After receiving the money, Zhao Ya was very happy. He thought about handing over a portion to the Dingtai Martial Arts Hall, but Lu Dingtai refused.
Lu Dingtai laughed and said, "This is your bet winnings, it has nothing to do with the Martial Arts Hall. You should keep it for yourself. But why are you so greedy, boy? Didn’t you just earn over a thousand taels from catching the Jade Butterfly before?"
"Hehe, who ever thinks they have too much money?" Zhao Ya said with a grin.
Miao Shaocheng suddenly said, "Junior Brother Zhao is so greedy, maybe he’s saving up to get married."
Then he burst out laughing.
Laughing, he realized no one else was laughing. Instead, they were all looking at him, making him stop awkwardly.
"What? Did I say something wrong?" Miao Shaocheng asked curiously.
Xu De coughed, then said from behind Miao Shaocheng, "Miss Zui’Er, you’re here!"
Miao Shaocheng turned his head stiffly and found Zui’Er standing not far away.
"Zui—Miss Zui’Er." Miao Shaocheng was extremely embarrassed.
Unexpectedly, Zui’Er didn’t care at all. She acted as if she hadn’t heard Miao Shaocheng’s words, smiled, nodded, and then ran to Zhao Ya’s side.
"Why are you here?" Zhao Ya asked.
"I heard you were having a martial arts duel with someone. I was worried, so I came to check on you," Zui’Er said softly.
"Don’t worry, I’m fine, and I even won one thousand gold taels." Zhao Ya waved the gold notes in his hand and said with a smile.
"I’ll buy you something delicious tonight. Tell me, what would you like to eat?"
Zui’Er blushed and shook her head, "I don’t know."
"You don’t know what you want to eat?" Zhao Ya chuckled in surprise.
"As long as you buy it, I’ll love it..."
Lu Dingtai suddenly coughed and said, "It’s getting late, I should head back to sleep."
Xu De quickly chimed in, "Yes, I just remembered I still have some things to do at home."
Senior Brother Shen slapped his forehead, saying, "Miss Qingqing asked me to find her a book. I almost forgot. Junior Brother Miao, come with me."
Without waiting for Miao Shaocheng’s agreement, he dragged him along.
In an instant, the senior brothers all left, leaving only Zhao Ya and Zui’Er in the room.
"Why did they all leave?"
"I don’t know, maybe because you’re here."
Zui’Er’s face turned even redder, like a ripe apple, making one want to take a bite.
Night fell.
After practicing his martial skills, Zhao Ya sat in the courtyard, recalling the day’s fight with Xia Cunyi.
This was his habit.
After every fight, he would summarise it to find his shortcomings.
The opening went well, successfully making Xia Cunyi underestimate him, but his own performance was too obvious. It was because Xia Cunyi was too careless; otherwise, he would have noticed.
It seems he needs to act more naturally in the future.
Zhao Ya noted this down silently, then thought of the key move he used.
The "Great Stone-Throwing Hand" move would not have been so smoothly executed if not for the help of his liver’s Qi blood, which helped him defeat Xia Cunyi decisively.
This made Zhao Ya very satisfied with his liver’s Blood Sea ability, and he gave it a very fitting name.
Burst Liver.
Zhao Ya didn’t know at the time, but the day’s fight had quietly spread and caused quite a stir.
Xia Cunyi had been famous for many years, a proud disciple of Yuan Chenfeng. Even his half-step to the Fourth Realm strength made him a master in the entire Commandery.
But such a person was defeated by a boy under twenty.
And he lost miserably, having his arm broken in public.
As the news spread, it naturally shocked many people.
Along with this, Zhao Ya’s name spread far and wide, becoming a topic of discussion for many.
Thus, almost overnight, Zhao Ya became famous.
Suddenly, everyone knew that Lu Dingtai had a newly recruited, exceptionally talented disciple whose strength was so overwhelming that he could defeat someone half a step into the Fourth Realm while only at the peak of the Third Realm himself.
Even the kids Big Eye Lamp and Erqiangzi heard the news and came specifically to congratulate Zhao Ya.
Zhao Ya was helpless about these rumors.
Although he didn’t want to appear so high-profile in public, which also contradicted his principle of growing quietly.
But at that time, since Xia Cunyi had already called him out for a fight by name, if he didn’t dare to accept the challenge, he might as well quit.
Thankfully, he won a thousand gold taels from the fight; otherwise, he would have suffered a great loss.
As for the rumors outside, since he couldn’t change them, Zhao Ya had no choice but to let them be.
However, he underestimated the impact of this commotion.
One day, while he was practicing at home, an invitation suddenly arrived in his hands.
The invitation was simple, with just a few words.
Having heard of Young Master Zhao’s outstanding talent and new prestige in the Martial Dao, we have prepared a small banquet at our home tomorrow night and hope Young Master Zhao can grace us with his presence.
The handwriting was elegant and clearly from a woman’s hand.
Indeed.
At the signature on the invitation, there were three words.
Shang Luoluo.
Zhao Ya frowned slightly.
Shang Luoluo?
I’ve never heard of this name.
But since her surname is Shang, could she be related to Lord Governor Shang Jingchuan?
Zhao Ya, with this question in mind, looked at the person delivering the letter.
"What is the relationship between this Miss Shang and Lord Governor?"
"In response to Master Zhao, my lady is indeed the daughter of Lord Governor," the maid delivering the letter said with a smile.
Zhao Ya nodded, "I understand. You may leave now."
"Yes, please be sure to attend by then, Master Zhao."
