Hearing this, Chen Changsheng weighed the options in his mind. The price was slightly lower than the market rate, which immediately tempted him.
However, he knew it was necessary to clarify things first. With a slight frown, he asked, "Lord Li, do these properties come with official documents, land deeds, house deeds, and field deeds?"
At those words, County Captain Li’s expression turned serious. "Nephew Chang Sheng, you have achieved outstanding military merits. How could the county ever mistreat you? Rest assured, all of these come with proper documents and contracts."
Chen Changsheng felt slightly relieved upon hearing this. The best course of action right now was to accept the offer. If he let the county drag things out, who knew what unexpected variables might arise in the future?
Besides, the cultivation of Spiritual Medicine could not be delayed any longer.
Spiritual Medicine was directly tied to his future realm advancements and his very foundation for settling down in this world. It was the crucial stepping stone on his path to immortality.
With this in mind, he had made his decision. "Lord Li, this junior is willing to accept the second method."
County Captain Li was overjoyed. "Rest assured, Nephew Chang Sheng. Tomorrow, come to the County Magistrate’s Office, and I will arrange for a Human to handle the handover with you."
With the official business concluded, it was only natural for Chen Changsheng to host County Captain Li, who had traveled a long way.
He asked the Clan Leader to keep Lord Li company while he went to find Chen Fusheng, Chen Chusheng, Chen Musheng, and Chen Shuisheng. On the surface, he was inviting his three younger cousins and his biological younger brother to join the reception, but in reality, he was asking their four wives to come over and help cook.
The wine was ordinary and the dishes were simple peasant fare, but the seven men drank with high spirits, partying from noon until dusk.
Swaying unsteadily, County Captain Li climbed into his carriage with the support of a Government Official and left Chen Family Village.
The Clan Leader, also slightly tipsy, left immediately afterward.
Chen Fusheng and the other three had to support themselves against the walls to walk home. Chen Changsheng ignored everything else, heading straight back to his room and falling asleep the moment his head hit the pillow.
The next day.
Chen Changsheng woke up bright and early, riding his horse to the city of Great Fog County.
The terrain around the county seat of Great Fog County was incredibly unique.
Danyang Commandery was filled with numerous waterways, and here in Great Fog County, a bizarre landscape was formed by the intersection of four rivers.
In the center of this nexus lay an elevated piece of land stretching fifty miles in both length and width.
The county seat was built on this flatland, which sat roughly two hundred feet above the river network. With a three-hundred-foot wall constructed along the riverbanks, Great Fog County effectively boasted a fortress wall nearly five hundred feet high.
Ever since the city’s construction thousands of years ago, it had never been breached by foreign enemies.
Furthermore, the jurisdiction of Great Fog County spanned over four hundred miles in length and three hundred miles in width, housing nearly two million citizens.
Upon entering the city, Chen Changsheng was quite astonished. In this feudal era, there were actually towering buildings hundreds of feet tall, bustling crowds of Humans weaving through the streets, and a dazzling array of merchandise on display.
Relying on his predecessor’s memories, he purchased two boxes of pastries and quickly located the County Magistrate’s Office.
County Captain Li was very busy. After a brief reception, he had a Government Official take the documents and contracts to accompany Chen Changsheng for the handover.
The Government Official was named Zhang San. Chen Changsheng remembered him; they had defended the wall together with County Captain Li in Chaoyang Town.
Chen Changsheng intentionally wanted to build a relationship with the Humans from the county. More importantly, he wanted to know if there were any messy, hidden issues tied to these properties.
When they arrived at the door of the city house, before even looking at it, he immediately took out two taels of silver and slipped it into the other man’s sleeve.
"Brother Zhang, this is too much trouble for you. You’ll probably have to run around with me for the whole day!"
Zhang San had witnessed Chen Changsheng’s formidable skills back in Chaoyang Town. He was well aware that this young man had broken through two cultivation realms in just half a month—the future of such a Human was truly limitless.
On one hand, he wanted to get on Chen Changsheng’s good side; on the other hand, he wasn’t entirely sure of his intentions.
Feigning refusal, he pushed the silver back toward Chen Changsheng’s sleeve and said, "Master Chen, handling the property handover with you today is simply my duty. I absolutely cannot accept this!"
