The wild boar dug for an hour, excavating a pit five meters deep, but found no trace of the land reclaimer.
He did not give up. Climbing out of the deep pit, he sprawled across the wasteland to rest for a moment, only to see a slender woman propping up the upper half of her body, applying rouge and powder with more than a dozen arms to groom herself.
She was a house centipede, an old acquaintance of the boar.
The boar barked angrily, "I haven't left yet! What do you think you're doing, barging in?"
The centipede laughed. "Old Boar, look closely. I still have a foot outside the boundary line, so technically I haven't entered the plot. But then again, you've been searching here all night. It's time you made room for someone else."
Old Boar snorted coldly. "What's the rush? I still have more than half a day left!"
According to the local spirit's rules, on a plot spanning one li across, only one aberrant could enter at a time to conduct the land reclaimer's trial, and each aberrant could stay on the wasteland for at most a day and a night.
Before then, for the boar to leave early, only two situations could occur: first, the reclaimer was no match for the boar, suffering total defeat while the boar won completely.
Second, the boar was no match for the reclaimer, forfeited the trial, and withdrew on his own.
Neither scenario was likely to happen now.
Because there was no one fighting the boar.
So one simply had to wait.
The boar resumed digging. He kept at it until nightfall when his time ran out, and only then did he leave in sullen frustration.
"If you ask me, there's no land reclaimer here at all. The local spirit's just duping us," the boar grumbled.
The centipede woman sneered. "Go complain to the local spirit, then. Tell him there's no reclaimer here—maybe he'll give you a handsome reward."
The boar was in no mood to bicker with her. He glanced back at the wasteland, eyes brimming with resentment.
"If you're useless, clear out already," the centipede woman urged. "Reclaimers who know parlor tricks like this are always scheming. You definitely won't get a bite. Wait until next time when you run into one without any tricks, then try your luck again."
The boar did not wander far. He sat beside the boundary line, watching in silence. He wanted to know where on earth this land reclaimer was hiding.
The centipede woman stepped onto the plot. Unlike the boar, she did not thrash about blindly. After scrutinizing the terrain, she shook her body, releasing dozens of tiny house centipedes.
Seeing this, the boar bellowed, "Only one can enter at a time! You brought so many children—that's breaking the rules!"
The centipede gave a cold laugh. "Widen your eyes and look properly! How are these my children? These are my legs!"
More than half the legs on her body were gone; the little centipedes were all transformed from her own limbs.
Should there be the slightest movement on this land, it could not escape her sight.
***
Inside the Portable Abode, Li Banfeng was bored out of his mind.
A journey cultivator's practice could be sustained temporarily with pills, but a journey cultivator's natural disposition could not be suppressed.
He wanted to go outside for a stroll.
The gramophone also urged him to go: "Husband, after resting for so long, it's about time you went out to buy groceries."
Li Banfeng pushed open the door and took a step outside, only for an intense wave of malice to wash over him.
Sprawled at the center of the plot, the centipede woman had been resting with her eyes closed, but the instant she sensed the scent of a living person, her eyes snapped open. She immediately scuttled toward the Portable Abode.
Unfortunately, she had shed far too many of her legs, which slowed her down.
Li Banfeng reacted fast enough as well, immediately slamming the door of the Portable Abode shut.
The centipede woman pounced on empty air, finding no sign of the land reclaimer.
The gramophone caught a whiff of the scent and said to Li Banfeng, "It felt like a bug was trying to crawl in just now. Husband, if she wants to come, let her come. Your humble servant isn't picky."
"What's good about a bug? A hard shell, full of sharp barbs, and hardly any meat."
His wife giggled. "The one who eats meat is that slut Red Lotus. Your humble servant eats souls, so I'm not afraid of barbs."
Li Banfeng was not worried about the bug; what worried him was being spotted by the local spirit and having it counted as cheating.
Better not to wander outside after all. It was rare to enjoy a few leisurely days at home.
Li Banfeng sat by the table, lifted a cup of tea, and leisurely browsed through a newspaper.
***
With only one day left before the Paramount's official opening, Yang Yanzheng had still failed to invite Ma the Fifth.
"Miss, I've been to Lanyang Village three times now. The Fifth Young Master truly isn't there. He went to the newland."
"What did he go to the newland for? Hunting? He's already become the head honcho of Lanyang Village, why would he go hunting?" Chu the Second was deeply skeptical.
Skepticism changed nothing; Yang Yanzheng genuinely could not find Ma the Fifth.
