"Oh, we only sell hemp seeds in our store, which are used to relieve constipation. There is no hemp seed pollen. The picking season has passed now. It was only good to pick it last month. Now it has borne fruit, Lang. If you want to buy it, it probably won’t be until next year.”
"I wonder if there are other places?"
"I've never heard of hemp seed pollen being used for anything, but its fruit is useful and the flowers are rarely picked. You can go to the medical clinic in Suzhou and ask about it. It may be available there."
"Then give me a pound of hemp seeds, and can I have some licorice?" Chen Fan remembered that licorice is used to detoxify and eliminate phlegm. It can be used to detoxify datura, so he naturally needs to prepare some. "
"Yes, sir, please wait a moment." After saying this, Langzhong turned around, quickly opened the medicine cabinet, and grabbed two packets for Chen Fan.
"How much?" Chen Fan asked without taking it.
"This is my return gift to Mr. Lang. Please accept it."
"You have to collect the money. If you want to give me a gift in return, can you arrange for someone to pick some hemp seeds for me next year, dry them in the shade, and grind them into powder?"
"Okay, sir, I have ten pieces of medicinal materials in total."
"Okay, Hou Feng, pay one hundred and ten cents. The one hundred cents will be the deposit for next year. I will take care of you when you have time."
"One hundred fen is too much, I'll take 10 fen."
"One hundred coins is not much. The amount I need is large, so the doctor should be tight on money first."
"Okay, then I'm welcome."
Chen Fan nodded, said goodbye to Hou Feng who was holding the medicine, and went out. Where to go? Chen Fan decided to go to Gong Qing's house first for the simple reason that it was close to Gong Qing's house.
"Hou Feng, we are going to Qingpu Town in the afternoon. Is there a carriage?"
"Yes, I wonder how many people are going to be there, Mr. Lang?"
"Four, if A Qing wants to go, let's go together." Chen Fan decided to just call A Qing. An important task for him this afternoon was to meet the shopkeeper's daughter, the crown prince of Sanqing Temple, to see if he could find out more. Regarding the situation of Sanqing Temple, as for Feng Can and Gong Qing, since they are not members of the Taoist sect, it may be a little inconvenient to talk, so they will not shout.
"Okay, then just call for a carriage. When you come back later, I will call for the carriage."
"Okay, no rush. Let's have lunch first. Which restaurant in the county do you think is better?"
"Wangyuelou Bar, it's not far away. Fish and shrimp are the specialty there, and most people in the county like to go there. There is another place, Qingxiang Pavilion, where the beef and mutton are excellent, and the tripe lung soup is also good. If you like meat, you can choose that.”
"Okay, let's wait and decide." Chen Fan decided to seek the opinions of Gong Qing and Feng Can before deciding.
The two walked while talking, and soon they arrived at Gong Qing's house.
The concierge obviously knew Chen Fan. When he saw Chen Fan coming, he said, "Please sir, please wait a moment." He ran in to report as fast as he could.
Hearing the commotion, Gong Qing came out and said, "How come Fa Sheng is free today and comes to Humble House?"
"It's not that I miss you. I just came back last night and I came to see you first today."
"Why don't you come in and sit down? What are you doing standing at the door?"
"No, let's go find Feng Can first and have a meal together at noon. Do you think it's Wangyue Tower or Qingxiang Pavilion?"
"Is Nanfeng Pavilion okay?"
"Okay, I'll go if you invite me."
"Then let's go to Wangyue Tower." After Gong Qing finished speaking, he said hello to the doorman at home, and walked towards Feng Can with Chen Fan.
"Well, why are you so timid when it comes to treating guests? This is not the Gong Qing I know."
"I'm going to eat yours first. This is called order."
"When is the follow-up?"
"In a few years, when I get out of Tianshui College and find a suitable job, I'll invite you to the Nanfeng Pavilion. How about that?"
"This is what you said. You won't forget it in a few years, right?"
"How could it be? When did I forget what I promised you?"
It's hard to say. The key is to forget that Chen Fan doesn't know, so just believe it for the time being. "Okay, although it's a bit long ago, I'll just listen to it and believe it."
"Don't worry, I'll definitely invite you when the time comes."
"How are you preparing to go to Tianshui Academy?"
"There is nothing to prepare. The freshmen will report on the 29th. Just go there. How are you?"
"I have to go to the Taoist temple to study. I stayed in Gusu for more than ten days. I met the Taoist priests such as the temple master and the temple master, and then practiced for a while. Now I have been accepted by the Taoist temple as a disciple. I will report on the 29th. ."
"Fasheng, you are going to fly solo."
"No, I have a cousin named Xiao Qing. He originally planned to go to Qian Taoist Temple. Now he has also gone to Zhenwu Temple to practice Taoism. He has a companion. I will call him during lunch and you can get to know him."
"What am I talking about with him? You, forget it, let's not talk about it. You have changed a lot during this period, especially your head, which is much better than before."
"No matter how big the change is, are we still good friends since childhood? Don't worry, I won't leave you behind. When I get rich in the future, I will definitely take you with me."
"That's what you said, so I'll first wish you to get rich soon." Gong Qing suddenly regained his energy and said with a smile.
"Okay, I'll lend you some good advice."
The two of them walked and chatted, and soon they arrived at the door of Feng Can's house.
"I won't go in. You go and call him." Mainly because he didn't know Feng Can's family and it was troublesome how to greet him after entering. Chen Fan simply didn't come in.
"Okay, I'll call him."
After a while, the two people walked out of it.
