"An Unexpected Offer."

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Wei Yuan was seriously confused.

Why would Old Li suddenly want to see him for no reason?

That reminded him—he still hadn't passed on the message from the Earth God to Li Degui.

This was a matter he needed to address soon.

He could see deities, which normal people definitely couldn't.

This meant he was likely some kind of outlier. If that got out, it could lead to unimaginable consequences.

What if someone decided to treat him like a lab rat and study him?

Basically, Wei Yuan didn't want anyone knowing he could see gods.

Playing it safe and pretending to be normal was the best survival strategy.

"Older sister, do you know why Old Li wants to see me?" Wei Yuan quickly asked one of the maids.

"How should I know? Go ask him yourself."

The maid turned and walked away. It wasn't clear if she didn't want to tell him, or really didn't know.

Wei Yuan wiped the sweat from his brow and straightened out his rough linen clothes before heading into the main hall.

Looking around, he saw Old Li talking to a guest. The guest was a middle-aged man in simple scholar's robes.

He looked refined and gentle, definitely like a man of letters.

Wei Yuan stepped forward and gave a respectful bow.

"Old Li, I'm here."

Old Li turned to look at him and smiled.

"Wei Yuan, you can read, right?

How's your handwriting?" He's asking about my calligraphy?

Wei Yuan hesitated.

This world used ancient script, and he was barely able to recognize the characters, let alone write them properly.

He replied honestly, "It's average, I guess. There are still lots of characters I don't know how to write." Old Li nodded and looked at the middle-aged man, who smiled and said, "That's fine. If he can't write, I'll teach him."

Old Li nodded again and said to Wei Yuan, "This is my friend, Qin Ming, often called Mr. Qin. He needs a book boy to assist him.

I thought of you. You'll even get paid. What do you think?"

Wei Yuan didn't really want to be someone's assistant and said, "I'm focused on martial arts right now, and I live in the countryside, so it might not be convenient."

"Don't worry, it won't interfere with your training." Mr. Qin gave a mild smile.

"Just come to my residence every day around 3 to 5 p.m.

I'll provide dinner. If you want to stay overnight, that's fine too—room and board included.

Plus, I'll pay you two taels of silver every month.

How's that?" Wei Yuan was surprised.

Those were actually pretty good terms.

He couldn't help but ask, "What exactly would I be doing?"

Mr. Qin replied, "My arms are… not functional. I need someone to help me write letters and copy texts."

Wei Yuan glanced at his hands—and then did a double take.

There were no hands. Looking closer, he realized with a jolt that Mr. Qin's long sleeves were empty. Both arms were gone.

Understanding immediately dawned on him.

Wei Yuan nodded. "I'm willing." "Great. Come by tonight."

Mr. Qin seemed very pleased and gave him the address. Wei Yuan memorized it and then returned to the courtyard to train.

"Wei Yuan, who was that guy?

Why's he asking you to go over there?"

Zhang Wu and a few others crowded around him, all curious.

Wei Yuan explained the situation. He didn't mention the part about the silver or the food and lodging.

But surprisingly, none of them had even heard of this Mr. Qin before.

"I can write too. Why didn't Old Li ask me?" one young man muttered, sounding rather jealous.

"Probably 'cause you're too ugly," Zhang Wu teased, making everyone burst into laughter.

They quickly lost interest and went back to training. Later that afternoon, around 3 p.m. Wei Yuan followed the address to a large mansion.

Looking up, he saw the nameplate above the door: "Qin Residence."

He knocked. Soon, the door opened.

The gatekeeper was a big man with a huge black mole on his left cheek.

One of his eyes was milky white and lifeless—it looked like he was blind in that eye.

Wei Yuan introduced himself. "So you're the new book boy.

Come on in," the man said with a smile and let him inside. As soon as he stepped in, Wei Yuan was stunned.

The place was huge. Stone-paved courtyards, tall pavilions, endless corridors, lotus ponds, music stages, intricate carvings and paintings… This was definitely a rich person's house.

"No worse than the Li residence," Wei Yuan thought. Clearly, Mr. Qin wasn't just anybody.

Being friends with Old Li already suggested a lot about his status. He was led all the way to the study.

The moment he stepped in, a strong and unique scent hit him. Looking around, he saw rows of bookshelves packed with books, scrolls wrapped in animal skin, beautifully mounted calligraphy, and a bunch of paintings hanging on the walls—each with a different style.

Mr. Qin was sitting behind a big desk, reading a thick book. When he heard footsteps, he looked up and smiled gently at Wei Yuan. "You're here."

Wei Yuan bowed. "Greetings, Mr. Qin."

"No need to be so formal," Mr. Qin nodded lightly and motioned toward a smaller desk nearby.

"Sit over there. There's a copybook on the table—just practice copying the characters. If there's anything you can't read, feel free to ask me."

"....."