Chapter 36: The Cohesion of the Wang Family (Patreon)

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However, this was a systematic large-scale project that couldn't be completed overnight, no matter how anxious one was. Wang Shoujie boarded a slightly larger boat on the Inner River, standing on top of a tall pile of rice bags, and traveled along the waterway of Fenggu Farm back to the Wang Clan Manor.

The boats on the Inner River were all small, with the largest one being only about 18 feet long, and it could only carry around 400-500 pounds of grain before reaching its limit. Its carrying capacity was far inferior to that of a riverboat. Moreover, it wasn't powered by wind or sails, but rather by the boatmen rowing and punting.

Fortunately, the water flow on the Inner River was calm, and with the boatmen rowing and punting together, they could still manage to move slowly, although it took over an hour to travel the 12-mile winding river course. Converted to Earth's speed, it was equivalent to about 2.5 kilometers per hour.

The boat fleet passed through the river mouth and entered Zhuwei Lake.

On the not-so-wide Zhuwei Lake, the buildings of the Wang Clan Manor could already be seen at the foot of the steep mountain. However, Wang Shoujie didn't hurry back and instead continued to observe the terrain of Zhuwei Lake from the boat.

The lake was roughly oval in shape, about 3.7 miles long and 2.5 miles wide, with a total water area of over 10,000 acres. The lake surface was clean and beautiful, surrounded by sandy beaches and reed marshes, giving off a primitive and natural beauty.

Perhaps the "natives" would find it desolate, but for Wang Shoujie, who was used to big cities and human traces everywhere, this primitive scenery made him feel particularly comfortable, even improving his mood.

If such a large body of water were used to raise Spirit Fish, it would be extremely good, Wang Shoujie thought to himself.

However, Zhuwei Lake also had a significant drawback - its water was too shallow, generally less than 3 feet deep, and the bottom was filled with too much silt. It was not suitable for raising Spirit Fish, let alone large fish.

Moreover, in this fantasy world, large-scale fish farming was not the mainstream. At most, people would catch some small fish and release them into ponds to grow freely.

There were two reasons for this. Firstly, there were many fish in the wild, and even with simple fishing techniques, one could still catch a good haul. Secondly, it was due to the limitations of fishing technology, making it difficult to invest in large-scale fishing in a vast lake, and it was more convenient to fish in the abundant An River.

Take Sixth Uncle Wang Dinghai, for example, who could barely weave a small trawl net in two months with the help of 20 weavers... The difficulty of large-scale fishing in a big lake could be imagined.

The biggest challenge in fish farming lay in water quality management, density management, disease management, and scientific feeding, among other technical aspects. If one wasn't careful, the farmed fish would die on a large scale, resulting in a complete loss.

However, in this vast world, there were countless Martial Clans, and naturally, some families had already made achievements in fish farming. For instance, the Lu Clan of Yingxiu had already mastered some fish farming techniques and developed them into an industry.

But the Martial Clans were very secretive about their production techniques, and even the women in the family were not allowed to participate, lest they marry out and leak the techniques.

Even with Wang Shoujie's relationship with the Lu Clan, it was impossible to obtain their fish farming techniques.

The closed-off and secretive nature of each family's techniques also led to the overall backwardness of production technology in the Mysterious Martial World. Although the patent strategy on Earth had many drawbacks, it had indeed triggered a technological storm, with various scientific inventions emerging in a short period.

However, Wang Shoujie felt that the Mysterious Martial World was better off without such a storm, and his greatest advantage was his "broad vision," having a foresight that exceeded this world.

Many technologies he only knew vaguely, but he knew they existed and had a general direction. For example, the famous flavor enhancer Glutamate Sodium, which had revolutionized the human taste system.

If Wang Shoujie were to do it himself, it would take him 10 to 20 years to develop.

But if he found a group of smart and agile people to specialize in this area and conduct similar research, because the direction was relatively clear, with good luck, they could develop it in 20 to 30 years.

Even if they were unlucky, as long as the relevant technology continued to accumulate, they could develop it in 100 years.

There were also textile machines, such as the renowned Jenny Loom, which was a must-have for travelers. Even if Wang Shoujie were beaten to death, he couldn't draw the blueprints, but he knew such a thing existed and had a vague idea of its principles. If he found a group of craftsmen to work on it slowly, they could eventually develop it.

If this were developed, its destructive power would be far greater than Wang Luojing's Spirit Insect Master.

Of course, all of this is just a fantasy, and without the actual strength to back it up, these things would be nothing but a recipe for disaster once they're pushed out. Not to mention, if the Xu Clan, which is mainly in the textile industry, were to find out, they would immediately turn against the Wang Clan, because the "Jenny Loom" would absolutely touch the Xu Clan's survival roots.

