Chapter 206: Goodbye

After leaving the Constabulary’s headquarters, Chen Chuan stood at the entrance and thought about his plans for a moment. Ever since he decided to fight against the Mutual Aid Group, he hadn’t gone back to the company nor called them. Since the company wasn’t that far from where he was, he decided to check on them.

Ren Shu and his business partners’ families had business deals with powerful families and even depended on them to a certain degree. Then again, anyone who wanted to conduct any sort of business in Yangzhi City would have to have dealings with those families.

Ren Shu and his business partners weren’t given much importance at home, which was why they weren’t brought up as their heirs to the family businesses, nor were they sent to Martial Valor University. It was the reason they had chosen to set up their own company.

Chen Chuan wondered whether they were affected by what had happened to him.

Just as he was about to walk to the company, he saw patrol cars leaving the headquarters. One of them wound down its window, and someone popped his head out to greet him. “Hey, Chen Chuan!”

Chen Chuan recognized Xu Gui, the constable he met at the bus station after he finished his crash course training with He Xiaoxing. He greeted him back, “Hey, Xu Gui.”

“Are you alone? Where are you going? Want me to give you a lift?”

“Aren’t you working?” Chen Chuan asked.

“It’s nothing. We have orders to confiscate some people’s businesses. It’s not as if those companies will grow legs and run away. I can take a small detour,” Xu Gui answered.

“It’s okay. The place I’m going to is just a short distance away. Thanks, though,” Chen Chuan chose to tactfully reject his offer.

“Alright, then. Send my greetings to Brigade Commander Nian.” Xu Gui didn’t push any further. He cast a glance at the colleague riding with him and said something to him before he pulled his head back into the car. Soon, the patrol car drove away, leaving a cloud of smoke and dust behind it.

After Chen Chuan left the Constabulary, he walked down several streets until he arrived near the company building. When the security guards saw him, they were delighted and opened the door for him. “Mr. Chen, Mr. Ren and the others are all in.”

Chen Chuan was quite surprised by that. “They are?”

“Yes. They’re all here.”

When Chen Chuan walked in, Ren Shu was walking out of the elevator. He was delighted to see him and rushed over. With excitement brimming from his body, Ren Shu said, “Thank goodness you’re okay, Mr. Chen.”

Then, he said apologetically, “When we heard that you were in trouble, we wanted to show our support, but our families stopped us.”

“Did you know that our families wanted us to fire you when they heard that we were working together? They even warned us to not have anything to do with you anymore,” Xiao Jiang said.

“Seriously, why should we listen to them?”

“Exactly! They even said that they were going to stop giving us funds and shut the company down. Hmph! We opened the company with our allowance and the assets the elders gave us. Did they seriously think we were using their money?”

“You did great, Chen Chuan! Shao Xiaobie’s group had egos the size of the sun and looked down on everyone. I’ve always found them disgusting.”

The others agreed with that statement. Clearly, they had taken a lot of abuse in the past. Their parents and elders always compared them to Wei Jun, Jiang Wei, Shao Xiaobie, and the others, and they were fed up with it.

From their reaction, it was obvious that they hadn’t been affected, but there was no telling what was going to happen in the future, so Chen Chuan decided to give them a warning. “Ren Shu, the political and economical situation in the city might change soon. Be careful.”

“I know, but thanks for the warning, Chen Chuan,” Ren Shu said.

Ren Shu’s group might not know much when it came to specific business operations, but they were exposed to this particular aspect of business almost every day, so they probably knew what was going to happen.

Since it was almost lunchtime, Chen Chuan had lunch with them before leaving the company and asking Xiao Wei to send him home.

From the moment he came back, the sirens from passing patrol cars did not even pause. The sound kept going until night fell.

When Chen Chuan woke up in the morning, he turned on the radio. The news was that some powerful families in Yangzhi City were in cahoots with Black Orchid to seize the city’s water sources to poison the citizens and hold them hostage in order to go up against the government.

Upon hearing this news, Chen Chuan was certain that the Black Orchid Co. operation had come to an end.

From then on, all the upper-class families who had ties with Black Orchid Co. would become public enemies, and Yangzhi City would start a new chapter of its life.

Chen Chuan went through Principal Sanshou’s techniques in the courtyard. When he came back, the phone rang. Cheng Zitong’s happy voice welcomed him. “Xiao Chuan, did you hear? Black Orchid has fallen!”

“Yes, I heard about it on the radio this morning,” Chen Chuan answered.

“The new semester is about to start. I’ve already prepared the materials for your application, so you can apply to go to Central City. If nothing goes wrong, you should get your application approved very soon,” Cheng Zitong said with a laugh.

Chen Chuan’s head whipped up in slight surprise, then he said seriously, “Thank you, Mr. Cheng.”

“You’re too polite. Anyway, you’ve been too tense over the past few days. There’s still a few days left, so rest well. We can talk later if you have any other problems,” Cheng Zitong said with another peal of laughter.

Chen Chuan set the phone receiver down and walked out of the house to stand on the steps leading to the entrance. He looked up at the morning sun and the green leaves swaying gently in the breeze. A rare feeling of ease filled his mind and body.

He reached out to the sun and felt the wind brush past his fingers before clenching his fist. Then, he heard Yu Wan calling out to him from the living room. “Breakfast, Chan’er.”

“Time to eat!” Nian Mo and Nian Lu cheered.

“Coming!” Chen Chuan responded.

Nian Fuli and Yu Wan’s voices reached him from the house.

“I have some matters to take care of in the Constabulary. I have to leave earlier today.”

“I know. Remember, only one pack a day, no more.”

