In the blink of an eye, half a month passed.
The boundless golden paddy fields rippled like golden ocean waves under the gentle breeze.
Over the past few days, households across Dongxi Village had been busy with the harvest.
Early this morning.
Xu Chuan performed his 【Daily Divination】 to divine his fortune.
【Today's Hexagram: Medium-High. While harvesting rice today, you will encounter Uncle Chen and his family, with a good chance of learning about an Internal Force Secret Manual and ownerless paddy fields from Uncle Chen.】
Xu Chuan beamed with joy.
It wasn't in vain that I divined about this every day; I finally didn't miss it.
An Internal Force Secret Manual?
It really is time to consider practicing the martial path.
However, Xu Chuan had not yet decided which child would take the martial path, as this would determine the allocation of the second-generation Talent.
Out in the fields.
"Brother Chuan, your rice is really the best. Every grain is plump and large—the yield from your ten mu matches fifteen or sixteen mu of mine."
A dark-skinned man looked at Xu Chuan's paddy field, envy evident in his eyes.
This man was Chen Ergou, Uncle Chen's second son, just a year younger than Xu Chuan.
He had admired and looked up to him since childhood.
His family's paddy fields were right next to Xu Chuan's.
"Do you have a secret recipe? Teach me, won't you?"
"What nonsense are you babbling? If he had a secret recipe, why would he tell you?" Uncle Chen walked over at that moment, scolding him.
"Uncle Chen, there's no secret recipe. It's just the heavens being kind enough to feed us."
Because of 【Heaven Rewards Diligence】, what Xu Chuan said was technically true.
Uncle Chen chuckled. "Who in Dongxi Village doesn't know that you, San Shu, are an expert farmer? Otherwise, the Xu Family wouldn't have insisted on keeping you back then."
"You were wise to quit your job as a long-term laborer. Now your days are getting better and better."
"It still can't compare to your family, Uncle Chen."
Uncle Chen's family had two sons and two daughters, one hundred and twenty mu of paddy fields, twenty mu of farmland, and thirty mu of mountain forest, making them a wealthy household in Dongxi Village.
Moreover, his eldest son was quite promising and possessed some Talent for martial arts.
He was already a Third-rate Martial Artist, settled down in Qingjiang County seat, and had married the younger daughter of a wealthy merchant.
"It's the busy farming season these days. Isn't Brother Daming coming back?" An idea crossed Xu Chuan's mind, and he asked casually.
Speaking of his eldest son, Chen Ming, a complex expression of pride mixed with helplessness flashed in Uncle Chen's eyes.
"Your Brother Daming is a Martial Artist; he has his own affairs to attend to."
One doesn't wash dirty linen in public, so Uncle Chen naturally wouldn't speak ill of his son before outsiders.
"I really envy Brother Daming. Once I have money in the future, I'll also buy an Internal Force Secret Manual for my son to practice. Uncle Chen, if you see Brother Daming, please remember to ask him for me."
"No problem, that's a small matter." Uncle Chen grinned and patted his chest. "Times aren't very peaceful these days, so practicing some martial arts for self-defense is a good idea."
Saying that, he sighed softly and lamented, "If Old Yu had thought like you, his entire family wouldn't have been killed when bandits struck in the middle of the night."
"How pitiful!"
"However, the path of a Martial Artist consumes a great deal of wealth. San Shu, you must be mentally prepared." Uncle Chen's tone shifted as he solemnly advised him.
Without Talent, having only money would amount to nothing in the end.
"I understand, Uncle Chen."
"It's such a pity about Uncle Yu's family. What happened to his land?"
"When people die, everything turns to nothing." Uncle Chen's eyes lit up with a hint of a smile.
"Naturally, the government will reclaim it. It'll probably happen in the next couple of days. If you happen to run into the Yamen runners, you'd better act immediately."
"After all, your family is growing, and the children are getting bigger. Even if your paddy yields are a few tenths higher than others, ten mu is still too little."
