Chapter 144 - 124: Moving (Part 2)
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That night.
The Fang Residence.
"Heh heh, who would’ve thought the Huang Family had so many Tea Gardens? Too bad they’ve all been replanted. They won’t produce any tea until next year."
Chubby said with a chuckle.
Today, Lord Liu Zheng had arrested Huang Yuangu and his nephew, throwing them in the County Magistrate’s Office jail to make amends. He not only forced them to hand over another three thousand mu of Tea Gardens but also made them pay ten thousand taels of silver in compensation.
Lord Liu himself even came to personally apologize with the utmost respect.
And so, Bai Xingqiu left his jail cell. Of course, he had originally wanted to pressure Liu Zheng a bit more, but unfortunately, Captain Chen came looking for him.
This meant he really couldn’t stay any longer.
As for Liu Zheng, the man was, after all, the top official in Xiahe County—a formally appointed magistrate. Bai Xingqiu naturally couldn’t push things too far. So, when the other party lowered his stance and backed down, he had no choice but to leave.
’The most I can do is spread a few ill words about him in the future to make sure this County Magistrate’s career path isn’t quite so smooth.’
"True, but it’s only for a year. By next year, Bai, you’ll surely be the biggest tea merchant in our Shanyang Prefecture," Fang Yue said.
"Haha, I wouldn’t dare claim to be the biggest. As long as I can make a living, that’s enough."
Bai Xingqiu grinned so wide his eyebrows practically touched. It was obvious that he cared a great deal about being the biggest, yet he was trying his best to act as if he didn’t.
The two continued chatting late into the night.
The next day, Bai Xingqiu truly departed. With Captain Chen escorting him—or rather, protecting him—naturally, no one dared to cause him any more trouble.
The following days became peaceful again.
Aside from his training, Fang Yue was busy looking after the Tea Garden business.
In the blink of an eye, several months passed.
It was New Year’s Day, the start of a brand new year.
The beginning of a new cycle, a renewal of all things.
「Da Liushu Village, the Fang Family Mansion.」
In the snow-covered courtyard, Fang Yue moved with nimble agility, his White Tiger Fist swift and ferocious.
Every move was executed in a single, fluid motion, without a hint of hesitation. His Fist Technique was nearing the Great Success Stage of Marrow Transformation.
Each and every move carried a terrifying might.
As he executed his Fist Technique, the air within a hundred paces seemed to fill with countless afterimages of his fists.
It was a dazzling sight, creating the illusion that it was impossible to track the trajectory of Fang Yue’s fists.
BOOM!!!!
With an explosive sound, Fang Yue threw a punch.
Instantly, gravel flew from the ground, and the snow within a five-zhang radius exploded outward, revealing the hard stone slabs beneath.
’So this is the Qi Sensing stage?’
Fang Yue murmured to himself, looking at his own fist.
After developing Qi Sensitivity, he could sense the changes in the Qi within his body.
Furthermore, under the influence of this power, his Marrow Transformation training progressed several times faster. The Marrow Transformation Pass, which normally would have taken years to master, was now on the verge of Great Success after only about a year.
He could feel his strength growing and his agility constantly improving.
Moreover, empowered by this Qi, his Fist Technique had become devastatingly ferocious.
’The Qi Sensing stage really is a massive leap.’
He took a deep breath, feeling his strength and the toughness of his physical body, and couldn’t help but reveal a hint of joy.
’But in truth, I don’t even know what to call my current stage.’
He had cultivated Qi Sensitivity, and the Qi inside him had grown from a single, slender wisp to more than a dozen strands.
But his Marrow Transformation was still not at Great Success, and he still had a considerable distance to go.
’I’ve never heard of anything like this before. I have no idea if this is a good thing or a bad thing, or if there are any hidden dangers.’
"Un...cle... a mess-age for you." As he was practicing, a clear, adorably childish voice called out.
Lifting his eyes, he saw a line of small footprints in the snow. His young nephew, Little Tie Dan, was running over, clutching a letter in his little hand.
Little Tie Dan was already three years old this year, the age where he could run simple errands.
