[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-the-great-jin-s-most-iron-rice-bowl":3,"chapter-the-great-jin-s-most-iron-rice-bowl-the-great-jin-s-most-iron-rice-bowl-chapter-162":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","The Great Jin's Most Iron Rice Bowl",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},1896936,2531,"Chapter 162: The Sheng Family's Balance of Power","the-great-jin-s-most-iron-rice-bowl-chapter-162",162,"\u003Cp>Just as the three generations of the Dingyuan Count's household were discussing the Hua family's situation, Sheng Xuan and his party also returned to the Sheng residence.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The head of the Sheng family, Vice Minister of the Left of the Celestial Department, Sheng Xiu, as well as Sheng Pengyun, a General of the Middle Rank in the Demon-Suppressing Army, had already finished their duties and returned home, waiting early in the main courtyard for Sheng Xuan and the others to come back and report on the Hua family's circumstances.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Sheng family was not flourishing in terms of descendants; Sheng Xiu had two sons and one daughter, while Sheng Xuan had only one son, Sheng Pengfei. Although the alliance between the Sheng and Hua families involved a balance of interests, the people of the Sheng family still hoped that Sheng Yuntang, who was marrying Hua Dalang, would have a stable and happy life.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing his father's furrowed brow, Sheng Pengyun knew he was worried about his younger sister's marriage, so he offered comfort: \"Father, the Hua family's social standing is somewhat low, but Hua Dalang himself is a decent person.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Now that spiritual energy is recovering, many things will change drastically. The Hua family has produced a direct disciple of the Taosu Palace Sect Master, and since everyone in the Hua family is a cultivator, there is still security for Little Sister's future after she marries into their family.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sheng Xiu sighed: \"How can one speak clearly about future matters?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Celestial Department was the secret government agency handling cultivator affairs; after entering it, he had witnessed far too many stories of families rising and falling.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The recovery of spiritual energy did not begin only in recent years; based on information he had gathered, the appearance of spiritual energy could even be traced back to before the founding of the nation by the Taizu Emperor, it was just that spiritual energy had suddenly exploded in recent years.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Great Jin Dynasty had been established for nearly a thousand years; during this period, many families rose to power after catching wind of the spiritual energy recovery, but before long, they either faded into obscurity on their own or were exterminated by others.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The fact that every member of the Hua family was a cultivator sounded astonishing, but this did not mean they could go far.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cultivators required vast amounts of cultivation resources to grow; with so many cultivators in the Hua family, it meant they needed countless resources.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>However, the ruins, secret realms, and blessed lands that had appeared recently were all occupied by the imperial family and powerful noble houses; even with Hua Shinian, the direct disciple of the Taosu Palace Sect Master, it was not certain they could afford the Hua family's consumption.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Unless, when new ruins appeared, the Hua family could fight to secure a territory rich in resources.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But how difficult that would be!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The imperial family, nobles, and prominent families had long relied on the resources they occupied first to cultivate a group of cultivators; individuals or families just stepping onto the path of cultivation simply lacked the ability to compete with them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Do not be misled by the fact that the entire Hua family consists of cultivators; in reality, they possess little self-preservation capability, and the only asset the Hua family currently has to show is Hua Shinian.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet, the path of cultivation is fraught with danger; who knows if Hua Shinian might encounter some accident.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Without Hua Shinian as their trump card, the Hua family actually held little competitive power among the many cultivation families.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sheng Xiu sighed again; even though he was clear about the Hua family's many shortcomings, they were still the Sheng family's best option at present.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fortunately, the Hua family still had the Dingyuan Count's household backing them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Although the Dingyuan Count's household was not particularly prominent in the capital's circle of nobility, they still possessed some influence.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Celestial Department differed from the Six Ministries; from its very establishment, it had been under the direct management of the imperial family—in plain terms, the people of the Celestial Department were the imperial family's private soldiers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nowadays, with factions surging everywhere, many hands had reached into the Celestial Department.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Whenever Sheng Xiu thought of those nobles secretly trying to woo him, he felt an immense headache.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As the Vice Minister of the Left of the Celestial Department, he could sense that the Minister of the Celestial Department was no longer obeying every imperial command, yet outwardly, he had never directly defied the imperial family's orders.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If even the Minister dared not directly betray the imperial family, he certainly dared not, so naturally, he would not defect to the nobles.