A thousand enlightenments in one night, starting from being a menial apprentice.

Chapter 310 Medicine Boy
Duan Rong and his group walked down the stone steps and stopped in front of a courtyard.

The stone wall of the courtyard was simple and crude, but it was quite thick and tall, blocking the view of several people and preventing them from seeing the buildings in the courtyard.

The stone raised top of the courtyard gate is covered with glazed tiles, making it an arched top, which is completely inconsistent with the style of the courtyard wall and looks a bit out of place.

They walked closer and saw an old wooden door under the arch that had cracks and deformations in several places.

Hanging on the wooden door was a black sign carved from some unknown wood. On it were two crooked words written in cinnabar: "Lower House."

This was obviously where they reported in.

They looked at each other, all eyes filled with disappointment.

They were born in remote and secluded places, and the sect has always been a superior existence in their hearts.

Being able to enter a sect and become a registered disciple is a big deal in Xiangu County, and it can be said to bring honor to the family.

But looking at the courtyard before him, it was so shabby and shabby that it didn't have any of the dignity of a sect.

Ximen Kankan muttered, "This place is not even as impressive as the City God Temple in our county! Isn't it said that the sect is the sky of Qingzhou? The sky is so high, and the courtyard is so shabby. The gap is too big."

Duan Rong said, "Let's go. You don't care if it's run-down or not, as long as we're in the right place."

Duan Rong has never really cared about such things.

Duan Rong walked towards the courtyard gate, and Ximen Kankan and the others followed him.

Duan Rong wanted to knock on the door, but as soon as he touched it, the door opened. The courtyard door was actually ajar.

Duan Rong pushed open the door and saw that the ground in the courtyard was paved with stone bricks, with a lot of moss and weeds in the gaps between the bricks.

But there was no one in the spacious yard.

Duan Rong's eyes moved slightly and he stepped into the yard.

As they walked into the yard, a dark shadow suddenly flashed beside them.

Xiao Yu only saw a very scary face, red and yellow, flashing before her eyes.

Xiao Yu was so frightened that her face turned pale. She took a step back and fell into Duan Rong's arms.

Duan Rong hugged Xiao Yu, and then heard a loud howling sound.

They looked carefully and saw a baboon under the eaves of the house next to them, holding its stomach and laughing.

Duan Rong's face turned dark in an instant, because the bag on Xiao Yu's shoulder had been taken in the hand of the baboon.

Xiao Yu was both angry and annoyed. Duan Rong flashed and stretched out his right hand into a claw to grab the baboon.

When the baboon saw Duan Rong coming, it suddenly jumped to the other side of the roof.

Duan Rong's heart skipped a beat. "This beast is so fast!"

Seeing that the baboon was so agile, Xiao Yu and the others moved together and began to chase and intercept the baboon.

The baboon was not panicked at all. It ran around between the four people's bodies, occasionally uttering a few mocking laughs.

Xiao Yu's face flushed red, and her heart was in a turmoil.

There were some dry food and provisions in her bag, but that was not a big deal. The key point was that the bag also contained some of her clothes, including two close-fitting bellybands. If the baboon turned them out, how would she face people?

At this moment, a figure walked out from the side room on the east side. It was a young man wearing a loose Taoist robe. He looked to be in his twenties, with a fair complexion, sword-like eyebrows and bright eyes.

When the man saw the scene in the courtyard, he asked, "Are you the registered disciples who have come to report?"

Duan Rong said: "That's right!"

The man looked at a baboon holding a bundle under the eaves not far away. The baboon looked at them provocatively.

The man shook his head and sighed, "This beast was raised as a plaything by an elder of our sect. Unexpectedly, over time, it somehow developed a set of impressive Qinggong skills. Since then, it has become a nuisance."

The baboon suddenly slammed the bag in its hands and yelled at the fair-skinned young man, obviously dissatisfied with the young man's call it a nuisance.

Duan Rong's eyes flickered, and he suddenly turned to Ximen Kankan and said, "Kankan, let's intercept this beast again."

Ximen Kankan was already exhausted and out of breath, but when Duan Rong called him, he still nodded.

Xiao Yu said: "Duan Rong, how about... just forget it!"

The baboon was obviously very good at martial arts, far superior to them. How could they stop it so easily?

Duan Rong smiled faintly at Xiao Yu without answering. He flashed and rushed towards the baboon.

When the baboon saw Duan Rong rushing towards it again, it actually shouted excitedly, then jumped away again.

The baboon obviously hasn't had enough fun and is looking forward to people chasing it.
At this time, Ximen Kankan also approached the baboon, and the baboon turned and jumped in another direction.

Duan Rong leaped up and headed towards the baboon.

When the baboon saw Duan Rong flashing towards it, it started laughing and mocking him while trying to run away.

At this moment, Duan Rong suddenly threw the bag on his shoulder towards the baboon.

Baboons are still animals after all. When someone throws something at it, it will subconsciously grab it.

