Advancing Gradually

Upon hearing Yin Yunze's words, Peng Shulan felt a buzzing in his head, and the cute, innocent face of the little girl in front of him suddenly blurred.

Peng Shulan seemed to see a huge Nine-Tailed White Fox standing behind the girl, watching him intently, waiting for him to fall into the trap.

But as Peng Shulan shook his head slightly, the scene quickly returned to the image of a ten-year-old girl holding a precious pearl.

With his gaze slightly lowered, Peng Shulan stared intently at the glass bead.

Thirty taels of gold, which is more than two hundred taels of silver.

As a head constable, Peng Shulan's monthly salary was only two taels of silver.

This single bead is worth more than ten years of his salary.

Even including those illicit incomes, it would take many years to earn that much.

But this is a fox spirit! Do you think you can just take the treasures it offers so easily?

Without much thought, Peng Shulan knelt down before the ten-year-old girl with a thud, completely lacking any decorum.

There's a saying that a man's knees are worth gold, but Peng Shulan hasn't seen any gold under his knees in over thirty years. But the gold right in front of him, if Peng Shulan just softens his stance a little, he can have it for real!

"I know I have accomplished nothing and am unworthy of your reward, sir..." Kneeling on both knees, Peng Shulan bowed his head and raised his hands, saying, "But my family desperately needs money. Please have mercy, sir! I will go through fire and water for you, even unto death!"

Hearing Peng Shulan's flattering words, Yin Yunze nodded and said, "A promising young man."

While there might be some upright and honest constables, very few who rise to the rank of head constable are truly clean.

Even without engaging in bullying or market manipulation, they still generate some illicit income.

For these minor officials in ancient times, there was even less to say about beliefs.

Officials who study the classics rarely have strong beliefs, let alone the lower-ranking officials who often haven't had a proper education.

Beliefs can never fill an empty stomach.

Faced with such enormous profits, even though Peng Shulan wasn't one of the bad guys, she still slid to her knees quite quickly.

However, if it weren't for our previous contact and the events of last night and today...

Even if Yin Yunze offered glass beads, Peng Shulan probably wouldn't be so sensible.

Without making things difficult for Peng Shulan, Yin Yunze reached out and two glass beads landed in Peng Shulan's hand, making a slight clinking and rubbing sound.

"This..."

Peng Shulan was taken aback when she saw the two glass beads in her hand.

"Those who obey will certainly not be treated unfairly."

Looking at Peng Shulan, Yin Yunze thought for a moment and reminded her, "Even if you urgently need money, it's best to wait a while, or perhaps sell these two beads in another county."

"My lord, I understand."

Peng Shulan naturally understood this principle as well.

After carefully taking out the cloth wrapping and tucking it into his pocket, Peng Shulan asked in a low voice, "Sir, is there anything I can do for you?"

Once you've taken the money, you have to do the job; Peng Shulan naturally understood this simple principle.

The fox spirit is generous, so Peng Shulan should also be sensible.

Yin Yunze looked down at Peng Shulan and said softly, "I need you to help me host a banquet for the county magistrate."

Peng Shulan was not surprised by this, after all, he was just a minor constable and obviously not worth that much money.

Meeting Yin Yunze's scrutinizing gaze, Peng Shulan showed no unease about betraying Xu Hanxian, but simply nodded vigorously. "I understand!"

After these actions, did Peng Shulan truly submit?

As a deity, Yin Yunze could still glean some insight from Peng Shulan's level of faith, which was quite convenient.

Judging from the light of faith that was already approaching that of a devout believer, Yin Yunze believed that Peng Shulan, at least at this moment, had truly submitted.

Now that he's submitted, we need to strike while the iron is hot and get him to do things. Who knows if he'll still be as eager tomorrow?

The necessary funds have been exchanged, and now all Yin Yunze needs to do is deal with the county magistrate.

With Peng Shulan leading the way, Yin Yunze soon arrived at the entrance of the county government office.

With Peng Shulan leading the way, naturally no one would be so blind as to care about Yin Yunze's current appearance as a young girl.

Of course, if Yin Yunze had come alone, he probably wouldn't have been able to get through the door without using Illusion Technique.

However, when it came to using Illusion Technique, Yin Yunze realized that he seemed to be hallucinating.

Because Yin Yunze discovered that the two door gods painted on the gate of the county government office had actually moved.

The two door gods, dressed as military generals, scrutinized Yin Yunze from the left and right before reverting to their painting poses.

Rather than believing he was hallucinating, Yin Yunze was more certain that the two gatekeepers had actually moved.

