Shitou was stunned for a moment, looking like he wanted to say something but hesitated.
Duke Wen gave Duke Martial a lukewarm glance. “And what about you?”
Duke Martial puffed out his chest and said righteously, “I, of course, will stay in the City of the Wrongfully Dead to dr—no, I mean, to protect the Lord’s great rivers and mountains!”
Shitou grew anxious and took a step forward. “Master, I—”
Before he could finish, a hand pressed down on his shoulder.
Hong Ling stood up and said, “Duke Martial is right. One must put what they’ve learned into practice.”
“I’ve absorbed a lot of new knowledge these past few days. My master teaches well, but I’ve always felt that knowledge gained from books alone is ultimately shallow.”
“Tianchi Province is in need of total reconstruction; it is the perfect place to practice.”
She turned to look at Duke Martial, then at Duke Wen. “It works out perfectly. Shitou and I can go, while Duke Martial stays to hold down the fort in the City of the Wrongfully Dead. We will go to Tianchi Province.”
Shitou opened his mouth, and the anxiety on his face mostly faded.
Hong Ling knew what he was thinking just by looking at his expression. Curving the corners of her mouth, she added, “Don’t worry. You don’t know what Jianmu is for yet, do you?”
Shitou shook his head.
Hong Ling explained, “The Lord has already said that Jianmu is a divine tree. Once an avatar is planted, you can teleport at any time.”
“No matter how long we stay in Tianchi Province, whenever we want to return, we can use Jianmu to immediately come back to the City of the Wrongfully Dead.”
“So you don’t have to worry about not being able to see the Lord or your mother.”
Hearing this, Shitou finally breathed a sigh of relief.
He scratched his head and said a bit sheepishly, “Then… then okay, I’ll go with Hong Ling.”
Duke Martial slapped his shoulder hard, making Shitou stumble. “That’s the spirit! Work hard once you get to Tianchi Province. Don’t go embarrassing me!”
Shitou straightened his back and shouted, “Rest assured, Master!”
Duke Wen nodded with satisfaction. Just as he was about to say something, there was another knock on the door of the City Lord’s Mansion.
Thud, thud, thud.
An attendant quickly walked over and opened the door.
As soon as the door opened, a thick, salty smell of the sea rushed in.
Before the attendant could react, a water-blue figure darted right past him, bringing a salty, damp sea breeze that sent the official documents on the desk fluttering.
“Lady Hong Ling!”
Cang Che stood before Hong Ling, his face weathered by the elements. His hair was a mess from the wind and sand of the Western Region, and his skin had darkened several shades; he looked like he had just crawled out of the desert.
But there was a hidden excitement in his eyes, which were frighteningly bright.
“The Dragon Ancestor assigned me the task of greening the Western Region, and I have completed it all!”
“All thirty-six oases of the Western Region are now vibrant with life, and the underground water veins have all been connected. The Western Region can now be farmed!”
“Has the Dragon Ancestor returned? Where is he now? Cang Che must go pay his respects to the Dragon Ancestor immediately!”
He finished everything in one breath, not even pausing to pant.
Hong Ling looked at him and spoke with a beaming smile.
“You’ve returned at the perfect time.”
Cang Che’s eyes grew even brighter.
Hong Ling turned and gave Shitou a meaningful look.
Shitou understood and stepped forward, reaching out to seize Cang Che’s arm.
Cang Che was stunned. “What are you doing?”
Hong Ling said with a smile, “The Lord is very busy right now and has no time to see you.”
Cang Che’s smile froze on his face.
Hong Ling continued, “However, you’ve returned just in time. Right now, Tianchi Province also has a task that urgently needs greening.”
After hearing this, Cang Che felt his vision go dark.
“Ti… Tianchi Province?”
He had just returned from the Western Region. By a full count, he had spent nearly two months watering the desert, finally managing to bring all thirty-six oases to life. He thought he could finally come back to pay his respects to the Dragon Ancestor.
