Chapter 1471: Gaining an Inch and Taking a Mile

The Mirror chuckled, "I will protect you well, my money tree."

"By paying less than twenty percent of the profit, I can have the ruler of this country escort me," He Lingchuan said, finishing his last lantern cake. "Isn't that a good deal?"

"Conversely, for every villa we sell, we immediately get eighty-five percent of the profit!"

As for the final payment to King Yao, that would be four months later.

Four months, heh.

When He Lingchuan returned to the Sanmentou Inn, the rain had stopped, the clouds dispersed, and the sun suddenly shone brightly.

Good weather like this was rare during Tian Shui City's rainy season. Fan Shuang immediately told He Lingchuan, "I knew Brother He was about to embark on something big, so the heavens are smiling upon us."

"Brother Fan's flattery is becoming increasingly skillful."

Fan Shuang chuckled, not denying it. Over the past two months, he felt he had grown rapidly and wondered why he had been so obtuse for the past ten years.

The groundbreaking ceremony for Tranquil Lake Villa was held today.

He Lingchuan had visited Tranquil Lake shortly after arriving in Tian Shui City. Not only was the vegetation beautiful, but there were also numerous scenic spots—seventeen or eighteen could be seen in one circuit—featuring a variety of landscapes including waterfalls, springs, coves, and caves. It truly lived up to its reputation as a former retreat for the royal family to cultivate their minds and rejuvenate their bodies.

Upon arriving today, they saw that the south bank of Tranquil Lake was teeming with people!

"Oh, what a lively crowd!"

Many royal nobles, including those from Prince Qing's Residence, were present, as well as over twenty court officials, more than half of whom had purchased plans for Tranquil Lake villas. As staunch royalists, how could they miss the groundbreaking ceremony for Tranquil Lake Villa?

Two thousand four or five hundred common people, drawn by the spectacle, also arrived, making the scene incredibly vibrant.

Since Tranquil Lake Retreat became Qingyang's residence, the lakeside had become deserted, and commoners dared not come here to play. He Lingchuan had no idea where all these people had come from today; King Yao clearly had his ways.

Joyful music began to play, continuing for half an hour.

Although the vegetation around Tranquil Lake was dense, the south bank was too close to Tranquil Lake Retreat, so the booming gongs and drums still reached the small hill, deafeningly loud—

The musicians were entertainers from Prince Qing's Residence. Zhang Zhan had instructed them to play with all their might, making it as lively as possible.

They intended to put on a show for Qingyang, but she deliberately chose not to watch. She wasn't at Tranquil Lake Retreat today; she had gone to the palace to see King Yao.

Before leaving, Heryang asked her for a strategy, but she simply said to ignore them and let them entertain themselves.

Whatever He Lingchuan was doing at Tranquil Lake was merely a superficial disturbance. With the dignitaries of Yao Nation gathered today, it would be unwise to confront him at this moment.

As the clamor of voices reached its peak, her elite subordinates activated a soundproofing barrier around Tranquil Lake Retreat, bringing quiet back to the surroundings.

Thus, the lively event was essentially He Lingchuan and the royalists' self-indulgent spectacle. Zhang Zhan and He Lingchuan first went on stage to deliver some empty platitudes, then grabbed shovels to dig into the green space, just for show.

Ordinarily, a few more strings of firecrackers would have completed the groundbreaking ceremony.

However, the firecrackers He Lingchuan ordered were exceptionally thick and long, each three fingers wide, and there were over three hundred strings. When they went off, the endless crackling sounded like continuous artillery fire, echoing across the sky!

The south bank was engulfed in smoke, making it impossible to see anyone.

A strong wind blew, and the thick smoke surged towards Tranquil Lake Retreat.

Although Qingyang was absent, her subordinates were all staying in the retreat. The soundproofing barrier could block sound but not thick smoke.

The choking, suffocating white smoke billowed into the retreat, causing people everywhere to cough repeatedly.

Among the Azure Guards at the retreat were some cultivators with profound spiritual power. In a fit of rage, they climbed to a high point and performed a wind-summoning spell, intending to blow the dense smoke back to the south bank.

However, a strong southerly wind was blowing today, which He Lingchuan had anticipated. Human effort could not defy nature; even with six or seven cultivators casting spells together, they could only just manage to blow the smoke back to the south bank, only for it to be immediately swept back by the strong wind.

The Azure Guards were furious and wanted to rush out of the retreat to teach these thoughtless people a lesson.

Hailing from Beijia, they followed the Regent, moving in and out of the Yao Capital Palace as if nobody was there. They were people of high standing; when had they ever endured such indignities?

Heryang firmly stopped them: "Don't be impulsive! The Palace Master has commanded you to stay quietly in the retreat all day!"

Qingyang had specifically left him to supervise the Azure Guards and prevent them from causing trouble outside.

The firecrackers continued to boom on their own as the onlookers moved west. Four or five large tents had been erected there to serve as temporary stages, and continuous performances began, with the sounds of gongs and drums.

The opera troupes were either maintained by major noble families in their private compounds or invited from other regions, and their performances were excellent. People listened with beaming smiles, applause occasionally breaking out.

On the day of Tranquil Lake Villa's groundbreaking, the south bank remained bustling for several hours.

In fact, He Lingchuan had prepared several contingency plans in case Qingyang returned midway to make trouble for him.

If that happened, he would drag in Prince Qing's Residence and all the other royal nobles present—these royals were essentially representing King Yao today to show support, so disrespecting them would be disrespecting King Yao himself.

He didn't mind adding fuel to the already tense relationship between King Yao and Qingyang.

Unfortunately, his plans never had to be put into action.

The Soul-Sucking Mirror lamented, "We almost started digging right on top of the old witch's head, and she actually managed to hold back and not come looking for trouble with you."

"You underestimate her," He Lingchuan replied. "If Qingyang were so impatient, how could she have held her position steadily in Qing Palace for over a hundred years?"

She likely saw through his intentions.

However, He Lingchuan also understood. Qingyang's absence indicated that she was intentionally managing the intensity of her struggle with King Yao, not wanting the conflict to escalate further.

She had gained enough advantages and held the upper hand; she didn't want to push King Yao to the point of unbearable resentment or desperate measures.

He Lingchuan muttered to himself, "Not enough. It needs to be even more excessive."

If Qingyang could tolerate this, he could push his luck further.

He gave a few instructions to Foreman Guan, who then gathered his subordinates, armed with their tools, and headed east to the ginkgo tree.

Tranquil Lake was an open-plan terrain, but the island where Tranquil Lake Retreat stood was connected to the shore by an arched bridge. Beside the bridge grew a ginkgo tree so large that it would take two people to embrace its trunk, its branches lush with foliage.

In this season, the ginkgo leaves had already begun to subtly change color, though they had not yet reached their most beautiful stage.

Gazing at Tranquil Lake from under the tree, the view was breathtaking.

"This place is truly magnificent!"

"Heh heh, these nobles and officials certainly know how to enjoy themselves!" The carpenters admired the tree for a few moments, then raised their axes and began to chop!

After they had chopped the tree halfway through with loud thuds, four or five people rushed out from Tranquil Lake Retreat, shouting, "Stop! What are you doing!"

He Lingchuan glanced over and saw that the leader was Heryang.

Qingyang usually loved to sit under this ginkgo tree, drinking tea and enjoying the view. If the ginkgo was removed, the Palace Master would surely be angry!

Furthermore, there was only one bridge connecting to the small island. If the ginkgo fell, it would block Qingyang's carriage from entering or exiting.

Heryang originally didn't want to get involved, but these people were becoming increasingly outrageous and had no bottom line, so he had no choice but to come.