This isn't a problem that Transcendent power can solve, contradictions have never been just about overt rebellion, unless the Zhao family could kill everyone.
Only Yu Hua quietly watched all this, from the plain black silhouette in her mind, she saw armored cavalry, saw that a chaotic era was approaching, saw an ordinary man's certainty about the chaos.
Yet now, Daqian was ruled by a Lord Emperor, a Venerable of great power.
She increasingly felt that Gu Wen was special.
-----------------
At the mansion gate.
Gu Wen scooped a spoonful of well water and drank it, the water was cool and sweet, the Fate Diagram triggered no reaction.
Yet the True Qi within his body became active, this might be what they call Spiritual Energy, no wonder so many wealthy families eagerly sought the "Sweet Water Well."
If it weren't for Zhao Feng being a Prince, he probably wouldn't have been able to keep such a fine thing in his own hands. It seems that there are many things in Bianjing that I don't know about, those sparse and ordinary items, might hold some mysterious aspects.
And these great clans are like monopolizing knowledge, even Gu Wen, after guarding the Water House for three years, had only become a chief waterman. Without cultivation methods, racking his brains would also be useless.
Only, the Heavenly Marrow is not Spiritual Energy, of little use to me.
"Lift it inside."
He, along with two sturdy watermen from the Water House, carried a wooden bucket about half the height of a man into the mansion, at one point they passed a rather high step, one man misstepped and the whole bucket tilted, Gu Wen quickly reached out and steadied it.
Although he did not lift it up completely, merely helping to support it for a moment, a bucket of water still weighed around a hundred pounds. Gu Wen lifted it effortlessly, a feeling of lifting light as if it were heavy hung over him.
The two watermen, sweaty from the mishap, repeatedly apologized, yet they did not notice the somewhat superhuman strength.
"Keep going."
Gu Wen did not make a big deal out of it, he let the watermen continue inside, while he clenched his fist, recalling the sensation just now.
Cultivation did not allow him to fly or burrow through the earth, but its benefits were genuinely impacting his body. Only this natural strengthening was so subtle it was somewhat hard to notice and somewhat catch unprepared.
He would need to be cautious in the future.
Inside the main hall, as the two watermen carried the water bucket in, the previously lively chatter suddenly quieted down.
As the watermen left, all eyes turned to Gu Wen, and these gazes shifted as he presented the water in a porcelain bowl.
Yu Hua touched the water with her fingertip, a slight ripple of Spiritual Energy stirred the surface of the water in the bowl, she pondered for a while. Due to the conical hat, outsiders could not see the change in her expression, and Gu Wen, who had just begun his cultivation, could not discern what she was doing through the subtle ripples.
Remaining inscrutable is a form of high cultivation, covering the face serves even more than this cultivation, as outsiders do not even get the chance to watch and observe, but not everyone can employ it.
Easy to be caught when walking on the streets, leaders fear being impersonated, probably only immortals can carry on like this.
Yu Hua asked, "Gu Wen, where is this well?"
"Dragon Bridge Water House, Dragon Spring Well," Gu Wen replied.
The best well, naturally had to be directly controlled by the mansion.
Zhao Feng, not missing any chance for conversation, also spoke, "Dragon Bridge was initially famous for this well water, the food prepared with Dragon Spring water has a unique flavor. It was after discovering the extraordinariness of Dragon Spring that I established the Water House, creating this 'Heaven on Earth' of Bianjing."
However, this was a story concocted by Gu Wen, the first successful marketing case in Daqian. Indeed, Dragon Bridge was already a very prosperous commercial street, only becoming number one with his help.
There naturally wasn't a unique taste for cooking, though Dragon Spring water truly was delicious, but mixed with oil and salt, who knows what it tastes like.
Gu Wen tugged at the corner of his mouth, but did not expose Zhao Feng, understanding a bootlicker's eagerness to show off.
'This fool doesn't even know the stories made up by his own people, truly bootlickers are all brains connected to the gut, just used for shitting.'
Yu Hua heard the vulgar words at her side, yet showed no anger, instead, she couldn't help but smile slightly.
The way this descendant of the Gu family cursed was quite interesting, there were a few words she had never heard before, but it did not hinder her understanding.
