Chapter 233: He Lingchuan's Shop

Snow dusted He Chunhua’s shoulder, and a small dry twig was caught in He Yue’s cape, clear signs they had walked a considerable distance. He Lingchuan waited for them to approach before asking, "Dad, second brother, why didn't you take a carriage back in this freezing weather?"

"Just taking a walk, considering it a rest," He Chunhua exhaled a puff of white mist. "It also helps clear my head."

Despite his cultivation, the official's face was overly haggard. He Lingchuan also noticed that He Yue had developed dark circles under his eyes and his eyes were bloodshot.

"What's wrong with you, boy? Were you stealing chickens in the middle of the night?" He Lingchuan walked alongside them towards home.

He wasn't sure if it was an illusion, but the two of them previously shared an unspoken understanding, which He Lingchuan seemed to break just by standing between them.

"I've been reviewing account books all night for the past few evenings," He Yue yawned. "Tonight, I still have to audit the military farms. The situation is not optimistic."

Both father and son looked as withered as frost-bitten eggplants, making He Lingchuan, who was full of vigor, feel quite awkward.

"How so, not optimistic?"

"The military farms in Xiazhou are distributed across five counties. The figures I have show a total of eight farms," He Yue frowned. "That's far too few. Father found me the original ledgers from forty-five years ago, which clearly state that the total number of military farms in Xiazhou was twenty!"

He looked at his father with a hint of admiration, impressed that he could find such hidden original documents.

He Chunhua cleared his throat slightly. "I had someone get them."

He was always prepared.

He Yue saw He Lingchuan counting on his fingers and kindly clarified, "Each farm is fifty qing. That means six hundred qing have been lost over the past forty-five years!"

Military farms were a type of public land, originally unclaimed barren land controlled by the state. Later, local authorities organized soldiers or commoners to cultivate them, harvesting grain to supply military needs.

The He family members all had experience in warfare and understood the principle that "soldiers move, provisions follow." Transporting grain over a thousand li would result in 70% being consumed en route. Now that Xiazhou had become the front line, the supply of grain from military farms would undoubtedly be prioritized by the authorities. Producing and transporting grain from here could significantly reduce time and save losses during transit.

However, Xiazhou's military farms had decreased by more than half. What did that mean?

He Lingchuan responded with an "Oh." "Occupied again?"

"Yes, for years, corrupt officials and gentry have colluded to sell off the military farms as private land," He Yue rubbed his eyes. "It's another mess of accounts. We need to speed up finding them today and tomorrow."

"They dared to sell military farms?" He Lingchuan gave a thumbs-up. "Impressive."

"Previous prefectures had borrowed money from powerful gentry families. When harvests were poor and they couldn't repay, they used military farms as collateral," He Yue explained. After days of auditing, his initial shock had turned into numbness. "Of course, that's just one reason."

He Lingchuan saw that both of them looked weary but had a spark in their eyes, and couldn't help but ask, "Dad, is there anything I can do?"

"I was just about to ask you," He Chunhua looked him up and down. "Have you had another breakthrough?"

"Yes."

He Yue's eyes were full of envy. "Brother, that's not fair! You only had one breakthrough during the last Imperial Dewfall, and now again..."

"When has fairness ever existed in this world?" He Lingchuan laughed heartily. "My great saber has been thirsting for action. The next time there's a big battle, I definitely want to participate!"

"You'll have plenty of opportunities," He Chunhua also smiled. "After sorting out the chaos in Dunyu, I plan to tour Xiazhou, especially focusing on the northern front. You can come with me."

As the Governor of Xiazhou, he had to investigate and understand the local customs, social sentiments, governance, and public opinion throughout the prefecture. Especially with the clouds of war looming, the new governor needed to travel around to reassure the people.

He Lingchuan clenched his fist, and it cracked. "Good."

He Chunhua said with a smile, "In a few days, I'll give you a task first."

Back in Panlong City, the snow in the small courtyard of his wooden house reached his calves. He Lingchuan felt resistance even when pushing the door open.

He picked up a broom, piled the thick snow into a corner, and began his martial arts practice.

About eighty percent of the gifts, which had originally been piled into a small mountain, were gone. The remaining ones were neatly arranged in the kitchen, with the last two jars placed beside the water vat.

This must have been Sun Fuling's work. She had promised to help him donate the mountain of thank-you gifts—if it wasn't her, then it was the mischievous imp who stole fish and firewood.

He Lingchuan called out twice, but there was no response from next door. She seemed to be out again.

However, whenever the wind blew, there was always a delicate tinkling sound. He Lingchuan leaned over the wall to look and saw that Sun Fuling's courtyard was even simpler and emptier than his own. There was nothing but a chair and a ladder, but under the eaves hung a string of shell wind chimes.

The colorful shells, picked up from who knew where, were each polished smooth and round, and clinked together in the wind, making a particularly pleasant sound.

He Lingchuan recognized them as one of the thank-you gifts from the people of Panlong City, so it seemed Sun Fuling had kept them for herself.

However, the snow in her courtyard was even thicker, suggesting she hadn't been home for at least the past three or four days.

Perhaps she had another place to stay?

He Lingchuan shrugged, refocused his mind, and diligently practiced martial arts. Today's practice focused on the grappling hook. He had bought one in Panlong City, though it wasn't a magical artifact and wasn't as good as the one handmade by Li Fubo.

