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nTranslator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

n“I’ve reported it to the village committee. Leave it to them,” said Wang Yao with a smile.

n“Seriously? Did you really count on the committee to deal with those scumbags?” said Wang Mingbao, surprised.

nThere were scumbags in every single village. They were not exactly villains but a few of the villagers wanted nothing to do with them. No one wanted trouble. There were several scumbags in Wang Jia Village and all the villagers disliked them. They made a lot of trouble in the village, such as stealing. The village committee tried to stop them, but it didn’t work. Those troublemakers upset the head of the committee when he tried to reason with them. But there was someone these vagabonds were scared of and this person was sitting right in front of Wang Yao.

nWang Mingbao never attempted to convince them to stop making trouble. He just beat them up every time he saw them. Those scumbags were so afraid of Wang Mingbao that they begged him not to beat them anymore and reported him to the village committee. Of course, members of the village committee wouldn’t do anything about it as they were happy for someone like Wang Mingbao to give those scumbags a lesson. In the end they went to the police where they were punished for stealing. After all, Wang Mingbao’s father was a prominent figure in the village.

nWang Mingbao had been tough with those scumbags. They ran away as soon as they saw Wang Mingbao as they didn’t want to be beaten up again.

n“Just wait and see. Don’t take any action until we make sure nothing has been done,” said Wang Yao.

n“Let me ask around first. I want to know who has tried to destroy your herbal field,” said Wang Mingbao.

nWang Mingbao was a good person. He was nice to his friends and he respected the elders and looked after the young in the village. He had a very good reputation. But he was tough and harsh to the scumbags.

n“How’s your business in town?” asked Wang Yao.

n“Not bad. I’ve got quite a few projects going on and renovations booked. Business has been good,” said Wang Mingbao.

n“What about my sister? Is that guy still after her?” asked Wang Yao.

n“Yeah, he hasn’t given up yet. Don’t worry. I’ve got someone to keep an eye on him!” said Wang Mingbao.

nWang Mingbao left the cottage after a short while.

nIt started to get dark. After reading scriptures aloud repeatedly, Wang Yao walked around the herbal field and stopped next to the jujube trees. Most of the leaves on the chestnut and jujube trees didn’t fall during the winter. It seemed that the trees were able to tolerate the freezing weather and they continued to grow. The ginseng Wang Yao grew under the trees had sprouted. One Ginseng had 3 leaves standing in the wind.

nNo hurry, take your time.

nWang Yao heard the system’s prompts the next morning.

nTask (herbal garden 2): successfully grow 30 different herbs within 10 days. Among the 30 herbs, there should be 3 licorice roots without repetition of previous ones.

nReward: one formula.

n“I’ve met the criteria for upgrading. Can I upgrade?” asked Wang Yao.

nYes.

nWang Yao didn’t expect the system to accept his request. What a surprise!

nFigure Level: 3

nOccupational grade: Green hand (Well, almost there)

nHerbal cultivation:

nGrade: 2 (entry level), you are now able to grow herbs with a reasonable amount of experience.

nOne of the rewards after upgrading was a skill point, which was very precious. He required skill points to learn magical skills in the skill book.

nWhere should I apply the skill point at?

nThere were two ways to apply a skill point. He could apply the skill point either on medical skills or pharmacology skills. Although they were two different skills, they were related and co-dependent.

nIf he went for medical skills, he would pick the skill of inquiry symptoms. But with pharmacology skills, he didn’t know which one to choose. After some hesitation, Wang Yao chose the pharmacology skills.

nSuddenly, Wang Yao felt something familiar in his head. It was like he was hit by something and was enlightened. His mind quickly filled with the knowledge of herbs including the type of herbs, the effect of different herbs and how to use them.

nWow! Fortunately, Wang Yao was prepared. He looked at the herbs in the field. Now he knew more about their traits, effects, side effects, who should take them, and who shouldn’t. He had all the knowledge in his head.

nHe found that he was becoming the walking Compendium of Materia Medica (A Chinese herbal classic).

nWang Yao also found changes in the medicine shop of the system. The store had increased herbs and formulas available, which were still very expensive to Wang Yao.

nWhat made Wang Yao happy the most was that the amount of ancient spring increased from one bucket to three buckets a day.

nWonderful!

nThe reward came when Wang Yao was worried about not having enough ancient spring water. It was a timely addition. It seems the system wasn’t always fickle.

nThousands of miles away, in Ji Province, two middle-aged men were in a free-standing house. One of them looked masculine while the other looked elegant.

n“Tuyuan, are you telling me the truth?” asked the elegant man.

n“When have I ever lied to you since you’ve known me?” said Tian Tuyuan.

n“Alright. Can you ask him for me?”

n“Sure. Your mom always treated me well when we were in high school. I’ll try my best,” said Tian Tuyuan.

n“I think I will get a notice of relocation soon if everything goes smoothly. I’ll probably be relocated there,” said the elegant man.

n“I see. Not bad.”

n“Yes.”

nIt was gloomy outside. A gust of wind passed and snowflakes started to fall.

nWang Yao was reading Nan Hua Jing. He then made himself a cup of black tea. He was completely into the book and sensed the spirit of ancient Chinese philosophy.

nDing! His phone suddenly started to ring.

nWang Yao put the book down and picked up the phone. It was his schoolmate Yang Ming ringing him. They met several times in the town center of Lianshan.

n“Hello, Yang Ming,” Wang Yao picked up the phone.

n“Hello Wang Yao, how are you?” laughed Yang Ming.

n“Good. Thanks,” said Wang Yao.

n“Well, it’s almost the end of the year. Most of our schoolmates have returned to Lian Shan. I’m organizing a reunion party. Do you want to come?” asked Yang Ming.

nSchoolmate reunion?

n“I’ve got a lot on my plate now. I’m afraid…”

nWang Yao hesitated. His high schoolmates got together every year since they started to study in the university. It was nice at the beginning when they sat together to talk about future. What they had then was pure friendship. But gradually the reunions had changed into a stage for people to show off, network and do business. So Wang Yao started to avoid attending the reunion parties.

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