The woman has white teeth and bright eyes, and her brows are very similar to the man who is speaking, while the other man is thin and has his head bowed silently.
All three of them are in the middle stage of martial arts.
"I, Zhan Tiansheng, are from Liangzhou. This is my cousin Zhan Yi and my cousin Min Yifang." Zhan Tiansheng introduced them quickly and generously.
"I'm fine with you in the lower Wei Dynasty. I'm from Wangzhang Mansion in Dengzhou. It's a pleasure to meet you." Xue Tong said with cupped hands.
Xue Tong's pseudonym was Wei Wuchang, taking Wei Geng's surname and using an auspicious name. Before coming to Pingshan, Wei Geng used disguise makeup to slightly change his appearance, making him look a bit older. He was about twenty years old. Even a warrior in the middle acquired period would be extremely difficult to tell without careful observation.
Zhan Yi rolled his eyes at Zhan Tiansheng and said, "Brother, you drank too much. Why do you hit on everyone you meet? What's the point of talking about this?"
Min Yifang's eyes were wandering, as if he had other thoughts.
Xue Tong asked the waiter to serve wine and tea, and ordered a large plate of beef. The Zhan brothers and sisters were outspoken, and he liked this character.
"Aren't you happy today? It's okay to talk. Anyway, the things have been done and we can go to the garden tomorrow." Zhan Tiansheng ignored Zhan Yi and continued.
Zhan Yi's face turned pale with anger, but there was nothing she could do against her cousin. She pushed Min Yifang beside her and said bitterly: "What are you thinking about again!"
"It's okay. Since you want to win, wouldn't it be great to have it done now?" Min Yifang said disapprovingly.
"Brother Min is right, at least we can show off our skills and give it a try." Zhan Tiansheng said.
He rolled his eyes and asked Xue Tong: "My little brother is also here to participate in the bidding of the "Dragon and Tiger Gang"."
"No, I'm new here. I don't know anything about the Dragon Tiger Gang, let alone any bidding." Xue Tong said truthfully without intending to hide anything.
As he spoke, the waiter held up a large plate and said, "Ten pounds of shank meat, a pot each of spiritual wine and spiritual tea. Please use it at your leisure, gentlemen."
"Guys, please, I've invited this table." Xue Tong said politely.
"Impossible, it's not your turn to pay the bill!" Zhan Tiansheng glared and said angrily.
"Okay, just listen to Brother Zhan and I will definitely come back someday." Xue informed such a generous person that he would not let himself pay the bill.
Zhan Yi snorted softly, as if Xue Tong was cheating on him by eating and drinking.
Xue Tong pretended not to hear, toasted a glass of wine, and started talking: "Brother Zhan's tone seems to be successful in the Longhu Gang's bidding. What are the bids? If appropriate, I can also bid for one."
Zhan Tiansheng was slightly drunk and talked for a long time. Xue Tong barely understood most of it.
The Longhu Gang, one of the three major gangs in Pingshan Town, controls the business in several blocks in the west of the town. Recently, the leases of the shops on West 6th Street have expired one after another, so they have concentrated bidding to find tenants. The medicine garden on West 13th Street has been occupied by outsiders. The Zhan brothers and sisters won it at a high price.
"Liangzhou has a vast territory and is sparsely populated, so the herbal medicine business is very sluggish. I heard that Pingshan has a lot of people and business is good, so we gathered some spiritual stones to have a look."
"Yes, I understand." Xue Tong saw that Zhan Yi was becoming more and more impatient, and immediately stopped the topic and said: "I will go to bid tomorrow and open a small shop that resells talismans. I will go to West Thirteenth Street to find Brother Zhan another day."
Zhan Yi curled his lips and seemed to be deeply disdainful, meaning that it was of little significance to associate with someone like Xue Tong.
…
The next day, "Tiger Roaring Garden" on West Ninth Street.
Huxiao Garden covers an area of dozens of acres and is a large mansion with high walls. There are three men in soap clothes standing on either side of the gate, with steel knives hanging on their waists, shouting and checking the bidders who enter the garden.
