PCJ – Chapter 392 Leap Forward

“Ice pops, fifty cents each!”

After school, a new ice pop seller appeared outside Yidushui Middle School. This person was none other than Xie Mingyuan. Inspired by a student earlier that morning, Xie saw a business opportunity at the school. However, during school hours, he couldn’t enter, so he had to wait until school let out and the gates opened for the students to leave.

“Master, I’ll take one.”

“I’ll take one too.”

Xie’s business sense wasn’t bad, and he quickly gained good sales.

“Look, look! Yuanbao’s apprentice is selling ice pops at the gate! Jiaohua, should we go and ask him for some?” said the sharp-eyed Mute, spotting Xie with a foam box selling ice pops outside the school gate.

“Haven’t you eaten before?” Zhang Jiaohua said with annoyance. “You can afford ice pops, can’t you? You can’t expect to eat for free every day.”

“I was just saying. I didn’t really mean it.” Mute scratched his head.

“Let’s go and check it out,” Zhang Jiaohua said, heading towards the gate.

“Didn’t you say you weren’t going to eat his stuff?” Mute asked.

“I didn’t say we couldn’t buy ice pops. It’s only right to support his business if we eat his food.” Zhang Jiaohua pulled out a bill and walked over to Xie Mingyuan. “Master, give me five cones.”

Seeing that it was Zhang Jiaohua, Xie smiled and said, “Uncle-Master, why be so formal? Take whatever you want.”

“Take it. Whatever it costs, that’s what you get. You think I can’t afford a few ice pops?” Zhang Jiaohua insisted on giving the money to Xie.

Since Zhang Jiaohua insisted, Xie awkwardly accepted the money, gave the change, and handed over the ice pops.

“Are you planning to keep doing this?” Zhang Jiaohua asked.

“Just giving it a try. I can’t keep wandering aimlessly. Even Master doesn’t think much of me,” Xie replied, craning his neck to look for Zhang Yuanbao inside the school.

“You don’t need to look. If you shout loud enough, he’ll come running,” Zhang Jiaohua chuckled.

“Absolutely! If Yuanbao hears there are ice pops for sale outside, he’ll definitely come,” Mute added confidently.

Immediately, Xie raised his voice and yelled, “Ice pops! Popsicles, cones, and Eight Treasures Ice Cream…”

“Ice pop, I’ll take one cone, one popsicle… Hmm, why is it you?” Zhang Yuanbao, holding two yuan, looked coldly at Xie.

“Master, you can keep the money, no need to pay,” Xie said.

“It’s not like I can’t afford it!” Zhang Yuanbao grabbed the ice pops and threw the money down before leaving.

“Master, you overpaid!” Xie didn’t dare refuse but also didn’t want to overcharge.

“Just keep it for now. We’ll talk later,” Zhang Yuanbao said as he walked back, ice pop in hand.

Zhang Yuanbao wasn’t greedy; he had bought two ice pops, one for his sister, Zhang Runtian. Even though she often tattled on him, causing him to get punished, as her older brother, he was still generous.

“Runtian, want an ice pop?” Zhang Yuanbao asked.

“Wow, ice cream! Great!” Zhang Runtian happily took the popsicle and cone from her brother and quickly handed the cone to her desk mate.

“Uh…” Seeing his sister smile, Zhang Yuanbao didn’t say anything, but added, “Runtian, can you let me copy your homework later?”

“No way! The teacher said no copying homework!” Zhang Runtian had learned how to strip away the sweet coating of the enemy’s sugar-coated cannonball and throw the shell back.

“You ungrateful brat!” Zhang Yuanbao muttered angrily as he hurried back to check if his apprentice still had any ice pops left.

But when he got to the gate, his apprentice was already gone. Not even a bit of sincerity!

“Yuanbao, your apprentice seems to have changed for the better. Why not take him in officially? He doesn’t seem like a bad guy,” Zhang Jiaohua said with a smile.

“You take him if you want. The guy has no sense. He couldn’t even tell who’s the strongest among us.” Zhang Yuanbao was somewhat tempted. Having an apprentice would be fun—he could make him stand on stumps and hit him with a stick if he leaned even slightly, just like how Jiaohua trained him. It was finally payback time.

If Zhang Jiaohua knew what Yuanbao was thinking, he’d probably give him a good kick.

For days, Xie Mingyuan showed up in front of Zhang Jiaohua and the others, selling buns in the morning and ice pops in the afternoon. Still, Zhang Yuanbao hadn’t agreed to take him as an apprentice. Xie gradually lost heart. However, selling at the school became a career for him. After spending more time with Jiaohua’s group, Xie eventually realized that Zhang Jiaohua, not the tall Zhang Yuanbao, was the real leader.

Jiaohua told Yuanbao, “Well, go ahead and teach him some stance training. He doesn’t seem too bad.”

So Yuanbao told Xie, “I’ll teach you how to practice standing stances, but I’m not taking you as my apprentice.” Despite this, Xie kept calling him Master, saying he was used to it and couldn’t change.

Meishan Stance Training wasn’t an especially mysterious skill. Within the Meishan region, anyone with basic martial arts knowledge knew about it. So even if Xie couldn’t fully change his ways, he wouldn’t become a menace to society after learning it.