Message

Shen Shiying could not help but feel this sense of superiority.

After losing his post at Great Bay Village, his entire family had returned to Tiannan City, thinking the road ahead had vanished into mist.

Fortunately, Steward Lai the Second was a man of his word and remembered old ties.

Since the promised ten-year posting had been snatched away midway,

he had been compensated with some Spirit Stones and obtained the lucrative job of following the Transport Commissioner around to collect grain.

The Shen Family was vast and powerful, and the number of Spirit Fields it directly controlled outside was beyond imagination.

As subordinates of the Transport Commissioner, their main task was to assist him in collecting the harvests from the Spirit Fields under the Shen Family's command.

However, the Transport Commissioner himself mainly went to major cities and places where large tracts of Spirit Fields were concentrated, overseeing the collection there.

As for scattered Spirit Fields like those in Great Bay Village, located deep in remote countryside, that was when subordinates like them stepped in.

Shen Shiying was now one of the Transport Commissioner's runners.

The Transport Commissioner above him was currently in Qing City.

Since Shen Shiying had once served as the guard of Great Bay Village and was relatively familiar with the surrounding region, he was chiefly responsible for running errands throughout this area.

And during this process,

whenever he passed through a village or an estate under the Shen Family,

he could more or less squeeze out a little profit.

Such profit might not amount to much in the eyes of Great Figures like the Transport Commissioner,

but for lowly collateral branches like them, grains of sand piling up into a tower meant towering wealth!

All along the way,

Shen Shiying had only visited five villages and estates under the Shen Family.

Yet the profits he had accumulated were already no less than the income he had received each year while guarding Great Bay Village!

Comparing the two,

and comparing it to the miserable plight of the brat who had "forcibly seized" their livelihood,

how could Shen Shiying not feel delighted?

It even gave him a lightheaded, floating sensation.

Shen Shiying's change of heart

was naturally unknown to Shen Changchuan.

Yet from the faint pride—or rather, superiority—radiating from him,

Shen Changchuan keenly detected it.

Perhaps it had something to do with his Spiritual Sense being as strong as that of someone at Qi Gathering Late-stage, making his perceptions especially sharp.

Could this fellow be thinking that I am bound to suffer terrible losses on this trip?

Shen Changchuan's heart stirred.

He had only casually complained and played up his misery, hoping to avoid drawing anyone's attention.

After all, the gains from this trip had not been small.

And if, during next spring's plowing, the improved Spirit Grain planting methods were promoted across all the Spirit Fields,

then, combined with the sediment formed from the water-vein essence and earth-vein essence dredged up from the bottom of the Great Bay River and used as fertilizer,

Shen Changchuan estimated that next year's yield from every mu of land could increase by at least fifty jin!

That meant the Spirit Field harvest for a single season next year would likely be no less than eighteen hundred jin.

After deducting the necessary one thousand jin of Spirit Grain to be handed over to the Shen Family, eight hundred jin would remain, worth roughly eighty Spirit Stones.

That would amount to over one hundred and sixty Spirit Stones a year!

Although, according to the agreement, a small portion of those one hundred and sixty Spirit Stones had to be distributed among the village's two thousand residents,

other cultivators would probably ignore any such reward agreements and fix their eyes squarely on that temporary income of one hundred and sixty Spirit Stones.

If the surrounding villages were added to the fold, the income would likely exceed two hundred Spirit Stones!

Such an income

would make even cultivators at Qi Gathering Late-stage covet it!

Shen Changchuan was certain

that if this news spread,

trouble would surely arise from thin air.

He might even lose his post as guard of Great Bay Village and be driven back to Shen Family Manor!

That was something Shen Changchuan could not accept.

That was also why

even before Shen Shiying arrived, Shen Changchuan had instructed Han Qinhu to use future profit-sharing rewards as leverage and issue a gag order to the villagers.

He had even told them to avoid going out too often and forbidden them from discussing anything related to Spirit Field harvests.

And he had prepared to play up his misery as well.

Looks like it worked?

Shen Changchuan's gaze flickered slightly.

The matter seemed to be progressing far more smoothly than he had expected.

Forget it. This is a good thing too. It saves me from having to steer the conversation myself and seeming overly deliberate, which could arouse suspicion.

Indeed,

although he called Shen Shiying Uncle,

they had only met twice. What friendship could there possibly be between them?

Though much of what Shen Changchuan had said earlier contained some genuine feeling,

they were not close to one another.

Under normal circumstances, who would pour out their bitter grievances like this before an unfamiliar outsider?

Shen Changchuan naturally had an ulterior motive.

He was merely showing weakness to the enemy

while quietly making a fortune.

However, Shen Changchuan also knew that excess was as bad as deficiency.

"Ah, forget it. Let's not talk about it."

A mixture of sorrow and regret appeared on Shen Changchuan's face as he waved his hand.

He looked as though he could not bear to bring up this painful matter again.

Then he changed the subject.

"Uncle, you have come from Tiannan City. Has anything important happened in the Shen Family recently?"

"Important matters? I do not know about anything truly urgent."

Shen Shiying took a sip of tea, looking thoroughly at ease.

Clearly, confirming that Shen Changchuan had suffered grievous losses had pleased him greatly.

For that reason,

he did not mind revealing a little information.

"However, not long ago, a piece of gossip caused quite a stir throughout Tiannan City. Perhaps Nephew would be interested."

"Oh? What gossip might that be?"

"Nephew, do you know of Shen Han?"

Shen Shiying smiled mysteriously.

"Shen Han? He seems to be one of my fellow illegitimate brothers?"

Shen Changchuan thought for a moment before asking.

He seemed to have heard the name before,

but his impression was faint. Still, Shen Changchuan dug it out from the depths of his memory.

This Shen Han

was the younger full brother of that unfortunate fellow who had supposedly committed suicide by stabbing himself seven times in the back!

Shen Changchuan seemed to remember that before he left Shen Family Manor, Shen Han's birth mother had gone mad over her eldest son's death and been sent to a temple outside the city. Later, First Madam had ordered Shen Han to go to the same temple to care for his mother and fulfill his filial duty.

"Correct!"

"It is that Shen Han!"

Shen Shiying seemed to know exactly whom Shen Changchuan was thinking of and confirmed it.

"It is said that not long ago, Shen Han's mad birth mother suddenly died in the temple."

"And afterward, for some unknown reason, Shen Han's strength suddenly rose greatly."

"He broke the legs and arms of every person First Madam had sent to the temple, then left word that he was severing all ties with the Shen Family from that day onward. He declared that thirty years east of the river, thirty years west of the river; he would remember today's hatred, and once his cultivation was accomplished, he would return to the Shen Family and seek justice for his mother and brother!"

"It is said that this caused an uproar throughout Tiannan City. Second Madam even seized the chance to make trouble over it. First Madam was so enraged that she had not eaten for several days, smashed her beloved possessions, and had more than a dozen servants beaten to death with rods."

"I also heard that First Madam has secretly posted a reward: whoever takes Shen Han's life will receive one thousand Spirit Stones!"