Marriage Alliance Factions (Please Recommend)

But on careful thought, it was perfectly reasonable. If the Flood Dragon Trading Firm were not powerful enough, how could it have taken over all the business along the entire An River?

Its annual profits must have been an astronomical figure.

And with such immense profits, recruiting and cultivating talent would naturally follow, like water flowing into a channel.

The stronger one became, the more money one had; the more money one had, the stronger one became. This principle held true in any world.

The boat sped downstream. As Wang Shouzhe chatted with Sixth Uncle Wang Dinghai, they soon left the Wang Clan's exclusive waters. To the left lay a vast Boulder Shoal, while steep cliffs rose along the right bank.

The stretch of water ahead belonged to the Ping'an Zhao Clan. In Wang Shouzhe's way of thinking, it was an exclusive economic zone carved out by the various powers through long years of struggle.

After another dozen or so li by water, the right bank became the Shanyang region, where the Gongsun Clan had its stronghold. Compared to tiny Ping'an Town, where three aristocratic clans were crammed together, Shanyang Town had only two. Of them, the Shanyang Gongsun Clan's overall strength far surpassed that of the Shanyang Cao Clan.

Marriages between Profound Martial Aristocratic Clans were treated with great care. They had to ensure the continuation of both bloodlines, while also serving as tools of alliance and diplomacy. Generally speaking, aristocratic clans from the same region did not intermarry.

Just like the Wang Clan, Liu Clan, and Zhao Clan in Ping'an Town—they did not intermarry with one another. It was an unspoken signal: one mountain could not hold two tigers, and sooner or later, they would devour each other.

Likewise, when marrying outward, one could not choose two aristocratic clans from the same region as marriage partners. For example, since the Wang Clan was tied to the Shanyang Gongsun Clan by marriage, it absolutely could not form another marriage alliance in Shanyang. That was a grave taboo. In return, the Shanyang Gongsun Clan naturally would not intermarry with the Ping'an Zhao Clan or Liu Clan.

Thus, although the dozens of aristocratic clans large and small throughout Changning Guard appeared tangled and complex, they were actually divided into only five or six marriage-alliance factions.

As Wang Shouzhe admired the intermittent scenery along the way, he also sorted through his thoughts. The family's future development could not ignore the factor of marriage-alliance factions.

Take the Changning Xu Clan. The Changning Xu Clan now had three Spirit Platform Realm cultivators, and their strongest ancestor had already reached the late stage of the Spirit Platform Realm. They were no less formidable than the Wang Clan had been at its peak.

Yet as marriage allies, the two sides still maintained direct-line intermarriage. Xinmao Silkworm Farm's main business was planting mulberry trees and raising silkworms, and it also depended on the Xu Clan for survival. Setting aside everything else, the fact that their purchase price for fresh cocoons was twenty percent higher than others' showed that the Changning Xu Clan still remembered the old ties with the Wang Clan.

If one day Wang Shouzhe himself reached the Spirit Platform Realm, how could he forget the old ties with the Gongsun Clan, the Lu Clan, and the others? Anyone could fall on hard times. Back when the Wang Clan had been so powerful, had it not fallen into decline overnight as well?

"Shouzhe, look! That's the Zhao Clan's fishing fleet." Wang Dinghai suddenly spoke.

Wang Shouzhe swept his gaze over the river and spotted a fishing fleet at work several li away. Two of the vessels were even medium-sized fishing boats. More than a dozen fishing boats spread across the water, presenting a mighty sight. Clearly, they surpassed the Wang Clan by a notch in the scale of their fishing fleet.

That was hardly surprising. Of the three aristocratic clans in the tiny Ping'an Town region, the Wang Clan was currently the weakest. First, the Wang Clan's fate had always been ill-starred; second, it also had to "thank" the Zhao Clan and Liu Clan for their joint policy of suppression.

But both the Zhao Clan and the Liu Clan knew that once the Wang Clan collapsed and perished, Ping'an Town would become their battlefield. The fact that the Zhao Clan and Liu Clan did not intermarry revealed their mutual understanding.

"Heh, they're still using that backward method of casting nets from a fleet." As Wang Dinghai steered the boat, a mocking smile appeared at the corner of his lips, and a sense of superiority welled up within him.

It was no wonder. Ever since Wang Shouzhe had taught him the fixed lifting-net technique, Wang Dinghai had secretly set up thirty fixed Moving Zithers in various concealed locations along both banks. Near each one, he had built a particularly crude thatched hut in a hidden spot, allowing two fishing hands to take turns working and resting.

Moreover, those fixed Moving Zithers, which made use of the seesaw principle, were extremely simple and effortless to operate. Even an ordinary minor could easily master them without expending much strength.

Fishing from boats on the river at night was quite dangerous. Unless there was a special need, fishing boats generally set out at first light and returned to port before dark. Moving Zithers, however, could be used for fireless fishing operations at night, and the riverbank was much safer than the river's surface.

Fish also tended to gradually move closer to shore after dusk, because the banks offered more opportunities for food, while the darkness gave them a sense of safety.

