Chapter 535: Hmm, this person looks familiar. [Seeking monthly votes]
Ning Yan was lost in thought when the soldier leading the way spoke up.
"Mr. Jiang, the person has been brought."
The scholar first looked up in surprise, his reaction slightly slow, then pointed to the mat in front of him.
He said calmly, "Sit down."
Ning Yan became increasingly suspicious of the scholar's identity.
After she sat down, she pretended to be worried and hugged her daughter tightly. Since her blood and energy had not yet recovered, she really looked sickly: "The doctor just now said that my daughter and I both had abnormal pulses. I wonder what kind of hidden illness or stubborn disease it is, and whether there is a cure?"
"You and your daughter?"
The scholar seemed somewhat surprised.
He thought it was just one person, but it turned out to be a mother and daughter.
That's quite unusual.
It's worth noting that this nationwide health checkup campaign has been underway for over ten days, with staff traveling to various counties and villages every day. Many people have been brought to him, but only a few are truly capable. Often, after a whole day's work, he only manages to find a handful.
Some are too old, their talents wasted beyond redemption, while others are too young and mediocre...
Finding a good prospect is largely a matter of luck.
He hadn't even opened for business yet, and he thought he'd go home empty-handed. But then, two people showed up!
Ning Yan nodded timidly.
Jiang Sheng had not yet embarked on the path of a scholar—all because of the exhaustion and travel of the past few days, which had taken a toll on both his mind and body, and he had to conserve his literary energy—he gestured for Ning Yan's daughter to extend her wrist: "Madam, do not worry, allow me to take your pulse and examine it carefully."
Ning Yan sneered inwardly.
He was convinced that the scholar before him was a fake doctor.
We just don't know what they're up to.
The young daughter didn't know what was happening, but her father had told her that doctors were kind people who helped her get rid of her pain, and that she should be obedient in front of the doctor and not cry and make a fuss, troubling her mother. So, she carefully offered her slender wrist.
Jiang Sheng also had some knowledge of traditional Chinese medicine.
He observed, listened, inquired, and felt the pulse with great skill and practice.
Aside from being a little weak and tired, the little girl had no other ailments, likely due to her recent travels. Jiang Sheng thought to himself, then gathered his literary energy at his fingertips and silently channeled it into her meridians, simultaneously activating the Path of the Scholar.
Ning Yan wasn't in a hurry to urge him.
Unexpectedly, Jiang Sheng's first words were not about the outcome, but rather he began to question the mother and daughter about their origins: "May I ask, are you and your daughter not from Longwu County?"
Ning Yan nodded and said, "I'm from out of town."
Jiang Sheng said, "Oh, no wonder..."
"Is this illness also related to geographical location?"
Jiang Sheng shook his head: "It's nothing."
If that thing is indeed an illness, then it does have some connection—before his lord appeared out of nowhere, both men and women in the world actually possessed innate talent and aptitude. The only difference was that one could store and refine the energy of heaven and earth, while the other could not.
Jiang Sheng had just tested the girl with his literary aura and found that although she had excellent aptitude, she could not retain her literary aura as before.
You could tell at a glance that they came from out of town.
Ning Yan held back.
Follow-up question: "Is my daughter's illness curable?"
"This matter is not urgent. Please, Madam, extend your hand for a look."
Ning Yan: "..."
The boy who had come with the soldiers almost stepped forward to argue when he heard these words—he had never seen such a strange quack doctor in his more than ten years of life! He suspected that this so-called free clinic was just a charlatan deceiving ignorant people into paying for shoddy medicine!
Ning Yan did as instructed.
Her expression changed the moment her wrist touched her fingertips. She quickly withdrew her hand, abruptly raising her head to look at Jiang Sheng with sharp eyes.
He demanded, "What are you doing!"
My daughter is too young to be sensitive to literary style.
Even if I have feelings, I don't know how to express them.
But Ning Yan is different.
