Accounts

Qin Manor's Small Courtyard.

Several burly guards each held a Golden Gourd Hammer.

The Golden Gourd Hammer was a heavy weapon, weighing no less than fifty pounds. Anyone not born with great strength could not even lift it.

"Young Master. Are we really hitting you?"

The guards hesitated.

If they struck too hard and injured Qin Yang, angering him, their heads might roll.

Now, throughout the entire manor, no one did not fear Qin Yang, the eldest young master.

Especially these guards, who had personally seen how Twin Snake Gang's Gang Leader, She Qing, had been blasted to death by Qin Yang's single punch.

That scene still echoed in their minds to this day.

"If I tell you to hit me, then hit me. Why are you spouting so much nonsense?"

Qin Yang stood bare-chested, revealing powerful, sleek lines of muscle.

Sensing the displeasure in Qin Yang's words, the guards shuddered and could only grit their teeth and step forward.

Two stood behind Qin Yang, and two stood behind him.

"Hit!" Qin Yang growled.

At his command, the four guards raised their Golden Gourd Hammers and smashed them down at Qin Yang's body.

Xiao Huan, watching from the side, turned pale with fright and immediately covered her eyes, terrified that her young master would be beaten until he vomited blood.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Several dull hammer blows rang out.

The four Golden Gourd Hammers landed on his shoulders, chest, thighs, and lower abdomen.

Qin Yang remained standing there as though nothing had happened.

The guards, meanwhile, revealed looks of utter shock.

They felt as though they had struck a layer of tough, sturdy cowhide.

Naturally, it could not have been cowhide. It was the Primordial Qi Shield Qin Yang had formed.

"Did you all go listen to music at the brothel last night?"

"A bunch of weak-kneed shrimps. Whoever manages to injure me today will be rewarded five hundred taels of silver!"

Qin Yang said coolly.

In an instant, the guards seemed to be filled with strength. They wildly swung their heavy Golden Gourd Hammers, bombarding Qin Yang's body.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

After the time it took to drink a cup of tea.

The guards were all panting for breath from exhaustion.

Qin Yang was completely unharmed. After being hammered for so long, not even a bruise had appeared on his skin.

"Young Master. We really can't swing them anymore!"

"Damn. Young Master, your external martial arts are too terrifying!"

The guards were so exhausted that they could not even raise their Golden Gourd Hammers. They pleaded for mercy.

Seeing them like this, Qin Yang shook his head speechlessly. "Go back and train properly. With this little stamina, what are you even trying to make a living at?"

The guards fled the Small Courtyard in a rolling, scrambling mess.

"Young Master, are you really all right?"

Xiao Huan asked, tilting her head.

"Of course. I may not be impervious to blades and spears yet, but taking a few hits is no problem."

Qin Yang grinned smugly.

He had not expected the Primordial Qi Shield to be so effective.

After half a month of cultivation, the Primordial Qi Shield had only reached the third layer. When the Qi Shield Seed in his heart spread out, circulated through his entire body with his blood, and then seeped through his skin, it formed a thin layer of qi force over the surface of his body.

This layer of qi force could not truly be called a shield, but its defensive power was remarkably formidable.

If he could cultivate it to great accomplishment, it would surely be an entirely different sight.

Just as he was thinking.

Qian Hai entered the courtyard.

"Uncle Qian, what is it?"

"Sit down and let's talk."

Qin Yang said with a smile.

The two came to sit on the stone stools in the Small Courtyard.

"Young Master. The several wandering heroes we sent out earlier have all returned, and they came back empty-handed."

"They found no trace of the Family Head."

Qian Hai sighed softly.

"We can't give up. Find a few more people and try again."

Qin Yang did not lack that bit of money. He only wanted peace of mind.

After that night, however, he had begun to see things differently.

He wondered whether Qin Dongsheng might have encountered some evil entity on his way back.

That night, if Yin Hezi had not happened to pass by while driving corpses and pulled him out of the Broken Temple, he would surely have died.

Qin Dongsheng had been returning from Nanxing City, through desolate wilderness all the way. The chances of evil entities appearing might have been greater as well.

"Mm. I'll send more people this time."

Qian Hai nodded.

After finishing that matter, his expression became solemn again.

"Young Master, there is one more thing."

