Chapter 49: Buying a House, the Yellow Book

“What a nuisance,” Zhao Xing thought to himself.

The Xuan Tian Sect was like a persistent rash; rooting out a few of their strongholds was useless, barely making a dent. Even later, when the Great Zhou Dynasty suppressed the chaos in Guangling Prefecture, the Xuan Tian Sect itself, which was behind it all, suffered no real damage. They hadn’t truly entered the world yet.

“This small bit of information from the Calamity-Averting Almanac isn't enough to report. It could easily alert the Xuan Tian Sect to something unusual, and they might even mistake me for some peerless genius, focusing on me even more.”

“If I can't provoke them, can't I at least avoid them?”

Zhao Xing put away the Calamity-Averting Almanac, deciding to steer clear. He couldn't predict when this Xuan Tian Sect group would act—it might be in a few years, or perhaps next month. In any case, he decided to be cautious, avoid giving them any opportunities, and hopefully, this trouble would pass.

But what if he couldn’t avoid it?

“Don’t push me. If you push me too far, I’ll even dig up your mountain gate…”

***

The Hall Master of Sanwan Hall was reviewing intelligence. Because the Protector had raised the priority of Zhao Xing's capture, he took this target very seriously, dedicating more effort to observing and summarizing Zhao Xing’s habits, personality, travel patterns, and so on. Yet, after half a month, his efforts yielded meager results.

Zhao Xing gave them no opportunities at all!

“This person is so strange. Most people follow a fixed routine, commuting between the Ministry of Agriculture, home, and the public land jurisdiction. But him? He just wanders here, sits there, visiting various places and homes, never giving us a chance to catch him alone. Or he’ll stay indoors all day, never leaving the house.”

“Is he too idle? Doesn't he need to go outside the city for official duties?”

The Hall Master of Sanwan Hall was quite puzzled, as he couldn't find any patterns just by looking at the written reports.

The woman posing as the Hall Master's wife walked over, looked at the papers, and smiled. “His teacher is Xue Wenzhong, so he isn’t assigned to miscellaneous tasks. It’s normal for him not to leave the city; he’s naturally more闲 than other minor officials.”

“Since he doesn't leave the city, we can't learn more. Our undercover agents find it quite inconvenient to operate within the city.”

“Let's take our time. But in the past half-month, we've at least gathered one piece of information.”

“What is it?”

“He enjoys socializing.”

“…”

The Hall Master of Sanwan Hall was speechless. What kind of characteristic was that?

“At least it proves he enjoys being part of a crowd. If we can't find an opportunity now, we can take our time. The Protector also said there's no need to rush,” the woman comforted him.

“That’s true. I’ll report this truthfully to the Protector. Anyway, the mountain gates will open for the autumn equinox soon, so we'll stop monitoring him in the city for now. We'll try to focus on him in the outskirts, and conserve our forces, to avoid being caught by the authorities.”

***

Zhao Xing intended to buy houses, specifically houses outside the city.

“Why do you want to buy a house? Don't you want to live at home anymore?” Zhao Ruide asked, somewhat confused. “Even if you want to move out, you should buy one in the city. Why outside the city?”

“Houses outside the city aren't expensive, and I don't plan to renovate them. Just having a place to stay is enough,” Zhao Xing replied. “Agricultural officials have the duty to encourage farming, so if I sometimes need to stay overnight outside the city, having my own house and land would be better.”

“Then why buy so many?”

Seeing Zhao Xing’s silence, Zhao Ruide didn’t ask further. He knew his adopted son always had his own ideas. “I’ll handle the arrangements for you.”

“Adoptive Father, please make sure my name is registered on the official Yellow Register,” Zhao Xing instructed.

“Don’t worry,” Zhao Ruide nodded.

The official Yellow Almanac and the Yellow Register were known as the ‘Twin Yellow Treasures’ of the Qi Luck Dynasty. Emperor Taizu of Zhou, while promulgating numerous laws, also established universal practices, such as: ‘Those not citizens of our dynasty may not cultivate.’ If you weren’t registered in the household census, you weren't a citizen of the Zhou Dynasty, and you couldn't even cultivate.

Another example was: ‘Do not enter private property without invitation.’

What did this mean?

The Yellow Registers (deed versions) in various government offices would record all types of property ownership. As long as a property was on the Yellow Register, cultivators, no matter how skilled, could not trespass into someone's home without an invitation. They would be protected by the great power of the law. No matter how powerful a cultivator’s magic was, as long as the Qi Luck Dynasty’s system hadn’t declined, it would be very difficult for magic to harm a law-abiding citizen staying in their home. The prerequisite was being a law-abiding citizen.

For cultivators with their full array of spells to enter without invitation, there were a few situations:One, the owner invited you in.Two, the authorities suspected you had committed a crime and had a formal search and arrest warrant.Three, the house or land parcel was involved in a property dispute, in which case it would be in a ‘temporary invalidation status’ on the valuable Yellow Register.Four, ‘beneficial spells,’ meaning spells that benefited the homeowner, could take effect inside.

Therefore, the Xuan Tian Sect followers had limited options within the city; they couldn't simply abduct someone in the city.

“By reducing my trips outside the city, and when I do go out, making sure to find a place where the property is registered in my name, the likelihood of being abducted decreases,” Zhao Xing thought to himself. Dealing with the Xuan Tian Sect? He found it difficult now and didn't want to cause trouble. But he had plenty of ways to hide. In his previous life, he had briefly joined the Xuan Tian Sect's faction, so he knew their methods inside out.

However, one cannot guard against a thief indefinitely. Even with the Calamity-Averting Almanac and the long-distance communication token, and all his preparations, it wasn’t completely foolproof.

“I can't rely on the authorities to eliminate all of them. I still need to become stronger myself.”

***

A few days before the White Dew assessment, Zhao Xing reached Gathering Essence Stage Three. After that, he consumed one Heavenly Essence Pear every two days, and his vital energy increased rapidly. The ten Gathering Essence Pills given by Young Master Zong had a balanced and gentle effect and could be used in conjunction with the Heavenly Essence Pear. Consequently, in less than half a month, Zhao Xing was already approaching Gathering Essence Stage Four.

In the eyes of the Sanwan Hall Master, Zhao Xing was social and constantly visiting others. In reality, based on Chen Shijie's suggestion, he was sparring with colleagues to improve the absorption of the vital energy treasures and accelerate the Gathering Essence process.

However, after these few days, Zhao Xing realized that most of the minor officials in the Ministry of Agriculture couldn't provide him with adequate challenge. When it came to agricultural spells, very few clerks could offer Zhao Xing the intensity he needed. He had initially wanted to spar with the elder agricultural official, but considering his age, his need to mentor so many students, and his official duties, Zhao Xing abandoned the idea.

Finally, Chen Shijie offered a suggestion: “If you want to promote the digestion of treasures through spell combat, you don't necessarily have to look within the Ministry of Agriculture. How about this: I'll check the county yamen and see if there’s anyone suitable.”

Martial Artists? That was a good idea.

The county yamen directly managed three types of martial organizations: the Martial Affairs Office, the Patrol and Inspection Bureau, and the Judicial Guard. The common people generally referred to these three as the Martial Services. The constables and martial apprentices of the Martial Affairs Office, like the minor officials in the Ministry of Agriculture, were unranked, unofficial officers. Only a few Martial Service officers were ranked, official officers. The Patrol and Inspection Bureau, on the other hand, consisted entirely of ranked martial artists, fewer in number, with a full complement of thirty to one hundred people depending on the size of the county town. The Judicial Guard was in charge of justice and prisons and also possessed considerable combat power, as Martial Affairs Office constables and martial apprentices, after promotion, could choose to join either the Judicial Guard or the Patrol and Inspection Bureau.

Additionally, Donghu had a garrison. Although not under the jurisdiction of civil officials, the County Magistrate could request their assistance if necessary.

That same afternoon, Chen Shijie found Martial Service officer Wang Long and arranged for someone to be transferred from under him. When they met, Zhao Xing realized he actually knew this person.

“Brother Shen?”