Heading to Dendrobium

"What a coincidence. Still, this gives us a chance to reveal some information about the reservoir."

"Father's methods are a bit too ruthless, after all."

Feng Xiu silently remarked to himself.

Based on Feng Ao's private investigation, it was essentially confirmed that the River Law Bureau knew nothing of this matter—everything was driven by profit.

And before this, Feng Ao had investigated all the city records, provincial records, and the original construction blueprints from that year within Green Rock City, trying to find any trace or clue.

But the results came back normal; the Jade Belt Reservoir was at most a slightly larger public works project for the people's benefit.

Since the River Law Bureau was unaware, Feng Ao didn't treat this as a true family crisis. Instead, he saw it as a hidden card.

After all, no other family had a secret channel.

Among the known intelligence, the Feng Clan was the first, and possibly the only, family to know about the reservoir.

This card, if played well, could completely turn the tide of the situation.

However, Feng Xiu didn't quite agree with his approach.

A hidden card is a hidden card, but when it truly comes down to the wire, everyone should share the burden!

But the prerequisite was that they needed to be given some preparation.

Suddenly springing news of monsters in the water—no one could accept that.

Just as Feng Xiu was thinking, he heard Uncle Zheng walk back into the room. "Young Master, it's ready."

"Mm, good." Dismissing his thoughts, Feng Xiu nodded.

A moment later, a woman stepped out from behind the curtain.

She wore a simple plain silk dress, her dark hair like clouds, pinned only with a jade hairpin. In her arms, she held a pipa, her fingers slender, her steps light.

She walked to the center of the pavilion, gave a slight bow, and spoke in a soft voice, "This humble one is Su Xin. Greetings, Young Master."

Feng Xiu nodded but said nothing.

"Begin," Uncle Zheng said.

Su Xin sat down, placed the pipa on her knee, and lightly plucked the strings.

A cascade of clear notes flowed out. Her vermilion lips parted slightly, and she began to sing.

"A dream of spirit flowers, three lifetimes hard to wake from..."

Her voice was melodious, like weeping, like telling a tale.

Feng Xiu closed his eyes and listened quietly.

Record of Spirit Flowers told the story of a love between a human and a demon—a scholar traveling to the capital for the imperial exams, spending the night in a desolate mountain temple, where he met a ghostly woman.

Basically, it was the classic "A Chinese Ghost Story" plot that every scholar had to experience.

Nearly half an hour later.

The song ended.

Feng Xiu opened his eyes and looked at the woman behind the beaded curtain.

Su Xin lowered her gaze, her fingers gently pressing the strings, as if still immersed in the melody.

"How many years have you been singing this piece?"

Su Xin looked up and said softly, "I learned it as a child. It's been fifteen years now."

"Have you ever been to Taizhou?"

"This humble one's ancestral home is Taizhou. As a child, I moved with my master to Qing Province. This piece was taught to me by my master."

Feng Xiu nodded and asked again, "Have you heard of the North Ridge Sect?"

Su Xin paused, then shook her head. "This humble one is ignorant and has never heard of it."

Feng Xiu waved his hand. Seeing this, Uncle Zheng took a ten-tael silver note from his sleeve.

A faint joy flickered across her face. She accepted it, bowed respectfully to Feng Xiu, and then withdrew.

"Young Master, did you hear anything?" As they pushed open the door and prepared to leave, Uncle Zheng asked.

Feng Xiu's expression turned helpless. "No. What could I have heard?"

What could he hear? That ghosts existed in this world, and that Su Wantang might not be human?

That she took Feng Shouzhuo's primordial essence, then injured Zhou Gang, and compensated him in return?

And that it led him to think of a sealed reservoir master, suspected to be a water-dwelling dragon?

If his guess was correct, then the best solution was to never open the reservoir.

Therefore, even if it were opened, and something was released, if trouble came, all the forces of Green Rock City would be there to back them up.

But that was fundamentally impossible. Now that spring planting was over, the first crop of Golden Ear Wheat had already sprouted.

At most a month from now, the River Law Bureau would conduct the first summer irrigation.