During the years when she and her husband lived in a hut in the mountains to observe mourning, the couple often spent their time exchanging and discussing spiritual teachings.
Yan An never hesitated to share his knowledge. Whenever he made a breakthrough, he would use the method of manipulating the Qi of words to travel along the meridians in her meridians to share with her the differences and mysteries of each Word Spirit. Ning Yan was already extremely talented and could often draw inferences from one instance to another to gain new understanding.
Although she couldn't absorb the energy of heaven and earth, her body was acutely sensitive to literary energy, allowing her to clearly feel its flow through her meridians. Only Yan An had ever done this before. For her, this action carried a touch of private intimacy.
Jiang Sheng's behavior was offensive to her.
"You can feel it?"
Ning Yan, filled with shame and indignation, replied: "Otherwise what?"
Jiang Sheng didn't know where her anger came from, but his clever mind grasped the truth—everyone's sensitivity to external literary aura differs; some are less perceptive, while others are exceptionally perceptive, and the other person was a woman…
It's speculated that Ning Yan is the latter.
Having figured this out, Jiang Sheng apologized somewhat awkwardly: "Please forgive me, Madam. I had no intention of flirting or disrespecting you."
"I suppose my daughter and I don't have any hidden or incurable illnesses, right? Sir, why don't you speak frankly about why you did this? Are you really under Lord Shen's command?" Ning Yan knew that she had overreacted, so she softened her expression and went straight to the point.
"Judging from the lady's tone, she doesn't seem like someone from an ordinary commoner family..."
Jiang Sheng gave an irrelevant answer.
Ning Yan took a deep breath.
"Why bother asking so many questions, sir? This trip is merely to deliver some important items to Lord Shen on behalf of my fellow disciples. If you are under Lord Shen's command, that's fine. If not—" His eyes held a hint of wariness and threat, showing no fear of his current predicament.
If Ning Yan is allowed to let a bunch of swindlers run rampant on her turf, she'll have to reassess Shen Tang's abilities.
"The lady's fellow disciple?"
“Note by Xu Wen, Prefect of He County”.
Jiang Sheng's curiosity was piqued—wasn't Xu Wenzhu the head of the Tianhai Xu clan? How did he become a junior brother of a mere woman? And why did he send her to escort something important to his lord? He didn't doubt the truth of Ning Yan's words.
“I naturally serve under my lord. Without your permission, how could I dare to make such a grand display?” Jiang Sheng stood up. “Since you are an envoy sent by Lord Xu, Madam, why don’t you accompany me? My lord has been very busy lately and is not currently at the capital…”
Ning Yan's attempt to rush straight to Ru Yao will likely be fruitless.
"Very good."
She thought for a moment and then agreed.
As Jiang Sheng stepped out of the bamboo shed, he glanced at the boy and said, "Why don't you come along too? This is a strange day..."
Three came in a row.
This young man's luck was clearly inferior to that of Ning Yan and her daughter.
but--
Something is better than nothing.
With careful nurturing, it can also be used.
Jiang Sheng and his group temporarily settled in a relatively large village nearby, renting several rooms from the village head. To expedite the medical examinations, the government split into several groups, bringing in potentially talented individuals each day for Jiang Sheng to examine in detail.
Jiang Sheng had a heavy workload, and Kang Shi and the others were not idle either.
When he returned with Ning Yan and the others, Kang Shi was gulping down water without any regard for his image. In just two or three days without grooming, a short, bluish-green beard had sprouted, making him look rather unkempt. Just as he was about to drink his second bowl, Jiang Sheng's voice came from outside the door.
"Ji Shou, where is our lord now?"
Ning Yan stopped in her tracks upon hearing this.
Then I heard Kang Shi's voice.
"Our lord went to the neighboring town to look at piglets. That unscrupulous merchant somehow heard the news and bought up all the piglets from the surrounding villages. He even wants to raise the price... How can our lord tolerate him?" Kang Shi said, turning his head and looking past Jiang Sheng.
