You Promised to Be an Idle Son-in-Law, How Could You Become a Land Immortal?-Chapter 70: The Mandate of Heaven?

They found a fishing net, and Chen Yi cast it into the pond.

But the results were not what he had hoped for.

It wasn’t just him. Xiaodie, Pei Guanli, and even the onlooking Duke Qian, Zhang Xuan, and Sun Fu all gave it a try.

Not only did they fail to catch a single Golden Carp, but the fish also tore the net to shreds.

In the end, it was Xiao Wuge who stepped up, crisply declaring that he would salvage their pride.

Then, he casually tossed the tattered fishing net.

And what happened next was quite a sight.

The Golden Carp went wild, scrambling over one another to get entangled in the net.

The ones that couldn’t squeeze in even bit onto the net’s ropes, their tails thrashing incessantly.

Chen Yi stared thoughtfully at the splashing surface of the pond.

’It seems the problem isn’t me, nor is it the Golden Carp,’ he thought. ’The problem is Xiao Wuge.’

Beside him, Zhang Xuan clucked his tongue in amazement.

Sun Fu, on the other hand, had similar thoughts to Chen Yi. He glanced at Xiao Wuge, a strange look in his eyes.

Those born with such strange phenomena are beings who carry the mandate of heaven.

’To put it simply... favored by destiny?’

Xiao Wuge, however, didn’t seem to think the scene was all that shocking. He grinned widely. "Brother-in-law, am I amazing or what?"

Chen Yi composed himself and gave a thumbs-up. "Amazing."

After a moment of thought, he added, "It seems your fishing skills have reached the Supreme Realm. It’s best if you use them sparingly in the future."

Xiao Wuge asked, not understanding, "Why?"

Chen Yi took the net from his hand. Watching the Golden Carp scatter in an instant, he sighed.

"Why else? It’s easy to make people jealous."

Xiao Wuge laughed again. "Brother-in-law, didn’t you say before that only the mediocre are not envied?"

Chen Yi flicked the water from his hands onto the boy’s face. "That phrase will be more appropriate when you’ve made a name for yourself throughout the world."

"Made a name for myself? Me?"

Xiao Wuge’s face filled with anticipation. "Brother-in-law, do you think I can?"

Chen Yi gave a perfunctory, "Sure, sure," then told Xiaodie to take him to wash his hands and change his clothes.

After the two left.

Duke Zhang was still marveling. "Wuge truly has some skill. With this talent alone, he’ll never have to worry about food or clothing."

Hearing this, Chen Yi and Sun Fu exchanged a look and couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief.

"Qingzhou, we’ve intruded enough for today. This old man will take his leave now."

Hearing Sun Fu’s words, Duke Zhang frantically shot him a look. ’Did you forget why we came?’

Sun Fu ignored him. After Chen Yi bowed, he directly pulled Duke Zhang and headed out of Spring Lotus Garden.

"I say, Old Sun, we clearly agreed to swallow our pride and beg Chen Yi for a piece of calligraphy. Why are you backing out now?"

"There will be plenty of time in the future. No rush, no rush."

Sun Fu explained half-heartedly, his mind still replaying the miraculous scene from just moments before.

’Looks like I’ll have to postpone my departure from the Dingyuan Marquis’s Mansion.’

Duke Zhang didn’t know what he was thinking but didn’t insist further, muttering to himself about what he’d do if that kid didn’t give him face next time.

Chen Yi watched the two walk away, then turned to put away the tattered net. He sat down at the stone table to brew and drink some tea.

’I wonder what the deal is with Xiao Wuge’s strange ability.’

’But in any case, the fewer people who know about it, the better.’

Pei Guanli, squatting ungracefully on a stone stool, noticed he was in a daze and waved a hand in front of his eyes.

"Brother-in-law, don’t forget what you promised me last night."

"Don’t worry, I won’t."

Chen Yi replied casually.

But the interruption cleared his head.

’Even if Xiao Wuge is exceptionally gifted, given his age, it shouldn’t have any major impact in the short term.’

’It’s the matters at hand that require my attention.’

「That afternoon.」

Shen Huatang brought him the account ledgers for the medicine hall, along with a list of things he needed to do.

"The Eldest Miss said that the Young Master will need time to familiarize himself with the medicine hall’s situation, so there’s no rush to take it over."

"Even with Shopkeeper Wang gone, there are still several stewards and physicians there. There shouldn’t be any problems in the short term."

Chen Yi listened as he flipped through a few of the ledgers.

Seeing the lines of elegant, fine script, he asked casually, "Did Eldest Sister write all this just now?"

Though it was a question, he already knew the answer. The ink was still wet, and the handwriting was graceful. It must have been specially prepared for him by Xiao Wan’er.

Shen Huatang hummed in affirmation. "The Eldest Miss also said she hopes the Young Master will just do his best and not worry about whether the business does well or poorly."

Chen Yi nodded and said with a smile, "Please thank Eldest Sister for me. If there’s anything I don’t understand, I’ll go find her."

