"Yubai is back?" When Zheng Yubai walked in, his aunt was serving dishes to the table.
“I’m back…” Zheng Yubai was a little dejected. He had finally found a job, but he immediately threw away his work clothes. If Lan Feifei knew about this, she would probably fire him immediately.
Although Ding Beibei said that she would go shopping with him on the weekend and compensate him for the loss, Zheng Yubai, who had no chance of chatting up the school beauty in college, felt better. But it was obviously his own carelessness, so how could he have the nerve to ask a girl to pay for it? He still had to find a way to solve the problem himself.
Fortunately, the $1,000 check was in his pocket, and Zheng Yubai exchanged more than 7,800 yuan for it. After buying gifts for his aunt and uncle, he still had 7,200 yuan left. He would use this money to buy work equipment first.
"What's wrong? Did you fail again?" Auntie was already accustomed to Zheng Yubai's failures. In the beginning, she gave him advice and helped him find a job, but lately, she has become a little discouraged.
My uncle was sitting at the table reading a newspaper. When he heard what my aunt said, he complained, "Why do you say that?" He put down the newspaper and said kindly, "Yubai, how are you today?"
Zheng Yubai picked up the bag in his hand and said, "Aunt and Uncle, I found a job and got an advance on my salary. I bought you some gifts."
"Really?" My aunt and uncle widened their eyes, a little bit unable to believe it.
"What kind of job is it? You're really something. You just found a job and you're already spending money recklessly." The aunt took the gift and thought her nephew was really sensible.
"I'm just an ordinary apartment manager." Zheng Yubai certainly couldn't tell anyone that he had applied for a job in the underworld, so he just made up the name of a company.
My aunt and uncle were very happy. My uncle opened a bottle of good wine and my aunt cooked two more dishes. The atmosphere in the house suddenly became warm.
When the food was ready, my aunt knocked on my cousin Tang Qing's door: "Xiao Qing, it's time to eat."
After a while, Tang Qing walked out of the room while listening to MP3 and humming a song. When she heard that Zheng Yubai had found a job, she couldn't help but show a disdainful expression.
"Cousin, it's not easy for you to find a job. Remember to work hard, otherwise you will be fired for being clumsy. That would be embarrassing."
"What nonsense are you talking about, kid!" The aunt was a little unhappy, but she doted on her daughter so much that even if she was angry, she couldn't bear to say anything to her.
"I'm telling the truth. My cousin is so capable that he has failed 79 interviews in a row. If he fails two more times, it will be as difficult as the 81 difficulties in the journey to the West. I think he will have no rivals in the Guinness record for the most unlucky job seeker in the world." Tang Qing sat down and teased Zheng Yubai.
Zheng Yubai didn't want to argue with Tang Qing. He didn't know why Tang Qing always targeted him. However, it was not appropriate for him to stay at his aunt's house for so long and cause so much trouble.
Aunt glared at Tang Qing, and Tang Qing stuck out her tongue and stopped talking.
Zheng Yubai served everyone a meal. The aunt took the meal, thought for a moment, put the bowl down, and said to Zheng Yubai: "Yubai, don't eat yet, I have something to say."
Zheng Yubai sat up straight, and Tang Qing took off her headphones, looking gloating.
"Yubai, you found a job. Auntie is very happy for you, but there are a few things I must remind you of."
"Aunt, I will remember everything you said."
"Actually, this is a bit redundant for me. After all, you have been very honest during your four years at Jinghai University and have never caused any trouble. But society is different from campus, and you are still young. Young people are prone to impulsive mistakes, but others can be impulsive, but you can't. Do you know why?"
Zheng Yubai said respectfully: "Because I am the successor of Xingyiquan."
My aunt nodded and said, "Yes, you are the successor of Xingyiquan. Xingyiquan has strict rules and regulations. You are not allowed to fight with others casually. Do you know why?"
"Because Xingyiquan is extremely powerful and can easily result in loss of life..." It was precisely because of this that Zheng Yubai only used one-third of his strength to beat the man who stole Ding Beibei's bag that day.
"It's good that you know, Yu Bai. You also know the rules of Xingyiquan. If you make a mistake, even if the police can't deal with you, the disciples will naturally clean up the mess. Your ancestors are watching you, so you must be careful in everything you do in the future."
Zheng Yubai nodded repeatedly: "Aunt, I remember. Don't worry, I won't do anything that is against the law."
My uncle also said, "Hey, Yubai has always been very honest, why are you saying this?"
My aunt glared at my uncle and said, "You are not allowed to interfere in our Xingyiquan affairs... I am just giving him a shot of prevention. Okay, let's eat."
