Having extracted all the information he could from Wan Yuankai, Li Xiangping finally bid farewell to the disappointed Wan Yuankai. He carefully packed away the draft in his hand and returned to Lijing Village with Li Yesheng.
Thanks to the annual taxes continuously delivered from nearby villages, the Li Family was able to support more artisans. These people mainly constructed small courtyards in the rear hills, and during slack periods, they also took care of the maintenance of Lijing Village.
After half a year of repairs, Lijing Village had changed its appearance; the polished bluestones were pieced together one by one, stretching from the entrance of the Li Family's home to the village entrance. As the village's main thoroughfare, it radiated the influence of the hub of power of these various villages.
The wealthy households in the village also started to mimic the Li Family's green brick and tile houses, renovating their own mud-and-thatch houses. Liu Linfeng and others did not dare to use green bricks but instead chose second-rate white bricks and used lime to outline the seams of the walls. Though not as eye-catching or fine-looking as green bricks with white seams, they still appeared quite impressive.
From a distance, looking toward the cluster of buildings behind the village, the courtyards made of white bricks surrounded the main house of green bricks and grey tiles, and amidst the misty rain, they even bore the flavor of a small town in South River.
Upon returning to the courtyard, Li Xiangping saw Li Mutian resting there with Li Xuanxuan. Li Mutian was spirited and brisk, holding a teacup in his hand, sitting by the table as if he had moved beyond the grief of having lost a son years ago.
Nowadays, Li Mutian didn't manage many affairs, but no one dared underestimate the old man. Although Li Mutian was just an ordinary person, Li Yesheng and the others feared him much more than Li Tongya and Li Xiangping.
"Xuan'er!"
Li Xiangping smiled and picked up the flying Li Xuanxuan. The child was now of age to begin schooling, and the Li Family had hired Han Wenxu as his tutor. Li Xuanxuan was bright and quick-witted, making teaching him effortless.
"Today I went to the reeds with Xiewen. He said that when Uncle Yesheng was little, he used to herd ducks there!"
Li Xuanxuan said with a giggle while hugging Li Xiangping, speaking in a childlike voice.
The Li Family had arranged a marriage for Li Yesheng, and Li Xiewen was his child. Merely over two years old, he ran around following Li Xuanxuan every day.
"That's right."
Li Yesheng, standing behind, replied with a smiling face.
"Call your second brother back."
Li Xiangping turned his head and smiled as he gave the order, watching Li Yesheng leave with an obedient response, gradually moving further away. Then he turned his gaze toward Li Xuanxuan.
"Back then, your third uncle was catching fish right beside you. Those fish were so fat, covered in green scales, slippery as could be."
Li Xiangping put him down and pinched Li Xuanxuan's little face, but his gaze drifted, staring into the distance as if he had sunk into some profound memory.
"That fish was the tastiest fish I've ever eaten, a heavenly fish, a celestial being among the fish..."
"And what about the Wan Family?"
Li Mutian glanced down low, put the tea he was holding onto the table, and interrupted Li Xiangping.
"They are far more powerful than our Li Family, with a long and distinguished history. Within the clan is the Family Head with the cultivation level of the Yujing Wheel, and they also have Wan Yuankai, who, despite his young age, has achieved the level of Green Yuan."
Li Xiangping patted Li Xuanxuan and let the child go and play on his own before he raised his head and replied.
As he spoke, Li Tongya stepped into the courtyard with a solemn expression, found a place to sit down, and listened carefully to Li Xiangping's recount.
Li Xiangping went through all of Wan Yuankai's words in one go, then picked up the teacup and began to drink heartily as he looked at the two of them.
"If the Wan Family is indeed pressured from within and without, and can be helped, then help them. The Ji Family is just a stone's throw away; should the Wan Family truly fall, it will be a case of 'when the lips are gone, the teeth will be cold', and our Li Family will likely be next."
Li Tongya listened silently to Li Xiangping's words, then lifted the draft and looked at it.
"The Wan Family needs to be saved, but there must be a rescue method that benefits the Li Family the most, Xiangping, listen," Li Mutian narrowed his eyes, raised his eyebrows, quietly gazed at the tea in his cup, and then continued:
"If the Wan Family says the Ji Family is taking their Spirit Rice, then we reply like this—just say the Li Family still has spare Spiritual Fields, but no one to work them. Ask them to send someone to our Li Family to grow rice right here. Our family will take thirty percent of the harvest. If Wan Yuankai really sends someone, then it's certain that the Wan Family is truly troubled by the Ji Family and in a dire situation."
"Exactly,"
Li Xiangping nodded, clearly sharing his father's train of thought, and said solemnly:
"However, the Ji Family knows the Wan Family's Spiritual Fields like the back of their hand, so their insides must have become a sieve. We must have Wan Yuankai do this in secret. Right now, our Li Family absolutely must not confront the Ji Family. It's enough to subtly support from behind the Wan Family."
"Correct,"
Li Mutian nodded approvingly, took a gentle sip of his tea, and continued:
"The strength of those two families far exceeds ours. At this moment, we still need to keep a low profile and build up our strength. The Ji Family is aggressively overbearing, and their intentions must be condemned, while the Wan Family, though under Green Pond's jurisdiction, must still be guarded against by the side of our bed."
Li Tongya looked at the map for a long while before suddenly saying:
"Does this map show the Ji Family bordering our Li Family?"
"Yes,"
Li Xiangping nodded, pointed at Lidao Entrance, and said gravely:
"The ancient Lidao splits here, one road going north, leading directly to the Ji Family's territory, and one going east, to the Wan Family's territory."
After a pause, seeing Li Tongya deep in thought, Li Xiangping continued:
"I asked Wan Yuankai. Over a hundred years ago, a demon gathered a few lesser demons and built a Demon Cave on the road leading to the Ji Family. Since then, that road was abandoned, and even the land next to the Ji Family was forsaken, merely nominally under their control."
"I see," Li Tongya said, enlightened. "In that case, we need not fear the Ji Family entering our lands, as long as the Wan Family does not fall, the Ji Family can never threaten this place."
"That demon is also clever, choosing the boundary between the Green Pond Sect and the Tang Jin Sect. It just focuses on cultivating in its Demon Cave and doesn't come out to cause trouble,"
Li Xiangping said softly, turning his head towards Li Mutian:
"According to Wan Yuankai, there have been Shanyue sightings west of our lands. Father, when you fought with the Shanyue back then, did you hear any news about them?"
Li Mutian waved his hand and said:
"In appearance, those Shanyue people differ little from us, apart from cutting their hair and tattooing their bodies and the language barrier. Moreover, Shanyue are martial and accustomed to fighting, valuing strength highly. Their tribes have 'Laozi' shamans who are skilled in cursing and controlling beasts and are not easy to deal with."
"I don't know how effective your Exorcism Techniques are, but as long as they can counter those curses, the village militia is on par with the enemy, so they're not impossible to confront."
"No rush,"
Li Tongya spoke, his finger lightly tracing a circle over the Li Family on the map, and said:
"The Wan Family has suffered multiple encroachments and carve-ups from the Ji Family, and Si Yuanbai has allocated a large area to our Li Family. At present, the territory of our Li Family is even larger than that of the Wan Family."
"With vast lands and sparse population, our Li Family's strength is minimal, nothing but false prosperity. There's no need to provoke the Shanyue if they do not come to us. We can rely on the Wan Family to defend the front line. We wait for our Li Family to develop for a few years, to fully grasp these domains before we talk of other matters."