Shen Huatang bowed and turned to leave.

Pei Guanli watched her retreating back, subconsciously biting her finger and muttering, "I feel like I’ve seen her somewhere before..."

She was sure this was her first time in Shu State Prefecture City and her first time staying at the Xiao Mansion, so she shouldn’t have had any contact with Shen Huatang.

But when she tried to recall it carefully, the sense of familiarity strangely faded.

Chen Yi didn’t hear her clearly, so he paid it no mind and lay back on his recliner, looking through the accounts of the Jishi Medicine Hall.

He had to admit, while the current ledgers were based on arithmetic, the densely packed block characters were truly a strain to read.

A simple inventory and sales ledger took up several pages and wasn’t very intuitive.

Pei Guanli, that unscholarly girl, leaned in for a look, then immediately rubbed her eyes and recoiled.

"Brother-in-law, what the heck are you reading? It’s messier than the Witch Talismans Ah Ma draws. It’s making my head spin just looking at it."

"If you’re dizzy, go rest. In case your sister doesn’t agree to let you stay, you’ll still have the strength to run."

"Hehe... Sister Jinghong is the best. As long as you ask, Brother-in-law, she definitely won’t refuse."

Nothing is ever absolute.

「At dusk.」

Xiao Jinghong returned to Spring Lotus Garden with Su Zhenyue. After hearing Chen Yi’s proposal, she immediately shook her head. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝚠𝚎𝚋𝗻𝗼𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝚘𝐦

"My dear husband, any other time, she could have stayed if she wanted to, but this time is different."

Chen Yi gave Pei Guanli a helpless gesture, then went with Xiaodie to prepare dinner.

Seeing this, Pei Guanli decided to try her luck. "Sister Jinghong, even if I go back to the clan this time, Ah Ma will just let me out again."

"Instead of wasting time like that, just let me stay, okay?"

Xiao Jinghong looked at her with calm eyes. After a moment of silence, she explained, "On this trip to the Mountain Race, there are a few things I need your help with."

Pei Guanli pointed at herself and blinked. "Me? Help you?"

’Since when was I capable of helping the Tyrant of Shu State, Xiao Jinghong?’

That’s right.

In Pei Guanli’s mind, Xiao Jinghong was the Tyrant of Shu State.

Whether it was her Martial Arts Cultivation, her Personal Guard, or the Dingyuan Soldiers training in the military towns, they all made people afraid to provoke her.

If that wasn’t being the absolute tyrant of Shu State, what was?

Xiao Jinghong didn’t know what she was thinking. Since she had already started explaining, she might as well say a bit more.

"The matter of the Mutual Market is not simple. The implications are significant, so my initial negotiations with your Ah Ma might not go smoothly."

Pei Guanli understood. "Sister Jinghong, you want me to help persuade her?"

Xiao Jinghong shook her head and said flatly, "You just need to prevent me and your Ah Ma from coming to blows."

"Coming... to blows?"

Pei Guanli instinctively shrank back. "Sister Jinghong, if you and Ah Ma really start fighting, I wouldn’t dare try to stop you."

She might be used to being wild and lawless, but she wasn’t stupid.

With her current cultivation, rashly intervening in a fight between Martial Artists above the Middle Three Grades would only end horribly for her.

Xiao Jinghong knew she had gotten the wrong idea. "Don’t worry, we won’t actually fight."

Pei Guanli let out a sigh of relief, but then her face fell. She pouted unhappily. "So I still have to go back?"

’I can’t hang out with Brother-in-law anymore. This sucks.’

"If you don’t want to stay with the clan, you can come back with me after your Ah Ma and I have settled the matter of the Mutual Market."

"Really?"

"Mm-hmm."

Seeing Xiao Jinghong nod, Pei Guanli’s face lit up. She started counting on her fingers.

"Ten days to get there, ten days to get back... and you have to negotiate with my Ah Ma, let’s say that takes half a day."

"Huh? That’s still twenty days? That’s so long."

The corner of Xiao Jinghong’s eye twitched. Seeing Chen Yi approaching with Xiaodie, both carrying dinner trays, she hummed, "If everything goes smoothly, yes."

’How could it possibly be that fast?’

’In half a day, I might not even get to meet Granny Shan.’

’Not to mention, besides the contract details, there’s also the site selection for the Mutual Market, surveying, and all the follow-up matters.’

’Getting everything arranged within two months would already be considered fast.’

Of course, she wasn’t about to tell Pei Guanli any of this.

With that, Xiao Jinghong stood up, took the tray from Chen Yi’s hands, and helped him carry it into the pavilion.

"My dear husband, I will be leading a group to the Mountain Race tomorrow. If anything comes up, you can find Eldest Sister or Grandfather."

Before Chen Yi could nod, Pei Guanli’s expression soured even more. "Tomorrow? Oh, Sister Jinghong, I... I don’t want to go back."

Xiao Jinghong looked at her and said calmly, "It’s too late."