Chen Ku looked at Li Jiyang's almost tearful expression. Knowing what he was thinking, Chen Ku smiled and said, "Jiyang, don't worry. If we become wealthy and honored, let's not forget each other. You've helped me so much before; in the future, I'll have your back."
Upon hearing this, Li Jiyang's tearful face immediately turned into a smile, and he said, "I knew it! You wouldn't forget your brother once you made it big. Remember, you've got to look out for me from now on."
"No need to wait for the future."
Chen Ku calmly looked at the Guo Family members who were beating others and said, "Today, I can have your back."
"Today?"
Li Jiyang was momentarily stunned.
Chen Ku then turned his gaze to Guo Fu and Guo Qiang of the opposing Guo Family, and the rest of their Guo family clan siblings. He then looked at the slap mark on Li Jiyang's face and said, "Who hit you and your grandfather?"
Li Jiyang sensed something was up. He immediately perked up, looked toward Guo Fu and Guo Qiang, and exclaimed, "Those two!"
"Go, give them a couple of slaps each, so they'll remember this lesson."
Chen Ku deliberately did not lower his voice, ensuring his words also reached the ears of Guo Fu and Guo Qiang.
The faces of the Guo brothers opposite them changed color.
Before they could say anything, Li Jiyang had already strode quickly over to Guo Qiang, raising his hand and swinging it.
Guo Qiang instinctively wanted to yell, "You dare?!" but his eyes immediately caught sight of the long robe behind Li Jiyang.
His heart shuddered.
SMACK! SMACK!
Two firm slaps landed on his face. He didn't dare to dodge.
Li Jiyang turned and casually gave Guo Fu a couple of slaps as well.
Afterward, as if he had won a battle, he returned to Chen Ku's side and whispered, "Good brother, I owe you one. That was damn satisfying."
"You!" Guo Fu and Guo Qiang could only glare furiously at Li Jiyang.
But they didn't dare to look at Chen Ku.
Chen Ku looked at the two men. The Transformation Diagram showed no anomalies? This meant... even after being slapped, these two brothers didn't dare harbor any ill intentions toward him.
Chen Ku's expression softened. He slowly stepped forward, looked at Guo Qiang, and said, "I'm someone who remembers both grievances and kindness. I don't care if you bully others, but if you dare to bully Brother Zhao Bocai's family or Jiyang's family again, this will be your fate."
The two looked at Chen Ku with fear and awe.
Taking a few slow steps, Chen Ku stood before the Guo Family's old plowing ox and reached out to grab its horn.
His expression darkened.
His arm suddenly twisted with force!
With a shout, he roared, "Get down!"
CRACK!
BOOM!!
The ox, weighing several hundred pounds, crashed to the ground.
MOO~~
The old ox's entire body was slammed to the ground by Chen Ku's single hand. Its pitch-black horn, snapped in half, prompted a pained bellow. The broken horn was then casually tossed by Chen Ku in front of the Guo brothers.
BOOM!
Everyone in the field who witnessed Chen Ku topple the ox with one hand and break its horn felt their minds go blank, overcome by tremendous shock and awe.
"Is that Chen Family's second son even human?!"
"Such a big ox, toppled just like that, and its horn broken—how strong must he be!!"
Zhang Xianmin and Old Sun, as well as the young wives and old ladies of the village, were all so shocked their faces turned pale.
This was to say nothing of the Guo brothers, who had been intimidated right before their very eyes.
Guo Fu and Guo Qiang turned ashen. Staring at the broken horn of their own ox at their feet, their legs trembled uncontrollably.
"Yes, yes, yes, we won't ever dare again," Guo Fu said, seeing his brother scared witless. He quickly added in a trembling voice, "Brother Chen, we will never do this again."
Upon hearing this, Chen Ku smiled with satisfaction.
It's often said that words can command a gentleman, while a show of force is needed to deter the vulgar. A mere long robe might instill respect for one's status, but a slight display of strength could ensure they wouldn't dare harbor contrary thoughts for a lifetime.
Turning his head again, Chen Ku saw Li Jiyang's mouth agape, wide enough to fit an egg. Li Jiyang foolishly exclaimed, "That's an ox! You've only just entered the Medicine King Hall and already possess such incredible abilities! What Immortal Pill did you eat?"
Among those present, only Zhao Bocai recognized that Chen Ku had developed Martial Arts skills, and they were not weak.
