Chapter 73: The Temptation of Returning to the Village

In the first light of dawn, Xu Wenshan set out on the road back to Luhe Valley.

Reflecting on his journey to Shaxian, Xu Wenshan felt both joy and concern. The joy was that he had, almost once and for all, solved his financial problems—the funds needed for the initial development of Luhe Valley were all secured. The concern was that, while his arrangements were clever, they were far from watertight. If, by the slimmest of chances, a meddling cultivator took notice, and then happened to pay attention to the mortal “Xu Cong,” and then fixated on him relentlessly, Xu Wenshan’s grand farming enterprise would face considerable trouble.

But his more immediate predicament was how to concoct a reasonable background story for the women traveling with him. When he left home, it was just himself, one other person, and an ox cart. Now, he was returning with mountains of gold and silver, five carriages, a pot of breathing soil, a spatial pouch, a dog named Er Gouzi, and a queen mother bug. And then there was Xu Jing.

He truly had no idea how to deal with Xu Jing, so he simply pretended she was dead and brought her back in a carriage. She neither argued nor made a fuss, quietly contemplating life at the back of the cart.

That evening, an idea struck Xu Wenshan. He turned to the three women with him and said, “Let’s give her a name!”

By “her,” he naturally meant the queen mother bug.

Though he claimed it was a group effort, Xu Wenshan was always the most enthusiastic when it came to naming things.

“Since she came from Shaxian, let’s call her Shaya.”

“Shaya isn’t good,” Lu Ze immediately objected. “It doesn’t mean anything.”

Xu Wenshan replied, “Surely when you hear ‘Shaya,’ you can imagine a girl as beautiful as lilac flowers?”

“No, I can’t.”

“I… think… it’s… just… fine,” the queen mother bug managed to say in her broken speech. “As… long… as… it’s… close… enough.”

And so, indulging Xu Wenshan’s odd sense of humor, the queen mother bug was officially named Shaya.

The journey home was smooth and uneventful. Before long, Xu Wenshan could see the familiar mountain peaks.

Luhe Valley, I’m back.

...

Xu Wenshan had been away for nearly half a month. Before leaving, he had promised the hunters that they would receive their “wages” within two weeks.

With the deadline fast approaching and no wages in sight, the hunters grew restless. Some had begun to secretly discuss refusing to bring any more meat to the club, suspecting that the young master of the Xu family was tricking them with empty promises. This sentiment was gaining momentum and threatened to spiral out of control.

Some even formed a pact: if Xu Wenshan failed to keep his word, they would band together and smash up his shop.

Afah was deeply uneasy. According to Xu Wenshan, he was in charge of publicity, but he was helpless in the face of these undercurrents.

Even more anxious than Afah was Li Qing. Before leaving, Xu Wenshan had repeatedly assured her that riots and unrest were rare exceptions. But now, it seemed as if a riot was on the verge of breaking out every day.

The only one untroubled was Xiaocui, the bookkeeper. Li Qing snuck over to her and whispered, “Do we have any money left?”

“None at all,” Xiaocui replied nonchalantly.

“Not a single coin? What about the grocery store’s revenue?”

“It was returned to the master. We borrowed quite a bit of grain and money from him earlier,” Xiaocui explained. “Why do you ask?”

Li Qing grew anxious. “Aren’t you worried at all?”

“Why should I be? Master said he’d bring back the money.”

Li Qing couldn’t fathom Xiaocui’s confidence. “And if he doesn’t return?”

Xiaocui shook her head. “He will. He’s a man of his word.”

Yet, as fate would have it, trouble arrived right on schedule. That morning, as the club opened, a group of hunters was already gathered at the entrance.

Seeing their grim faces, Afah felt sure they were here for trouble.

“What do you want…” he began.

“The money?” Wu Yi stepped forward. “Where’s the money you promised? Today’s the last day.”

Afah shrank back. “The young master hasn’t returned yet. Could you wait a little longer?”

Wu Yi had once held out hope for Xu Wenshan, but today, that hope had died. He was from Dagang Village, forced to flee to Luhe after a local landlord’s son stole his fiancée. Since then, he’d harbored a deep resentment toward all young landlords, a resentment that only grew with time.

A previous archery contest had softened his impression of Xu Wenshan, but now, his patience was exhausted.

“If we don’t get our money, we won’t leave, and we won’t work,” Wu Yi said, shaking his head. “Do you know how much the Xu family owes us after this month?”

Afah, not being the bookkeeper, had no idea. By now, Xiaocui and Li Qing had arrived for work and immediately understood the situation.

Wu Yi glanced at Lei Laohu, and the two nodded to each other. Wu Yi clapped his hands. “Brothers, let’s report our earnings for the month, one by one. Old Diao, how much did you make?”

Old Diao, a hunter, replied calmly, “I earned three hundred and five coins this month.”

“Shitou, what about you?”

“Three hundred and twenty-three coins.”

“Guan’er, your turn.”

“Three hundred and twelve coins.”

One by one, the hunters called out their figures. As the numbers piled up, it became clear: if the Xu family tried to default, the mountain of debt would crush them.

Finally, Xiaocui raised her hand. “No need to go on.”

“I’ll summarize. This month, the total wages owed to all the hunters amount to three thousand eight hundred and seventy-two coins.”

At this number, even Li Qing and Afah were left speechless. The hunters themselves, though mentally prepared, were still amazed at the sum.

All of us made over three strings of coins in a month? Once, they wouldn’t have dared dream of such a thing.

Which only made them more convinced the Xu family would never truly pay them.

Wu Yi said, “Now that we all understand, pay us!”

“Pay up! Pay up!” the hunters echoed.

Such a large sum could change their lives.

“Pay up! Pay up!” The crowd at the archery range grew, and Li Qing felt the weight on her shoulders grow heavier.

It seemed she would have to step forward herself.

In fact, among the “rules” Xu Wenshan had left behind, there was a special chapter called “Emergency Response,” which dealt specifically with situations like this. The book advised that to calm an agitated crowd, one must first show understanding and align oneself with them, then persuade them with facts and reason. There was even an example of how to placate hunters demanding their wages.

Li Qing had rolled her eyes at this, dismissing it as nothing but empty rhetoric, yet she had memorized it all the same.

She raised her hand and called out loudly, “Everyone, quiet! Please, quiet!”