50: Big Brother

Under Shen Jianhong's powerful offensive, a brand new Lord Chu Ping Temple rose at an astonishing speed.

Lin Chuping's jurisdiction only included the two villages of Chang Sheng Village and Nan Shu Village. While it sounded like a small territory, it was not; its jurisdiction encompassed every inch of land in both villages, not even missing the hidden nooks and crannies in the mountains.

If not for this, these two small villages would never have been able to accommodate the large number of people pouring in from Prefecture City.

However, with more people came more thorny problems—the amount of farmland was far from keeping up with the population growth.

“My husband was worried a few days ago, muttering that if things continued like this, our family would soon run out of food and have no rice to cook. But now it’s great! I heard people say that if you help build the Lord Chu Ping Temple, Young Master Shen Jianhong is benevolent and provides food!”

“It’s not just food! There’s also twenty coppers in wages every day. This is real income, enough for a family’s expenses for quite a few days.”

“This place of ours is really good. It’s just a pity for those who left earlier; they don’t have this good fortune, and good things won’t fall upon them.”

“Who cares about them! Those people just had no luck; they squandered their good days themselves. Let’s ignore them and earn our money properly, living our good lives.”

“...”

Shen Jianhong’s caravan transported thirty carts of grain and rice daily, setting up five large cooking pots under the old locust tree at the entrance of Nan Shu Village.

Immediately, the steaming heat, mixed with the rich aroma of millet, acted like a magical force, instantly transforming the originally quiet and deserted village entrance into a bustling marketplace.

Even the laziest idlers in the village, who were like different people now, squatted by the construction site before dawn, eagerly waiting for work—simply because the coarse grain cakes distributed by the Shen Family were genuinely mixed with fragrant sesame oil. Just smelling it made one drool.

“This isn’t just building a temple; this is practically giving alms.”

Li Fu squatted on a millstone, leisurely puffing on his dry pipe, squinting his eyes as he watched the long line of people receiving food, sighing in admiration.

“We still have to thank Lord Chuping! Otherwise, they wouldn’t have such good days today.”

*

Liu Chunsheng stood by the pot, clutching a wooden ladle, serving porridge to the villagers in line one by one.

He saw San Wazi from Aunt Qian’s family next door, holding his bowl and eagerly peering into the bottom of the pot, so he scooped an extra ladle of thick porridge for him.

“Drink slowly, don’t burn yourself,” Liu Chunsheng admonished.

San Wazi grinned, revealing a gum line missing his front teeth, then ran back to his mother with the bowl, carefully handing it over.

Aunt Qian stroked her son’s head but didn’t drink herself; instead, she handed the bowl to Qian Dazhuang behind her.

“His father, you drink first.”

Qian Dazhuang pushed the bowl back towards Aunt Qian, muttering softly:

“Wife, you drink. With Lord Chuping’s blessing, we won’t starve...”

“Yes, perhaps someday, this place of ours can also become a paradise.”

“...”

Shen Jianhong stood far away, watching this scene, feeling a strange sense of emotion in his heart.

He had grown up in luxury, never imagining that a bowl of porridge could be so cherished.

“Young Master, looking at the progress, the main hall’s beams can be put up in another half a month.”

The steward jogged over, reporting respectfully.

Shen Jianhong nodded, his gaze still on the villagers receiving porridge.

Most of their clothes were patched and old-fashioned, but their spirits were exceptionally good, and simple smiles adorned every face.

“Pay wages on time, and make sure there’s enough food.”

He paused, then added, “If there are elderly, weak, sick, or disabled people who can’t do heavy work, arrange some lighter tasks for them. Don’t let anyone go hungry.”

The steward was startled, then responded, “Yes, Young Master is benevolent.”

After leaving the construction site, Shen Jianhong felt a bit troubled.

Seven or eight days had passed since he left home, and he wondered how his third brother was doing.

He should still be alive, right?!

Time was of the essence.

He wondered if Lord Chuping had seen his sincerity.

* * *

An hour later, Shen Jianhong stood before the Lord Chu Ping Temple, holding a cinnabar candle thicker than his arm.

The candle body was wrapped with gold thread, and the wick at the top had been soaked in pine resin. Once lit, it flared up with a flame three feet high.

“Young Master, this candle...”

Huai Sheng followed behind, laboriously carrying an oversized incense burner, wanting to speak but hesitating.

“I had this candle specially made. How is it? Grand enough, right! Considering even such details, Lord Chuping will surely see my sincerity.”

“Young Master, that’s not what this subordinate meant.”

“My third brother can’t wait. Huai Sheng, I’ve arranged everything for the new Lord Chu Ping Temple’s construction; there will be no mishaps.”

Shen Jianhong’s voice was low, his fingertips unconsciously caressing the jade pendant at his waist.

“Young Master, this subordinate meant that the roof of this Lord Chu Ping Temple is made of thatch. Please, whatever you do, don’t set the roof on fire.”

Huai Sheng looked helpless, reminding him in a low voice.

At that point, it wouldn’t be a question of sincerity or not.

They would probably be directly blacklisted.

“Huai Sheng is right.”

Shen Jianhong was slightly stunned, then came back to his senses.

“Huai Sheng, what do you think if I just send my third brother here to recuperate?”

Shen Jianhong looked into the distance, suddenly having a bold idea.

Upon hearing this, Huai Sheng’s scabbard fell to the ground with a clang. He hurriedly bent down to pick it up, lowering his voice.

“Young Master, the Third Young Master can’t even take medicine now, and this wild, desolate place...”

The more Shen Jianhong thought about this idea, the better he felt about it.

“It’s decided.”

“It’s been three years, and those quacks in the capital haven’t even come up with a decent treatment plan. My third brother’s body is getting worse day by day.”

He was barely holding on with those incredibly precious Heaven And Earth Treasure.

“Now that there’s hope, we must try. Maybe after taking a few more Nine Revolutions Soul Return Pill, he’ll get better.”

“With Lord Chuping’s protection here, there’s no need to worry about safety, and there aren’t so many scheming and dirty tricks. If my third brother really can’t make it through this, I hope he can at least pass away peacefully.”

“Enough talk, go prepare the soft sedan.”

Shen Jianhong instructed, then suddenly turned and entered the small Lord Chu Ping Temple.

*

Lin Chuping, hidden in the shadows, looked at Shen Jianhong’s ostentatious candle and couldn’t help but whistle in his mind.

“Tong Ge, such a big one, enough to smoke all the mouse holes in the Lord Chu Ping Temple into incense burners, right?”

“Just asking, can it count for a bit more Qi of Incense?”

“Ding! No.”

The System’s emotionless electronic voice echoed in his mind.

“Sigh! What a waste, what a waste. So many Materials, enough to make how many normal candles.”

Lin Chuping smacked his lips, a look of regret on his face.

“Ding! Shen Jianhong contributed Qi of Incense +50.”

“Ding! Zhao Huai Sheng contributed Qi of Incense +20.”

“Not bad! In such a short time, he can squeeze out 50 points of Qi of Incense.”

Lin Chuping found Shen Jianhong much more pleasing to the eye.

If this were modern times, he would be his top supporter, right?

Since his top supporter was so sincere, he wouldn’t be a stingy god.

It’s just a Nine Revolutions Soul Return Pill, isn’t it? Lin Chuping looked at the small box of pills already full in his space.

“There you go!”

He flicked his finger lightly, and the golden light silently merged into Shen Jianhong’s embrace.