In the thin fog of the early morning, as the roosters crowed, a carriage slowly stopped at the entrance of the medical hall.

Bai Li lifted the curtain, jumped down from the carriage, and stretched languidly.

She looked around but didn’t see the thin figure sweeping the ground.

Strange, just yesterday at this time, that person was still sweeping the ground at the entrance. Why aren’t they here today?

Are they still asleep?

At this moment, Liang Cao’er, carrying Liang Gou’er, also slowly got down from the carriage and headed inside the medical hall.

Liang Gou’er was tall and strong, yet on Liang Cao’er’s back, he was light as nothing. In the past, when Liang Cao’er carried him for ten or more li, it felt effortless, as if he wasn’t carrying anyone at all.

Liang Cao’er smiled honestly and bid farewell to the Gongzi and Bai Li Junzhu: “Gongzi, Junzhu, thank you for your hospitality. I’ll take my brother back to sleep first.”

The Gongzi smiled and waved his hand: “Go, go.”

After waiting for Liang Cao’er to return to the apprentice’s dormitory, Bai Li tiptoed to glance inside, still not seeing Chen Zong’s figure: “Strange, where did that black-hearted person go?”

Chen Zong wasn’t at the medical hall; he was currently walking on the bluestone slab road leading to the Dong Shi.

He walked below, while Hei Yun leaped lightly along the eaves of the roofs beside him.

One person and one cat walked side by side, the black cat on the roof, like a spirit silently guarding Chen Zong.

Dong Shi was already bustling. Goods coming from the south and going to the north gathered and dispersed here. Muscular workers, one after another, carried hemp sacks, coming and going incessantly.

Chen Zong found a breakfast shop and sat down at a small wooden table outside. Hei Yun lightly jumped into his arms, hiding inside his clothes, only exposing his head from the collar.

“Chen Zong, baozi!”

Chen Zong smiled and waved at the waiter: “Waiter, two cages of jiang rou baozi, one bowl of hot doujiang!”

“Alright! Guest officer, please wait a moment, the baozi will be right out!”

Once the baozi were on the table, Chen Zong’s right hand pinched a baozi and took a big bite, while his left hand held a baozi to his chest for Hei Yun to eat, mouthful by mouthful.

He ate very slowly, waiting silently.

Just as he finished eating the second baozi, a middle-aged customer came from the neighboring杂货铺: “Boss, how much is tu xiao?”

The boss sat cross-legged in the shop: “Three hundred wen a dou. Within three li, I can have a waiter transport it to your designated location… Guest officer, what are you buying tu xiao for?”

The customer smiled and replied: “My family makes huo cun tiao. We can’t go a day without tu xiao. Originally, I went to Old Li’s house every day for goods, but I don’t know why, his house didn’t open this morning. Boss, three hundred wen a dou is a bit expensive, can it be a bit cheaper?”

However, the boss said while cracking melon seeds: “Buy it or don’t buy it.”

The customer’s face sank. He flicked his sleeve and left: “How do you do business, can you talk? There are others in Dong Shi who sell tu xiao better, I don’t have to buy yours!”

The boss sat cross-legged, cracking melon seeds, completely unconcerned: “Then go buy it elsewhere.”

Chen Zong watched the customer leave. Immediately after, a young man dressed as a ‘chuan fu’ inside the breakfast shop, without even finishing his meal, immediately put down his chopsticks, stood up, and followed behind that customer.

Separated by more than ten steps, the young chuan fu who was tailing, stared intently at the customer in the crowd.

As he passed by Chen Zong, Chen Zong saw that the young man’s right hand had thick calluses at the tiger’s mouth, traces left by holding a weapon year-round.

Chen Zong understood in his heart: Jin Zhu had already made a move.

This Jin Zhu was more cunning and low-key than imagined. He guessed that what the Jing Dynasty wanted most was firearms, so after he came to Luo City, he quietly laid out his plans, closed shops, arranged secret agents to pretend to be merchants, and investigated everyone who wanted to buy tu xiao!

Jin Zhu was hiding in the darkness of this Luo City, like a spider, taking advantage of the Jing Dynasty’s military intelligence department’s relaxed vigilance to weave a large net.

The military firearms handed over by Yun Fei were likely stolen from the arsenal inventory with internal and external cooperation.

If Jin Zhu was smart enough, he probably had already started taking inventory and chasing back the stolen goods… I wonder if Yun Fei and the Liu family can withstand Jin Zhu’s investigation?

The Jing Dynasty’s military intelligence department and the Liu family had finally met a true opponent.

Chen Zong lowered his head and ate his baozi without moving. After he and Hei Yun finished two full cages of baozi, they stood up and left, both the person and the cat simultaneously letting out a satisfied burp: “Truly satisfying!”

Chen Zong leisurely strolled through Dong Shi. As he passed by a sugar shop, he quickly scanned his surroundings from the corner of his eye: The boss was diligently selling hong tang and bai tang. There were servants of high officials and nobles buying hong tang and bai tang, and no one was following or monitoring them.

