Just then, a series of cheerful shouts came from the direction of the garden.
"What's that?"
Cao Yi looked towards the source of the sound, his expression puzzled.
Lu Gong turned his head to take a look and chuckled, "The old man doesn't like the willows in the garden; he wants to replace them all with phoenix trees."
"Phoenix trees are good. Their wood is excellent, and they are where the phoenix rests," Cao Yi praised with a smile.
Suddenly, two cries of pain rang out simultaneously.
"Can't you handle something so trivial? Clumsy and careless."
Lu Gong complained a few words and clasped his hands, hurrying over.
Cao Yi also wanted to see what was happening. As he took a few steps, he suddenly felt uncomfortable in his ears. He dug in with his finger, and a small, peanut-sized purple-gold-red gourd appeared in his palm. "You should turn back into that pocket-sized gourd," he said.
Without warning, the purple-gold-red gourd transformed into a hand-sized version, looking quite delicate and exquisite.
Cao Yi tore off part of the string on top and tied the rest around his waist, pairing it with a loose sky-blue Daoist robe, making it more like a unique decoration than a gourd.
"Let's go take a look."
Cao Yi exited the courtyard.
He quickly arrived at the garden, where a large willow tree lay horizontally on the ground. Not far away, Lu Gong and a group of servants were gathered around two other servants who were sitting on the ground.
"You lot, how can you be so careless!"
Lu Gong scolded with a displeased expression. There were over a dozen willow trees in the yard, and this was just the first one, yet it injured two servants.
"Master, it's not Zhang San and Li Si's fault; this willow is too big."
"Yes, Master."
The other uninjured servants lamented.
"You useless bunch! Usually, you boast about your abilities, but when it really matters, you all look like this. Do you believe I'll kick you all out?"
Lu Gong was furious. He treated these servants well on ordinary days, fattening them up, yet when it came time to work, none of them were up to the task.
The servants pleaded, fearing that if they left Lu's residence, they would face the harshness of the fields under the sun.
"Why aren't you going?"
Lu Gong's face darkened.
The servants, with grim expressions, walked to one side, picked up the iron hoes on the ground, and approached a large willow tree to start working.
Cao Yi watched for a while and then shook his head, walking over. "Using those tools is very labor-intensive, right?"
The servants all nodded in unison.
"Everyone step back," Cao Yi said flatly.
The servants exchanged glances and then stepped back a yard.
"Not enough," Cao Yi urged, and the servants stepped back another yard.
Cao Yi walked up to the large willow tree and hugged the trunk from behind.
"Is he really going to uproot the willow?"
"Is he crazy?"
"Even three oxen tied to a rope couldn't uproot this big willow."
The servants whispered amongst themselves.
"Lift!"
Cao Yi shouted, straining with his arms.
The ground shook as the large willow tree slowly lifted with the soil.
The servants were stunned; was this still a human?
"Master's divine strength!"
Lu Gong approached and praised loudly.
Compared to the ignorant servants, he understood just how formidable Cao Yi was.
With a rustling sound, a lot of soil fell from the roots of the willow tree.
Cao Yi gently tossed the willow tree aside.
By the time the servants came to their senses, they were cheering.
Cao Yi, with a calm expression, walked to the other large willow trees, increasing his strength, easily uprooting one after another.
The servants were dumbfounded, forgetting to cheer until they realized Cao Yi had already moved on.
"Why haven't you all cut these willows and carried them out?"
Lu Gong waved his hand enthusiastically.
The servants nodded like little chicks pecking at rice, but their eyes were all directed toward where Cao Yi lived.
In the afternoon, the sun was high, and Peixian welcomed the hottest day since spring began, as well as a chef from the twenty-first century.
Cao Yi was reading the *Yellow Court Scripture* in his room when he heard footsteps approaching the small courtyard.
"Sir, the old man has brought Gao Yao here."
Lu Gong's voice came from the door of the small courtyard.
Cao Yi put down the *Yellow Court Scripture*, adjusted his robe, and walked out, just in time to see Lu Gong, Gao Yao, and Yi Xiaochuan standing at the courtyard door.
"This is the Cao Sir you should thank for your journey," Lu Gong said, stroking his gray-white beard and smiling.
The thin and dark Gao Yao, with his messy hair, walked over and suddenly knelt down. "Thank you, Sir Cao, thank you, Sir Cao..."
"Get up quickly,"
Cao Yi said, going over to help Gao Yao.
According to the plot, this chef from the twenty-first century had suffered quite a bit this year. Without any identity, he often babbled and was treated as a madman, chased and beaten by the locals, unable to find food and wandering around. If not for a kind restaurant owner taking him in, he would have either been killed or starved.
"Thank you, Sir Cao, no, you are a Daoist Priest, thank you, Daoist Priest Cao..."
Gao Yao continued to express his gratitude non-stop.
Tears streamed down his face, mixing with the dirt, making him look utterly miserable.
"Lu Gong, have someone take Gao Xianshi to wash up; he might get sick like this,"
Cao Yi said to Lu Gong.
"Alright, Gao Yao, come with me,"
Lu Gong nodded.
Gao Yao bowed twice more before following Lu Gong away.
In the evening, with beautiful sunset clouds as a backdrop, Cao Yi enjoyed the best meal since arriving in this world.
Although Gao Yao was a skilled cook, he had been in a difficult situation, but fortunately, when Cao Yi left the world of *The Dragon Seeking Technique*, he had purchased many daily necessities—iron pots and various ingredients…
Now, it was past nine o'clock at night, and the entire Lu residence was quiet.
In the small courtyard where Cao Yi stayed, the oil lamp was still lit.
"I have something here; you should take a look. It will make your journey through time worthwhile,"
Cao Yi said, taking out the Bianhua flower stone plate with a calm expression.
Yi Xiaochuan and Gao Yao both looked puzzled.
"This looks like a stone plate, but inside is a seed of the Bianhua flower,"
Cao Yi explained.
Gao Yao, who dealt with food all day, knew very little about the Bianhua flower, and he still looked confused after hearing that.
Yi Xiaochuan, who loved photography and outdoor activities, was quite familiar with the Bianhua flower: "The red Bianhua flower, also known as Manjusha, comes in red and white varieties. Legend has it that red Bianhua blooms in hell, while white Bianhua blooms in heaven... but that's just a legend; it's no different from ordinary flowers."
"My Bianhua flower truly comes from the banks of the Wangchuan River,"
Cao Yi smiled and said.
"What?"
Yi Xiaochuan looked shocked.
"The Bianhua flower can reveal a person's past and future. Do you want to take a look?"
Cao Yi asked with a smile.
"Can we see the future?" Yi Xiaochuan's eyes lit up. "If I know how I leave this world, can't I just leave ahead of time?"
Gao Yao, who had been silent, also showed a look of joy. With no past and having been bullied here, he wanted to leave this world even more than Yi Xiaochuan.