“Got it. You say that every day. I can recite it in my sleep.”

“But you never keep to it. That’s why I have to keep nagging you.”

Chen Chuan smiled. He pulled his hand back and walked into the house.

After breakfast, Nian Fuli went to the Constabulary, while Yu Wan left with Nian Mo and Nian Lu. Meanwhile, Chen Chuan stayed at home to read and enjoy a rare moment of relaxation.

When it was almost noon, he heard a voice calling his name. “Xiao Chuan, are you home?”

Chen Chuan recognized the owner of the small convenience store at the entrance of the alley. She was also related to a constable, and her son often delivered goods to their house.

Chen Chuan came out and opened the door. “What is it, Miss Qiu?”

Miss Qiu was a woman in her fifties. She said, “Xiao Chuan, I saw you come back yesterday, and I was wondering whether you’re still in. Anyway, someone called to ask for you, and I asked him who he was, and he said that you learned martial arts together, and I’m aware that you’re a Martial Valor University student, but he didn’t sound like he was from the university, so I asked—”

“Thanks, Miss Qiu. I know who you’re talking about,” Chen Chuan interrupted her with a smile before she could finish.

“You know? Well, I knew you’d know.” Miss Qiu stopped rambling, though she looked like she still wanted to continue talking. They went to the entrance of the alley together.

There, she asked, “By the way, is your aunt in today? The pattern of the sweater she knitted is really great, and I want to ask her to knit another one. Also, Brigade Commander Nian seems to have left earlier than usual today...”

While Chen Chuan gave occasional responses to Miss Qiu’s nonstop chatter, they arrived at the convenience store. He picked up the phone receiver and said, “Chen Chuan speaking. Is that you, Lu Ke?”

He had figured out that Lu Ke was the one who made the call. Since Yu Gang had a criminal record, he couldn’t give him his house’s phone number. That was why he gave them the phone number of the convenience store at the entrance of the alley. They were the only ones who got it too.

𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂

Lu Ke’s voice came through. “Chen Chuan, it’s me. Do you... Do you have time to come here for a bit? Master Yu wants to see you. We’re at the old place, at the Domain of Fists...”

Chen Chuan remembered Lao Feng talking about the Chain Links Gang when they were going back to the Constabulary’s headquarters yesterday. He didn’t ask any further questions. “Alright. I’ll head over now.”

After hanging up, he thanked Miss Qiu and returned to his house to grab his bicycle. Then, he cycled to the Domain of Fists.

Yu Gang seemed unwilling to have any ties with Chen Chuan anymore out of consideration for him ever since he joined the Chain Links Gang. He never contacted Chen Chuan himself, and when Chen Chuan tried to visit him, he was never able to see him. After that, they lost all contact. It had been a year since then.

Fifteen minutes later, he arrived at the alley leading to the Domain of Fists. Chen Chuan got off his bicycle and walked in. There, he found Lu Ke sitting on an old tire waiting for him. When he saw Chen Chuan, he immediately stood up, but once he got a closer look, he was stunned.

Chen Chuan had grown taller over the past year. He had also become a Second Limit martial artist, who had slain two Third Limit martial artists. He carried himself completely different from before, and Lu Ke almost didn’t dare to greet him.

Chen Chuan greeted him with a smile. “It’s been a while, Lu Ke.”

At the sight of his familiar smile, Lu Ke finally walked over and grinned. He gave Chen Chuan a high-five, then his expression fell again as he said, “Master Yu is...”

“What happened to Mr. Yu?” Chen Chuan asked while looking at the school building.

Lu Ke pursed his lips before walking into the school building. Chen Chuan followed him inside. Yu Gang was sitting in a chair. His face was rather pale, and his originally toned body seemed a little gaunt. One of his arms and legs was missing, and blood stained the gauze wrapped around their stumps.

“Mr. Yu?” he asked.

“It’s nothing. I was tasked to stop Black Orchid with some Chain Links Gang members yesterday. Since I had promised them that I would do it and they had helped me with my problem, I had to repay them somehow,” Yu Gang answered.

“Master Yu crawled back with only one arm last night,” Lu Ke said while tearing up.

“I’m far better off than those who died at the forts. At the very least, I’m alive,” Yu Gang said with a shake of his head before sizing up Chen Chuan. “I can tell that you’ve learned a lot of things at Martial Valor University over the past year. That’s good. I asked you to come here today to say goodbye to you.”

“Master Yu is going to get implants in Central City. He intends to leave in the afternoon. I asked the Chain Links Gang, and they said that with good implants, Master Yu will be able to live like a normal person again. It’s also possible that he may regain his former strength,” Lu Ke added.

“Yes. The Chain Links Gang is pretty considerate. They gave me a lot of money to compensate for my injuries and to serve as my pension. Yangzhi City can’t give me the implants I need, so I intend to go to Central City to get them. By the way, this is for you,” Yu Gang said and picked up a book before extending it to Chen Chuan, who hurried over to take it.

“I know that Lu Ke taught you the throwing art, but it’s the simplest one. The book will teach you how to use refined force in your throws. It shouldn’t be hard for you right now. This isn’t any profound technique. It can be useful in certain situations, but in most, it won’t be of any use at all. Just have it as a keepsake.”

Chen Chuan put the book away with great seriousness. “Thank you, Mr. Yu. If you need any help, please don’t hesitate to ask.”

“That won’t be necessary,” Yu Gang declined.

“One of Master Yu’s former students has settled down in Central City’s lower city district. We’ve called her, and she said that she can contact an implant specialist. We should be fine,” Lu Ke explained.

Chen Chuan pondered over this before saying, “When are you leaving? Let me see you off.”