"Although it is but a few meager acres, it is still the family's heritage, you... truly wish to sell it?"
In the ancient-styled hall, a middle-aged man dressed in a robe and garb of an officer sat in a high seat, looking down at Xu Yang and two others below, then at the land deed in his hand, his expression filled with a playfully complex sentiment.
Xu Yang nodded and said in a deep voice, "Not only the land, but my siblings and I, all three of us, are willing to sell ourselves into servitude to the Lu Family in hope that Officer Lu will show mercy and provide us three siblings with a place to live, to shelter us from the wind and rain!"
"Hmm~!"
Officer Lu stroked his beard and appraised Xu Yang with half-closed eyes, then smiled and said, "I have heard about the affairs of your family, and indeed, you have been somewhat excessive. Very well, I will take these acres. As for the three of you siblings... you will come to my house and work as a laborer, and these acres will still be under your family's care. How does that sound?"
"Many thanks, my lord!"
Upon hearing this, Xu Yang did not say much, simply bowing his head and expressing his gratitude.
Officer Lu glanced at him, a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth, then he passed the land deed to the steward next to him: "Zhang Fu, you will handle this matter. Speak with the Li Family properly, and ensure no misunderstandings arise!"
"Yes, my lord!"
Steward Zhang Fu took the land deed and motioned to Xu Yang and the others: "Follow me."
Xu Yang nodded, leading Li Qinghe and Li Hongyu away from the hall.
Little Yellow Village was home to two prominent families with the surnames Li and Lu.
Though from the same village, the relationship between the two families was not good, and disputes were frequent.
Hence, Xu Yang, carrying the land deed and accompanied by his siblings, resolutely sought refuge with the Lu Family, even at the cost of enslaving themselves.
This was a step taken out of necessity; that bastard Li Laojiu had some ties to the powerful Li Family of the Li Clan, and Xu Yang had just severely extorted those extortioners, virtually alienating all of his kin.
Given this, where else could they find shelter within the Li Clan?
To prevent revenge from Li Laojiu and avoid further troubles from the Li Clan, Xu Yang decisively sold himself to the Lu Family.
The Lu Family, like the Li Family, was a major household in Little Yellow Village; the two families were competitors and could be considered old rivals.
Officer Lu, known far and wide as a great philanthropist, naturally did not mind taking in Xu Yang, a person ostracized by the Li Family.
Doing so, he not only acquired a good reputation but also got one over on his old rival. On top of that, he gained a few acres of land—a case of killing three birds with one stone, a win for both honor and profit!
As for the violent methods and the chaos Xu Yang had caused at the Li Family's expense, Officer Lu was unconcerned. It was common for mountain folk to be fierce, especially a youth with vigorous Qi Blood.
Seeing someone bring ruin upon his own house in a fit of passion was quite normal, and there was no need to worry about welcoming such a household slave as a potential threat, let alone that the deeds for the land and property were securely in hand, leaving no room for any waves to be made.
Such a person, if tamed well, would be a loyal dog, and in a few generations, the Lu Family would have more servants of clean background and unwavering loyalty, a pleasant prospect indeed?
...
Thus, after a busy half-day, this matter finally came to a conclusion.
Xu Yang sold the land deeds, property, and even himself and his siblings to the Lu Family and were now servants of the Lu Family.
The Lu Family also kept their promise and resolved the matter of Li Laojiu, causing the Li Family to lose some face, neither too great nor too small.
As a result, the grudge held by the Li Family was certainly inevitable, and members of the Li Clan would likely curse him behind his back and perhaps even seek trouble with him in secret.
But Xu Yang did not care in the slightest. As long as it wasn't an overt life-threatening action, he simply didn't give it any thought.
All he needed was time, a period of stable development.
"Brother!"
That night, at home, Li Qinghe and Li Hongyu looked at their elder brother, full of confusion, having returned after selling themselves into servitude: "Is it really okay to do this, that Lu Family... does not seem to be made of good people!"
"Whether they are good or not isn't important,"
Xu Yang shook his head and said with a light laugh, "What's important is that they can handle the Li Family, understand?"
"This…"
The siblings wanted to say more, but upon meeting Xu Yang's gaze, the words caught in their throats, and all they could do was nod in agreement, "Understood."
"It's good that you understand,"
Xu Yang nodded and said solemnly, "Just endure for a few years, I already have plans, don't worry!"
No wonder Li Qinghe and Li Hongyu were worried; Xu Yang's decision was indeed debatable. Although the Li Family was not made of good people, the Lu Family was not any better, yet Xu Yang had sold his entire family to them, which seemed utterly foolish.
Now, not only had the three siblings lost their land, but they had also lost their freedom. Their lives were entirely in the hands of the Lu Family, alive or dead at their whim.
To have come to such a juncture, it might have been better to swallow the past grudges and feign compliance with Li Laojiu and others.
After all, he too was a member of the Li Clan, and the Li Family would not go too far; the intentions of the Lu Family, however, were uncertain. To forsake one's clan for a moment's arrogance and sell oneself to the Lu Family was sheer stupidity.
But this was merely how ordinary people saw the situation.
For Xu Yang, things like lands and deeds were worthless.
They were not the foundation of his existence nor the crux of his fate!
His foundation lay in the Attribute Panel and Skill Traits; as long as he could cultivate powerful skills and traits, nobody would be able to hold him down.
