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

Duan Rong had already gotten the information he wanted, and after chatting with the scholar for a few more minutes, he prepared to leave.

Upon seeing Duan Rong about to leave, Zhao Shusheng asked in surprise, "Leaving?! You've already come all this way, aren't you going to set up your stall?!"

Duan Rong said, "The sky is a bit gloomy, so I won't go out. I'll take a stroll in the south of the city."

"A bit gloomy?!" Zhao Shusheng looked up at the sky above. There were indeed a few clouds floating by, blocking out the sun. But he felt that this kind of weather, neither too hot nor too cold, was the perfect time to set up his stall.

Zhao Shusheng gave Duan Rong a strange look and sighed, "You're so dashing!"

Duan Rong waved his hand dismissively, feigning shrewdness, and was about to leave. But when he saw the bitter look on Zhao Shusheng's face and the yellowed and worn picture books on the stall, he suddenly had an idea. Just before leaving, he struck the ground next to Zhao Shusheng's stall with a force of law.

After all, the scholar had helped him, and after getting to know him, Duan Rong found him to be a rather interesting person, so he decided to lend him a hand.

The scholar stared blankly at Duan Rong's departing figure. He felt that this old Jiang was nothing like those fortune tellers in the martial arts world. He hadn't seen him cheat or swindle anyone, and he only set up his stall once every ten days or half a month, as if he were too lazy to even bother with such things.

The scholar looked at Duan Rong for a while, then looked away. He was just about to continue tidying up his stall when his eyes suddenly lit up, and he turned his head to look intently at the ground next to the stall.

The scholar's gaze had just swept over the area, noticing a faint silver glint. Now, upon closer inspection, he was astonished! He saw that the pebbles on the ground beside the stall had turned a silvery sheen, with some of the larger pebbles resembling silver ingots.

Zhao Shusheng rubbed his eyes, thinking he was seeing things and had gone mad with greed for money.

He walked over and looked down. It was definitely not an ordinary pebble. What else could it be but silver coins?!

Zhao Shusheng was overjoyed and picked up all the scattered, shiny pebbles of various sizes, pulling them into his arms. His arms suddenly felt heavy, probably weighing twenty or thirty taels.

The scholar walked up to the stall, looking around like a thief. Seeing that no one was paying attention to him, he took out a silver ingot and examined it carefully.

Judging from their appearance, they were just like large pebbles. Zhao Shusheng vaguely remembered that there were indeed a few pebbles in that place.

A hint of doubt flashed in his eyes, but what he held in his hand was clearly silver; he knew the feel of it all too well.

Zhao Shusheng then put the silver ingot in his mouth, bit it with his teeth, and then looked at it in the light. He could see that there were faint teeth marks on the silver ingot.

Real silver is quite soft, and the higher the purity, the softer it is.

Zhao Shusheng could tell from the silver's color that it was of high purity, so he took a bite to test it.

"What fine silver!" Zhao Shusheng exclaimed with delight, rubbing the teeth marks on the surface of the silver ingot with his fingertips.

He suddenly squatted down in a corner of the stall, rummaged through the wooden box and took out a small knife. After glancing around to make sure no one was watching, he slowly used the knife to cut the silver ingot in his hand in half on the stall.

Looking at the somewhat uneven cut, Zhao Shusheng examined it carefully in the daylight and saw that the center was still of excellent quality. He finally confirmed that this was a piece of top-quality silver!

Zhao Shusheng weighed the silver ingot in his pocket, estimating its weight, and a look of doubt suddenly flashed in his eyes.

The silver ingots appeared where Old Jiang was standing just now! Could these silver ingots have been dropped by Old Jiang?
Zhao Shusheng suddenly had this thought, but he immediately dismissed it. Old Jiang was just a lousy fortune teller, dirt poor, how could he possibly have so much silver?
This is top-quality silver! And it weighs at least twenty or thirty taels.

This sum of money was enough for him to buy a house, get married, and start a more reliable business. The more Zhao Shusheng thought about it, the happier he became. He even gave up his stall and decided to go home and hide the money first.

After leaving the scholar, Duan Rong returned to the abandoned courtyard where he had been staying.

He lay down on the recliner under the big locust tree, and his divine sense spread out, covering the entire city.

Soon, they spotted three prominent, adjacent herbal medicine shops on West Street. The shops were neatly arranged and quite impressive.

Duan Rong's divine sense quickly penetrated the shop and locked onto a middle-aged man dressed in brocade robes who had become somewhat overweight. The man had a fair complexion and a sparse beard, but he didn't look very energetic, and there were faint bruises under his eyes.

Those bruises were a sign of excessive indulgence. Duan Rong, who was quite knowledgeable in medicine, saw through the clues at a glance.

This man, named Zhu Kun, was the owner of the herbal medicine shop in Huangpi County.

The Zhu family has been in the medicinal herb business for generations, and for Zhu Kun, this is his ancestral business.