After observing for a long time, he walked to the stall and inquired: “Boss, how much are hong tang and bai tang respectively?”

The boss smiled and replied: “Guest officer, hong tang is eighty wen a jin, this bai tang shuang is ten taels of silver a jin.”

Chen Zong’s eyes widened. This bai tang was simply outrageously expensive!

But he quickly figured it out: Most households in this era still used hong tang, and the method for making bai tang was each family’s secret, absolutely not to be spread.

Currently, only high officials and nobles could eat the “elegant” bai tang shuang; it was a true luxury item.

Chen Zong mumbled in his heart, should I make some bai tang myself?

No, I can’t.

The Tiangong Kaiwu recorded the huang ni lin shui tuo se fa, which was to rinse hong tang with huang ni water to make bai tang.

But in reality, in the era Chen Zong lived in, no one had ever successfully replicated the “huang ni lin shui tuo se fa”; this technique had already been lost.

Chen Zong took out a piece of broken silver: “Boss, I’ll buy one tael of tang shuang, just one tael.”

Carrying the package wrapped in cowhide paper, he bought another bamboo tube of Shao Dao Jiu. At this point, the materials for making gunpowder were complete.

Chen Zong walked among the crowd. Now he was no longer like an outsider guest, but more like a local young man of Luo City who had come to the market.

…

…

Night.

Perhaps the Gongzi and Bai Li Junzhu were tired from playing; they didn’t climb over the wall tonight.

Chen Zong waited until everyone was fast asleep before taking out the bamboo tube containing the tu xiao and coming to the main hall.

However, the first step in making gunpowder was not simply mixing tu xiao, sulfur, and charcoal in proportion, but purifying the materials.

This was also why Chen Zong firmly believed that his gunpowder would be more powerful than that of the Ning Dynasty: The Ning Dynasty’s chemical science was not developed enough, and they likely didn’t know how to purify these materials, only relying on crude methods.

Chen Zong took a slightly larger clay bowl and carefully placed it over an you zha deng.

Hei Yun squatted on the counter, tilted his head, and meowed curiously: “Chen Zong, what are you doing?”

Chen Zong prepared the materials while answering: “Before becoming a true official, I need to make some means of self-protection… Hei Yun, listen carefully. As soon as you hear someone approaching the main hall, tell me immediately.”

He knew that in this world, there were probably great masters who weren’t afraid of gunpowder, like the Bai Long, Tian Ma, and Bing Hu that Jin Zhu mentioned. If their speed was fast enough, they could dodge before the gunpowder exploded.

But he didn’t need to deal with those people; the gunpowder would be sufficient.

Just as he was about to pour the tu xiao from the bamboo tube into the clay bowl… A crow suddenly flew into the main hall of the medical hall!

Chen Zong and Hei Yun simultaneously stiffened. The person and the cat looked at each other for a long time without understanding each other.

Hei Yun meowed: “Will it tell your master about these things?”

Chen Zong silently re-closed the bamboo tube while quickly thinking of countermeasures in his heart. He was making gunpowder now, a secret that the Ning Dynasty’s craftsman’s office needed two thousand elite soldiers to guard.

Even if he was discovered secretly collecting tu xiao, it would probably cause big trouble.

Hei Yun looked at Chen Zong: “Should I catch it? Kill the bird to silence it!”

The next moment, the crow pointed at Hei Yun with its wing and cawed with laughter, full of mockery.

Hei Yun, unconvinced, jumped to catch it, but Hei Yun was fast, and the crow was even faster.

Two black figures moved up and down in the main hall of the medical hall. Chen Zong had already lit sixteen hu lu zao, and Hei Yun’s figure shuttled through the main hall, almost becoming a blur.

But even with such speed, he couldn’t even touch a single feather of the crow!

This crow had been cultivated by Yao Laotou for who knows how long; it had already become sentient!

Just as Chen Zong was about to tell Hei Yun to stop, a hoarse old voice rang out: “Enough, what are you making noise about in here in the middle of the night?”

Chen Zong stiffened. He slowly looked at Yao Laotou: “Master…”

Yao Laotou glanced at Chen Zong, but saw him slowly walk to the counter, curiously examining the you zha deng, bamboo tube, and clay bowl, always feeling something strange.

But even with his extensive knowledge and experience, he couldn’t figure out what Chen Zong was doing…

He frowned and asked: “What did you take the clay bowl from the kitchen here for?”

Chen Zong said: “Nothing, master. I just used this clay bowl to hold water to drink.”

“Oh, I see…”

Just as Chen Zong breathed a sigh of relief, he saw Yao Laotou take out six coins from his sleeve and throw them on the table.

With a series of clang clang sounds, the six coins landed in a hexagram.

Chen Zong’s heart jumped. Although Yao Laotou didn’t see what he was doing, he could divine!

