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The next morning, Suning was awakened by a child's voice.

"Who are you? What are you doing sleeping in my house?"

Su Ning opened his eyes and saw a little girl standing in front of his bed.

She looked about five or six years old, with two little pigtails, wearing a red floral cotton-padded jacket. She was chubby, with round, rosy cheeks, like two apples.

She tilted her head and looked at Su Ning, her eyes full of curiosity, not shy at all.

Su Ning sat up and rubbed her eyes. "Are you Chang Ning?"

The little girl nodded, her two little pigtails swaying. "I'm Fan Changning. You still haven't answered me. Who are you? Why are you sleeping in my house?"

Su Ning smiled. "My name is Su Ning. Your father and mother let me live here."

Fan Changning tilted his head and thought for a moment, "You're the one who saved my father and mother?"

"Did your mother tell you?"

Fan Changning nodded and said seriously, "Mother said that a very powerful person saved my father and mother and drove away all the bad guys."

Then she leaned closer, looking Su Ning up and down, her eyes sparkling, "Are you really that amazing?"

Su Ning thought for a moment, "It's alright."

Fan Changning was dissatisfied with the answer and pouted, "How good is 'okay'?"

Su Ning was stumped by the girl's question.

He looked at the little girl, unsure of what to say.

Fan Changning leaned closer and lowered his voice, asking, "Do you know martial arts? Can you fly? Do you know boxing? Will you teach me?"

Before Su Ning could answer, Fan Changyu's voice came from outside: "Changning! Did you run in again? Don't bother Brother Su!"

Fan Changning stuck out his tongue, turned and ran out, but stopped at the door, turned back to Su Ning and said, "You promised to teach me martial arts! You can't go back on your word!"

After saying that, he ran away and disappeared.

Su Ning sat on the bed, stunned for a long time.

When did I agree to that?

Put on your cotton boots, stand up, and fold the quilt neatly.

Pushing open the door, the yard was a vast expanse of white. The snow had stopped, but the sky was still overcast and gray.

Fan Erniu was chopping firewood in the yard. He raised the axe, brought it down, and with a snap, the wood split in two.

"Brother Su, you're awake?" Fan Erniu wiped his sweat. "Breakfast is ready, it's warming up in the pot. Pear Blossom made sweet potato porridge and a few cornbread buns, go and eat first."

"Okay." Su Ning walked towards the kitchen.

Fan Changning ran out of the main room, grabbing Su Ning's clothes and refusing to let go, "You haven't taught me martial arts yet!"

Su Ning looked down at her, "When did I agree to that?"

“Just now!” Fan Changning said matter-of-factly, “I said you agreed to teach me martial arts, and you didn’t say you wouldn’t, so that means you agreed!”

Suning was speechless.

This girl has pretty clear logic.

"Haha..." Fan Erniu laughed loudly from the side, "Brother Su, why don't you teach her a couple of moves! This girl is really naughty, she keeps pestering me to learn martial arts, what kind of martial arts would a pig butcher like me know?"

Su Ning thought for a moment, "Alright! I'll teach you a couple of tricks later."

Fan Changning jumped up with joy, clapping his hands and running around in the yard, shouting, "Yay! I'm going to learn martial arts! I'm going to learn martial arts!"

Fan Changyu came out of the kitchen with a bowl of porridge in his hand. Seeing his younger sister running around wildly in the yard, he shook his head and said, "Changning, stop fooling around and let Brother Su eat."

Fan Changning ignored him and kept running.

Fan Changyu put down his bowl, chased after her, grabbed her hand, and led her into the main room. "If you keep making a fuss, I won't let you eat sweet potatoes anymore."

Fan Changning then became obedient and followed his sister into the main room.

Suning went into the kitchen and took out porridge and steamed buns from the pot.

The sweet potato porridge was cooked until thick, with the sweet potatoes cut into large chunks and cooked until very soft, and it was sweet.

The cornbread is made from cornmeal and steamed until fluffy. It's a bit coarse at first bite, but the more you chew, the more fragrant it becomes.

He sat in the kitchen and ate his porridge and cornbread with a plate of pickled vegetables.

After finishing his meal, he washed the dishes before leaving the kitchen.

Fan Erniu had finished chopping firewood and was stacking it neatly against the wall in the yard.

“Brother Su, the snow has stopped today. I’m going to check on the shop. It was closed yesterday, so I don’t know if anyone’s looking for it.” Fan Erniu patted the sawdust off his hands. “Would you like to come with me to town for a walk? To familiarize myself with the area.”

Su Ning thought for a moment, then said, "Okay, let's go take a look."

