"Accompany you?" Xu Qi'an thought to himself, of course not, if it was just you, I could bear it, but with your malicious aunt, it's not possible.

"I know it's too much. Big brother has to go to the yamen tomorrow, but mother insisted that I come and persuade second brother to guard the door."

Xu Lingyue must have been lying when she said she was scared, but she blamed her mother.

Guard the door... Uncle Er must be enjoying himself at the Official Brothel Sector, but he wants me to guard his wife and daughter... Xu Qi'an sighed and reluctantly agreed, "Okay."

He put on his clothes and brought a black gold long knife to calm his aunt and sister.

"I'll sit outside, you guys go to sleep." Xu Qi'an tapped the door with his finger.

"Okay, thank you big brother."

"Thank you, Dalang."

The voices of his sister and Lü'e were soft and pleasant, but his stubborn aunt remained silent.

Xu Qi'an sat cross-legged, cultivating his qi while visualizing in his mind. After a while, he heard his aunt speaking softly, "What if something comes in through the window and Ning Yan falls asleep?"

"...Mother, don't say nonsense, big brother has a knife with him."

Upon hearing that her nephew was guarding outside with a knife, his aunt felt relieved.

There was silence in the room for a while, except for Xu Lingyin's snoring. One could imagine her lying on the bed, mouth open and snoring loudly.

After a while, his aunt called out, "Ning Yan?"

Xu Qi'an replied irritably, "I'm here."

So, he coughed every now and then to reassure the women in the room with his magnetic cough.

His aunt and sister were right to be afraid, because this house really had ghosts, not just imaginary stories.

As time passed, this fear would naturally fade away.

After a while, his aunt complained, "Lingyue, don't stick so close to me, it's too hot."

"Mother~" Xu Lingyue's voice was both aggrieved and coquettish.

His aunt was concerned about her daughter and didn't say anything else. After a while, she suddenly lowered her voice and said, "Lingyue, you've grown up so much now?"

Xu Qi'an's ears perked up. At first, he didn't think much of it, but his aunt's tone was strange. He listened carefully and heard his sister's embarrassed reply:

"Mother, don't make fun of me, I'm not as big as you."

"Nonsense, your mother has already given birth to children, but at your age, you didn't have such a size." His aunt sighed and said, "You're at the age to get married."

Xu Lingyue remained silent.

...Poor Lingyue, so young and already has two tumors in her chest. Xu Qi'an's mouth twitched and he almost laughed at his own sarcasm. He felt that guarding the door wasn't so boring after all.Auntie said again: "You live next to Daling, remember to be careful when bathing. The ears and eyes of martial artists are sensitive, so be careful."

"Mom, are you saying that big brother will peek at me while I'm bathing?" In the darkness, Xu Lingyue's eyes shone.

"I won't, I didn't do it, don't wrong me... I bathed with Fu Xiang at the Official Brothel Sector, there's no need to peek." Xu Qi'an felt that his aunt was as malicious as ever. Since he couldn't confront her directly, she was trying to sow discord between him and Lingyue.

"If Daling won't peek, then you won't be careful about anything?" Auntie spat on her daughter and then turned to listen to her nephew coughing from time to time, continuing to speak with peace of mind.

...

Xu Qi'an didn't sleep all night, practicing his breathing and refining his spirit. He was still energetic after dawn.

During breakfast, Xu Pingzhi came back in military uniform, without carrying a green orange. Xu Qi'an believed that his uncle had really been on duty last night, not at the Official Brothel Sector.

"Last night, Lingyin ran out and slept by the well..." Auntie told her husband about what happened last night. "Luckily we still have Ningyan at home. If he wasn't here, something really would have happened..."

At this point, the timid aunt got scared again, purely scaring herself.

Uncle Xu nodded at his nephew and asked, "What was Lingyin doing sleeping by the well in the middle of the night?"

Xu Qi'an said, "It's all because Auntie lied to her and said that ghosts taste better when fried in oil than anything else. She got greedy."

"Oh." Uncle Xu nodded, thinking that this was something his young daughter would do, nothing to be surprised about.

After moving to the new house, one could sleep in a little later in the morning, and it was very convenient to ride a horse there, only half an hour away.

Xu Qi'an went to Li Yuchun's Spring Wind Hall as usual to report for duty at the yamen. After confirming that there were no tasks assigned for the day, he went out to patrol the streets with Song Tingfeng and Zhu Guangxiao.

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In the market, the people flowed endlessly, the peddlers roamed the streets and alleys, and the shops were full of customers. The prosperity of the inner city far surpassed that of the outer city.

Xu Qi'an planned to take Song Tingfeng and Zhu Guangxiao to the health preservation hall again, but the two little brothers refused to go no matter what.

So he went alone and met Heng Yuan and "Black Dog" there. He learned that the poor child's health had improved, and he breathed a sigh of relief, feeling as if a heavy burden had been lifted from his heart.

"Master Xu, there's something I want to ask." Heng Yuan put his palms together.

"Please speak, Master." Xu Qi'an smiled, feeling quite relaxed.

"Master Xu, when you first saw that child, you said something..." Heng Yuan stared at him. "Master Xu said: Is this that child?"

"Master Xu seems to know him, but I remember that you had no connection with him." ...Damn it, the impact that day was too great, and I accidentally revealed it. Xu Qi'an smiled, looking calm on the surface but starting to panic inside."Number six wouldn't suspect that I'm number three, right... Speaking of which, I picked up some money in front of him that day... Well, it's not a big deal to just pick up some money, everyone has their lucky moments... But number six will definitely have doubts, thinking that I'm not normal, and might have already suspected me to be number three."

"But the image of the Confucian scholar that I've created has already taken root in the hearts of the members of the Heaven and Earth Society. The first impression is always the most important and cannot be changed, so number six can only suspect at most..." Xu Qi'an sighed and said, "I've heard number three mention it before."