Zhu Kun was busy in the pharmacy when he suddenly scolded one of the shop assistants.

Duan Rong lay on a recliner under the big locust tree, locking onto Zhu Kun with his divine sense while listening to idle gossip and comments in the teahouse and marketplace.

He had no interest in how Zhu Kun managed the business or his employees at the herbal medicine shop. He was more interested in Zhu Kun himself.

This time, while listening to the idle chatter of the common people, he wasn't focusing on County Magistrate Wu Mian, but rather on Zhu Kun, the owner of the herbal medicine shop.

After some investigation, we found quite a bit of information.

Zhu Kun was already over forty years old, but he had taken several concubines. Unfortunately, he had no children, and the medicine he was given every day was of little use.

Duan Rong had already learned the details after hearing this information. Zhu Kun had faint bruises under his eyes, which were not signs of excessive indulgence, but rather the outward manifestation of his anxiety from working hard in the fields but failing to harvest anything, which only made him work even harder.

No wonder he has such a bad temper; he started scolding the employees as soon as he arrived this morning. It turns out that despite having such a large business, he doesn't have a son!

Duan Rong listened to this news as mere gossip, and simply chuckled as he heard it.

But when he heard another piece of news, his face darkened.

Because he learned that Zhu Kun's wife was none other than Wu Ruyue, the younger sister of Wu Mian from Huangpi County.

This is interesting!

After all this, it turns out we're all one family!
The moment he learned of this news, Duan Rong's divine sense penetrated into Zhu Kun's residence in Huangpi County and quickly located Wu Ruyue.

Aside from listening to the idle gossip of the common people, Duan Rong focused his divine sense on monitoring three people: Zhu Kun, Wu Ruyue, and Wu Mian.

Duan Rong's attention returned to Wu Mian.

If Wu Ruyue's connection is involved, then Zhu Kun's decision to contribute 90% of the silver to build the Wutong Temple for Wu Mian takes on a different meaning.

Duan Rong frowned deeply. As the saying goes, "pulling out a radish brings out the mud," he felt that the people behind this were all connected. Originally, it was just Wu Mian, but now it has become Wu Mian, Zhu Kun, and Wu Ruyue, three people in total.

But who exactly is a member of the Blood Cult among them?
Duan Rong even had some doubts about Wu Ruyue, because only she could influence Wu Mian and Zhu Kun.

But it seems women can't cultivate the Bloodstained Divine Skill, right?
Zhu Kun had been busy at the herbal medicine shop all day. As dusk fell, he rode a horse from the shop's entrance, with a servant in front carrying a lantern and leading the horse, which was already very docile. The horse swayed leisurely towards the mansion.

Zhu Kun sat on horseback, his eyes half-closed, and suddenly asked the servant, "Zhu You, what has Madam been doing at home today?"

The servant said, "Sir, I haven't been serving the madam, how could I know anything about her affairs?"

Zhu Kun snorted coldly and cursed, "I know you too well, Zhu You! You've been with me since you were a child, and these past few years, you've been thoroughly disciplined by Madam. I think you're about to rebel against me!" Zhu You, with a mournful face, said, "Master, you're wronging me. I've always been of one mind with you..."

"Alright." Zhu Kun glared at Zhu You angrily, and Zhu You, sensing something was wrong, stopped talking.

The master and servant returned to the mansion in an awkward atmosphere.

Zhu Kun went into the backyard, while Zhu You led the horses to the stables.

When Zhu Kun arrived at the backyard flower hall, the whole family was waiting for him to eat. Only teacups and cold dishes were on the table, waiting for him to come back so that hot dishes could be served.

Besides his legal wife Wu Ruyue, Zhu Kun also married four concubines, each one charming and delicate, but unfortunately none of them bore him children.

At this moment, all five wives and concubines were waiting for him in the flower hall.

As soon as Zhu Kun entered the flower hall, Wu Ruyue led the concubines to pay their respects to him.

Afterwards, everyone took their seats. Zhu Kun asked some rather stiff and indifferent questions before they began to eat. No one spoke during the meal.

After finishing his meal, Zhu Kun went to his study to drink tea, and Wu Ruyue personally brought him some ginseng tea.

Wu Ruyue put down her teacup and was about to leave when Zhu Kun suddenly looked up at her and asked, "What's the situation with Uncle Yuan lately? Do you know anything?"

Yuanjiu means brother-in-law, that is, Wu Ruyue's elder brother Wu Mian.

Wu Ruyue said, "What's going on? Although my brother is a county magistrate, he has always kept to himself and never indulged in sensual pleasures. What could be going on?"

"That's not what I was talking about!!" Zhu Kun clicked his tongue and said, "Didn't he take my Blood Spirit Mushroom a couple of days ago? Do you know why he took the Blood Spirit Mushroom?"

Wu Ruyue gave him a strange look and said, "It's not like I didn't give you money?"

