It wasn't even noon yet when Chen Ping'an returned from his duty, which pleasantly surprised Chen Er'ya at home.
When Chen Ping'an came back, Xiao Yatou was engrossed in reading.
After the siblings chatted for a bit, Chen Ping'an began practicing Flying Locust Stone and Gongmen Thirteen Blades.
His normal training rhythm was every morning and evening. Today, with rare free time, Chen Ping'an began training as soon as he returned.
After entering the Martial Artist with Qi and Blood Fourth Level, his physique was stronger, and his recovery speed had also greatly increased. Therefore, he could sustain this frequency of training.
Inside the small courtyard, the sound of strong blade winds began to echo.
+1!
+1!
...
Gongmen Thirteen Blades and Flying Locust Stone each accumulated 3 points of cultivation experience, which left Chen Ping'an very satisfied.
"Indeed, official duties are the biggest obstacle to martial arts progress!"
If he could have a day off every day, his martial arts progress would be at least one-third faster.
"Chief Constable! Once I become a Chief Constable, I will have a lot of free time! At that time, my martial arts progress will be even faster!"
Chen Ping'an secretly set a new goal for himself.
If he could become a Chief Constable, although some of his time would not be as fixed as a Yamen Runner, he would have a lot of disposable free time. All this time could be fully utilized by him, becoming the foundation for his martial arts cultivation.
After Chen Ping'an finished practicing his Cultivation Technique, Chen Er'ya had already prepared lunch. After the siblings enjoyed their lunch, they each got busy. In the afternoon, Chen Ping'an also went out with Chen Er'ya to buy a large beef leg from the Lihua Lane butcher shop.
After dinner in the evening, Chen Ping'an continued his diligent practice!
To become a superior person in this world, one must only study and train diligently!
...
The next day, Chen Ping'an arrived at Nanquan Lane Garrison Office early. Today, one fewer Chief Constable attended the pre-duty meeting than yesterday. Zheng Chatou was still the one speaking.
The main key points were still about the tax. At the same time, he emphasized high attention to tax matters, hoping that everyone could live up to expectations and complete the task to Perfection.
As soon as the pre-duty meeting ended, Zeng Jihe went to the Errand Office to get the collection receipt. He originally thought it would be smooth, that after getting the collection receipt, he would go to Hu Pao Gambling House to start collecting the tax.
Chen Ping'an saw Zeng Jihe running back with a bitter expression from a distance.
"What's wrong?"
"Chen Tou, Old Fan from the Errand Office said the stamp on the collection receipt hasn't been applied yet, and he told us to wait! What is Old Fan doing?! Doesn't he know that we only have three days for the tax?! One day has already passed!" Zeng Jihe couldn't help but complain.
"Old Fan from the Errand Office, he doesn't know how to handle special cases. This makes us a bit anxious!"
Cheng Yuan and Zhao Hu said sarcastically from the side, looking as if it had nothing to do with them.
They originally thought Chen Ping'an would be jumping in a hurry, but to their surprise, Chen Ping'an remained unexpectedly calm.
"Oh, then let's wait a bit longer!"
Cheng Yuan and Zhao Hu exchanged glances, unable to figure out what Chen Ping'an was thinking.
Logically, at this time, Chen Ping'an should be as anxious as an ant on a hot pan.
This was not at all what they had expected!
"Chen Tou, I'll go check again, what's going on with Old Fan!"
After waiting for about a quarter of an hour in place, Zeng Jihe couldn't stand still and ran towards the Errand Office again.
As a result, in a short while, he ran back again.
"Chen Tou, he said it's still not ready! What the hell is he doing, dragging his feet like this?!"
"It's fine, find a place to rest first!" Chen Ping'an found a spot and sat down, appearing very calm.
"Chen Tou... sigh..." Zeng Jihe paced back and forth, unable to calm down.
Nonsense, in this situation, who could remain calm?
Zeng Jihe ran back and forth several times but received no good news. There were a few other teams of Yamen Runners like them, so everyone had some company.
As noon approached, Zeng Jihe ran another time. This time, Zeng Jihe came back completely broken!
"Chen Tou, the collection receipts for the other teams have all been obtained! I asked about our collection receipt, and Old Fan said he forgot to stamp it for us!"
"Forgot to stamp it?"
"Yes, this Old Fan is really unreliable! He's going to kill us!"
So that's how they're playing! Interesting.
Chen Ping'an saw through it clearly, and his mood remained calm. Given the current situation, he was no longer in a hurry.
"It's fine, we'll go check again later to see when our collection receipt will be ready!"
"Mm." Zeng Jihe looked anxious but didn't know what to do.
Chen Ping'an looked around, then at Cheng Yuan and Zhao Hu, and he chuckled softly.
"Xiao Zeng, I'm going out to take a look. You just wait here for news about the collection receipt."
"Ah! Chen Tou is going out?"
"Mm." Chen Ping'an nodded lightly, then walked towards the gate of Zhenfu Division.
"Xiao Zeng, listen to your Brother Cheng, don't bother yourself anymore. Just follow us, wouldn't that be good! I think he's just given up!" Seeing Chen Ping'an leave, Cheng Yuan sneered.
Xiao Zeng was still in the dark about the collection receipt matter. He, however, knew it perfectly well. This was naturally Zheng Shiyong's doing behind the scenes. The later they obtained the collection receipt, the less time Chen Ping'an would naturally have.
The matter was already difficult; with the time compressed, the outcome was predictable.
"That's right, Xiao Zeng, you're running around so much. If you don't get the tax, you'll still suffer the consequences with Chen Ping'an. He's a formal Yamen Runner, so it'll be a bit better for him. You're a temporary Yamen Runner; don't end up suffering heavy losses!"
Zhao Hu also advised from the side.
Listening to their words, Zeng Jihe was indeed a bit hesitant. If he just followed Cheng Yuan and Zhao Hu, with Zheng Shiyong's favor, there was a high probability that he could avoid punishment and push all responsibility onto Chen Ping'an.
It's just that...
Zeng Jihe hesitated for a while, but in the end, he decided to follow his heart.
"Xiao Zeng, you! What can I say about you! Don't blame us brothers for being heartless then!"
"In this Zhenfu Division, doing things is not as good as taking sides! You are still young; you will understand then!"
As for Cheng Yuan and Zhao Hu's words, Zeng Jihe ignored them, simply moving a bit further away from them.
...
That day, Chen Ping'an returned home much earlier than usual, and he still practiced martial arts. He had one more opportunity to train than on a normal duty day. The siblings laughed and chatted, and the atmosphere was warm.
The next day, Chen Ping'an practiced martial arts in the courtyard! As the last blade strike fell, a familiar experience symbol appeared again.
Name: Chen Ping'an
Realm: Martial Artist with Qi and Blood Fourth Level
Martial Arts: Iron Cloth Perfection, Flying Locust Stone Major Achievement (35/100), Gongmen Thirteen Blades Minor Achievement (25/40)
...
"At this rate, in another two days, my Gongmen Thirteen Blades will be able to reach Major Achievement!"
Chen Ping'an felt excited and a sense of longing arose within him.
After wiping his body and eating breakfast, Chen Ping'an composed himself and hurried to Nanquan Lane Garrison Office.
He hadn't checked whether the collection receipt was obtained yesterday. However, if Zheng Chatou was behind the scenes, it was highly probable that the collection receipt was not obtained yesterday.
The other party's intentions were already very clear: they wanted to destroy him.
When Chen Ping'an inquired at Nanquan Lane Garrison Office, it was indeed so; he still hadn't received the collection receipt.
It was under these circumstances that Zheng Chatou began the pre-duty meeting speech.