And now he had to go to Tianchi Province?
“Lady Hong Ling! I—”
Cang Che struggled desperately, but Shitou’s hands were like iron pincers clamped onto his arms, not moving an inch.
“I don’t want to go to Tianchi Province! I want to see the Dragon Ancestor!”
Cang Che shouted while struggling.
Hong Ling shook her head and sighed. “The Lord said that although the plague in Tianchi Province has been cleared, the land has been eroded by filth energy for a thousand years. It is even harder to manage than the deserts of the Western Region.”
“You are a sixth-stage merman with water-attribute divine abilities; you are the perfect person for the job.”
“I still remember the Lord once saying that when Tianchi Province turns green, you can come back.”
Cang Che’s face turned deathly pale.
Why did those words sound so familiar?
He remembered that when he was banished to the Western Region last time, Hong Ling had said almost the exact same thing.
Only back then it was ‘come back when the Western Region is green,’ and now it had become ‘come back when Tianchi Province is green.’
Once Tianchi Province was green, would there be another province waiting for him?
Cang Che suddenly felt that he might never see the Dragon Ancestor again in this life. In the next life, all that would await him was endless yellow sand.
“Lady Hong Ling… I… I want to see the Dragon Ancestor…”
Cang Che’s voice carried a hint of a sob.
Hong Ling looked at him tenderly, then shook her head.
“Shitou, let’s go.”
Cang Che was dragged away wailing, his legs kicking wildly as his water-blue robe left a long trail of water on the ground.
“Let go of me—”
“I want to see the Dragon Ancestor—”
The voice grew further and further away, finally vanishing at the end of the corridor.
Hong Ling clapped her hands and turned to look at Duke Wen and Duke Martial.
“Master, then your disciple will go and prepare.”
Duke Wen nodded. “Go. Once you reach Tianchi Province, remember to conduct a field verification of the tax system I taught you before.”
“The situation in Tianchi Province is different from Gloomlight Province. The little demons have just experienced a great disaster and have not yet recovered their vitality, so the tax cannot be set too high.”
“But it cannot be set too low either. If it is too low, the government will not have enough resources for reconstruction.”
“As for how to grasp this balance, you will have to see for yourself once you are on the ground.”
Hong Ling nodded seriously. “Your disciple will keep it in mind.”
She bowed and turned to leave the City Lord’s Mansion.
When Wu Gou arranged for Diting to see the group off, the main force that had set out for Cangzhou also returned.
By the time night fell, the lights were lit in the City of the Wrongfully Dead.
Bone lanterns hung under the eaves of every household, their pale light illuminating the streets clearly.
Inside and outside Dingnai Hall, everything was a bustle of activity.
Yu He stood before the stove, a small knife in hand, carefully slicing a piece of Sophora cake.
His knife skills could no longer be described as merely skilled. As the blade passed through, the sophora petals automatically separated into thin slices, each one maintaining its complete flower shape with edges shimmering with a faint golden light.
Song Zi’an was assisting on the side, peeling garlic while peeking at his master’s craftsmanship.
“Master, isn’t this dish taking too much effort? Also, why am I always peeling garlic?” Song Zi’an asked in a low voice.
Yu He didn’t even look up. “If I tell you to peel, you peel. Where is all this nonsense coming from?”
“Tonight, the Lord is hosting a banquet for the heroes of the three provinces. This meal cannot be handled carelessly.”
As he spoke, he placed the sliced sophora petals into a nearby jade bowl and picked up several spiritual herbs to begin the blending.
The spiritual herbs had just been collected from Su Xue. She had just returned from Tianchi Province and had immediately picked these top-grade specimens from the Myriad Herbs Life-Death Realm without a moment’s rest.
Their medicinal properties were gentle and their spiritual rhythm was abundant. Just sitting on the cutting board, they emitted a refreshing fragrance that seeped into the heart.
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