What's more, what Duan Rong threw to it at this time was the bag that it often snatched.

But at the moment when the baboon caught the bag thrown by Duan Rong, Duan Rong's body flashed and he had already slipped past the baboon.

Duan Rong had already taken Xiao Yu's bag from the baboon's hand.

The baboon was stunned for a moment before he suddenly realized that he had been fooled.

The baboon was furious and threw away the bag that Duan Rong threw to him, only to find that the bag was empty except for a stone.

The baboon grabbed the stone and threw it at Duan Rong. Duan Rong concentrated his internal energy and smashed the flying stone into powder with one punch, which then scattered in the wind.

The baboon was so angry that he bared his teeth and screamed...

But everyone was prepared, and the baboon only knew how to perform light skills. It was so angry that it broke a few branches in the yard, then jumped onto the wall and walked away.

Duan Rong watched the baboon walk away, shook his head and said with a smile: "This beast..."

Duan Rong dusted off the bag in his hand and handed it to Xiao Yu.

Xiao Yu looked at Duan Rong's attentiveness, and felt warmth and excitement in her heart. She was even more grateful to Duan Rong for helping her resolve the crisis.

Xiao Yu's eyes were as deep as a dark pool. He lowered his head and took the bundle.

"Thank you."

As soon as he finished speaking, Xiao Yu felt his face getting hot.

Ximen Kankan watched from the side for a while, and suddenly said, "Ah... Xiao Yu, why is your face so red? It's like that baboon's butt."

Xiao Yuxing glared and said angrily: "Get lost! Do you believe I will twist your mouth?!"

Ximen Kankan quickly jumped away and hid behind Duan Rong.

Duan Rong walked over, picked up the empty bag thrown by the baboon, and put his clothes back into the bag in the corner of the eaves.

The fair-skinned young man stood under the eaves, looking at Duan Rong with an interested look in his eyes.

It was the first time he saw someone take the bag back from the baboon.

Like throwing a sandbag, throw an empty bag to the baboon. Because of the animal's natural reaction, it will catch it, and the moment it catches it, the bag will be taken away from it.

This person's thoughts are amazing and ingenious!
Although he was just dealing with a beast, it was like a brilliant move in a game of chess, which made people applaud and praise in amazement!
The fair-skinned young man couldn't help but look at Duan Rong a few more times. Duan Rong put his bag on his back again, looked at the fair-skinned young man, and said, "Brother, may I ask where we are going to report?"

In this courtyard, there are three buildings in the east, west and north. Under each eaves, there are several doors, and there is a sign hanging next to each door.

The fair-skinned young man smiled and said, "Come on, I'll take you there."

Duan Rong smiled and said, "Thank you very much, Senior Brother."

The fair-skinned young man smiled and said, "Excuse me, Junior Brother, where are you from?"

Duan Rong said: "Yuanyang Prefecture, Xiangu County."

The fair-skinned young man said, "Yuanyang Prefecture? That's quite far!"

Yuanyang Prefecture is located in the southwest of Qingzhou, with a basin-like terrain and surrounded by mountains on all sides.

Poor mountains and bad waters produce unruly people!

The fair-skinned young man led them to the door of a room in the west building. He walked in and said, "Old Qin, a few more registered disciples have arrived..."

An old man with a sallow complexion and cloudy eyes was dozing off. He raised his head and muttered, "Why are there still people signing up at this hour?"

The fair-skinned young man said, "I'm from Yuanyang Prefecture! Qingzhou is so big, there must be a remote place, right?"

The fair-skinned young man looked at Duan Rong and the others, pinched his throat, and said, "Why don't you take out the sect's cloud certificate and show it to Elder Qin."

Duan Rong understood what he meant and immediately took out the sect's cloud certificate from his inner pocket and handed it over.

Xiao Yu, Ximen Kankan, and Shen Mizhi then placed their own sect's cloud certificates on the old man's desk.

The old man sighed and picked up Duan Rong's sect certificate impatiently.

Seeing that the old man had already answered the call, the fair-skinned young man walked out of the door silently. Duan Rong turned his head and glanced at the young man's back with gratitude, thinking: This senior brother is really kind-hearted!

The old man opened his pair of cloudy eyes like dead fish and stared at the faces of several people.

The sect's cloud certificate not only contains a simple portrait, but also a detailed description of the person's stature and appearance.

The old man checked carefully and confirmed that it was correct, then he took out a yellowed booklet.

He flipped through the booklet, first picked up Shen Mizhi's sect cloud certificate, looked at it for a while, suddenly looked up at Shen Mizhi, and said in a deep voice: "You, go to the Elders' Council, maid."

Shen Mizhi's face changed. "Council of Elders? Maid?"

The old man sneered and said, "Why? Judging from your expression, do you think I've insulted you? I know you are the daughter of an official family! Let me tell you, if you weren't the daughter of an official family, you wouldn't be able to enter the Elders' House. Do you think anyone can be a maid in the Elders' House?"

