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

Chapter 326 Dead Man's Stuff

Early the next morning, Duan Rong came to the building with gray walls and black tiles of the medicine pavilion.

Xia Honghua was sitting lazily behind the curved counter and yawning, when she suddenly saw Duan Rong walking slowly towards her.

"Ma'am, I'm coming to report to you now."

Xia Honghua smiled, looked at Duan Rong, and said, "I thought you looked down on my little temple, little brother. Are you not coming?"

Duan Rong smiled and said, "Madam, you are joking. There is a female Bodhisattva like you in this temple. Even if she is small, she must be very effective."

Xia Honghua's eyes lit up with laughter as she said, "Hey... little brother, you look quite honest... why are you so glib when you talk?"

"Just trying to make Madam smile." Duan Rong suddenly said solemnly, "Madam, you know that last time I came here with my senior brother, we exchanged a few hundred kinds of medicine. These past few days, I've been busy processing herbs and helping Master refine medicine. I only had time to come to your place today. I hope Madam will not blame me!"

Duan Rong's words not only narrowed the distance between them, but also explained the reason. Xia Honghua couldn't help but feel more favorable towards Duan Rong.

"It's okay." Xia Honghua said, "It's good enough that you can come, little brother. Come, follow me."

As Xia Honghua spoke, she led Duan Rong into the room behind the curved counter.

This room is built with wooden boards and has no windows on any side.

It stands strangely and abruptly in the center of the hall on the first floor of the pavilion.

When Duan Rong walked into the room, he felt his eyes darken and saw a narrow corridor. The room was actually divided into several compartments.

There was a candle lamp hanging on the ceiling of the corridor, emitting a dim light.

Xia Honghua took Duan Rong to the innermost compartment. She took out the key and opened the copper lock hanging there.

Xia Honghua stood at the door, blew out the fire stick in her hand, walked into the room, and lit a candle on the table.

Duan Rong also walked into the room.

Standing at the door, he smelled a faint musty odor. In this cramped and long room, there was a wooden table in the middle, and shelves and boxes were placed against the walls around it.

Xia Honghua walked to a wall, opened a box, took out two thick books and placed them on the table.

Xia Honghua turned her head and saw Duan Rong still standing at the door, so she smiled and said, "Why don't you come over here? Why are you standing so far away? Can I eat you?"

Duan Rong smiled awkwardly, walked slowly to the wooden table, looked at the two rather thick books, and asked, "Excuse me, Madam, what are these books?"

Xia Honghua did not answer, but looked at Duan Rong with interest and smiled: "Why don't you take a look for yourself?"

When Duan Rong heard Xia Honghua say this, he opened one of the booklets.

Duan Rong flipped through a few pages at random, then looked up and asked, "Is this the account book for exchanging medicines?"

Xia Honghua's eyes lit up with joy, and she said, "You are indeed an expert."

Xia Honghua asked, "Little brother, since you are proficient in mental abacus, you should also understand accounting calculations, right?"

Duan Rong said: “I understand a little bit.”

Xia Honghua said, "Although I don't know abacus mental arithmetic, I have heard people talk about it. Abacus mental arithmetic is not as simple as mental arithmetic. Usually, only a family with abacus skills can master it after being trained since childhood. And such a family usually works as an accountant for others, right?"

As Xia Honghua spoke, she stared at Duan Rong, as if she wanted to see through him.

Duan Rong sighed inwardly and could only playfully say, "Madam, you are indeed very insightful. To be honest, my family has been accountants for generations."

Xia Honghua was even more delighted to hear Duan Rong say this, "Brother, to be honest, my old accountant has been ill for more than two months. The accountant's work has been piled up for more than two months. I was hoping that he would recover and give me the work, but he suddenly became seriously ill a few days ago and passed away."

"You said that in more than a month, it will be the half-year accounting period. This work has been delayed for more than two months, and I am getting anxious and irritated. I am so anxious every day. It is also a pity that I met you, my little brother."

As Xia Honghua spoke, she actually touched Duan Rong's collar with her lotus finger.

Duan Rong immediately took a half step back and said with a smile, "Excuse me, Madam, the half-year settlement period is the beginning of July, right?"

Xia Honghua immediately said seriously, "The third day of July. The Council of Elders will send someone to check the accounts that day."

Duan Rong nodded and said, "Are you only checking the accounts of the exchanged medicines?"

Xia Honghua's eyes lit up when she saw that Duan Rong had hit the nail on the head. It was true that an expert could tell whether something was good or not just by looking at it.

She smiled slightly and said, "Of course not. The account for exchanging medicines belongs to the account for outbound delivery."

"Also, on the 3rd, 13th, and 23rd of every month, the medicine pavilion will replenish the medicines in the pavilion based on the monthly outgoing accounts. These replenishments are based on the incoming accounts."

