The approval process for a homestead is typically quite cumbersome. It usually starts at the village level, moves to the town, and then to the county. Sometimes it requires coordination between several departments, such as land administration, agriculture and rural affairs, and natural resources. Li Xiang hadn’t expected it to be approved so quickly.

Li Jinyu explained that it was likely processed so quickly because Li Xiang had just been elected village chief and party secretary. Plus, he was an internet celebrity, so all the town leaders knew who he was.

As for the village level, it went without saying—instant approval.

The county leaders might not know him personally, but they had likely heard of him. Since both the village and the town had already signed off, there usually wouldn’t be any issues at the county level.

When the villagers heard the news, they were happy for Li Xiang, but they also couldn’t help but remark that it really pays to be famous.

For instance, one family in the village had applied to build a new house the year before last. They spent over half a month running around, only to have their application rejected in the end. There was another family in Wangjia Dam who hadn’t managed to get approval in ten years. It was always one thing after another—this wasn’t right, that wasn’t right. They had revised their documents, chosen a new site, and submitted their application countless times, yet they still had no idea what the problem was.

The homestead Li Xiang was approved for this time was a full 200 square meters.

Generally, in most regions, the limit for building on vacant village land, barren hills, or undeveloped slopes is 180 square meters. Some places even have regulations based on household size. For example, a farming household with three or fewer people is typically limited to a homestead of 75 square meters.

Policies and regulations vary slightly from place to place, but for a two-person household like the Li Family to be approved for 200 square meters was truly rare. ’Maybe it’s because Li Family Village has a lot of land and not many people?’

Besides, Li Xiang was of marriageable age, so perhaps they had also taken into account his future needs to marry and have children. After all, if he had three kids, the household would grow to six people. If they approved the plot based on only two people now, how would they all live there in the future?

These reasons had all been noted in the remarks section of his application.

In any case, now that it was approved and he had the official paperwork, it was time to get to work.

The homestead application was settled, but the project application for the Dark Saint Realm was still pending. Li Xiang decided to build his own house first. He would build his residence while simultaneously working on the tourism development company’s project, which he estimated would be approved soon enough.

But since the Lantern Festival hadn’t passed yet, he contacted the construction team that built his kitchen last year and scheduled an appointment.

When Li Xiang contacted them, he also mentioned the major Holy Realm Garden project he was applying for, noting that its construction cost was much higher than his own house. The construction team was actually quite capable and belonged to a larger construction company, so they were far more interested in this bigger project.

The economy was in a downturn, and the civil engineering industry was particularly sluggish. The construction company had already laid off many employees; last year, they had even humbled themselves to take on the "small kitchen" job for the Li Family.

When profits were poor, even a mosquito leg was still meat, right?

However, what made the construction team happy was that their work on the kitchen last year hadn’t been for nothing. They had put in the effort and done a conscientious job, and now Li Xiang had come back to them with this "big project."

It wasn’t like their glory days, but it was still an excellent opportunity.

Li Xiang also painted them a pretty picture, promising many more phases of construction in the future.

The two parties agreed to meet at nine in the morning on the sixteenth day of the first lunar month, right after the Lantern Festival.

The construction company would send someone to conduct a site survey. At that time, Li Xiang would show them his preliminary design drawings, explain his specific requirements and how he wanted things done, and then they would provide a detailed design plan and a price quote.

By bundling the two projects together, the price would be a little cheaper.

"Brother Xiang, don’t you worry. We’re old acquaintances now, aren’t we? Our team’s workmanship is top-notch, guaranteed to your satisfaction, and our price will be very fair," the representative vowed.

But Li Xiang took such words with a grain of salt. He wouldn’t trust them completely and would definitely conduct on-site inspections and supervise the work himself.

After the lively "village gala" from before, which was shared by some local official media outlets, quite a few people in the county now recognized him. This was especially true for his iron-striking performance, to which no one else could hold a candle.

Sure enough, with the Lantern Festival approaching, Li Xiang received an invitation from the county TV station. They were recording a Lantern Festival gala and wanted to invite him to perform his iron-striking at an outdoor venue.

They had originally booked another master for the performance. But after a TV station leader reviewed the program schedule, he suddenly remembered, ’That internet celebrity from our county, his iron-striking is the really amazing one! Get him! Get him!’

And so, they made the switch!

The final negotiated price was twenty thousand. Li Xiang thought that was pretty good. Getting paid twenty thousand just to go "play" for a bit? What’s not to like?

Besides, he could also shoot some videos and do a livestream while he was at it. Since it was for the TV station, everyone in the county would see it, making it a great opportunity to increase his fame.

So, he gladly accepted.

When Yao Yao and Zhao Xueqing heard the news, they wanted to tag along and join the fun. They were part of Eternal Night Media, after all. ’The boss is going out on business; how can we just hide at home and goof off?’

’We can cheer for him, give him some support, and take some photos. That would be good, too!’

Li Xiang agreed. The only inconvenience was the lack of a car, so everyone would have to make their own way there. They were to gather by the West Lake the TV station had mentioned. Li Xiang himself had to go with Jiang Jianguo to transport the iron-striking materials by tractor.

Bellows, a furnace, coal, iron blocks, steel ladles, large fire tongs, a striking board, a striking stick, and so on. As for fire extinguishers, he wouldn’t bring any, as the TV station would have them ready. Plus, they would be performing by the lake and striking the iron out over the water, so safety was well-assured.

This West Lake wasn’t *the* West Lake; many cities in the south have places named East Lake, West Lake, South Lake, and North Lake.