His initial goal was simply to hook branches on the large jujube tree, and to be able to hit any specific branch he aimed for.

He had a premonition that this item would be very useful in the future, and he needed to master it quickly.

Speaking of which, the number of skills he needed to practice was increasing, and even practicing day and night felt like there wasn't enough time.

The feel of the rope was completely different from a saber or a bow; it was soft and difficult to apply force with. He Lingchuan had only practiced a few times when the hook got caught on a tree branch, and he couldn't pull it down.

Just then, footsteps sounded from outside.

The footsteps stopped at his doorstep, and then a letter was slipped under the courtyard gate.

Then, the person left.

He Lingchuan picked it up and saw that it was an official letter sealed with wax.

It turned out the Pengcheng Bureau was urging him to take possession of the shop.

He had previously exchanged all his rewards for a shop on Panlong City's main street, and then forgotten about it. The shop still contained a lot of clutter that he needed to clean out before he could rent it.

He Lingchuan had been busy, but the Pengcheng Bureau wasn't going to let him procrastinate any longer. Shops on Panlong City's main street were valuable assets, so their management was very strict.

All shops belonged to Panlong City, and he only had the right to rent them. When the authorities urged him to open quickly, he had no choice but to do so.

Left with no alternative, He Lingchuan found the shop key, hailed a donkey cart, and headed for the main street.

In fact, Panlong City's main street was shaped like a standard 'cross,' and Wanglin Street, where He Lingchuan's shop was located, faced south.

Surprisingly, it wasn't yet at the end of the street corner. Although the shopfront was small and the wooden door was tightly shut, there was a constant stream of pedestrians outside, indicating considerable foot traffic.

A shop in such a location would sell anything well, right?

To his surprise, a patrol guard was standing by the door. Upon seeing He Lingchuan take out the key, the guard stepped back two paces and gestured for him to enter.

He Lingchuan also saw a yellow seal affixed to the door.

He had to ask the guard, "Excuse me, what's going on here?"

"People keep trying to break in illegally," the guard said immediately after watching him break the seal. "From now on, this shop is under your management."

His task complete, the guard turned on his heel, finished his shift, and left.

He Lingchuan shook his head, watching the guard's retreating back, then unlocked and pushed open the door.

With a creak, the two large doors opened, and a cloud of grey mold assailed him.

He Lingchuan couldn't help but cough twice, then formed a wind-calling hand seal to blow away the grey haze.

He had heard that it was originally an antique shop and general store. Upon entering, he saw unremoved odds and ends everywhere, furniture askew, and a thick layer of dust covering everything.

There were several footprints on the floor, indicating someone had been there recently. No wonder a patrol guard had been stationed at the door.

He Lingchuan covered his mouth and nose with a cloth, casually rummaged around, and as expected, found nothing valuable.

The most valuable items in the entire shop were probably the rosewood 'Eight Treasures' cabinet and chairs hidden in the inner room, likely forgotten by the previous owner in their haste to move.

These items probably weren't important at all; the key was the shop itself.

Just as he was expressing disdain, two mice squeaked as they leaped from the Eight Treasures cabinet, scurried along the wall, and hastily fled the shop.

It had been closed for so long that even mice had come to nest there.

They fled quickly, but knocked over a basket. Several items inside clattered to the floor.

He Lingchuan looked and saw they were a few books.

Most were storybooks; two were collections of myths and legends, while the other five were explicit romantic literature, with bold and unrestrained language and even illustrations. Even He Lingchuan, known for his thick skin, would find them appalling. Such harmful things shouldn't be left behind; he decided to take them with him. Given that food, sex, and instinct are fundamental human desires, it was not surprising that a general store sold such items; perhaps they were even bestsellers in the past.

Besides these, there was also a map and a thin booklet.

The map depicted the eastern part of Panlong Wilderness. The drawing was crude, only marking a few main roads in the east and some important landmarks, such as the Ghost Needle Stone Forest. It was also the first time He Lingchuan saw a full view of the Chiba Plateau.

This was probably something travelers and merchants traversing the wilderness would need.

As for the last thin booklet, He Lingchuan picked it up and saw "Collection of a Hundred Scents" written on its cover.

He had thought it might be some sentimental or pretentious work by scholars and poets, but upon opening it, he found that it was not. It was actually a comprehensive guide to edible spices, including their introduction and preparation.

However, the booklet was full of wormholes and created a lot of dust when turned, accompanied by a stale, musty odor. The author's signature at the back was smudged and illegible, so He Lingchuan didn't know who had written it.

However, it was well-illustrated with text.

For instance, spices like cardamom and Angelica dahurica, which He Lingchuan was already familiar with from another world, were not only clearly described but also illustrated with pictures to help identify them. He Lingchuan could only say that the drawings were amateurish, but the author's intentions were good after all.

Its greatest value lay in the latter half, which detailed various spice combinations, their effects, and their applications.

"Isn't this... isn't this...?" He Lingchuan's eyes lit up as he read, and he put it away without hesitation.

Honestly, this booklet would be of little use to ordinary residents. Their cooking and seasoning methods were extremely simple; salt was good enough, and soy sauce was a luxury. They would never bother with such complex flavorings.

But could He, the young master, be considered an ordinary person?

It seemed the general store wasn't entirely full of junk; at least he had unearthed a treasure.

At that moment, the light at the doorway dimmed, and someone entered.