This voice was like celestial music; Adam Thompson was so moved he was almost in tears. He took a deep breath and dove down once more.

……

Adam Thompson himself didn’t even know how he managed to climb out. He lay sprawled on the well’s edge like a dog, his whole body feeling as if it no longer belonged to him, completely numb.

Adam Thompson had dived to the bottom of the well fifteen times, staying there for a full hour and a half. Martin Parker had left long ago.

At this moment, Adam Thompson noticed a small porcelain bottle in front of him. With trembling hands, he pulled out the stopper—inside was a small bottle of medicinal wine. His teeth chattered from the cold as he poured the wine into his mouth. The bitter medicinal taste was so strong he almost spat it out, but he forced himself to swallow.

The medicinal wine was like sixty-seven proof baijiu; in just a moment, a surge of heat rose from his dantian and spread throughout his body, unstoppable, as if his whole body was soaking in boiling water. Every pore breathed freely, and he couldn’t help but moan in comfort.

He slowly sat up and put on his clothes. He discovered the effect of the medicinal wine: all his extreme fatigue and muscle pain had completely vanished. His body felt ten pounds lighter, and his arms seemed to have endless strength.

He threw his head back and let out a howl, then swung his polo stick hard at a stone on the ground. With a ‘crack!’ the stick struck the stone heavily, but the stone didn’t budge at all—his stick, however, snapped in two. It turned out there was a millstone-sized rock buried in the earth, with only a small tip exposed.

Adam Thompson opened his mouth wide in regret. This was truly a case of joy turning to sorrow.

Chapter 12 Buying a Stick at the West Market

The next morning, Adam Thompson lay in bed thinking about what had happened last night. It felt like a dream. Was it real? Sword Saint Martin Parker was teaching him martial arts? He was actually his uncle.

This can’t be a dream!

Adam Thompson sat up and saw the polo stick broken in two. His heart surged with excitement—last night wasn’t a dream, it really happened. But he couldn’t help but sigh.

It also meant he’d have to endure the well again tonight.

Although his former self had practiced polo hard for ten years, it wasn’t until last night that Adam Thompson realized he had already set foot on the path of martial arts. To be honest, he wasn’t mentally prepared at all.

He hadn’t even figured out what he wanted to do in the Tang Dynasty.

His most practical thought at the moment was simply to make some quick money as soon as possible to change his family’s poverty.

But his uncle Martin Parker teaching him martial arts seemed to be setting him on another path. They, too, sensed that troubled times were coming and were making preparations.

He recalled a few things Martin Parker had said—not just them, but many noble families were secretly preparing.

It was truly unexpected. It seemed the An Lushan Rebellion wasn’t an accident, but rather a reshuffling after all kinds of crises and conflicts in the Tang Dynasty became irreconcilable.

If the various crises in the Tang Dynasty could have been alleviated, would the An Lushan Rebellion not have broken out, or at least not have had such severe consequences?

Adam Thompson gave a wry smile. Why was he thinking so much? A poor kid from a slum lying in bed worrying about the fate of the world—how ridiculous!

His uncle was right: the sooner you start preparing, the safer your family will be in troubled times, and the better you’ll survive.

Prepare what? Actually, his uncle had already told him: wealth and fists.

“Ah Ye, hurry up! Your mother’s been waiting for you forever!” Suddenly, Sarah Parker’s impatient voice called from the courtyard.

Adam Thompson was startled. “Mother, where are we going?”

Sarah Parker rushed in like a gust of wind, standing at the door with her hands on her hips. “Didn’t I tell you? Today I’m taking you to the academy. I’ve already spoken to Old Man Moore, who used to teach you to read. He said you can continue your studies, but you’ll have to start from the beginning!”

“Start from the beginning?”

Adam Thompson couldn’t help but laugh and cry. He could imagine himself squeezed in with a bunch of six- or seven-year-old children, reading together. Others would probably think it was a parent-teacher meeting.

“Mother, I can read! That blow made me remember all the books I’ve read. If you don’t believe me, I’ll write them out for you later.”

Adam Thompson realized that the blow he’d received was like a basket—anything could be stuffed into it.

Sarah Parker’s expression clearly showed she didn’t believe him, so Adam Thompson quickly added, “I still have to go to the Qiao residence to practice polo during the day! I really don’t have time to study.”

That was a good excuse. Sarah Parker nodded. “Fine! We’ll talk about it after your match. Anyway, I’ve made up my mind—you must study. You can practice polo, but it can’t interfere with your studies!”

She glanced at the broken polo stick and hurried off. It was as if she knew nothing about what had happened last night, but Adam Thompson had a gut feeling that his mother actually knew and was just pretending not to.

No matter. Today he had to make a trip to the West Market.

……

The West Market and East Market were the two most famous commercial centers in Chang’an. In reality, they were two huge trading cities, with various specialized markets clustered together, mainly for wholesale but also retail.

If you didn’t want to travel far or weren’t buying in large quantities, there were plenty of small shops in each ward—general stores, rice and oil shops, pickle shops, cloth shops, taverns, and the like. Firewood, rice, oil, salt, sauce, vinegar, tea—everything could be found in the ward.

If you wanted to buy fresh vegetables or wild game, you could go to the markets outside the city, which were open-air markets, much like today’s rural fairs.

Adam Thompson arrived at the West Market. He had to come today to buy two things.