Chapter 8: Buying a Little Maid

The sun was setting in the west.

Luo Zijun held his buttocks as he walked home.

Fortunately, his sister was busy cooking in the kitchen and did not notice; otherwise, she might have thought he had been "done" by someone.

There were still spots of blood on his trousers.

That girl Su Qingling really had a heavy hand!

Luo Zijun hurried back to his room to change his trousers, then went to the well to wash them.

His brother-in-law Li Zhengshan happened to return just then, and seeing him washing the trousers, asked curiously, "Zijun, what are you doing? Just leave the clothes there for your sister to handle, why are you washing them yourself? Have you become a stranger now that you've passed the exam to become a Cultivated Talent?"

"It's nothing, just one pair of trousers."

Luo Zijun felt a bit guilty.

Hearing the noise, Luo Jiaorong also walked out from the kitchen. Just as she was about to speak, her gaze fell upon the trousers in his hands. She froze, seemingly having thought of something, and immediately retreated back into the kitchen.

When Li Zhengshan arrived in the kitchen, she hurriedly whispered, "We need to buy a maid for Zijun."

Li Zhengshan was taken aback: "What do you mean?"

Luo Jiaorong glanced outside and whispered, "Zijun isn't a child anymore, and he still needs to study for exams for the time being, so he certainly won't be able to get married anytime soon. Buying a maid would, firstly, allow her to carefully attend to his daily life; she can help him organize his books, grind ink, and pour tea. When it's cold at night, she can also help him warm the bed and his feet. He's grown up now, and it's not very convenient for me to take care of him anymore."

Li Zhengshan understood immediately and couldn't help but laugh: "I see what you mean. You suspect that just now, on Zijun's trousers..."

"Stop talking!"

Luo Jiaorong hurriedly cut him off.

At this moment, Luo Zijun walked over and said from the doorway, "Brother-in-law, I have already practiced the Taizu Long Fist until I am proficient. Didn't you say there was some Inner Cultivation Method? Can you teach me now?"

Li Zhengshan laughed as he went out: "It's only been a few days, and you're already proficient? Perform it once for me to see first."

Luo Zijun said nothing more; he immediately set his stance and began to perform.

Every move and every form had quite a bit of momentum.

A look of surprise appeared on Li Zhengshan's face. After he finished, Li Zhengshan said with pleasant surprise, "Zijun, I never expected you to be a martial arts genius!"

He then sighed: "It's a pity. If you had practiced since childhood, your level would definitely be much higher than your brother-in-law's now."

At this time, Luo Jiaorong poked her head out from the kitchen with some vegetables: "Zijun needs to study for exams now and will have to go to the Academy later. Will practicing martial arts have an impact?"

Li Zhengshan pondered for a moment and said, "Zijun, your sister is right. Since you have chosen to walk the path of a scholar, you will have to give up on this martial arts."

Luo Zijun said, "I don't have many thoughts on it; I just want to practice a little in my spare time to strengthen my body."

He didn't know how to cultivate literature yet, so he could only practice martial arts first to increase his ability to protect himself.

Li Zhengshan nodded and said, "In that case, I will teach you a set of Inner Cultivation Method today. Practicing it when you have free time every day can indeed strengthen your body. However, this Inner Cultivation Method is not that simple. If you lack talent, it might be difficult even to enter the gate."

"Let's go, to the backyard."

Luo Zijun immediately followed him to the backyard.

Luo Jiaorong watched the two leave, pondered the matter of buying a maid for a moment, and then continued to cook.

After the meal.

Luo Zijun returned to his room to read.

After Luo Jiaorong and Li Zhengshan returned to their room, they discussed it in low voices again.

"Zijun's room doesn't have an outer chamber. If we buy a maid, she will certainly have to sleep in the same bed as Zijun. That boy is at the age of hot-blooded youth; will he become addicted to it and neglect his studies?"

"What are you saying! Which household doesn't have a maid? Zijun is a Cultivated Talent now; it wouldn't be right for him not to have a personal maid. As for the things you mentioned, I think it's better to guide than to block, so he doesn't end up getting desperate and fooling around in the Brothel with those other scholars."

"My wife makes sense. If he goes to the Brothel and catches a disease, that would be troublesome. Let's buy one, let's buy one. Anyway, these days, buying a maid doesn't cost many taels of silver. Let's find one who is clever."

"I'll take care of this matter; I must find one with a clean background. Alright, let's sleep."

"Um, wife, I'm also feeling a bit desperate..."

"..."

Inside the room, the lamp was extinguished.

Luo Zijun returned to his bed and, following the Inner Cultivation Method taught by his brother-in-law, began to breathe and meditate.

Soon, his abdomen felt a little warm.

It seemed as if a ball of flame was slowly rising in his abdominal area.

At the same time, he could clearly feel that there seemed to be a special kind of energy in the world that he was inhaling into his body, which then began to flow slowly within him.

Is this the Qi Sense?

When his brother-in-law taught him the Inner Cultivation Method just now, he said that some people might never be able to capture the Qi Sense in their entire lives, and even those with high talent would need at least half a month to a month.

That he could feel it so quickly must be due to his special constitution, right?

As for what specific special constitution it was, he didn't know.

However, that voice in his mind had said back then that in this world, besides obtaining the supernatural ability of "Mind Reading," he would also receive a special constitution.

That must be it.

Soon, he entered a hazy state of self-forgetfulness.

Unknowingly, it was already the third watch of the night.

When he woke up, he felt his whole body warm and comfortable, and he felt refreshed, without any sleepiness at all.

Can't be impatient; let the body adapt first.

He did not continue to practice, lay down, thought about things for a while, and closed his eyes.

