Changes in the Space

They were nowhere near as convenient to use as copper coins, or even bits of silver.

Of course, because gold was worth more, it was much easier to transport than silver.

At half past one that afternoon, Tang Wen took Zhang Kui, Zhan Dong, Li Quan, and Bu Feng into the cave.

Then he opened the crates, revealing the swords and sabers.

Tang Wen swung a saber at a thin sheet of iron, striking it with a crisp clang.

Sparks flew everywhere. Tang Wen followed up with several more slashes, reducing the sheet to strips of iron.

"What a fine blade! A truly fine blade!" Li Quan and the others exclaimed, their eyes gleaming with hunger.

"Try them yourselves." Tang Wen handed out the blades. The men put all their strength into their swings, their enthusiasm mounting.

Next, Tang Wen handed out the palm-sized crossbows, drawing another chorus of admiration.

"From now on, practice more. Pick another dozen or so men, distribute the swords and sabers among them, and lead them in training," Tang Wen instructed. "As for these little crossbows, there are only a few, so only you men will be equipped with them for now. Still, their small size means you can take them apart and carry them on your bodies whenever you need to."

After that, Bu Feng selected a dozen or so men and brought them inside.

The men were full of drive. They trained until six that evening, only returning when it was time to eat.

Tang Wen badly wanted to open the passage again and exchange his eight hundred taels of gold for supplies and silver. Unfortunately, he still had no way to obtain the sixty strands of human energy he needed, so he could only put it off.

The next day, several large pots were set up in front of the lake to distribute porridge.

Sun Ping and the others beat copper gongs and shouted at the tops of their lungs, "Master Tang is giving out porridge! Delicious, fragrant porridge! Anyone who's hungry, come over! There's enough for everyone!"

Yet not a single person came during the first two hours.

"Aren't they hungry?" Zhan Dongwen was beginning to grow restless.

"Have a dozen or so men put their old ragged clothes back on and pretend to be disaster refugees. Send them around below, then have them approach from different directions to eat the porridge," Tang Wen said.

Li Quan sent men to carry out the instructions. Sure enough, once these "plants" put on their act, it worked.

Before long, people began trickling over to ask, "Are you really giving away porridge? Do we have to pay?"

"It's free! Eat your fill! There's even some shredded meat in the porridge. Our Master Tang is a great philanthropist. He's letting you all get a taste of meat!" Zhan Dongwen shouted.

At once, dozens of refugees rushed over with bowls in hand, grabbed a serving each, and tucked in with gusto.

By that afternoon, the number of refugees had risen to a hundred.

"Master, should we tell them we're recruiting?" Zhan Dongwen asked.

"No hurry. Tell them in three days." Tang Wen waved a hand.

They continued distributing porridge for three days, and the crowd gathered there grew to more than two hundred.

"Everyone, our Master Tang has said this.

"Anyone willing to sell themselves into servitude to the Tang household will receive fifteen taels of silver, a monthly allowance of half a tael, and enough food to fill their belly.

"Master Tang will provide your clothes and lodging. You'll have meat once every three days, and every meal will include two dishes and a soup.

"If you don't want to sell yourselves, Master Tang can also hire you to work for us.

"Of course, if you know martial arts, your payment can increase according to your strength," Zhan Dongwen said.

"How much do we get per day if we just work without selling ourselves?" someone asked, holding a bowl.

"Forty copper coins!" Zhan Dongwen replied.

"Are meals included?" a thin man asked.

"No meals, but you can use your copper coins to buy rice from Master Tang at twenty coins a catty.

"You've just eaten it yourselves. Master Tang's rice is top-quality rice.

"And there's no sand mixed into it.

"The price may be the same as on the market, but Master Tang's rice is better," Zhan Dongwen said.

"How much is the meat?"

"One hundred and sixty copper coins a catty," Zhan Dongwen said.

"Everyone, we can turn the rice you buy into porridge for you. But there won't be any meat in that porridge. Only those who sell themselves to my Tang household will have meat to eat." Tang Wen stood and pointed at a wooden table nearby. "This is what the servants of my household eat. Although they only get meat once every three days,

"they still have a bowl of meat broth and two dishes at every regular meal.

"If you know martial arts, you'll get another dish, and meat once a day.

"Zhan Dong and the others, for example, know martial arts and serve as guards for my household, so they eat a little better than everyone else."

Watching the Tang household's servants savor their fragrant meals, many of the refugees could do nothing but swallow mouthful after mouthful of saliva.

"Master Tang, my name is Zhao Du. I've trained in martial arts, and I have a wife, children, and an elderly mother at home. Will you take them too? Will you feed them?" asked a dark-skinned man.

"Your wife should be able to help Tang with the household's work. The elderly can do lighter tasks.

"The children are exempt. They won't have to work. When I have the opportunity, I also intend to open a school.

"That way, all your children can study. I'll take them all," Tang Wen said.

