Apotheosis Begins with Tai Chi

"A saber?"

Ji Hongshan immediately turned his head to look at Cao Zhao.

"There’s a hidden compartment under the seat."

Cao Zhao gestured with his hand, and Chen Cheng stood up, taking the cue.

He lifted the seat cushion.

Beneath it, three standard-issue Horizontal Sabers lay side by side in a wooden rack. Their scabbards were a deep black, exuding a sense of quality.

Ji Hongshan ripped open the cushion on his side. The compartment there held a few bottles of Healing Medicine, a roll of gauze, and various other emergency supplies.

"Catch."

Cao Zhao drew one of the sabers and tossed it to Ji Hongshan. He then turned to Chen Cheng, speaking rapidly.

"Junior Brother Chen, this is an opportunity. With your performance today, if you add a solid achievement to your name, you might just be able to secure a special promotion into the Captain’s Mansion!"

"...I don’t want to go."

Chen Cheng’s brow furrowed slightly as he kept his voice extremely low.

"Senior Brother, I think you two should reconsider. Why not tail them secretly first, figure out what this group is really up to, and then we can make a long-term plan..."

WHOOSH—

Before Chen Cheng could finish, Ji Hongshan had already shot out of the carriage. In a flash, his figure vanished into the withered woods by the roadside.

"Brother Ji... Junior Brother, you head back first. Be careful on the road."

Cao Zhao hastily threw out the words, then leaped from the carriage and sprinted in pursuit.

Chen Cheng watched the two figures quickly disappear from view. He felt a slight stir in his heart but said nothing more.

Ji Hongshan was a Spear Holder in the Captain’s Mansion, and Cao Zhao also held a position there.

Having run into wanted criminals, it was perfectly understandable for them to give chase. Publicly, it was their duty. Privately, they hoped to earn merit and military honors.

But Chen Cheng was different.

He had no desire to tie himself to the Captain’s Mansion so early on, much less rashly make an enemy of the Green Forest Dao. He would never participate in such a public pursuit.

’But if there was a chance to lie low and reap some benefits without revealing my presence... that’s something I could consider.’

He lowered his gaze slightly, put the cushion back in place, and slowly sat back down.

The carriage continued to sway forward.

Traveling by carriage was much slower than by horse. After about an hour and a half, they finally neared Seven Miles Slope.

"Whoa—"

The driver suddenly brought the carriage to a stop.

"Old Zhou? What’s wrong?"

Chen Cheng asked.

The driver was a man in his forties. Over the past half a month, whenever Chen Cheng had to attend banquets in the Inner City, this was the man who drove him. They had become somewhat familiar with each other over time.

"Not sure."

Old Zhou said in a low voice.

"Up ahead in the woods, a bunch of poor folk are fleeing. They probably ran into a wild beast... To keep the horses from getting spooked, let’s wait a bit."

"A wild beast?"

Chen Cheng lifted the window curtain and looked ahead.

On a distant mountainside, he could faintly make out small figures weaving through the dead trees, stumbling and falling like withered leaves swept by the wind, rustling down toward the foot of the mountain.

A moment later, people began to run out from the foot of the mountain, one after another, heading toward Zhao City.

Chen Cheng’s gaze swept over them, then suddenly paused. One of the figures looked a bit like his third uncle, Chen An.

"Old Zhou, I think I saw a relative."

Chen Cheng lowered the curtain and picked up the jar of Golden Ring Treasure Snake Medicinal Wine.

"You can head back. I’m going to get out and take a look."

"Young Master Chen, be careful. It could be dangerous," Old Zhou warned.

"It’s fine."

Chen Cheng said calmly as he jumped down from the carriage.

"I can handle an ordinary wild beast. Besides, we’re not far from the city. I used to come here to gather firewood as a kid, so I know the area well."

"Alright then. As you wish," Old Zhou nodded.

Chen Cheng said no more and strode toward the familiar figure.

It only took a moment for him to catch up.

"Third Uncle?"

Chen Cheng called out.

"You... You are?"

The man was indeed Chen An, but his nerves were frayed, and it had been so long since they’d last met that he didn’t recognize the young man before him at first.

Mostly, he didn’t dare to believe it was him.

Setting aside everything else, just the fine material and expert tailoring of Chen Cheng’s silver fox fur coat was something no ordinary person could afford.

Chen An didn’t even dare to look such a gentleman in the eye, dropping his head after just a fleeting glance.

"Third Uncle, it’s me, Chen Cheng."

"Cheng... Young Cheng?"

Hearing his nephew’s name, Chen An finally dared to raise his head and take a closer look.

"It... It really is you! You’ve gotten taller and stronger, and your skin is fairer... Your Third Uncle truly didn’t recognize you..."

Chen An looked Chen Cheng up and down, his eyes filled with relief, but also with surprise and awe.

Unwittingly, the nephew who once struggled to survive in the mud had become someone so far above him that he didn’t even dare reach out and pat him on the shoulder.

"Where’s Third Aunt? Didn’t she come with you?" Chen Cheng asked.

Chen An shook his head, a puzzled look on his face. "You don’t know about this?"

"Know about what?" Chen Cheng asked, confused.

"Half a month ago, the Gang Leader of the Giant Tiger Gang came to our door to congratulate you on the joyous news of your Three A+."

Chen An said.

"They brought a lot of copper coins and even found a job for your Third Aunt in a restaurant’s back kitchen. The monthly pay is steady, and she can even bring some food home every day..."

He paused, a smile spreading across his face.

"Your Third Aunt nags me about it all day. She says that as soon as she gets her first month’s pay, she’s going to spend it all on a gift to thank you properly."

"We’re family. There’s no need to be so formal."

Chen Cheng waved his hand dismissively and asked another question.

"What about you, Third Uncle? Didn’t they arrange a job for you?"

"They did, they did."

Chen An nodded repeatedly.

"I work at a rice shop in the Lunan District. Today happened to be my day off, so I thought I’d come to the mountains to gather some dry firewood... I was born for a life of labor. I only feel at ease when I have work to do."

"That’s good. As long as you’re working steadily, life will get better."

Hearing that his uncle’s family was back on track, Chen Cheng felt relieved. He had originally thought about giving them some money to help out, but now he dismissed the idea.

"Sigh..."

Chen An let out a long sigh, his expression turning complicated.

"Back then, if your father and First Uncle’s family hadn’t had that falling out with you... they’d be basking in your glory now, living a good life too."

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