Chapter 70: Chapter 70: Trick

「The next morning.」

Chu Lingguang, Hei Hu, Da Wang, and Xiao Wang traveled with Guo Wei to the county town, arriving at the Weiyuan Escort Agency a little over two hours later.

“Leader Ma, I’ve brought your men back.”

“Thank you, Master Guo. Oh? Why did you bring gifts as well?”

Guo Wei had just finished tying up his horse when Leader Ma heard the commotion and ran out from inside. Seeing that Chu Lingguang and Hei Hu were both carrying gifts, he grinned from ear to ear.

“Ah,” Guo Wei said apologetically, “my young disciple was practicing archery with Da Wang yesterday and accidentally injured him. This is just a small token of his apology.”

“Leader Ma, I was careless and hurt Da Wang. Please forgive me,” Chu Lingguang said, presenting the gifts.

The wine had been exchanged for fine liquor from Xiaoyue Building, and there was also a rack of pork ribs.

“What? Da Wang, where are you hurt?”

Leader Ma was startled and hurriedly checked Da Wang’s injuries.

“Master, it’s just a flesh wound on my left shoulder and arm. It won’t affect my performance in the Martial Arts Examination.”

Da Wang swung his arm a bit.

“That’s good, then.”

Leader Ma finally let out a sigh of relief. Seeing the apologetic expressions on Guo Wei’s and Chu Lingguang’s faces, he said magnanimously, “Who doesn’t get injured during training? Besides, Da Wang only suffered a flesh wound. I’ll accept the gifts. Don’t worry about the rest.”

“Master Guo, please, come in!” Leader Ma said, inviting him inside.

“Thank you.”

Guo Wei nodded with satisfaction and led Chu Lingguang and Hei Hu into the Escort Agency. Once inside, Chu Lingguang handed the gifts to one of the agency’s men.

“Leader Ma, why don’t I see Da Wu and Xiao Wu?”

Guo Wei glanced at the Escort Agency disciples practicing their Martial Arts in the front courtyard but didn’t see Da Wu and Xiao Wu. He had brought Chu Lingguang and Hei Hu this time precisely so they could witness for themselves how formidable Da Wu and Xiao Wu were.

“They’re on their way back. Tie Zhennan is bringing them back personally,” Leader Ma explained, watching Guo Wei’s expression for any change.

“Oh. As long as they’re coming back, that’s good.”

Guo Wei nodded calmly. The last time Leader Ma had set the two-month appointment with him, he had sensed something fishy was going on and suspected it had to do with Tie Zhennan. It seemed he was right.

As it happened, he was also curious to see what Da Wu and Xiao Wu had learned after spending two months with Tie Zhennan.

WHOA!

“Master, we’re back!”

Just then, two figures ran in through the entrance—it was Da Wu and Xiao Wu. They handed their horses to a groom at the gate and rushed in excitedly.

“Good, I’ve been eagerly waiting for your return.”

Leader Ma squeezed Da Wu’s and Xiao Wu’s arms firmly. Feeling how robust their Qi Blood was, he was very satisfied.

“Leader Ma, these two disciples of yours were clamoring to come back to you every day. It took a great deal of effort for me to keep them for two months.”

A voice, resonant with powerful Qi Blood, came from the entrance.

The newcomer was none other than Tie Zhennan.

Liu Quan and a sturdy-looking young man followed behind him. They were also carrying gifts—a complete assortment of wine, pastries, and meat.

“Haha, Master Tie, it’s good to see you well!” Leader Ma said, going up to greet him. “Master Guo has been waiting inside for some time.”

“Oh, Master Guo. It’s been a few months, and you look as young as ever,” Tie Zhennan said, clasping his hands in a salute toward Guo Wei.

“Master Tie is also full of vigor,” Guo Wei said, rising to return the salute.

“These two young men have an extraordinary bearing. They must be Master Guo’s Direct Disciples,” Tie Zhennan remarked, his gaze falling on Chu Lingguang and Hei Hu.

“What does Master Tie think of them?” Guo Wei asked.

“As they say, heroes are forged in youth. Master Guo’s disciples are quite impressive,” Tie Zhennan said with admiration.

“Master Tie, you’re too kind. Lin Guang and Hei Hu are still slow learners; they will have much to learn from your disciples in the future,” Guo Wei said with a smile.

