14. The Heart's Capacity to Conceal Matters

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Seeing the progress reach one percent, Xie An felt a wave of relief wash over him. This embryonic breathing technique was unlike the Five Animal Frolics, which had external movements to follow; it relied entirely on meditative sitting and internal visualization. Without a guide, the difficulty of entry was immense.

Fortunately, he had a cheat.

Otherwise, he might have spent ten or fifteen days groping in the dark without making any headway.

Now that he had entered the embryonic breathing technique, it served as motivation for Xie An.

Over the next two days, apart from inspecting the pawnshop, Xie An secluded himself in the backyard hut, diligently cultivating his health exercises, especially dedicating the most effort to the embryonic breathing technique.

He hoped to quickly reach the level of entering sleep embryonic breathing—where one could practice internal energy independently.

That way, practicing the Five Animal Frolics by day and embryonic breathing by night would undoubtedly double his efficiency.

Yet, Xie An soon realized he had overestimated himself.

Even with the blessing of the longevity trait, progress in the embryonic breathing technique was painstakingly slow. After three days of intense effort, he had only barely reached a three percent completion.

[Embryonic Breathing Technique: Three Forms (3/100)]

…

[Five Animal Frolics: Perfect Unity of Body and Spirit (5/100)]

[Note: Completing Perfect Unity of Body and Spirit grants ten additional years of life.]

[Remaining Years: 16]

“The embryonic breathing technique doesn’t specify how many years it will extend life upon completion... Is that because the entry-level isn’t sufficient? Or does my longevity trait only apply to one health cultivation technique per time period?”

Xie An pondered long and hard but could not figure it out, so he gave up.

“I still have sixteen years left; no rush. I’ll take it slow. If I can gather the prescription Tang Qingfeng gave me, it will definitely accelerate progress... I need to find a chance to sell the chamber pot.”

He began to make plans.

With his insight, the chamber pot was worth around two hundred taels without issue.

The Li family pawnshop certainly had the means to buy it. If it was a dead pledge, Xie An could simply use an alias to fill out the pawn ticket and take the money.

But Wuqiao Town was a small place, with only a few pawnshops doing business mostly with familiar faces. Since the chamber pot’s origin was unknown and likely stolen by that young man for resale, if the original owner came looking, Xie An would inevitably get entangled in unnecessary trouble.

Getting older, he preferred to act cautiously.

“The best way is to go to the county seat and find a large pawnshop to make a dead pledge.”

Although Qingwu County was a border county of the Great Qian region, its jurisdiction covered thirty-six townships, with a population of four or five hundred thousand—a substantial scale.

Nearly seventy to eighty thousand people lived within the county seat, bustling and diverse, with dozens of pawnshops. The chance of the chamber pot’s owner tracking it down there was extremely slim. Even if found, it wouldn’t be a problem.

The county seat was heavily guarded, and those running pawnshops there all had connections. The original owner wouldn’t dare cause trouble in the county seat.

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Having made up his mind, Xie An felt at ease.

Early the next morning, he was awakened by urgent knocking.

“Master, get up quickly! Something big has happened!”

Xie An hurriedly dressed and opened the door. “What’s going on?”

He Chunli said, “The eldest son-in-law has died. Today is the funeral; Master Li wants us to help at the Li residence.”

Xie An followed He Chunli to the Li mansion.

Upon entering, he saw the courtyard draped in white silk and lanterns. All the servants were dressed in mourning garb, and waves of sobbing echoed.

At this moment, Chunlan approached holding two white funeral garments, instructing Xie An and He Chunli to put them on. “You’ll follow at the end of the procession. Cry if you must.”

In this era, when a master’s family had a death, even the servants were required to mourn and attend the funeral.

Xie An and He Chunli donned their cloaks and respectfully stood at the back.

Unable to resist Chunlan’s repeated glances, Xie An followed the others in murmuring, “Eldest son-in-law, may you rest in peace.”

The Li family was a major household in Wuqiao Town; local elders and wealthy landlords came to pay their respects.

Even Liu He, the local constable, showed up, and the Chen Martial Arts School sent Chen He to mourn.

Li Ru received everyone politely.

“Constable Liu, my young master was brutally killed outside the Blood Ridge. Please apprehend the culprit swiftly to console his spirit.”

“Rest assured, Master Li. It is my duty to maintain order. I will find and severely punish the murderer.”

After the memorial, the funeral procession commenced.

As a prominent family, the Li funeral was grand, with over a hundred people in the procession, drawing a large crowd of onlookers.

This scene starkly contrasted with Zhang Bing’s death.

The funeral ended just after noon. Xie An and He Chunli returned to the pawnshop.

He Chunli leaned on the counter, zoning out, occasionally glancing at Xie An with a peculiar look.

Though honest, He Chunli was not foolish. He sensed that his master had changed greatly recently, carrying an inexplicable aura.

First, Zhang Bing had bullied his master, then Zhang Bing died.

Later, the eldest son-in-law troubled his master, and he too was gone...

Could it be mere coincidence?

“Could it be...”

“No, impossible! Absolutely impossible!”

He Chunli shook his head vehemently, forcing himself not to imagine wild things.

Just then, Xie An glanced back at He Chunli. “What are you daydreaming about?”

He Chunli was startled and immediately stood up. “Master, I’ll get to work now. There’s a lot I can do.”

Without waiting for a response, he grabbed a cloth to wipe the tables and then went to the door to call for customers.

Xie An: “...”

With He Chunli’s little thoughts, how could he hide them from Xie An’s eyes?

But Xie An said nothing.

Soon after, He Chunli dashed back inside. Xie An thought he might ask something but heard He Chunli nervously say, “Master, someone is looking for you outside.”

Then he slipped away, not asking more.

Xie An noticed and felt a small surge of certainty.

Indeed, harboring secrets quietly is a sign of growing maturity.

Xie An stepped out of the pawnshop and saw Chen He driving a horse-drawn carriage parked by the roadside, loaded to the brim with bottles, jars, and dried medicinal herbs.

Chen He pulled the reins, jumped down, and hurried over, lowering his voice. “Brother Xie, I’m heading to the county seat today to buy some herbs. There’s a new antiques market opening; I plan to see if I can find some bargains. Want to come along?”

Though Chen He was a distant cousin of Chen Lei, master of the Chen Martial Arts School, he was from a remote branch nearly five generations removed. His status was low and he wasn’t highly regarded—just trying to make a living.

In their family, descendants of brothers older than the grandfather’s generation, and who shared the same generation as oneself, were distant cousins. The further up the lineage, the less close they were. Beyond five generations, they were called “five remotes removed.”

Chen He’s kinship ties were indeed very distant.

Seeing Xie An hesitate, Chen He added, “Brother Xie, with your skills and my money, we’ll definitely make a good profit.”

Xie An was concerned about the slow progress in his embryonic breathing technique and knew he urgently needed to complete Tang Qingfeng’s unique prescription. This trip to the county seat to pawn the chamber pot and get cash for medicine was timely.

Moreover, Qingwu County was heavily guarded, requiring travel permits to enter. As a slave, without the Li family’s official pass, Xie An could not enter the county seat alone.

Since the pawnshop had no official business in town, going with Chen He was much more convenient.

He agreed, “Alright, I’ll prepare and go with you.”

Returning to the backyard hut, Xie An grabbed the chamber pot and also took his dagger. Feeling uneasy, he even brought his heavy bow and quiver.

Back at the pawnshop, after greeting He Chunli, he set off with Chen He toward the county seat.

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