Section 41: Open Secret

That day, Tu Yifeng gave Sima his first lesson.

In bare-handed combat, boxing is the most practical skill; it has a low threshold of entry, allows for rapid progress, and enables an ordinary person to stand out after just a few months of practice. However, empty-handed combat is not the entirety of fighting, where one must use every means available. Tu Yifeng earnestly told Sima that firearms are superior to weapons, and weapons are superior to bare hands—this is an unshakable truth and a lesson written in blood. What should one do if there is no protective gear or boxing gloves? What about facing multiple opponents at once? What about in the dead of night or during a torrential downpour? There is only one optimal solution: shoot! If the opponent has a gun and you do not, run away immediately and never try to tough it out; even a Type 64 "little firecracker" can cause you to instantly lose your combat capability if it hits a vital spot. What if you don't have a gun? Use a knife! No matter how high your martial arts skills are, you still fear a kitchen knife, especially a concealed and lethal weapon like a dagger. A single fatal blow can stop even a Tyson, and if you are suddenly stabbed, even if you manage to subdue the opponent, you will be in no shape yourself!

Taking the above factors into account, if conditions permit, hard body armor is the first choice and standard equipment, capable of providing effective protection in most cases. There was good reason for ancient folk bans on armor; only when wearing hard body armor does "boxing" become an overwhelming advantage, allowing someone to confidently take on three to five opponents. However, bare-fisted combat is a case of "inflicting one thousand casualties on the enemy while losing eight hundred of your own." The bones of the hand are far less durable than the skull, and striking makes it extremely easy to cause fractures or sprains. Moreover, "forces are mutual," meaning that striking a target with bare fists causes intense pain that is difficult to endure, preventing one from punching at full strength and thus limiting actual lethality. To address this, Tu Yifeng's suggestion was to wear "knuckle dusters."

Knuckle dusters, also known as iron lotus flowers or brass knuckles, typically consist of four connected rings and a semi-circular iron hoop in their construction, to which spikes can be added to increase lethality. When used, they are slipped over the index, middle, ring, and little fingers to form a clenched fist. The materials are mostly zinc alloys or iron alloys, though stainless steel is also used. Knuckle dusters protect the knuckles of the fist, significantly enhancing the destructive power of a strike and causing varying degrees of physical trauma—ranging from fractures at the light end to ruptured internal organs at the severe end. Therefore, although knuckle dusters do not strictly fall under the category of controlled weapons, carrying them might be prohibited in certain locations, such as public transportation.

Tu Yifeng advised against buying ready-made knuckle dusters, suggesting instead to find a way to make them oneself by breaking them down into detachable rings and iron hoops, altering their appearance to avoid detection and bans. Of course, if Sima possessed a "Dagger Carrying Permit," he wouldn't need to go through such trouble. However, dagger fighting is a completely different matter from boxing; it requires additional practice and leaves little room for holding back, generally making it less convenient than knuckle dusters, which can be put on and used immediately with controllable lethality. Tu Yifeng explained the method of making homemade knuckle dusters in detail, following the principle of "leaving no written record, passing it down purely by word of mouth." Since there was no fixed standard for what they should look like, others could trace nothing back to him—this is the wisdom of people at the bottom of society, sparing them a great deal of trouble.

After finishing the first lesson, Sima offered the "tuition fee." He had previously inquired with Zhao Ronghua and found out that one-on-one private lessons of this kind cost around 1,000 yuan per hour. Coach Zhao had advised not to disrupt the market rate, suggesting he just gift some cigarettes and alcohol after the course concluded. Sima readily followed this advice, and Tu Yifeng happily accepted, arranging for him to come again next Sunday to make slight preparations and move into the phase of practical combat.

Thus, Sima decided to pay out of his own pocket to take an extra private lesson with Tu Yifeng every week to make up for the shortcomings of his routine boxing training. "White Dove" was very satisfied with him. Even though he was an "auxiliary-type" Gu master, he still needed to exercise his body and maintain his state, confronting impending crises with a fully charged "combat power value." Although Section Two would never waste the resources of any "Gu master"—even peripheral figures like Zhou Lingri had their own posts—taking precautions never hurt, and "White Dove" believed this was what a subordinate should look like.

