Late at night.

Under Li An's care, Song Mingzhang finally woke up, albeit extremely weak.

He was already nearing the end of his life, experiencing intense emotions and heartbreak in just one day, leaving his old eyes vacant, as if lifeless.

"Zuo Wen..."

He sighed deeply, "I have wronged you."

Li An said, "Elder, there's no need to say such things... You have been a great benefactor to Zuo Wen."

Song Mingzhang said, "Anning has been without parents since she was young. I raised her myself, doting on her and indulging her every whim, never teaching her the principles of being a person, leading to this situation. This is all my fault."

"As your wife, someone of her low esteem and debasement is unworthy. But for my sake, I hope you can take her as a concubine in the future, giving her a place to find refuge, so she won't be wandering and suffering..."

Li An, neither humble nor arrogant, replied, "Elder, rest assured. What Zuo Wen has said will stand. If Anning wishes to follow Zuo Wen, he will treat her as his wife. If Anning finds Zuo Wen unrefined and seeks another match, Zuo Wen will not interfere—"

Song Mingzhang was taken aback. He had heard this before and found it pleasing, but now, on the brink of death, he finally sensed its underlying meaning!

If Anning could restrain herself and wholeheartedly live with Li An, Li An would treat her well.

But if Anning continues as she is...

"It's not your fault, it's not your fault..."

He murmured in a daze, suddenly tears welled up in his old eyes, and he cried out:

"Anning, Anning!"

He reached out his aged hand, as if trying to grasp something, but ultimately it fell abruptly.

Song Mingzhang is dead!

...

The mansion was filled with cries, and Li An donned mourning clothes for Song Mingzhang and presided over the funeral.

He arranged for the mansion's servants and maids to report the death to Song Mingzhang's friends, and spent money to hire many people to inquire and search for Song Anning's whereabouts, creating quite a stir!

He knew that Song Anning had been invited to the Prince Mansion by the Ninth Prince, but he deliberately caused this commotion.

With such a fuss, everyone would know what Song Anning had done!

Moreover, he had just used Song Mingzhang's help to enter the Treasure Pavilion, and Song Mingzhang's sudden death would inevitably lead to gossip.

This was his way of clearing himself, making everyone aware that Song Anning was the one who caused Song Mingzhang's death.

Sure enough, the next day, people in the city who had ties with Song Mingzhang came to the mansion to mourn, and Li An received guests in the manner of a disciple, even inviting some high-status individuals to examine Song Mingzhang's death, proving that Song Mingzhang had neither been poisoned nor injured.

By evening, most guests had left when Song Anning hurried back.

"Grandfather, grandfather!"

Upon entering, she ignored Li An completely, throwing herself onto Song Mingzhang's coffin, crying as if her heart would break.

Li An watched coldly, completely indifferent to her.

In the blink of an eye, three days passed.

Under Li An's guidance, Song Mingzhang was buried, and the funeral was over.

After that one episode of crying, Song Anning locked herself in her room, refusing to come out.

Li An ignored her completely, only instructing the household staff to take care of her needs, and after the funeral, he went to work at the Treasure Pavilion.

...

"Candidates for Artifact Evaluator need to learn from formal Artifact Evaluators for two years before they can be promoted to formal status if there are no issues!"

In charge of receiving Li An was a female manager from the Treasure Pavilion, named Wu Mengting. As she walked, she said, "Currently, there are ten Artifact Evaluators in the pavilion, and the one whose expertise is most similar to yours is Master Gao Feng. So you'll learn from him."

She led Li An to the doorstep of Gao Feng's evaluation room and knocked on the door.

"Come in—"

Gao Feng's voice sounded, and Li An pushed the door open and entered, while the manager left on her own.

"You are Zuo Wen?"

Gao Feng, with a corpulent figure, looked at Li An with undisguised arrogance and casually scrutinized him, "I thought you were some youthful talent, turns out you're already old and grey..."

"How old are you?"

"Reporting to Master Gao, Zuo Wen is one hundred and five this year."

"One hundred and five, one hundred and five... heh heh."

Gao Feng sneered, casually saying, "Take these books and have a look at them first."

He tossed a few books to Li An, who respectfully accepted them and skimmed through them, instantly realizing they were of no use!

Gao Feng intended to brush him off!

After all, with Li An learning from him, it wouldn't make sense for Gao Feng not to give Li An something to occupy his time, so he was just being perfunctory.

Li An maintained a calm demeanor and accepted it as it was.

A few days later, Li An reported to Gao Feng, "Master Gao, I've finished reading the books you gave me and have made detailed notes and summaries."

Without raising his eyes, Gao Feng said, "Read them a few more times. Those books are all excellent and worth intensive study."

Li An frowned deeply.

The other party had no intention of teaching him anything.

In truth, Li An didn't need him to teach; regarding artifact evaluation, Li An now surpassed Gao Feng immensely.

But he needed an opportunity to prove himself.

If he continued reading these pointless books, what would become of him in three years?

Moreover, his life and death were currently in Gao Feng's hands, leaving him feeling utterly powerless.

In some sense, Gao Feng had become his mentor, and whether Li An could "graduate" depended entirely on Gao Feng's word.

Li An pondered and pondered without finding a solution...

The next morning, Li An arrived early at Gao Feng's evaluation room. He took the initiative to pick up a broom and cloth, meticulously cleaning the room for Gao Feng, also preparing tea.

When Gao Feng arrived, he was momentarily stunned.