She said to Zhao Feng, "The Spiritual Spring is wise, you should drink more."
Hiss!
"Immortal... are you showing concern for me?"
Zhao Feng's eyes widened in disbelief, and then his cheeks were quickly covered in redness. He said with unconcealable delight, "I dare not disobey the words of an immortal. From now on, my meals will definitely be cooked with water from the Dragon Spring Well, and I will drink only that water."
"Gu Wen, I entrust this task to you. I need to be able to drink water from the Dragon Spring Well every moment."
"Yes."
Gu Wen nodded, his heart couldn't help but sigh: Truly wasteful and indulgent by nature—whose family would perish if not the Zhao family?
The journey from the Water House to the royal residence took half a two-hour period, and even with clear passage on a carriage, it took a full incense stick to burn. If it were just for Zhao Feng's daily usage, one trip a day would suffice.
But to drink from the Dragon Spring Well every moment, he would need to arrange twelve teams to deliver it continuously.
Wages for meals and accommodation, overtime payment, dealing with various levels of officials along the way...This month alone, three thousand taels wouldn't be enough.
Yu Hua frowned slightly, she only picked up on the indulgence and the three thousand taels in Gu Wen's thoughts and was already considering speaking out to stop it.
The amount of money the Zhao family spent didn't matter to her; nor was she interested in how much silver Zhao Feng wasted, she simply didn't wish to add unnecessary cause and effect.
Entering the mortal world wasn't about saving people, nor should it cause harm to others.
Suddenly, Gu Wen's emotions surged again, an excited feeling.
'However, the more he indulges, the more kickbacks I receive, and I can provide more jobs to the commoners. If I managed all the trades in the world, millions would no longer starve.'
Gu Wen found it funny that the capitalistic methods from his previous life gave him the feeling of a great benevolent person in Daqian.
Even the most cunning merchants have more humanity than scholars.
He was only mocking himself, but to Yu Hua's ears, it was astonishing, and her starry eyes widened in surprise.
'Turning the Zhao family's excessive indulgence into a good thing?'
She didn't understand the workings of the mortal world and found it hard to imagine how Zhao Feng's extravagance could profit the people, stirring her curiosity.
From this thought, Yu Hua could only ponder, for Gu Wen was extremely wary of her, she feared getting too close would scare him away.
An instinct told her that this successor of the Gu name might truly flee, this man was slippery like an eel; she needed to find a way to catch him.
Yu Hua spoke again: "The Dragon Spring is the foremost among Bianjing's water veins, containing profound mysteries. Take good care of it, and report any issues to me."
"Yes."
Gu Wen complied, then returned to his seat, becoming virtually invisible; however, this time people around him began to approach him, showing their solicitousness even before he had been ennobled.
Illusory titles bring endless power.
-----------------
After the Grain Rain, it was the time for spring plowing in Daqian. The court continuously issued decrees urging every county to begin sowing, as the sustenance of a nation lies in its agriculture.
Daqian, a huge entity named, began to operate. Each decree caused countless decayed parts to make breaking sounds. Some still managed to function barely, while others had completely collapsed under yet another harsh policy, marked by the huge explosions heralding one rebellion after another.
The frontier defense grew tight, while the rear officials were thoroughly corrupt.
Ze County, one of Daqian's eleven counties, known for its abundant lakes and fertile lands, was the largest grain-producing area of Daqian.
The long river at sunset stretched for thousands of miles, with three rivers and one river creating the fertile plain.
Countless cavalries galloped in the distance, the far rivers reflecting their silhouette and a dim sunset. At the end of their hooves' marks, a city behind them was burning fiercely; the beacon smoke linked the dusk with the earth.
An old man bent his back and, using the last of his strength, planted a seedling, then collapsed into the field. The fertile soil invaded his nostrils, and his breath gradually stopped, without any struggle, remaining upright planted in the field.
That seedling was the only patch of green in thousands of acres of land, the rest was nothing but stark white bones.
On this most fertile farmland of Daqian, the seedlings for spring plowing were not planted.
News reached Bianjing, entered the palace, and fell upon the Emperor clad in a Daoist robe, eliciting only one response from him.
"I shall practice alchemy and become an immortal."