Locust Tree Lane, the Chens' home.
"Brother Cheng, why did you buy candied fruit? You're spending too much."
Mu Xiaowan opened the oil-paper package in her hands and took out a piece of candied fruit, but she couldn't bring herself to eat it.
"Well, I just collected some debts, so I've got money now!" Chen Cheng said with a slight smile, casually ruffling Mu Xiaowan's hair.
Mu Xiaowan obediently let him. A smile bloomed on her small, soot-stained face, revealing a set of white teeth.
She was, of course, delighted that Brother Cheng was so thoughtful and caring.
"We still have to spend it sparingly."
"Mm."
"Is Ah Cheng home?"
"Brother Cheng..."
Just then, a clamor of voices arose from outside the courtyard. Chen Cheng climbed up the wall to take a look and saw a dozen or so neighbors from Locust Tree Lane gathered at his gate.
"Xiaowan, quick! Get everything into the kitchen."
He hurriedly got Mu Xiaowan's help, and together they carried all the bags of food and the hen into the kitchen to hide them.
The neighbors outside were all dirt-poor folks.
'They probably saw me come back with all these bags, thought I'd struck it rich, and came to borrow money.'
He had always been kind-hearted. He could be ruthless with villains like Ma Liu, but he couldn't bring himself to be harsh with other poor people.
'If this group of poor neighbors asks to borrow money, my only choice will be to politely refuse.'
"What brings you all here? We've been so poor lately, we can barely afford to eat."
Chen Cheng spoke first as he opened the courtyard gate.
'Now that I've laid my cards on the table, surely these poor neighbors won't still ask to borrow money?'
At his words, all the neighbors' faces tensed, and several of them even began to tremble.
'Poor? Can barely afford to eat?'
'Is he hinting at something?'
"Ah Cheng, I borrowed fifty cents from Brother Chen a while back. I should've paid you back long ago, but things have been tough for my family, so I've dragged it out until now."
Fifth Uncle Liu, a man in his fifties, forced a smile and pulled a Money Bag from his robes, beginning to count out coins with trembling hands.
He counted all the way to one hundred cents and placed them in Chen Cheng's hand.
"Ah Cheng, it's all here, principal and interest. Go ahead and count it."
"Sigh... I'm a kind man!"
Chen Cheng let out a long sigh. He had been about to say he wouldn't take any interest, but Fifth Uncle Liu misunderstood. He shivered in fright and counted out another ten cents.
After all, a certain someone had just said his family was so poor they could barely afford to eat.
"Ah Cheng, this is all the money we Lius have left. Please, don't think it's not enough."
As he spoke, Fifth Uncle Liu stuffed the money into Chen Cheng's hand.
The others all rushed to take out their money. Fearing it wouldn't be enough, each added a little more to what they had originally planned to repay and stuffed it into Chen Cheng's hands.
"Ah Cheng, this is all my family has."
"Brother Cheng, my mother just got sick, and we spent a lot on medicine. The family really has no money left."
"Ah Cheng, I'm so sorry this payment is so late. Please, be the bigger man and forgive the delay."
...
By the time the crowd dispersed, Chen Cheng's hands were filled with a thick stack of copper coins.
"Brother Cheng, what's all this?" Mu Xiaowan's eyes widened.
'These poor neighbors are usually total deadbeats. When did they become so agreeable? They're actually coming to us to pay their debts?'
"Maybe they know I have a kind heart," Chen Cheng said with a chuckle as he closed the gate and began to count the money.
The total came to two thousand three hundred sixty cents, more than double the amount he had originally lent out.
It wasn't a huge sum. After all, Old Chen hadn't been a fool when he was alive; if someone failed to repay a loan once or twice, he simply stopped lending to them.
This money, added to the salary he received yesterday and the one thousand cents Widow Tian had repaid, left him with over three thousand cents after subtracting the costs of firewood, dinner, and his market spending. That was equivalent to more than three taels of silver.
With more than three taels of silver, plus a monthly salary of 800 cents, the two of them should be able to live a bit more comfortably.
He might not be able to afford lavish meals every day, but eating meat every few days would be no problem. With a sufficient supply of meat, Chen Cheng wouldn't have to worry about his vital energy failing to keep up with his Iron Armor Skill Cultivation.
In the afternoon, Chen Cheng practiced his Iron Armor Skill in the courtyard, and his progress was encouraging.
[Skills: Iron Armor Skill (Beginner Level 3/100)]
That evening, the Chens stewed the hen.
The next day, Chen Cheng arrived at South City Prison on time for his shift.
'A Prison Guard's work might be humble and menial, but it was a legitimate job with a reliable monthly salary. I'll just have to make do for now.'