Let's put aside the small talk for now.

The fleet that Wang Shoujie was on gradually increased its speed on Zhuwei Lake, and within half an hour, they arrived at the Wang Clan Manor's rear dock.

Although this dock and waterway were not frequently used, several farms would transport grain and other goods to the family through this route. While traveling by water was slower, it had a larger carrying capacity and could reduce the need for horse-drawn carriages, which were more expensive to maintain than people.

On the usually deserted Wang Clan Manor rear dock, there was a bustle of activity, led by two women. One of them was Wang Shoujie's stepmother, Gong Sunhui, and standing not far behind her was a young woman, Wang Luotong.

Following them were four family guards, three of whom were female. It's worth noting that among the Wang Clan's nine family guards, three were female.

As the boat was about to dock, still about 20-30 feet away, Wang Shoujie took a step forward, his body suddenly soaring into the air like a large bird, covering the distance to the dock in just two breaths.

This was Wang Shoujie's current level of agility, completely surpassing any long jump or high jump champion on earth, but not to the extent of defying gravity or shattering mountains with a single punch, as seen in some high-fantasy novels.

"Mother, why have you returned? Aren't you supposed to be keeping company with your parents at your maternal grandparents' place?" Wang Shoujie asked Gong Sunhui with a bow.

"Earlier, you wrote to me asking my brother Gong Sun Qiang to handle some matters for you, and I asked Wang Zhong about it. I knew that the main residence also needed someone to assist you," Gong Sunhui replied. "Although I don't know the specifics, I thought it was better to hurry back and help the family. You mentioned in your letter that you wanted to clear out the rear warehouse, and we've only managed to clear out a part of it so far."

"That's hard work, Mother. For now, a part of it is enough," Wang Shoujie bowed repeatedly, feeling a warmth and gratitude in his heart. Gong Sunhui was truly standing by the Wang Clan's side, considering their interests and helping him manage the family with all her might.

"Fourth Brother," Wang Luotong greeted Wang Shoujie, her eyes slightly shining. Earlier, Fourth Brother had entrusted her with some tasks in his letter.

This represented what? It was Fourth Brother's trust in her. She also wanted to be like her younger sister Wang Luojing, contributing to the family and Fourth Brother with all her heart.

"Luotong, you've worked hard. Oh, you've broken through to the third layer of the Qi Refining Realm?" Wang Shoujie's eyes narrowed slightly, using his Qi Observation Technique to see that Wang Luotong's aura was much stronger than before, with some signs of uncontrolled energy leakage. "Congratulations, congratulations."

"It's all thanks to Fourth Brother," Wang Luotong said with a happy smile, her face slightly flushed. "If not for the Minor Nourishing Pill you sent from the family storage, I wouldn't have been able to break through so quickly."

"That's also because you've been working hard, polishing your skills at the peak of the second layer of the Qi Refining Realm," Wang Shoujie praised. "Keep up the good work, and set an example for your younger siblings and juniors in the family."

Having understood her situation earlier, Wang Shoujie wouldn't just sit back and watch her struggle at the second layer of the Qi Refining Realm, so before he left, he had taken a Minor Nourishing Pill from the family storage and given it to Wang Luotong.

She was quite spirited, breaking through in one go. At least she was much stronger than Wang Zongwei, who was still stuck at the high level of the second layer of the Qi Refining Realm at the age of 20.

"Yes, yes, Fourth Brother, I'll definitely work hard," Wang Luotong smiled and nodded repeatedly, feeling extremely happy to have gained Fourth Brother's recognition.

As everyone chatted, the grain ships had already docked one by one.

Gong Sunhui directed the family guards, servants, and slaves to transport the grain to the cleared-out empty rooms. Even Wang Luotong participated, taking charge of the grain transportation with several female family guards.

With her current strength at the third layer of the Qi Refining Realm, her physical strength and power far surpassed that of ordinary servants and slaves. She could carry four or five bags of rice with ease, moving quickly and effortlessly. Gong Sunhui had initially wanted to stop her, but was signaled by Wang Shoujie to let her be, since Wang Luotong wanted to contribute to the family in this way.

Moreover, even the fourth miss of the Wang Clan's Luo generation had joined in the grain transportation, getting sweaty and dirty. The family guards and servants were even more motivated, not daring to slack off, with a morale-boosting atmosphere.

The family's cohesion and centripetal force were built up in these small, incremental ways.

[Heartfelt thankyou for the support! SlaySaga]

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Next Chapter ->Chapter 37: Mother and Son Heart-to-Heart