"Fellow Daoist Xu!" Lin An called again from outside the door.
When there was still no response from within,
he could not help wondering if Xu Changqing was not home.
After all, many people had gone to Red Maple Valley Market yesterday to celebrate the New Year.
"Who is it?" Xu Changqing got up at the sound.
With a creak, the door opened.
At once, a bone-chilling wind rushed inside.
Xu Changqing, being a cultivator, barely reacted.
The sleepy little fellow, on the other hand, shivered from head to toe in the cold.
"It's me!" Lin An's eyes immediately lit up, and he hurried forward.
"So early?" Xu Changqing paused, then stepped aside. "Come in and talk."
Lin An scraped the snow from his shoe soles before entering the house.
When he saw the extra Little Yellow Dog, he was somewhat surprised as well.
"I was lonely by myself, so I found a pet for company." Xu Changqing explained as he shut the door.
Lin An nodded. "Understandable. Most Spirit Farmers do the same."
Xu Changqing poured him a cup of water and asked, "What did you come to see me for?"
Lin An seemed to find it hard to speak. "This..."
"Just say it." Xu Changqing knew that coming to him during the New Year meant Lin An must have something to ask.
Only then did Lin An grit his teeth. "You know that I didn't plant anything last winter, so I don't have much Spirit Rice Grain on hand. That would not have been a problem, but who knew resources would become so scarce this year? The Earth Spirit Root and Water Spirit Root disciples I worked with before have been crazily demanding grain."
Xu Changqing understood at once.
Because the five major powers were speculating on resources, the prices of many things had risen with the tide.
Originally, one Low-Grade Spirit Stone could buy ten jin of First-Grade Spirit Rice.
Now, the exchange rate changed by the day.
Yesterday it was one to seven; today, it could become one to six.
As for Second-Grade Spirit Rice, it had reached the astonishing rate of one to one and a half.
It was even showing signs of falling further, leaving many ordinary disciples unable to afford it.
"I have no Spirit Rice Grain, so I can only beg you to help me." Lin An was utterly helpless.
Xu Changqing looked slightly surprised. "Why are they suddenly in such a hurry?"
Lin An said indignantly, "Those two struck dogshit luck and both became Formal Disciples."
When he had signed spirit contracts with those two, there had been an element of gambling involved.
He had gambled that one of them, or perhaps even both, would fail to become Formal Disciples.
Then the initiative would fall into his hands.
Even if one of them succeeded, he could barely manage it.
Who could have known that they would either both fail or both succeed together?
And once they became Formal Disciples, their demand for Spirit Rice Grain would increase greatly.
The two had already made their demands clear.
If it was First-Grade Spirit Rice, each wanted at least three hundred jin.
If it was Second-Grade Spirit Rice, each still wanted a hundred jin.
But the problem was that Lin An had not planted spirit rice at all last winter.
Forget Second-Grade Spirit Rice—he did not even have much First-Grade Spirit Rice left.
Xu Changqing narrowed his eyes slightly, weighing the matter in his heart.
It was true that he and Lin An had a fairly good relationship.
But if he really took out a large amount of Spirit Rice Grain, whether First-Grade or Second-Grade,
once the news got out, it would definitely arouse suspicion.
A person who had failed the outer-zone assessment twice in a row—
why could he grow so much Spirit Rice Grain just after joining the Spirit Field Core?
Especially during winter, when yields were reduced!
As the saying went, a favor of a sheng of rice earned gratitude, but a favor of a dou of rice bred resentment.
Lin An might be all right; his heart was not that vicious.
But Zhao Ziyao would definitely turn hostile and might even stir up trouble.
If it drew Zhang Er's attention, the situation would become even worse.
"If it puts you in a difficult position, forget it." Lin An could see it on Xu Changqing's face, and he knew it was rather excessive to come borrow rice just after the New Year.
