one's door

As soon as he entered the door, Zhang Yan saw the relieved expressions of his mother and younger sister in the room.

"Second brother, are you okay?!"

"What can I do?" Zhang Yan said with a smile while unloading things from the cart, and piled up all the medicinal materials in his small bedroom.

"It's been rumored outside that someone died at Changjia Restaurant, and it was killed by those bastards you beat up yesterday. My mother and I were scared to death! Second brother, don't hang out with Xiao Chongwen and the others. OK?"

"Yan'er, you are obedient, I really don't want to provoke those bastards..."

"Zhang Er, you have to listen to your mother and younger sister this time. Xiao Chongwen and those four bastards are absolutely uneasy and kind. If we can't provoke them, we can always hide them, right? Don't be stupid!"

...Even the eldest brother Zhang Shun also chimed in loudly in the back room, and his words were full of anxiety.

Zhang Yan listened to the nagging in his ear, smiling unabated. For the first time, he found that the feeling of being nervous and caring seemed to be pretty good. This was completely different from the strict father-like reticence of his master when he was still alive. extreme.

"Actually, the person who died was Ma Shan. That's right, it was the Ma Shan you know, who was stabbed to death twice by a group of green skins who rushed in when I was at the table with me."

"What? Ma Shan is dead?!" Both Zhang Huiyuan and Wang Lanping opened their mouths in surprise.They are not regretting a life, but a pure accident.It was like an annoying dog who was kicked to death by a passerby suddenly barking, it was very sudden.

Of course, dogs are cute, just as a metaphor.

"Good death! Good death for the dog!" Zhang Shun in the room was also making an analogy, but he accidentally insulted the dog.

"Yan'er, what's going on here? Don't those bastards also have contacts with Ma Shan and the others? How could they hand him a knife? That's right! Didn't you just beat someone yesterday? Will they come looking for him too?" You?!"

……

It took a lot of effort before Zhang Yan calmed down his mother.He could guess the mentality of the old mother, it was a kind of fear of losing her son and getting it back, coupled with the fact that she was old and in poor health, she couldn't stand the fright anymore.

On the contrary, the elder brother Zhang Shun would think more about it in his heart, and when Zhang Yan entered the room to help him get up and get out of bed, he asked Zhang Yan in a low voice: "Is it related to you?"

"Ok?"

"Don't be sloppy with me! This little battle can't scare me. Ma Shan has a good reputation outside. Although he can't get on the stage, he is not something those green-skinned bastards dare to provoke. What's more, any hatred or resentment will come. To the extent that those bastards insist on taking his life? And it’s not too late to choose to be killed while drinking with you, it’s no wonder that it has nothing to do with you.”

Although Zhang Shun couldn't understand Ma Shan's death, he was sure that his second brother must have something to do with it.He didn't forget that his second brother said yesterday that he couldn't suffer so much in vain, and he must get it back.Isn't it?Ma Shan's life can be considered a bit of redemption, right?

Zhang Yan smiled and helped his eldest brother deal with the filth.Before Zhang Yan came back, the old mother and younger sister worked together to complete this matter. The embarrassment and continuous psychological blow to Zhang Shun were great.Changing to Zhang Yan now, this is too much for Zhang Shun to accept.

"Brother, why do you have such an idea?"

"Zhang Er, you have really changed a lot when you come back this time! It is said that there is a great fear between life and death. I never believed it before, but this time I saw you as if you were reborn. I believe it. But your elder brother also saw you before I was disabled On the other hand, what you said when you came back will not make it easier for the people who plot against our family behind the scenes, Ma Shan died today, there can't be such a coincidence."

Seeing that Zhang Yan was still silent, Zhang Shun sighed, patted the other party's shoulder, then relaxed his words, and said, "Forget it, you don't want to talk about your being in Yubei Mountain, but you can figure out that it must be It's extremely dangerous. It's impossible for you to give up this hatred. But Zhang Er, elder brother can warn you, you are now the pillar of the family, think before you do things, don't let the old lady worry about it."

"Don't worry, brother, I know."

"Well, it's good that you know. Hey." Zhang Shun sighed again.He also had to say these words, but with his crippled body, he really didn't know if he could make Zhang Yan, who had become very assertive now, listen to him.

