I have a martial arts panel.

Back in Taojiazhuang, it was already sunset.

Xu Ning did not go home, but went straight to Guo Ye's herbal medicine shop.

"Guo Ye!"

Xu Ning went inside.

"Xu Ning, what brings you here again?"

There was no one else in the herbal medicine shop at the time. Guo Ye brewed a pot of tea and leaned back in his chair. When he saw Xu Ning arrive, he stood up.

"Come on, let's weigh it!"

Xu Ning tossed the basket in front of Guo Ye.

Guo Ye leaned forward, and his eyes widened when he saw what was in the basket.

"Withered grass? So much of it?"

Guo Ye quickly leaned forward, grabbed a handful, and brought it to his nose: "It smells earthy...it's freshly picked!"

"That's right, I just picked it from Yunze Mountain," Xu Ning explained. "I found this patch of Liangku grass before, but the location was too dangerous, at the border between the inner and outer circles, so I didn't dare to pick it. This time you said the price of Liangku grass has gone up, so I dared to take the risk."

"The boundary between the inner and outer circles?" Guo Ye clicked his tongue in amazement. "You're ruthless!"

"People die for wealth, birds die for food."

Xu Ning laughed and said, "Quickly, let's weigh it."

"immediately."

Guo Ye dragged a large scale over from the backyard.

After a short while, the weighing was completed.

"Twenty-four catties and six taels..." Guo Ye said, "Let's say twenty-five catties, six taels per catty, that's one hundred and fifty taels in total!"

"One hundred and fifty taels..."

Hearing about the earnings from this adventure, Xu Ning smiled, realizing that his efforts had not been in vain.

"You little rascal, you've struck it rich this time!"

Guo Ye patted Xu Ning on the shoulder and said with a smile, "Wait here, I'll go to the backyard to get you the money."

One hundred and fifty taels; there wasn't that much silver stored at the counter.

Soon, Guo Ye came out with two silver notes.

"One hundred and fifty taels."

Xu Ning took the silver note and examined it.

One sheet costs fifty taels, another one costs one hundred taels.

Thanks.

Xu Ning tucked the silver note into his pocket.

This 150 taels was equivalent to more than a year's income for the family.

With this income, the family can live much more comfortably.

"By the way, will the price of this dried herb drop anytime soon?"

Xu Ning asked Guo Ye.

"Not in the short term..." Guo Ye shook his head, then frowned, "You kid, do you still have some stock left?"

"We haven't finished picking them yet. In a couple of days, we'll be able to bring back just as many."

Xu Ning didn't hide anything.

"Okay, I'll take as many as you bring!"

Guo Ye was also very happy.

The amount of withered grass he collected today is probably more than what his uncle Tao Yungang collected in several days.

This also made him look good in front of his uncle.

"But you also need to be careful."

Guo Ye reminded him again.

"Understood." Xu Ning didn't linger any longer, waved her hand, and said, "I'm leaving."

After saying that, he picked up his basket and walked out of the herbal medicine shop.

"call……"

Xu Ning stretched his body.

Having money in my pocket makes me feel much more at ease.

He glanced at the sky and guessed that his sister and brother-in-law hadn't returned home yet, so he turned around and went to the butcher shop in the village first.

Xu Ning planned to buy some meat to take home.

Taojiazhuang is a large village with a large population and a great demand for resources.

However, in today's environment, transportation is inconvenient, and individuals have to travel a lot to purchase basic necessities.

Therefore, Taojiazhuang set up some places for trading goods, such as butcher shops, grain shops, oil shops, and so on.

These places were all managed by the estate owner, who employed laborers from within the estate.

It wasn't time for everyone to go home yet, so Xu Ning entered the butcher shop and saw only the butcher leaning against a reclining chair.

"Buying meat?"

When the butcher saw someone come in, he stood up and picked up his boning knife.

"Yes, I'll take two catties of lamb leg meat."

Xu Ning remembered that Tao Tao loved to eat mutton. Mutton is tender and doesn't require much chewing, so she could bite into it.

"Okay."

The butcher was very skilled.

Soon, the butcher wrapped up two jin of lamb leg meat and handed it to Xu Ning: "Half a string of cash."

Half a string is half a tael of silver.

"Halfway through..."

After thinking about it, Xu Ning realized that it was indeed not cheap.

But he didn't hesitate and took out two pieces of silver from his body.

This is the money Guo Ye paid him for the herbs this morning.

He handed the silver to the butcher: "Half a string of cash, here you go."

After leaving the butcher shop, Xu Ning hurried home.

On the way back, Xu Ning passed by the drill ground in the village.

"Hey ha hey ha!"

"..."

The sounds of drills could be heard.

