Apotheosis Begins with Tai Chi

The reason was actually simple.

In this world, no one’s money grew on trees.

Those willing to fork over real gold and silver were, at the very least, sincere about wanting to build a connection.

As for those unwilling to even bleed a little, no matter how loudly they shouted or how frequently they submitted their calling cards, Chen Cheng wouldn’t give them a second glance.

Conversely, for those who showed their sincerity, Chen Cheng would accept their cards and only later seriously consider and carefully screen them.

He would then pick out the ones who were truly worth dealing with, had real resources, and were genuinely reliable for separate negotiations.

A Silver Ingot, a Golden Blade Coin—this was the price of admission.

It was also Chen Cheng’s way of screening them.

As expected, after Chen Cheng’s move, at least half the people in the crowd silently backed away.

The chaos of the scene subsided at a visible rate.

The remaining people even became orderly and courteous all of a sudden.

The gifts and calling cards had all been submitted.

Immediately after, the various families began competing to invite Chen Cheng to a banquet.

However, Chen Cheng wasn’t interested.

With a polite but weary expression, he clasped his hands in a salute to each of them, explaining that he had suffered minor injuries and needed to go home to rest.

By not accepting any single invitation, he avoided offending any of them.

Otherwise, no matter which family he agreed to, the others would inevitably be displeased to some degree.

Chen Cheng’s excuse was irrefutable, so everyone took the hint and bid their farewells.

A while later.

The crowd finally dispersed. Ye Yang, who had been pushed far away by the rush, finally made his way back to Chen Cheng’s side.

”Chen Cheng, Qiluo is seriously injured, so I won’t be able to celebrate with you today...”

As he spoke, Ye Yang took off his own outer coat and gently draped it over Chen Cheng.

Yu Shi’s earlier punch had torn a large section of Chen Cheng’s Training Attire across the chest into shreds.

Because his skin was unharmed and he had been busy dealing with the crowd, Chen Cheng himself would have almost forgotten about his torn clothes if not for Ye Yang’s action.

No one else had mentioned it.

Only Ye Yang had kept it in mind. He had deliberately waited for the crowd to disperse before coming over to give Chen Cheng his coat.

Chen Cheng initially wanted to refuse.

But as soon as he looked up, he met Ye Yang’s gaze.

There was nothing particularly special about it—it was simply the concerned gaze of an elder looking at a junior.

Chen Cheng’s lips moved, but he said nothing.

In the end, he silently accepted it.

”Master Ye, you should go be with Senior Sister Ye. If you need anything at all, just let me know.”

Chen Cheng adjusted the coat on his shoulders, his tone solemn and far from just being polite.

”Your words are enough. You should hurry home and rest too.”

Ye Yang nodded, his gaze lingering on Chen Cheng’s face for a moment longer before he spoke again.

”When you have some free time soon, remember to make a trip to the Middle Courtyard. I have some last things to give you... Once you ascend to the Upper Courtyard, it will be difficult for us to see each other again...”

At this, Ye Yang couldn’t help but let out a long sigh.

No one knew better than him that ascending to the Upper Courtyard was like entering another world.

The people and matters of the Middle Courtyard would slowly fade away, perhaps to the point where their paths would never cross again.

”How could that be?”

Chen Cheng replied immediately, his tone quite serious.

”Master Ye, if you want to see me, you only need to say the word. I can return to the Middle Courtyard anytime.”

Ye Yang waved his hand, not continuing that line of conversation.

After a simple farewell, he turned and walked away alone into the distance.

Chen Cheng stood where he was, watching the figure recede further and further.

He didn’t know if it was because Ye Yang’s injuries hadn’t fully healed or if he had truly grown old.

For a fleeting moment, Chen Cheng suddenly felt that his retreating figure looked a bit frail, even unsteady.

Like a leaf in the wind.

...

When Chen Cheng returned home, the sun was already setting in the west.

Twilight crept in from over the courtyard walls, dyeing the blue-brick ground a warm yellow.

The aroma of a home-cooked meal drifted from the yard. One sniff was all it took to know it was Li Family’s cooking.

Because she used to live in the slums, Li Family, apart from making congee, only knew how to roughly chop up some wild vegetables, tear them apart, and toss everything into a pot for a chaotic stew.

As a result, for the first few days after they moved, her cooking could only be described as hard to swallow.

But over the past month, she had nothing else to do and focused all her energy on learning how to cook.

Plus, she had gotten to know their neighbor, Lady Sun, who would teach her a few things about cooking during their idle chats.

Slowly, her cooking went from being hard to swallow to tasting acceptable, and now she had become quite accomplished.

Just smelling the aroma from afar made Chen Cheng’s mouth water, and he quickened his pace.

”Cheng, you’re back? Perfect timing! Wash your hands, it’s time to eat!”

Li Family called out from the kitchen, and as soon as the words fell, the sound of stir-frying in a hot wok followed.

”I’m going to change my clothes first, I’ll be right out.”

Chen Cheng called back and walked quickly toward the inner courtyard.

He now lived in the main house of the inner courtyard.

The room originally came with a table, chairs, a bed, and a cabinet. Over the past month, he had gradually added some smaller household items, making it look quite proper and comfortable to live in.

After entering the room, Chen Cheng first took off Ye Yang’s coat, folded it neatly, and set it aside to personally return to the Middle Courtyard another day.

Then he took off his torn Training Attire, intending to throw it away.

The large patch on the chest was torn beyond repair.

From this, one could see just how terrifyingly powerful Yu Shi’s punch had been.

The Loose and Transparent Characteristic, Five Pillars of Blood Qi, Four Gods Profound Body, Dragon Scale Shirt—if even one of these had been missing, the outcome might have been completely different.

Of course, if even one had been missing, Chen Cheng wouldn’t have actively accepted the challenge in the first place.

For something like this, even with an eighty percent chance of success, Chen Cheng would have considered it not safe enough.

He then changed into a clean set of Training Attire and put on the silver fox fur coat.

Finally, he took out his Money Bag and tucked it into the Secret Pocket in his chest.

This held his entire fortune.

The nearly one thousand taels he had before, plus the nearly one thousand taels he received today.

On his way back, he had specifically asked about a nearby branch of the Wanbao Money Shop, made a detour, and exchanged ninety percent of his gold and silver for Silver Notes.

There were a full eighteen notes, each with a denomination of a hundred taels.

He kept ten Golden Blade Coins and a handful of broken silver for daily expenses.

”Cheng! Come out, quick! Miss... Miss Zhuang is here!”

Just then, Li Family’s voice came from the moon gate in the side corridor, a few notches quieter than usual, as if she were afraid of disturbing the unexpected guest.

”Okay, coming!”

Chen Cheng answered, then raised a hand to press against his chest. The Silver Notes and Golden Blade Coins made a distinct pressure against his palm.

’Very reassuring.’