Little Overlord

On this day, a formidable little beggar suddenly appeared in the slums.

He was incredibly overbearing in his ways. If anyone dared to cut in front of him during porridge distributions, he beat them! If anyone tried to steal his begging turf, he beat them! If anyone dared to eye his big black dog, he beat them!

Before long, he had beaten everyone into absolute terror of him.

Everyone called him—the Little Overlord.

On this day, Yan Pingsheng came to Granny Wang's house in the slums to buy some pastries. On his way back, he suddenly heard a very tender yet incredibly arrogant child's voice.

“Robbery! Hand over all the pastries in your hands!”

Yan Pingsheng turned around and saw a dirty little beggar with clean, lively eyes. Amused, he asked, “Little brother, do you know who I am?”

“No. Are you stronger than me, the Little Overlord?”

“Probably... not. If you want them, you can have them. But the next time you see someone wearing the same clothes as me, remember to stay far away. Not everyone is as kind-hearted as I am.”

“Huh?” Shoving the stolen pastries into his mouth, the little beggar looked up, his mouth stuffed full as he mumbled, “Are your clothes really that special?”

Swallowing the pastries in his mouth, he held out a filthy hand. “Robbery! Hand over your clothes!”

“...Little brother, being insatiably greedy isn't a good thing. I'll be leaving now.”

“I'm not greedy! If you give them to me... I'll cover for you from now on! I, the Little Overlord, am super strong! They're all afraid of me!” The little beggar pointed at the refugees behind him, looking extremely proud.

“Oh?”

Yan Pingsheng's heart stirred. He recalled the bone-reading technique he had seen while browsing miscellaneous books on the first floor of the Martial Arts Pavilion a few days ago after getting tired of reading storybooks, and suddenly wanted to try his hand at it.

“You say you're the Little Overlord and very strong. Would you let me see for myself?”

“Want to test our strength? Come on!”

Looking at the tall man before him, the little beggar showed no fear as he reached out a hand and placed it in the other's large palm.

Yan Pingsheng smiled slightly. Recalling the instructions of the bone-reading technique, he squeezed upward along the little beggar's thin arm.

“Huh?” He froze for a moment, then squeezed back down in disbelief.

“What are you doing? Weren't we going to test our strength?” The little beggar watched him curiously while continuing to eat his pastries.

By this time, quite a few people nearby had turned their attention toward them, and the faces of the refugees wore looks of schadenfreude.

Yan Pingsheng squeezed repeatedly for a long time, an uncertain look of shock appearing in his eyes.

He pondered for a long while before finally making up his mind and asking, “Little brother, are you willing to come with me?”

“Where to? Are you going to buy me, the Little Overlord, a meal?”

“Come with me to the Wanxing Martial Academy. You won't have to worry about food or drink for the rest of your life, and you can even learn martial arts. Are you willing?”

“Then what's there to say? Let's go!” The little beggar pulled Yan Pingsheng by the hand and started walking forward instead.

Behind them, the refugees were completely dumbfounded. What was going on? Hadn't that little beggar angered the lord from the Wanxing Martial Academy? Why hadn't he been beaten to death, and instead got recruited into the Wanxing Martial Academy?!

A refugee suddenly fell to his knees, forcing the young boy beside him to kowtow toward Yan Pingsheng as well.

“My lord! My lord! Please look at my son! He—he—he is definitely more obedient than the Little Overlord! If you want to recruit an attendant, please consider him! That Little Overlord will definitely cause trouble for you once he goes in! Look at my son, he—he—he... Quick, call him Master!”

“Master! Master!”

The young boy kowtowed several times with loud thuds.

At this moment, the other refugees also snapped out of it and fell to their knees one after another, either recommending their own children or themselves.

Yan Pingsheng sidestepped to avoid their kowtows and explained helplessly, “I am bringing this little brother to the academy because his Skeletal Structure is excellent. If you want to join the academy, you can try when the academy recruits next March.”

