Discussion

Having extracted every scrap of information Wan Yuankai knew, Li Xiangping finally saw off the forlorn young man. Carefully stowing away the sketch in his hands, he took Li Yesheng and returned to Lijing Village. Thanks to the steady stream of agricultural taxes flowing in year after year from the various villages, the Li family could support more craftsmen. These men primarily worked on building the courtyard residences on the back mountain, and during slacker periods, they were also tasked with repairs throughout Lijing Village. After more than half a year of renovations, Lijing Village had completely transformed. Polished slabs of bluestone were laid piece by piece, stretching from the Li family's front gates all the way to the village entrance. Serving as the village's main thoroughfare, it projected the influence of this hub of authority over the surrounding villages. The wealthy households in the village had also begun imitating the Li family's blue-brick, tiled-roof houses, renovating their own mud-brick and thatched cottages. Liu Linfeng and others dared not use blue brick; instead, they opted for a lesser grade of white brick, pointing the mortar joints with gray plaster. Though it was not quite as striking or attractive as blue bricks filled with white mortar, it still looked rather grand. Gazing from afar at the clusters of buildings behind the village, white-brick courtyards clustered around the blue-brick, gray-tiled main residence, lending the place the misty charm of a Jiangnan water town in the drifting wind and rain. When Li Xiangping returned to the courtyard, he saw Li Mutian sitting with Li Xuanxuan, resting. Li Mutian was full of vigor and moved spritely. Holding a teabowl in his hand, he sat by the table with serene composure, looking as though he had already walked out from the grief of losing his son years ago. Nowadays, Li Mutian did not manage affairs much, yet no one dared look down upon the old man. Although he was merely a mortal, people like Li Yesheng feared him far more than they feared Li Tongya or Li Xiangping. "Xuan'er!" Li Xiangping smiled and scooped up Li Xuanxuan as the boy threw himself forward. The child had reached the age for schooling, and the Li family had once again invited Han Wenxu to be his primary tutor. Li Xuanxuan was bright and clever, making teaching him an effortless task. "Today, Xiewen and I went to the reed marsh! He said Uncle Yesheng used to herd ducks there when he was little!" Clinging to Li Xiangping, Li Xuanxuan giggled and chattered in his childish voice. The Li family had arranged a marriage for Li Yesheng, and Li Xiewen was Li Yesheng's son. Just over two years old, he spent every day trotting after Li Xuanxuan wherever he went. "That I did," Li Yesheng answered from behind with a beam. "Go call Second Brother back," Li Xiangping instructed with a smile, turning his head. He watched Li Yesheng acknowledge the command and withdraw into the distance before looking back at Li Xuanxuan. "Back then, your Third Uncle was catching fish nearby. Those fish were so plump, covered in green scales, slick and slippery." Setting him down, Li Xiangping pinched Li Xuanxuan's little cheek. Yet his gaze drifted, staring blankly into the distance as if lost in some deep memory. "Those fish were the most delicious your Third Uncle has ever eaten. They were fish from heaven, fairies among fish..." "How is that Wan family?" Li Mutian cast a subdued glance over, placed the bowl of plain tea onto the table, and spoke up, cutting Li Xiangping short. "Their strength far surpasses our Li family's, with a long history behind them. Their clan patriarch possesses cultivation at the Yujing Wheel, and there is also that Wan Yuankai, who achieved the Qingyuan Wheel at such a young age." Li Xiangping patted Li Xuanxuan, sending the boy off to play, and looked up to answer. Just as he spoke, Li Tongya strode into the courtyard with a grave expression. Finding a seat, he listened intently to Li Xiangping's explanation. In one breath, Li Xiangping related everything Wan Yuankai had told him. Only then did he lift a teabowl, gulping down mouthful after mouthful as he looked at the two of them. "If this Wan family is truly beleaguered from within and without, we should lend a helping hand if we can. The Ji family is right on our doorstep. If the Wan family truly falls, then when the lips are gone, the teeth are cold—our Li family will most likely be next." Having quietly listened through Li Xiangping's account, Li Tongya held up the sketch to examine it. "The Wan family must be helped, but there must be a way to do it—a way that brings our Li family the greatest benefit. Xiangping, listen closely." Li Mutian narrowed his eyes, raising a brow. Staring quietly at the tea in his cup, he continued: "The Wan family says the Ji family plunders their spirit rice. Then reply like this: say our Li family has surplus spirit fields but lacks manpower, and ask him to dispatch someone to our Li family to cultivate rice right here. Our Li family will take a thirty-percent cut of the harvest. If that Wan Yuankai truly sends someone over, then it confirms the Wan family is truly hemmed in by the Ji family and suffering beyond measure." "Precisely." Li Xiangping nodded, clearly thinking along the same lines as his father, and said gravely, "It's just that the Ji family knows the Wan family's spirit fields like the back of their hand, which means their clan is riddled with leaks. Wan Yuankai must keep this matter strictly covert. At this moment, our Li family cannot clash with the Ji family under any circumstances. We need only push and support them quietly from behind." "Quite so." Li Mutian nodded in approval, took a light sip of tea, and continued, "Both families possess strength far beyond our own. For now, we must keep a low profile and build up our strength. The Ji family is aggressive and overbearing, their malice plain to see. And though the Wan family also falls under Qingchi's rule, they lie right beside our bed—we must be equally on guard against them." Li Tongya stared at the sketch for a while before suddenly speaking: "According to this map, does the Ji family border our Li family?" "They do." Li Xiangping nodded and tapped on Lidaokou, his voice solemn. "Guli Road branches here. One path runs north, leading straight into the Ji family's territory, while the other runs east toward the Wan family's lands." Pausing and noting Li Tongya's pensive look, Li Xiangping continued, "I asked Wan Yuankai about it. Over a hundred years ago, a demon beast gathered a few lesser demons and established a demon cave along that road leading to the Ji family. That road has been severed ever since. Even the Ji family abandoned that tract of land, leaving it under their nominal governance in name only." "I see," Li Tongya said with sudden understanding. "In that case, we need not fear the Ji family encroaching into our lands. As long as the Wan family doesn't fall, the Ji family cannot pose a threat here." "That demon beast is quite clever as well, having chosen the border between the Qingchi Sect and the Tangjin Sect. It stays huddled in its demon cave to cultivate, never venturing out to stir up trouble." Li Xiangping said softly, then turned toward Li Mutian. "I heard from Wan Yuankai that the Shanyue have appeared west of our lands. Father, you fought against the Shanyue back in the day—do you have any information about them?" Li Mutian waved his hand and said, "As far as appearance goes, those Shanyue people aren't much different from us, except they cut their hair and tattoo their bodies, and their tongue is unintelligible. Furthermore, the Shanyue are fond of martial combat and warlike, valuing brute strength above all else. In their tribes, they have those wretched shamans who are skilled in curses and beast-taming, making them difficult to deal with. "I don't know how effective your Evil Dispelling Technique is, but so long as it can handle their curses, our village militia is on par with the enemy, so they wouldn't be impossible to contend with." "There is no rush," Li Tongya remarked, tracing a light circle around the Li family on the map. He spoke up, "The Wan family has been repeatedly squeezed and carved up by the Ji family, while the territory Si Yuanbai allocated to our Li family is vast. Now, our Li family's land is even larger than the Wan family's. "Our lands are vast yet our population is sparse, and our Li family's strength is still humble; we are merely swollen in size without true substance. If the Shanyue do not come, we have no need to provoke them. With the Wan family holding the line in front, let our Li family develop for a few years and take full control of these territories before considering anything else."