Shen Mizhi was frightened by the old man's bad attitude, but still asked timidly: "Is there any other place to go?"

The old man glared at Shen Mizhi, and seemed to notice the fear in her eyes. His expression eased a little, and he said, "The Elders' House is the best place. Where else do you want to change to? This is Taiyi Sect, the heaven of Qingzhou! A dog in Taiyi Sect is bigger than a county magistrate outside, not to mention that it is in the Elders' House."

The old man said this because Shen Mizhi's information stated that his father was a county magistrate.

These data were originally reported before the New Year, but Shen Yanliu's promotion order had not yet come down at that time.

Shen Mizhi wanted to say something, but looking at the old man's cold face, she swallowed her words.

She was originally a young lady, so why did she have to be a maid after entering a sect?

The old man put down Shen Mizhi's sect certificate, picked up Xiao Yu's, and said, "You, are you going to work as a stonemason in the stone workshop?"

"Stonemason?" Xiao Yu opened her mouth. She really never thought that she would become a stonemason one day.

Without waiting for Xiao Yu to speak, the old man picked up the sect certificates of Duan Rong and Ximen Kankan, glanced at the two of them, and said, "You two, go to the weapon shop and forge iron, right?"

"Blacksmithing?" Duan Rong and Ximen Kankan also felt a little depressed.

Stonemason, blacksmith, maid, it turns out that this nominal disciple came to the sect just to do odd jobs!

Ximen Kankan said indignantly: "Old man, what kind of work did you assign to us? Ironmaking, stonemasonry, are you treating us like animals?"

The old man sneered and said, "You came so late, what kind of work do you want? Do you think that I asked you to come to the sect so that you can be the boss?"

"You..." Ximen Kankan was about to lose his temper when Duan Rong held him down.

Duan Rong turned his head and looked at the old man, smiling, "Old Qin, don't be angry. Registered disciples are just doing odd jobs, and we know our status! I just don't know if there are other places to go. Please give us some advice."

The old man looked at Duan Rong and his heart skipped a beat.

He had seen a lot of these registered disciples, all of whom were children of aristocratic families. He really couldn't stand their ignorant and arrogant attitude.

But the boy in front of him could actually say that registered disciples were just doing odd jobs, which really made him look at him with new eyes.

Based on the old man's attitude towards them and the places assigned to them, Duan Rong instantly understood the status of the so-called registered disciples in the sect.

The old man said, "Pharmacist Shang is still in need of a medicine boy. But the requirements are quite high. He must be able to identify hundreds of herbs! Can you guys do it?"

The old man said this, looking at them with contempt.

When Ximen Kankan heard that he could be a medicine boy, his eyes suddenly lit up.

This job as a medicine boy sounds a lot easier than forging iron.

Ximen Kankan said: "My family runs a herbal medicine shop, and I grew up with medicinal herbs in my arms."

"Really?" The old man snorted coldly and took out a wooden board from under the table. Three medicinal herbs were nailed to the board.

The old man placed the wooden board on the table and said coldly, "If you can recognize one, you will pass."

Ximen Kankan looked at the three herbs.

There were three medicinal herbs, none of them looked like ordinary herbs. One was withered and yellow, one was frosty white, and one was covered with black hairs.

Ximen Kankan looked at the three herbs and his face suddenly darkened. He didn't recognize any of them.

The old man knew from Ximen Kankan's expression that he didn't know him.

Pharmacist Shang Xiangyu is so strict with the medicine boys. How could a kid from a county herbal medicine shop be worthy of his attention?
The old man asked, "Didn't you grow up holding herbs? How come you haven't held these three?"

As the old man was talking, Duan Rong suddenly pointed at the withered herb and said, "This should be the Xuanku vine!"

The old man's originally playful expression suddenly froze on his face.

Duan Rong continued, "This frosty white one should be an immature Artemisia frostii. This one with black hairs is a mature Artemisia nigra."

Duan Rong said this in a calm tone and stood aside.

The old man looked at Duan Rong with a look as if he had seen a ghost, and was speechless for a long time.

Seeing the old man's shocked reaction, Ximen Kankan, Xiao Yu and the others knew that Duan Rongquan was right.

Especially Ximen Kankan, his family runs a herbal medicine shop. He had never even heard of the three medicine names mentioned by Duan Rong, which was too weird.

Ximen Kankan looked at Duan Rong and asked, "Do you recognize them all?"

Duan Rong glanced at Ximen Kankan and said, "It's normal that you can't recognize them. These three plants are not medicinal! They are all poisonous weeds!"

"Poisonous weeds?!"

When Duan Rong said this, not only Ximen Kankan, Xiao Yu and others were shocked, but even the old man's heart skipped a beat. His hand, which was originally pressing on the edge of the wooden board, was pulled back as if it was burned by fire.

The old man's face turned dark, he didn't even know that those three plants were poisonous weeds!

(End of this chapter)