"Old Wu from the Accounting Room said that the pharmacy account books have been rather strange over the past two months."

Qin Yang was somewhat surprised. "Which shop?"

The Qin Family owned two pharmacies: Daliang Pharmacy and Dashan Pharmacy.

Those two pharmacies were the Qin Family's source of income, earning several hundred taels of silver every month.

"Daliang Pharmacy."

"The silver handed over these past two months has been nearly cut in half."

Qian Hai said coldly.

His meaning was obvious: Daliang Pharmacy's shopkeeper had pocketed the money privately. Otherwise, how could such a drastic change have occurred?

"Could business have simply been poor these past two months?"

Qin Yang did not want to wrongly accuse anyone.

Shopkeeper Yao of Daliang Pharmacy was also an old hand of Qin Manor. He had worked diligently at the pharmacy for more than ten years.

This matter had to be handled cautiously.

"I hope that is the case too."

"But over the past few days, I secretly went to Daliang Pharmacy to take a look."

"There were even more people coming to buy medicine than at Dashan Pharmacy. It is impossible for there to be so much less money."

Qian Hai had naturally investigated before daring to come to Qin Yang.

"Then I'll go take a look."

Qin Yang did not want to concern himself with trivial affairs, but for this kind of matter, he still had to personally step in.

He and Qian Hai first went to the Accounting Room.

When Old Wu from the Accounting Room saw Qin Yang come in person, he immediately understood and directly brought out Daliang Pharmacy's account book.

"Young Master. Look at the figures from these past two months."

"These are Daliang Pharmacy's previous account books."

"There is definitely a problem with the account books Daliang Pharmacy handed over."

Old Wu was a meticulous old man who handled matters with unwavering precision.

For all these years, he had managed Qin Manor's accounts.

Qin Yang looked over them a few times and compared them. Even an outsider could tell that something was wrong with the account books from the past two months; the discrepancy from before was far too great.

"I'll handle it."

"Also, Old Wu, the year's end is approaching, and times have not been good lately. Give everyone in the manor half again as much monthly allowance this month."

Qin Yang said calmly.

"Thank you, Young Master." Old Wu hurriedly expressed his gratitude.

"If I spread this news, I'm afraid everyone in the manor will be overjoyed."

Qian Hai said with a smile.

Qin Yang's changes over these past days had simply been too great.

Even when Qin Dongsheng had been in charge, he had never done such a thing.

After giving a few more instructions, Qin Yang left Qin Manor alone.

Daliang Pharmacy was on An Sui Street.

It was a street by the river, with shops only on one side and a tributary of the North River on the other.

Neatly planted willow trees lined the outer side of the street. When the river breeze blew softly, their branches swayed in the wind.

A group of old men gathered in a corner, playing chess and chatting.

The buildings here were all pharmacies, physicians' halls, and the like. Every household hung banners bearing phrases such as "bringing the dead back to life with miraculous hands."

People on the street carried large and small bundles of herbs, their expressions full of sorrow.

Daliang Pharmacy stood at the end of the street.

The few businesses able to open in prominent locations all belonged to major powers within the city.

The Qin Family could only be considered a minor player in Linjiang City, so naturally, it could only set up shop in some out-of-the-way corner.

Even so, it still earned quite a bit of money every month.

Qin Yang observed from outside for quite a while and found that Daliang Pharmacy's business was indeed decent.

After all, small pharmacies did not charge as much as large ones, making them a better choice for those living in relative hardship.

It was not until noon that the number of people coming to the pharmacy gradually dwindled.

Only then did Qin Yang enter the pharmacy.

"Young Master?!"

"Greetings, Young Master Qin!"

Upon seeing Qin Yang, the pharmacy apprentices and pharmacists hurriedly greeted him.

Qin Yang nodded lightly and glanced around casually. "Where is Shopkeeper Yao?"

"Young Master, Shopkeeper Yao is inside brewing medicine."

One pharmacist hurriedly replied.

"All right, carry on. I'll go in and take a look."

Qin Yang walked into the rear of the pharmacy.

More than a dozen stoves stood in the back courtyard, covered with medicine jars, all boiling herbs.

"Young Master, why have you come?"

An old man around fifty years old, with graying hair, looked at Qin Yang in great surprise.