Xu Chuan wasn't surprised that his intentions were seen through. He scratched his head and flattered, "Nothing can be hidden from you, Uncle Chen. I indeed have that plan.
Now that days are getting better and our family is growing, I've started considering expanding our landholdings."
Whether ordinary commoners or wealthy families, everyone placed great value on farmland; unless absolutely necessary, they would never easily sell their paddy fields.
It was the foundation of their survival.
Even if a family declined generations later, as long as the farmland remained, it would always serve as a guarantee for the livelihood of their descendants.
Buying paddy fields was a matter of luck.
Fortunately, Xu Chuan's luck was not bad, allowing him to wait for an opportunity.
As for an Internal Force Secret Manual, it wasn't the most urgent priority right now; if the price was too steep, he could only give it up for now and plan for it later.
Xu Chuan was very clear on what the Xu family needed most right now.
His mindset was as steady as an old dog!
In the Great Wei Dynasty, martial and immortal paths were integrated, with two separate official career tracks: Military Officials and Immortal Officials.
However, because the immortal path demanded high Aptitude, those capable of being Cultivators were one in ten thousand. Once they achieved success in cultivation, their strength far exceeded that of a Martial Artist.
Therefore, the status of Immortal Officials in the Great Wei Dynasty was distinctly higher.
But regardless of which track, one needed a certain level of strength and, even more so, connections.
Becoming a Military Official or an Immortal Official of the Great Wei Dynasty was equivalent to entering the civil service system of Xu Chuan's previous life.
This was an iron rice bowl!
Any Martial Artist or low-rank Cultivator craved it dearly.
With good management, it could allow a Clan to expand rapidly within ten to twenty years.
After chatting for a while, both families began harvesting.
Xu Chuan's family had only ten mu of paddy fields. Having already harvested for more than ten days, not much was left, and because of his brisk pace, he finished in half a day.
After lunch.
Xu Chuan went to the threshing ground to sun-dry the harvested rice, reducing its moisture to prevent molding.
"Dad, where are you going?" the two little ones asked.
"Dad is going to sun-dry the rice."
"Dad, I'll go help you." Xu Mingwei looked up at Xu Chuan, his small hands clenched into fists, determination showing on his tender face.
"Alright, Shitou can go help Dad."
Xu Chuan rubbed Xu Mingwei's head, his eyes full of fond affection.
With such a sensible child, what parent wouldn't be overjoyed?
At this moment, Xu Mingyuan also piped up in his baby voice, "Me wanna go too, Dad!"
"Go, go, go, everyone can go!"
Quite a few people were busy on the threshing ground. Seeing Xu Chuan bringing his two children along, they all smiled and praised his kids for being sensible and capable.
Xu Chuan replied with a smile, engaging in a brief session of typical parental mutual flattery.
However, the two little ones were children after all; before working for long, they were enticed by who-knew-what and dashed off to who-knew-where.
Xu Mingwei was already very sensible, so Xu Chuan wasn't too worried.
Nevertheless, when they returned covered in mud from head to toe, Xu Chuan still gave them a good scolding.
Then he stripped them completely bare, stuffed them into a wooden tub, and had Bai Jing scrub them down.
Xu Mingwei and Xu Mingyuan romped in the wooden tub, splashing water that soaked Bai Jing's clothes, putting on a soaking-wet temptation right before Xu Chuan's eyes.
Late at night.
The stars were scattered across the sky, and the night wind carried a touch of cool air over the moonlight.
Bai Jing practiced her skills once again.
Becoming increasingly proficient, she earned Xu Chuan's praise.
The next day.
【Today's Hexagram: Auspicious. At a quarter past the Hour of the Snake (9–11 AM), the Qingjiang County Chief Secretary will arrive at the entrance of Dongxi Village; you have a high probability of purchasing fifty mu of paddy fields.】
"Fifty mu of paddy fields?"