"Excellent! Another one — and of Li blood, no less!"
Hearing Li Tongya's gentle voice from the platform, Ye Chengfu leapt up from the ground as though struck by lightning, gazing excitedly at his son Ye Qiuyang, who stood on the platform at a complete loss. Ye Chengfu wanted nothing more than to throw back his head and laugh three times to the sky.
"Since your surname is Ye, who is your father?" Li Tongya asked with a smile.
"Ye... Ye Chengfu." Ye Qiuyang glanced down at his father, who was dancing with joy on the ground, and answered timidly.
"Congratulations, Brother Chengfu." Li Tongya followed the child's gaze downward and greeted with a smile.
"Many thanks, Immortal Master!" Ye Chengfu dared not presume, his courtesy impeccable. Yet he could not suppress the upward curve of his lips. He clasped his hands excitedly and replied with utmost respect.
Li Tongya smiled and shook his head, then tested the remaining candidates one by one before announcing:
"The rest are not destined for this path. Managers, remain. The rest may return to your villages."
The crowd below stirred. Sounds of disappointment rose and fell. After the noise of a tea-cup's worth of time, people departed in various directions. Li Yesheng, standing beside Li Tongya, stepped forward:
"Three managers, come with me to the Li family compound to review the deeds and accounts."
Chen Erniu and the other two naturally assented and followed Li Yesheng toward the Li residence.
Li Tongya stepped down from the platform and looked at the overwhelmed Ye Chengfu and the Liu clan elder from Jingyang Village. He said softly:
"Come with me."
Ye Chengfu nodded hastily, pulling his child tightly into his arms as he walked. Tears streamed down his face as he murmured:
"Good, good."
---
At the ancestral hall, Ye Chengfu and Ye Qiuyang lit incense, knelt, and kowtowed with reverence. Before the assembled Li family members, they returned to the clan surname.
"Clan Head!"
Li Mutian, as the eldest direct descendant of the Li lineage, naturally sat in the seat of honor in the courtyard. The two first served him tea according to custom, then knelt before him to receive his words.
"Qiuyang is now a child of our Li clan. Since he possesses a spiritual aperture, he shall naturally be taught the method."
Li Mutian accepted a wooden slip, then said quietly:
"The clan bestows upon you the Azure Origin Wheel-Nurturing Art. You must cultivate diligently, honor the clan and the Dao, foster kinship and harmony, and never reveal the secrets of the immortal arts to outsiders, lest you invite their covetous eyes."
The boy, now Li Qiuyang, bowed deeply and answered with firm gaze:
"I shall remember the Clan Head's teachings."
"You shall follow Xiangping to the spirit fields in Jingyang Village. Train under his guidance. You may not leave until you have formed the Profound Vision Wheel."
Li Mutian nodded and made the arrangement.
"Yes!"
Li Qiuyang rose and accepted the wooden slip from his hands. After all, he was still a boy of eight or nine. As he turned, his voice took on a tearful edge. He choked back sobs as he said to his father, Li Chengfu:
"Father, then I shall go to cultivate with the main house."
"Good, good! Don't you worry about anything at home. I'll bring your clothes and things to the Jingyang cottage in a few days. Cultivate well — just cultivate well..." Li Chengfu nodded repeatedly, his eyes red as he gave instructions.
"Come, Qiuyang." Li Xiangping smiled gently, took Li Qiuyang's small hand, nodded to his father Li Mutian, and departed.
"Chengfu, go and pack your things. Move your household to the rear of the village in a few days." Li Mutian coughed, frowning as he spoke.
Li Chengfu assented repeatedly, gauging the expressions of the two, and hastily took his leave.
Watching Li Chengfu hurry out the door and away, Li Mutian said in a deep voice:
"Keep that Liu girl with you for now. Teach her at the Lijing cottage. If she forms the Profound Vision Wheel, do not teach her spells for the time being."
"Father's arrangements are wise. Place Li family members to watch over Jingyang Village, and move the Liu family's cultivators to Lijing to keep watch. That will prevent them from growing too powerful." Li Tongya spoke with admiration, clearly impressed.
"It is still early." Li Mutian narrowed his eyes, took a sip of clear tea, and continued:
"Without a mirror-talisman to assist them, and without cultivation resources or pills, will it not take them a year to form the Profound Vision Wheel?"
"Far longer than that!" Li Tongya shook his head and explained:
"I have read the Azure Origin Wheel-Nurturing Art. The spiritual power it produces is likely unstable and weak. The circulation also has many redundancies. Forming the Profound Vision Wheel will take no less than three years."
"Then there it is. Since the Azure Origin Wheel-Nurturing Art is inferior in both result and speed, there is no need for excessive precaution. But always keep one hand hidden, just in case."
"Father speaks truly." Li Tongya nodded, gently setting down his teacup. Seeing Li Mutian staring distantly into space, he smiled bitterly, clasped his hands, and withdrew.
Li Mutian sat alone in the high seat of the courtyard. After a long while, he sighed softly.
"Not ruthless enough..."
---
Xu Wenshan had managed Lidaokou for over four months. His assistants had all been assigned to their duties, and the village guards had been brought firmly to heel.
Xu Wenshan had originally been a caravan manager, so running a small village was naturally within his abilities. Lidaokou was a jumble of surnames — complex in its dynamics, but free from the constraint of large clans. Within a month, Xu Wenshan had the entire village firmly in hand.
Yet with idleness came ambition. Xu Wenshan pondered how to distinguish himself before the main house and outshine Chen Erniu. Merely sitting in a village collecting rent and balancing books was beneath his talents.
Boredly flipping through a map, Xu Wenshan stared blankly into space.
Speaking of Chen Erniu — the two villages' constant disputes over fields and water sources meant friction was ceaseless. Xu Wenshan was happy to spar with him. Even now, when the people of Lidaokou spoke of Chen Erniu's Lichuankou, they gnashed their teeth and wanted to throw a punch.
"Having an enemy only makes them cling closer to me, Xu Wenshan!" he thought smugly.
Furthermore, in his caravan days, Xu Wenshan had never liked his subordinates growing too friendly. He always sowed a little discord.
He didn't believe for a moment that the Li family had no eyes and ears in these villages. By his own logic, of course he should quarrel with Chen Erniu — it would please the main house.
"I've already surpassed Chen Erniu by far."
He muttered to himself, his attention returning to the map before him. Looking at the crooked line of the Ancient Li Road on the map, his heart stirred suddenly.
"Why not return to my old trade?"
He slapped his thigh in excitement:
"All these villages are trapped within the Ancient Li Road. Goods don't circulate. Every household farms and weaves, self-sufficient. I, Xu Wenshan, worked that road for over twenty years — can I not work this one?"
"The main house cultivates the immortal path. These mortal goods are of no use to them. Better to clear the mountain road and sell off the grain and silk. Perhaps we can bring back jade and spirit objects — now that would be useful."
At this thought, Xu Wenshan could sit still no longer. He called in the assistants who had fled with him, explained his idea, and they all clapped and cheered.
"I'll go to the main house and lay it out in detail!"
Xu Wenshan laughed heartily and led his men out the door.