"I never should have let him live so comfortably in the first place! He should have been left to beg in the streets—then he wouldn't have such an attitude!" In a fit of rage, Chu the Second poked a hole in her own cheek with a dagger.
After fuming for a while, Chu the Second turned her wrath on Yang Yanzheng. "Those useless wretches you hired weren't good for anything! Ma the Fifth didn't even have a single tier to his name, yet those wastes couldn't even handle him!"
At this, Yang Yanzheng had to defend himself: "Miss, if it were only Ma the Fifth, those men would have been more than enough. Who knew Li the Seventh would jump in out of nowhere? That's why our people were wiped out."
"Li the Seventh..." Chu the Second constantly reminded herself to keep an eye on that man, yet she invariably ended up overlooking him.
After a brief silence, Chu the Second suddenly smiled. "He sounds like quite the fascinating character. On opening day, invite him over for a seat as well."
"I did. Sent invitations to both of them. Li the Seventh isn't in the village either; he went to the newland along with the Fifth Young Master."
Chu the Second dabbed some powder over her wound. "The two of them went together? Neither stayed behind to watch the house? Could there be some treasure in the newland?"
While she pondered, someone announced that the Lu family's Second Young Master, Lu Yuanhai, had arrived to see her.
Chu the Second's brow knit slightly. She could guess his motive well enough. Ordering a maid to brew tea, she had Yang Yanzheng usher him inside.
Lu Yuanhai was twenty-five, two years older than Chu the Second, and she had always called him Brother Hai.
"Brother Hai, did you come to bring me congratulations today? Don't call your little sister greedy, but when your business opened back then, I gave you a red envelope with a thousand silver dollars. Now that my business is opening, shouldn't you give two thousand?"
Lu Yuanhai gave a wry smile. "Never mind two thousand. Little Sister, say the word, and twenty thousand is easy."
Chu the Second gave an affectionate smile and playfully pouted. "Brother Hai, you aren't just teasing me, are you? Your little sister takes things seriously very easily."
Lu Yuanhai nodded, getting down to business. "Little Sister, I truly came to give you money. The Paramount is the Lu family's business. In the end, what belongs to the Lu family must return to the Lu family. You should understand what I mean."
"I don't," Chu the Second said, lowering her head and rolling her eyes upward to stare at Lu Yuanhai. "The deed to the property and the land deed for the Paramount are both in my hands. On what grounds do you insist it's your Lu family's business?"
Lu Yuanhai sighed. "Little Sister, I know what Second Uncle did, which is why I came to bring you money. You gave him eight hundred thousand silver dollars. I'll pay you that exact sum—eight hundred thousand silver dollars—to buy the Paramount back."
"Eight hundred thousand?" Chu the Second scoffed. "You think you can just buy it back because you say so? I poured so much effort into this and sold off so much of my own property—how do you account for that?"
"One million!" Lu Yuanhai offered generously. "That's the highest amount I have the authority to decide. If you're still not satisfied, I can go back and discuss it with Uncle Qiu. Huaiyuan, am I showing enough sincerity?"
"Your sincerity is plenty," Chu the Second said with a smile. She lit a cigarette and took a drag. "But I don't want to sell. Even if you offer two million, I won't sell. The Paramount is mine. Right now its surname is Chu—it belongs to me, Chu Huaiyuan. Tomorrow is our grand opening. Brother Hai, if you think anything of me, come show your support. If you look down on me, just pretend we never knew each other."
Lu Yuanhai sat in silence for a moment, draped his coat over his shoulders, stood up, and left.
He left, but the matter was far from over. That evening, Chu Huaiyuan's elder brother, Chu Huaijun, arrived.
"Huaiyuan, the Paramount belongs to the Lu family. It's best we don't get involved in this. Lu Yuanhai came to see me today and said they're willing to pay extra to take it back. Why not do a favor, go along with it, and return the Paramount to them?"
Chu the Second was not having it. "Eldest Brother, when we divided the family estate, it was clearly stated: if something major happens to the family, I'll defer to Eldest Brother. In all other minor affairs, we make our own decisions. What? Have the rules changed today?"
"The Paramount affair is a major matter!"
"Business matters are my own business. There's no need for Eldest Brother to worry over them!"
Chu Huaijun's brow furrowed tightly, his temper rising. "Fine. Second Sister is capable, and your elder brother shouldn't meddle. But there's one thing we must make clear: you took over the Paramount yourself. It has nothing to do with the Chu family."