Zhang Yan really didn't know how to explain to Zhang Shun, so in the end he could only keep silent and let time slowly answer everything.But there is one thing that he did not perfunctory Zhang Shun, that is, he has inherited everything from his predecessor at this time, and he attaches great importance to the few people in front of the Zhang family, and never thought of putting his family members in danger.That's why he took the initiative to confront the young master Wu who hadn't met yet, and drew all the attention to himself.This is the best way he can think of to protect his family so far.

Of course, it is not safe to rely solely on attracting the enemy's attention. If you are not afraid of [-], you are afraid of it, so you need some other means to protect it.It's just that Zhang Yan can no longer do it alone, and needs to find a backer, or to rely on.

Looking at the entire Langyuan City, it is actually only a choice to be used as the support of the Zhang family and also to be able to stand firm in the face of Young Master Wu and Wu Yuan on his head.It's the city guard, Zhou Cang.

In addition, choosing Zhou Cang also has a pre-existing convenience, that is, Zhang Yan exchanged some changes in the essence of the Bagua array for the introduction of favor from Yubei Shanlin Zedong.

The essence of human relationship is "reciprocity". If there are more times, there will be more friendship between each other, not just for benefits.Of course, most favors are still based on interests, or the proportion of interests is greater.

So Zhang Yan needs a bright enough "stepping stone", instead of continuing to rely on Lin Zedong's favor as his own logo.

"Second brother, what are these medicinal materials for?" Zhang Huiyuan was curious about so many medicinal materials that second brother brought back.I just patronized and talked about myself, and now I have the mind to explore.I wondered in my heart, could it be that magical old grandpa taught the second brother some tricks?

More than 200 kilograms of dried medicinal materials are piled up in a huge pile, almost filling Zhang Yan's small bedroom, and it took a lot of effort to push it back. If the cart is not big enough, it really can't be brought back all at once. .

"Refining medicine."

"Ah? Second brother, you know how to make medicine?!" Zhang Huiyuan thought to herself, "Sure enough", she couldn't hide her excitement.The second brother came back this time, as if an ordinary child in the family could do everything at once, which made people always look confused.

"Of course, in the past, it was just hiding things in the body and not showing them. Now that our family is in a precarious situation, we must have something that can be sold, right? It is a last resort."

"Then can I see it?"

"No! Besides, this matter must be kept secret. I didn't nod, so don't tell anyone except my family. Hurry up, come help me, and help me wash these medicinal materials first..."

Chapter 70

Zhang Yan bought a total of [-] medicinal materials from Yuan Pharmacy, all of which were cheap.Moreover, these medicinal materials are all medicinal properties that he has studied along the way, and there are certain medicinal properties that complement each other, which belong to the category that can be mixed together for brewing.

But what Zhang Yan really needs is not all of them, but eight of the seventeen kinds of herbs.

There are two reasons why so many medicines are required.One is to prepare the alchemy furnace with one hand, let the alchemy furnace preheat and familiarize itself with the properties of the medicine, so that the formal refining later will be smoother.

The second is for confidentiality.The elixir that Zhang Yan was going to refine was the bone-strengthening elixir that he had planned for a long time.

Different from those popular tendons and bones powder and jade fruit stuffing outside, the bone strengthening pill directly increases the strength of the muscles and bones, by [-]% or [-]%.In other words, the higher the base, the greater the gains and benefits.The only disadvantage is the existence of drug resistance, the effect of each pill will decrease, and there will be no effect after ten pills.

But ten bone-strengthening pills don't say that it will double the strength of the muscles and bones of the user, at least it will increase by [-]% to [-]%. There is absolutely no problem.

And how difficult is it for those martial arts experts to grow their muscles and bones by [-]%?The demand space here is simply unimaginable.It also made the bone-strengthening pill, which was only considered a low-grade pill in the pill formula of Longhu Mountain, become an absolute boutique in the barren sky.

Of course, the premise of everything is that Zhang Yan can refine the alchemy smoothly, otherwise everything is nonsense.

The younger sister, Zhang Huiyuan, was arrested to help, and was in charge of washing herbs in the kitchen, while the old mother Wang Lanping also came over to help.And Zhang Yan was responsible for fetching water from the big well in the alley.

The medicinal materials are washed with warm water, which makes them cleaner.

"It's enough to drain it a little. There is no need to dry it." Zhang Yan moved the washed medicinal materials into his small bedroom, and refused others to follow in and help.And warned the family not to disturb him.

To be honest, which of the three members of the Zhang family is not curious about how Zhang Yan made medicine?But in the end, he chose to trust Zhang Yan.

