Su Qing smiled faintly after seeing the Earth God nod in agreement.
She paused for a moment before continuing:
"Speaking of which, there are more and more mortals and demons on Flower-Fruit Mountain now, aren't there? In these two years, the small town outside has expanded quite a bit?"
"Indeed! Over these past two years, crew members from two more ships have arrived at Flower-Fruit Mountain, and they even brought some refugees with them."
"Oh? Refugees? It seems the Aolai Kingdom hasn't been very peaceful these past two years?"
"This old man wouldn't know... I have been staying on Flower-Fruit Mountain, and my understanding of outside affairs is truly limited," the Earth God replied, shaking his head.
Su Qing didn't say much to that; she simply nodded and asked:
"By the way, how are those mortals and the demon race getting along? Is there any friction? Has anyone been breaking the rules?"
The Earth God thought for a moment before replying:
"When there are more people, such things are inevitable. Recently, there have indeed been more disturbances than in the past. However, they are all minor matters."
Su Qing was not surprised by this; it was a situation she had expected. She nodded and said:
"In that case, I will have to trouble you to organize the existing rules and hand them over to those mortals."
"Additionally, you should formulate some new rules. The old ones are no longer entirely applicable."
"After all, without rules, there can be no order. Although Flower-Fruit Mountain is a hidden paradise, it cannot function without rules! Especially as the population grows."
"The rules don't need to be too harsh... as long as they prevent people from causing trouble."
"It's just... I'm afraid I'll have to trouble you with these matters."
Su Qing wasn't trying to emulate Chang'e by burdening her subordinates...
It was primarily because she didn't spend much time on Flower-Fruit Mountain and didn't have a deep understanding of the specific situation there.
Rules that were detached from reality were meaningless.
They might even drive honest people to their breaking points.
That was why she left these matters to the Earth God, who understood Flower-Fruit Mountain best.
Upon hearing this, the Earth God was slightly stunned. He then shook his head quickly and said:
"This... I'm afraid I won't be able to do this task well. Immortal Su... perhaps you should find someone else?"
He didn't refuse just because it was a tedious chore.
On the other hand, he truly lacked the confidence to do it well!
He worried that if his work wasn't good enough, it would lead to Su Qing's dissatisfaction and earn him a reprimand.
Even if Su Qing didn't seem like the type of person who would harshly criticize her subordinates.
But the more she was like that, the more it worried him.
Su Qing looked at the Earth God for a long time. She eventually understood why he was refusing.
So, she let out a soft sigh.
She explained to him the reason why she was entrusting this matter to him.
"So, you can rest easy while formulating them. Since I am handing this task to you, I naturally have absolute trust in you!"
"This... Sigh, I understand."
The Earth God pondered for a long while before finally accepting the assignment, saying:
"I will formulate the rules for Flower-Fruit Mountain for you as quickly as possible. Once I have finished, I will bring them to you for your review immediately."
"Mm, thank you for your hard work! The fact that Flower-Fruit Mountain has reached its current state is also thanks to your efforts!"
"You overpraise me, Immortal Su. I have only done what was within my duties."
Su Qing shook her head slightly and said, "In truth, being able to perform one's duties to such an extent is already quite impressive."
The Earth God didn't respond further, quietly accepting the praise.
Of course, what he was thinking in his heart was another matter entirely.
After these pleasantries, Su Qing took out several bottles of pills from her Sleeve Universe.
"Take these pills; consider them payment for your work recently. Since these tasks are arduous, I cannot mistreat a meritorious servant."
Su Qing was not a heartless boss.
She never withheld the payment that was due.
Besides, she truly had a vast amount of pills in her possession...
Even if she gave away more, she wouldn't feel the slightest bit of pain.
However...
These pills might mean nothing to Su Qing, but to the Earth God, they were exceptionally precious.
Especially for a low-ranking deity like him, who rarely had access to immortal pills and spirit medicines, they were invaluable.
He respectfully took the pills, opened a bottle, and caught the scent.
Indeed, it was the fragrance of high-grade pills...
Instantly, the slight trace of dissatisfaction that had lingered in his heart vanished.
In its place was a newfound sense of motivation.
"Thank you, Immortal Su!" the Earth God said hastily.
Su Qing nodded slightly and then said:
"This is only what you deserve... there is no need to thank me. Well, things here are more or less settled... I will take my leave now! I'll leave the remaining matters to you."
Su Qing originally had a few other things she wanted to arrange while she was there.
But those matters were not particularly urgent.
So, she decided to postpone them...
After all, the Earth God's energy was limited; he couldn't be burdened with too many tasks at once.
"Rest assured, Immortal Su, I will do my utmost," the Earth God said with a respectful bow. "Please take care on your way!"
Su Qing nodded, performed a hand seal.
And she departed Flower-Fruit Mountain on her Somersault Cloud.