Fan Changning suddenly appeared out of nowhere, tugging at Su Ning's clothes, "I want to go too! I want to go too!"

Fan Erniu glared at her. "What are you going to do? It's cold in the shop. You stay at home."

Fan Changning was unhappy, her lips pouting so much they could hang an oil bottle on them, "No way! I want to go with Brother Su! Brother Su promised to teach me martial arts!"

Fan Changyu came out of the main room, took Fan Changning's hand, and said, "Changning, be good and stay at home. I'll tell you a story."

Fan Changning looked at his sister, then at Su Ning, hesitated for a moment, and reluctantly nodded, "Alright then! Come back soon! Brother Su, come back and teach me martial arts."

Su Ning smiled and said, "Okay."

Fan Changning extended his little finger, "Pinky promise."

Su Ning squatted down and made a pinky promise with her.

Fan Changning was finally satisfied and skipped back into the main room.

The big-eyed, adorable girl, Fan Changyu, glanced shyly at Su Ning again before following her mischievous younger sister back into the house.

It was too dark last night, so I only noticed that Fan Changyu had delicate features. But after looking closely today, I realized that she is actually a great beauty.

Fan Erniu, standing to the side, shook his head and smiled at Su Ning, saying, "This girl, I've never seen her so clingy. Brother Su, don't find her annoying!"

"No," Su Ning said. "It's quite cute."

Fan Erniu smiled, pushed open the courtyard gate, and beckoned Su Ning to come out, "Come on! I'll take you to see the town. Although our Lin'an Town isn't big, it has everything you need."

……

The two left the alley and headed towards the town. The snow had stopped, and people were shoveling snow on the road; the swishing sound came from every house.

Someone was shoveling snow on the roof. Snow chunks slid down from the eaves, hit the ground with a thud, and splashed up a cloud of white mist.

As Fan Erniu walked, he introduced the alley to Su Ning, "This alley is called Xigu Alley, and there are about ten households living here. The family at the entrance of the alley is surnamed Wang, and Old Man Wang is a carpenter. The family next door is surnamed Li, and Widow Li has a son who washes clothes for people in town. The family further ahead is surnamed Zhao, and Zhao is a blacksmith. He has a bad temper, but he's a nice person."

As Su Ning listened, he nodded, matching the names of the people with the storefronts.

Reaching the alley entrance, Fan Erniu stopped and pointed to the main street ahead. "This is the main street of our Lin'an Town. It sells all kinds of things. Further ahead are grain shops, cloth shops, restaurants, inns, clinics, and private schools. And further ahead is the vegetable market. My shop is right next to the vegetable market."

Suning took a look.

The main street isn't wide, but it's lined with shops on both sides, their storefronts removed and displayed outside. They sell everything from cloth and sundries to candied hawthorns and sesame cakes.

There weren't many people on the street, probably because it had just snowed and was cold, so most people didn't want to come out.

It's important to know that ancient heating technology was not advanced. Apart from burning firewood for warmth, people could only stay at home and tough it out.

Even in modern society, people in Northeast China still prefer to hibernate during the winter.

Through divine sense, I discovered that this unknown dungeon world was strange, seemingly a fusion of fantasy, imperial court, and everyday life.

This dynasty and terrain are not from a historical dynasty I am familiar with; it is clearly an alternate historical time and space.

The two walked along the main street.

Fan Erniu walked slowly, talking to Su Ning as he went, his voice tinged with pride, "Brother Su, don't underestimate our small town of Lin'an, it's very lively. During festivals, this street is packed with people, you can hardly move. Especially during the temple fair, there are opera singers, monkey trainers, sugar figurine sellers, sugar blowing artists, you name it. If you come in the autumn, you can even catch our town's temple fair, it's incredibly lively, people come from dozens of miles around."

Su Ning listened and nodded.

When passing by a sesame seed cake stall, Fan Erniu stopped, bought two sesame seed cakes, and handed one to Su Ning, saying, "Try it, Old Zhang's sesame seed cakes are crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, they're delicious."

Suning took it and took a bite. It was indeed delicious. The outside was baked to a golden brown and crispy, while the inside was soft and fluffy, with a hint of salt and pepper flavor.

The two ate as they walked, and when they reached the edge of the market, Fan Erniu pointed to a shop ahead and said, "We're here, that's my shop."

The shop was small, with a plaque hanging on the front that read "Fan's Meat Shop". The paint on the plaque had peeled off and was not very clear.

There was a table by the door, and it was clean and empty.

Fan Erniu took out his key, opened the door, and went inside. There was a strong smell of meat and wood inside.

Su Ning followed him inside and looked around.

The shop wasn't big, but it was kept quite tidy.