In the hut, Zhang Yan scattered two bean soldiers on the ground, so that he could react quickly in case of any accident.Then he sat cross-legged on his hard plank bed, spread his hands out, and the Wanxiang Bead clasped on his wrist flew out, turning into an oval alchemy furnace two feet high and one foot thick in the air.

The main body of this alchemy furnace is pitch black, but it has a sense of contrast that is so black that it shines, and at the same time, there are silver lines inlaid on it.There are three walnut-sized transparent crystal balls on the waist of the stove, through which the inside can be seen.The bottom of the furnace is flat, with three tripods, shaped like a cow's hoof, echoing the horn on the stove head.

Since this stove was transformed from Wanxiangzhu, it must not be an ordinary product, but the most famous one among the low-grade alchemy stoves, and was even called one of the "strange stoves" by a miscellaneous note in Longhushan: Remnant Furnace .

Clean the furnace, heat up, and convert the furnace.Although Zhang Yan was not familiar with a set of preparatory actions before alchemy, they were definitely quite satisfactory.Along the way, he didn't just study medicinal materials, he was already familiar with the actual use of the alchemy furnace.I even tried a few furnaces, and slowly transferred the theoretical things to my hands.

Alchemy is a handicraft.Zhang Yan just felt that this was not only a way, but also a craft, and it was definitely much, much harder to learn than reading theoretical alchemy books.

Cooking pays attention to color, fragrance, and heat, while alchemy also pays attention to various things, and there is also a "fire" that can drive people crazy.Without talent and perseverance, I really can't walk this path.

When the previous preparations are done, it's time to put the medicinal materials for the pill.Zhang Yan took turns to put all these extra medicinal materials, and when they came out, they were all crushed medicinal residues.This kind of pad pill will not produce any finished products, what is needed is the medicinal properties of those medicinal materials to wake up the furnace.

It took half an hour for Zhang Yan to build the alchemy furnace to its best condition.The three crystal balls revealed a golden brilliance at this time.That is the phenomenon of spiritual energy surging in the furnace.

Taking a deep breath, he felt the state of the aura in the cyclone in his body, and Zhang Yan officially started after confirming that everything was correct.

The blind medicinal materials are put into the furnace by Zhang Yan at the right time according to the ratio of the prescription, so that the medicinal properties of each medicinal material participate in the mutual construction at an appropriate delicate moment, and the foundation of the medicinal pill is consolidated bit by bit. .

The whole process seemed to Zhang Yan a bit like repairing a house.First plan the place, then lay the foundation, then erect the beams and columns, then slowly build the walls, and finally cap the roof and fill in the details.

The finishing touch is the medicinal material of false stone root. Its function is to combine the medicinal properties of the other seven medicinal materials and penetrate them, so that the entire "house" forms a tight whole.

Because bone strengthening pill is a kind of pill for beginners, neither the medicinal materials nor the technique is too difficult, and the cost of trial and error is extremely low, and there is no risk of frying the furnace.However, after Zhang Yan spent two furnaces, the third furnace was declared a success.

"Good luck!" Zhang Yan congratulated himself.Because he had practiced four or five times on the way home before, all of which failed. This is the first time he has successfully refined the bone strengthening pill.

Two pills are produced in one furnace.According to the quality of "Residual Furnace", this yield is undoubtedly unqualified.Generally speaking, three is considered a pass, four is good, five is excellent, and six is ​​the upper limit of residual furnace.

Of course, the amount of pills produced is also related to the medicinal properties and quality of the medicinal materials, so it cannot be generalized.But this time, Zhang Yan still has a lot of room for improvement.

Then several batches of pills were refined, with some successes and some failures, and finally Zhang Yan got a total of seven bone-strengthening pills in his hands.Three pieces were released in the last batch, which was a surprise.

Seven bone-strengthening pills are too many, but definitely not many.But to say the least, it is actually much better than Zhang Yan.

I found two ordinary black porcelain bottles and put them in them.There are only two pieces in a small bottle, and the remaining five pieces in a large bottle.

Looking at the sky, it was already dusk. I originally planned to go to the pharmacy to buy medicine after arranging the small statues of Dangkang in the field in the morning, and then send them out in the afternoon after they were done.As a result, there was an extra incident of Xiao Chongwen jumping out to give away the head, and the delay has come to the present.Zhang Yan thought about it, and although it wasn't a very suitable time, it really couldn't be delayed for him.

