Daily Divination

Half a month passed in the blink of an eye.

The boundless golden paddy fields swayed in the breeze like waves upon a golden sea.

These past few days, every household in Dongxi Village had been busy harvesting.

Early this morning.

Xu Chuan performed [Daily Divination] to divine his fortune.

[Today's Divination: Moderately Auspicious. While harvesting rice today, you will encounter Uncle Chen's family. You may learn from Uncle Chen about an Inner Strength Manual and ownerless paddy fields.]

Xu Chuan's face lit up with delight.

All those days of divining this matter hadn't been in vain. I hadn't missed it after all.

An Inner Strength Manual?

It was indeed time to consider Martial Arts Practice.

However, Xu Chuan had yet to decide which child would take up Martial Dao, because that would determine where the second-generation talent went.

In the fields.

"Brother Chuan, your family's rice really is good. Every grain is plump and large. The yield from ten mu of yours matches fifteen or sixteen mu of mine."

A dark-skinned man looked at Xu Chuan's paddy field, the envy in his eyes impossible to conceal.

His name was Chen Ergou, Uncle Chen's second son, only a year younger than Xu Chuan.

He had admired and worshipped him since childhood.

His family's paddy field was right beside Xu Chuan's.

"Do you have some secret recipe? Teach me."

"What nonsense are you talking about? If there were a secret recipe, why would he tell you?" Uncle Chen came over just then, grumbling as he scolded.

"Uncle Chen, what secret recipe could there be? It's all because Heavenly Father has seen fit to feed us."

[Heaven Rewards Diligence], so Xu Chuan was not wrong either.

Uncle Chen chuckled. "Who in Dongxi Village doesn't know that Sanshu is an expert at farming? Otherwise, the Xu Family wouldn't have insisted on keeping you back then."

"You were wise to quit being a Long-term Laborer and strike out on your own. Life has only gotten better and better for you now."

"My family still can't compare to yours, Uncle Chen."

Uncle Chen had two sons and two daughters, one hundred and twenty mu of paddy fields, twenty mu of farmland, and thirty mu of woodland. His family was considered wealthy in Dongxi Village.

Moreover, his eldest son had done well for himself and possessed some talent for Martial Arts Practice.

He was already a Third-rate Martial Artist, settled in Qingjiang County Town, and had married the younger daughter of a wealthy merchant.

"During this busy farming season, isn't Brother Daming coming back?" As the thought arose, Xu Chuan asked casually, leaving no trace behind.

At the mention of his eldest son, Chen Ming, a complicated look of pride and helplessness flickered through Uncle Chen's eyes.

"Your Brother Daming is a Martial Artist. He has his own matters to attend to."

Family shame should not be aired outside, so Uncle Chen naturally would not speak ill of his son before outsiders.

"I really envy Brother Daming. Once I have money in the future, I'll buy an Inner Strength Manual too and let my son practice. If you see Brother Daming, Uncle Chen, remember to ask him for me."

"No problem, a small matter." Uncle Chen grinned and patted his chest. "Shidao is still rather unstable. Learning a little martial arts for self-defense is a good thing."

As he spoke, he sighed softly and said with feeling, "If Old Yu had shared your way of thinking, he wouldn't have been struck by bandits in the middle of the night, his entire family—young and old alike—meeting a violent death."

"What a pity!"

"Still, the path of a Martial Artist consumes an enormous amount of money. Sanshu, you'd best prepare yourself mentally." Uncle Chen's tone shifted as he solemnly cautioned him.

Without talent, even a mountain of money would ultimately come to nothing.

"I understand, Uncle Chen."

"Uncle Yu's family truly was unfortunate. What happened to their fields, then?"

"When people die, everything becomes empty." Uncle Chen's eyes brightened, a smile appearing in them.

"The authorities will naturally reclaim them. It should happen within the next couple of days. If you happen to run into a Yamen Runner, you'd best make your move immediately."

"After all, your family keeps growing, and the children are getting bigger. Even if your paddy fields yield several tenths more than others', ten mu is still too little."

His thoughts having been seen through, Xu Chuan was not surprised. He scratched his head and flattered him, saying, "Nothing can be hidden from you, Uncle Chen. I had the same thought.

Life is gradually improving now, and the family is steadily growing, so I've begun considering expanding our landholdings."

Whether Common Folk or wealthy families, everyone valued landholdings greatly. Unless absolutely necessary, they would never lightly sell their paddy fields.

They were the very foundation upon which they survived.

Even if the family declined after several generations, as long as the land remained, it would still provide some security for their descendants' lives.

Buying paddy fields depended on luck.

Fortunately, Xu Chuan's luck was not bad, and he had waited for an opportunity.

As for the Inner Strength Manual, it was not the most important matter for now. If the price was too high, he could only set it aside and make plans for it later.

Xu Chuan understood very clearly what the Xu Family needed most right now.

His mindset was as steady as an old dog!

The Great Wei Dynasty integrated Martial Dao and Immortal Dao, establishing two separate systems of office: Martial Officials and Immortal Officials.

However, Immortal Dao demanded high aptitude, and those capable of cultivating immortality were one in ten thousand. Once their cultivation bore fruit, their strength far surpassed that of Martial Artists.

Thus, Immortal Officials held an obviously higher status within the Great Wei Dynasty.

Yet regardless of which path one took, one needed a certain degree of strength—and, more importantly, Connections.

Becoming a Martial Official or Immortal Official of the Great Wei Dynasty was equivalent to entering the civil service system of Xu Chuan's previous life.

That was an iron rice bowl!

Every Martial Artist and low-level immortal cultivator desperately desired it.

If managed well, it could rapidly strengthen a family within ten or twenty years.

After chatting for a while, both families began harvesting.

Xu Chuan's family had only ten mu of paddy fields. They had already harvested for more than ten days, so little remained. With his nimble movements, he finished in half a day.

After lunch.

Xu Chuan was going to the threshing ground to dry the harvested rice, reducing its moisture to prevent mildew.

"Father, where are you going?" the two little ones asked.

"Father is going to dry the rice."

"Father, I'll help you." Xu Mingwei looked up at Xu Chuan, his little hands clenched into fists, determination written across his childish face.

"Alright. Shitou can help Father."

Xu Chuan rubbed Xu Mingwei's head, his eyes full of affection.

What parents would not delight in such a sensible child?

At that moment, Xu Mingyuan also cried out in his babyish voice, "I wanna go too, Father."

"Go, go, go! We're all going!"

Many people were busy at the threshing ground. Seeing Xu Chuan arrive with his two children, they all smiled and praised his children for being sensible and capable.

Xu Chuan smiled in response as well, and a brief round of mutual parent-style boasting began.

Still, the two little ones were children after all. Before long, some unknown temptation lured them away, and no one knew where they had run off to.

Xu Mingwei was already very sensible, so Xu Chuan was fairly at ease.

However, when they came back covered head to toe in mud, Xu Chuan still gave them a scolding.

Then he stripped them clean and stuffed them into a wooden tub, having Bai Jing wash them.

Xu Mingwei and Xu Mingyuan played in the wooden tub, splashing water all over Bai Jing's clothes and putting on a display of wet-clothes temptation before Xu Chuan.

Late at night.

Stars dotted the sky, and the evening breeze rode the moonlight in with threads of coolness.

Bai Jing practiced her skill once more.

She was becoming increasingly proficient, earning Xu Chuan's praise.

The next day.

[Today's Divination: Auspicious. At a quarter into Si Hour, the Qingjiang County Registrar will arrive at the entrance of Dongxi Village. You have a high chance of buying fifty mu of paddy fields.]

"Fifty mu of paddy fields?"