Several knives, large and small, were hanging on the wall, all polished to a shine.

The cutting board is made of a single piece of wood. After being used for a long time, a dent appeared in the middle, and the color changed.

In the corner was a large vat containing pickled pig's head meat, the lid tightly closed.

Fan Erniu walked around the shop, touching and looking at everything. "We weren't open yesterday, but nothing much happened. We'll tidy up today, and we can open for business tomorrow."

He opened the jar lid, picked up a piece of pig's head meat with his chopsticks, tasted it, and nodded, "Hmm, it tastes alright, it's not spoiled."

He closed the lid, turned to Su Ning and said, "Brother Su, if you're free, feel free to wander around town. I'll tidy up here and go back for lunch. If you get tired, come back to me, and I'll take you for tea."

Su Ning nodded. "Okay, I'll go for a walk then."

……

Suning left the butcher shop and wandered aimlessly down the street.

The streets gradually filled up with people. Some were selling vegetables from wheelbarrows, some were collecting manure with baskets on their backs, some were walking with donkeys, and a few children were having a snowball fight in the snow. Snowballs flew back and forth, hitting people and making them giggle.

Suning walked up to a tea stall and stopped to take a look.

The tea stall was small, with a few tables and benches. An old man was sitting there drinking tea. When he saw Su Ning looking at him, he nodded.

Just as Su Ning was about to leave, he suddenly heard someone call him from behind.

"Brother Su! Brother Su!"

He turned around and saw Fan Erniu running out of the butcher shop, waving a piece of paper in his hand, his expression strange, it was hard to tell whether he was happy or nervous.

"What's wrong?" Su Ning asked.

Fan Erniu ran up to him, took a couple of breaths, and handed him the paper in his hand, saying, "Look at this."

Suning took it and saw that it was a notice with a few lines of text on it, the ink still wet.

"The Wang family in Lin'an Town is hiring a head guard. The monthly salary is five taels of silver, and room and board are provided. Those interested should come to the Wang family compound for an interview."

After reading the notice, Su Ning looked up at Fan Erniu and asked, "What's wrong?"

Fan Erniu rubbed his hands together and lowered his voice, saying, "Brother Su, didn't you just come down the mountain for training? You can find something to do in Lin'an Town first. This job is suitable for you!"

Su Ning thought for a moment, "The head instructor of the guards?"

“That’s right!” Fan Erniu nodded, his eyes shining. “The head instructor of the Wang family’s guards teaches them martial arts and keeps watch over the yard to prevent theft. Five taels of silver a month! Five taels! I only earn two or three taels a month working at the butcher shop. If you go there, you’ll earn five taels a month, which is much better than me butchering pigs and selling meat.”

Su Ning glanced at the notice, then at Fan Erniu, and asked, "What kind of family is the Wang family?"

Fan Erniu pulled Su Ning to sit down next to the tea stall, ordered two bowls of tea, and introduced in a low voice: "The Wang family is a big family in our Lin'an Town. They are in the grain business. Half of the grain shops in the town belong to them. They have granaries, warehouses, and dozens of guards. Master Wang's name is Wang Degui. He is over fifty years old this year. He is a good man, but a bit stingy."

"Then why would they suddenly recruit an instructor?"

Fan Erniu took a sip of tea, looked around, and lowered his voice even further, "I've heard that things haven't been peaceful lately. There's banditry on West Mountain, as you've seen. It's not just West Mountain; it's happening to the north and east as well. A group of people from who-knows-where are robbing everywhere. Master Wang is scared and wants to hire more people to keep an eye on things."

Suning nodded.

Fan Erniu looked at him and asked cautiously, "Brother Su, do you want to go? If you do, I can introduce you. I know the Wang family's steward, surnamed Liu. Steward Liu is a very easy person to talk to."

Su Ning thought for a moment, folded the notice and stuffed it into his pocket, then said perfunctorily, "Let me think about it! Actually, I don't plan to stay in Lin'an Town for too long."

Fan Erniu's face immediately showed a disappointed expression. "Alright! I'll go find Constable Wang to get you your household registration and travel permit later, so it will be much more convenient for you to travel around the world."

"Good work."

"You're too kind! It's nothing."

In fact, Fan Erniu really wanted to keep Suning, after all, his own situation was quite special.

Last night, the bandits were clearly after him and Meng Lihua, since the couple was carrying a big secret.

Fan Erniu was also aware of how powerful their enemies were. If he and his wife were killed one day, it would be good for their two daughters to have someone like Su Ning to rely on.

Unfortunately, Suning doesn't seem to have much interest in staying in Lin'an Town.

...(End of this chapter)