The journey of the only child of a peasant family to take the imperial examination

Brother Fu was really surprised. The country is so big and there are so many counties in the south, but the two sides could meet in this remote suburb of Gao'an County. It was really a magical fate!

After exchanging a glance, Zhang Pingan called on everyone to go forward. Since they had already seen him, they couldn't hide any more. The other side probably only had more than ten people in total, while they had more than seventy people on their side, so they were not afraid of him.

Everyone went up the slope on the other side of the ditch.

Doctor Fu was urging several followers to clean up the scene quickly when he saw a group of old acquaintances suddenly appear. Even though he had practiced for decades and had a thick skin, he couldn't help but twitch when he saw this group of old acquaintances.

Damn fate!

Zhang Pingan smiled and greeted, "Uncle Fu, long time no see!"

"My dear nephew, long time no see. How come you are here in Gao'an County?" Doctor Fu quickly adjusted his facial expression and spoke in a gentle tone.

"The world is not going well. I'm planning to visit relatives far away and I just happened to pass by here," said Zhang Ping'an.

As the two were testing each other, Maodaner, with his sharp eyes, pointed to the ridge of a field near a small hill in the distance and said, "Uncle, look, there are two people running very fast over there!"

Zhang Ping'an's attention was drawn to the words and he looked over. There were indeed two people running very fast. They had already run far away, leaving only blurry figures. It was obvious that he could not catch up with them.

In the quiet early morning, with no need to farm, it was obvious that there was something wrong with these two people.

Doctor Fu also saw this and anxiously slapped his head and gritted his teeth, saying, "Oh no! They have someone to help them. This is trouble!"

Doctor Fu's second son was surprised at first, then he said angrily, "I just went to check on the slope, but I didn't see anyone. How did these two bastards get away?"

Unlike Zhang Ping'an and his companions, Doctor Fu and his companions had been robbed four times by real and fake bandits since they crossed the river. Sometimes the bandits saw that there were many people being robbed and were worried that something might happen if the situation got entangled for too long, so they would give the property to the contact persons to transport back to the mountain stronghold first. They knew this.

So out of caution, Doctor Fu's second son went to the slope to check, but found nothing.

If it weren't for the cleverness and adaptability of several family members, they would have been hacked to death long ago. After arriving in Gao'an County by chance, the Fu family once again found a way to engage in the smuggling business and accumulated a considerable amount of wealth again.

But things are different now. If you work under someone else, you have to be like a grandson. It is completely different from when you were a medical officer in Wushan County and acted like a grandfather.

The world is not a good place now. In fact, Doctor Fu thinks that being a grandson is okay, but one cannot be a grandson of an illiterate lower-class person for a long time. Not only does he speak vulgarly, but he also lacks a long-term vision and only cares about immediate pleasure. There is no future in following such a person.

He still likes to deal with smart scholars. At least there is a sense of dignity in what they say and do, and they can maintain their dignity with each other.

Therefore, when he learned that all kinds of people in the city were colluding with bandits to rob wealthy families and the county government warehouse, he packed up all the gold and silver valuables in his house and ran away with his son and grandson.

He knew very well what this looting meant, and it was foreseeable that once someone took the lead, more people would join in, and in the end, it would be a dog-eat-dog fight, and most people would not have a good ending.

He has gone through ninety-nine difficulties, he can't fail here.

After thinking this through in a flash, Doctor Fu said solemnly, "We can't leave now. Their bandit camp is only over ten miles away, and they have looted mules and horses in the camp. It would be too easy for them to catch up with us. We have to strike first!"

"Uncle Fu, what do you think?" Zhang Pingan said seriously.

Doctor Fu paced back and forth anxiously and said, "Let me think about it!"

Zhang Ping'an asked several men in the family to help carry the body. Now the two families were in the same boat.

"Uncle Fu, are you familiar with the terrain near the village?" Zhang Pingan asked after thinking for a while.

Doctor Fu shook his head. "I'm not entirely sure. I just heard from others that there's a gang called Xi Mazi in Dashizigang, not far from here. I saw him a few times when I was hanging out with Hu San in the county. He's a ruthless man who's vindictive. I poisoned so many of his men, he won't let us go!"

After saying this, he looked up to the sky and sighed, "Could it be that after spending most of my life, I will end up dying in Gao'an County?!"

"Can't we just keep using poison?" Zhang Ping'an touched his chin and said, "It'll take some time for these two to run back, and it'll take some time for Xi Mazi to gather his men. Let's set off immediately and find a secluded place to hide for a while. Then, we'll pick two people to poison the water at the village's water source. They'll have to eat and use water for lunch, right? That'll knock out a lot of them, and we'll go in and finish off the rest who are lucky enough to be alive!"

Doctor Fu frowned. "That method sounds good, but it's difficult to implement. The magistrate of Gao'an County thinks the blood of the dead is too dirty, so he always likes to use poison. As a result, the local refugees, including the bandits, are very cautious about what they eat. Didn't you see that I just offered those bandits some wine, but they refused to drink until I drank first? The water they drink comes from the Jishuitan Pond. There are patrols all along the road near the stronghold, and that Xi Mazi likes to test poison with dogs. This trick won't work very well!"

Zhang Pingan was puzzled: "Then you also drank alcohol and ate meat just now, why are you fine? Did you take the antidote beforehand?"

Doctor Fu smiled and said, "I've marked both the wine jar and the meat. The side I drank from is the least poisonous, and the two poisons need to be mixed together for it to work. This is a recipe an old doctor gave me when I was in Wu'an County."

"There is no better way at the moment. Time is running out, so why not give it a try?" said Zhang Pingan.

Guo Jia listened for a while and then interrupted, "I can go with the poisoning!"

Zhang Ping'an and Doctor Fu asked in unison, "You?"

Guo Jia said frankly: "Yes, me!"

He continued, "I think the poison I just used is quite effective. I'm a local and I'm more familiar with the terrain around here than you are. I'll go to the pond and poison them now, and they won't have any reaction. I'll go again after they finish lunch. I think the dose I'll give them will be quite a bit, so I wonder if this uncle prepared enough."

"My medicine is very effective. One packet can kill hundreds of people. I have prepared a lot, enough for you. You can bring more," said Doctor Fu.