"White Dove" made no secret of her appreciation for Sima. With a wave of her hand, she reimbursed him for the cost of the private lessons—not through official public accounts, of course, but drawn from the "private stash" of the general administration office. Almost every department in Section Two had its own little treasury; field agents secretly took on private gigs outside, while internal staff managed the cafeteria and procurement, all living quite comfortably. As for the general administration office, while it had no official extra income on the surface, "Little Sword Wave," "Hawk Mountain," and Xue Dong secretly "paid tribute" every month. Why did they "pay tribute"? Because "White Dove" managed the "private stash" on behalf of Director Yang, the head of the office.

Zhou Lingri had told Sima all of this, intentionally or not, and it was practically an "open secret" within Section Two. Sima initially found it unbelievable, but he slowly came to understand it over time. Gu masters were mostly unruly and rebellious people; if the rules and restrictions were drawn too tightly, something would eventually go wrong. Guiding is better than blocking; going out for drinks, singing karaoke, taking a bath, or getting a massage every once in a while could hardly be charged to public accounts. The existence of the "private stash" acted as a lubricant and a buffer. Inspiration suddenly struck Sima, and he tentatively asked whether a "Gu master" like him could borrow money from the "private stash." Zhou Lingri was not surprised in the least; she printed out a standardized IOU form and told Sima to fill it out himself. Since he had just joined the agency, his credit limit was within 100,000 yuan, with a simple annual interest rate of 5% and a maximum term of no more than 10 years.

Sima was slightly dazed. Could such a good thing exist in this world? Without any hesitation, he borrowed 100,000 yuan for a term of 10 years. Zhou Lingri checked the form to ensure everything was correct, stamped it with "White Dove's" seal, and made a trip to the finance department. Upon returning, she told Sima that the matter was settled and the loan would be deposited into his account within three working days at the latest. As it turned out, Sima received the bank deposit notification text message that very evening. He felt a bit slow on the uptake, realizing only then that Section Two was so wealthy, "White Dove's" authority was so vast, and Zhou Lingri was trusted to such a degree. All of this completely subverted his perception, making him feel as though he had blindly stumbled into a "lucrative post."

The next day, Sima transferred the money into his stock trading account, converting it entirely into "Daqqin Shipping" shares as a long-term investment to achieve financial freedom.

Zhou Lingri was very curious about this. Feigning casualness, she beat around the bush and asked Sima why he was borrowing so much money all at once. Was he buying a house? Sima did not hide it from her; acting mysterious, he told her he had "inside information" and was trading stocks. Hearing this, Zhou Lingri was deeply disappointed and advised Sima with a few words, warning him that "inside information" in the stock market was merely a trap set by market manipulators to fleece people. Once you fell in, you couldn't crawl back out; even if it didn't kill you, it would strip off a layer of skin. Sima smiled and simply replied, "Yes, the stock market has risks, and investment requires caution," before changing the subject to avoid further discussion and instead asking about the "joint training" program. After all, he still needed a graduation certificate to deal with his family.

Reminded by this, Zhou Lingri remembered that Sima was still an undergraduate who hadn't graduated yet. After entering Section Two, he hadn't attended a single day of classes, leaving a loose end trailing back at his university. She made a phone call to Vice President Song of Beizhi Sports University and talked for a long time, learning that communication between the two sides was not going smoothly. Beizhi Foreign Studies University had strong objections to Sima's "unannounced departure," but considering the joint training agreement between the two universities, they hadn't expelled him outright, leaving a crack in the door. If he wanted to obtain his graduation certificate, he would have to take the professional course examinations.

Exams were precisely not a problem for Sima. The memories from his previous life remained intact, and a little bit of review would allow him to pass. However, doing so would be far too conspicuous and would expose his final trump card. Seeing him remain silent, Zhou Lingri suggested that he simply transfer his student registry to Beizhi Sports University, where he could easily obtain his graduation certificate after four years with minimal worry and effort. Sima considered this for a moment and followed her advice, asking her to have a word with Vice President Song to finalize the matter. Resolving everyday life problems for "Gu masters" was one of the duties of the general administration office, and Zhou Lingri did not decline, telling him not to worry at all.