Half a year ago, when his brother Zhao Mengcai had knocked down an earthen wall with one palm, Zhao Mengcai had told him that he had spent half a year practicing Martial Arts to acquire the strength of five hundred catties needed to do so.
Comparing that to Chen Ku... an ox, when enraged, possesses at least six or seven hundred catties of strength, yet Chen Ku had toppled it so effortlessly.
Zhao Bocai approached and exclaimed, "Brother Chen, this display of yours... it's even more formidable than Mengcai was back in his day!"
Chen Ku smiled at Zhao Bocai and said, "I can't compare to Mengcai. He could topple a wall half a year ago. He should be even more excellent now."
Zhao Bocai forced a smile and said nothing.
Chen Ku looked at the injured Master Li and Li Jiyang and said, "Alright, let's go home and dress your wounds first."
"Mm-hmm, Grandpa, I'll help you back," Li Jiyang said. He wasn't worried about himself, but seeing his grandfather suffer like this at his age pained his heart immensely.
And so, the group left the field ahead of everyone else. Only the members of the Guo Family remained, silently looking at each other before lowering their heads to check on the old yellow ox.
Meanwhile, the young women, young wives, and old grandmothers of the village spread the news throughout the village in no time.
In a small village, nothing could be kept secret for long.
Before long, everyone knew that the Chen Family had completely turned their fortunes around.
On the way home, while assisting Old Master Li, Li Jiyang was extremely curious about how Chen Ku had managed to find the Treasure Herb.
Chen Ku said, "Just good luck. Purely good luck."
Li Jiyang wanted to ask more. But Master Li stopped him. Regardless of how Chen Ku had found the Treasure Herb, it wasn't a matter of skill, nor was it something that should be asked about so easily.
Just as the group was about to pass Chen Ku's house, he noticed quite a few people standing at his doorstep. Leading them was an old man wearing a black long robe—none other than the village head of Dachen Village.
Behind the village head stood another man, also in a long robe, accompanied by a dozen or so people. This man had a neatly trimmed mustache and a fair complexion, clearly someone who lived a life of comfort and privilege.
"It's Guo Xiangshen!" Li Jiyang exclaimed in panic. "He must be here to stand up for his clansmen!"
Chen Ku's eyes flickered. Yet he sensed no malice directed at him from the Transformation Diagram.
He signaled Li Jiyang to stay calm. Then, the group slowly approached the entrance of the house.
Before they even got close, they saw Guo Xiangshen. He was wearing a Landlord Hat and a long robe, approaching with a beaming smile as warm as the spring breeze. "Excellent, excellent! I was wondering why magpies were chirping outside this morning. It turns out our village has encountered great fortune! Chen Ku, Guo Someone has come specially to congratulate you."
With that, he motioned for the people behind him to bring forward a tray.
Chen Ku was momentarily curious.
Guo Xiangshen remained silent, still smiling.
Chen Ku gently lifted the cover. Inside the tray was a surprising sight: a land deed and three strings of copper coins.
"What's this?"
The village head, clad in a long robe and holding a tobacco pipe, stepped forward with a hearty laugh. "This is your family's old land. Didn't it later fall into Guo Xiangshen's hands? We heard you've entered the Medicine King Hall! Such a grand occasion certainly deserves celebration. So, this land, witnessed and officially sealed by me, is hereby returned to your family. From now on, your household will no longer be without land."
Chen Ku pointed to the strings of coins and asked, "Then what's this money for?"
Guo Xiangshen maintained his smile, as warm and pleasant as a spring breeze.
The village head explained, "The autumn tax is due soon, and we were concerned your family might not have the money, so we came to help. Not only that, but Guo Xiangshen also plans to host a banquet to celebrate you properly."
Chen Ku was astonished. "Host a banquet? Is that really necessary?"
Just because of this long robe? Not only are they returning land and giving money, but they also want to host a feast for him?
Guo Xiangshen's expression turned serious. "How could it not be necessary? Chen Ku, your admission to the Medicine King Hall is an enormous stroke of good fortune! In our entire Dachen Village, you're the first person to enter the Medicine King Hall in decades. This is a monumental event! It brings honor to all of us just to speak of it. We should let the fellow villagers share in this joy. Besides, this year's harvest has been good. It's a double happiness, so both occasions are certainly worth celebrating!"
Listening to these words, Chen Ku instantly recalled the story of Fan Jin passing the imperial examination.
He couldn't help but smile. He hadn't expected that after a single trip to the city, his status in the village would change so quickly. Indeed, once he had both status and strength, there were far more good people around him.