A Game of Wits

"Aunt Zhang," Chen Ping'an greeted the elderly woman with a warm smile. "Young Brother Chen, is something the matter?" Chen Ping'an offered a slight smile and promptly explained the reason for his visit, saying he needed some sand and gravel and figured Uncle Zhang might have a way to obtain some. "I wondered what it was, but that's all! Rest easy, Young Brother Chen. As soon as your Uncle Zhang comes back, I'll let him know." Aunt Zhang agreed readily. Hearing that, Chen Ping'an pulled some loose copper from his pocket, intending to give it to her. However, she adamantly refused to take it. "We're neighbors. Why talk about money? It's just a bit of worthless sand and gravel anyway. Don't you worry about it." Aunt Zhang waved it off repeatedly. Unable to persuade her, Chen Ping'an dropped the matter for the time being. Inwardly, he made a mental note to buy some meat and vegetables to bring over another day. "Young Brother Chen, won't you come inside and sit a while?" "No, thank you. I still have some chores at home." Chen Ping'an waved his hand in polite refusal. After exchanging a few more pleasantries, Chen Ping'an took his leave from Uncle Zhang's home. "Young Brother Chen has truly made something of himself!" Watching his departing figure, Aunt Zhang sighed in heartfelt admiration. The way he had spoken and handled himself just now was remarkably poised and worldly-wise, entirely unlike an adolescent who had not even reached twenty years of age. *** With the matter of the sand and gravel settled, a weight was lifted from Chen Ping'an's mind. Next, he only needed to wait for Little Tiger to come calling so he could settle the debt. The morning flew by. Chen Ping'an took a rare trip out with Chen Er Ya to buy some groceries, even purchasing a whole half of a pig's leg. Watching the money being spent, Chen Er Ya looked rather pained. Yet, considering that her brother was now practicing martial arts and exerting tremendous energy, his body likely wouldn't hold up to the strain without hearty meat to nourish it. So Chen Er Ya said nothing about saving more silver for him to take a wife. Considering that Little Tiger might arrive at any moment, the siblings did not cook the half pig's leg for lunch. Instead, they hid it away, saving it for dinner or the next day. Today's lunch consisted of a plate of scrambled eggs, a plate of steamed pumpkin, a bowl of seasonal vegetable and shredded pork soup, and two bowls of cooked rice—one large and one small. "Big Brother, how did you manage to scrape together fourteen taels of silver?" Chen Er Ya asked curiously as she ate, her eyes sparkling with admiration. "Your brother naturally has his ways," Chen Ping'an said with mock pride. He did not go into the details; some things were better kept to himself rather than burdening Chen Er Ya with worry. "Big Brother is amazing!" Chen Er Ya showered him with praise. Surrounded by warmth and cheer, the siblings finished their lunch. With Chen Ping'an sweeping up what remained at the end, the meal was cleaned out completely. After eating, the two of them worked together and quickly washed the bowls and chopsticks. They chatted idly about this and that. Just as Chen Ping'an was debating whether to fit in another session of Iron Shirt first, a knock sounded at the door. *Thump! Thump! Thump!* "Chen lad, the ten days are up! Time to pay! Open up!" The voice was familiar—it belonged to Little Tiger's close henchman, Liu'er. "Coming!" Chen Ping'an's expression turned stern. As long as he paid off the Tiger Head Gang's fourteen taels of debt with interest today, he and Nannan could live with clean slates and enjoy peaceful, untroubled days. *Creak!* Chen Ping'an soon pulled open the courtyard gate. "Little Tiger is here! Quick, please come inside." With a smile on his face, Chen Ping'an welcomed the visitors into the courtyard. Three people had come today, all familiar faces to Chen Ping'an: Little Tiger, Liu'er, and a ruffian named Feizi. Previously, Chen Ping'an had not yet entered the martial path, so his senses had not been sharp enough. Now that his qi and blood first layer was perfected, a quick glance revealed that every one of them had actually stepped onto the martial path. Entering the martial path meant one was considered a capable hand! It wasn't that the Tiger Head Gang was so formidable that even ordinary lackeys reached such a standard; rather, as one of the three protectors and a high-ranking figure of the gang, Little Tiger naturally kept henchmen of this caliber at his side for prestige. Just like Liu'er, Feizi was also a minor leader