"Thank you very much for your time, Elder Bing. If there are other matters, Hao Yu will take care of them. He is a smart kid, so a simple word should be enough for him to understand." Leng Xiu cupped his hands again.
"Mhmm." Elder Bing nodded his head. He had heard about the incident involving the previous elder and the administrator, so he could understand why they would be wary of him.
While his personality wasn't as bad as the previous elder, he still acted high and mighty in their eyes. So, Elder Bing added, "Don't worry. As long as you don't bother me with every single thing, I don't care much about it. However, if you encounter something that you can't solve, you may come to me. This project is also for the sake of cultivators, so I don't mind making a move."
"Thank you very much, Elder." Hao Yu also cupped his hands. After politely bidding their farewell, Hao Yu and Leng Xiu climbed down the mountain.
"You don't have to worry about it anymore, Hao Yu. While he is like that, he is still more reasonable than the previous elder." Leng Xiu let out a sigh of relief.
"I have heard about that incident, but I haven't heard anything about the previous elder. What kind of man was he?"
"He?" Leng Xiu recalled the information. "I actually replaced the previous magistrate because of that incident, so I didn't know much. But from what I know, that elder was too arrogant. If you showed a skill better than his, you would be killed. He thought of us only as ants, and ants couldn't surpass a human."
"Woah…" Hao Yu looked extremely annoyed and disgusted.
"I know, right? In any case, I'll leave the project to you. Is that fine?"
"Yes. You may continue with other projects, Sir."
"Ah, there's one more thing. About that brothel thing, you can take your time with that."
Hao Yu remembered that one of Leng Xiu's tasks required him to create a plan for the brothel. But since he hadn't gone there yet, he didn't know the details. So, he just nodded his head since he still had a long time here.
Hao Yu returned to the construction site and supervised the progress. While waiting, Hao Yu took out a map of the dynasty.
"East, east… Is there something big going on in the east?" Hao Yu frowned. Although he had been keeping tabs on what was happening in the dynasty, it was impossible to know everything. So, he had a hard time recalling the project that would involve the cultivator and government at the same time. "I can't remember."
"Is there something wrong, Sir?" Old Si approached Noel, who looked confused after opening the map.
"Wha-! Old Si!" Hao Yu seemed to have become a bit too fixated, and he didn't realize what was happening around him. He had tried to calm down, but it seemed that the hatred had taken over again. He thought, 'This is not good… I can't continue like this. If I can't remain calm, the enemy will realize my intention.'
The vivid image of her father lying lifelessly before him was something that he had a hard time accepting, especially with the fact that his father had become a punching bag until he died tragically.
Hao Yu took a deep breath and offered a smile to Old Si. "Ah. I'm just trying to recall some information. The Magistrate told me something interesting is going on in the east. So, I'm wondering if there is something like that."
"Something interesting? In the east?" Old Si tilted his head in confusion and looked at the map. "While I'm not an official, I'm the head servant who had been assisting the previous administrator. So, let me recall for a bit."
Old Si traced the map to the east, looking at the names of the towns it passed. He eventually stopped at a town called Donghai City. "I think this is the one you're talking about, Sir."
"This place?" Hao Yu frowned. Looking at the map, Hao Yu knew that this city was a perfect city that connected multiple cities. Not only that, but the city was also connected with the longest river that the dynasty had. In fact, the Dragon City should have strived forward to replicate what this city had done.
"If I'm not wrong, the previous administrator told me that this city was facing a huge crisis. While they were still among the top cities, they had to cease their actions for two reasons."
"Tell me about it."
"I understand. It's said that not far from this city appeared a monumental cave. It was said to be an inheritance of a strong cultivator or something, so the cultivators are flocking to this city. But no one knows how to enter it, so they are still searching for answers there. And the second reason is… those cultivators are creating problems and making the people a bit inclined to visit the city."
"I see. They are afraid that they will be targeted by those cultivators."
"Yes. While the dynasty has given the special privilege to enforce rules even on cultivators, it's hard to do your job when there is a blade constantly hanging on your neck. Though, that agreement has been established by the dynasty and the sects."
"Donghai City, huh… The cultivators and an inheritance cave…" Hao Yu fell silent for a moment. It felt like he had heard something like this in the past, but he had a hard time recalling.
After several minutes, there was a flash of an image appearing in his mind related to this matter.
Back then, Hao Yu was sitting on the floor while staring at a woman who leaned on the window, staring at the city.
"Hao Yu. Master has told me to move to a certain city. It's a bit far from you, but it's a city filled with opportunity. So, I'll be building myself there and see if I can milk those cultivators dry. I'll definitely create a money empire that even cultivators are afraid of… and that empire is built by their own money."
Hao Yu only stared at her with amusement. "And where is that city?"
She smiled. "Donghai City. Don't miss me, alright?"
"You jest, Senior Sister."