Unless another rain came—a torrential downpour that could cover the entire river valley basin!

If that's the case, how could they possibly expect Daoist Yellow Dragon to truly throw his life into it?

Stepping out of Brocade Cloud Pavilion, the sky was already nearing dusk.

"Eldest Young Master, where to next?"

Feng Xiu looked up at the sky, pondered for a moment, and said, "I'll go check on the underground canal outpost at Dendrobium Village."

"It's certainly good for the Eldest Young Master to go now, but if Shouzhuo's side has trouble, and Su Wantang refuses to let things go easily, could it be...?"

Uncle Zheng trailed off, shaking his head almost imperceptibly.

"That won't happen. The master of Tang Reservoir won't make a big scene. As for any petty tricks left over, with Han Che and the other guards' strength, there's no need to worry."

Feng Xiu waved his hand. Green Rock City was a den of hidden dragons and crouching tigers, with experts everywhere. If truly pushed to the brink, Feng Xiu still had the Heaven and Earth Longevity move to fall back on!

Did they really think the title of Benevolent Master Feng came from nothing?

Uncle Zheng thought it over and felt Feng Xiu's reasoning had some merit.

"In that case, Eldest Young Master, please be careful."

For now, following the counter-strategy laid out by Feng Ao and Zhou Gang, they were preparing against any Demonic Strange Fish that might appear later.

They had deliberately set up outposts in White Willow, Dendrobium, and Hundred Dou villages.

Officially, they claimed it was for convenient grain collection, disguising the yards as granary compounds.

Coincidentally, the three outpost yards formed a slanted triangle in terms of terrain.

If anything happened, they could respond quickly.

As for investigating Su Wantang, that could only be handled as a covert thread, not done openly.

After all, she had already let the Feng Clan off. If word got out everywhere, it might provoke her displeasure.

"This feeling really isn't pleasant." Feng Xin sighed inwardly.

The master of Tang Reservoir remained still, not sending anyone to kill Feng Shouzhuo again.

Feng Xiu suspected that Su Wantang might have put in effort behind the scenes.

Whether it was speculation or reassurance, in the end, this uncertainty about events was what made people most uneasy.

"What kind of eyesight do you have? It was just playing along for the occasion, and you actually fell for it~"

Thinking this, Feng Xiu immediately gave another order, "Uncle Zheng, turn the carriage around and head home. Fetch the things I need for cultivation, and bring some spare clothes. I plan to stay in Dendrobium Village for a while."

Uncle Zheng nodded. This was one of the plans Feng Ao had set earlier—to keep a close watch on the farm affairs.

Originally, this matter had always been under Uncle Zheng's charge, responsible for reporting the underground canal's status daily.

Now that Feng Xiu had achieved some minor success in martial arts and gained a bit of self-protection ability, it was time to settle the long-term garrison duty.

"Also, arrange for the household stewards to keep an eye on the mansion."

The winds had been calm for a month, but the Feng Clan dared not let their guard down. The threat from the master of Tang Reservoir was still there.

But business had to go on. Earlier, Feng Ao had purchased a large batch of Golden Ear Wheat in bulk, and letting it pile up in the warehouse wasn't ideal.

Just two days ago, the two of them set off to transport grain, heading straight for Jin Province.

Jin Province was in turmoil, with uprisings everywhere, and the demand for Golden Ear Wheat was astonishing.

Given the strength of those two, Feng Xiu wasn't too worried.

"Understood."

The carriage turned around and soon returned to the Feng Mansion. Feng Xiu waited inside the carriage for a while.

Before long, two young guards carried a large wooden box and placed it in the carriage. Then, someone else walked over and, through the carriage curtain, handed Feng Xiu a silver-white mace.

"Eldest Young Master, Uncle Zheng told me to give this to you," the guard said.

"Uncle Zheng had this made so quickly?"

Feng Xiu was a bit surprised. He took it and weighed it in his hand—not light, probably around forty jin.

Then, the few of them cupped their hands to Feng Xiu and turned to leave.

The carriage moved slowly, driving out of the inner city, heading in the direction of Dendrobium Village.