Martial Arts: Starting from a Seemingly Real System

Qiao Rui and Liu Xinyue were invited by the servant to wait in the private room on the second floor. Not long after, a wealthy old man in luxurious clothes came in. As soon as he entered the door, he smiled and greeted them, "I heard that the two distinguished guests have a large business to discuss with me. I wonder what it is?"

Qiao Rui looked at the fat shopkeeper and asked with a smile, "What's your name, shopkeeper?"

"My surname is Chen!" said the shopkeeper.

"It's Shopkeeper Chen. I wonder if this is considered a big business?" As Qiao Rui spoke, he took out a wooden sign from his arms and handed it to Shopkeeper Chen.

When the shopkeeper saw the wooden sign, his eyes fixed, and he took it in his hand and examined it for a long time before returning it to Qiao Rui, and said with a bow: "So it's Qinglang from the Fengbu of the Qingtian Guard. I'm sorry!"

"You're welcome!" Qiao Rui clasped his fists in return and asked, "Do you have any missions recently?"

"Yes, yes, please wait a moment, I'll be right back!" Shopkeeper Chen turned and went out. After a while, he came back with two books, handed them to Qiao Rui and Liu Xinyue respectively, and said, "This is the North-South Mission Book of the Qingtian Guard. The north is called the North Book and the south is called the South Book, with the Yangtze River as the boundary. If you are active in the south recently, you only need to check the South Book. If you plan to go to the north, check the North Book. This way it will be convenient to choose the mission!"

Qiao Rui and the other man took a rough look at the northern volume and then returned it to Shopkeeper Chen, only to take the southern volume and read it carefully.

The tasks in the book are gradually increased from easy to difficult. They start with some investigation and exploration tasks, then there are the catching of some flying thieves and evil robbers, and then there are the elimination of some small-scale water bandits and mountain strongmen, and then there are the killing of some underworld heroes and demon cult bosses, and finally there are some unsolved martial arts cases and old grudges that have been accumulated for many years and are difficult to deal with.

"Why do some tasks have merit points and other rewards, while others only have merit points?" Liu Xinyue asked at this time.

"Some missions are difficult, some are easy, some are complicated, some are simple. Some are lucrative while others are meager. They certainly cannot be treated the same. You must know that you can get 20% of the profits from the materials seized during the mission," explained Shopkeeper Chen.

Qiao Rui's eyes lit up and he said, "That is to say, if I wipe out a mountain stronghold, I can get one-fifth of the wealth after converting all the materials of the stronghold?"

"That's right, the boy is teachable!" Shopkeeper Chen said with a smile, stroking his beard.

"Also, I accepted a task, and others in other places also accepted this task. What happens after it is completed?" Qiao Rui asked again.

"When you hand in your tasks, please report the process in detail. You will be rewarded according to your contributions!" Shopkeeper Chen said, and then warned seriously, "If you falsify your achievements, the punishment will be severe if you are found out!"

"Yes, I understand!" Qiao Rui nodded, pointing to one of the tasks and said to Shopkeeper Chen, "We have to take on the task of eliminating the Sanshui River bandits!"

There was a group of bandits lurking in Sanshui River in Lianhua County. There were about five or six leaders, all of whom were third-rate fighters. They colluded with local people and robbed travelers and merchants on the Sanshui River. The police tried to catch them several times but failed, which was quite troublesome.

After reading the mission introduction, Shopkeeper Chen hesitated and said, "Do you want to change the mission? It may be difficult for the two of you to deal with so many strong men. Don't be tempted by money and lose your life in vain."

"Don't worry, Manager Chen, I have my own way!" Qiao Rui smiled confidently.

"In that case, I have nothing to say. I will do it for you!" Shopkeeper Chen took the brush from the desk next to him, recorded the task on a special receipt, and handed it to Qiao Rui, saying, "After the task is successful, use this receipt to ask the local security officer to inspect and take over the boats and water forts, and write a receipt on the receipt. Then you can bring it back to me and the task will be completed!"

Qiao Rui took the receipt and put it away, then smiled and said to Shopkeeper Chen, "I heard that when the Thunder and Fire Divisions went out on missions, the imperial guards were everywhere, and they were really majestic and arrogant. Can you give us two war horses as well?"

"This... there is no such rule!" Shopkeeper Chen said in embarrassment.

"Then is there a clear stipulation that our Feng Department cannot be equipped with war horses when we actively apply for missions?" Qiao Rui asked with a smile.

"There is no explicit rule..." Shopkeeper Chen said, "It's mainly because the Wind Department rarely applies to carry out missions!"

"That's it. We are doing the same mission and fighting for the same Sky Guards. Why do you favor one over the other? Aren't you afraid of dampening the blood of the brave warriors?" Qiao Rui said seriously.

"Okay, but you have to use items of equivalent value as collateral." Shopkeeper Chen gave in.

"If the mission fails, I would be dead. I have given my life to you, Qingtianwei. Why do you still care about two horses? If the mission is successful, I will definitely gain a lot. Then I will return the two horses to you!" Qiao Rui's eyes gradually turned cold. He stared at Manager Chen and said slowly.

"Okay, okay, I'll do as you say!" Shopkeeper Chen took a step back, swallowed his saliva and said, "Bring out the receipt. I have to note that you took away two horses. That should be fine, right?"

"Of course!" Seeing that his goal was achieved, Qiao Rui readily took out the receipt.

After completing the formalities, Qiao Rui and Liu Xinyue left the city together, leading two yellow horses.

Shopkeeper Chen stood at the second-floor window and watched them leave. He suddenly realized, "If they don't hand in their tasks for three to five months, wouldn't that mean they are using the horses for free for several months? What a loss! If we rent out these two top-quality horses, it would cost at least ten or twenty taels of silver for three to five months..."

Shopkeeper Chen slapped his forehead in annoyance, then laughed again after a while, "It's a blessing for our Feng Department that this little bastard is so cunning!"

In the distance, there were occasional voices and the sound of horses' hooves fading away!

"Can you ride a horse?"

"Yes, I have a driver's license!"

"Oh, what should I do? Ride slower, old driver, please wait for me..."

Thirty miles south of Longxing Prefecture, there is a Lianhua County. In the county seat, Lianhua Town, there is a Lianhua Lake, which is full of lotus flowers. When the flower season comes, the lake is filled with pink buds, which bloom gorgeously amid the green of the lake. It is very beautiful, and therefore, it is very lively and crowded with tourists. There are many restaurants, teahouses, inns and post houses along the lake.

"Da da da..." A series of scattered horse hoof sounds rang out on the bluestone slabs of the town. Two majestic yellow horses came from outside the town, with a man and a woman sitting on each horse. The man had a square face with a resolute look and sharp edges. He was not very handsome, but young and heroic. The woman was fair, sweet, and pretty. They were Qiao Rui and Liu Xinyue.

Because teaching Liu Xinyue how to ride a horse took a lot of time on the way, the two of them hurried and finally arrived at the town at noon, so they didn't have to travel on an empty stomach in the wild.

"I studied in Lianhua County when I was young. Whenever I had time, I would secretly go into the lake to pick lotus seeds. I would then sell them to customers at nearby restaurants to supplement my grandfather's family income. Now that I'm back again, there have been tremendous changes..." Qiao Rui said to Liu Xinyue, pointing at Lianhua Lake.

"Now you are dressed in fine clothes and riding a horse, and you have some talents, so you can be considered to have returned home in glory. Let's go to a better restaurant for dinner later and see if there are any hardworking young men picking lotus seeds to sell to us!" Liu Xinyue joked.