If it were his predecessor, he might have believed it.
But the current Chen Changsheng knew exactly how the Humans in the Government Office operated. Smiling, he immediately shoved the silver back.
"Brother Zhang, I felt like we were old friends the moment we met. Seeing as we are about the same age, why don’t we address each other as brothers?
"To be completely honest with you, I am just a simple martial artist. Aside from fighting and killing, I don’t know anything else.
"Outside of Chen Family Village, I am completely in the dark in Great Fog County. I’ll likely have to trouble you quite often in the future!"
These words were polite, of course, but it wasn’t just mere courtesy.
After all, the man was indeed a local insider. No Human knew better than Chen Changsheng just how well-informed a Human who had spent over a decade loitering in the County Magistrate’s Office could be.
Magistrates came and went, but the Government Officials were the true fixtures!
Naturally, Chen Changsheng was primarily showing goodwill.
Being Humans, it was always a case of being strangers the first time and friends the second. Even without any prior connections, interacting a little more would easily turn them into drinking buddies.
Seeing Chen Changsheng’s earnest tone, Zhang San roughly guessed his thoughts. He stopped declining and accepted the two taels of silver.
Patting his chest, he promised, "Brother Chen, say no more. When it comes to these properties of yours, I guarantee I’ll tell you everything I know without holding anything back."
The house was quite nice. Although it was a bit small—and the courtyard was even smaller, comparable to a mere lightwell—the natural lighting and the surrounding environment were both excellent.
Chen Changsheng felt a bit puzzled. Logically, a masterless house of such fine quality could easily be sold by the county’s bigwigs for three hundred and twenty taels. Why would they give it to him at a valuation of only three hundred taels?
Harboring these doubts, Chen Changsheng spoke up.
"Brother Zhang! This house is excellent; I have absolutely no issues with it and can take it over anytime! However, I have a slight doubt and would appreciate your guidance!"
Zhang San let out a sly chuckle. "Hehe... Brother Chen, do you feel like it’s too cheap for the county to value this house at just three hundred taels for you?"
Chen Changsheng nodded. Zhang San continued, "The owner of this house was surnamed Li. His hometown was Li Family Village on Yuntai Mountain. His entire family went back to their hometown for the New Year, and then Li Family Village was slaughtered by the Barbarians.
"Because of that, this house became the county’s property. However, Master Li had a few relatives who believed they were qualified to inherit it, so they’ve been causing a massive scene at the county office."
Chen Changsheng immediately understood and drew connections to the other properties.
He didn’t rush to make a decision. Instead, after taking another careful look around, he pulled Zhang San along to find a tavern for some drinks.
After downing a few cups of yellow wine, Chen Changsheng had completely figured out the situation.
County Captain Li hadn’t lied to him; the properties offered by the county were absolutely worth one thousand four hundred and fifty taels of silver.
But County Captain Li had also deceived him, as he had concealed many crucial details.
The Northern Barbarians’ invasion of Great Fog County this year was the largest in scale in the past two decades.
The damages were naturally the most severe in twenty years as well. Under these circumstances, the entire families of over a dozen minor Landlords and independent farmers had been completely wiped out.
The Barbarians looted everything they could get their hands on, but they didn’t take things like field deeds, land deeds, and house deeds because they couldn’t bring those away.
According to the laws of Great Yan, all these masterless fields, lands, mountains, and houses rightfully belonged to the Court.
But Great Yan was also a society governed by Humans and personal connections. Any Human with even the slightest bit of influence would jump at the chance to skim some profit off the top.
Chen Changsheng sighed inwardly and could only speak up helplessly.
"Brother Zhang, let me look at all the properties first, and then I’ll ask for your further guidance!"
Three Hours later.
Just as Zhang San had said, the mountain was a good mountain, the fields were good fields, and the houses were good houses. However, every single one of them had relatives of the original owners causing trouble.
These Humans wouldn’t show their faces at first, but the moment someone prepared to take over the properties, they would come to the door to throw tantrums and cause a massive scene at the County Magistrate’s Office.
Several Humans who had wanted to buy houses before were harassed so relentlessly that they were forced to return them.
As the sky grew dark, Chen Changsheng forcefully pulled Zhang San into a small tavern in the county seat.