"All right. I'm willing to sell myself to the Tang household," Zhao Du said.

"Since you've trained in martial arts, these iron weights range from one hundred to six hundred catties, in increments of a hundred. Come and try lifting them. How much silver I pay you will depend on how much you can lift." Tang Wen pointed at the iron weights Li Quan and the others had carried out.

Zhao Du went up to the six-hundred-catty iron weight. He mustered all his strength, channeled it into both arms, and shouted, "Up!"

But the weight merely shifted; he could not lift it. Zhao Du's face instantly reddened.

"It's all right. If six hundred catties is too much, try five hundred," Tang Wen encouraged him.

So Zhao Du tried the five-hundred-catty weight, but he still could not lift it.

Finally, he charged toward the three-hundred-catty weight and, with a furious roar, managed to lift it in his arms.

"Good. Your sale price will be increased to thirty taels, with a monthly allowance of two taels. You'll join the household guards. Each member of your family will receive ten taels of silver and a monthly allowance of half a tael. They'll do light work, and my household will cover all their food and lodging," Tang Wen said.

Zhan Dongwen immediately drew up the contract. Zhao Du pressed his fingerprint onto it and ran off, his face full of excitement.

Before long, he returned with his wife, children, and elderly mother.

Tang Ling immediately arranged tents for them. Naturally, men and women stayed separately, while the children stayed with their mothers.

For the moment, Tang Wen did not have enough tents to provide one for every family.

Once the first person stepped forward, others followed. By the end of the day, another fifty or so men in their prime had sold themselves to the Tang household. Including their dependents, the total came to seventy-two.

Another sixty people became temporary laborers for Tang.

Tang Wen was in no hurry. He believed they would all become slaves of the Tang household in time.

After all, the gap in treatment between temporary laborers and Tang's servants was far too obvious. Those two dishes and a bowl of meat broth alone could defeat even their staunchest resolve.

You have accumulated sixty strands of human energy. You may initiate your third Spacetime Travel.

At that moment, the Great Landlord Space responded.

In the next instant, human energy emerged from above all seventy-two people's heads and plunged toward Tang Wen.

Here he went for a second round. Tang Wen hurried back to his tent to regulate his breathing, using the Six Profound Return-to-Truth Art to guide the human energy into his body.

That pain bore down on him again, and the human energy battered two acupoints inside him with repeated thuds.

After an hour, the bitterness finally gave way to sweetness. He felt as comfortable as if he were soaking in a hot spring.

Tang Wen looked into the space and found that the figures displayed on the enormous screen had changed:

Human energy index: 148.

Land area: 2,338 qing.

Wealth index: 1,500 taels of gold.

Martial arts realm: late ninth grade.

Luggage capacity: 300 tons.

Travel duration: fifteen days.

His cultivation had risen another level. It had to be because of the seventy-two additional strands of human energy.

At midnight, Tang Wen rose into the sky once more.

Upon landing, he discovered it was daytime again in Yunhai City, so he chose an out-of-the-way area and rented a large warehouse measuring over a thousand square meters.

Then he headed straight to the Eight Blessings Gold House, where he sold eight hundred taels of gold for 9.6 million yuan.

He spent six million to buy thirty thousand taels of silver. Tang Wen used the remaining three million-plus to buy cement, rebar, tents, rice, flour, water pipes, and other supplies.

He also added a stone crusher and a sand crusher, because he intended to rebuild the dam when he returned this time.

He therefore took a video of Crouching Dragon Lake to the provincial design institute and spent five hundred thousand yuan on a set of hydraulic engineering plans.

He also spent a dozen or so days learning about hydraulic engineering from specialists.

He recorded videos too, so he could consult them whenever he encountered something he did not understand after returning.

This time, he also made a point of purchasing office equipment, including computers, desks, and conference tables.

Since the Chu Kingdom had no electricity, he would have to rely on storage batteries for now.

Most importantly, Tang Wen borrowed several million more from the Luo Family to purchase a small surveying drone.

He would use it to survey all of Su Mei Island, then have a complete island development plan drawn up on his next return.

Otherwise, if he built haphazardly however he pleased, then wanted to develop the island further once he had money, he would have to tear things down and rebuild them over and over. That would be far too wasteful.

This time, he returned fully loaded with three hundred tons of supplies, two hundred tons of which were cement.

Tang Wen intended to build embankments and irrigation channels, bringing Crouching Dragon Lake back to life.

Ding! To initiate your fourth Spacetime Travel, you must accumulate one hundred strands of human energy.

Once your human energy reaches one thousand, the system will upgrade to 2.0.

You will then be able to travel farther.

The system will select a second travel destination for you, rather than limiting you to the Great Eastern Republic.

That was no small temptation. Tang Wen eagerly wondered what this second destination would be like, and where it would be.

But the moment he came back to his senses, he heard fierce fighting and cries of battle.