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>However, he could not afford to completely offend the nobles either; after weighing the options repeatedly, he chose the Hua family, who had the Dingyuan Count's household as their patron, for this marital alliance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Dingyuan Count's household had some influence, but not much; in the struggle for interests, they could grab some scraps but could not enter the core circle of contention, which was perfect for the Sheng family, who sought stability and long-term development.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had witnessed with his own eyes how cruel the core circle of interest contention was; the Sheng family lacked deep foundations and had few members, so if they got mixed up in it, their fate would only be to serve as stepping stones for others.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He was not greedy; by allying with the Hua family and binding themselves to the Dingyuan Count's household, securing some resources would be enough for the Sheng family to develop steadily and grow stronger.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Eldest Brother, we are back.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Upon seeing Sheng Xuan and the others return, Sheng Xiu immediately sat up straight, and Sheng Pengyun also adopted a serious expression.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After Sheng Xuan, Sheng Pengye, and Sheng Pengfei sat down and drank a cup of tea, Sheng Xiu finally opened his mouth to ask: \"What is the situation over at the Hua family?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had personally investigated Hua Dalang, but regarding the other members of the Hua family, he only knew the general outline.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sheng Xuan smiled: \"More tough than imagined.\" Then, he recounted everything that had happened at the Hua family's residence in detail, emphasizing the strength displayed by Hua Jiuniang and the matter of Hua Liulang distributing spirit stones to the guests at the end.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As a member of the Demon-Suppressing Army who had slain many demonic beasts, Sheng Pengyun's eyes brightened upon hearing that Hua Changxi had instantly killed two Qi Sea realm demonic beasts with just two strands of flame.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sheng Xuan said: \"We somewhat underestimated the Hua family's strength; besides Hua Shinian of the Taosu Palace, this Hua Jiuniang is also not to be underestimated. I suspect she is at least a Core Formation realm cultivator.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hearing that the Hua family had produced a Core Formation cultivator, Sheng Xiu's furrowed brow relaxed somewhat.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Considering that the vast majority of cultivators had only just stepped onto the path of cultivation, a Core Formation realm cultivator counted as an expert; with a Core Formation cultivator guarding the family, the Hua family indeed possessed a certain deterrent power.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sheng Xiu took the spirit stone handed to him by Sheng Xuan, examined it, and asked in surprise: \"Could it be that the Hua family holds a spirit mine?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Whether it was the imperial family or the noble houses, they attached great importance to cultivation resources; every year, they would send countless people to search everywhere, and wherever signs of spiritual energy were found, even if it was just a wasteland, they would seize it first.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Under such intensive searching, the fact that the Hua family could still find a leftover opportunity and occupy a spirit mine meant their luck was simply too good.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sheng Pengyun was also shocked that the Hua family actually possessed a spirit mine: \"Discovering a spirit mine might rely on luck, but holding a spirit mine in one's grasp likely depends on strength.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sheng Xuan nodded: \"Our understanding of the Hua family is still not comprehensive enough.\" Then, he smiled, \"With Yuntang marrying into the Hua family, our family probably has not made a wrong move with this step.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hearing this, Sheng Pengfei pursed his lips: \"Father, you are saying this too early. Not to mention anything else, just look at Hua Jiuniang's temperament; with such a younger sister-in-law, Yuntang will likely have headaches in the future.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then, as if complaining, he recounted the sequence of events where Hua Jiuniang killed their demonic beast and then threw them out of the Hua family courtyard.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Uncle, Eldest Brother, do you know? That Hua Jiuniang not only gave her elder brother a cold shoulder but also disobeyed her father; such a person is definitely difficult to get along with.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sheng Pengyun was not swayed by Sheng Pengfei's complaints in his judgment: \"The person Yuntang is marrying is Hua Dalang, not Hua Jiuniang. Even if Yuntang marries into the Hua family and has to interact with Hua Jiuniang, cultivators spend most of their time cultivating, so their interactions will not be frequent.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sheng Xiu also did not pay much attention to such matters; the current situation was different from the past, and since his daughter was also a cultivator, she did not need to obey her in-laws in everything.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing their reactions, Sheng Pengfei felt somewhat stifled and turned to Sheng Pengyun: \"Eldest Brother, Hua Jiuniang killed my demonic pet; you must find another one for me.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sheng Pengyun looked at him and smiled: \"You sacrificed a demonic beast to test the Hua family's strength; rest assured, I will help you find another one.\"\u003C\u002Fp>",1617,"2026-06-12T02:51:22.172Z",1,"Qwen3.5 397B","4ab3241d9854d9fd05739c5d8266b3682cceb6088a5e5ec2f7d181a792d5a013","the-great-jin-s-most-iron-rice-bowl-chapter-163","the-great-jin-s-most-iron-rice-bowl-chapter-161",558,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthe-great-jin-s-most-iron-rice-bowl-cover.jpg"]