Chapter 9: The Master of the Northern Leg

Suddenly, Thirteenth Aunt noticed the injury on Liu Qi’s arm and snapped angrily, “Little Seven, have you been out fighting with people again?”

Fighting? That was putting it mildly! Chen Jie muttered to himself. The kid had been at the street corner engaged in a life-or-death brawl, even going so far as to kill his opponent.

Liu Qi retorted, “Thirteenth Aunt, who told those bastards from the Green Garment Sect to keep trying to bully us? Our transport agency is being squeezed to the point where we can barely survive. As the leader of the West Gate Transport Agency, I naturally have to do something about it! If the Green Garment Sect dares to bully us again, I’ll deal with them exactly the same way.”

Seeing Thirteenth Aunt trembling with rage, as if she were about to enter a state of pure fury, Liu Bamei, who had just finished cooking, hurried into the room to intervene. “Thirteenth Aunt, Seventh Brother had no choice. He’s just anxious about the business. Please, don’t scold him anymore!”

“I—!” Thirteenth Aunt wanted to continue her lecture, but noticing Chen Jie standing nearby, she glared fiercely at Liu Qi and fell silent. She offered Chen Jie a helpless, awkward smile. Although she wasn’t much older than Liu Qi in years, Liu Qi and his sister Liu Bamei had been raised by her, and she had personally taught them martial arts. She knew well that in a place like Beijing, it was impossible to gain a foothold without conflict. What more could she say?

Chen Jie found it quite amusing; he hadn’t expected that a man as ferocious as ‘Ghost Foot Seven’ would be so terrified that he wouldn't dare make a sound when Thirteenth Aunt was angry. But then again, Thirteenth Aunt truly looked beautiful when she was furious.

Chen Jie smiled and consoled Liu Qi. “Liu Qi, a leader doesn’t necessarily have to fight his own battles! Have you ever seen a real boss jump into every fray? If anyone dares to cause trouble in the future, I’ll help you come up with some strategies. We certainly won’t let the transport agency suffer.”

Liu Qi glanced at Chen Jie with disdain. “You? Forget it, Master Chen. You have no strength to truss a chicken; you’re clearly a scholar. You can’t help with gang warfare!”

Chen Jie smiled calmly. “Gang conflicts are sometimes won with the brain, not just pure force! Right now, you’re not acting like a boss; you’re acting like a hired thug, do you understand?”

If Liu Qi continued this way—fighting whenever a problem arose and handling everything personally—his eventual fate would likely be to be absorbed by the ‘Taiping Firm’ and become one of their hired muscle. While reading the newspaper earlier, Chen Jie had specifically looked into matters concerning Beijing. It was very similar to what he knew; there was indeed a ‘Taiping Firm’ oil factory in the capital with significant influence.

As for whether ‘Baozhilin’ or Wong Fei-hung existed, he did not yet know. This was Beijing, quite far from South China, and information did not travel so quickly.

“A thug? Damn—now that you put it that way, it actually makes some sense!” Liu Qi had never considered this, and no one had ever told him such things. Hearing Chen Jie’s words, he suddenly had an epiphany. It seemed scholars weren’t entirely useless; their minds were sharp. A look of pleasant surprise appeared on Liu Qi’s face, and he became quite interested in Chen Jie.

Thirteenth Aunt and Liu Bamei both looked up at Chen Jie. Liu Bamei naturally didn’t understand why Chen Jie was saying these things to her seventh brother, and she watched Chen Jie with a look of confusion. However, Thirteenth Aunt was different. There was a subtle, intriguing expression in her eyes as she looked at him. Combined with her exquisite features, it gave her an indescribable allure.

Chen Jie’s smile didn’t waver as he said to the two women, “You must be very worried about Liu Qi getting into fights outside, right? In the capital, the various factions are complex and intertwined, and experts are everywhere. You can’t survive here without fighting, yet fighting leads to blood feuds. You want to persuade him otherwise, but you have no way to change the situation. Am I right?”