Clearly, as the gatekeepers of the county government, these two noticed something was wrong with Yin Yunze.

But perhaps because of the special relationship between Zhao Wan and Yin Yunze, or perhaps because Yin Yunze was essentially Orthodox God, the two gatekeepers merely examined him and did not appear to make things difficult for Yin Yunze.

To be honest, this was the first time Yin Yunze had met a deity other than himself, and he immediately felt the urge to communicate with them.

However, after thinking it over, Yin Yunze decided to put aside the idea.

After all, Yin Yunze had no need to use these door gods.

Besides, they've already pretended not to see you, and you still ungratefully go over there—aren't you just looking for trouble?

Given his identity as a fox spirit, Yin Yunze felt it was better to avoid trouble.

After all, Yin Yunze was there to discuss cooperation with Xu Hanxian, so there was no need for him to provoke the gatekeepers of the county government.

But the appearance of these two gatekeepers also served as a reminder to Yin Yunze.

"Peng Shulan, are there any deities in this county?"

"A deity?" Peng Shulan glanced at Yin Yunze subconsciously, thinking that Yin Yunze was probably not just boasting, so she thought for a moment and replied, "The most famous deity in the county should be the City God."

"The City God?"

Hearing this god's name, which wasn't entirely familiar but did leave a vague impression, Yin Yunze realized that he had indeed overlooked this one.

In ancient society, the City God was a very important deity. Theoretically, Yin Yunze, the Land God, was also a subordinate of the City God.

Just as Yin Yunze was about to continue questioning, a constable approached Peng Shulan and said, "Boss, where have you been so early in the morning? The magistrate has been looking for you for ages and has been throwing a tantrum for quite a while!"

"Ah!"

Hearing the constable's words, Peng Shulan's heart skipped a beat. He had promised to introduce Yin Yunze; he didn't want to mess up even the first task!

Subconsciously touching the glass bead in his arms, Peng Shulan nodded solemnly.

"Okay, I understand. You may leave."

After quickly dismissing the constable, Peng Shulan hurriedly turned to Yin Yunze and whispered, "Sir, please wait a moment, I'll go and explain things to the magistrate right away! Don't worry, I, Peng, will definitely arrange for the magistrate to see you..."

"No rush."

Seeing Peng Shulan's expression, Yin Yunze smiled and said, "Since the magistrate has been angry for so long, there's no need to rush. Take me to a spare room so I can get ready and prevent the magistrate from taking his anger out on you."

Since Yin Yunze had said so, Peng Shulan decided to temporarily set aside the matter of the county magistrate.

With Peng Shulan's help, Yin Yunze quickly found a spare room of a suitable size.

After instructing Peng Shulan to clear away the clutter, Yin Yunze found a chair, sat down, told Peng Shulan to wait by his side, and began to close his eyes to rest.

Of course, it only looks like he's resting with his eyes closed.

In reality, Yin Yunze instructed Zhao Wan to close her eyes and not reveal any flaws before returning to the present and proceeding with the operation.

It can only be said that modern technology has saved Yin Yunze a lot of trouble, and many things can be arranged in advance without Yin Yunze's presence.

Amidst the strange looks from passersby, Yin Yunze arrived at his pre-booked hotel room carrying several bags of pig feed.

After confirming that all the food and drinks had been served in the real world, and as usual, after asking the waiter to leave, Yin Yunze opened Zhao Wan's eyes in that other world.

Fortunately, everything was the same as before Yin Yunze left.

Zhao Wan carried out Yin Yunze's orders well, and Peng Shulan did not make any unusual moves while waiting.

"Peng Shulan, go and invite the county magistrate to this banquet."

Looking at Peng Shulan, he first cast an Illusion Technique on himself, transforming into an ancient gentleman in his early twenties, and then softly commanded, "Say that a grain merchant wants to discuss relief for the people with the magistrate! The amount is two million catties of grain, at a price of five coins per catty!"

Having witnessed the carnage at the city gate and learned that there were two quick ways to make money—exchanging silver for gold and selling glass beads— Yin Yunze no longer intended to make much money from grain.

Compared to making money, Yin Yunze is now more concerned with expanding the scope of his faith.

In such circumstances, what could attract believers more than cheap food?

"Attending a banquet? A grain merchant?"

Seeing Yin Yunze suddenly appear alive in front of him and give such an order, Peng Shulan was stunned for a moment, looking at the empty room.

However, Peng Shulan immediately thought of the banquet last night, and all her doubts vanished.

"Yes, sir! I will carry out your orders!"

After giving a serious reply, Peng Shulan quickly left the room.