"Besides that, it's the inventory accounting."

“Outbound, inbound and inventory must be checked against each other.

"Combining the three accounts into one, without leaks, is a perfect account!"

Duan Rong's eyes flickered slightly when he heard this. He tapped the account book on the table and said, "These two are the account books for outgoing goods. Madam, please bring out the account books for incoming goods and the account books for inventory counting for a whole month. I want to take a look."

"Little brother, please wait a moment."

Xia Honghua saw that Duan Rong's speech was becoming more and more reliable, and unconsciously, her attitude towards Duan Rong had changed. She even seemed to feel a little respectful towards him.

Xia Honghua took out account books from the shelf and another box.

Duan Rong quickly flipped through several account books in the dim candlelight.

Duan Rong suddenly pointed at one of the first two account books and said, "Why is this account book so messed up? I think some entries are in the wrong place!"

When Xia Honghua heard this, her face suddenly turned slightly red, and her originally bright eyes began to flicker.

As soon as Duan Rong saw her expression, he knew what was going on.

Xia Honghua paused, still hesitatingly saying: "The accountant is not here! I have to copy and register by myself... I am not familiar with the work of an accountant, so it is inevitable that I will make mistakes..."

Duan Rong asked, "How many months did you spend transcribing and registering?"

Xia Honghua said: "The old accountant fell ill in early March. It was March or April."

Duan Rong said, "The old accountant's accounts shouldn't be a big problem. I'll just check them. But the accounts for the past two months he's been away might be a little complicated, and many details need to be adjusted. And as you know, Madam, accounting is a complex matter. It's a huge undertaking!"

Duan Rong said this with an embarrassment on his face.

Xia Honghua's heart skipped a beat, and she asked nervously, "What? Can't we figure it out before the mid-year accounting period?"

Duan Rong looked serious and said, "It's only the beginning of May. There are still about two months left, so it should be possible."

When Xia Honghua saw Duan Rong say yes, she finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Duan Rong said, "Madam, we have such a heavy workload and we have to catch up with the progress. Can you raise the daily points a little bit?"

Upon hearing this, Xia Honghua rolled her eyes at Duan Rong.

It turns out that the boy acted so embarrassed just now and scared her just to negotiate with her.

"That won't work." Xia Honghua pulled out a handkerchief from her sleeve, wiped the sweat off her cheek, and said, "When the old accountant was here, it was only two contribution points a day."

"If I give you more for no reason, people will gossip about me." Xia Honghua said, glancing at Duan Rong meaningfully.

Xia Honghua's look made Duan Rong shudder.

Since the old accountant was still around, the payment was only at two o'clock every day, so it was really not easy for him to ask for more.

Duan Rong hesitated and said, "Then let's do this. Madam, you know my situation. I'm still working as a medicine boy for my master, so I can't come to check your accounts every day. We'll pay you contribution points monthly, 60 points per month. I promise to do a good job for you every month. However, I'll arrange my own time. Don't interfere with when I come or when I don't. What do you think?" Xia Honghua asked, "Can you finish all the accounts for the first half of the year before the mid-year check?"

Duan Rong said, "Of course. Since I've accepted this job, I won't let Madam fail in her mission."

Xia Honghua's eyes flickered as she smiled coquettishly, "Your words have really relieved a worry in my heart. To be honest, I haven't had any appetite these past few days. I've been so worried about the mid-year accounting that I've even lost weight..."

As Xia Honghua spoke, she gently stroked her slender and graceful waist, and her eyes became blurred.

Duan Rong's eyelids twitched when he saw Xia Honghua's seductive posture.

He suddenly said, "Madam, I have another request."

Xia Honghua's eyes suddenly lit up and she said, "You say."

Duan Rong said, "I'd like to advance half a month's contribution points."

Xia Honghua's eyes dimmed when she saw Duan Rong was talking about the advance payment of contribution points. "I'll write you a note later. You can go to the Guangluyuan and cash it in yourself."

Duan Rong clasped his fists and bowed his head, saying, "Thank you, Madam."

Seeing Duan Rong's cold attitude and polite manner, Xia Honghua felt bored and said, "Then you can check the bill here. I'll leave first. If you have anything to say, come to the counter and find me."

After Xia Honghua finished speaking, she twisted her waist and walked out of the room.

Duan Rong wiped the sweat from his forehead, glanced at the door, and couldn't help but chuckle, saying softly: "It's really good for cooling down! If Ximen Kankan was here, maybe he would like it!"

Duan Rong said this and closed the door.

His eyes hardened, and he immediately began to work on the accounts. He was going to make a timetable for the progress of the work...

Although Duan Rong only looked at a few account books, he already had a basic idea in his mind. For him, this job was like using a sledgehammer to crack a nut.