Zheng Yubai hurriedly picked up the bowl and ate the meal without any appetite.
After dinner, Zheng Yubai returned to his room. He felt a little overwhelmed when he thought that if his aunt knew about his application for the underworld, he would end up in a terrible situation. You know, the rules and regulations of their family are very strict.
Zheng Yubai was born in a rural area in the north. His father forced him to practice boxing every day when he was five years old. When he was young, he just thought it was fun. When he grew up, he realized that he was practicing Xingyiquan, one of the three major internal boxing styles.
Xingyiquan has a long history, and many famous martial artists have emerged. Zheng Yubai's family is one of the descendants of this lineage, and all the men and women in the family practice martial arts. For example, his aunt Zheng Shuangjiang was very good at Xingyiquan, but unfortunately she went to Beijing to study and work, and never continued.
Zheng Yubai likes Xingyiquan very much. Although there is a family inheritance factor, he is more envious of the masters in martial arts novels. He always regrets that he was born a few hundred years later when he sees the heroes in Jin Yong's novels taking revenge and the protagonists in Tsui Hark's movies flying over eaves and walls. Sometimes he still thinks that if his grandfather's generation had the luck, they would have seen the style of top martial artists such as Sun Lutang and Shang Yunxiang. It is nothing like this era, where martial arts have become a show of fancy moves, which is despised by masters who truly understand the essence of martial arts.
What made Zheng Yubai even more depressed was that he could never be a chivalrous hero who stood up for the weak and fought for justice. First, the times were different now. In a society ruled by law, there was no need for personal heroism. The so-called heroes had become synonymous with breaking the law with force. Second, the rules of Xingyiquan were very strict, requiring disciples to keep a low profile and not to punch unless absolutely necessary. This also buried Zheng Yubai's skills in the vast sea of people. From childhood to adulthood, except for his closest relatives, no one knew that he could actually practice martial arts.
Although he had practiced boxing since he was young, Zheng Yubai still went to school like all ordinary people. After being admitted to the university in Jinghai, he embarked on the same path as his aunt did. However, he had not given up practicing boxing. Whenever it was late at night, he always had an impulse.
Zheng Yubai was troubled by many worries and couldn't sleep. He looked at the clock and it was past twelve o'clock. He got up quietly, changed his clothes, and left the house.
Behind my aunt's house is the Songjiang River that runs through Jinghai City. The river water flows through here, converges into the Yangtze River, and then rushes into the sea. In the past few months, whenever Zheng Yubai felt depressed, he would sneak out of the house in the middle of the night and go to the wide river bank of the Songjiang River to practice boxing.
Practicing boxing at night is a tradition of Xingyiquan. It is said that in the beginning, it was to prevent people from learning secretly, so they had to practice in a place with walls on all sides. It is a bit difficult to find a yard with walls on all sides in a big city like Jinghai. Fortunately, no one is willing to spend time learning martial arts in this era. It would be a bit too self-righteous to hide it, so Zheng Yubai did not have so many concerns. He came to a gentle slope on the river bank, and the view in front of him was wide. As the saying goes, "Stars hang over the vast plains, and the moon rises over the flowing river", his mood suddenly became brighter.
Zheng Yubai stood on the gentle slope and began to practice. His hands moved in front of him, just like a person's breathing. With the coordination of breathing and movement, he soon felt the energy in his body surge, and all the pores on his body opened up. He practiced boxing while walking, and after walking four or five hundred meters, his boxing was fully developed, his breath became longer and deeper, and his spirit became more and more vigorous.
What he is practicing now is the chopping fist from Xingyiquan. This kind of boxing can train breathing and replenish qi. Practicing it regularly can have the effect of preventing all diseases.
"Huh" he exhaled a long breath and put away his stance. After this round of boxing, he felt more cheerful and his mind became more flexible.
Anyway, as long as I don't do anything harmful, my aunt has no reason to punish me. But in order to avoid trouble, I should think of a way to hide it from her.
Zheng Yubai thought about it and an idea suddenly popped into his mind: moving.
If he lived alone, it would save him a lot of trouble. After several years of collective life in college, Zheng Yubai was eager to have his own little nest. It didn't matter if it was a little shabby, as long as he could get rid of the shackles, he would be satisfied.
Great, let's do it. Zheng Yubai became excited. He looked around and saw that there was no one around. He gathered all his strength and punched out. The punch hit the beach in front of him through the air, and a small hole was immediately created.
"Hehe, my skills have improved a little bit." Zheng Yubai was very satisfied with his punch. He hummed a popular song and went home.
As soon as his figure disappeared into the night, two people, one old and one young, appeared under the pier of the river bridge not far away. (To be continued)