chapter 3 part 2

Young Master, you're done reading?"

Little Qiao was dozing off, her back against the door. She was caught by surprise when Lu Sheng suddenly came out, but still reacted quickly.

"Mm. Where's Uncle Zhao now? Do you know?" Lu Sheng asked casually.

There were many surnamed Zhao and of similar age in the Lu Manor, but only one of them was known to all as Uncle Zhao.

He was the one whom even Lu Fang addressed as Uncle Zhao, the number one expert and the strongest martial arts master in the Lu family – Zhao Dahu.

"Er… at this time of a day Uncle Zhao is usually at the martial arts arena, tempering his bones and training the servants," Little Qiao was on good terms with other servants and so was rather well-informed.

"Let's go find him."

Lu Sheng thought long and hard. Uncle Zhao was the easiest person within his reach from whom he could learn some self-preservation skills.

Walking along the path in the manor, Lu Sheng quickly traversed two stretches of sleeping quarters and arrived at the back of the manor.

Atop a big arena, a white-haired elder was leading more than ten servants in practicing martial arts.

The light of the morning sun washed down on them, gradually lightening Lu Sheng's heart which was heavy with the terrible events he had learned of in the morning.

The martial arts master Zhao Dahu wore an outfit of short athletic robes, consisting of a black top and grey pants. On his back, he carried a giant thick-backed saber that never left his body.

Lu Sheng waited and observed on the side.

On the arena, Zhao Dahu trained the servants for a while, then let them train on their own in pairs against each other.

He himself, however, approached Lu Sheng. He had noticed Lu Sheng much earlier already.

"Young Master, what brought you here today to the arena? Is there something for which you need an old man's help?"

Zhao Dahu's status in the manor was more or less equal to that of Old Master's.

There were also several other martial arts masters whose status was not low and interacted with these young masters and ladies as equals.

Lu Sheng glanced at the servants who were still practicing their moves not far away.

"Uncle Zhao, I wish to learn martial arts," as the words left Lu Sheng's mouth, Zhao Dahu's smile momentarily froze on his face.

"Big Brother Sheng, you haven't come here to pull an old man's leg, have you?" [1]

"I'm not pulling your leg," Lu Sheng shook his head.

He had given it more than enough thought. The easiest and the only available way for him to acquire some self-preservation skills was to start by learning from the martial arts masters in his own house.

And among those in the entire Nine Links City, the ones who could best the saber technique of the martial arts master in his own house – Zhao Dahu aka Uncle Zhao – could be counted on one hand.

Zhao Dahu looked at Lu Sheng seriously and shook his head. "If Brother Sheng is serious about learning martial arts, then what this old man is capable of, I can impart to you. But… you're too old, so your bones' shape is fixed and you won't be able to execute many of the moves properly at all. And if you can't execute them properly, then the might of this skill will be greatly reduced…"

"It's fine. Uncle Zhao, just teach it to me."

Lu Sheng was not merely seeking some self-preservation skill, but also to test and verify something.

Zhao Dahu fell deep in thought for a moment. Finally, he straightforwardly agreed.

"Might as well, then. I've got no heir… and having lived with the Lu family for so many years, it's been a good life and Old Master has been good to us. If we go by the book, you're learning my craft and so must perform the discipleship ceremony. But given my relationship with the Lu family, forget about becoming my disciple. Just don't leak my craft out to anyone else," Zhao Dahu said with a wave of his hand.

As the eldest son in the family, it was only a matter of time before Lu Sheng took over all businesses and properties under the Lu Manor.

So, he also harbored intentions of pulling him closer to himself.

"But, Brother Sheng, there's something I need to make clear to you beforehand."

"Please speak," Lu Sheng replied earnestly.

Zhao Dahu caressed the beard on his chin and said in a low voice. "I know you want to learn martial arts for self-protection because of the terrible Xu family case from this morning. But let me set this straight. Not even the strongest experts in the pugilistic world can handle these strange and weird things, mired in odd mystery as they are. "

"…I got it," Lu Sheng nodded. "I just… feel unsettled. I'll simply do what I can."

"As long as Brother Sheng understands." Zhao Dahu thought for a moment, then pulled out a small booklet from his chest, wrapped in layers and layers of yellow cloth. Meticulously, he slowly unwrapped it, revealing the booklet underneath.

Several big words were written on the cover: "Black Tiger Saber Technique."

[1] ED/N: The Big Brother here means something along the lines of "I'll flatter you a bit, so stop joking around/messing with me, would you?" Similar way of addressing others can be often seen in novels in similar situations (the one I've seen the most times was Big Brother, followed by Aunt)… or so I thought, but the old codger still keeps on using it, so just keep in mind that it can be used this way…