Chapter 69: New Land

Before discussing business, private detective Daboy Ens first asked a question: "Madam, given your status and position, many capable people could handle these matters for you. You don't need to come to me for these three specific things."

Zhuo Yuling was silent for a moment before replying, "For the latter two matters, I don't want anyone else to know, especially not the Lu family."

Daboy Ens chuckled, "The land reclamation is for the Lu family, but that's just a front. The rescue and the killing are actually for you, Madam?"

Zhuo Yuling frowned slightly. "I remember you weren't so talkative before. Just tell me your price."

Daboy Ens pondered for a moment before quoting prices for the three tasks Zhuo Yuling had proposed:

"First, for land reclamation, there's a standard market rate. The plot of land you want will cost three thousand silver dollars, no more, no less."

Zhuo Yuling nodded, agreeing to the price.

Daboy Ens continued, "Second, finding someone. This is very difficult, harder than finding a needle in a haystack. A needle dropped into the ocean doesn't run around, but your daughter is currently being pursued by the He family. Finding her won't be easy."

Hearing this, Zhuo Yuling was displeased, though her expression remained unchanged. "Who told you the He family wants to kill my daughter? What did my daughter do to offend the He family?"

Daboy Ens chuckled, "Madam, there are no secrets that can be kept forever. This information didn't come from me, and there's no need to get angry with me. I'm just telling you that this task is difficult."

Zhuo Yuling extinguished her cigarette, no longer dwelling on the topic. "Just name your price. No more unnecessary talk."

Daboy Ens held up a finger. "Ten thousand silver dollars."

Zhuo Yuling asked, "Is success guaranteed?"

Daboy Ens shook his head. "No guarantee, but if I don't find her, I won't charge you."

Zhuo Yuling nodded. "Alright, at your price then."

"Third, killing someone. Specifically, killing Li Banfeng, and preferably capturing him alive..." Daboy Ens paused in thought. "Alive, twenty thousand silver dollars. Dead, ten thousand silver dollars."

Zhuo Yuling took a sip from her teacup, was silent for a moment, then asked, "Ten thousand silver dollars to kill a nobody? Do you think that's reasonable?"

She wanted to say, *How could Li Banfeng's worthless life compare to Lu Xiaolan's?* But she didn't voice it. She wouldn't compare Li Banfeng to her daughter. In fact, according to Daboy Ens's price for live capture, Li Banfeng was worth more than her daughter.

Daboy Ens flipped through the intelligence on Li Banfeng, telling Zhuo Yuling, "I don't know Li Banfeng's background, and your information isn't accurate. This means I'll be taking a significant risk."

"Why do you say the information isn't accurate?" Zhuo Yuling frowned slightly.

Daboy Ens was patient. "Madam, your information states that Li Banfeng has no cultivation, but from what I know, he is a cultivator who has achieved a certain level."

"A cultivator?" Zhuo Yuling didn't believe Daboy Ens. "How do you know he's a cultivator?"

Daboy Ens chuckled, "Would you believe me if I said I just saw him?"

"You saw him?" Zhuo Yuling smiled, shaking her head. She naturally wouldn't believe such a claim. Daboy Ens didn't know Li Banfeng at all, nor was it possible for him to have any dealings with him. However, Daboy Ens believed that the flamboyant man he had just encountered on the road *was* Li Banfeng.

"Your price is too high," Zhuo Yuling lit another cigarette, shaking her head. "Li Banfeng isn't worth that much money."

"I don't care what he's worth. I am worth this price," Daboy Ens adjusted his sunglasses.

Zhuo Yuling struggled to control her emotions, maintaining a soft, languid smile. "Dabingzi, I called you here out of consideration for our acquaintance. Don't be so impudent."

"Thank you for your kindness, Madam," Daboy Ens removed his top hat, bowed again, then lowered his voice. "Calling you 'Madam' is also a sign of respect from me, Xiaolingzi. You've become a wealthy lady, so why are you still so petty?"

Zhuo Yuling's eye twitched, and her gaze turned cold. "Spider Bin, watch your words."

Daboy Ens smiled. "Gecko Ling, you should also know your place. If you can afford it, I'll do the job. If not, find someone else."

Zhuo Yuling's expression changed. Her languidness and indifference vanished, replaced by thinly veiled rage.

Daboy Ens put on his top hat, his face still bearing a very gentlemanly smile.

***

Li Banfeng sat in the gatehouse of Yujia Village, chatting with Old Zhu, the gatekeeper. Li Banfeng said he was Yu Nan's friend, and Old Zhu believed him without a hint of doubt.

"Mr. Li, you clearly look like our young mistress's friend. She, like you, enjoys wearing men's clothes."

*Wearing men's clothes? I am a man! What is this old man talking about...?*

Li Banfeng touched his face, feeling a slickness. *What is this? Blush?* Li Banfeng suddenly realized. No wonder the spider in the canyon called him "Madam," and that hateful woman, Han Xue, had painted his face with heavy makeup again. *When did she do that? How did I not notice?*

"Mr. Zhu, please bring me a basin of water. I'd like to wash my face."

Old Zhu was a longtime servant of Yu Nan's family, having joined the Yu household at seventeen and remained there ever since. Now advanced in years, he could no longer perform heavy labor. Yu Nan hadn't dismissed him; instead, she gave him two rooms in the New Land and asked him to help guard Yujia Village.