"You're here, why don't you come in?"
"Aren't you afraid of causing trouble to you? Besides, in order to come to see you earlier, I didn't even enter Gong Qing's house, so I can't favor one over the other."
"Okay, where to go now? Wangyue Tower?"
"Yes, choose one of Wangyue Tower or Qingxiang Pavilion. Gong Qing chose Wangyue Tower. He passed by my house for a while. I called my aunt, cousin Xiao Qing and his master, and the six of us ate together." After saying that, Chen Fan led the way. Everyone, go home.
"Has your relationship with Xiao Qing improved now?" Feng Can asked.
"How can you say it's getting better? It's always been good."
"Didn't you say something bad about him before?"
"Why did I say something bad about him before? Tell me, why don't I remember?"
"Gong Qing, I find that some people are thick-skinned now."
"You just found out?"
Chen Fan decided not to answer this question, since he was not talking about me anyway.
"Hou Feng, you go to Wangyue Tower to reserve a seat first. We will have six people including you at noon." Seeing that we are almost home, and safety is not a problem in Hudu County, it is better to let Hou Feng reserve a seat first.
"Okay." After Hou Feng finished speaking, he left like a gust of wind.
"Is this your escort? I've never seen you take one before."
"Safety comes first when you go out. In a place like Suzhou, there is a mixture of good and bad, unlike our simple folk customs in Hudu, where safety and security are guaranteed. My mother arranged for someone to follow me in the future. You two will go to Tianshui College to take classes. , you must also pay attention to safety, it is best to travel together, and be careful in everything." It's hard to say about Gong Qing's family, but Feng Can's family probably will not arrange guards for him.
"Tianshui College is not far from our county. Besides, we usually live in the college, so safety shouldn't be a problem."
"I will be with Feng Can in the future. You don't have to worry about us. You should worry about yourself. You go to the Taoist temple to study. Those people are older than you. You have never practiced martial arts. Don't be bullied."
"I'm worried too. Hou Feng can't stay with me all the time. He can't follow me when he goes to school in Taoist Temple, so I have to fawn over Xiao Qing."
"Why are you trying to flatter him?"
"He can fight! You don't know that he is actually a prodigy in martial arts. He was noticed by the master of the Zhenwu Hall in the Taoist temple and insisted on accepting him as his direct disciple. It is estimated that among our group of students, in terms of martial arts, he will be the best Say second, no one dares to say first.”
"Is he so powerful?"
"Yes, when you stay for a while at noon, you can coax him more and let him show you his hands. Also, don't spread the news that the master of Zhenwu Hall insists on accepting him as a disciple. This is in our Taoist temple. It’s all confidential, you know, those Taoist priests want to save face.”
"Don't worry, Gong Qing and I understand this."
"The one I'm worried about is you, the scheming little fat man. Gong Qing is much more reliable than you when it comes to confidentiality. Fortunately, this is not a confidential matter. It doesn't matter if it is spread. If it really can't be spread, I don't dare to talk to you. You tell me." Chen Fan was shocked at Feng Can and said, "Look at my guard just now. When it comes to martial arts, he is no match for Xiao Qing." This is the truth.
"Then you have to have a good relationship with him. Your parents are not around. If he bullies you, you will be in trouble."
"If he dares to bully you, tell me and I will call someone to deal with him." Gong Qing took the words and said indignantly.
"Well, it's hard to go out. If it hadn't hurt my soul, and if I didn't cultivate, I wouldn't live long. I wouldn't want to go to a Taoist temple to practice." Chen Fan said duplicity, thought for a while, and added: "This can't be said If someone else hears it, especially that Xiao Qing, it would be terrible if he spreads these words to the Taoist Master and makes me unable to get the true message in the Taoist temple."
"Well, don't worry about this, we will keep it a secret for you." Feng Can continued.
Gong Qing, who usually talks a lot, was a little absent-minded today and didn't answer much. Most of the time, Feng Can was the one doing the talking.
"Okay, now that we're at my house, forget about all this. Let's stay and eat happily. Then I'll tell you some good news."
"What good news? Tell me now."
"Stay a while, I'll call someone, you guys wait for me." Chen Fan ducked into the house and called Xiao Qing and Master Huang to come out and eat together.
"Can you tell me now? What's the good news?" Feng Can asked tirelessly when he saw Chen Fan calling someone out.
"As I promised you last time, I have already arranged for you to go to Gusu to participate in the chess competition. The competition will start on the 12th of the twelfth lunar month. You will set off on the 10th of the twelfth lunar month. My father will send someone to call you by then to arrive in Gusu in advance. Su, you can still have fun in Gusu." Chen Fan, who originally planned to introduce a few people to each other, had to answer Feng Can's question first.
"That's great. All food and accommodation are included, right?" Feng Can blinked and looked at Chen Fan and asked, without the slightest hint of embarrassment.
"That's natural, you just need to take yourself with you."
Seeing Chen Fan and Feng Can having fun, Gong Qing's expression became much better, "Fasheng, you will take us to visit Gusu then."
"Okay, no problem." Chen Fan readily agreed.
"This is Xiao Langjun, right? Fasheng often mentions you in front of us, saying that you are good at martial arts. Why do you carry a sword when you go out? Hudu is relatively safe." Gong Qing met Xiao Qing and took the initiative to say hello.
"This is Gong Qing, and this is Feng Can. We are young, so I don't need to tell Xiao Qing. This is Xiao Qing's master. You can just call him Master Huang." Chen Fan interjected from the side.
Several people nodded to each other as a courtesy.