Chu the Second laughed. "Don't worry. Even if the sky falls, it won't fall on Eldest Brother!"
Chu Huaijun stood up and said, "Huaiyuan, let me remind you of one more thing. The Lu family might have run into trouble, but they haven't fallen yet."
***
At dusk the following day, the Paramount Songstress Contest was about to begin.
Chu the Second had selected twelve popular singing stars to perform in turns.
She had chosen sixty distinguished guests from the major families, preparing six bouquets of roses for each. Whichever star they favored, they would present her with flowers; whoever received the most flowers would be crowned songstress of the night.
Besides these sixty distinguished guests, there were three hundred seats reserved for other prominent figures in Lüshui City.
For the remaining guests of slightly lesser status, Chu the Second had also set aside general admission seats.
The band had arrived early, the songstresses had rehearsed their stage walks several times, and reporters and photographers had taken their places one after another.
The grand dance floor on the second floor was fully prepared, and a banquet was readied in the first-floor dining hall for further entertainment after the contest concluded.
Chu the Second had not only prepared a banquet; rooms on the third floor were also tidied up. The songstress could sing on stage, and she could sing in the private rooms as well. Opening today, Chu the Second had spared no expense, determined to secure a flying start.
According to Chu the Second's schedule, the contest was set to open at seven in the evening.
By six-forty, not a single guest had arrived.
Chu the Second was so anxious her scalp prickled. She ordered Yang Yanzheng to hurry and send men to summon people.
Yang Yanzheng dispatched his men, but they waited until seven-twenty, and still no one came!
The Songstress Contest had flopped just like that.
The band and songstresses waited on stage.
Chu the Second sat beneath the empty stage, her expression somewhat dazed.
At seven-thirty, a guest finally arrived.
Monkey Qiu strolled into the grand dance floor and found a seat.
He was alone.
In a grand ballroom capable of holding over a thousand people, only a single person had shown up.
Chu the Second looked at Qiu Zhiheng and asked, "Uncle Qiu, what is the meaning of this?"
Monkey Qiu had a look of astonishment. "I came to show my support! Today is your opening day. I received an invitation, and I even brought a congratulatory gift."
Chu the Second gritted her teeth. "Uncle Qiu, I took over the Paramount. It is mine."
Monkey Qiu looked even more surprised. "No one said it isn't yours. When is the contest starting? I haven't given out my roses yet."
***
In the newland of Lanyang Village, the nearly frozen centipede woman retreated from the plot and sat shivering beside the wild boar.
The boar had not stayed waiting the whole time; he had gone hunting, eaten and drank his fill, and returned to watch the spectacle.
Sniffling, the centipede woman said, "If you ask me, there's no land reclaimer here at all."
The boar scoffed. "Go ahead, go complain to the local spirit."
The centipede woman had failed. A golden eagle entered the plot, rising and swooping, stopping and going, seemingly able to pick up some traces.
***
The next day at seven in the evening, the Paramount did not have a single customer.
Chu the Second did not know what method Monkey Qiu had used to frighten everyone away from stepping foot inside the Paramount.
The Paramount had only just opened, yet it was virtually no different from being shut down.
To say there was no difference at all was not entirely true.
Songstresses, the band, waiters, odd-job workers—all of them cost money.
Chu the Second looked at Yang Yanzheng in silence.
Yang Yanzheng kept his head lowered and said nothing.
Wen Hongyan clamped a wine glass in the crook of her elbow and took a sip.
She understood now why Chu the Second had been so insistent on having Ma the Fifth manage the Paramount.
Though looking at it now, even if Ma the Fifth were here, he probably could not change anything either.
Perhaps that was why he had been avoiding Chu the Second all along.
***
The golden eagle dejectedly departed from the plot, and the halo along the boundary line vanished.
The reclamation trial was over!
Two hours later, Li Banfeng stepped out of the Portable Abode.
The reason he had waited an extra two hours was that he was not certain whether he had truly succeeded in reclaiming the land.
Looking up at the sky, there seemed to be a faint glow casting down through the night, though it was not very distinct.
Li Banfeng wanted to change his angle, thinking he might see more clearly. After taking two steps, his foot slipped, and he nearly tumbled into a pit.
Who dug such a huge pit here? And dug it so deep?
This pit had been dug by the wild boar.
Inside this pit over five meters deep, Li Banfeng seemed to catch sight of a glow as well.
No, not a glow—it was shimmering ripples.
There was water in the pit!
Chapter 146