Obsession with the Golden Finger

The next five or six days passed in calm, uneventful peace.

On the grain transport route, Gongsun Qiang and Sixth Uncle Wang Dinghai were the first to complete their mission. In return, Wang Shouzhe promised Gongsun Qiang that the final batch of old grain could be transported back to the Gongsun Clan. Naturally, it was not free; it would be sold to the Gongsun Clan at the standard price.

That "cheap uncle-in-law" of his was quite the ruthless character. With overloaded carts and mine slaves carrying sacks on their shoulders, he hauled away a full three thousand dan. The very next day, he impatiently sent over two hundred Qian Gold as payment for the grain, looking utterly terrified that Wang Shouzhe might go back on his word.

No wonder he was ruthless. The disaster throughout Changning Guard was growing more severe by the day. Those Profound Martial Aristocratic Clans capable of hiring Spirit Insect Masters, or with the connections and money to purchase vast quantities of Pest-Exterminating Powder, could still hold steady.

But most low-ranking aristocratic clans were not so fortunate. Insect plagues ran rampant through their fields. They could only rely on large quantities of plant-ash lye to kill the pests, but it had limited effect against the ever-increasing Honey Insects. Massive crop failures had already become inevitable.

Wang Shouzhe also heard even worse news: this disaster was very likely spreading beyond Longzuo Prefecture. If so, the grain in his hands would become even more "valuable."

Meanwhile, Wang Shouzhe had not been idle.

Daily cultivation was indispensable. Since he had been eating so well recently, the qi and blood within his body were flourishing. Every day, he could clearly feel his cultivation steadily and firmly advancing toward the Seventh Layer of the Qi Refining Realm.

Of course, the path of cultivation was not easy. It was a process of gradual transformation and strengthening of the body, requiring painstaking effort, bit by bit, like water wearing through stone.

He had certainly wanted to be like those protagonists in fantasy novels, swallowing pills every day and casually blasting through one realm after another. Or taking up a sword to kill a chicken or butcher a dog, only for his experience points to soar higher and higher.

But in this world, all that was a castle in the air. No matter who it was, every cultivation realm had to be attained through unceasing practice and the slow, relentless grind of water dripping through stone.

Besides cultivating, Wang Shouzhe had also been tinkering with his system panel.

Since transmigrating had not come with a system, he could only make a crude system panel himself.

The first matter was the clan's expenses.

Before sorting out this panel, Wang Shouzhe had been rather vague about the clan's expenditures. But after checking them against First Aunt Gongsun Hui's account books, he was genuinely stunned. A clan's expenses were actually this enormous.

Take the Attendant stipend and resources Wang Shouzhe enjoyed now that he was Clan Leader.

Ordinary supplies allocated each year:

Three hundred jin of fine rice (24 Big Copper), 150 jin of fine flour (15 Big Copper), 200 jin of assorted vegetables (8 Big Copper), 400 jin of melons and fruit (48 Big Copper), 20 jin of candied fruit (20 Big Copper), 250 jin of pork (75 Big Copper), 150 jin of ordinary beef, mutton, and lamb (60 Big Copper), 100 chickens and ducks (60 Big Copper), 30 geese (45 Big Copper), 100 jin of eggs (20 Big Copper), 20 jin of lard (8 Big Copper), 20 jin of refined soybean oil (12 Big Copper), 10 jin of premium soy sauce (20 Big Copper), 5 jin of premium refined salt (20 Big Copper), 1 jin of snowflake salt (10 Big Copper), 10 jin of Snowflake Sugar (20 Big Copper), 1 jin of seasoning spices (10 Big Copper), 5 jin of incense (25 Big Copper), 500 jin of fine charcoal (15 Big Copper), 30 dan of firewood apportioned out (6 Big Copper), apportioned expenses for clothes, bedding, and the like (100 Big Copper), and apportioned expenses for other daily necessities (20 Big Copper).

Wang Shouzhe's share of ordinary supplies alone consumed a full 6 Qian Gold and 51 Big Copper each year. Looking over the list, he felt that he ate rather too much—but upon careful thought, he really did eat a great deal.

He was already about to reach the Seventh Layer of the Qi Refining Realm, and his appetite was far beyond that of an ordinary person. Moreover, cultivation was not merely sitting in meditation and refining qi. He also had to practice Xuanwu Combat Techniques, movement techniques, swordsmanship, archery, and horsemanship, all of which consumed an enormous amount of physical energy.

These ordinary foods could only barely satisfy his current needs. First Aunt Gongsun Hui often diverted some of her own stipend to Wang Shouzhe.

Naturally, this was only the small portion. The major expense was the annual allocation of cultivation resources for Wang Shouzhe.

Sixty jin of Spirit Rice (12 Qian Gold), 60 jin of Spirit Fish (20 Qian Gold), 60 jin of Spirit Meat (20 Qian Gold), and 12 Lesser Foundation-Cultivating Pills (120 Qian Gold).

A full 172 Qian Gold worth of cultivation resources was supplied to him alone each year. And as his cultivation realm rose, this portion would have to continue increasing. Otherwise, it simply would not keep up with his consumption.

This was why Wang Shouzhe, despite his young age, was already about to reach the Seventh Layer of the Qi Refining Realm. It was absolutely not merely because his cultivation aptitude was exceptionally outstanding, but because the clan had piled resources onto him.

Just think about it: although the clan's Spirit Fish came from its own Fishing Brigade, its annual output averaged only around 400 jin. Wang Shouzhe alone occupied 60 jin of that.

As for Spirit Meat, its sources were more varied, usually hunting or purchasing, because the Wang Clan did not have the wealth or capability to raise Spirit-Horn Yaks. When it came to hunting, every year one month after the autumn harvest, the clan organized an Autumn-Winter Hunt, mainly to cultivate the abilities of its younger members while replenishing some meat supplies.