He had devoured the spirit of Li Jun's bronze abacus and had already reached the level of being able to weave together a thousand numbers.

This is just two months' accounts, can that be called a job?

Duan Rong only stayed in the room for two hours before locking the door and leaving.

While he was checking the accounts, Xia Honghua had already handed him the note for exchanging 30 contribution points and the key to the room where the account books were kept.

Duan Rong walked past the counter, greeted Xia Honghua, and said, "Madam, see you tomorrow."

"Are you leaving now?" Xia Honghua saw that it was only noon, and she thought Duan Rong would come and work until the evening.

"Yes. I have something else to do, so I'll come back tomorrow." Duan Rong said, and left.

Xia Honghua looked at Duan Rong's back with a suspicious look in her eyes, and said, "I wonder if this boy is a hard-working person?"

Duan Rong first went to Guangluyuan, took the note signed and sealed by Xia Honghua, and gave it to the people there.

When the people from Guangluyuan saw the note, they took out a special key with a matching number, inserted it into the middle hole on the back of Duan Rong's star plate, turned it a few times, and then handed the star plate back to Duan Rong.

Duan Rong took it and looked at it, only to see that the number of points on the star chart had changed from seventy-five to one hundred and five.

Duan Rong put the star plate in his sleeve and left the Guangluyuan.

Duan Rong returned from Guangluyuan to the hilltop where he worked as a medicine boy. He first went to the dense forest and got some wild game to satisfy his hunger.

Then he went to the medicinal garden he took care of and took a look. He pulled aside the lush leaves of the Artemisia annua and checked the moisture of the soil at the roots. Duan Rong felt that there was no need to water it for the time being, so he went to practice in the dense forest.

Duan Rong practiced all four martial arts before going back to his cave, grabbing two sacks and returning to the dense forest.

Duan Rong walked deeper into the dense forest and spread the sack there.

He found that he couldn't always catch poisonous insects in the same place. After three visits, the sack was no longer full and he had to change places.

After Duan Rong caught the poisonous insects and fed them to the black blood vines, he grabbed two rolled-up empty sacks and headed towards his cave.

He walked not far from the cave entrance, and suddenly saw Yin Cong waiting at the cave entrance in the dusk, wandering left and right.

When Yin Cong saw Duan Rong, he said, "I came here this morning, but you were not there. I figured you should be back by now."

Duan Rong raised his eyelids and said, "I went out this morning."

Yin Cong glanced at the empty sack in Duan Rong's hand and said, "Go feed the black blood vine."

"Ah."

Duan Rong walked into the cave, and Yin Cong followed him in.

When Duan Rong saw Yin Cong coming in, he took out a fire starter and lit the candle on the stone table.

Duan Rong sat on the edge of the stone bed, while Yin Cong sat on a stone bench against the wall.

As soon as Yin Cong sat down, he looked at Duan Rong and whispered, "Is old man Qin from the lower house here today?"

Duan Rong's eyes flickered. "What are you doing here?"

Yin Cong said, "It's not Tang Zhu's fault. He was said to have died from an accidental furnace explosion. After Old Man Qin came to see him, he reported the matter to the sect."

Duan Rong remained silent, his eyes flickering constantly.

Yin Cong continued, "Not long after Old Man Qin left, they buried Tang Zhu. Do you know what Old Man Qin said when he came?"

"What did you say?"

"He said, another one died."

Duan Rong's eyelids couldn't help but twitch.

Yin Cong lowered his head and said, "From what Old Man Qin said, a registered disciple died here before I came. It was because of that person's death that I came here. I have been here for more than a year."

Yin Cong suddenly raised his head, stared at Duan Rong, and said, "Duan Rong, do you know why you came here?"

"Why?" Duan Rong sensed the fear in Yin Cong's eyes.

Yin Cong said, "There was originally a registered disciple here named Wei Luan. Two months before you arrived, he suddenly disappeared."

"disappeared?"

"I was very confused at the time. This kid was about to pass the three-year exam and was about to take the registered disciple exam. How could he suddenly disappear? Now I know, Duan Rong, he is not missing, he is dead."

As Yin Cong spoke, his deep voice began to tremble, and his hands tore at his pants tightly with fear. "The cave you live in now is where he used to live."

The muscles on Duan Rong's face twitched, and he suddenly felt uncomfortable.

He was using many things in the cave, including the bedding on the stone bed. He originally didn't care much about these things, but he didn't expect that they were all things of the dead.

This cave was where Pan Yong brought him to live.

Pan Yong must have known at that time that Wei Luan was dead, and it was even possible that he had killed him.

He knew that the things in there were from a dead person, yet he deliberately let him use them...

His heart can be killed.

(End of this chapter)