Chapter 111: The Law of Genius

Pan Yun waited at the mountain gate, and Xuan Miao and Tao Ji soon arrived with Miao He, Miao Zhen, and Tao Yanbai; Tao Yanbai was holding a cat in his arms.

Pan Xiaohei was filthy all over; when he saw Pan Yun, he fluffed up like a startled cat and let out an angry meow, ready to complain—but Pan Yun rushed over and snatched him into her arms. “Yanbai, thank you for bringing him up. I couldn’t find him anywhere—where did you find him?”

Tao Yanbai: “As soon as Grandmaster brought you up the mountain, he jumped out of the grass and landed right in my arms.”

Pan Yun stroked the top of Pan Xiaohei’s head. “You nearly got lost. Don’t run off like that again when you go out.”

Pan Xiaohei’s anger faded, but he still mewed plaintively. “How could I get lost? I don’t believe you didn’t feel me lagging behind.”

Of course she felt him—precisely because she felt him, she remembered she had a cat. Otherwise, why would she have remembered him at all?

Because he always bickered with her? Because he climbed onto her bed without washing?

Pan Yun carried him back to the back courtyard, boiled a pot of warm water, poured it into the wooden tub used for laundry, and grabbed him by the nape of his neck, dropping him in.

Miao He watched with envious eyes, then ran off eagerly to fetch the soap used for laundry. “Use this—it’s new, just bought yesterday by Senior Brother.”

Pan Yun rubbed her hands full of foam and scrubbed it into his fur.

Pan Xiaohei flinched slightly when he hit the water, then settled in, clearly enjoying the attention from Pan Yun and Miao He.

Today Pan Xiaohei had run all over the village with the children—he was utterly filthy, and the water turned gray-black from the grime she scrubbed off.

As she scrubbed, Pan Yun said, “You’re not like a cat—you’re more like a dog.”

Nearby, Xuan Miao and the others were also doing chores.

Tao Ji washed his hands, cut off the meat needed for tonight’s meal, and prepared to salt and store the rest.

Wang Cong chopped firewood nearby. “Third Master, yesterday in the county town, I made an arrangement with the shopkeeper at Ren De Medical Hall to buy herbs at eighty percent price.”

Tao Ji frowned. “Ren De Medical Hall?”

Xuan Miao beside him said, “Fine.”

Wang Cong studied their expressions. “Is there a problem with Ren De Medical Hall?”

Tao Ji: “No real problem—just the shopkeeper’s mother once muttered unpleasant things about Fourth Mistress.”

Wang Cong immediately said, “Then we won’t go.”

Tao Ji: “!!!”

“You made a promise—how can you break it?”

Xuan Miao also frowned tightly.

Wang Cong: “No contract was signed.”

Tao Ji stared. “Just buying herbs—do you need a contract?”

Wang Cong: “In business, business is business. Without a contract, who knows if a verbal promise will be broken? The government office won’t recognize it.”

Tao Ji’s lips trembled; he turned to find Wang Feiyin. “Senior Brother, look what Cong’er has learned out there...”

Wang Feiyin still sat on his big rock; he replied indifferently, “What’s wrong with what he said?”

Tao Ji was speechless.

Xuan Miao continued picking vegetables, frowning.

Wang Feiyin warned the four younger ones: “You heard him. When you encounter someone like Wang Cong in the future, to avoid being cheated, always sign contracts for anything important—if the other party reneges, they must pay the penalty, so they’re forced to keep their word.”

Wang Cong nodded with a smile. “Exactly. When you go out to do things in the future, sign contracts when you should—otherwise, if you get cheated, you’ll have nowhere to appeal.”

Miao Zhen, Miao He, and Tao Yanbai stared wide-eyed, incredulous at the father and son.

Pan Yun’s eyes sparkled. “Senior Nephew is right.”

Wang Feiyin glanced at her. “Of all in this monastery, I trust you the most.”

Xuan Miao said, “Since you promised them, when you go to the county town next time, still go to Ren De Medical Hall.”

Everyone turned to stare again. Wang Feiyin looked furious, about to speak—but Xuan Miao quickly added, “Ren De Medical Hall is cheaper than the herb shops. We’re just doing it to save money.”

Wang Feiyin swallowed his words. He grumbled inwardly—if Pan Yun had said that, he’d believe it. But Xuan Miao...

Xuan Miao didn’t want Wang Cong to break his word.

Pan Yun asked curiously, “Aren’t the herb shops cheaper?”

“No,” Tao Ji said. “But they treat us well—they sometimes give us things. The dried jujubes you love most? They gave them to us. Not expensive, but every time we buy medicine, they slip us something—brown sugar, too.”

Miao He chimed in: “And malt sugar! Once, the shopkeeper even bought us candied haws!”

Wang Cong felt regretful. “I only knew we didn’t get discounts at the herb shops—I didn’t realize they nurtured this relationship. Then indeed, we shouldn’t just abandon them.”

Wang Feiyin asked from the side, “So what do we do?”

His tone was like a cold wind, chilling the heart.

Wang Cong thought briefly. “No problem. When I go to buy supplies, I’ll go to the medical hall. When Third Master and Fourth Master go, they can choose whichever shop they prefer.”

Miao Zhen: “Then won’t our monastery become a fence-sitter?”

Pan Yun: “No—we’ll become a prized commodity.”