Zhu Kun said, "I know he gave money. But that stuff is a life-saving elixir, and you don't have any seriously ill patients in your family who need treatment, right? Why would he get that Blood Lingzhi?"

“This…” A hint of doubt flashed across Wu Ruyue’s eyes.

She had actually asked her brother before, since the Blood Spirit Mushroom was no ordinary item. Even though they were related to the Zhu family, it was still quite valuable. She was curious why her brother had spent so much money to buy it. But her brother only said that he had his own plans and didn't elaborate.

“My brother has his own reasons,” Wu Ruyue said.

Zhu Kun said, "Don't you think this elder brother has become increasingly strange over the past two years?"

Wu Ruyue retorted, "Don't talk nonsense! My brother is just eccentric. What's strange about him?!"

Zhu Kun said, "Ever since his son went missing, I feel like he's become a completely different person."

A look of extreme pain flashed in Wu Ruyue's eyes.

Her Wu family also had a lineage of only one son per generation for three generations. Her elder brother originally had a son named Wu Xiang.

Two years ago, Wu Xiang was twenty years old when he suddenly contracted a serious illness. Although he received treatment from a good doctor, his condition worsened day by day. What was even more bizarre was that Wu Xiang later disappeared.

Now, two years have passed, and in Wu Ruyue's heart, she fears that her nephew is no longer alive.

Her brother's refusal to remarry became another source of worry for Wu Ruyue. Seeing that neither her maternal nor paternal family had any heirs, she often felt that she was an unlucky person who had suffered such punishment.

Wu Ruyue said, "Xiang'er's matter was a great blow to my brother. But he is a resolute man and should have gotten through it by now."

Zhu Kun said, "Do you remember a year ago when he wanted to build that Wutong Temple?"

Wu Ruyue said, "It's all in the past, why bring it up again?"

"Don't you find it strange?" Zhu Kun said, "That's a god I've never even heard of. How could anyone be willing to pay for it? In the end, didn't you take your own money to repair it?"

Wu Ruyue said, "I feel that my brother wants to build a temple to pray for Xiang'er's well-being because she is missing. How can I ignore this?"

Zhu Kun said, "The key issue is that the temple has been under construction for over a year, and it's become so dilapidated that nobody cares about it."

Wu Ruyue sighed. In fact, she also felt that her brother had been acting strangely these past two years, but she was unwilling to admit it in front of Zhu Kun.

Zhu Kun said, "I'm telling you this to warn you. He took the Blood Spirit Mushroom over there, and who knows what he's planning to do with it? You'd better keep an eye on things."

Wu Ruyue was startled, her face turned pale, and she kept twisting her handkerchief with her fingers.

Zhu Kun said, "Living alone for a long time can make you a bit withdrawn. You should hurry up and find him a new wife."

Wu Ruyue said, "I've mentioned this several times, and I've even brought a matchmaker along, but my brother still won't agree."

Zhu Kun took a sip of ginseng tea and said, "I'm not just imagining things. Think about it, ever since Wu Xiang contracted a serious illness and suddenly disappeared, he's built a temple, refused to remarry, and there are no sick people around, yet he still managed to get his hands on the Blood Spirit Mushroom. Every single one of these things seems rather sinister."

Wu Ruyue's words to Zhu Kun sent chills down his spine.

In that deserted, abandoned courtyard, Duan Rong lay in the dark shadow of the old locust tree, his eyes shining like stars.

He had been monitoring Zhu Kun and Wu Ruyue with his divine sense, and naturally, he heard their entire conversation in the study.

The more you dig into the story behind Lord Wu Mian, the deeper it gets!

His son had contracted a serious illness and suddenly disappeared. This information caught Duan Rong's special attention.

Moreover, Wu Mian obtained a Blood Lingzhi from Zhu Kun these past few days.

In the mortal world, this Blood Spirit Mushroom is considered one of the top-tier spiritual herbs; it's truly a life-saving treasure. It's extremely rare and can't be obtained simply by having money.

The Zhu family had been in the medicinal herb business for generations, which is why they had this one plant.

Let's leave the matter of the Blood Ganoderma aside for now.

Through this conversation between Zhu Kun and Wu Ruyue, Duan Rong could basically confirm that Zhu Kun and Wu Ruyue were not related to the Filthy Blood Cult. This was because the 90% of the silver Zhu Kun provided for Wu Mian's temple repairs was actually funded by Wu Ruyue.

She didn't want her brother to worry, and since Wu Xiang had just disappeared, she thought that building the temple might be to pray for Xiang'er's well-being. She was also trying her best, so she thought of helping her brother build the temple.

Through this investigation, Duan Rong once again focused his attention on Wu Mian, the magistrate of Huangpi County. Although this man did not cultivate the Filthy Blood Divine Art, all his secrets were sinister.

As the saying goes, something unusual must be going on! (End of Chapter)