But because they did not dare venture deep into the wilderness of the Outer Domain, they rarely caught Fierce Beasts. At the very least, the Wang Clan had not hunted a Fierce Beast during the past five Autumn-Winter Hunts. Thus, the Wang Clan's main source of Spirit Meat was purchased externally, which was also a massive expense.

Besides that, now that Wang Shouzhe was Clan Leader, he also received a monthly allowance of 5 Qian Gold, amounting to another 60 Qian Gold a year. This private money could be used as he pleased. As Clan Leader, there were many places where he needed to spend money personally.

Thus, Wang Shouzhe's direct annual consumption alone came to roughly 240 Qian Gold. This did not include apportioned repairs for the clan residences, the expenses for carts and horses, or the expenses of the dedicated servant assigned to him, since those were counted under other clan expenditure categories.

Once the accounts were calculated, the total became an astronomical figure.

If he were to marry a principal wife, her cultivation resources definitely could not be so generous, perhaps only around one-third of his. But the food, clothing, and Attendant stipend of the Clan Leader's principal wife were all set according to the Clan Leader's standard, adding another hundred-odd Qian Gold in expenses.

Furthermore, the clan's other expenditures were equally staggering.

The average annual expenses for all bloodline clan members, including Wang Shouzhe himself, reached around 1,800 Qian Gold. The expenses, compensation, and treatment for the nine family retainers and their families together also came to nearly 350 Qian Gold.

There were also seven underage or young family retainers currently being trained, and the resource costs for that portion were around 80 Qian Gold. In addition, there were more than a hundred household servants and slaves, divided into several grades, with total annual expenses of around 170 Qian Gold.

The personnel in the aristocratic clan's main residence alone consumed 2,400 Qian Gold each year. Naturally, not all of that 2,400 Qian Gold was actually paid out in Qian Gold. A considerable portion consisted of resource supplies, merely measured in terms of Qian Gold.

For example, the White Jade Spirit Rice produced in the Spirit Fields of the clan's Xingsheng Farm was entered into the farm's revenue accounts when those resources entered the clan. When allocated to someone in the form of resources, its value would ultimately still be reflected in Qian Gold.

Likewise, when some of the live fish, fresh fish, Spirit Fish, and so on produced by Sixth Uncle Wang Dinghai's Fishing Brigade entered the clan, revenue would be recorded there, while the clan would record it as an expenditure.

Of course, such accounts only tracked the movement of goods; no actual Qian Gold changed hands on paper. Therefore, the so-called profits of the Fishing Brigade usually referred to book profits, not actual Qian Gold earned in hard cash. That portion of profit had already been turned into supplies provided to the clan.

Still, for such a vast Profound Martial Aristocratic Clan, enormous material expenditures were clearly unavoidable. In truth, because the Ping'an Wang Clan was too poor, its overall spending was already considered low. Ancestor Longyan and the clan elders of the Xiao Generation had all tightened their belts and tried their utmost to save expenses.

Fortunately, the clan still possessed three pillar industries.

Among them, Fenggu Farm, which dealt purely in ordinary agriculture, currently had the lowest book revenue. Xingsheng Farm, on the other hand, had twenty mu of Spirit Fields and therefore produced greater value.

In addition, Xinmao Silkworm Farm mainly produced raw cocoons and supplied the Changning Xu Clan steadily over the long term, with most of its overall earnings being in Qian Gold.

The clan's other two industries, the Ping'an Wang Clan Fish Stall and the Fishing Brigade, were managed by the younger generation and had been far inferior to the three pillar industries in earnings during previous years.

But this year, after all Wang Shouzhe's maneuvering, the Fishing Brigade and the Wang Clan Fish Stall were bound to take off. It would not be strange even if their earnings surpassed those of the pillar industries.

Moreover, Fenggu Farm, the largest grain-producing farm this year, would also usher in a glorious moment due to the arrival of the insect plague.

More importantly, relying on a few scraps of intelligence about the insect plague, Wang Shouzhe had boldly made a massive move. That wave of over ten thousand Qian Gold in pure profit was enough to bring a qualitative transformation to the cash-strapped Wang Clan.

At the thought of that thick stack of Great Qian banknotes and the grain piled high throughout the rear courtyard, Wang Shouzhe's heart swelled with towering ambition!

The Ping'an Wang Clan would surely rise into flight!

Steadying his thoughts, Wang Shouzhe turned his attention to the crude system panel he had built himself.

First was the main interface.

Clan Name: Longzuo Changning Ping'an Wang Clan

Clan Rank: Ninth Grade

Clan Prestige: Local Renown (75) Well-Known County Renown (21) Somewhat Famous Prefectural Renown (00) Unknown and Obscure

Clan Industries: 5 (Click to view details)

Clan Members: Within Clan (35) Married Out (10) (Click to view details)

Clan In-Laws: 6 (Click to view details)

Clan Family Retainers: Adults (9) Minors (7) (Click to view details)

Clan Servants: Adults (112) Minors (32) (Click to view details)

Income and Expenditure List: (Click to view details)

After finishing this, even Wang Shouzhe felt that he must have played too many games and read too many system novels in his previous life. If he did not cobble together some kind of "system panel," he felt uncomfortable all over.

Still, this system was relatively rudimentary. It was simply made up of sheets of paper, and many templates still needed to be added gradually.

"Click to view details." Wang Shouzhe put on an act and tapped the clan industries entry. Then he turned to the clan industry details page.

In reality, he had merely taken out that little notebook on the clan industries... which he had punched and bound with thread himself...