Yujia Village consisted of two rows of wooden houses, each with seven or eight rooms. These two rows of wooden houses were unusual. They were surrounded by vast, dark forests, yet only the area where the houses stood was illuminated. Li Banfeng looked up at the sky and noticed a faint halo of light in the night, precisely illuminating the Yu family's compound.

*Where was this light source coming from?* It reached the ground without significant diffusion. In Li Banfeng's understanding, there must be a highly efficient and precise light source high in the sky.

But Old Zhu's understanding was different. "The New Land originally had no sky-light. Only after the land is reclaimed does the sky-light shine in."

"*Sky-light!*" Li Banfeng tensed, remembering the "sky-light" he had once encountered.

Old Zhu waved his hands repeatedly. "Not *that* sky-light. This is the light that should be present during the day."

Li Banfeng asked, "Was it completely dark here before?"

"Of course," Old Zhu sighed lightly. "It wasn't easy for the young mistress to manage the cloth business alone. She saved over a thousand silver dollars, all of which she spent on this New Land."

Li Banfeng was even more confused. "This land was bought?"

"Bought? Where would you buy it?" Old Zhu gave a wry smile. "The young mistress hired six reclaimers, paying two hundred silver dollars each. Five out of the six died just to open up this plot of land."

"Five out of six died? Can farming kill people?" Li Banfeng was taken aback.

Old Zhu explained, "Land reclamation isn't farming. It means staying in a desolate area for three days. The owner first makes an offering and establishes a covenant, then sends people in to clear the land. Whenever the reclaimer enters today, they must emerge three days later. As long as the land lights up, and the owner then marks it with their blood, the land is considered reclaimed."

*What kind of process is this?* Li Banfeng was utterly bewildered.

Only after Old Zhu explained it carefully did Li Banfeng begin to grasp the concept. Yu Nan's reclamation of this desolate land involved three steps.

Step one: Yu Nan brings offerings and makes a sacrifice to the deities of the wilderness, establishing a covenant with them. Which specific deity she sacrificed to is unknown.

Step two: On the day the covenant is established, Yu Nan sends reclaimers to stay in the desolate land for three days and three nights, guarding the offering table. If even one reclaimer survives, the reclamation is considered successful.

Step three: Yu Nan returns to the desolate land and leaves her own blood on the ground as a mark. This then makes the land hers.

Li Banfeng generally understood the process, but it seemed illogical. "Yu Nan hired six people, and five died. If the last survivor drips his blood on the land, wouldn't it become *his*?"

Old Zhu shook his head. "No, he hasn't made a covenant with the deities of this land."

"Isn't making a covenant simple? Just put out an offering, right?"

"Still no. Our young mistress has already established a covenant with the deities of this land. Within three days, the deities will not accept offerings from anyone else. If he were to make a covenant in a different place, that would be his own land, and he would have to pay for the reclaimers himself. Spending a thousand silver dollars to buy such a desolate plot of land would be up to him."

Li Banfeng still didn't understand. "Since the reclaimers aren't willing to buy it themselves, why would Yu Nan pay such a high price for this land?"

Old Zhu sighed. "The young mistress wants to secure a fallback. No matter who tries to dissuade her, she won't listen."

Li Banfeng didn't press further. More than land reclamation, he was now concerned about Yu Nan's itinerary. "Old Zhu, when will your young mistress arrive?"

Old Zhu thought for a moment. "You mentioned they set off last night. They'll probably arrive by tomorrow night at the earliest."

"Two days and two nights of travel?"

Old Zhu nodded. "Two days and two nights is considered fast."

Li Banfeng had arrived too early. He was an itinerant cultivator and had reached the New Land in seven hours. But Yu Nan lacked that ability. She was traveling with a group of subordinates who had no cultivation and a lot of heavy belongings. Reaching their destination in two days was indeed considered fast.

Old Zhu stood up. "Mr. Li, I've prepared a room for you. Please take a bath and rest for a while. I'll go prepare dinner."

When they first met, Li Banfeng had only briefly introduced himself, yet Old Zhu hadn't suspected him at all.

"Aren't you afraid I might be a bad person?" Li Banfeng asked casually.

Old Zhu shook his head. "This is Yujia Village, the young mistress's territory. The deities protect her, so bad people dare not come here. As long as the young mistress has dripped her blood in Yujia Village, anyone who dares to trespass will be shattered into pieces."

Li Banfeng was stunned. "Something like that exists?"

***

Yu Nan and her subordinates were still trekking on the road. Their journey was slower than expected due to the many wounded subordinates and the addition of Little Fatty Qin, who hardly ever woke up, only eating and sleeping.

When they were still a hundred *li* from Jiangyue Mountain, Yu Nan received news that the old Yu family residence had been burned down. Although it was expected, everyone's eyes turned red with anger. Wang Xuejiao cursed, "That bastard Geng Zhiwei! We must chop him to pieces and feed him to the dogs! Mistress, let's stop here and fight him to the death!"

A group of people shouted along, "Let's fight them to the death!"

"We can't let that scoundrel Geng Zhiwei off the hook!"

Yu Nan bit hard on her pipe, remaining silent.

Old Steward Zhang Shiquan advised, "Revenge is a dish best served cold. Let's listen to the mistress and speak less."

After walking another thirty *li*, the group rested by the roadside. A worker ran over with a message, gasping for breath. "Mistress, the Geng Family Pharmacy has been burned to the ground! Geng Zhiwei's whereabouts are unknown, he must have been burned to death!"

Yu Nan was stunned into silence.

*The Geng Family Pharmacy burned down? Who did it?*