Chapter 11: The Family's Hope (Patreon)

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Wang Shoujie came with a purpose today, but he was still calm and unhurried, chatting with Wang Xiaozhi about some strange and unusual events. When he mentioned catching a 150-pound Red Scaled Eel with Sixth Uncle Wang Dinghai last night, Wang Xiaozhi was also excited, slapping his thigh: "Dinghai, that little rascal, might not be able to catch one even after two years. This time, he must have been blessed by your good fortune."

Although the Red Scaled Eel was not as good as the Red-tailed Spiritfish, it was still considered a nourishing food, ranking among the spirit foods.

Spirit foods were excellent for rapidly replenishing the mysterious martial artist's energy and blood, a necessity for every mysterious martial artist's survival. Even someone like Wang Xiaozhi, who was over 70 years old and had stagnant cultivation, needed to replenish spirit foods from time to time.

Otherwise, their energy and blood would be insufficient, leading to physical decline and a faster loss of cultivation.

The younger generation, on the other hand, needed spirit foods even more to replenish their energy, allowing them to grow faster and better.

As the two chatted and laughed, the cook and two younger sisters had already set out some delicious farm dishes, including fresh chicken, duck, fish, and goose, as well as a large stone pot of braised pork belly.

"Shoujie, you rarely come, so Fourth Grandfather has nothing better to treat you," Wang Xiaozhi said, running into the bedroom and soon bringing out an antique wine jug, smiling: "Try some of my treasured good wine. You can drink as much as you want, and if you can't finish it, you can take it back."

Just then, a young man with dark skin and covered in mud walked in, saying in a loud and clear voice: "Grandfather, you're being biased. You're bringing out the White Jade Spirit Wine, which I've been asking for but never got. Today, you're bringing out a whole jug just because Fourth Brother is here."

"You little rascal, what's your weight, compared to Shoujie?" Wang Xiaozhi laughed and scolded, seeing the young man. "You're lucky to be back on time for a meal. Quickly go wash up, and I'll give you a cup."

"Third Brother," Wang Shoujie smiled and bowed. He knew this was Wang Shuonuo, the third elder of the Wang Clan's seventh generation.

"Fourth Brother," Wang Shuonuo hastily and solemnly returned the courtesy, then smiled and said: "I'll go wash up first and come back to greet Fourth Brother later." He then quickly excused himself.

By the time everything was set on the table, Wang Shuonuo had already quickly washed up and sat down below Wang Shoujie, sniffing the dishes and eyeing the White Jade Spirit Wine with envy, saying: "Today, I'll take advantage of Fourth Brother's presence. We brothers haven't had a meal together for a long time, and I'll toast you several cups later."

"Third Brother has worked hard for the family, so later I should be toasting you several cups," Wang Shoujie smiled.

"Luotong, hurry up and pour wine for your Fourth Uncle," Wang Xiaozhi said, in a great mood, his dark face radiant with joy.

"Yes, Grandfather," Wang Luotong picked up the wine jug and poured wine for Wang Shoujie, Wang Xiaozhi, and then Wang Shuonuo.

The wine was pure white, emitting a clear and fragrant aroma, making one feel invigorated just by smelling it.

Just as Wang Luotong and Wang Luojing, the two younger sisters, were about to go to the kitchen to eat, Wang Shoujie spoke up first: "Fourth Grandfather, I'm not an outsider, so why don't Fourth Sister and Fifth Sister sit down and eat together?"

Wang Xiaozhi was taken aback but didn't refuse Wang Shoujie's face, smiling: "Since you've spoken, then let's eat together."

"Thank you, Grandfather, thank you, Fourth Brother," Wang Luotong and Wang Luojing sat down at the lowest seats, well-behaved.

Then, it was naturally another round of toasting and chatting.

The two younger sisters were well-behaved, eating quietly and occasionally pouring wine.

"Good wine," Wang Shoujie said, feeling his abdomen start to burn after half a cup, his energy and blood surging, his vitality gradually increasing.

This White Jade Spirit Wine was made with White Jade Spirit Rice and many precious medicinal materials, its effect on replenishing energy and blood far surpassing ordinary spirit foods.

However, its price was also extremely "moving," with a jug of White Jade Spirit Wine weighing several pounds and costing several gold coins, making even Wang Shoujie able to enjoy it only rarely.

Moreover, this spiritual wine can only be used as a supplementary spirit food, and it's better to drink it occasionally. Otherwise, if you get addicted, it's not a good thing to be drunk all day.

At this time, Little Wang Luojing, who was eating quietly, would occasionally glance at the wine jug, pursing her lips as if she was a bit greedy.

"Wang Luotong can have half a cup, but Wang Luojing is too young, so she can only have a sip from the bottom of the cup." Wang Shoujie picked up the wine jug and poured some for his two sisters.

