Great Zhou: Emperor Wu, I need to check your taxes.

"Hey! What did you say?!"

Hearing Chuntao's words, Xiahe buried her head in her knees in embarrassment.

"Madam, that's...that's so embarrassing. Shouldn't we move away a bit?"

However, the scene inside the room was completely different from what the two maids had imagined.

On the couch, Su Qingtan sat cross-legged, wearing only a thin undergarment, which was already soaked with sweat.

Her skin had an eerie pink hue, like a steamed hairy crab, as if she had a fever.

Lin Yun was sitting behind her, his palms pressed against several acupoints on her back, his forehead covered in fine beads of sweat.

Although the air inside the gauze curtains was filled with the scent of women, Su Qingtan's graceful figure was right in front of her, her white clothes clinging to her skin, her stunning curves wide at the top and bottom and narrow in the middle.

But Lin Yun really had no other intentions.

Just now, using the cleaned Xuan Tie Herbal Cauldron and dozens of nourishing herbs I bought from the pharmacy, I attempted to refine my first batch of pills—the Black Chicken White Phoenix Pill.

After I tried it myself and confirmed that it was fine, I naturally wanted to give it to my sister-in-law to help improve her blood and qi deficiency.

Although it hasn't reached the level of being a high-grade medicine, its effects are still quite potent for ordinary people who have never cultivated.

[Audit Subject: Su Qingtan]

[Special reminder from close partners: 80% of the blood and qi stagnation has been cleared, and the symptoms of uterine coldness are subsiding.]

"call……"

Lin Yun let out a long breath, slowly withdrew his palms, and returned the last trace of true energy guiding the medicinal power in his body to his dantian.

"Sister-in-law, it's done."

Su Qingtan's body went limp, and she gasped for breath.

As the burning sensation subsided, it was replaced by an unprecedented feeling of ease.

The backaches and pains that had accumulated over the years, as well as the dampness and cold that would flare up on rainy days, suddenly felt warm and cozy, as if a heavy burden had been lifted off my shoulders.

"Yunlang...this medicine of yours is truly miraculous."

"Uh... I guess you could call me a god, but sister-in-law, could you please get up? I'm feeling a bit unwell..."

Su Qingtan felt better, but Lin Yun suddenly felt uncomfortable!

Lin Yun was sitting cross-legged behind Su Qingtan. When she suddenly went limp, her body fell onto Lin Yun's shoulder.

Moreover, to support herself, she had just pressed her hand down behind her back, which landed right on Lin Yun's waist.

Although it wasn't a heavy blow, it was still half the force of her body pressing down on him, especially those ten restless fingers, which made Lin Yun unbearably itchy, wishing she could pull them down...

Upon hearing this, Su Qingtan propped herself up. Her originally pale face was now rosy and glowing, making her look several years younger.

The charm of a mature woman is even more captivating under the lights.

She turned to look at Lin Yun, her eyes filled with gratitude and tenderness, and reached out to wipe the sweat from his forehead.

But in this way, the front of the white gauze undergarment, which was already soaked with sweat, was now directly fixed in Lin Yun's pupils!

"As long as my sister-in-law is healthy, that's more important than anything else!"

Lin Yun subtly avoided Su Qingtan's hand, got out of bed as if fleeing for his life, picked up the teapot on the table and gulped down a mouthful of cold tea to suppress the slight heat in his body.

Su Qingtan's hand froze in mid-air. She hadn't yet realized anything was amiss. She then casually withdrew it, smoothed her hair, and said softly:

"This medicine is so effective, it must have cost a lot of money, right?"

"You've just become an official, and you'll have many expenses. Don't always rely on your sister-in-law."

"Money is meant to be spent. And I'm willing to spend it on my sister-in-law, even if it kills me!"

Lin Yun waved his hand, walked to the window and opened it a crack, letting the night breeze dispel the smell of medicine and the alluring atmosphere in the room.

"By the way, sister-in-law, I have to go out for a bit now."

"It's so late?" Su Qingtan was taken aback and glanced at the water clock with some concern.

"Is there another urgent matter at the Imperial Guard?"

"It's not official business."

Lin Yun turned around and glanced at it, then quickly looked back and told a lie in a casual manner.