In Pingshan, middle-stage martial arts disciples are considered ordinary masters, most members of the Longhu Gang are early-stage martial arts disciples, a small number are mid-stage martial arts disciples, and the rest are pseudo-martial arts disciples who have not yet condensed into a sea of dharma and only retain some mana in their meridians, as well as " "Master" late martial arts disciple.
Xue Tong was in the middle of his martial arts apprenticeship and had a storage bag hanging on his waist. He was regarded as a person of certain status in the eyes of the man in charge of the nursing home. The man in soap clothes asked in a not-so-stern tone: "What are you here for?"
"I want to bid to rent a shop," Xue Tong replied with a calm expression.
"Where are you from? Have you joined any other gangs?"
"The family name of Wangzhang Mansion in Dengzhou has no family or sect."
"Well, you are not allowed to use violence or show your weapons after entering the park. Violators will be severely punished." The man in soap clothes glanced at Xue Tong's storage bag and said.
"yes!"
The storage bag hanging on the waist of a warrior is certainly eye-catching, but because of this, others are not sure what is in the bag and dare not rob it without absolute certainty. Furthermore, for a warrior with some strength, a storage bag is a must-have, and there is no need to pay for extras. A bag and beat and kill.
"Mighty Hall!"
Xue Tong was secretly amused. The various names given by the Pingshan Gang were really rustic.
In front of the mighty hall, a temporary wooden shed was erected in a large open space. The long table was crowded with bidders. They were receiving neighborhood maps and shop floor plans. Xue Tong took a copy of the drawings and sat alone against the courtyard wall to ponder it.
He chose a small shop, sealed the bid, and was about to submit it when he noticed a constant noise in the side courtyard on the other side of the wall.
There is a moon gate in the courtyard wall that leads directly to the side courtyard, but it is also guarded by people in soap clothes.
"What are you doing?" The man in soap stopped and asked.
"Dare I ask this big brother, in addition to renting the shop, the Longhu Gang is also recruiting people?" Xue Tong asked carefully.
The purpose of his coming to Pingshan was to inquire about information and find out who was behind the robberies and murders. Opening a talisman shop was not straightforward enough, so he might as well join a gang to collect clues. The Longhu Gang was a big gang in Pingshan Town, and the way to obtain information was obviously better than keeping a shop. For many.
"We're hiring, we're hiring all year round." The man in soap clothes said something, indicating that the hospital was recruiting people.
"Take advantage of the crowds these two days!" Another Zaoyi man interjected.
"Well, Brother Lao, let me go." Xue Tong requested.
In the side courtyard, ten or twenty people were surrounding two men in Tsing Yi who were about forty years old.
In the later stage of martial arts training, the Tsing Yi man has a condescending aura and seems to have a certain status in the Longhu Gang.
The man in Tsing Yi pointed at the two big stone locks in the corner of the courtyard and said loudly: "Those who can lift three hundred kilograms of stone locks around the field can join the Dragon and Tiger Gang, and together we can expand the territory and become popular."
Several people in the crowd tried one after another. Those who passed were happily led into the mighty hall by the waiting men in soap clothes, while those who failed left dejectedly.
"Do you want to join?" Xue Tong, who was in the middle of his martial arts apprenticeship, naturally attracted the attention of Cao Lun, a man in Tsing Yi, and asked proactively.
Xue Tong rolled his eyes, and without saying a word, he raised a stone lock with one hand, quickly circled the place, put it down gently, and said without changing his expression: "I bid for the shop, and I want to be named the Longhu Gang."
"Oh, it's just a name, then I'm afraid we have to take another test." Cao Lun's expression changed and he said.
The so-called gang name refers to not participating in activities on weekdays, not participating in ordinary matters, and only being called upon to contribute in critical situations. If you want to be a gang name, you obviously need to have abilities beyond ordinary members.
Xue Tong was full of reading the records of strange news, and came up with this method.
Cao Lun said solemnly: "If you can take my hand, the shop will be rented to you and your name will be allowed."