The next day, the sun was bright.

When he arrived at the Pharmacy, Su Qingling was lying behind the counter in a daze, looking quite pretty. Seeing him, she ignored him. Luo Zijun said deliberately, "Senior Sister, you ruined my reputation. Last night I walked home holding my buttocks, and my trousers were red too. The neighbors saw it and were secretly gossiping behind my back, saying I had been 'done' by someone."

Su Qingling finally couldn't hold it in and burst out laughing: "Serves you right!"

When this girl laughed, her eyes were bright and her teeth were white; she was charming and moving, like flowers blooming as the ice and snow melted. She was truly beautiful.

Seeing that she didn't take yesterday's events to heart, Luo Zijun muttered a word and went inside.

In the inner room, Su Dafang was taking a patient's pulse and examining them.

After a moment, Su Dafang brought a middle-aged man out and said, "It's nothing, just a minor ailment. I'll write you a prescription; take it for a few days and you'll be fine."

Luo Zijun immediately ground the ink, preparing to write the prescription.

Some customers came here for examinations but did not necessarily want to get their medicine here. To avoid awkwardness, if the customer did not proactively mention getting the medicine here, they would write the prescription and hand it to them.

"I'll just get the medicine here."

The middle-aged man spoke up.

!

Only then did Luo Zijun put down the brush and ink and go behind the counter to fetch the medicine.

Su Dafang named each ingredient, he retrieved it, and after wrapping it up, he said to the middle-aged man, "That will be fifty wen in total."

The middle-aged man nodded, fished a small piece of broken silver from his bosom, and placed it on the counter.

Su Qingling picked up the silver, placed it on the scale pan to weigh it, and prepared to use the abacus to calculate the change.

Luo Zijun took a glance and said in a low voice, "It's worth one hundred and twenty wen; just give him seventy wen back."

Su Qingling looked at him, hesitated for a moment, opened the cash drawer, carefully counted out seventy wen, and handed it to the other party.

Luo Zijun also handed over the medicine.

The middle-aged man took the money and the medicine, expressed his thanks, and left the shop.

"Are you sure you didn't calculate it wrong?"

After the customer left, Su Qingling frowned and asked.

Such a complex number, and he could calculate it instantly without an abacus?

Luo Zijun said, "Of course I'm not wrong."

Su Qingling did not believe him and immediately started clicking the abacus to calculate. When she reached the second pass, she grabbed his hand onto the counter again and started counting on her fingers.

After calculating three times in a row and finding it was indeed correct, she said nothing more.

Su Dafang watched from the side, a smile appearing on his face: "Zijun, it's a pity you aren't a shopkeeper with your talent for arithmetic."

Luo Zijun said, "Master, I already said I would handle the accounts and money, but Senior Sister won't let me."

Su Qingling huffed and said, "You don't even have the surname Su; what if you steal my money?"

Su Dafang joked from the side: "Zijun, why don't you change your surname and take ours? When I eventually pass on, this Pharmacy and the... *ahem*, the medicine money and everything else in the Pharmacy will be yours, how about that?"

Luo Zijun said, "I don't mind, but I'm afraid Senior Sister will think I've stolen her family property and try to pinch me to death."

Su Dafang laughed heartily and walked to the corner to wash his hands.

Su Qingling huffed, clicked the abacus, and ignored him.

Seeing there was nothing to do, Luo Zijun went inside to continue reading.

At midday, Su Dafang went out alone with his Medicine Chest on his back.

When Luo Zijun wanted to follow, he waved his hand directly and said, "Study hard in the shop and strive to get into the Academy next month to make your sister proud."

Then he put on a stern face and said, "You two behave yourselves in the shop and don't fight again. Men and women should keep their distance; pinching each other back and forth, what kind of decorum is that? And specifically pinching bottoms—have you no shame!"

After he left, Su Qingling gave a cold huff and provoked him: "I went back yesterday and filed my fingertips sharper; do you want to try them?"

Luo Zijun was not to be outdone: "Senior Sister, although my fingernails aren't as sharp as yours, my fingers are more flexible. If I accidentally reach inside your skirt later, don't regret it."

Su Qingling looked at him coldly and said, "Do you think I wouldn't dare reach into your trousers?"

Luo Zijun's mouth twitched: "Senior Sister naturally would dare; at worst, we'd both be injured. So I advise you, Senior Sister, it's better to value harmony and not resort to force."

Su Qingling narrowed her eyes: "Then what if I use my feet? Do you like that very much?"

"..."

Luo Zijun lowered his head to read, ignoring her further.

The morning sunlight spilled in through the lattice windows, bringing the radiance and warmth of spring.

The two of them, one reading and one clicking the abacus, said nothing more.

Returning home in the evening.

Luo Zijun first practiced his punches in the backyard a few times, and after finishing dinner and returning to his room, he continued to practice the Inner Cultivation Method his brother-in-law had taught him.

This time, the flow of energy within his body became much smoother.

At the same time, at the location of his Dantian Sea in his abdomen, a faint light seemed to appear. As he breathed and exhaled, that light flickered, constantly flashing.

After three consecutive nights of cultivation, that point of light began to grow larger.

From being blurry and indistinct at the start, it became the size of a mung bean, and the rhythm of the light point's flickering and jumping became increasingly vigorous.

At this moment, Luo Zijun felt his whole body was filled with strength.

Could this be the Internal Energy his brother-in-law spoke of?

But he had only been cultivating for three days.

"The Literary Gathering is tomorrow night, I should be able to see Xu Xian. I wonder what that guy looks like, and if he's as handsome as me..."

(End of chapter)