One Word Gold

The strange young man remained silent, only giving a faint "hmm," and then sat cross-legged to meditate.

Ma Lei carefully placed the basket in his hands on the ground.

It's full of food inside.

These past few days, he's been the only one coming here to deliver food to the boy.

As for why it wasn't someone else...

Therefore, the three Sand Gang members who had previously delivered food to the boy were all dead, and he was the one who had lived the longest.

The reason he was here dates back to a month ago.

That day.

He was ordered by Shi Yuanbai, the young leader of the Sha Gang, to transport goods in Yongning Prefecture.

But to everyone's surprise, the goods had barely arrived when this young man from the Black Witch Cult came knocking on their door.

It was at that time that Ma Lei learned that Shi Yuanbai was secretly cooperating with the Black Witch Cult.

Ma Lei wasn't stupid; the legendary treasure that everyone was talking about might just be in the possession of this young man right in front of him.

He gave the boy a subtle glance.

But they dared not make the slightest overstepping move.

The young black witch in front of them had the ability to control demonic beasts. This red-tailed wolf was comparable to a bone-training martial artist. If he showed the slightest abnormality, he would be torn to pieces in the next instant.

Ma Lei put down the food and prepared to leave.

But just as he turned around...

The Black Witch Cult youth named Yesha slowly opened his eyes and uttered several names in a row: "Zheng Yue, Qian Hu, and Zhang Lie are in the mountains?"

Ma Lei bowed in response:

"Those three are not in the mountains."

"Understood, you may leave now."

The young black witch waved his hand, and only after Ma Lei's figure disappeared into the dark passage did a hint of resentment flash in his eyes:

"Those three old geezers..."

A few days ago, he was ambushed and killed by a group of experts from Baisha County. If it weren't for the secret intervention of the Sha Gang, he would probably have lost his life.

The situation is urgent.

He buried the things that Da Zhu had given him under an old pine tree.

But when he escaped and went to look for it again, he found that the place where the treasure was originally hidden had been dug up.

The thought of the horrific methods used by the Great Sage, methods that made life worse than death, sent a chill down the young Black Witch Cult member's eyes.

"I'd like to see which petty thief dared to take my things."

......

......

In the blink of an eye.

Seven days have passed.

Xiahe Village needs to send seven people up the mountain every day, which means it takes about three or four days to complete one round.

at this time.

Zhong Xuan's age advantage became apparent.

It would be laughable if someone in their sixties had to travel to such a large village every day. In addition, due to Xu Mao's arrangements, he usually only needed to go into the mountains once every five or six days.

This day.

In the kitchen.

"call......"

Zhong Xuan was completely submerged under the water in the large wooden tub, with only his head sticking out, and he let out a comfortable breath.

Just yesterday.

The imperial court's silver hair was lowered.

As a student receiving stipends, one could receive two taels of silver a month, which was enough to support a family for those scholars who were focused on preparing for the provincial examinations.

of course.

Zhong Xuan was practicing martial arts, so this amount of silver was naturally not enough.

But it sounds good when people say it, and now I'm considered a government employee.

With the help of the stipend and the silver from his affiliation, Zhong Xuan was able to take a medicinal bath with bone-strengthening medicine every few days, which greatly increased his blood and energy.

"It's time to prepare for the late stage of breaking through the skin training stage."

Zhong Xuan absorbed all the medicinal power from the soup, wiping his body with a cloth as he pondered.

The effects of the Human-Rank Root Bone were even more powerful than he had imagined.

Not only does it make practicing martial arts twice as effective, but it also greatly enhances the body's ability to absorb medicinal properties, resulting in a comprehensive improvement.

Zhang Linchun's ability to enter the Bone Refining stage at such a young age is not only due to his wealthy family background, but also inseparable from his top-tier human-level physical constitution.

Zhong Xuan arrived at the small courtyard.

He started standing in the sword stance again.

It was just past noon.

Then someone came to our door.

"Master Zhong, it's been a long time."

The steward of the Zhang residence had a broad smile on his face.

"So it's Steward Zhang. What brings you here?"

Zhong Xuan looked at the steward of the Zhang family with some surprise.

Since he became a government-subsidized student, the Zhang family had never asked him to copy books again. Today's sudden visit left him completely baffled.

The steward of the Zhang residence spoke respectfully:

"Master Zhong, the master has specially invited you to his residence to inscribe a piece for the renovated library. The price is fifty taels per character."

Zhong Xuan gasped.

Even though he knew the Zhang family was wealthy and powerful, he never expected them to be so extravagant.

Although it cannot compare to the legendary price of a single word, it is already enough to be considered a legend in Baisha County.

Zhong Xuan pondered in his heart.

Only after confirming that his relationship with Master Zhang was unlikely to be a trap, did he nod in agreement.

At fifty taels per word, he had almost raised enough money to buy the medicine.

Zhong Xuan nodded in agreement.

The steward of the Zhang family was overjoyed and waved to one side. Then, four people carried a sedan chair and landed in front of the Zhong family's old residence.

On the dirt road in the center of Xiahe Village.

A sedan chair stood out conspicuously.

This drew gasps of amazement from the surrounding villagers.

Just as everyone was speculating...

The man living next door to Zhong Xuan revealed the truth.

"Tsk tsk, Old Zhong is getting more and more impressive, he's become like a gentleman riding in a sedan chair."

As soon as one finished speaking, he was scolded by his elders.

"How dare you call Old Zhong 'Old Zhong'?"

"From now on, call him Old Zhong!"

Zhong Xuan sat in the sedan chair, and even through the fluttering curtains, he could feel the envious gazes of the villagers on both sides.

There was no sense of pride.

Zhong Xuan secretly guessed that the Zhang family patriarch's grand gesture was probably not as simple as just writing an inscription.

......

Half an hour later.

The sedan chair landed at the gate of the Zhang residence.

Unlike in the past, this time the steward of the Zhang family had already sent someone to open the main gate of the Zhang family mansion before the sedan chair was even alighted.

Zhong Xuan walked in through the two-zhang-high gate.

Only when you step over the threshold do you realize how high the threshold truly is for the wealthy and powerful.

He was led by the steward of the Zhang family to the familiar library.

The already magnificent library, after being renovated, features ancient mythical beasts carved by craftsmen on every eave, making it even more luxurious.

When Zhong Xuan walked through the door.

Zhang Lie, the patriarch of the Zhang family, was already sitting by the lakeside window on the first floor, holding a book in his hands.

Zhong Xuan glanced at it.

In the end, he resisted the urge to tell Master Zhang that this was a forbidden book.

"Master Zhang."

Zhong Xuan cupped his hands in a respectful gesture.

I've been copying books in this room for decades, but today is the first time I've spoken to the owner of this room.

"Brother Zhong, there's no need to be so polite with me."

"Don't call me 'Master,' just call me 'Brother.'"

Master Zhang put down the book in his hand.

He stood up with a hearty air, appearing unconcerned about formalities.

Zhong Xuan was not fooled by this illusion. Having lived for decades, he knew best that the bigger the business, the more one cared about their attitude.

So he simply chose to pretend he didn't hear it.

"Master Zhang, did you come today just to inscribe a piece of calligraphy?"

Zhong Xuan got straight to the point.

He knew that for a businessman like Master Zhang, beating around the bush was useless; it was better to be direct.

Upon hearing this, Master Zhang burst into laughter:

"Brother Chung is truly straightforward. I enjoy being around people like him."

"Brother Zhong, have you ever heard of the Cui family of Zhushan?"