Chapter 312 - 305: Heaven and Earth
May. Lingxi.
The secret chamber.
Chen Li sat cross-legged, his breathing long and steady. The aura around him was faint, almost nonexistent, as if he were a statue.
Ever since returning from settling the matter in Liyang, he had devoted himself entirely to his Cultivation. The clamor of the outside world was shut out by the Stone Gate.
Within the bead taken from the Tuo Dragon Essence.
Chen Li’s Divine Embryo floated silently in the void within the bead.
Compared to his initial attempts—when his Divine Embryo had been like a child barging into a banquet, instantly "stuffed" by the immense Primordial Qi and forced into a pathetic retreat—its Cultivation had now become much more composed.
With each entry, the Divine Embryo’s adaptation to the bead’s internal environment grew, and it could remain inside for longer and longer periods.
The Divine Embryo itself was a world apart from its initial soybean-sized form.
Its entire body was enveloped in a gentle, pale golden luster. Its facial features were as clear and vivid as a living person’s, and it had grown to about the size of a coconut.
The Divine Embryo sat cross-legged in the void just like a physical body, its hands forming a seal as it operated the Technique of the Innate Qi Gathering Technique.
Instantly, a vortex formed with the Divine Embryo at its center. Like a hundred rivers flowing into the sea, the surrounding Primordial Qi surged ceaselessly toward it, merging into the Divine Embryo’s body.
With each breath, wisps of Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi were drawn out, absorbed, and integrated into the Divine Embryo.
Nourished and refined by the Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi, the Divine Embryo grew ever more translucent and crystalline. Within it, one could faintly see more complex and subtle meridians slowly forming, just like those of a real person.
There was no telling how long this Cultivation session lasted.
Finally, a feeling of saturated Perfection welled up within the Divine Embryo, and Chen Li knew that this session of Cultivation had reached its limit.
It was at this moment that Chen Li suddenly realized the surrounding scenery was vastly different from before.
The Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi inside the bead, once so dense it was almost tangible, had become much thinner.
Through this thin mist of Primordial Qi, his Divine Sense was able to see the space clearly for the first time.
Below was not a void, but a vast, boundless land the color of dark, sallow earth. Lifeless, it stretched to the horizon.
Not a single blade of grass grew upon this land, only coarse sand, gravel, and the marks of dry cracks.
Looking up at the sky.
There was no sun, no moon, no stars—only a gray, hazy, seemingly eternal firmament that pressed down low upon the land, creating a feeling of immense oppression and deathly silence.
Heaven and Earth!
The inside of the bead actually formed its own world.
But this Little World was a dead world, through and through.
There was no wind, no water, no change in light or shadow, not the slightest sign of life.
Only the thinning Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi was still flowing in this dead world.
A storm raged in Chen Li’s heart.
He had originally thought this bead was merely a wondrous storage item, containing a massive amount of Primordial Qi.
He never would have imagined it was so extraordinary.
’A nascent... or rather... a shattered, dead embryo of a Little World?’
This was already beyond the scope of ordinary "Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures."
The origin of this bead was likely far more astonishing than he had imagined.
He suppressed the shock in his heart as his Divine Embryo walked across this silent land, trying to observe more details.
But aside from the barren earth and the gray sky, there was nothing else.
As the Primordial Qi thinned, the boundaries of the space seemed to become faintly visible. It was an intangible barrier, and when the Divine Embryo touched it, it felt a strong sense of repulsion and danger, making him dare not venture deeper.
’My Cultivation during this period has already absorbed a considerable portion of the Primordial Qi accumulated within this bead...’
Chen Li understood.
After observing for another moment and confirming there were no other discoveries, he no longer hesitated. The Divine Embryo transformed into a streak of light, exited the bead, and returned to the Divine Hall Acupoint.
Once the Divine Embryo was back in place, he didn’t dare to be negligent. He immediately focused his entire Heart Spirit and began to guide and refine the immense surge of Primordial Qi.