"Thank you, Fourth Brother." The two girls thanked him happily, clearly showing that they had been craving the spiritual wine for a long time.

At this moment, Wang Xiaozhi's face twitched, as if he felt a bit of pain, and he muttered in a low voice, "Isn't it a waste to give this spiritual wine to the two girls?"

Wang Shoujie also twitched his eyelid, and the old man's thoughts of favoring boys over girls were truly unabashed.

"It's not the same, our children are all the same," Wang Shoujie said with a smile.

"Not the same, girls will get married sooner or later," Wang Xiaozhi continued to worry, "You, Wang Shoujie, are at the critical point of breaking through to the seventh layer of the Qi Refining Realm, you should drink more, and Wang Shuonuo, you should also drink less, so as to leave more for Wang Shoujie."

Wang Shuonuo quickly put down his wine cup, looking embarrassed, and forced a laugh.

In Wang Xiaozhi's eyes, Wang Shoujie was the legitimate heir, the hope of the family, and the future pillar of the family, even more important than his own grandson Wang Shuonuo, not to mention the two "useless" granddaughters.

Fortunately, his grandchildren were used to it, and after a meal, they all felt happy and content. However, under Wang Xiaozhi's "guidance," the spiritual wine was still left with more than half a jug, which was prepared to be sent to Wang Shoujie's courtyard, along with half a pig's worth of braised pork, for him to enjoy alone.

Regarding Wang Xiaozhi's blatant "favoritism," Wang Shoujie was also quite helpless and could only temporarily go along with it.

After getting drunk and full, Wang Shoujie finally suggested, "Fourth Grandfather, this time I came to Fenggu Farm, mainly to learn about agriculture from you."

"Agriculture?" Wang Xiaozhi's eyebrows straightened, "Wang Shoujie, as the head of the family, the most important thing for you now is to focus on cultivation and strive to reach the Spirit Realm as soon as possible. Don't get distracted by trivial matters like agriculture, Fourth Grandfather and your third uncle will handle it."

Wang Shoujie's purpose in coming here was naturally to learn more about Fenggu Farm. If possible, he also wanted to use modern thinking to explore and see if there were ways to improve the farm's efficiency.

However, after interacting with Wang Xiaozhi for the first time, he discovered that Wang Xiaozhi's thinking was rigid due to his age, and he was deeply loyal to the family but lacked flexibility.

He was not like Sixth Uncle Zhao Dinghai, who would listen to his suggestions. If he casually brought up a few ideas, he might offend Wang Xiaozhi. So, he changed the subject, "Fourth Grandfather, you misunderstood, as the head of the family, I should know a thing or two about the family's industries. Why don't we let Third Uncle accompany me to take a look around and appreciate the rural scenery?"

"Ah, okay, let Wang Shuonuo accompany you for half a day," Wang Xiaozhi said, "Recently, the wheat has entered the irrigation period, and there are many miscellaneous tasks in the fields, so Fourth Grandfather won't accompany you."

Haha~

Although he was already the head of the family, the family elders still treated him like a child, expecting him to focus on cultivation and reach the Spirit Realm.

This feeling was like they wanted to treat him as a lucky charm?

In fact, if he could live a carefree life, Wang Shoujie would be happy to be a lucky charm and a idle rich man. Unfortunately, the Wang Clan's endurance was not enough, and the family's power had been declining over the past few decades. If this continued, the Ping'an Wang Clan would soon be eliminated from history.

It was necessary to take advantage of the Wang Clan's remaining foundation and quickly make the Wang Clan rise again, even if it was just to have the most basic self-preservation ability.

"Fourth Brother, I'll take you around, and you can ask me anything you don't understand," Wang Shuonuo stood up and bowed, showing great respect to Wang Shoujie.

Firstly, Wang Shoujie was the legitimate heir, and secondly, his personal strength was many times stronger than Wang Shuonuo's.

"Thank you, Third Uncle," Wang Shoujie returned the courtesy.

"We'll go too," Wang Luotong and Wang Luojing also followed, with Little Wang Gui, who was carrying Wang Shoujie's sword and bow, and four fully armed family guards following behind.

The siblings strolled around the farm, enjoying the scenery. It was already early summer, and the weather was getting hot. The hot wind mixed with humidity blew against their faces, making the air feel sticky.

"Our Fenggu Farm was personally developed by Zhou Xuan, our ancestor, over a hundred years ago," Wang Shuonuo said with some pride, "Back then, our ancestor organized the excavation of the branch river, cleared the silt, and built the river embankment, creating the foundation of Fenggu Farm. Later, our family members continued to cultivate and protect the land, turning this half-dry and half-wet wasteland into fertile fields. Over the generations, our family has managed it carefully, and now we have 3,567 acres of high-quality fields and 200 tenant farmers!"

[Heartfelt thankyou for the support! SlaySaga]

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Next Chapter ->Chapter 12: The Omen of Pestilence