She said: “If the herb shop is smart, they’ll come to Third Master and Fourth Master and offer us better prices. If they match the medical hall’s discount, we’ll switch entirely to the herb shop. Then the medical hall will come to us, offer an even better deal, and we’ll switch back. The herb shop will come again, and so on—until one day...”

“Until one day, you single-handedly crush both herb shops in Yushan County, and all the townsfolk throw rotten eggs at you,” Wang Feiyin slapped her head. “Go wash your cat. Stop thinking up such nonsense—you’re too young to be turning your nature upside down.”

Pan Yun muttered, “You say it’s fine when your son breaks his word, but why can’t I?” Pan Yun was beaten again with Wang Feiyin’s bamboo stick, ran two laps around the mountaintop, fell twice, and added fresh bruises to her already sore knees and arms—only then did Wang Feiyin let her go.

Pan Xiaohei was already clean, his fur dried, now crouched on a rock grinning at her, while Miao He crouched beside him, watching intently.

Seeing Pan Yun limp over, she exclaimed, “Little Master, this cat has become a spirit—it’s laughing at you.”

Pan Yun swatted at it.

“Meow—” Pan Xiaohei leapt away, dodging her hand, then turned and meowed at Miao He. “Meow, tattletale.”

Miao He didn’t understand cat speech; seeing it meow at her, she thought it wanted to play, lunged to catch it, and the two dashed wildly around the courtyard.

Pan Yun sat on the rock. “Play, play. When you get dirty again, we’ll wash you once more.”

Pan Xiaohei stiffened, leapt up onto the roof in three bounds, and vanished with a swift slide—no more teasing Miao He.

Though bathing was truly pleasant, he truly hated it before the water touched him.

Tonight, Tao Ji was cooking; besides him and the fire-tending Tao Yanbai, everyone else sat comfortably in the courtyard.

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Miao Zhen brought medicine to apply to Pan Yun’s wounds.

The injuries from yesterday, after a full day’s activity, had healed seven or eight tenths.

Pan Yun marveled, “Third Brother’s ointment is very effective.”

Miao He squeezed over. “I made it.”

“You make ointment?”

“Of course. I know so much—I can’t yet accompany Master on medical rounds, but I can make ointments, pills, and all kinds of medicinal waters.”

Pan Yun admired her. In her past life, she’d only begun cultivation at age eight, just learning basics—yet Miao He, at eight, already knew so much. “When did you start learning?”

Miao He counted on her fingers. “I watched the fire at two, lit it at three, began identifying herbs at four, and could handle them by six.”

Pan Yun looked up at the sky. “Senior Brother, do you see cows in the sky?”

Wang Feiyin: “She speaks the truth.”

Miao He finally realized. “Little Master, you’re saying I’m boasting!”

“Because it’s just too incredible—I had a master right beside me.”

“Master?” Miao He brightened again. “Yes! I’m a master! Miao Zhen is a master too!”

“Tell me, tell me, hurry up!” Pan Yun bumped her shoulder.

Miao He spoke seriously. “Miao Zhen has already finished studying the entire Dao Fa Hui Yuan.”

Pan Yun stared at Miao Zhen in shock, then raised a thumb in admiration. “Incredible—you’re only eight!”

Wang Feiyin walked over with his hands behind his back. “Next year’s Guangxin Prefecture exam—will you go?”

Pan Yun: “Can we even go?”

“You have no parents—no one will beat you if you go. Try it.”

Pan Yun: “I thought Senior Brother would make us train more, temper our temper, things like that.”

“Why temper your temper? Geniuses must walk ahead of ordinary people. Forcing yourselves to trudge alongside them is wasting time, wasting the wisdom Heaven gave you.”

Wang Feiyin said: “You’re eight and already doing what others can’t do until sixteen—you’ve gained eight extra years. When you’re fifty, you’ll have accomplished what others won’t reach until one hundred. Think: isn’t that worth being born for?”

Miao He and Miao Zhen nodded vigorously.

Pan Yun paused, then nodded too, murmuring, “Exactly right.”

Wang Feiyin beamed. “So work hard—you might actually pass the Guangxin Prefecture exam next year and go to the capital for your ordination certificate.”

The three’s eyes blazed with determination—they wished they could take the exam tomorrow.

Tao Yanbai watched from the kitchen, envious. He looked up at Tao Ji. “Third Master, should I take the exam too?”

Tao Ji: “Can you draw talismans? Can you perform rituals?”

Tao Yanbai slumped. “No.”

Tao Ji flipped his spatula. “Then don’t waste effort on what you’re not good at. Your strength is in alchemy and medicine—focus on that.”

Tao Yanbai glanced outside again. “I just feel the gap between me and the sisters is growing wider.”

Tao Ji: “You envy them—they envy you. The world works this way: people are never satisfied with what they have; they always stare enviously at what others possess.”

Tao Yanbai opened his mouth wide. “Am I like that too?”

“Your Master and I are too—what about you?” Tao Ji shrugged. “It’s fine. It’s just greed. Cut it off later.”

Tao Yanbai asked immediately: “How do you cut it off?”

Tao Ji: “When I cut mine off, I’ll tell you.”

Since Tao Ji hadn’t cut off his own greed, Tao Yanbai’s heart felt balanced.

Outside, Pan Yun pulled out her money. “Miao He, Miao Zhen—do you want to borrow some money from me?”

Today's lucky number is any number ending in 6, screenshot as proof.

(End of chapter)