Time flowed by in silence.
The only sounds in the secret chamber were his long, steady breaths and the nearly imperceptible glow that faintly emanated from his body.
When the very last trace of Primordial Qi was refined by Chen Li and transformed into Innate Qi, which then floated peacefully within the Divine Embryo, he finally exhaled a long, turbid breath and slowly concluded his practice.
This round of Qi Collection had strengthened the Divine Embryo considerably. Chen Li estimated that he probably wouldn’t even need ten more sessions to reach the Spirit Realm Seventh Level: Guiyuan Pass.
"A fruitful harvest."
A satisfied look appeared in Chen Li’s eyes.
Counting the days, he realized this period of seclusion had lasted a full seventeen days.
Walking out of the secret chamber, he squinted slightly in the afternoon sun.
A brief scan with his Divine Sense revealed nothing amiss at home.
He strolled toward the main courtyard of the inner residence and found his wife, Song Ying, reconciling the account books.
Song Ying wore an elegant, moon-white ruqun. Her hair was gathered in a simple bun, held by a single jade hairpin. She held a brush, her expression focused, occasionally flicking the beads of the abacus beside her.
She was nearly forty, and though time had inevitably left its marks on her face, it had also bestowed upon her the steady and composed air of a family matriarch.
Hearing footsteps, she looked up. Seeing it was Chen Li, a gentle smile immediately graced her face. She put down her brush and rose to greet him. "Husband, you’ve come out of seclusion? You were in for quite some time. Did it go well?"
"I made some progress."
Chen Li nodded and sat down across from his wife. "Is everything all right at home? Have Shouheng and Shuwei returned?"
Song Ying sat down again and said, "Shouheng and Shuwei returned a few days ago, their journey was safe. After purchasing 320,000 taels of medicinal herbs and covering their travel expenses, the remaining silver was exchanged for 1,675,000 taels, which has already been placed in the warehouse. You were in seclusion, so I didn’t let them disturb you."
Hearing that the silver taels and medicinal herbs were safely in the warehouse, Chen Li felt a little more at ease. "Where are they now?" he asked.
He had just come out of seclusion and scanned with his Divine Sense, but he hadn’t detected the auras of Shouheng and Shouye.
Song Ying explained, "A few days before they returned, an old steward from the Zhou Family came looking for Shuwei, apparently for an urgent matter. Afterwards, Shouheng and Shuwei came to bid me farewell, saying there were some matters at the Zhou Family that required their attention, and they left in a hurry that same day."
Chen Li frowned slightly, wondering what urgent matter had come up with the Zhou Family.
But on second thought, both of them were Grandmasters. Here in Liyang, they were more than capable of protecting themselves, so there was no need to worry too much. He then changed the subject, "What about Shouye?"
Song Ying replied, "He went with Miss Liu Ruoyi to Qingshui County to procure grain. He hasn’t returned yet."
Chen Li nodded. He didn’t concern himself with them further for the moment and joined his wife in going over the family’s accounts.
Two months had passed since the spring silkworms spun their cocoons in March.
In the family’s Textile Workshop, over five hundred silk-reeling machines had been running almost nonstop, day and night, breaking only for their customary one-day rest every ten days.
As of today, 270,000 catties of raw silk had been reeled, enough to fill seven warehouses to the brim.
Now, fresh cocoons from the current year were still being transported in a continuous stream, with several cart convoys arriving almost daily.
Thanks to Chen Li’s position as "Village Chief" and the fact that the nearby five villages all depended on the Chen Family for their livelihood to some extent, the cocoons produced from the mulberry fields of Lingxi village and the four surrounding villages were easily acquired.
With almost no effort, a steady supply of fresh cocoons was collected and sent to the Chen Family workshops.
Beyond that, the acquisitions assigned to Qian Laibao had, to date, delivered a cumulative total of nearly 1,700,000 catties of cocoons to the Chen Family.
This number sounded staggering.