within the Tiger Head Gang. "Little Tiger, please, have some water." Chen Ping'an poured the fresh water he had prepared earlier into a bowl and offered it to Little Tiger. His family's circumstances were humble. Lacking teacups and tea leaves, he could only offer plain water instead. Yet before the water could reach Little Tiger, Liu'er shoved it aside. "What kind of trash is this?! With Little Tiger's status, he comes here just to drink plain water?" Watching the water splash and spill across the wooden tabletop, the smile remained on Chen Ping'an's face. "My humble home is destitute, so I have only plain water. I have neglected Little Tiger." "As long as you know it!" Liu'er scoffed a few times. "Liu'er." Little Tiger waved a hand. "Chen lad, I'm sure you know why we came today." "I know, I know." Chen Ping'an smiled broadly, spreading out his sleeve to use as a rag to wipe away the spilled water. Once the water was wiped dry, Chen Ping'an produced a cloth pouch from inside his robes and tipped the silver out onto the table all at once. Then, right before Little Tiger and his men, he began carefully counting it out. "One tael, three taels, five and a half taels, six taels, seven and a half taels..." The silver on the table was all broken bits of silver, and Chen Ping'an counted meticulously. "Thirteen taels, fourteen taels! Little Tiger, that makes fourteen taels of silver in total. Please have a look." Looking at the silver on the table, Little Tiger gave a slight nod. Yet before he could speak, Liu'er jumped in eagerly. "Let me see! Let's make sure there isn't any fake silver!" Liu'er snatched up the silver from the table and began inspecting it piece by piece. Though counterfeit silver circulating on the market was exceedingly rare, that did not mean it was nonexistent. However, after checking through every piece, he found no fakes at all. "Consider yourself lucky!" Liu'er glared fiercely at Chen Ping'an. It was impossible to tell where his temper came from, venting it on Chen Ping'an—perhaps still harboring a grudge from that previous day. "Chen lad, you actually managed to scrape together fourteen taels. Not bad at all!" As he spoke, Little Tiger's face showed little expression, making it hard to discern his true thoughts. "I received my monthly stipend and borrowed a bit from some colleagues at the Suppression Office. That was how I managed to gather the silver owed to Little Tiger," Chen Ping'an said with a smile. "Colleagues, is it? Chen lad, seems you've got good connections at the Suppression Office!" Little Tiger narrowed his eyes slightly, giving a hollow smile. "Haha, passable. It's all thanks to my colleagues thinking highly of me. Old Chen did leave behind a bit of goodwill for me, after all," Chen Ping'an replied with a smile, his words layered with meaning. "Must be nice to have people looking out for you!" Little Tiger rested one hand on the wooden table and slowly rose to his feet. "In that case, your fourteen taels of silver, principal and interest combined, are settled. Go on, give him the promissory note. Don't let it be said that I, Little Tiger, don't play by the rules." Hearing this, the ruffian Feizi behind him pulled a promissory note from his robes and handed it to Chen Ping'an. "Little Tiger is truly benevolent. My thanks to Little Tiger." Chen Ping'an took the debt note, his face plastered with a wide smile. "Let's go." Little Tiger gave the call and walked toward the courtyard gate, with Feizi following closely behind. Liu'er cast a sharp glare at Chen Ping'an before hurrying to catch up. "Oh, right." Stopping at the courtyard gate, Little Tiger seemed to remember something. "You know that our Tiger Head Gang collects monthly dues from the surrounding streets and alleys. The neighbors all show respect and have always cooperated. Previously, while you still owed this debt, we never brought up the monthly dues, which was our way of looking out for you. "Now that the debt is settled, there's no need for any special treatment. We'll waive this month's dues for you. Start paying next month." Hearing that, Chen Ping'an lightly cupped his hands, the smile on his face never wavering. "In that case, Ping'an offers his thanks to Little Tiger for taking such good care of me for so long." "Good! A teachable lad, hahaha... Let's go!" Amid hearty laughter, Little Tiger led his men away, their figures soon disappearing around the corner of the alley. Chen Ping'an lowered his head slightly to look at the wooden table. There, right where Little Tiger had pressed his palm, a thick, deep handprint was visibly pressed into the surface.