“Then, my lord, please check my child's... Skeletal Structure as well! Look how prominent his bones are! His skeletal-whatever bones must be amazing!”

“An excellent Skeletal Structure isn't about having prominent bones... Let me take a look. Give me your hand.” Yan Pingsheng placed his hand on the boy's wrist, then shook his head under the expectant gazes of the boy and his mother.

“You should wait until the academy recruits and try again then.”

With that, he led the little beggar away amidst the pleading cries of the refugees.

Nearby, passersby attracted by the commotion of the refugees watched this scene and discussed it in surprise.

“Doesn't the academy usually only recruit in March? Why would a disciple take the initiative to recruit someone himself?”

“It must be because that Little Overlord's Skeletal Structure is too good. You haven't seen that kid—his strength is like a bull's. My boy is in the Outer Court of the Wanxing Martial Academy, and his strength might not even match his.”

“No way. Just how good must his Skeletal Structure be, then? That little beggar is so young.”

“It must be incredibly good, maybe even a High-grade Skeletal Structure! It seems he's completely changed his destiny from now on...”

...

Yan Pingsheng first took the little beggar to buy a change of clothes, then went to an inn to rent a room and asked the waiter to heat a tub of hot water.

After bathing and putting on the new clothes, the little beggar was completely transformed.

Although he was still sallow and thin, with dry and frizzy hair, it could not hide his handsome features underneath.

Afterward, Yan Pingsheng brought the little beggar into the academy to find Zhou Ziruo.

He did not have the right to meet Yi Xiaoxiang directly, so he had to ask Zhou Ziruo for help.

Zhou Ziruo did not live in the same area as the other disciples of the Posuo Courtyard. She lived in a magnificent pavilion behind the Posuo Hall.

Yan Pingsheng brought the little beggar to the base of the pavilion. Not daring to enter without permission, he asked a maid outside to announce them.

The maid had received instructions from Zhou Ziruo, so she first let the two of them sit in the first-floor hall while she went upstairs.

After a short while, footsteps echoed from the mahogany staircase.

Dressed in green robes, the elegant Zhou Ziruo walked down and smiled. “Junior Brother Yan, you finally have time to come find me. Why did you bring a child along?”

Yan Pingsheng immediately stood up and bowed. “I usually don't dare to disturb you too much, Senior Sister. I took the liberty of coming today because I have a matter I need your help with.”

“Is it because of that child?”

“Yes. I happened to run into him on the road. Seeing that his Skeletal Structure is extraordinary, I brought him back. I would like to ask you to take him to see Master Yi.”

“Oh?”

Zhou Ziruo, who had been resting her hands on her knees and smiling at the little beggar, looked up. In a meaningful tone, she said, “Junior Brother Yan, Master is not someone just anyone can meet. If you want to keep him in the Posuo Courtyard, I can make that decision and agree to it.”

“This...” Yan Pingsheng bowed with clasped hands, steeling himself as he said, “Senior Sister Zhou, this child's Skeletal Structure is outstanding. I don't want to hold him back.”

Zhou Ziruo's picturesque eyes lifted slightly. She stared at Yan Pingsheng in silence for a good while before suddenly covering her mouth and giggling.

“Junior Brother Yan, you didn't think I was angry, did you? Ah, fine, fine. Who let me promise Senior Brother Bai that I'd take care of you? Since you're so persistent, I'll take you to see Master.”

Her eyes suddenly turned mischievous. “You know what to say when you see Senior Brother Bai in the future, right?”

Yan Pingsheng quickly replied, “Senior Sister Zhou is gentle and generous, and she takes very good care of us junior brothers and sisters.”

The corners of Zhou Ziruo's mouth curled up uncontrollably as she walked forward with brisk, cheerful steps.

“Mhm~ Follow me.”

As they walked, she suddenly spun around to look at Yan Pingsheng and instructed, “You can't say it too directly, okay? You have to make it sound completely casual and accidental. You can't just blurt it out deliberately.