After morning roll call and the handover from the previous shift of Prison Guards, Chen Cheng made his usual patrol of his assigned cell block, then began his day of drudgery.
He stood guard, waiting for the time for his next patrol, or for a summons from his superiors.
During these times, Chen Cheng would stand his post diligently while secretly practicing his Iron Armor Skill Cultivation Technique.
This Cultivation Technique was simple to cultivate. All he had to do was follow the Breathing Method to circulate his vital energy while carrying weight.
Chen Cheng had iron plates strapped to his arms, calves, waist, abdomen, and back. In total, the plates weighed nearly twenty pounds.
When he was still Uninitiated in the Iron Armor Skill, these weights had been quite taxing for Chen Cheng. If he stood for too long, his arms would begin to droop, and his posture would become somewhat hunched.
Now that his Cultivation Technique had reached the Beginner Level, it was much easier for Chen Cheng. After half an hour, he still felt no fatigue. His body was ramrod straight, truly as steady as a pine.
[Iron Armor Skill progress increased.]
As he continued his Cultivation, system notifications would pop up from time to time, and Chen Cheng could feel himself gradually growing stronger.
Another quarter of an hour passed.
[Iron Armor Skill progress increased.]
[Skills: Iron Armor Skill (Beginner Level 4/100)]
In less than one hour, the Iron Armor Skill's Cultivation Progress increased by 1 point.
Chen Cheng felt a bit fatigued, so he stopped practicing the technique, intending to rest for a while.
'A man isn't made of iron, after all. Cultivation is important, sure, but you have to balance it with rest, right?'
Chen Cheng had grown accustomed to the weights. He didn't need to remove them when he rested; all he had to do was walk around a bit or find a place to sit and relax his muscles and mind.
The work of a Prison Guard was quite idle. When there was nothing going on, they would all gather to shoot dice and pass the time.
The Prison Chief would usually turn a blind eye, and even occasionally join in for a few rounds.
The Prison Guards who didn't like to play would find a corner to lean against and doze off.
Very few actually stood their posts diligently.
But today was a bit different. Not only was no one playing dice, but no one was dozing off either. All the Prison Guards were standing diligently and ramrod straight at their respective posts.
Furthermore, there seemed to be a few new faces among the Prison Guards on his shift.
"Brother Li, how come Mr. Jiang and Li Tao aren't around?"
Chen Cheng asked Li Hongbing, the guard at the next post.
"You don't know, Ah Cheng?" Li Hongbing asked in surprise.
"Know what?" Chen Cheng was confused.
"Oh, right, you were off yesterday. I forgot." Li Hongbing patted the back of his head. "Mr. Jiang, Li Tao, and a few other guards didn't show up yesterday. The rumor is the Prison Warden had them transferred somewhere else."
"Transferred where?" Chen Cheng asked, puzzled.
"I'm not sure about that." Li Hongbing shook his head and lowered his voice. "The new Prison Chief is really strict. You should get back to your post before you get chewed out."
"Ah Cheng, Mr. Cheng wants to see you." Just then, old Zhou Defu, another Prison Guard, came over from the direction of the duty room and beckoned.
'Mr. Cheng? That must be the new Prison Chief.'
Not daring to delay, Chen Cheng acknowledged the summons and hurried after Zhou Defu to the duty room.
"You're Fierce Ah Cheng?"
The new Prison Chief, Cheng Rui, sat on a stool, his eyes slightly narrowed as he carefully scrutinized Chen Cheng.
He looked to be in his forties, with a long, thin face and a gaunt frame, giving off the impression of someone who was difficult to deal with.
Chen Cheng quickly cupped his fists and replied respectfully, "Chen Cheng greets Mr. Cheng."
Cheng Rui seemed quite satisfied with Chen Cheng's attitude. He then asked, "I hear you administered punishment to Qin Kai the day before yesterday?"
Qin Kai? Chen Cheng's heart skipped a beat. 'This prisoner really is something special,' he thought. Still, he had nothing to hide, so he answered truthfully, "Are you referring to the prisoner Mr. Jiang personally punished, Mr. Cheng?"
Cheng Rui said, "That's the one."
Chen Cheng said, "I wouldn't dare administer punishment to a prisoner myself. I was merely following Mr. Jiang's orders to set the man's bones and treat his wounds."
"Setting bones and treating injuries? It's rare for someone your age to have such a skill."
Cheng Rui's expression suddenly turned friendly. In a casual tone, as if they were just making small talk, he asked nonchalantly, "So you set Qin Kai's bones and treated his wounds. He must have said he'd thank you properly, didn't he?"
A sudden jolt of alarm went through Chen Cheng.
'No, something's wrong. There's something off about this Cheng Rui!'
'Is this bastard trying to bait me into saying something?'