After thinking for a moment, Xu Changqing said, "To be honest, I only have forty jin of Second-Grade Spirit Rice left."
"Then... could you lend me some?" A trace of hope appeared in Lin An's eyes.
At Dongting Immortal Sect, contracts were taken very seriously.
Once one breached a contract, even a Formal Disciple would face severe punishment.
He might even be driven out of the Spirit Fields.
"At most, twenty jin. I need the rest for myself." Xu Changqing agreed only because Lin An had helped introduce him to Zhang Su.
"Thank you so much! I'll definitely return it double!" Lin An was overjoyed.
Xu Changqing asked curiously, "But even if I give you twenty jin, what will you do about the rest?"
Lin An instantly wilted, his face drooping as he answered, "I can only borrow from other people."
"Then I wish you good luck." As Xu Changqing spoke, he took out twenty jin of Second-Grade Spirit Rice from his Small Storage Bag.
"Fellow Daoist Xu, I will never forget this kindness!" Lin An assured him again and again before accepting it.
Xu Changqing said seriously, "If we can both remain in the Spirit Field Core, I'll treat you to a drink then."
Lin An froze for a moment, then nodded hard. "All right!"
After that, he left.
Standing in the doorway, Xu Changqing watched Lin An's rather bedraggled back and murmured, "Fellow Daoist Lin, from here on, your fate rests on your own Creation."
As the saying went, one must not harbor the heart to harm others, but one must never lack the heart to guard against them.
It was not that he was unwilling to help. Human hearts were simply too complicated.
Yet to his surprise, someone else came knocking around noon.
"Senior Brother Xu, long time no see!" Han Su, the Earth Spirit Root disciple, said with an awkward laugh.
"Why are you here?" Xu Changqing was somewhat surprised.
"I came specially to offer New Year's greetings to Senior Brother." Han Su grinned.
"Since you've already offered them, you can go back now." Xu Changqing waved a hand.
"Don't!" Han Su immediately panicked.
"What exactly is it?" Xu Changqing had already guessed.
Han Su smiled bitterly. "I wanted to borrow some rice from you!"
Xu Changqing was not surprised in the slightest and refused decisively. "I don't have any."
Han Su still refused to give up, pulling a long face. "I hadn't wanted to borrow rice from you, but who knew that damned Lin An would have no rice?"
Leaning against the doorframe, Xu Changqing said with a faintly amused expression, "Isn't it normal not to have rice? Formal Disciples can choose not to plant during winter."
Han Su had not expected there to be such a rule and immediately frowned. "But I'm a Formal Disciple now too, and I have a great need for Spirit Rice Grain."
"Oh?" Xu Changqing blinked. "Then I'll have to call you Fellow Daoist Han from now on!"
Han Su was so frightened that he hurriedly said, "No, no, no... Just keep calling me Junior Brother!"
Xu Changqing stopped teasing him and spread his hands. "I truly don't have any rice."
Han Su asked tentatively, "Back in the outer zone, didn't Senior Brother promise to let me loosen your soil?"
Borrowing rice would be best.
But the key this time was not borrowing rice.
It was using this to bring up loosening the soil in the Spirit Fields when spring arrived.
This was a chance to promote himself.
Xu Changqing had not expected Han Su to be waiting for him here and raised a brow. "You already have Lin An, and back in the outer zone, didn't you loosen the soil for plenty of people?"
Han Su immediately flew into a rage. "In autumn, only you and Lin An became Formal Disciples. As for winter... every last one failed."
He had privately wondered before
whether there was something wrong with his eyes.
Why was he so bad at judging people?
Especially Lin An—he was a heavyweight among scams, a pitfall among pitfalls.
"This..." Xu Changqing hesitated. He could now choose to work with Earth Spirit Root disciples who had more experience.
"Fifty jin! For one season, I only want fifty jin of Second-Grade Spirit Rice!!!" Han Su gritted his teeth, stamped his foot, and went all in.
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