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In this life, Gu Jiuque would probably never have the chance to be "deeply devoted and righteous." But Bai Yuesheng, without Jade Celestial Pivot's treasure-appraisal ability and his help, could he still pick up bargains everywhere and build a fortune from nothing as easily as he had in his previous life?

No matter what Gu Jiuque was planning, the most urgent matter at hand was rebuilding the west wing.

From ancient times to the present, building a house had always been a major undertaking. That was especially true for an ancient structure like the Gu Family Ancestral Residence, which had been passed down for centuries. So-called reconstruction was not as simple as piling up bricks and laying tiles. While rebuilding the west wing, they had to preserve traditional construction techniques while also considering the building's modern practicality. It had to be restored to its original state yet made to look brand-new. That was no simple task.

Fortunately, the Gu family had a deep scholarly heritage. Grandpa Gu and Grandma Gu had several decades of experience maintaining and preserving the old residence. Although Gu Dad's talent for cultural relic restoration and appraisal could not compare with that of the rest of the family, he had been born into the Gu family and steeped in its teachings for so long that basic surveying, calculations, and overall project management posed no problem for him.

On the day Gu Yugui led the construction crew in surveying the site and estimating costs, people from the local cultural heritage bureau also arrived.

Although the Gu Family Ancestral Residence was privately owned, it was also a registered local historic building, and the local heritage department had an obligation to assist in its repair and preservation. Besides that, the bureau wanted to use the Gu family's restoration of their ancestral residence as an opportunity to send over some young people to "learn from the masters."

The Gu family's centuries-long legacy was renowned. Grandpa Gu Eight Blades and Grandma Yue Jinmei were not only well-known cultural relic restoration experts within the industry, but also famous domestic experts in ancient architecture. When they were younger, they had been invited to various places to help restore cultural relics and old buildings. It was only after they grew older that they stopped traveling so much. They devoted most of their energy to running Antique Appreciation Studio instead. Gu Dad, on the other hand, had inherited the family's work in restoring ancient buildings. Later, he even founded his own construction company, specializing in the design and construction of large-scale antique-style architecture. A few years ago, he expanded into a new line of business—working with several film and television companies to create sets for period dramas.

In Grandpa Gu's words: "His skills haven't improved much, but his reputation keeps getting bigger!"

Gu Dad had a spirited rebuttal: "This isn't an era where good wine needs no bush anymore. The bigger your reputation, the more chances you have to take on projects; the more projects you take on, the more experience you gain; and only with enough experience can you better maintain the Gu Family Ancestral Residence."

"This is called making up for a lack of talent with hard work!"

"The times are different now. In our line of work, whether your craftsmanship is good is secondary. What matters most is having connections and resources. You have to be able to get work! And you have to make people willing to pay you to do it. Survive first, then talk about everything else." As Gu Dad spoke, he did not forget to show off before his father and son. "That's the difference between businessmen and craftsmen! Your whole 'ignore the world outside and just bury your heads in repairs' mindset is long outdated."

"Outdated my ass!" Grandpa Gu could not outargue his son, so he could only angrily resort to personal attacks. "People like you are ruining this trade! Instead of studying your craft, you just like playing tricks! Whatever you do, you swallow it whole and copy by rote. You never seek a thorough understanding when you learn, and when you study a craft, you never strive for perfection! All you think about is making money. Everyone's become so restless!"

Seeing that Old Master Gu was genuinely angry, Gu Dad rubbed his nose and wisely steered the conversation back to rebuilding the west wing.

The Gu Family Ancestral Residence covered only three mu and had been built in the classic layout of residence in front, garden behind. The compound was divided into four courtyards. The reversed-seat rooms in the front courtyard had all been opened up and turned into the storefront of Antique Appreciation Studio. A partition wall separated the front courtyard from the middle courtyard, and beyond the passageway lay the main residential courtyard. The five main rooms facing the front were Grandpa Gu and Grandma Gu's residence; of the side wings, Gu Dad and Gu Mom lived in the east wing, while Gu Jiuque lived alone in the west wing. There were also two smaller side rooms beside the east and west wings, serving as the kitchen and bathroom.

The third courtyard had the best lighting, temperature, and humidity. When it was built, a pond fed by running water had been brought into the courtyard, with stones piled along its banks to form an artificial hill. The library and mounting room were built atop the hill. It was open and breezy, pleasantly moist, and offered an excellent view from above. The pond was filled with lotus flowers, while a side building pressed close against the western wall served as Grandpa Gu and Grandma Gu's private collection hall. It housed the cultural relics passed down through the Gu family, as well as antiques Grandpa Gu and Grandma Gu had collected over the decades. Calligraphy, paintings, and rare precious editions were also carefully stored there. When the weather was fine, they would air out the books in the courtyard.

A covered corridor wound through the hills and around the water, stretching from the library and mounting room atop the artificial hill all the way to the back courtyard. Flowers and plants filled the yard, with only a row of rear covered rooms hidden among the greenery. These were the Gu family's workshops for restoring porcelain, wood carvings, lacquered bamboo, mother-of-pearl inlay, jade, and other items, as well as storerooms for keeping a small amount of materials.

For this old residence, which had taken centuries to build, the Gu family were not merely its current owners. They were also its guardians. Decades ago, it had been Gu Eight Blades and Yue Jinmei, still in their prime and sparing no effort, who had gradually restored the already dilapidated residence to its former state.

Every brick, tile, blade of grass, tree, door, and window in the residence—even every bracket set and every rafter—had been personally repaired by Gu Eight Blades and Yue Jinmei alongside their apprentices. Afterward, major maintenance and preservation work had to be carried out every three or four years. The effort they had poured into it was beyond imagining.

In his previous life, the entire Gu residence had been consumed by flames. Some members of the Gu family had died, others had been injured, leaving behind only shattered walls and broken ruins. Gu Jiuque had spent ten years gradually restoring the old residence to the way he remembered it. Unfortunately, another fire had reduced it to rubble again.

Having been reborn, although the west wing where he lived had still burned down because of Bai Yuesheng, compared to his previous life, when the entire residence had been destroyed and his family torn apart by death, this loss seemed acceptable.

Gu Jiuque was thoroughly satisfied, so throughout the entire inspection and surveying process, he appeared especially delighted. He carefully recorded the extent of the west wing's fire damage. He had originally wanted to use Jade Celestial Pivot's help to "see" the entire compound's 3D structural diagram, but unexpectedly, Jade Celestial Pivot—which had previously offered him guidance at every turn and answered every request—had malfunctioned.

The 3D structural diagram made of countless lines was gone, and so was his ability to see through things with his naked eye.