Surviving in a chaotic world and becoming a saint by adding points

Chapter 5 Schemes

"There are only five days left until the end of the month. The problem is, I'm out of money. What should I do? It's urgent."

In Rat Alley, inside a dilapidated house, Chen Ran frowned as he looked at the bare walls of the house, a place even rats would shake their heads at.

Tongbei Boxing School charges a monthly fee of five taels of silver, fair and honest to all, young and old.

But they never extend credit.

If you don't have money, don't practice martial arts.

That's just how reality is.

In the past two weeks, Chen Ran has witnessed several disciples being expelled from the boxing gym because their families could not afford to continue paying their fees.

In this world, it's understandable that Tongbei Boxing Gym does this.

After all, boxing gyms aren't charities. If they can't get credit here and there, they'll bankrupt the gym.

The problem now is that he really can't afford to pay next month's bill.

With no family support, he completely devoted himself to martial arts training, a feat that most people, even those from small families, wouldn't have.

At first, Chen Ran was very confident in himself and believed that he could break through to become a Qi and Blood Martial Artist in a short period of time.

But reality slapped his head in the face.

He really is just an ordinary person.

Skills: Tongbei Stance (Beginner); Tongbei Fist (Beginner)

Although I have already entered the basics of Tongbei Zhuang, it is still a long way from accumulating enough Qi and blood to complete the first transformation.

Thinking of this, Chen Ran turned his gaze to the two energy bars at the bottom.

The red energy bar remained completely still, as if it didn't exist at all.

The blue energy bar is already more than half full, but it will take some time before it is fully charged.

Looking at the unreliable energy bar, Chen Ran was speechless.

Now, he urgently needs to raise a large sum of money within a few days.

Should I continue doing manual labor?

Making money is too slow and would seriously hinder his progress in learning martial arts.

Most importantly, there simply isn't enough time.

But if he doesn't do manual labor, what can he do?

Chen Ran thought about it for a while, but he really couldn't find anything he could do.

"Are we really going to rob the rich to help the poor?"

Chen Ran frowned.

The key question is, do those people have that much money?

………….

Nanming Street.

The entire street was dilapidated, and traces of burning could still be seen on the houses along the street.

This place was indeed burned.

More than a decade ago, Nanming Street was the center of Qinghe County. It was extremely prosperous.

But for some unknown reason, a great demon engulfed in flames descended, burning the entire street to the ground and causing countless deaths and injuries.

Afterwards, some people tried to rebuild the place, but all attempts failed.

Gradually, this place was abandoned by Qinghe County and became a wasteland.

On both sides of the street, various emaciated refugees, barely clothed and resembling the living dead, huddled in the shadows, their eyes bloodshot, like wild beasts.

On the street, Zhang Yi and his two companions walked out of a fairly intact house on Nanming Street, beaming with pride.

"Boss, this deal is really too good to pass up. Three taels of silver per person. These worthless lives are actually worth so much."

"Yes, we've sold dozens of them recently. If we sell a few more, I'll marry Widow Liu. That woman is just irresistible in that aspect."

Beside Zhang Yi, two henchmen looked smug and spoke without restraint.

"Sigh, if the government hadn't gone crazy and demanded such a high 'protection fee,' I wouldn't have had to do such a thing."

Although that's what he said, the lewd and greedy smile on Zhang Yi's face betrayed him.

"Come to my house for drinks tonight, and I'll share the money I've earned recently."

"Boss, you're so righteous!!!"

"I swear to follow my leader to the death!!!"

The three figures gradually disappeared into the distance, heading towards the outside of Nanming Street.

………….

"Let's see if we can borrow some money first."

"Once I break through to become a Qi and Blood Martial Artist, I'll go rob the rich to help the poor."

After thinking it over for a long time, Chen Ran decided to temporarily abandon the path of robbing the rich to help the poor.

It wasn't because he was a good person, but because I was afraid of him being taken advantage of.