Because he had a good life from a young age, he was born with delicate features and was quite adorable. His large eyes blinked as they stared at Fang Yue, his small face beaming with an excited smile.
Fang Yue took the letter and glanced at it. It was from Chubby.
He was inviting Fang Yue to Shanyang Prefecture, both to deliver tea and to take advantage of the festival to arrange a marriage for him.
Furthermore, he had specifically stated in the letter that Fang Yue must come as soon as possible, or he would miss his chance.
Fang Yue smiled after reading the letter.
’I do have to go to Shanyang Prefecture City soon, but not right now. I’ll at least wait for the festival to pass. I need to spend more time with my family during the holidays.’
Putting the letter away, Fang Yue then looked at Little Tie Dan and scooped him up into his arms.
"Come on, how about Uncle takes you out to play?"
"Okay! Go fishin’, go fishin’! Tie Dan wants to eat fishy!" Little Tie Dan immediately became excited.
"Haha, alright then. Little Tie Dan, you just wait at home, and Uncle will go fishing for you."
’I can’t take Little Tie Dan fishing with me. It’s cold by the river, and kids have weak immune systems. It’s better for him to stay home.’
After taking Little Tie Dan to Ms. Chen, Fang Yue went out to fish.
When it was time for lunch, there was, of course, an extra dish of boiled fish on the table.
And so the family passed the day together in joyful harmony.
After the meal, Ms. Chen started her daily routine again.
And what was that routine? Her daily mission to find Fang Yue a wife, of course.
"Zhi’Er, that young lady the matchmaker introduced you to the other day is from a prominent family in the county town. You should go meet her when you have time."
"And there’s the third daughter of the old rich man from the east village. She’s not bad-looking either. They say she’s willing to be your concubine first. Why don’t you meet her too?"
Chattering on, Ms. Chen quickly listed several young women for Fang Yue.
Fang Yue was naturally getting a headache from listening. With the mindset from his two lifetimes, he really disliked this method of arranged marriage.
However, because he had promised Ms. Chen before, he could only bite the bullet and listen. In the end, when he really couldn’t take it anymore, he brought up Chubby’s invitation to Shanyang Prefecture.
"That’s wonderful! When you go to his home, you must bring plenty of gifts. We can’t be impolite."
Ms. Chen naturally remembered Chubby’s kindness. That plump young man had brought many gifts the first time he visited their home.
And he even guaranteed that he would introduce a top-notch wife to Zhi’Er.
That was why Ms. Chen remembered Chubby so fondly.
"However, before you go, you should still meet these few. We’ve been talking about it for a long time, so it’s not good to refuse now," Ms. Chen added.
"Mother, Little Tie Dan is at the age for his primary education now. Da Liushu Village is nice, but there are no good private tutors here. Besides, my older brother and sister-in-law have to travel back and forth to take care of the business. It’s very inconvenient."
"Why don’t you and Father both move into the city?"
Fang Yue pretended not to hear her and instead tried to persuade his parents to move into Xiahe County Town.
His parents were getting older, and the conditions in Xiahe County Town were better in every aspect.
Besides, the Tea Garden business was now basically being taken care of by his older brother, Fang Cheng.
His young nephew also needed to start his schooling, and so on.
It would be much more convenient for everything if they moved the family into the city.
"Move? Moving sounds good," Father Fang interjected in agreement.
Ms. Chen, however, shot Fang Mu a look. "You’re so eager to move into the city. Are you planning to go for a stroll along that Jade River?"
At these words, Father Fang immediately deflated.
He had heard of the Jade River and what kind of place it was. He was a little curious, but only just curious.
Fang Mu quickly spoke up:
"My dear, think about it, how could I go to a place like that? I’m doing this all for Zhi’Er! Think about it, if we’re in the city, wouldn’t it be much easier and more convenient to introduce Zhi’Er to a wife from a well-matched family?"
"Ah? My good husband, you’re right. How did I not think of that? Alright, let’s do it. We’ll pack up right now and move into the city today."
Ms. Chen immediately stood up and, in a whirlwind of activity, started to pack. From the looks of it, she really intended to leave right away.
’To act the moment the words were spoken—that was truly Ms. Chen’s style.’