Chapter 23: Chapter 23 The Hidden Dragon Manager Wang's reminder caused Gu Erniu and Gu Sheng to feel heavy-hearted. Though the war seemed far from Canghe County and Gu's Manor, under a collapsed nest, no egg remains intact. If the situation one day falls apart completely, no one will escape. The only good news was that this day likely wouldn't come so quickly. Gu Sheng still had time to grow. A sense of urgency arose in his heart, and his desire to practice martial arts became even stronger. In troubled times, only strength can calm the hearts of people. Knowing that grain prices were likely to rise, Gu Sheng and Gu Erniu decided to head home and each bring back twenty pounds of meat to trade for rice. Each of them had thirty pounds of wild boar meat. They traded for sixty pounds of millet and seventy pounds of rice bran. Gu Sheng wasn't extravagant enough to trade all of it for millet. Though hunting brought in good money, he still had to be frugal. Pouring over a hundred pounds of rice into the grain jars, Gu Sheng instantly felt a sense of satisfaction. A home stocked with grain, a heart free of worry. With the rice left over from before, eating for two to three months wouldn't be an issue. If something truly happened, by rationing carefully, it could even stretch to four or five months! Aside from rice, the household still had over ten pounds of smoked and cured meat, plus another ten pounds of fresh wild boar meat left. As of now, Gu Sheng's life. After more than a month of effort, had improved immensely. Compared to the hardships when he first awakened his innate wisdom, where he could only eat rice bran and chew on wild vegetables, he could now truly be considered comfortable. "Tonight, millet and stewed wild boar meat!" Gu Sheng's eyes lit up; after eating rice bran for so long, he could finally enjoy a change in taste. Returning home, he started the fire and got to cooking. He had cut the wild boar meat, bones, and trotters in advance and placed them into a clay pot for slow stewing. Gu Sheng even splurged by adding a pinch of salt and seasoning he got from Gu Erniu. Patiently he waited. Before long. The fragrance of meat began to waft out, the unique savory aroma of wild boar meat lingered on the tip of Gu Sheng's nose, making his throat unconsciously move as he swallowed saliva. At the same time. The millet rice was also ready. The fragrance of the rice mixed with the scent of the meat—an absolutely intoxicating combination! Gu Sheng couldn't wait. First, he ladled himself a bowl of meat broth, oil floating on top, stirring up an appetite. When it had cooled slightly, he drank it all in one go. The warm sensation of the broth passing over his tongue and throat had Gu Sheng exclaiming with delight! He then dug in heartily. A bite of wild boar meat, a spoonful of millet rice—deliciously fragrant, making him wish he could eat his tongue along with it. In his previous life, this would've been just a simple dinner, but in this life, Gu Sheng could hardly recall an occasion this indulgent! He ate earnestly, cherishing this hard-earned fruit of his labor. By the end, he even sucked the marrow clean out of the wild boar bones. Letting out a satisfied burp, Gu Sheng released a content sigh. He instinctively opened his skill panel. His wood chopping proficiency was still at 16%, the same as before entering the mountains. But his archery proficiency had actually increased from 30% to 31%! Gu Sheng's eyes showed surprise. "I didn't practice archery today; it increased just from using my skills during the hunt? An increase of 1%?" He guessed it was due to being more focused during combat, resulting in better outcomes. "If I could fight consistently, my archery skill might grow several times faster!" "But...it's too dangerous!" After reflecting briefly, Gu Sheng abandoned the thought. Getting stronger was to ensure survival. If he constantly put himself in danger just to improve, it was only a matter of time before everything came crashing down. Though progress through constant training was slower, it was much safer. ... The next day. Gu Sheng went as usual to chop wood for the main household. For now, he wouldn't give up the wood-chopping work. First, hunting wasn't something done daily. Though earning ten wen a day from chopping wood wasn't much, small increments eventually added up significantly. Second, achieving perfection in wood chopping still required grinding proficiency. Without this job at the main household, where would he find so much wood to chop? He couldn't exactly go door to door offering free chopping services. But today. He brought with him half a pound of wild boar meat and some small bones. These were for Uncle He. He figured he might occasionally need to deal with him for future hunting trips. Asking for favors once or twice wouldn't matter much, but if it happened too often, resentment would inevitably arise. Upon meeting Uncle He, Gu Sheng thanked him warmly: "Thanks for looking out for me all this time, Uncle He. I had some luck on my hunt yesterday, so I brought some for you to try." Seeing it was wild boar meat, Uncle He's face immediately showed a look of surprise. Gu Sheng's first venture into the mountains had brought such results? He then recalled Gu Sheng's remarkable insights and diligence displayed during wood chopping and speculated that Gu Sheng's progress in archery must also be swift. Yet most of all, Uncle He marveled at Gu Sheng's tactfulness. A fourteen-year-old boy, this meticulous—truly rare. "Remarkable insight and diligence, while also understanding worldly matters—this boy is like a hidden dragon. If he excels at martial arts someday, he could very well be the next Gu Jingang!" Uncle He mused this to himself. Keeping a kind smile, he nodded and said: "Thank you for your kindness. From now on, just call me Uncle He. If you plan to hunt in the mountains later, let me know beforehand. Anyway, you chop wood quickly; finishing sooner or later makes no difference." Gu Sheng felt joy in his heart and bowed respectfully. "Got it, Uncle He!" Their relationship instantly grew closer. Such is the nature of interpersonal connections. Lending a helping hand, receiving one in return—this back-and-forth builds rapport. After exchanging a few more pleasantries, Gu Sheng was ready to leave. Uncle He couldn't resist adding: "Asheng, about the matter I mentioned last time—you can consider it after you've trained in martial arts. My third brother's daughter is very beautiful and absolutely worthy of you..." He was still trying to secure Gu Sheng into his family's fold. Gu Sheng bowed and replied: "Thank you for your kind thoughts, Uncle He. Your niece is not out of my league; indeed, it would be me who would be reaching high. However, I've vowed at my father's grave to establish a career before starting a family." "Currently, I'm only just barely able to support myself. How could I dare think of other matters? I hope you'll understand." Seeing Gu Sheng's firm stance, Uncle He felt deep regret. Still, he told Gu Sheng to reconsider after his martial arts training was complete. Perhaps then, Gu Sheng might change his mind. ... In the days that followed. Gu Sheng's life returned to its routine. On the days he didn't hunt, he chopped wood in the morning and practiced archery in the afternoon. In the evenings, he'd ensure his body had enough rest while taking time to study the knowledge of this world. Before awakening innate wisdom, Gu Sheng had only a rudimentary understanding of literacy. But now, he knew much more. The cost of this knowledge was offering some jerky to the elderly teacher at the manor. Still, Gu Sheng thought it was worth it. Preparing for the future was necessary; otherwise, it'd be laughable if, during martial arts practice, he couldn't grasp its meanings due to illiteracy! Imagine obtaining a manual only to realize you were blind to its contents—that would be a terrible experience. Moreover, Gu Sheng knew he'd eventually leave Gu's Manor one day. Having more knowledge would prevent him from being clueless when that time came. At least now he knew. The Kingdom of Da Liang had thirteen states, and the one he was in was Qing Province, within the jurisdiction of Red Cloud Prefecture and specifically Canghe County. As for Yun Province, it neighbored Qing Province. However, since Canghe County sat at Qing Province's edge, there was still a considerable distance between it and Yun Province.