He didn't explain further, leaving the rest to Heng Yuan to imagine. First of all, Heng Yuan would definitely question the so-called "superior-subordinate" relationship. The Heaven and Earth Society was not a secret force, but the Heaven and Earth Society in the outside world was composed of Taoist Master Jin Lian and other members of the Di Zong Daoist sect.

The real secret force was the Heaven and Earth Society composed of the holders of the fragments of the Di Shu. How could number three casually reveal such a thing to his subordinates?

Then, number six Heng Yuan would investigate him with such doubts. As he investigated, he would find out that Xu's cousin was a student of the Confucian Academy.

At this point, he would feel that he had discovered something important.

Sure enough, Heng Yuan didn't say anything and just nodded slightly with a serious expression.

...Actually, it didn't matter whether his identity was exposed or not. Number six Heng Yuan was a good person. Well, mainly because I bragged too much online... I feel like it would be shameful if my identity was exposed... Xu Qi'an said goodbye and left.

Back at the yamen, Xu Qi'an received a letter from the Heavenly Observatory sent by a white-robed person, saying that Chu Caiwei's alchemy had made a major breakthrough and Song Qing called him to discuss it at the Heavenly Observatory.

...So soon? Xu Qi'an rode his horse and arrived at the observatory.

He saw Song Qing and Chu Caiwei in the alchemy room on the seventh floor, both with dark circles under their eyes.

"Caiwei, you should rest more." Xu Qi'an thought to himself, has she become a time management master too?

Chu Caiwei, with thick dark circles under her eyes and a blank expression, looked even more cute and said tiredly, "I haven't slept for three days..."

Song Qing took out a porcelain bottle from his sleeve and handed it to Xu Qi'an. "Take a look."

Xu Qi'an opened the wooden stopper and poured some powder into his palm. The mushroom powder was mixed with tiny crystal particles, and a strong umami taste spread on his taste buds, making his tongue tingle.

"How did you make this?" Xu Qi'an was shocked.

"Grain fermentation, adding honey, and purification..." Song Qing waved his hand and didn't want to explain. "If you want to know the process, I'll have Caiwei write it down for you. You first check if this is what you're looking for."

Xu Qi'an pondered for a moment and said, "It tastes very similar. Is this thing poisonous?"

"No, it's not."

"Then it's settled."Song Qing nodded and said, "This thing is more precious than salt. If it is to be popularized, the court will inevitably monopolize it. In the past, everything produced by the Bureau of Heavenly Masters was managed by the court, and the Bureau of Heavenly Masters took a 30% share of the annual earnings. I have discussed with Brother Yang and decided to give you a 10% share."

The reason for only giving a 10% share was that Xu Qi'an only proposed the concept of MSG and some theoretical steps, some of which were correct, while others led Song Qing and Chu Caiwei down many wrong paths. In this new type of alchemy, Chu Caiwei and Song Qing's contributions were greater.

"Fair distribution." Xu Qi'an nodded and probed, "So, how much silver can I get in a year? Well, I know there is no evaluation basis, so Brother Song can estimate it roughly."

"It depends on how the court plans to sell it," Song Qing pondered and said, "If it's only 10%, then several thousand or tens of thousands of taels of silver? I'm talking about within the boundaries of the capital."

After he finished speaking, he found that his hand was firmly held in Xu Qi'an's palm. This man spoke with a deep and sincere voice, saying, "May our friendship last forever."

"Your words...are heavy."

...

In the imperial palace, in the imperial garden.

Wei Yuan accompanied Emperor Yuan Jing for a walk in the imperial garden. The warm sun shone down on this royal garden, which covered an area of 20 mu and was planted with various rare flowers and trees. Winter and spring were completely different landscapes.

"Frost kills all the grass and flowers, and the trees wither. This seemingly desolate scene, upon closer inspection, has its own unique flavor," Emperor Yuan Jing said with his hands behind his back, implying something.

Behind him, Wei Yuan, who was half a step behind, pondered and said, "Your Majesty, desolation has never been a beautiful sight."

Faced with the contradiction from the high-ranking eunuch in green, Emperor Yuan Jing just smiled and said nonchalantly, "In the coming spring, the flowers will bloom naturally."

Wei Yuan seemed to be arguing, "It's still early for next spring. I don't know how long this desolation will last."

Emperor Yuan Jing glanced at him sideways. "What do you think, Wei Qing?"

Wei Yuan replied gently, "The sight of blooming flowers is certainly beautiful, but unfortunately, after the spring comes the winter, and the prosperity will fade away... Your Majesty, look at those evergreen trees that remain throughout the four seasons, regardless of the spring breeze, autumn moon, summer, or winter snow. Removing the complex and diverse flowers and plants and leaving behind the evergreen trees is the way to longevity."

Emperor Yuan Jing's smile faded, and he looked at Wei Yuan with cold eyes. Wei Yuan, in his big green robe, smiled warmly and his gaze was gentle, not retreating half a step.

The emperor and his subject looked at each other for a long time. Emperor Yuan Jing said lightly, "The empress caught a cold a few days ago, and after her body recovered, she lost her appetite and hasn't eaten much in the past few days."

"What do the sorcerers of the Bureau of Heavenly Masters say?" Wei Yuan finally moved his gaze away and bowed, "Shall I go and see her on your behalf?"

"Her appetite is poor, but her body is fine, so she just needs to rest," Emperor Yuan Jing said, "But I see that the empress has lost a lot of weight. Wei Qing, go and check on her for me."

"Yes, Your Majesty!"PS: The monthly ticket is almost caught up, just a few days left. Gentlemen, help me secure a spot in the top ten of monthly tickets~