Chapter 42

Compared to the Tai Chu Array and the Sensory Array, even though he was eating the meat of a third-level demonic beast, the Lao Rabbit, the spread of the Ming Zhi Array was much slower.

Jiang Xingchen cut over four pounds of meat and made nearly two hundred dumplings. Not a single one was left over from this meal, but the array had only just taken shape, not even reaching his neck.

Mei'er and Sun Sanqiang were both amazed. The two of them together had only eaten seventy dumplings, and the remaining one hundred and twenty had all gone into Jiang Xingchen's stomach.

"My goodness... It turns out Brother Jiang is the one who can eat the most! Zhao Danqing is just a piece of trash in comparison!" Sun Sanqiang muttered unconsciously. One hundred and twenty dumplings, just thinking about it made his stomach ache.

They had no idea that Jiang Xingchen's breathing technique had already extracted all the energy from the food.

At this moment, Jiang Xingchen did not notice their surprise and continued to focus on the development of the Ming Zhi Array, pondering its use.

"What is this array for? I don't see anything special..."

"Brother! What's wrong with you, are you feeling full?" Mei'er asked worriedly beside him. One hundred and twenty dumplings, she was really worried that her brother's stomach would burst.

Just as Mei'er spoke to him, Jiang Xingchen suddenly felt a clear wave of energy pass through him, like the sound waves of a drum, rushing into his ears and reaching his brain. He could clearly distinguish the strength of the sound waves formed by each word Mei'er spoke.

"Wave!" A flash of lightning crossed Jiang Xingchen's mind, and he immediately understood the function of the Ming Zhi Array.

"The Ming Zhi Array can understand the waves coming from the outside... When Mei'er spoke, the sound waves were like a drum, with clear differences in strength... Wait!"

At this moment, a sudden insight came to Jiang Xingchen: "Drum! Right, a drum! This world has only simple instruments, and there are no drums... I know what Sister Wanrou should perform!"

The confusion of the past few days was swept away. Jiang Xingchen immediately stopped his breathing technique, grabbed the little girl, and kissed her on the cheek, making a "pop" sound.

"Ah!" Mei'er, like a startled deer, darted away, her head lowered and her face flushed. If it were just a playful kiss, it wouldn't be a big deal, but Sun Sanqiang was still there.

She was usually very quiet in front of others, and now being kissed by her brother in front of Sun Sanqiang made her feel as if her cheeks were on fire.

Sun Sanqiang didn't think there was anything wrong, but he was curious about why Jiang Xingchen had eaten one hundred and twenty dumplings and then become so excited.

"Brother Sanqiang, thanks to you today! The remaining Lao Rabbit meat, I'll steam some baozi for you to take home!" He remembered Sun Sanqiang's habit of eating and taking, and today he offered it himself.

A Lao Rabbit weighed over twenty pounds, and after removing the skin and bones, there were only about seven or eight pounds of meat left. They had eaten half of it in one meal, and the rest was just enough for another meal. However, without leavened dough, they could only make steamed baozi!

Sun Sanqiang immediately smiled, and Jiang Xingchen's strange behavior was forgotten. This was a third-level demonic beast, worth ten thousand yellow crystals, and more importantly, Jiang Xingchen's skills. Although he didn't know what baozi were, they were sure to be good, and today he had made a great profit.

Thinking about the scene of his father tasting the delicious food, his eyes became vacant.

"Brother, you two go back inside, I'll clean up!" Mei'er returned, her head still lowered, her face still red.

"Hehe! No need, you go back and rest first. Brother still has to work, the meat of the demonic beast can't be left for long, it needs to be made quickly!" Jiang Xingchen patted Mei'er's head.

"Okay!" Mei'er nodded, wanting to tell her brother not to stay up too late, but thinking about Sun Sanqiang, she didn't say anything and turned back to the house.

When Mei'er spoke, Sun Sanqiang also came to his senses and remembered to ask why Jiang Xingchen was so happy.

Jiang Xingchen put on a mysterious smile, making Sun Sanqiang feel as if a small claw was scratching his heart.

After a moment, Jiang Xingchen got up and prepared to make the dough for the baozi. Sun Sanqiang suddenly remembered something and asked, "Brother Jiang, the toothbrush you made last time... That's a good way to make money!"

Jiang Xingchen paused, thought for a moment, and said to Sun Sanqiang, "This thing isn't hard to make, and as soon as it's released, people will copy it. If we do it, it will only be a one-time deal, and we won't make much money!"

"Is that so!" Sun Sanqiang frowned, a bit disappointed, and shook his head.

"But!" Jiang Xingchen changed his tone, "If you give it as a gift, it might have an unexpected effect!"

Sun Sanqiang's eyes lit up, immediately grasping the meaning of Jiang Xingchen's words, and nodded vigorously. A toothbrush, though small, was very useful, especially for women who loved cleanliness!

"This is a good way to build relationships." Thinking about it, Sun Sanqiang saw the hope of the entire Sun family's underground forces falling into his hands.

After that, Jiang Xingchen didn't say anything more, boiled the water, made the dough, and set up the steamer with a wooden stick, laying a layer of wet hemp cloth on top...

About an hour later, the baozi were ready. Jiang Xingchen kept some for himself and gave the rest to Sun Sanqiang.