Who knows if those江湖 (jianghu, a term referring to the martial arts world) people have some special skills?

If we accidentally capsize in a ditch, then it's all over.

This isn't a game where you can try again. If you die, you're really dead.

Besides, he can only take on two or three opponents at most right now; any more than that and he'll have to run away.

After making the decision, Chen Ran left home.

"Aren't there too few people?"

In the past, the streets of Rat Street were filled with the stench of urine.

Walking on the street today, these smells were surprisingly faint.

There are far fewer graffiti patches scattered around walls and roads now.

"He hasn't been back for over half a month. Could it be that the people of Rat Street have caught some kind of plague?"

Thinking of this, Chen Ran's face turned green.

He immediately quickened his pace and headed out of Rat Street.

"Chen Ran, Chen Ran."

Suddenly, a voice called out from behind.

Chen Ran turned around and saw a head peeking out from the nearly collapsed house next to him.

This person had an ordinary appearance, with a face full of fat and a large, black, hairy mole on the corner of his mouth that was unforgettable at first glance.

Chen Ran stepped forward, and after seeing the other person's appearance clearly, he looked puzzled.

Seeing that no one was around, Zhu Zhi quickly pulled Chen Ran inside.

But then, an awkward scene unfolded.

Chen Ran's physique has been greatly improved thanks to the blood-nourishing decoction and the rich meat dishes.

Zhu Zhi couldn't pull it at all.

"Hurry up and come in, don't let them find out."

Helpless, Zhu Zhi could only speak softly.

Upon hearing this, Chen Ran was not afraid of any tricks the other party might play, so he followed him inside.

As soon as he entered, Chen Ran spoke.

"Zhu Zhi? What are you still doing here? I remember your dad got a Qinghe County household registration and was planning to move to Pinghua Subdistrict, right?"

He recognized the man; he was a refugee who had fled to Rat Street with him before.

However, unlike Chen Ran, who was poor, Zhu Zhi's family were landlords. Even though they were robbed several times on their way to escape, they were able to live well in Qinghe County thanks to the treasures they had secretly hidden.

Before going to learn martial arts, Chen Ran heard that the other party had obtained a household registration and was planning to buy a house in Pinghua Street in a while.

Surprisingly, they hadn't left yet.

"Waaaaaah, waaaaaah!!!"

Originally, Chen Ran was just asking casually, but he didn't expect the other party to break through his defenses so easily.

Seeing the other person's devastated state, Chen Ran didn't say anything, but sat aside and watched quietly.

"Waaaah~ My dad, my dad's gone, waaaah~"

Chen Ran was taken aback.

After holding it in for so long, all you managed to say was, "Your dad is dead?"

His lips twitched slightly, and he turned to leave.

"Chen Ran, Brother Chen, Master Chen, you're a disciple of the Tongbei Boxing School, only you can save me! Please, please save me! Waaah~"

Seeing that Chen Ran was about to leave, Zhu Zhi quickly rolled to Chen Ran's feet and wiped his snot and tears on Chen Ran's clothes.

Chen Ran didn't say anything, but grabbed Zhu Zhi by the collar and pulled him up.

"Calm down."

As he spoke, Chen Ran slapped Zhu Zhi across the face, leaving half of it red and swollen.

The intense pain brought Zhu Zhi back to his senses.

Just as he was about to say something.

"Smack!!!"

Another large fist slapped his other cheek until it swelled up as well.

"Why are you still hitting me?"

"Oh, you got carried away. Tell me, what happened?"

Chen Ran said it casually.

Once he regained his senses, Zhu Zhi wanted to explode in anger; he had never been so humiliated before.

But thinking that he might have to rely on Chen Ran to survive, he disregarded all that and began to explain the whole story.

After a long while, Chen Ran stood still, looking at Zhu Zhi with the eyes of someone looking at an idiot.

"You mean, your old dad, those bones of his, was tied up?"