Three Years

In the blink of an eye, three years had passed.

Life is always small yet great. The former miserable and desolate appearance of Nanyang Prefecture was now no more. The thousand li of barren earth had been overgrown with green vegetation once again, and birds and beasts multiplied and thrived. In order to better restore their vitality, the imperial court and various immortal clans were doing their utmost to be lenient and generous, resulting in clean governance and a harmonious populace, with mortals living and working in peace.

Only the countless white bones and old graves scattered across the wilderness still told of the terror of that great disaster.

Even under the Zhou family's rule, the population had gradually grown from the initial eight hundred or so to over fifteen hundred people, nearly doubling.

Because the territory under the Zhou family's rule was originally the domain of nine villages, with nearly ten thousand mu of arable land! But now the population was too small; it was entirely a situation of too much land and too few people. Naturally, the Zhou family let them farm without limit, planting as much as they could.

Coupled with the Zhou family only collecting a two-tenths rent, these mortal commoners were able to accumulate a large amount of grain and family property. After being able to eat their fill, they naturally kept giving birth to children.

This was why, in just three years, over seven hundred children had been added under the Zhou family's rule, with an average of two or three new additions per household.

When these children grew up, that would be the time for the four villages to split. Because the farmland near a village was limited; to support more people, they would naturally have to go to uncultivated areas to build homes and establish villages.

This exponential trend of explosive growth would continue until it reached the limit that this land could bear.

Even Zhou Ping had not anticipated that these mortals would be so simple-minded; as long as they could eat their fill and see hope in life, they would keep giving birth.

This forced him to hastily change a policy: to study in the academy, one had to pay thirty jin of rice as tuition, equivalent to fifty wen.

After all, if the family were to support them all on its own, no matter how great the family's estate, it would not be able to bear it.

As for the two-tenths rent, Zhou Ping had no intention of changing it.

Because all the land under his rule belonged to the Zhou family. That is, there was only one landlord here, the Zhou family, and every other household was a tenant.

Don't be fooled by the fact that some families now cultivated over ten mu; if the Zhou family wanted to take it back, it would be a matter of a single word. Moreover, even if these tenants accumulated wealth, they could only buy land in other territories; they could not buy a single inch or mu from the Zhou family.

As for causing discontent among the mortals, as long as the Zhou family still had Qi Condensation cultivators, they would not dare to utter a single word!

And the land under rule was only so much, like a fixed cake. As the population grew, the share each person could get would become smaller and smaller. These mortals would go from initially accumulating wealth to barely having enough to live on.

But the two-tenths rent that the Zhou family collected remained eternally unchanged.

At the summit of Ming Peak, there was a large pond about a zhang square, surrounded by many pines, cypresses, maples, and poplars. A gentle breeze rustled through them, creating a rustling sound, a scene of unique charm.

On a patch of grass by the edge of the pond, a tiny black sprout had emerged, spreading many short vines around it, trying to twine around the tree trunks.

Because the Purple Gold Vine liked water and was close to wood, Zhou Ping and the others had specially opened up this place, naming it Gold Vine Pond.

Even though the Purple Gold Vine had not yet grown, it had already made the spiritual qi at the summit of Ming Peak somewhat richer. Especially in the Gold Vine Pond area, Zhou Ping had carved out several stone chambers in the rock wall beside it, as a place for the family to cultivate and break through.

At this moment, one of the stone doors slowly opened. Zhou Minghu's face was pale, and there were spots of blood seeping through his abdomen. His aura was chaotic and weak.

Zhou Ping, who had been hiding in the shadows, appeared instantly, looking at Zhou Minghu with concern. "Have you taken any healing medicine?"

Zhou Minghu forced a smile, but his pale face was truly heartbreaking.

"Father, your son has failed again."

Zhou Ping comforted him, "Failure doesn't matter. As long as your body is fine, that's what's important."

However, both Zhou Ping and Zhou Minghu had a hint of disappointment in their eyes.

In fact, this was not the first time Zhou Minghu had attempted to break through to Qi Condensation. But his talent was what it was. Even after several arduous attempts, aided by spiritual wine and spiritual fruits, he still ended in failure and injury.

After several breakthrough attempts, the spiritual qi within Zhou Minghu had reached twelve strands, but it was still far from the threshold of sixteen strands. And he could also feel that even the effect of breaking through the realm could only bring a negligible increase.

He was angry, furious, and resentful of his own incompetence and uselessness!

If he could become a Qi Condensation cultivator, he could personally escort the spiritual rice, and wouldn't have to pay the extra four hundred jin.

And now, the three-year payment deadline was approaching. Neither he nor his younger brother Xuanya had broken through to Qi Condensation, which meant the family would have to pay an extra four hundred jin again this year.

Those four hundred jin-if exchanged for spirit stones and merits, or used to buy pills, or even sold to mortal merchants, could earn a considerable amount of wealth!

Zhou Minghu's eyes flickered, and then he gritted his teeth and said, "Father, the surrounding area is stable now. Don't summon the Immortals' Directorate this time. Let me take some people to escort the shipment."