"Brother, have you finished your practice, right? I haven't seen you use the stove and there is no fire? How did you practice it? The whole room smells so good!" Zhang Huiyuan, who had been guarding the door all the time, jumped up when Zhang Yan came out Chattering and asking non-stop.

But Zhang Yan didn't have time to satisfy the little girl's curiosity, so he patted her on the head and said with a smile: "I'm going to the city guard's mansion, just leave me a mouthful of food, I won't be back until later."

"Huh? Yan'er, why are you going to the city guard mansion at this hour?"

"Mother, didn't you say that you want to thank Mr. Zhou for taking care of our family? No, I've just made the medicine and I'll take it to Mr. Zhou, and I'll be back soon."

Chapter 71

It was almost time for dinner when we arrived at the gate of the city guard's mansion.At this time, there were quite a few people who left the city, and they were farmers who were busy collecting their stalls and returning home. These people lived outside the city, went to the city every day to do business, and came out in the evening.

What should I do if I miss the time?will be locked up in the city.Langyuan City has a special geographical location. Although there has been no war for many years, the city gates will still be closed from Xuzheng, and the streets will be cleaned at Haizheng.

After the door is closed, no one will open the door unless there is an urgent order from the army. If you dare to break in, wait for the feather arrow to shoot you into a hedgehog.

After cleaning the streets, except for night patrol soldiers, night duty government servants, watchmen and other people with special status, they are not allowed to go out on the streets, and they will be flogged if they are caught.Therefore, even if it is a street full of flower buildings, no one walks on the street after Haizheng.Either leave early, or stay overnight without leaving.

So Zhang Yan was in a hurry at this time.

The guards at the gate didn't give Zhang Yan a good look, and the mere grassroots people just want to see Mr. Zhou?Isn't there something wrong with this brain?But when Zhang Yan reported his name as the Zhang family in Zhuzui Lane, and said that Mr. Zhou had visited his house in person last time, the guards had to deal with it carefully, and he didn't dare to drive Zhang Yan away at will.

"Just wait a minute." Although his attitude changed, Zhang Yan was still not allowed to enter the military village area.

Zhang Yan understood the rules, anyway, he also stayed on Yubei Mountain for more than two years, standing outside and waiting obediently.Not long after, the soldier who went back to report came back, along with a warrior dressed as an adjutant.

"You are Zhang Yan?"

"Yes, this is the innocence document of the grassroots, and I believe it."

"Huh? Where's your household registration plate?" The adjutant frowned slightly, and asked again when he took over the paperwork for inspection.Because generally speaking, it is the household registration documents and signs issued by the local government offices, rather than the clean-offence documents, that prove one's identity. The effectiveness and application of the two are different.Of course, in the current situation, it is also possible to temporarily replace the household registration plate with a cleansing document, and it will not work after a long time.

Zhang Yan replied with a smile: "The official in charge of registration in the yamen said that my situation is special, and I can't return to Langyuan City immediately. There are many procedures to go through, and it will be done in the day after tomorrow at the earliest. So I haven't received the household registration card for the time being, so I can only use this document to make ends meet. It makes this military man laugh."

The adjutant squinted his eyes, nodded, checked the documents and returned them to Zhang Yan, then led Zhang Yan through the gate of the military village and walked in.

The military stronghold guarded by Langyuan City is not that big, perhaps even less than [-]% of the size of Yubei Mountain.But in terms of the size of the garrison alone, it is not small.After all, guards are not soldiers guards everywhere, and the two are not comparable.

As Zhang Yan expected, the so-called "City Guard Mansion" is actually just a slightly larger stone house. In this regard, the guards of Langyuan City are similar to those on Yubei Mountain, and they should all follow the military practice.

The adjutant knocked on the door, and after the response from inside, he opened the door and took Zhang Yan in.

"Caomin Zhang Yan pays homage to your lord! Thank you for your careful care of Caomin's home, Caomin is deeply moved!"

"Hehe, you are Zhang Yan? You are a good-looking talent! Alright, let's get up and talk."

Only then did Zhang Yan stand up and stand by the side with his hands tied.The Zhou Cang in front of him was not unfamiliar to him, and even kind of friendly.It's not that Zhou Cang's appearance is familiar to Zhang Yan, but Zhou Cang's temperament and momentum.It is very similar to Lin Zedong, both have the same tough temperament, but they are a little more restrained.The style of his beard is not that of a military general, but a literati look, which is very similar to Song Qinghe, the general in charge of Yubei Mountain.

"Is the family okay?"