With that, the maid left.
Zhao Ya found Senior Brother Xu De and spoke of this matter.
Upon hearing that Zhao Ya had received an invitation from Shang Luoluo, Xu De couldn’t help but laugh and then produced an invitation of his own.
"Senior Brother Xu, you received one too?" Zhao Ya was somewhat surprised.
"Yes, this Miss Shang holds such a gathering every three months, and by then, anyone in Commandery in the Second Realm or above, under thirty, and with some reputation will attend."
"Junior Brother Zhao, you’re quite the rising star now, so it’s not surprising you’ve received an invitation."
"Will Senior Brother Shen and Senior Brother Miao be attending too?"
"They also received invitations, but I suspect Senior Brother Shen won’t go. After all, he has already advanced to the Fourth Realm, and attending such gatherings holds little significance for him. As for Senior Brother Miao... he will surely attend."
Xu De’s smile turned quite suggestive as he patted Zhao Ya on the shoulder.
"Junior Brother Zhao, I think it would be good to go and see. After all, it’s a rare opportunity to witness the prowess of Commandery’s young talents, which counts as broadening your horizons. Moreover, there will be representatives from various large business firms present."
"What are the business firm representatives there for?" Zhao Ya asked.
"You may not know, but in these tumultuous times, these firms inevitably encounter a variety of troubles. Sometimes, the only way to resolve them is through force."
"But top experts like our master are not swayed by money, and using Fourth Realm experts is too costly. So, people like us, who are above the Third Realm but not yet in the Fourth, and still relatively young, become the top choice."
"In simpler terms, the firms pay us to handle things for them. The benefits are higher than the bounty for reward tasks, and some even use rare treasures as payment, though some tasks are quite dangerous,"
Hearing this, Zhao Ya had a sudden realization.
This is just like the recruitment fairs in later times.
However, upon hearing Xu De mention that some use rare treasures as payment, Zhao Ya couldn’t help but become interested.
After all, anything Xu De considered a rare treasure must be quite extraordinary.
Thus, Zhao Ya nodded, "I understand, Senior Brother Xu. We will go together by then."
"Alright, call Miao Shaocheng tomorrow night, and the three of us will go together."
The next evening, Xu De indeed brought Miao Shaocheng along.
Today’s Miao Shaocheng was clearly specially groomed. His usually rugged face was much smoother, his hair neatly combed, and he wore a new set of clothes.
Seeing this, Zhao Ya was a bit puzzled, but Xu De kept giving him knowing looks, so he refrained from asking.
After instructing Miss Zui’Er not to wait up for him, to lock the door, and go to bed early, Zhao Ya followed Xu De and the others to the Shang Mansion.
The Shang Mansion was located at the east end of Lion Street, very close to the government office.
By the time Zhao Ya and the others arrived, many carriages had already gathered at the front door, indicating that many people had arrived early.
The servants waiting at the door, upon seeing Xu De, Zhao Ya, and Miao, quickly came forward to greet them.
"Master Xu, Master Miao, Master Zhao, please follow me."
Zhao Ya was a bit surprised that the servant recognized him.
Seeming to have guessed his thoughts, the servant smiled and said,
"Master Zhao is quite the influential figure in Commandery now. Although I haven’t seen you before, I could easily guess from your age, presence, and your company with Master Xu and the others."
The servant spoke with a clear logic, and there was a refreshing quality to his words.
Even a servant was like this, making Zhao Ya somewhat intrigued by Shang Luoluo.
Soon, the three were led to a spacious courtyard.
The courtyard was well-lit, with lanterns hung even on the trees and embroidered screens blocking the chill of the autumn night.
Tables and chairs were set in the yard, with all sorts of delicacies available for the taking.
By this time, many people had already gathered around the tables, drinking and chatting. As Xu De and the others entered, some quickly got up to greet them.
"Senior Brother Xu!"
"Third Brother Miao!"
There were those who called them senior, and others called them brother, addressing them in various ways.
Yet, many remained seated without moving, and some even had disapproving expressions on their faces.
It was clear that among the attendees were allies of Dingtai Martial Arts Hall, as well as their rivals.
Zhao Ya stood behind Xu De, not wanting to draw attention, but many guessed his identity upon his entrance.
"This must be Senior Brother Zhao who defeated Xia Cunyi!" someone greeted with a smile.
This greeting immediately drew the attention of many.
People turned their heads to look at Zhao Ya.
Upon seeing that the recently famous Zhao Ya was so young, many people’s expressions changed slightly.
Zhao Ya sighed inwardly, realizing he couldn’t avoid attention, so he smiled faintly and nodded.
"Impressive, Senior Brother Zhao. I never liked Xia Cunyi, but he was a half-step into the Fourth Realm. I couldn’t beat him, yet you took care of him," another said eagerly, coming forward.
Zhao Ya was at a loss for words and could only smile.
Just then, there was a commotion outside the embroidered screen, and then a woman gracefully walked in.
This woman was extremely beautiful, with exceptionally fair skin, and dressed in a moon-white gown. As she walked in, it seemed as if she was wrapped in moonlight.
Upon seeing this woman, Miao Shaocheng suddenly became very nervous, not knowing where to place his hands and feet, and his face gradually started turning red.
Seeing this, Zhao Ya finally understood why Xu De had been giving him knowing looks earlier.
With Miao Shaocheng in this state, he might as well have had "I like you" written on his forehead.
There was no need to guess the identity of this woman. She was undoubtedly the host of the gathering, the daughter of Commander Shang Jingchuan, Shang Luoluo.