Xu Ning looked over.

They were all teenagers, practicing with guns and knives under the guidance of the village instructors, creating a lively and enthusiastic scene.

Taojiazhuang is very influential in Kangyun County, not only because of its large population and land area, but also because of the many martial arts masters in the village.

It is precisely because of the prevalence of martial arts that Tao Family Village attaches great importance to the martial arts training of its younger generations.

Young people under the age of twenty can receive careful guidance from the instructors as long as they sign up for training.

Xu Ning is seventeen years old this year, which is considered young in the village.

Although Xu Ning is not a member of the same family, Tao Family Village does not mind that he learns martial arts from them, and he is qualified to participate in the training camp.

However, Xu Ning only came to practice for a month. After learning the Gale Blade Technique, he never came back.

It wasn't that the original owner didn't want to practice martial arts, but rather that he had to participate in intensive training with specialized instructors, paying five taels of silver each month to cover the instructor's wages and the purchase of martial arts equipment.

This amount of money is far too much for Xu Ning's family.

To save money, Xu Ning could only practice the Gale Blade Technique alone after learning it.

Compared to others, his progress was naturally much slower.

But now things are much better. I have my own martial arts panel, so I don't need anyone to teach me. As long as I have enough energy, it's not difficult to improve my strength.

……

Before she even reached her doorstep, Xu Ning could hear Tao Tao chattering in the yard.

Pushing open the concealed courtyard gate, Xu Ning went inside.

Tao Tao was seen chasing an old hen, holding a wooden stick in each hand.

As he chased, he yelled, "Stop, you little thief! Take this!"

Seeing this scene, Xu Ning shook his head and smiled helplessly.

"Is my uncle back?"

Tao Tao only let go of the old hen after seeing Xu Ning return.

"You even brought meat back?"

Tao Tao was pleasantly surprised to see the lamb leg in Xu Ning's hand.

"This time, you can eat your fill."

Xu Ning patted Tao Tao's head, then went to the kitchen to prepare the lamb hind legs.

Another half hour passed.

Tao Yunchuan and Xu Lian came back together.

When they saw the mutton soup and large chunks of mutton on the table, they were quite surprised.

"Where did this mutton come from?"

Xu Lian looked at Xu Ning.

"My uncle bought it!"

Before Xu Ning could answer, Tao Tao blurted out her answer first.

"You used all the money from selling herbs to buy this?"

Xu Lian was clearly unhappy, as if she was blaming her younger brother for wasting money.

For a family today, the cost of this lamb meal would be a significant sum.

"We'll talk about it later, let's eat first."

Xu Ning looked at Xu Lian, then gestured to Tao Tao, who was drooling beside her, indicating that it was inconvenient to talk when Tao Tao was there.

Tao Yunchuan noticed that Xu Ning seemed to have something to say, so he gestured to his wife, "Let's eat first, and then we can talk."

And so, the family enjoyed a rare and sumptuous dinner.

Tao Tao ate with the most satisfaction, her mouth covered in oil.

After dinner, Tao Tao was sent away.

"Xu Ning, how could you bear to spend money on this?"

As soon as Tao Tao left, Xu Lian asked a question.

She was filled with doubts during the meal.

Tao Yunchuan also frowned and stared at Xu Ning, looking questioning.

"Because... I made money."

Under the watchful eyes of Tao Yunchuan and Xu Lian, Xu Ning took two silver notes out of his pocket and spread them out on the table.

"This is……"

Xu Lian's heart skipped a beat when she saw it.

She carefully picked up the two silver notes.

One sheet costs fifty taels, another one costs one hundred taels.

"Where did all this money come from?"

Xu Lian covered her mouth, looking incredulous.

Tao Yunchuan was calmer than Xu Lian, but he was also full of questions.

"It came from selling herbs."

Xu Ning explained, "Today I went to Guo Ye's place to sell herbs, and he told me that the price of Liangkucao had gone up, and it's now six taels of silver per catty. It was quite a coincidence that I happened to come across a patch of Liangkucao when I went into the mountains today, so I bought it all at once, a total of twenty-five catties, which is exactly one hundred and fifty taels."

Xu Ning concealed the process and dangers of picking the withered grass to some extent, but the explanation was generally plausible.

"Is it really such a coincidence?"

Xu Lian clearly didn't believe it.

"It's just such a coincidence."

Xu Ning replied with an expression that said, "If you don't believe me, you can ask Guo Ye."

Upon hearing this, Xu Lian clearly believed it to some extent.

"Okay, I'll ask Guo Ye tomorrow."

Xu Lian felt she still needed to verify it herself.

Although she still expressed her doubts, Xu Lian's face showed a hint of a smile.