Of course, not all of it was for him. He asked Sun Sanqiang to send some to the Dingbei Marquis's residence and the Purple Thistle Mercenary Group, and also gave him all the toothbrushes he had made.

Sun Sanqiang couldn't help but smile, the Marquis's residence was a place he couldn't even dream of entering, and Jiang Xingchen giving him this opportunity, he would certainly take good advantage of it.

Without saying thanks, Sun Sanqiang patted Jiang Xingchen's shoulder hard, expressing his gratitude, and then quickly left...

Over the next two days, Jiang Xingchen began to experiment with various materials: wood, bamboo, animal skin... Under his extremely skilled hands, different drums were made.

With the help of the Ming Zhi Array, he could easily distinguish the strength of the drum sounds, allowing him to select the best material ratios, the thickness and elasticity of the drum skin, the size of the drum body, and the curvature during production...

Moreover, he had a more pleasant discovery. When he used the drumsticks to hit the drum, he could precisely grasp the rhythm and strength of the sound waves, and with his flexible hands, he could easily play the rhythms he remembered.

On the second evening, after making a large drum to his satisfaction, Jiang Xingchen gently tapped out a rhythm from a song he remembered, which left Mei'er staring in amazement and then begging for more.

Jiang Xingchen generally didn't refuse the little girl's requests. He recalled and tapped out different rhythms. Of course, many of the effects of a drum set were not as good with a large drum. But Mei'er, hearing the drum sounds for the first time, didn't notice. Her ears were filled only with the lively rhythm, and her body moved involuntarily.

It wasn't until late at night that the little girl, still not satisfied, went to bed. Jiang Xingchen also discovered another benefit of the Ming Zhi Array: his physical strength had improved. After tapping for nearly three hours, he didn't feel the slightest bit tired.

With a different mindset, Jiang Xingchen made another toothbrush and found that drilling holes with a needle was much easier than before, indicating that his strength had increased.

Heaving a satisfied sigh, Jiang Xingchen felt incredibly relaxed. He took a hot bath, went to bed, and soon fell into a deep sleep...

The next morning, at the Dingbei Marquis's residence, the bearded Marquis held a bowl of water in one hand and a toothbrush in the other, brushing his teeth vigorously, a clear smile on his face.

"This kid, what's wrong with his head? Did he take fake medicine and suddenly become smart... Look at this toothbrush, it's much better than a toothpick!"

After Sun Sanqiang brought the toothbrush, he had been using it. The freshness in his mouth after brushing was something he had never experienced before. He was even thinking of getting more to use when he went to the capital to build relationships.

"Father! Brushing your teeth?" Wanrou walked over at this moment.

"Uh-huh!" The Marquis nodded, swished water in his mouth, and spat it out.

"How about it, did that kid get it done for you?" The Marquis handed the toothbrush and bowl to a servant and asked casually.

"He said it's almost done!" Wanrou said lightly, but her eyes betrayed her worry and curiosity.

Over the past two days, she had been running to Jiang Xingchen's house, seeing him make strange things, and naturally, she had to ask. But no matter how she asked, he wouldn't say. This made her quite worried, unsure if her decision was correct.

"That's good! The New Year's song and dance selection starts in three days! And today is the deadline for the seven army corps commanders. The next two days will be tight for him, as he needs to teach the army doctors how to sew!" the Marquis said.

"Uh-huh!" Wanrou responded absentmindedly, "Father, you go and get busy. Hongyuan City is one of the three New Year's song and dance selection sites, and many people will be coming here in the next few days!"

As one of the few entertainment forms encouraged by the empire, the New Year's song and dance performances were highly sought after. Many people would flock to Hongyuan City this year.

"Alright! But I need to check on Jiang Xingchen's sewing first. Although he's confident, I'm still a bit uneasy!" The Marquis waved his hand and walked out the door...

At the same time, Zhao Danqing came to Jiang Xingchen's house to take him to the Seventh Army Corps headquarters.

"Brother Jiang! Are you sure there's no problem?" On the carriage, Zhao Danqing asked nervously.

"Hehe! Seven days ago, you asked us to cooperate, why don't you trust me now?" Jiang Xingchen laughed.

"It's not that I don't trust you! I'm just nervous, even though I know there's no problem... I can't explain it!" Zhao Danqing shook his head hard.

"Ah!" Jiang Xingchen sighed, "With your mental fortitude... you won't be able to inherit Uncle Xiang's medical skills. You might even stick the needle in the wrong place!"

"I never intended to inherit my father's medical skills! I just want to take over my mother's job!"

"Oh? What does your mother do?"

"Security officer of Hongyuan City!"

"Wow, a police chief..."

The two chatted and talked, and before they knew it, they had arrived at their destination.

When Jiang Xingchen and Zhao Danqing got off the carriage and walked into the Seventh Army Corps headquarters, the gates of the Purple Thistle Mercenary Group in the north of the city opened, and the owners of Fuyongzhai and Cuiguanlou walked out one after another. Sun Sanqiang also quickly left.

After ten days of preparation, Jiang Xingchen's plan was finally put into action today. Now, with three days left before the New Year's song and dance selection, countless people were flocking to Hongyuan City, and the full-scale outbreak of the plan was about to begin!

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