"I've been busy these past few days, but now that I have some free time, it's time to take over the laundry business. I'll go talk to the owner and make sure someone else snatches it up first."

Upon hearing this, Su Qingtan's eyes immediately lit up.

Having your own laundry means you don't have to be subservient to others anymore, and you can even help support your family.

"It's not too late to do that tomorrow..."

"Business opportunities wait for no one." Lin Yun smiled and picked up the cloak from the rack and tied it up.

"Sister-in-law, you should rest well. The medicine is still working, so don't catch a cold. I'll be right back."

After saying that, Lin Yun strode out of the room.

When Chuntao and Xiahe, who were outside the door, saw the young master come out, they quickly lowered their heads to their chests, their faces turning even redder.

Lin Yun glanced at the two of them with some confusion, but didn't think much of it and went straight out of the mansion.

……

A quarter of an hour later, at the city gate.

In this era of strict curfews, leaving the city at night was a major taboo.

But when Lin Yun showed the waist tag engraved with a plum blossom mark, the soldiers guarding the city not only did not stop him, but also respectfully opened the side gate and even thoughtfully asked if he needed someone to escort him.

That's privilege.

After leaving the city gate, they sped south.

The night wind howled as Lin Yun reviewed the day's events from horseback.

Alchemy is indeed feasible. With the help of the system and that broken cauldron, even on the first attempt, the success rate of the medicine is astonishingly high.

But I'm facing a dead end.

I don't have the money to buy high-grade medicinal herbs.

I went to the pharmacy today and inquired about the core ingredient in the Longevity Pill formula: the thousand-year-old snow lotus seed. It costs 500 strings of cash per ounce, and it's priceless even though it's available.

Adding in the other auxiliary ingredients, it would take at least two or three thousand strings of cash to even start one batch.

As for those ordinary Qi-replenishing pills, although they are cheaper, they still cost several hundred strings of cash, and reliable pill formulas can cost thousands to buy from the black market.

With that meager salary? It would take forever to refine even one.

And this debt bill of one thousand strings of cash might be the key to breaking the deadlock.

They can find out their address, have their bills delivered accurately to their door, and even afford to keep expensive Akhal-Teke horses.

This mysterious Tingfeng Horse Manor is definitely not an ordinary merchant village.

Since the other party didn't resort to force, but instead sent a bill with no expiration date, it was clear that they wanted to make contact.

They might even be waiting for me to come to them.

……

Half an hour later, at Tingfengma Village.

The manor is hidden in the dense forest at the foot of Luoxia Mountain. Although it was late at night, the manor was still brightly lit.

Just as Lin Yun reined in his horse, the manor gate creaked open slowly.

The man standing at the door with a lantern to greet Lin Yun was the same simple, honest man who had delivered the bill to Lin Yun that day.

"Lord Lin is indeed a trustworthy person."

The man had a simple, honest smile on his face, as if he had expected Lin Yun to come tonight, and he stepped aside to make a gesture of invitation.

"My master has been waiting for you in the inner hall for some time. Please come in."

Lin Yun dismounted, casually handed the reins to a servant beside him, and strode into the manor gate.

Upon entering the manor, Lin Yun's pupils contracted slightly.

What a grand gesture!

The manor was extremely spacious, with rows of neat stables on both sides.

Although it was night, there was a windproof lamp lit every few steps in the stable, making it as bright as day.

Meanwhile, in the manger, the plump and strong warhorses were bowing their heads and eating the finest feed.

[Tianyan Check - Scan]

[Audit subjects: Akhal-Teke horses, Ferghana horses from the Western Regions, and Northern Dragon-Scaled Colts...]

[Estimated value: Each horse costs over 500 strings of cash, total value... exceeding 150,000 strings of cash!]

[Risk Warning: This scale of warhorse reserves far exceeds the permitted scope for civilian merchants, and is suspected to be a secret military horse farm or a privately bred cavalry reserve.]

Lin Yun clicked his tongue inwardly in amazement.

Three hundred top-quality warhorses! This isn't something you can just get with money.

In the Great Zhou Dynasty, warhorses were strategic resources. A horse farm of this size would have been confiscated by the imperial court eight hundred times over if it didn't have powerful connections.

This isn't a horse farm at all; it's clearly a small cavalry camp!