Yao Laotou mumbled words to interpret the divination. Chen Zong was anxious in his heart, like waiting for judgment, not knowing what he would divine.

A moment later, Yao Laotou shook his head: “Strange, why can’t I see it?”

Saying this, he actually went to the window, pushed it open, held the window frame, and leaned his head out to look at the stars in the night sky, muttering to himself: “Great indeed Qian Yuan, the source of all things, is the unity of heaven…”

The next moment.

Yao Laotou suddenly turned back and looked at Chen Zong: “What is it that is so firm and strong and domineering!”

Chen Zong: Huh?

No, old man, do you really have psychic abilities?!

Chen Zong didn’t know what this divination meant, but Yao Laotou said “firm and strong and domineering,” wasn’t that precisely the characteristic of gunpowder?

Yao Laotou stared intently at Chen Zong: “I didn’t expect you to have this ability, to actually be able to make something like this. Why are you making this thing, do you want to rebel?!”

Chen Zong quickly said: “No, no!”

But he heard Yao Laotou say: “Do you know that if this matter is exposed, you will die without a burial place? Don’t say I didn’t protect you, even this Ning Dynasty world cannot tolerate you.”

Chen Zong was silent. He wasn’t sure of Yao Laotou’s position. If he really wanted to report him, then he could only escape.

It was a pity, he had just found his footing in this medical hall and thought he could settle down here.

Chen Zong raised his head and said: “Master, I didn’t think…”

Yao Laotou interrupted: “Sealing fee, six taels.”

Chen Zong: “?”

…

…

The main hall of the medical hall was dim. A cool autumn wind rolled in from the window, making the flame of the you zha deng flicker, casting dancing shadows on Chen Zong’s face.

“So you old man said all that just for a sealing fee?” Chen Zong said solemnly.

“Not entirely,” Yao Laotou said leisurely: “I’m not necessarily earning money, I’m saving your life.”

Chen Zong said with a pained heart: “Do you know that six taels of silver can buy a lot of things?”

Yao Laotou stroked his beard: “I know, it can buy you setting up a ladder for Bai Li Junzhu.”

Chen Zong: “…”

It turned out this person knew everything. No wonder the amount was the same as two road tolls!

Yao Laotou laughed coldly: “The medical hall is my medical hall. The Gongzi and Junzhu passed through here, what’s wrong with giving me a road toll?”

Chen Zong said: “But I also put in effort, I moved the ladder for them!”

But he saw Yao Laotou turn back to the main room, actually directly carrying out a bamboo lounge chair and placing it in the corridor between the main hall and the backyard: “I’ll watch the wind for you here, I’m also putting in effort. Pay me six taels, you can safely do whatever you want to do. With me guarding, no one will discover it.”

The huge bamboo lounge chair, in the hands of the ninety-two-year-old old man, was as light as a toy.

Chen Zong: “… Can it be like this?!”

Yao Laotou didn’t care that much, just firmly stretched out his hand: “Silver peanuts.”

Chen Zong, heartbroken, took out the six silver peanuts from his sleeve and slapped them into Yao Laotou’s hand.

Yao Laotou happily stuffed them into his sleeve, hummed a tune, lay down on the bamboo lounge chair, and closed his eyes to rest: “Those who obey the law worry every day, those who are strong and tyrannical sing happily every night…”

Chen Zong looked at him in silence for a moment, truly not knowing how to deal with this old man.

Finally, he gritted his teeth and said: “Master, don’t say I didn’t warn you, you’ve taken the money, from now on you might be an accomplice!”

Yao Laotou lightly snorted: “Threatening me? You’re still green. I want to see what kind of thing you can make.”

Chen Zong no longer spoke. He added clear water to the clay bowl and placed it over the you zha deng to heat slowly until the water temperature rose to about seventy-five degrees.

There was no formal method of measuring temperature in this era. Chen Zong only knew that when water boiled to eighty degrees, bubbles would start to appear at the bottom of the bowl. Once bubbles started, he would remove the you zha deng and wait for the water temperature to slowly cool down for five minutes, which would be the temperature he wanted.

Chen Zong then took out the tu xiao and cao mu hui, placed them in the clay bowl in an 8:1 ratio, stirred slowly with a bamboo stick for a quarter of an hour, and then slowly filtered it with rice paper.

Yao Laotou stood up at some point and was actually standing aside, watching intently.

Chen Zong ignored him, only boiling the tu xiao water again until only one-third of the water remained in the bowl.

He removed the you zha deng and focused on waiting for the thick liquid in the bowl to cool down slowly.

After the liquid in the clay bowl dropped to a temperature below that of a human’s armpit, Chen Zong used a bamboo stick to take a drop of the liquid from the bowl and lightly dotted it on the counter.

He saw that the drop of liquid met the cool, icy counter and instantly condensed into transparent crystals, like water turning into ice!

Yao Laotou’s eyes suddenly widened.

Chen Zong let out a long breath: It worked!

…

Today’s chapter.