But it was far from meeting Chen Li’s expectations.
In Jingshan County, there were over 300,000 mu of farmland.
Aside from the seventy percent controlled by the great Noble Families, the remaining 100,000-odd mu were scattered among the ordinary Gentry, wealthy households, and common folk.
Excluding the 21,000 mu of farmland in the five villages near Lingxi, Qian Laibao should have theoretically been able to acquire cocoons from at least another fifty to sixty thousand mu of mulberry fields.
1,700,000 catties of cocoons, at an estimated yield of 200 catties per mu, was the output of less than 10,000 mu.
This meant that a large quantity of cocoons produced from the mulberry fields was flowing elsewhere.
...
「The next day.」
Qian Laibao arrived at the Chen Mansion, escorting a dozen large carts fully loaded with silkworm cocoons.
After the goods were unloaded and the transaction completed, Chen Li called Qian Laibao over to a quiet spot.
After a few brief pleasantries, he asked about the acquisition efforts.
A bitter expression appeared on Qian Laibao’s face as he began to vent his grievances. "Patriarch, you must understand, it’s not that I’m not doing my best, it’s just... it’s difficult. You have no idea, these days in Jingshan County, silkworm cocoons are practically worth their weight in gold."
Of the 1,700,000 catties we collected, we barely managed to get over half by paying one and two-tenths mace of silver per catty. The price is up by more than twenty percent! And even then, those silkworm farmers are still picky, complaining that we aren’t as generous as other buyers."
Chen Li listened quietly without commenting, then asked, "Why has it suddenly become so difficult to acquire them? Is someone obstructing us, or has the market changed?"
Qian Laibao sighed. "Patriarch, the winds have changed. In March, the Jingshan County Magistrate’s Office suddenly issued a new policy notice, allowing the common people to pay their taxes with silkworm cocoons. One catty of cocoons can offset one mace of silver in Land Tax."
Moreover, the Government Office clerks collecting the cocoons are being surprisingly pleasant. As long as the cocoons are of acceptable quality, they take them right after weighing, completely unlike the usual deductions and difficulties we see when they collect grain."
And that’s not all. The notice also says that if a household submits a thousand catties of cocoons, one male adult from that household will be exempted from that year’s corvée labor.
"Paying taxes and getting out of corvée labor by submitting cocoons is so much more advantageous than selling to us for silver coins to pay the tax. Naturally, anyone with cocoons is going to prioritize the Government Office."
He paused, a helpless look on his face. "We raised our price to one and two-tenths mace, which originally loosened things up a bit. But after just a few days, those Noble Families also started gradually raising their prices."
Right now, the price they’re offering on the market has already reached one and three-tenths mace of silver per catty. Some of the individual farmers we’d already made deals with saw the higher profit and went back on their word, turning around and selling their cocoons to them instead. Now, we’re fighting over scraps with the County Magistrate’s Office and several Noble Families. It’s tough!"
Chen Li listened quietly, and understanding dawned.
The County Magistrate’s Office allowing cocoons to be used for taxes and labor exemptions was naturally County Magistrate Luo Pingyuan acting for the benefit of the Jiang Family. After all, he was the one now in actual control of the Jiang Family.
As for the other Noble Families raising their prices, that indirectly confirmed Chen Li’s previous judgment: the Court’s massive demand for silk was real.
This storm was brewing.
He just didn’t know when the torrential downpour would arrive.
After a moment of contemplation, he looked at Qian Laibao and said, "Since they’re raising prices, we don’t have to stick to ours. You can adjust the price upwards as the situation requires. Gather as many cocoons as possible."
When Qian Laibao heard that Chen Li supported raising the price, his spirits immediately lifted. "Rest assured, Patriarch! As long as I have your approval on the price, I know exactly what to do."
"Go on, then. Be cautious in all things."
Chen Li waved his hand.
"Yes, your subordinate takes his leave."
Qian Laibao accepted the order and departed.