"Receive a palm from the Taoist Master? The Taoist Master is a late-stage martial arts disciple." Xue Tong looked hesitant, as if he was hesitant in his heart and felt deeply embarrassed.
Cao Lun was so proud that he showed off in front of everyone: "It's not easy to be a member of the Longhu Gang, but don't worry, it's just an assessment, I don't have to use my full strength."
Xue Tong frowned and gritted his teeth, and said, "Okay, I'll give it a try."
The others cheered and dispersed, craning their necks to watch the battle.
Cao Lun raised his palm, a faint red light glowed in his palm, and struck down with his Fiery Flame Palm.
There were many people watching the battle, and Cao Lun refused to take this move lightly. He used 80% of his strength, thinking that if Xue Tong was vomiting blood and injured, he would not be to blame.
Xue Tong shouted loudly and seemingly punched out with all his strength, Bailie Fist!
He only used 70% of his strength, plus 20% of his brute force. After practicing the third level of his Nightmare Bone Art, his brute force could explode in an instant. If he used too little force, he could immediately make up for it without getting hurt.
The palm wind fist collided with each other, making an explosive sound, and heat waves rolled out.
The onlookers a few feet away felt hot wind blowing against their faces, and their faces were in burning pain. Xue Tongteng took a few steps back, sat down on the ground, covered his chest and retched.
Cao Lun felt a tightness in his chest, but he secretly exhaled a big breath, and after taking a breath, he pretended to be nonchalant and said: "Well, it can take up 60% of my palm power. It's enough for just a name."
"What do you think, Brother Zheng?" he asked another man in green.
"Yes, it's qualified." Zheng Chengan replied. He knew that Cao Lun was pretending and used more than 60% of his strength.
"Thank you, Taoist Master, for showing mercy." Xue Tong stood up with difficulty and thanked him.
"Wow, I've heard for a long time that Master Cao Xiang has boundless magic power. When I met him today, I unexpectedly became even more famous after meeting him."
"Yes, if I use a little more force, this friend may vomit blood and suffer severe damage to his internal organs."
"This young Taoist priest is also very skilled. If he were to do it with less skill, his hands and feet would have to be broken."
A group of people added fuel to the fire and started to flatter the horse.
…
The three-story gray stone buildings on West Sixth Street are connected in a row. The ground floor is paved, and the second and third floors are for self-occupation. The small building has a front store and a backyard. It is not spacious, but comfortable and comfortable. The disadvantage is that the privacy is slightly less, but in the noisy area In Pingshan, shops are crowded together, and safety is naturally improved a lot.
The Longhu Gang assigned a pseudo-martial arts disciple with quick hands, feet, and quick thinking to look after Xue Tong's store. Xue Tong drew a batch of talismans every few days, mainly four-layer lightning strike and earth shield talismans, plus soaring clouds and transmission talismans. , the business is not bad, even more than the Yunxiao Sect’s inner market.
He spent most of his time practicing the exercises in the backyard. Occasionally he went out for a walk. He went to the medicine garden on Thirteenth Street and visited the Zhan sisters. He told them to contact them if anything happened. It was a good thing for us to help each other when we were in Pingshan.
He quickly grasped the general situation of Pingshan. "Thunder Fire Sect" and "Qiankun Gang" were the other two major gangs in the town, and there were countless other gangs, large and small.
…
Two months later, on the third day of May.
A dozen members of the Dragon and Tiger Gang rushed into the Talisman Shop, looking for lightning strike and earth shield talismans. Except for the leader Dong Sanbiao, the rest were all junior martial arts disciples.
Dong Sanbiao asked the shopkeeper to ask for a talisman master.
"Master Wei Fu, brothers, we have a big business to do tonight, can you draw some five-layered talismans?" Dong Sanbiao said.
"Oh, brothers, you want to do something big?" Xue Tong asked tentatively.
"Well, I arranged a fight with "Monkey Li" from the Thunder Fire Sect, and if I didn't teach him a lesson, I would really be rebelling against him!"
Gang fights are common, but Xue Tong deliberately whets Dong Sanbiao's appetite.
"The five-layer talisman will be sold at the normal price, and there is not much stock."