Hey, I see a very familiar face.
"Cough cough cough—"
I almost choked on a mouthful of cold water.
"How could it be you?"
There was a hint of avoidance in his words.
Jiang Sheng's gaze swept between the two of them, and he raised an eyebrow.
He vaguely heard that Kang Shi was a gambler and a womanizer. Could it be that he just happened to run into his former lover?
On closer reflection, it's not impossible.
Although the woman looked haggard, her features were still quite regular.
Adding a few more points to one's complexion would make one even more radiant and charming.
Ning Yan said, "It's me."
"You...have come looking for me, Kang?" Kang Shi put down his bowl, patted the water off it, and turned his gaze to the little girl Ning Yan was holding. He could vaguely see the outline of his close friend in her eyebrows and eyes, and his eyes couldn't help but well up with tears. "This child is..."
Jiang Sheng's brows were so furrowed they could trap a mosquito.
There's actually a murder case involved here?
Ning Yan nodded gently.
Kang Shi took out a jade pendant, squatted down, and looked at the girl, saying, "I didn't expect you to be so grown up. I didn't prepare in advance. I'll accept this gift for now... and make you another one later..."
The girl hesitated to accept it and looked up at her mother.
Ning Yan said, "I will accept your kind offer, elder."
Kang Shi calmed himself down and looked at Ning Yan.
"Did he...send you here?"
Ning Yan shook her head: "No."
Putting aside Ning Yan's own choice, even the backup plan that Xingning arranged for her and her daughter, Kang Shi was not the best option. This encounter was purely accidental: "Because of Junior Brother Xu's request, I helped him transport grain over, which should be what Lord Shen needs."
Kang Shi's attention was drawn to the words "grain cultivation".
"How many?"
Ning Yan said, "We have enough for this year's spring planting."
Kang Shi was overjoyed and hurriedly said, "Xian Deng, this good news must be sent to inform the lord as soon as possible..."
Jiang Sheng meant the same thing.
Ning Yan's timely help came just in time. To express his gratitude, his lord could not neglect her.
Just as they were about to send someone, they keenly sensed that Shen Tang's presence was approaching the village entrance. From afar, they could hear her voice mixed with the grunting of a group of piglets: "...That unscrupulous merchant is really asking for trouble, demanding exorbitant prices... Doesn't he know this land belongs to Shen? Selling a piglet for the price of an adult pig, he's got a death wish! He even wants to use the government procurement route to falsify accounts? Does our government have enough people to do procurement?"
It wasn't just her, the prefect, who personally intervened!
(*￣︿￣)
I went for a stroll around a certain place today, and wow, it was quite lively.
First, shiitake mushrooms aren't a flop, even though they don't make a lot of money.
Secondly, there's no need to be so envious of how much traffic I'm reaping from this bestselling male-oriented novel recommendation. I still update 2,000 words a day on this bestselling male-oriented novel platform, do you dare to do that? I said it's a test, and it's a test. If I were really serious about reaping traffic, I would have been working like crazy and writing 10,000 words a day in the last three to five days. The book's performance isn't bad either.
In the female-oriented online literature market, which is a low-traffic area, even a single post on Xianyu (a Chinese online forum) can generate 15,000 to 16,000 new posts every day. Meanwhile, those in the male-oriented online literature market, with its huge traffic pool, haven't even reached the premium level yet. Shouldn't they feel a little ashamed?
Third, I didn't lie. I said that the test lasted one day and that the book was tested for one day. You're blaming me for your own misunderstanding?
Fourth, if you have any questions, just give feedback to the editor. Don't post screenshots and make personal attacks. Ask why they recommend female-oriented books instead of yours. Don't you have any self-awareness?
P.S.: I've added some numbers; the chapter should end at the most appropriate point.
(End of this chapter)
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