The fortune teller wrote something incoherently, and when he finished, he showed it to Lan Ya Mei. Lan Ya Mei was very satisfied and said to him, "Make ten more copies."
"Ten copies?" The fortune teller set up his stall on the street every day to earn a meager living, but these past few days no one had come, and he was struggling to make ends meet. Just then, this woman came along and asked him to write a notice. He accepted, but asked in confusion, "Won't writing so many be a waste?"
"Here's the money." He said, taking out ten taels of silver from his pocket and slapping it on the fortune teller's table.
The fortune teller quickly clutched the money in his hand, saying, "Too much, too much," but showed no intention of letting go, his face beaming with joy.
Lan Ya Mei wasn't angry. She just chuckled and said coldly, "This money isn't easy to spend! If a second person finds out what happened today, your life will be in danger!"
The fortune teller's smile froze instantly.
"Don't be afraid! As long as you keep your mouth shut, you and your family are safe. You're a smart person! Write it down now!"
The fortune teller broke out in a cold sweat. Clutching the silver, he didn't know whether to throw it away or keep it. Gritting his teeth, he wrote furiously, quickly making ten copies and handing them to Lan Ya Mei before packing up and running away.
Lan Ya Mei, after receiving the item, carefully checked it over and found it to be perfectly fine, with the handwriting also being quite good.
By this time, the little beggars had all eaten their fill. Because there were free buns for the beggars, in just the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, the number of people had increased from less than ten to nearly thirty.
Lan Ya Mei then said to them, "Come with me."
The group of beggars believed them without a doubt. After several twists and turns, they arrived at a secluded alley, where the person asked them, "Do you want a home? Do you want to have food to eat every day? Do you want to have a roof over your head when you sleep?"
Although the little beggars didn't know what she meant, they already knew she was a good person and all expressed their willingness.
Lan Ya Mei then said, "When I have money, I'll buy you a house in this alley. All the homeless people can live there. The older ones can take care of the younger ones, and we can all stick together and keep warm, okay?"
"Good! Good! Good!" the crowd shouted in unison, their emotions running high.
Lan Yamei then got to the point, "I have something I need you to do. Are you willing?"
A group of young beggars readily agreed, so Lan Yamei explained what she needed to do. To show her sincerity, she then contacted the owner of the house and bought it for over a thousand taels of silver.
Among them was a boy of about thirteen or fourteen, the tallest in the group. Lan Ya Mei handed him the land deed and the key, saying, "These boys are in your care. You must stick together to survive. I'll definitely bring you some good food when I have time."
"Thank you, sister!" The old beggar, who had been wandering for more than ten years and had always been beaten, was moved to tears as he took the lead in kneeling down and kowtowing to Lan Ya Mei.
Lan Yamei quickly stopped her, "No, no, no, I just can't bear to see people suffer. You are all good children, and you should know that unity is strength. What others can give is ultimately limited. You must be strong, and you must listen to this big brother from now on. He will definitely take good care of you."
She turned to the boy and asked, "What's your name?"
The little boy smiled shyly and said, "My name is Hong Qigong! There were many children in my family, but after the disaster, I was the only one left."
Lan Ya Mei was slightly shocked. She never imagined that this would become the famous Hong Qigong in the martial arts world, who would create the Beggars' Sect culture and make it the number one gang in the world.
Filled with admiration, she said, "Sister, you're good at fortune telling. You're sure to achieve great things in the future, and these children will have a bright future with you. Keep it up!"
Hong Qigong's eyes were bright. Although he couldn't understand his sister's words, he nodded nonetheless. From that moment on, a seed of ambition to rise above others and roam the martial world was quietly planted in his heart.
After Lan Yamei finished these tasks, she instructed, "You must not tell anyone else about what happened today. The more people know, the less safe we are. After dark, take a few nimble children and post all ten notices under the cover of night, making sure as many people as possible see them tomorrow."
"Don't worry, sister. I'll put one up at the Lin'an government office, one at the market, and one at each of the four city gates. I guarantee everyone in the city will know by tomorrow," Hong Qigong said confidently.
Seeing that the matter was settled, Lan Yamei put down the few taels of silver she had left and rode out of Lin'an City.
That night, a group of little devils, led by Hong Qigong, stayed in the old house. The next day, as dawn broke and the streets were deserted, a group of people quickly posted the notice.
Lan Yamei had a good night's sleep, and business at the shop was good. Menglan arrived early in the morning pushing a cart full of freshly slaughtered mutton and two carts full of radishes.
When Lan Ya Mei came downstairs to brush her teeth, the grandfather and grandson, who also ran the tofu pudding stall, had already set up their stall and were warmly inviting Tie Tou and Meng Lan to have a bowl for breakfast. Seeing Manager Lan come down, the little boy quickly presented a bowl, his face full of sincerity.
Lan Yamei took it, sniffed it, and smelled the aroma of soybeans. She smiled and said, "It's made with the real stuff! Not bad at all!"
The old man with the tofu pudding smiled and said, "Manager Lan, I'll listen to you. I've already sent my grandson to school. He's a quiet child, but he's very smart and hardworking. He's only been there for three or five days and his teacher has already praised him."
“That’s right! Selling tofu pudding can only make a living in the short term. Studying more and striving for a better future is the way to make a living for a lifetime.” Lan Yamei took a sip of tofu pudding. She had been busy these past few days and hadn’t had time to secretly add chicken essence, but the taste was still pretty good. So she asked, “This tastes good. Did you adjust the flavor?”
The old man humbly said, "The girl's recipe is one in a million, and I can never replicate it. One day, I was feeling down at home when my grandson said he was hungry. I was too lazy to wash the dishes, so I filled the bowl with chicken soup and then filled it with tofu pudding. To my surprise, it tasted exactly like the girl's recipe. From that day on, I got the inspiration. Every day, I would boil some chicken soup, mix it with the seasoning water, and then pour it over the tofu pudding. It was delicious."
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