Unfortunately, this Attribute Panel had one flaw, which was that one couldn't actively assign points. If I wanted to develop skills, I had to practice and accumulate experience until the skills formed.
Therefore, Xu Yang needed time, a period of stable development time, to cultivate powerful skills and traits.
For this reason, he resolutely beat up Li Laojiu, intimidated the others into paying their dues, and even turned against the Li Clan, crafting for himself an image of a brash and butcherous character. This deterred those plotting evil schemes; otherwise, after dealing with a Li Laojiu, there would emerge a Li Laojiu, Li Laojiu.
It's the simple truth that if one is too kind, one will be bullied, and if a horse is too gentle, it will be ridden hard!
With this deterrence in place and then binding himself to the Lu Family, using them as a powerful backer, he would surely sleep soundly for years to come.
Besides, selling himself and his lands had also netted him a sum of Silver Coins, which were perfect for seed capital.
Next was to use this precious development time and the starting capital from selling himself and the land to focus on practicing skills. There was no ambition for domination, just a need to ensure a foothold in the village.
With the Attribute Panel, as long as I could firmly establish myself in the early stages, I could grow and expand, gradually exploring this world, utilizing its various resources to change the difficult circumstances in the real world.
So...
"It's late, go to sleep!"
Xu Yang comforted a worried Li Qinghe and Li Hongyu, then lay down on the bed and fell asleep.
Meanwhile, in the real world, on a covered boat...
Xu Yang opened his eyes, got up efficiently, took out the coarse rice he had bought the day before, grabbed a handful and stuffed it into his mouth, chewing vigorously.
In the dream of Zhuanzhou Mengdie, the flow of time between the two realms was vast. He could not afford to linger too long in reality, or "Li Qing San" would not just die of thirst or hunger, he would be buried alive as if dead by others.
Therefore, there was no time to prepare food; he had to gulp down the rice raw, eating as quickly as possible before returning to the world of Mengdie.
The coarse rice was rough to begin with, and eating it raw was tough, but fortunately, Xu Yang's eating skill included the trait "Chewing." His strong teeth effortlessly crushed the coarse grains, and swiftly, he had ingested nearly half a bag of coarse rice.
After swallowing nearly half a bag of coarse rice and gulping down a few ladles of water, his previously somewhat empty stomach quickly bloated.
Seeing this, Xu Yang lay back down without a word and fell asleep again.
His eating skill had now reached a point where one meal could last as long as ten. This single meal could sustain him for three to four days, even five to six days. In the world of Mengdie, that translated to five to six years, more than enough to complete his initial development plan.
...
In the world of Mengdie, the crowing of a rooster woke up Xu Yang.
To say he woke up wasn't quite accurate, for he hadn't slept at all. Given the 365-fold difference in time flow, he had just finished eating in the real world, and a whole night had already passed in Mengdie, barely leaving any time for sleep.
But he was still full of energy. After freshening up, he said goodbye to Li Qinghe and Li Hongyu and headed to the Lu Family.
He planned to seek a job, as it would help him develop his skills.
As for what kind of job, he had already planned it out.
The Lu Family, being landlords with ancestors who had been imperial scholars, had accumulated a formidable fortune over the generations, well-known not just in Little Yellow Village but also for miles around.
In an agricultural society, land was everything, but the income of large landlords wasn't solely derived from farming or renting out land.
Growing crops and collecting rent?
That would only bring in so much.
For true landlords and gentry, leasing out land and exploiting tenants were just one of many revenue streams, securing the most basic income from grain.
To grow and strengthen their holdings, they had to employ other means, such as renting out land, lending with high interest, seizing properties forcefully, monopolizing salt and iron, breeding slaves, trafficking people, evading taxes, and so on...
In doing so, generation after generation accumulated wealth, becoming the local tycoons and even monopolists, forming the base of the ruling system, governing the world together with the royal family and noble clans.
The Li and Lu families of Little Yellow Village, although not to that extent, were still considered local powerhouses, engaging in plenty of semi-legal shady dealings.
For such a family business to remain stable, significant martial protection was essential, and both families maintained quite a few house guards and even hired Martial Instructors.
Xu Yang originally wanted to become a house guard, learning martial arts from the instructors along the way, but he soon dismissed this idea.
It wasn't that he didn't want to learn martial arts, but he was aware of his limits. For guards like these, the most important qualities were an untainted background and unwavering loyalty, as they mostly employed home-grown sons. As an outsider with the last name Li, even if he sold himself to the Lu Family, he would have no right to such a position, and seeking it would be humiliating.
So...
"Steward Zhang, I would like to seek a job as a butcher. I hope you can help,"
Xu Yang approached Zhang Fu, the steward who had handled the paperwork for his indenture the day before, got straight to the point about his intentions, and handed over a small pouch of coins.
"Oh?"
Zhang Fu, unashamed, took the pouch and weighed it for a moment before looking up at Xu Yang, "You know how to slaughter pigs and cattle?"
"Not really!"
Xu Yang shook his head, smiling lightly, "But I have the strength, and I've hunted animals before. It shouldn't be hard to learn."
"I see... Alright, it just so happens we're short-staffed over there. I'll assign you as an apprentice!"
Zhang Fu, pondering the weight of the pouch, eventually agreed after some thought.
"Thank you, Steward Zhang!"