During the fish run, a single fixed Moving Zither could catch one or two thousand jin in a single night if luck was especially good. Even with poorer luck, it could still bring in four or five hundred jin.

With thirty Moving Zither fishing sites, they had averaged twenty thousand jin of catches per day over the past two days! A full two hundred dan of assorted fish...

Therefore, to keep things secret, Wang Dinghai had already halted daytime operation of the Moving Zithers. The nets were removed, the frames laid flat and covered with grass. Then, when dusk darkened into night, they would quickly assemble them again and fish through the night.

After all, daytime catches were far worse than nighttime catches. It was better to increase their level of secrecy.

As for daytime, to avoid drawing attention, the fishing fleet still had to head out as usual whenever there was nothing else to do. But during the fish run, the mere several dozen dan caught in a day no longer impressed Wang Dinghai. His mind was filled with thoughts of setting up more Moving Zithers.

As Wang Dinghai quietly reported these matters to Wang Shouzhe, Wang Shouzhe felt deeply moved. The natural resources of this world truly were too abundant. Even the European and American countries on Earth, famed for their rich natural waters, could not compare to this world.

"Sixth Uncle, we should pay as much attention as possible to preserving the resources." Wang Shouzhe was gratified, but also somewhat worried. "From now on, release the smaller fish of the same species."

"How can we do that? Those are all money! They amount to more than ten dan a day." Wang Dinghai's eyes widened. "Besides, if our family doesn't catch them, other families will." After a pause, unable to bear Wang Shouzhe's look, he could only say awkwardly, "If you really object, Shouzhe, then have the boatmen gather all the small fish and toss them into the Fengshui River. We'll count it as stocking them ourselves. At worst, I'll add a few more Moving Zithers and catch more big fish."

"That will do." Wang Shouzhe knew the mindset of the older generation in the family. They had been too poor; every extra coin they could earn was a coin worth earning. As for advanced ideas like conserving natural resources, they could not be turned around overnight.

With the boat traveling quickly, they soon passed the Zhao Clan's fishing boats at a distance of two li, then gradually pulled farther and farther away.

From Fenggu Sluice to East Port was roughly one hundred and twenty li by water. With favorable wind and current, they would arrive in only two and a half hours.

Here, the river became broader, forming a great Trumpet Mouth, and the current slowed. On the left side of the river's Trumpet Mouth stretched the endless, rolling Liuping Mountains.

The Liuping Mountains and the lands beyond them were extremely dangerous, one of the untamed perilous regions of the Outer Domain. The deeper one went, the more formidable the Fierce Beasts became. Even a Spirit Platform Realm ancestor could perish if they ventured about recklessly.

On the right side of the great river lay a vast expanse of plains. Based on Wang Shouzhe's observations from maps and the actual terrain, he judged it to be a huge alluvial plain.

This fertile stretch of land was where Longzuo Prefecture's renowned Donghai Guard was located.

Donggang Town was the easternmost extension of the Changning Guard region, bordering the Donghai Guard region.

Donggang had an exceptionally favorable location, with a natural deep-water sheltered bay. Over time, it became a prosperous port with flourishing freight transport and concentrated commerce.

And the Wang Clan's marriage ally—the Donggang Chen Clan—was one of the aristocratic clans here.

The Chen Clan was a family that had mainly operated shipping businesses for generations. It had existed for less than a century, making it a relatively young family. Its founding ancestor had long since passed away, so its foundations might have sounded weak, but in truth, the family now possessed no fewer than two Spirit Platform Realm ancestors.

The older ancestor was just over a hundred years old, while the younger was only in his seventies.

Besides that, Chen Dewei, the Chen Clan's current Clan Leader, had reached the peak of the Qi Refining Realm at only forty-two. He was making his final preparations and gathering resources. In as little as half a year to a year, or at most within two years, he would attempt to break through to the Spirit Platform Realm.

Once Clan Leader Chen Dewei successfully advanced, the Donggang Chen Clan would leap into the ranks of clans with three Spirit Platform Realm cultivators, and the family's foundations would become even more secure.

A Spirit Platform Realm cultivator every thirty years!

It was clear that the Donggang Chen Clan was extraordinarily blessed in both financial resources and fortune.

Wang Shouzhe gazed from afar at East Port's thriving cluster of buildings, feeling a measure of emotion. By comparison, the Ping'an Wang Clan's fortune had previously been far too poor.

Fortunately, it had Wang Shouzhe now.

Suddenly!

A ship sailed out from Inner Bend Port. What made it rather distinctive was the enormous clan banner it had raised—a golden Flag Bird soaring above the sea.

On the lookout platform, a signalman was also waving flags.

"Shouzhe." Wang Dinghai said delightedly, "That's a ship from the Donggang Chen Clan. They're using flag signals to ask whether we are guests from the Wang Clan. They should have sent people to welcome us."

"Mm." Wang Shouzhe nodded. He had previously sent a family retainer to inform the Chen Clan of their itinerary, and it was proper etiquette between the two families for the Chen Clan to come out and receive them.

Wang Shouzhe guessed it was Young Clan Leader Chen Fangjie, because that fellow was about to become Wang Shouzhe's own brother-in-law...