The night air was cool as water, and the sharp spring wind carried the last vestiges of winter's chill.
「Yuhe County Town, Datong Square.」
Yang Jing sat on a chair in his room. In the corner, horse meat stewed in a clay pot.
He took out a letter, smoothed it flat on the table, and began to read by the light of an oil lamp.
The letter was from his family, brought by a peddler from his village named Yang the Third. It had been delivered to the Martial Arts Hall, but Yang Jing only now had the chance to read it after returning to his rented room.
Soon, Yang Jing finished reading, a look of slight surprise on his face.
'The Ning Family sent someone to my home?'
The letter said that the Ning Family's steward had visited his home that morning. They had been extremely polite, even gifting the family a draft ox.
The letter also said that the Ning Mansion's steward had mentioned him many times.
That's why his family had written, asking if he knew what had happened to cause such a drastic change in the Ning Family's attitude.
'The Ning Family certainly gets news fast.'
Yang Jing already had an idea why the Ning Family's attitude had changed so drastically.
It was, of course, because he had broken through to the Mingjin Realm and become an Entry-level Martial Artist.
An Entry-level Martial Artist might not be a big deal in the grand scheme of Yuhe County, but in the countryside, to local squires who could only throw their weight around in their own small towns, such a person carried far more significance.
Given the Ning Family's power, they wouldn't fear a newly advanced Mingjin Martial Artist like Yang Jing. But they would certainly be wary. Knowing Master Ning's personality, he naturally followed the principle of not making enemies unnecessarily.
Yang Jing had long anticipated a confrontation with the Ning Family, so he had gathered as much information on them as he could. As a result, he had a good understanding of the Ning Family Patriarch, Ning Xuezhi.
Ning Xuezhi appeared domineering, but closer inspection revealed him to be a rather prudent and cautious man.
The people the Ning Family had conflicts with were almost always ordinary farmers with no power, backing, or potential. As for those with real ability or influence, Ning Xuezhi did his utmost to stay on their good side.
The reason Yang Jing had gone after Feng Lei two months ago instead of Ning Xuezhi wasn't just because the large and powerful Ning Family was a much harder target than the isolated Feng Lei. It was also because Yang Jing had analyzed Ning Xuezhi's personality.
He had calculated that if he killed Feng Lei, Ning Xuezhi would be unlikely to go to great lengths to avenge him.
Furthermore, he had reasoned that once he broke through to the Mingjin Realm, given Ning Xuezhi's way of operating, the man wouldn't dare to continue pressuring his family.
What Yang Jing hadn't expected, however, was Ning Xuezhi's grand gesture. To smooth things over, he had actually gifted the Yang Family a draft ox.
Yang Jing pondered for a moment, took out paper and a brush, and began to write a reply.
His grandparents were simple, honest people, and the tone of their letter was clearly anxious.
In his reply, Yang Jing told them directly about his breakthrough to the Mingjin Realm. He wanted to give his family a reason to celebrate and to set their minds at ease.
Although he was still far from having the strength to stand out in the martial examinations, for a farming family to produce an Entry-level Martial Artist was, to ordinary people, a major event that could change the family's destiny.
A moment later, Yang Jing put down his brush, folded the letter, and sealed it in an envelope. He would ask Yang the Third from his village to take it back for him tomorrow.
After doing these things, Yang Jing stood up, walked to the clay pot in the corner of the room, and scooped out the cooked horse meat.
As he ate the horse meat, Yang Jing's thoughts turned to bear meat.
Bear meat came from a fierce beast, and its restorative properties far surpassed the horse meat he was currently eating. However, its price was in a completely different league. Yang Jing didn't have nearly enough money to buy the meat of fierce beasts.
'If I could eat the meat of fierce beasts every day, my progress in the Martial Dao would leap forward, and I could significantly shorten the time needed to break through to the Anjin realm. So the most crucial thing right now is still silver coins.'
In these chaotic times, no silver coins meant no resources. For an ordinary Martial Artist like him, lacking resources made the path of the Martial Dao nearly impossible to travel.
'I've broken through to the Mingjin Realm now, so I qualify for a retainer position, but...'
Yang Jing sighed softly.
Since his breakthrough to the Mingjin Realm, in the past two days, a few families had already come to his door, inviting him to take a retainer position.
The conditions offered weren't generous—basically seven or eight taels of silver per month.
For ordinary people, seven or eight taels of silver a month was definitely a large sum. In the countryside, even in years when land prices were high, seven or eight taels of silver was more than enough to buy a plot of top-grade farmland.
Before his breakthrough, his family had sold nearly everything they owned to support his training. His own living expenses were barely more than two taels a month.
If he told his family that someone was paying him seven or eight taels of silver a month, and only for occasional work, his family would probably find it unbelievable.
But that was by a commoner's standards. Having successfully become an Entry-level Martial Artist, Yang Jing had moved beyond the realm of ordinary people and become a true Martial Artist.
From what Yang Jing had gathered, the typical monthly pay for a Mingjin Martial Artist's retainer position was around ten taels. Of course, those with exceptional innate talent were another story.
Yang Jing wasn't aiming too high; he'd be satisfied with the standard rate.
But so far, none of the offers had reached ten taels.
Yang Jing sighed helplessly.
In everyone else's eyes, his potential was probably used up. They must see him as less valuable than a typical Mingjin Martial Artist, hence the lower monthly pay.
'Tsk, tsk... I'm being looked down on for retainer positions, and as for sponsorships, no one's even bothered to contact me. It's been two days. Looks like there's no hope.'
Yang Jing shook his head. He wasn't dejected, though; he had expected as much.
After breaking through to the Mingjin Realm, besides taking on a retainer position, a Martial Artist could also hope to receive sponsorship from major families or large businesses.
Take Sun's Martial Arts Hall for example.
When a disciple broke through to the Mingjin Realm, if they showed enough potential, they could attract the favor of the great families. These families would sponsor them, forging a positive connection. If the disciple achieved greatness in their martial arts journey, they were expected to repay their patrons.
The greater the potential shown, the more likely they were to be valued and sponsored by those great families.
For example, Sun's Martial Arts Hall's most prominent genius disciple right now, Lin Yue, had already received sponsorship from the Zhao and Qi Families before he even broke through to the Mingjin Realm.
Second Senior Brother Zhao Wenzheng and Third Senior Sister Qi Yun were disciples from the Zhao and Qi Families, respectively.
Generally, because they were close and could act fast, if a genius disciple emerged or had a breakthrough, the disciples from the great families within the same Martial Arts Hall would be the first to arrange a sponsorship. Outsiders wouldn't even get a chance.
Normally, a disciple would only be sponsored by a single family, as there were complex relationships and even rivalries among these great families.
It was just that the potential Lin Yue showed was truly too great, which was why two great families sponsored him.
'Although no one is willing to sponsor me, I never had high hopes to begin with. No hope means no disappointment,' Yang Jing mused, taking a large bite of horse meat.
Of course, no one else knew he had a status panel. They just thought his potential was exhausted and that his breakthrough to the Mingjin Realm was a complete fluke.