“Not at all,” Tie Zhennan said, quickly waving his hand in dismissal.

“Masters, please don’t just stand there talking. Have a seat.” Leader Ma gestured for them to sit and then began to explain, “Inviting you both to my Escort Agency today was my idea alone. This year, Da Wang and Xiao Wang will be participating in the Martial Arts Examination alongside your disciples. I hope the two of them can place in the top ten.”

“I also want Da Wu and Xiao Wu to excel in the Provincial Examination!”

“I’m sure you two masters don’t want your own disciples to fail the exam, either. I have a suggestion: let Da Wu and Xiao Wu spar with your disciples. They were last year’s Martial Scholars. After a match, they’ll have the clearest idea of whether your disciples can pass.”

“Afterward, Da Wu and Xiao Wu will do everything they can to help your disciples pass. In return, the master whose disciple wins the sparring match will let Da Wu and Xiao Wu choose one of his Kung Fu techniques and will be responsible for teaching it to them for two months.”

“What do you say?”

So, it turned out this was all Leader Ma’s plan and had little to do with Tie Zhennan.

Hearing this, neither Guo Wei nor Tie Zhennan was in a hurry to speak.

They both knew this wasn’t a fair deal. Both Guo Wei and Tie Zhennan were confident their own disciples would pass the examination. Having Da Wu and Xiao Wu as training partners would only serve to improve their disciples’ final rankings.

So, Guo Wei picked two grapes from the table and began to chew them slowly.

Meanwhile, Tie Zhennan blew the steam from his tea and began to sip it slowly.

“If you two masters agree,” Leader Ma added, “I can have Da Wang and Xiao Wang go easy on your beloved disciples if they happen to face each other in this year’s Martial Arts Examination.”

Upon hearing this, both Guo Wei’s and Tie Zhennan’s expressions stiffened.

Da Wang and Xiao Wang had failed last year’s Martial Arts Examination. Their Mounted Archery and Lance skills were poor, but their other Martial Arts were already close to the passing threshold back then. After this period of intense training, their scores in the examination would certainly surpass those of the two masters’ disciples.

If their disciples were unlucky enough to face those two in the combat portion, and if Da Wang and Xiao Wang fought ruthlessly, their disciples might not be able to hold their own. Should they get injured, their performance in the subsequent events would be severely affected.

Thus, Leader Ma’s words carried an underlying threat.

“Da Wu and Xiao Wu are talented, but passing next year’s Provincial Examination to become Martial Arts Scholars certainly won’t be that easy,” Guo Wei said meaningfully.

Da Wu and Xiao Wu had passed the test to become Martial Scholars last year, but their scores weren’t outstanding; they were among those at the bottom of the list. Guo Wei, on the other hand, had not only participated in the Martial Examination himself but had also trained three Martial Arts Scholars.

On this matter, his words carried more authority than Tie Zhennan’s.

“Please, Master Guo, grant us this opportunity!” Da Wu and Xiao Wu, knowing full well what was at stake, both bowed to Guo Wei.

Guo Wei didn’t respond.

’Leader Ma is too cunning,’ Guo Wei thought. ’It seems now that Tie Zhennan didn’t poach Da Wu and Xiao Wu; Leader Ma deliberately sent them over to him.’

’His goal was to make me more desperate for Da Wu and Xiao Wu to train with Chu Lingguang and Hei Hu. Perhaps later, regardless of the outcome, Da Wu and Xiao Wu will deliberately concede that Chu Lingguang and Hei Hu are stronger.’

’That would allow me to publicly one-up Tie Zhennan, and in return, I would be expected to genuinely teach Da Wu and Xiao Wu the Kung Fu they want to learn.’

Once he unraveled these tricks, Guo Wei understood Leader Ma’s ploy.

’But it won’t be that easy to trade my reputation for my Kung Fu.’

“My disciple, Liu Quan, has astounding talent. If they meet in the ring, he won’t necessarily be the one at a disadvantage,” Tie Zhennan snorted coldly.

After a moment of careful thought, he also sensed that something was wrong. For the past two months at his Martial Arts Hall, Da Wu and Xiao Wu had been completely absent-minded. It was clear now that they had only ever wanted to learn Guo Wei’s Kung Fu.

Although he knew he had been schemed against, it only made him more determined to prove that he, Tie Zhennan, was in no way inferior to Guo Wei!

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Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep