Chapter 1185: Hot and Busy!

The nine

"The little guy is—"

"Eh, this is your Ironwood Mountain, right? How did it become so small?" Lady Xu was surprised.

"Can't-Move" suddenly stopped its half-finished yawn, perked up, and gave Lady Xu a thumbs-up claw.

Liang Qu was stunned: "Mother, you actually remember 'Can't-Move's' real name?"

Lady Xu rolled her eyes: "This nickname of yours is hard to remember, isn't it? I don't know how you came up with it."

"Hahaha, it's fine, it's fine, the real name and nickname are the same. It's easier to carry when it's small, right? Old Master Xu, don't look at Ironwood Mountain's small size, it's a great demon!"

Something the size of a fist is a great demon!?

Once these words were spoken, the Xu family's First and Second Ancestors opened their eyes slightly, and everyone in the hall stood in awe.

The entire Xu family only had two Perfected Form experts, and his son-in-law Yang Yang Dongxiong counted as half, for a total of two and a half. Liang Qu casually took out half a family fortune?

Xu Xu Rongguang set down his teacup: "What do you want to discuss?"

"No rush, no rush. 'Can't-Move'! Show our Old Master Xu a good show."

"Can't-Move" had long been accumulating energy. A touch of emerald green light flew out from its wooden horns and merged into Xu Xu Rongguang's body. The crowd did not panic; for one, the light was full of vitality and didn't seem like a bad thing, and for another, Liang Qu was the Prince of Huai, and they were powerless to stop him if he wanted to do something.

The emerald light merged into his body.

Visibly, a ruddy complexion appeared on Xu Xu Rongguang's face, his wrinkles faded by thirty percent, age spots disappeared, the white hair on his head turned black, and his spirit and energy were more than a notch higher.

"Longevity-extending supernatural power?" The Xu family's First Ancestor recognized it at a glance.

"Old Ancestor has insight."

"Such an obvious longevity-extending effect, this must be at least five years, right?" The Second Ancestor asked.

"Ten years!"

"Ten years?!"

"That's right, ten years for an ordinary person, three years for a Perfected Form expert."

"And the timing?"

"Once a season, four times a year. If necessary, it can be increased to seven times a year at a cost. Once in a lifetime for one person."

The First and Second Ancestors were not people without experience. Calculating the benefits, they gasped in their hearts. Unlike longevity treasures, Grandmasters and great demons could trigger supernatural powers with almost no cost; it was even more precious than longevity treasures. Furthermore, the medicinal power of a longevity treasure that extended life by ten years was often too strong for ordinary people to refine.

"Hoo!"

Xu Xu Rongguang let out a long breath, swung his arms, and felt light all over, breathing easily. In his place, "Can't-Move" yawned repeatedly, sleepy, curling into a ball and using its tail to cushion its chin as it slept.

"How does Old Master Xu feel?"

"Good! Light, free." Xu Xu Rongguang was glowing with health and high spirits, no worse than Yang Yang Dongxiong. "You haven't even discussed it with me yet, why did you give me a gift?"

"Discuss it after giving it. The item is already out; if the discussion doesn't work out, can I still take it back from Old Master Xu?"

The hall burst into laughter.

Mother Xu held Lady Xu's hand, smiling and pointing at Liang Qu.

Xu Xu Rongguang sat up straight: "You're young, don't learn from old men and sell suspense. Hurry up and say it, what exactly is the matter?"

"Alright, Old Master Xu, I'll be honest. This supernatural power, triggered once, is priced at 500,000 taels!"

The Tianbo Chamber of Commerce in Pingyang Prefecture occasionally auctioned longevity treasures. Liang Qu had experienced it twice: once for the 【Ten-Thousand-Year Immortal Vine】, 480,000, extending life by eight years for an ordinary person and three years for a Perfected Form expert, which Magistrate Jian Magistrate Jian Zhongyi bought; the second time for the 【Longevity Insect Blood Cocoon】, 880,000, extending life by over ten years for an ordinary person and five years for a Perfected Form expert, which Liang Qu bought and gave to General Yuan.

"Can't-Move's" 【Longevity-Increasing Imprint】 gave ten years to an ordinary person and three years to a Perfected Form expert. The effect on Perfected Form experts was on par, and it was slightly superior to the 【Ten-Thousand-Year Immortal Vine】 for ordinary people, by a quarter. 500,000 was definitely a cheap price. The key was that it could be produced once every three months, and combined with 【Water-Marsh】, it was equivalent to once every month and a half. What more could one ask for?

Xu Xu Rongguang calculated: "This discussion you mentioned, it shouldn't be about bargaining with me, right? For a longevity treasure that extends life by ten years, 500,000 is already a cheap price."

"Of course it's not bargaining. For this 500,000, I don't want silver."

"Then what do you want?"

"Take you as an example, Old Master Xu. You need to convert this 500,000 taels into equivalent materials, manpower, and wages, and bring them to my port fief to engage in construction. You can build roads, you can build buildings—judge it by the construction results!"

"Oh?"

Xu Xu Rongguang exchanged glances with the First and Second Ancestors.

It was the first time they had heard of such a way of "giving money," which was very novel. But upon reflection, they realized that with Liang Qu's current status and position, giving money this way would definitely not be a loss, and there were even many benefits, which were extraordinary. Combined with the idea of selling shark silk given previously...

The Second Ancestor praised: "If the Prince of Huai did not practice martial arts and turned to business, he would also be a genius."

Liang Qu was humble: "Picking up others' wisdom, it's all picking up others' wisdom."

"In this way, what you want from this method is far more than 500,000 taels."

"That's for sure. Willing to hit, willing to suffer; I can't be made to do a losing business, right?" Liang Qu laughed. "But don't worry, Old Master, it's not just that. Have you seen the Tianbo Chamber of Commerce, Old Master?"

"Tianbo is an imperial merchant. The circulation of great medicines relies entirely on Tianbo. They are in every major prefecture and department, with three layers locally, four layers within the province, and five layers in the capital. My Huangzhou also has them; it's a common sight."

"That's right! I also want to carry out similar actions in my thirteen ports, combining the Tianbo Chamber of Commerce and local help to build thirteen spectacular giant markets! Anyone who participates can rent stalls at a low price! Engage in trade and transport goods!"

Giant markets?

How big is a market called giant?

Yang Yang Dongxiong thought silently. The blueprint in his little disciple's heart was always different from others. He had known this long ago, and he couldn't help but look forward to the thirteen ports of the future.

Xu Xu Rongguang stroked his beard: "I roughly understand what you mean. You want me to help you pick suitable great clans?"

"Exactly." Liang Qu cupped his fists. "In recent years, the Xu family's shark silk has been smooth, and their paths are wide, selling far overseas. You must know the construction strength of various local families like the back of your hand, and you also know which families have elders who are getting on in years, and which families have experience in this area. Inviting them to help with the construction shouldn't be a difficult task."

"Good!" Xu Xu Rongguang readily agreed. "What's wrong with acting as a go-between? Don't blame me if the talk doesn't work out."

"Old Master Xu, what are you saying? You just need to act as the go-between."

The Xu family's First Ancestor spoke: "Prince of Huai, we have done the matter for you. Tomorrow we will recruit troops and buy horses, rush to the port, and in the future, you must leave a few more good stalls for our Xu family."

"Old Ancestor is joking. How could I not leave them? Even if my mother doesn't leave them, I have to."

"Hahaha!"

The hall was filled with laughter, and the conversation around the stove did not stop. It was very lively.

The servants brought tea and snacks, poured water and added tea, and added gold oil until Mother Xu couldn't help but yawn, and then the scene gradually dispersed.

At the end.

Liang Qu's heart moved, 【Water-Marsh】 was replaced by 【Green Wood Vitality】, and another green light was cast into Mother Xu's body.

Her white hair turned black, and her spirit, which had been exhausted due to the late night, recovered by more than half.

It was exactly the same as Xu Xu Rongguang's change.

Lady Xu supported her mother, not without surprise: "Mother, A-Shui, you this—"

Liang Qu didn't care: "Good things come in pairs. Since I gave it to Old Master Xu, I can't let just one person reap the benefits, right?"

Lady Xu's eyes turned red, and she reached out to ruffle Liang Qu's hair: "Good child, I didn't spoil you in vain."

Having parents is a blessing.

—

Returning to the small courtyard, it was already midnight.

The moon was bright and the stars were sparse. In late autumn, there was a hint of night chill. Liang Qu touched his stomach. He hadn't eaten his fill at the Qixia Building, as he had been busy bragging with the patriarch and the department magistrate, recalling the glorious years of the past. So he pulled Long Long Eying to wrap dumplings, starting from kneading the dough, to eat as a late-night snack.

Firewood entered the stove, crackling. The flames licked the bottom of the pot, and small bubbles gradually appeared. The white dough stuck to his palm, leaving fingerprints. From the root of the dough to the tip, and then pressed down, no matter how rough or forceful, the feedback was all gentle.

"Eh, why is there an extra seam?"

"Ha~ Li Chan said it's a new style of shark silk, deliberately left—hoo~ She said my legs look good with meat, let me try—"

"It really looks good. With the lines, the fleshy feeling is more obvious when moving. But my wife looks good in anything."

The water temperature gradually rose, and white bubbles slowly emerged from the bottom of the pot. Long Long Eying's face was flushed red by the steam of the boiling water. Her bare feet stepped on the air, and her toes curled tightly.

"Hoo hoo—can I ask you something?"

"Love."

"Messy, hmm~ why don't you accept silver?"

"Do you want to ask now? Wife, I'm hungry."

"Haha, who taught you to be so anxious? I want to hear it!"

"Guess?"

The firewood burst, the boiling water in the pot churned, and black hair mixed with sweat stuck to her forehead. Long Long Eying didn't roll the dough well, wiped her forehead, and poured some cold water to avoid the pot boiling over, but it churned again after a while.

"Husband, you asked for 500,000, and you want them to build with equivalent value, hmm—hoo, but this, this asking price is already on the low side, and you're such a young Martial Saint. This is a favor; they will definitely build more, maybe 600,000, 700,000? Haha, don't tickle my soles, it's itchy!"

Liang Qu pulled out some firewood and turned it into a small fire.

"Husband is smart! The first point is this, and besides, maybe you can earn a million or even more."

"How can—so much?"

"Because of sunk costs. I said cheap rent and leaving stalls for them, which is equivalent to a shareholding nature. People in the world know my power. When they set up industries on my territory, since they've come, they naturally won't be sloppy or stingy. Opening up in the future is also equivalent to their own publicity, a vanity project."

"Is there rent? Hoo ha—slow, slow down, why not just give them the shops?"

"It's useful. Just give them a long lease, give them ten or twenty more years, but you can't give them ownership. For this kind of giant market, no matter the size, the ownership must be in my hands, or in the hands of one person. Otherwise, after a long time, it will become a dead market."

"Why?"

"When there are many people, you have to unify opinions to do things, and some people will hold onto them without doing business, specifically to earn rent. But high rent is easy to lose money, so people won't do it for long. They often turn around, and once the vacancy is long, customers can't find the shops they like, and the flow of people in the market will slowly decrease."

"And—hmm—there. The boiling water churned, the dumplings were put into the pot, and Long Long Eying hurriedly poured some cold water."

"And there is the cost issue. We build it ourselves, we have to find people, find materials, supervise, design—these are all wastes of time and energy. I judge by results, only looking at the results, which is equivalent to passing these implicit costs onto them. And these great clans are already more familiar with the local area than we are. Finding people and collecting materials is actually cheaper than us. Is it ready? I'm really hungry."

"Hmm~ hmm—last question, husband, can you do it once a year? Why say seven times a year?"

"Hey, why do you think I want to find Old Master Xu? This kind of thing can't be publicized widely, holding an auction. It's the same principle as the Tiger Amber Long Qi at the Huaiyin Martial Hall. The item is a good item, but the output is limited. In the future, what if two old men who are about to die come to find me at the same time? Both have backgrounds. Who should I give the opportunity to? What will the one who isn't given it think?

So I can only take the VIP recommendation system, let Old Master Xu help me find suitable customers. Old Master Xu is one hundred years old, which is just right for advertising. As for the seven times, it's a backup insurance, for my own people, or to sell a favor in the future. I don't believe this is the only longevity-extending supernatural power in the world. It must be circulated internally like this, to avoid good things turning into bad things. The Xu family buys cloth, travels north and south, and sees many merchants. This is the line I chose. The Xu family acting as a go-between is also equivalent to a guarantee, which will make others more willing to invest."

After pouring cold water several times, the dumplings were thoroughly cooked, boiling and hot. Liang Qu was hungry and couldn't help it anymore, swallowing them in big mouthfuls.

After eating a pot of late-night snacks, Liang Qu didn't feel full. Seeing that the sky wasn't bright yet, he urged Long Eying to cook another pot.

"Husband is amazing, but greedy."

"It's delicious."

There are many longevity-extending treasures in the world, and there are even mass-produced ones. Old Yuan is one, but Old Yuan's own production is not enough for its own use. Its whole life is on the Longevity Mountain, which is more important than its eggs.

The Longevity Flat Peach on the Great Merit Exchange Book in the past was another one, a stepped exchange. The "price" of the first time was so cheap that it even seemed like a benefit, quite similar to the Mysterious Yellow Card given by the imperial court to the old monk in the past.

If it was the first exchange, the demand for great merit was not much at all, but great merit could not be transferred and could only be exchanged by doing things for the imperial court.

This was the fundamental purpose.

The advantage of "Can't-Move" is that it is continuous, and the supernatural power has no medicinal power problem. Except for individual cases, a treasure that can extend life by ten years must at least be a high-level Wolf Smoke Martial Artist to barely be able to consume it.

"Longevity extension and treatment should be the foundation of 【Green Wood Vitality】, while the strength enhancement is not so prominent." Liang Qu recalled the touch of the jade dragon horns.

Supernatural powers can turn decay into magic. The third layer of the Dragon-man's Startling Dragon Transformation can directly increase strength by two times. This is the proper performance of specializing in this path.

【Thirteen enter the Huai River, river favorability +1.3641】

【River governance degree: 0.6 (Favorability: 67.2047)】

The old monk, Su Guishan, Yang Yang Dongxiong, Lady Xu, Long Long Eying, Guan Guan Congjian, and others all stayed in Huangzhou. Liang Qu took a group of officials and apprentices and went further west. On the way, he received another prompt about entering the Jianghuai.

Once all thirteen ports build River God Temples, the favorability will definitely break through the seventy mark!

With the experience of the first five inspections, Liang Qu observed the remaining eight ports faster. Once he arrived, he just had to let people go, without stopping along the way.

"Tossing and turning—" Cha Qing looked at the snow-capped mountains on both sides.

"Haha, isn't this considering that you have experience? A mouthful of snow-mountain dialect can't be wasted, right?" Liang Qu stepped onto the deck.

This was the westernmost port, bordering Hantai Prefecture. Passing through Hantai Prefecture was Blue Lake.

"Will definitely not fail the expectations!"

"Good!" Liang Qu pressed Cha Qing's shoulder. "I trouble Minister Cha and Minister Kou. At present, it is the time for the port to be established. We are working hard, but not much. Just wait and see two years later!"

"For the Prince of Huai, I will go through fire and water!"

"Then let's stop here. I'll turn around and go back. If there are any problems, just take the waterway. From west to east, it's a blink of an eye. I will be in Huangzhou for the next half month."

"Yes!"

"By the way, Great King, Huo Zhao Hongyuan of the River Patrol Office also wants to come and rely on you."

"River Patrol Yaksha?"

Cha Qing laughed: "My lord is the Prince of Huai, and my lord's friend is the Water Lord. On the Huai River, if you don't nod, what kind of Yaksha is he?"

"Haha, good. Tell him to come to Huangzhou to find me. It just so happens that this is also his hometown."

"Understood."

The Creation Treasure Ship returned to Huangzhou.

At this time, it was less than a day before the Great Hunting Meeting. Along the way, Liang Qu's favorability had risen by nearly three points, and there was still a lot that hadn't been credited. However, the governance degree hadn't risen by half a point. It was just like in Jianghuai; doing something so big for no reason would not only scare people but also be dangerous.

But Liang Qu thought of a brilliant idea on the way.

"Reform?" Department Magistrate Xu Xu Wanxing was surprised?

"That's right. The Great Hunting Meeting is held every year. What's new about it? Ordinary people find it hard to observe. Only on the mountaintops can those with strength see it. Others only look at the odds and storytelling, joining in the fun on the sidelines.

I want to change it. I won first place in Huangzhou back then and got many benefits, which helped me a lot. Today, I have achieved success in my practice, and I also want to give back to the elders of Huangzhou."

Due to the lessons learned from the past, Xu Xu Wanxing couldn't figure out Liang Qu's meaning: "How do you want to change it?"

Bang!

A golden plaque was smashed down.

Xu Xu Wanxing's pupils shrank: "Mysterious Yellow Card!"

"That's right. When I was enfeoffed as a Prince, His Majesty rewarded me with five Mysterious Yellow Cards. For this year's first place, I will take out one! At the same time, change the competition field from the mountains and forests to a water battle!"

Xu Xu Wanxing's heart pounded. If a Perfected Form Grandmaster appeared under the rule of a Prefect or Department Magistrate, there would be benefits.

It belongs to political achievement!

The Mysterious Yellow Card is undoubtedly a universal currency, which can be used as a medium and can also directly consume Qi, with a very high success rate.

Isn't it just changing from mountains and forests to a water battle?

Change it!

Must change it!

"Prince of Huai, please do as you wish! I, Xu Xu Wanxing, fully support it! All of Huangzhou supports it!"

"Good. You should hurry up and issue an order, spreading it throughout the prefecture, so that the local people don't panic."

"Don't—panic?"

Dusk at sunset.

"Boom, boom, boom."

The earth trembled, the Ba River dried up for a time, and the water level of Pengze dropped by three points.

In the eight prefectures of Huangzhou, and even Datong, a giant water column suddenly stood up, clear and transparent, with schools of fish swimming through it!

The setting sun slanted, and the waves on the earth shimmered like broken gold.

Liang Qu stood on the clouds and shouted loudly:

"My fellow elders and folks, don't panic. I am the Prince of Huai, Liang Qu. Eight years ago, I came to our Huangzhou and won first place! This year's Great Hunting Meeting, I have come to observe and assist. This year's Great Hunting Meeting will be held in this water column! There are thirteen layers in total. The higher the layer, the more points you get. The one who wins the most points will get a Mysterious Yellow Card!"

Gulp!

Huo Zhao Hongyuan carried his luggage, swallowed his saliva, and stared blankly at the water column on the horizon.

"Haha, A-Shui still knows how to play! Taking out a Mysterious Yellow Card, what a big move!"

The voice was familiar. Huo Zhao Hongyuan turned his head.

Xu Xu Zishuai, Lu Gang, Hu Qi, Xiang Xiang Zhangsong, Ke Ko Wenbin—and the disciples of the Huaiyin Martial Hall climbed out of the Huai River, dizzy and wet.

"Yo, this warrior looks very familiar. Have we met somewhere?"