Huo En, hiding in the countryside, looked just like an old farmer. He wore leather trousers and worked on a farm covered in cow dung.
He had bought this farm a very long time ago. It also had a ranch.
Someone usually took care of the place. People only knew it belonged to a rich man, but most of them had never seen that rich man, except for the farm's butler.
After something happened, Huo En immediately sensed that something was wrong. He released some smoke bombs, and he also had a double.
He sent his double out to draw attention in the open while he secretly left Bu Peien and returned to this farm.
The people were not particularly surprised when their master suddenly returned. As the federal economy rapidly developed again, international trade flourished, and physical industries once more burst with vitality.
This also led to the emergence of new problems—more factories needed workers, and urbanization began to show its first signs.
Some young people no longer wanted to stay in the countryside. They began gathering in the cities, where the wages they earned by casually joining a factory were higher than what they could make farming in the countryside.
This drove even more young people toward the cities, and the population density in rural areas began to decline. Those left behind were mostly elderly people.
These elderly people all had their own fixed social circles. They were not very welcoming toward newcomers, nor did they wish to involve themselves in new relationships.
Thus, Huo En's arrival did not disturb anyone, and he began living an extremely ordinary life.
Every day, he simply inspected the crops and checked on the animals in the ranch.
They had originally still planted some things during winter, but as the weather grew