Thirteenth Aunt looked at the scars on Liu Qi’s arm and sighed deeply, saying nothing. Liu Bamei, seeing her brother's wounds, felt a pang of heartache. She wanted to help, but she had no better solution for gang conflicts.

Chen Jie continued earnestly, “If you want to establish yourselves here, instead of fighting aimlessly and making enemies everywhere, why not be more strategic? Establish rules. Win over those you can, and avoid fights whenever possible. This location is unique; keeping a low profile is the best path. Develop in secret, grow gradually, and only then can you achieve great things. The tallest tree catches the wind; the more you stand out, the more you become a target, and the harder it becomes to grow. Have you noticed that as soon as you started to make a name for yourself, all the other factions began targeting you? Haven’t you been fighting more and more often lately?”

Liu Qi’s face lit up with joy upon hearing this. He exclaimed, “Exactly! That’s exactly how it’s been lately. Not only is the Green Garment Sect causing trouble, but people from the ‘Andrie’ and ‘Tiger Gate Workshop’ are also eyeing us like predators! Brother Chen, teach me. I haven’t thought about ‘development’ or anything like that—I just want to protect my family from being bullied!”

It had to be said that although Liu Qi was a ruthless character, he was quite sharp. In the blink of an eye, he had changed his address for Chen Jie from ‘kid’ to ‘Brother Chen’!

Liu Bamei didn't quite grasp the full meaning of Chen Jie’s words, but Thirteenth Aunt’s expression shifted with sudden realization; she seemed to understand what he was driving at. However, staying low-profile was easier said than done. Everything required money; without money, how could one keep a low profile?

Chen Jie nodded at Thirteenth Aunt. “Don’t worry, Thirteenth Aunt. If Liu Qi follows my advice, his martial arts will only get stronger, but he won’t have to fight nearly as often. A true master doesn’t just brawl; he uses his reputation to command respect. As long as you maintain that deterrent power, that is enough. When your influence is large enough, no one will dare to provoke you easily.”

Thirteenth Aunt couldn’t help but roll her eyes at Chen Jie after hearing this. Chen Jie smiled. This woman was very intelligent and possessed extraordinary insight; he wondered what kind of prominent family she came from. Judging by her appearance, she was under thirty, a few years older than him. He wondered if she had ever been married. At her age, in this world, she should have been betrothed. The status of women in this world wasn't high, and it was rare to see a woman like Thirteenth Aunt who could read, write, and practice martial arts. The key was that she grasped his ideas the moment he spoke.

Suddenly, a faint blush crossed Thirteenth Aunt’s face, though it wasn't clear what she was thinking. She said softly, “Master Chen, Little Seven has practiced martial arts since he was a child and hasn’t had much schooling. He doesn't know any better. I only hope that in the future, you can teach him some wisdom and not let him go astray.”

Interesting! The way she acted made Chen Jie want to chuckle. It made it seem as if he were being asked to step up as the leader of the pack.

“Don’t worry! As long as I’m here, I won’t let Liu Qi suffer!” Chen Jie nodded and declared with unashamed confidence.

After dinner, Thirteenth Aunt began teaching Chen Jie the basics of the ‘Poke Foot’ style. As for leg techniques, Poke Foot was known as the ‘Master of Northern Legs,’ alongside the ‘Twelve Road Tan Legs.’ It was also called the ‘Jade Ring Leg’ or ‘Mandarin Duck Leg,’ featuring techniques like kicking, flicking, drifting, and pointing. Unlike the open, powerful, and domineering nature of the Tan Legs, Poke Foot emphasized continuous, vicious, and lethal chains of strikes. Step by step, kick by kick, the attacks were relentless and unending.

Chen Jie’s guess was correct. As soon as he began practicing, the [Martial Arts Merit Value] in his mind quickly soared from 96 to 145.