After Su Qing left, the Earth God looked in the direction she had gone and couldn't help but sigh with emotion.
He was clearly just a minor Earth God, yet now he had become a significant official under someone else's command.
Although there was no official title, it was clearly much more meaningful than being just a simple Earth God.
"But... the workload has certainly increased!"
The Earth God shook his head and vanished into a wisp of blue smoke.
Next, the Earth God was going to be quite busy.
The Somersault Cloud was as fast as ever.
In just a short while, Su Qing had returned to the courtyard atop Mount Changbai.
After Su Qing returned to the yard, Leng Xiang transformed back into her human form.
She glanced at the sky and silently departed for the kitchen to prepare dinner.
Su Qing found herself with nothing to do, so she sat down on the reclining chair beneath the Bodhi Tree.
Just as she sat down, several Little Sparrows flew down from the branches.
They landed on her belly.
"Sister Xiao Qing, what were you busy with today?"
"Can you tell us about it?"
"Yes, yes! We're quite curious!"
The several Little Sparrows chirped all at once.
It felt a bit noisy.
Su Qing merely gave a helpless smile and then began telling them about recent events.
Of course, there wasn't much to say about her own affairs.
Most of what she told them was gossip from the Heavenly Court.
Time slowly flowed by.
In a flash.
It was another spring.
After all these years, Su Qing returned to Flower-Fruit Mountain once again.
She intended to check on the progress of the Earth God's work.
As soon as Su Qing arrived on Flower-Fruit Mountain.
The Earth God appeared before her, carrying a thick book...
It seemed as if he had been prepared for her arrival for a long time.
"Thank you for your hard work!" Seeing the thick book, Su Qing said with a sigh. "I didn't expect you to organize so much in less than half a year."
"In fact, there aren't that many rules recorded inside... most of it is actually explanations of why those rules exist," the Earth God said. "You are not usually on Flower-Fruit Mountain, Immortal Su, and do not fully understand the situation here, so I took the liberty of adding notes on the origins of the rules."
"Oh? You've been quite thoughtful," Su Qing said, nodding slightly.
It was clear that the Earth God had truly treated this matter with great seriousness.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have produced so much material.
Su Qing found a place to sit casually and then flipped through the entire book.
After finishing it, Su Qing couldn't help but sigh with even more admiration.
She felt that before he became an Earth God, when he was still a mortal, he must have been an official somewhere in the mortal world, and most likely an upright official with exceptional professional ability.
He was indeed impressive, covering almost every aspect.
And they weren't detached from reality or overly abstract.
Everything was practical and feasible.
After reading it, Su Qing couldn't help but say, "You've done an excellent job... truly impressive."
"Is there anything that needs to be modified?" the Earth God asked.
Su Qing shook her head and said, "There's basically nothing that needs changing. Even if there were, you would have to be the one to modify it based on the situation. Rules are not set in stone; they must be constantly updated based on specific circumstances... so I will still have to trouble you in the future."
The Earth God looked at Su Qing, his lips twitching slightly, and said, "I understand..."
"By the way, there are more and more mortals now... why don't you have them build an Earth God Temple?"
"An Earth God Temple?"
"Yes! You are a deity after all; a temple should be quite beneficial for you, shouldn't it?"
"There's no need for me... I am content as I am."
"Are you content? Well then, contentment brings constant happiness. As you wish," Su Qing nodded, not forcing the issue.
"However, Immortal Su..." the Earth God said after some consideration, "I believe we should build more temples for you."
"Oh? Why do you say that?"
"Aren't there more mortals now? They occasionally go to your temple to pay their respects," the Earth God said. "But your temple... you know where it's located. So..."
Su Qing looked at the Earth God and couldn't help but smile, saying, "You really do think of the people!"
"Well, this is the task you entrusted to me, Immortal Su!"
"As you wish. I'm the type who prefers having more temples anyway," Su Qing said. "It's also a good thing for mortals and the beasts to worship me separately."
"I understand... I will see to this matter then," the Earth God said.
"Only you could handle it," Su Qing said helplessly.
There really was only the Earth God who could help her with things on Flower-Fruit Mountain.
But it didn't matter...
She just needed to give Flower-Fruit Mountain a little push.
Afterward.
Su Qing chatted with the Earth God about some other matters...
After they had discussed everything to her satisfaction.
Su Qing also left Flower-Fruit Mountain and returned to her own Mount Changbai.
As for the future development of Flower-Fruit Mountain.
That would be its own business.
Su Qing was in no hurry, nor did she need to be; she would just let everything happen in its own time.
On Mount Changbai.
Su Qing stretched her back, looking at the Bodhi Tree that had grown quite a bit taller, even surpassing the courtyard wall, and she was slightly dazed.
"When should I find some time to see Sun Wukong? Well, let's wait another ten or twenty years!" Su Qing thought as she turned to find Leng Xiang again.
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