her dish ahead of time, she stood up, patting his arm, thankful for his thoughtfulness. "Go to the Minglo Inn, just down the road, ask for the back room on the second floor, it's a little pricier, but it's quiet." She winked at him. Afterall, an old man like him, what if he couldn't sleep well with all these crowds? Even if she knew he was a martial artist, he was still an old man, and she had an unconscious urge to care for the elderly.
Meanwhile, as she stepped away, the man raised his head up, watching her go. "Do even martial artists no longer recognize me? Am I really that old?" He stood up, stepping out from behind the pillar that he'd sat behind, as the other marital artists passed, they all made sure to bow to him politely before continuing on toward the hill rising above the town. Ah, so it must just be because she was a commoner martial artist and new to the jianghu, she couldn't recognize him! Phew, he was getting worried…