Zhou Ping shook his head. "No."

"Why? Xuanya and I are holding magical artifacts. Even if we face thirty or fifty people, we can fight. As long as we bring enough people and travel secretly, nothing will happen for sure." Zhou Minghu said anxiously.

"Minghu, you need to understand that nothing is more important than our lives." Zhou Ping said sternly. "We can grow spiritual rice again, but if we lose our lives, then we lose everything."

"Four hundred jin of spiritual rice buys safety. At worst, we eat a little less and grit our teeth to save it. It's not worth you risking your lives."

"If you encounter an ambush by cultivators or a siege by bandits, even if you and Xuanya are fierce, two fists are no match for four hands. If something happens to you, what would your father do?"

Zhou Minghu wanted to say something more, but Zhou Ping cut him off.

"I know you care about the family, but worry leads to chaos. The outside world is too treacherous. How could I rest assured?"

"If we escort it ourselves, just the four thousand jin of spiritual rice would require three or five horse-drawn carts to transport. Even if we try to be secretive, people will notice."

"Once the news leaks, how could those rogue cultivators, demonic cultivators, and various forces not be tempted? Not to mention the Huang family to the east!"

Zhou Ping's words made Zhou Minghu increasingly silent.

How could he not know all this? But worry led to chaos, and he harbored a sliver of wishful thinking, which gave rise to such an idea.

Seeing that Zhou Minghu still hadn't given up, Zhou Ping sighed inwardly.

He flicked his sleeve, and a sphere of qi within his body continuously dissolved. Suddenly, a fierce gale arose all around, like a wind dragon roaring. The surrounding trees swayed violently, and Zhou Xuanya was blown staggering, barely able to keep his footing.

"Did you feel that? This is just a casual strike from your father. If a Qi Condensation cultivator were to attack you, even if you could resist for a while with a magical artifact, you would have absolutely no chance of escape!"

"The Huang clan has two Qi Condensation cultivators within it, so they dare to personally escort their spiritual rice. But if our family were to act like this, it would inevitably attract the covetous eyes of all kinds of snakes and monsters."

Zhou Ping's tone gradually softened, and he said gently, "This time, we can also sell those spiritual herbs, spiritual fruits, and the remains of those demonic beasts. Try to look on the bright side."

"Also, inform Li Mu to sell most of the grain and exchange it all for gold."

Three years ago, just after the Zhou family had settled down, Li Mu had brought his entire family to seek refuge with the Zhou family, making the Li family's trading company an important external vassal of the Zhou family.

This Li Mu had been forced into a corner. He was already over seventy years old, and the lifespan of a Qi Awakening cultivator was similar to that of a mortal; he didn't have many days left to live.

But the two enshrined cultivators of the Li family trading company were in their prime. He feared that after his death, they would seize his nest, take the hard-earned foundation he had built, and kill his clan. Naturally, he had to find a good patron.

Even, after Li Mu died, the Li family trading company could be renamed the Zhou family trading company. All he sought was wealth, honor, and safety for his entire family.

"Your son understands." Zhou Minghu said gloomily.

Zhou Ping waved his hand and said, "Alright, don't make such a gloomy face. Hurry up and bring Cheng Yuan here. I haven't seen my good grandson in a long time."

"It's only been a day, Father. Honestly." Zhou Minghu smiled bitterly.

Zhou Cheng Yuan was Zhou Minghu's eldest son, born to Madam Wang. He was only a little over a year old. But he had an immortal destiny, with a spiritual light of a full two cun and six fen. He was already a destined Qi Condensation cultivator, far superior to his father.

Zhou Minghu didn't have just one child; he had a son and a daughter, born to Madam Niu and Madam Wang respectively. But they were both mortals, so naturally, they didn't receive as much affection as Zhou Cheng Yuan.

Among the fourth generation of the Zhou family, Zhou Cheng Yuan was not the only one with an immortal destiny. Two years ago, Mu Lushi gave birth to a girl named Zhou Qianling, whose spiritual light was also two cun and four fen, making her half a prospective Qi Condensation cultivator.

As for the other branches, Changhe had the most offspring, with five sons and three daughters, but none of them had an immortal destiny.

Changan had married Lin Ruohe's daughter and had a son. Although the child was intelligent and clever, he was also a mortal.

As for the marriage alliance between the Zhang and Zhou families, Zhou Xuanya had married Zhang Ting's granddaughter, but there was still no movement in her belly.

Zhou Minghu also knew about the rumored child of his young uncle, the one carried by Qiuyue. That child was also born a mortal. He was currently being raised by a guard, with plans to bring him up the mountain when he was older.

Regardless, as long as it could make Zhou Dashan happy in his old age, that was enough. It was simply a matter of ensuring a life of wealth and honor for him, letting him be a parasite.

As for Qiuyue, she had died of "difficult childbirth."

"I'll go bring Cheng Yuan here right away."

Zhou Minghu said with a smile, then walked towards the courtyard below. But Zhou Ping had already taken a step forward, riding the wind.

"I'll go see my grandchildren myself."

88.181.249.5

ns88.181.249.5da2