After seeing Yang Yan,the county magistrate, w.a.n.g Tieniu understood the benefits Zhu Yun mentioned. Until he left the county government"s office, he was confused and couldn"t believe it. He was also excited. He had become an official. Although he was only a deputy constable with no rank, he would still be paid by the emperor and in charge of ten people. His salary every month was much more than what he had earned in fis.h.i.+ng in the past year. If he told his family about this, they would be very happy, wouldn"t they? After all, it brought honor to their ancestors.
At noon, Zhu Yun and a group of people led w.a.n.g Tieniu to celebrate in the best restaurant in the county. Drunk, w.a.n.g Tieniu hurried back to his village. The villagers asked w.a.n.g Tieniu what happened as soon as he entered the village. w.a.n.g Tieniu told villagers everything that he knew. Soon, the whole village knew that w.a.n.g Tieniu had been hired by the county government as a deputy constable with ten people under his control and would take office in two days.
w.a.n.g Tieniu had been a poor boy who not many cared for before and was suddenly the most popular one in the village. Everyone with a daughter was willing to marry their daughter to him. Xiao Lian"s mother couldn"t wait and almost took w.a.n.g Tieniu to her home.
w.a.n.g Tieniu was almost sober now. He went home with Xiao Lian"s mother in order to meet Mu Yi. He didn"t feel uneasy until he had to face his master. After all, he had accepted the appointment by the county magistrate and hadn"t asked his master"s opinion.
Moreover, he would take office in a few days, and he would definitely not be able to stay in the village any longer. It had cost him a great opportunity and fl.u.s.tered him.
“Master,” w.a.n.g Tieniu said in a low voice through the door.
After a while, Mu Yi replied, “Come in.”
After entering the room, w.a.n.g Tieniu knelt directly on the ground, “I beg master"s forgiveness. I have joined the county government and failed to live up to master"s expectations.”
“My expectations? w.a.n.g Tieniu, do you know what I expect?” Mu Yi asked with a smile.
“Ah?” w.a.n.g Tieniu opened his mouth, but he knew that his master wasn"t angry.
“Everyone has his own way. If you want to be a strong man, you can"t stay here forever. You have to go out and make a living. In fact, when I asked you to make friends with that person, I had a feeling that one day you would be able to work for the county government. It"s a rare chance for you. After all, you are still young and lack experience. You would only die quickly if you rushed into the world. It won"t be too late to wander in the world when you get used to your present status. This may be the chance you were looking for,” said Mu Yi patiently.
“Master…” w.a.n.g Tieniu was moved and didn"t know what to say.
“Well, before you go to work, I will try my best to teach you what I know. It"ll be enough, with practice, for you to break through to the first-cla.s.s realm. If we meet again later and you haven"t let me down, I will really accept you as my disciple,” said Mu Yi.
“Thank you, master. I will not let you down,” w.a.n.g Tieniu said loudly.
“Well, you can leave. There are people waiting for you outside. You can come back later in the evening.” Mu Yi waved to dismiss w.a.n.g Tieniu. When w.a.n.g Tieniu was gone, Mu Yi took a long breath, “It"s time to go.”
Mu Yi was just a pa.s.ser-by. w.a.n.g Tieniu saved him, and he paid him back. He had recovered nearly one third of his strength. He couldn"t fight Ning Wuque but ordinary first-cla.s.s experts wouldn"t cause him problems.
Mu Yi arranged for w.a.n.g Tieniu to leave him because Mu Yi would be leaving soon. As long as he finished teaching, he could leave with ease.
In the evening, w.a.n.g Tieniu came early and watched Mu Yi.
Mu Yi taught w.a.n.g Tieniu the special skill he got from Leng Yu, especially designed for Da Nu. However, he hadn"t practiced it before, so it was impossible for him to pa.s.s on the whole experience. As a result, w.a.n.g Tieniu would have to practice the skill bit by bit.
That kind of self-cultivation was far more stable than just taking knowledge from others.
In addition to this set of skills, Mu Yi also taught how to nourish his blood Qi, transform it into internal Qi, also known as internal skill or real Qi. When w.a.n.g Tieniu understood that process, he would reach the second-cla.s.s realm. If he wanted to reach the first-cla.s.s realm, he needed to explore his heart and find his own Taoism. No one could help him do it which was why real experts always relied on themselves.
If Mu Yi had the time, he would press w.a.n.g Tieniu and make him exercise for a while. He would enter the third-cla.s.s after at least half a year. Unfortunately, he didn"t have the time and had to impart the shortcuts. Fortunately, w.a.n.g Tieniu had another talent, and it was hard to say what he would achieve in the future.
Maybe he would reach the second-cla.s.s realm and stay there. Maybe he would break through to the first-cla.s.s realm. However, no one could be sure about the future. Even Mu Yi was uncertain about the future.
Finally, Mu Yi gave w.a.n.g Tieniu some charms he had drawn before, most of which were exorcism charms. The rest of w.a.n.g Tieniu"s fate would have to be achieved through his own efforts. If Mu Yi prepared everything, w.a.n.g Tieniu would never understand the significance of exercising.
Three days later, in the morning, w.a.n.g Tieniu looked at Mu Yi sadly, “Master, do you really want to leave?”
“All good things must come to an end, and I have taught you what I could teach. Your future depends on you.”
“When will I see you again, master?”
“Maybe soon. Maybe I will never see you all my life, w.a.n.g Tieniu. Although you are only a registered disciple, you are my first apprentice. Work hard.” Mu Yi patted w.a.n.g Tieniu on the shoulder and smiled at Xiao Lian. “I can"t wait for you to get married. I can only bless you in advance.”
“Thank you, Brother Mu.”
Xiao Lian"s eyes were red, and she looked more reluctant than w.a.n.g Tieniu. After all, Mu Yi had been living in her home all this time, and she had been taking good care of Mu Yi. She had got what she wanted and would marry w.a.n.g Tieniu in half a year. Mu Yi believed that w.a.n.g Tieniu had a good temperament and would not bully Xiao Lian. Moreover, they had known each other since childhood and would have a happy marriage.
w.a.n.g Tieniu and Xiao Lian watched Mu Yi leave.