"Thank you for your concern, my family is fine. This time, Caomin came here to thank you."

"Hahaha, you don't need to thank me. Lin Zedong entrusted me with your business. If I want to thank him, I will go to him and not do your business. From now on, I will live my life according to my duty. I think you should be able to live a good life with your ability. It’s booming.”

"Your Excellency has praised the grass-roots people. How can the grass-roots people have any abilities? Just eat it for a living. By the way, this is a pill made by the grass-people. It can strengthen the muscles and bones. The higher the martial artist's cultivation base, the better the effect after taking it. There are only two pills. Please, sir." Don't be disgusted." As he said, Zhang Yan handed over the two packed bone strengthening pills, and the adjutant who was waiting at the side handed them over.

"Pills?" Zhou Cang frowned, took the porcelain bottle from the adjutant's hand, looked at it for a while, but didn't open the bottle immediately, but looked at Zhang Yan with a smile, and asked, "Lin Zedong said you know some medicines." Very ingenious means, the "Kongming Lantern" and "Bagua Formation" mentioned in the military newspaper are all from your hand? Does this pill also have a similar statement?"

Zhou Cang is very interested in Zhang Yan.After all, there are too few people of miscellaneous studies, and their whereabouts are secretive, and they always like to hide.And the inkstone in front of him probably wouldn't have revealed his miscellaneous skills if he hadn't been forced into a desperate situation.With such a rare opportunity, Zhou Cang also hopes that he can benefit from Zhang Yan like Lin Zedong.Now the military newspaper is full of praise for the Kongming lantern and the gossip array. It is impossible to say that you are not envious, that is a real military achievement!Isn't the most difficult thing in the army is military merit?

"It's just some small tricks, and it's not worth mentioning in front of adults. This elixir is called 'Bone Strengthening Pill', which is different from the Kongming Lantern and the Eight Diagrams Formation. It is more complicated, and it is also used to repay the adults for their long-term care of the Zhang family." Zhang Yan also didn't go into detail about the efficacy of the bone strengthening pill, it's not necessary, it's actually more appropriate to leave it to Zhou Cang to experience it himself.

"Hehe, another little trick? It's more difficult than Kongming Lantern and Eight Diagrams Array? That's something you need to worry about." Zhou Cang accepted the porcelain bottle without refusing.

Then Zhang Yan had a brief chat with Zhou Cang, and then took the initiative to take his leave and left.This is the first time we meet, just hand over the bone strengthening pill, and it's not enough to chat, so as not to leave a bad impression of "not knowing how to advance or retreat" to the other party.In the future, when Zhou Cang realizes the benefits of Bone Strengthening Pill, he will naturally have better opportunities to communicate.

As soon as Zhang Yan left here, he hurried back before the city gate closed.In the city guard mansion, Zhou Cang picked up the black porcelain bottle on the table and opened it, poured out the two pills inside and looked at it carefully.

"Huh? This is Dan? It's a little different."

The moment Zhou Cang poured out the elixir, he smelled a strange fragrance, not very strong, but he could smell it when he got close, and it made him feel very comfortable.In addition, Dan's surface is very smooth, which is completely different from the pills he has seen. If you look closely, you can even see subtle streamers flashing on it.

This is by no means simple stuff.

After looking at it for a while, Zhou Cang looked at the adjutant in the room and asked, "What do you think of Zhang Yan?"

Chapter 72 Reagents

Zhou Cang glanced at the adjutant standing beside him, wanting to hear his opinion first.After that, he continued to look down at the two pills in his palm.This thing was still warm.

The adjutant is from Zhou Cang's clan, and he has been with him since he joined the army. He belongs to his confidant, and basically he doesn't need to shy away from him about anything.

"My lord, Zhang Yan is not like an ordinary commoner. No matter how he speaks, behaves or thinks like him. The city is not shallow, and he seems to be very good at dealing with people. In addition, he should come here this time to get on the line with you. came seeking asylum."

"Asylum? How many dandies are there?"

"It should be more than that."

"Huh? Did you know something?" Zhou Cang sensed something unusual from his adjutant's words, raised his head again, and waited for the other party's answer.

"My lord, before Zhang Yan came in, I checked Zhang Yan's identity to see if there was anyone impersonating him. But he used the innocence document that was signed by you yesterday as his identity certificate instead of the household registration plate. He also said that the officials in charge of the local yamen said that they would not be able to go through the formalities for him until the day after tomorrow at the earliest.