In truth, although he was determined not to give Li An any opportunity, he dared not bully Li An excessively.

After all, Li An was a Foundation Establishment Stage cultivator, and he had to at least maintain this bit of decency.

But he hadn't expected Li An to actively lower his own status.

This gave him some satisfaction; no matter how capable you are, in the face of power, aren't you still forced to bow?

Power is indeed the most valuable thing!

"Not bad."

He smiled and offered a word of praise.

Li An said respectfully, "In the future, if Master Gao needs anything, just instruct Zuo Wen."

He humbled himself greatly!

Gao Feng nodded and waved his hand,

"In the future, come early and clean my appraisal room thoroughly. Make sure the tea is ready for me. After I leave, clean it once more, especially the tables and floor—leave no trace of dust."

Li An respectfully agreed.

...

In the blink of an eye, half a year had passed.

Every time Gao Feng evaluated artifacts, he asked Li An to handle other tasks. Thus, after three months, Li An hadn't learned a bit about artifact evaluation but had instead turned into Gao Feng's personal servant.

Li An accepted it willingly, without any complaints.

During this half-year, Li An proactively maintained a good relationship with Wu Mengting, growing familiar with her. From her, Li An learned a lot about the current situation inside the pavilion.

Gao Feng and Hua Ming, those two who served as examiners that day, would be retiring in a year or two. By then, their descendants would have to rely on Lu Hua and Zheng Xiaoxiao's elders.

Li An couldn't help but sigh; since he entered the Treasure Pavilion, he had already offended Gao Feng.

Now that Song Mingzhang was dead, Li An was even more isolated and cut off from the connections that once could have helped him, allowing Gao Feng to easily control him.

He had visited Mo Cixi, but each time, the servants at Mo Cixi's residence said she was not at home, refusing even to accept gifts.

Li An seemed to be hitting a wall everywhere he turned!

However, he was mentally prepared for this.

In this circle, they are interconnected, sharing interests among themselves. As an outsider trying to grab a piece of the pie, who would favor him?

Even if he managed to pass the exams, it was useless. The more competent he was, the more they would suppress him!

If Song Mingzhang had died a little later, he could have paved some paths for Li An, making his days easier.

Now, everything was indeed normal.

"Oh, isn't this Master Zuo?"

That day, Li An carried a bag of trash to dispose of when he ran into Lu Hua and Zheng Xiaoxiao.

They were laughing and discussing details on how to appraise a particular treasure. Seeing Li An, Lu Hua's eyes were filled with undisguised mocking laughter.

"Brother Zuo, why are you still taking out the trash? Isn't that what servants are supposed to do? Did Master Gao tell you to do it?"

Li An remained silent.

Zheng Xiaoxiao tugged at Lu Hua's sleeve and smoothed things over, "Fellow Daoist Zuo, we have urgent matters, see you, see you!"

And then pulled Lu Hua away.

"Forget it, he's already miserable enough. No need to hold a grudge against an old man in his twilight years..."

"Hmph, nearly pushed me out back then. This grudge must be avenged; sooner or later, I'll make him suffer!"

Their whispered conversation didn't escape Li An's ears.

His expression turned slightly cold, then he calmly went to dispose of the garbage.

...

Returning to the Zheng family, Song Anning was unusually different today, having someone prepare meals for him.

Li An calmly finished his meal.

"Mr. Zuo, did my grandfather have any last words before he died?" Song Anning finally asked.

Li An said, "Senior Song was in great pain, he only called your name twice before passing, not having the chance to say much more..."

Song Anning appeared very hesitant, but ultimately asked, "Did grandfather not say anything about the inheritance he left behind..."

Li An raised his eyebrows slightly.

Song Anning, however, looked very guilty.

In those few days after her grandfather's death, she was indeed overwhelmed with grief.

But it wasn't long before she returned to her usual self, enjoying outings. Li An didn't question her, and she gained more freedom.

Only, she found that her reputation in the city... had become tarnished.

When she sought out the Ninth Prince, she was directly turned away!

This left her feeling panicked for a while.

But fortunately, she wasn't lacking in charm. During this time, she gained a new suitor, a young, handsome man with superior Spirit Roots, although he was rather poor.

His pursuit helped her regain her confidence!

She also thought it was time to put aside frivolities and considered forming a dao partnership with that young man.

As for Song Mingzhang's suggestion of marrying Li An? She absolutely didn't want to.

She felt Li An wasn't worthy of her stunning beauty.

Though Li An didn't pay much attention to these matters, he had heard about them.

He calmly said, "The inheritance left by Master Song should naturally belong entirely to Miss Anning."

"I'll help you go through everything tomorrow and hand it all over."

"Additionally, Zuo Wen will move out of the mansion."

Someone taking over the burden of Song Anning relieved Li An greatly.

Besides, since Song Mingzhang's death, the Song family held no significance for him anymore.

As for why that young man was interested in Song Anning, Li An could roughly guess: Song Anning could inherit what Song Mingzhang left behind, making her, in some sense, a small fortune.

There are plenty of young men wanting to save twenty years of hard work!

But whether the young man would treat Song Anning as well after getting hold of her wealth... that's beyond Song Anning's control.

These matters didn't concern Li An.

Upon hearing this, Song Anning was filled with great joy!

She had been worried all along, after all, Li An was a cultivator in the Foundation Establishment Stage, and could easily seize what Song Mingzhang left behind... she didn't have the power to stop him.

Now, she could be at ease.

...

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