31: Zizhu Manor, Xia sisters

After an afternoon of searching, the two ultimately purchased a manor in the inner city for one hundred taels of gold.

The manor, named Purple Bamboo Manor, was surrounded by a purple bamboo forest.

It covered an area of one and a half mu, with two courtyards.

There were a total of fifteen rooms, front and back.

The central courtyard featured a training ground for practicing martial arts and strengthening the body, and there were also stables at the back, capable of housing two carriages and six fine horses.

When Jiang Chen took out a full one hundred taels of gold, Cheng Yurou’s eyes widened involuntarily.

She thought to herself, it seems Xiao Chen’s prospects are far greater than she imagined.

Xiao Chen is truly amazing!

No matter what achievements Xiao Chen makes, as long as he doesn't abandon her, she will always stay by Jiang Chen’s side.

The hard days in Da Huai Village have finally come to an end.

After paying the money and signing the contract, Jiang Chen also received the land deed.

“Haha, Young Master, rest assured, this courtyard comes from the Ding Family, one of the three major Families, so quality is absolutely guaranteed.

Even our city walls were built by the Ding Family’s artisan team.

One hundred thousand taels of silver is absolutely worth it!” the delighted broker said.

This single transaction alone was enough for him to live comfortably for a year.

“Understood,” Jiang Chen waved his hand.

After an afternoon of walking around, Jiang Chen also roughly knew that the Ding Family, one of the three major Families, was indeed a behemoth.

The Ding Family controlled housing among the necessities of life: food, clothing, shelter, and transportation.

Half of the houses in the town came from the Ding Family.

In the Great Lan Dynasty, local officials were allowed to trade with merchants and sell land for development and construction.

This location was only three streets away from the urban area, with bamboo forests on both sides and a lake behind, making the scenery pleasant.

The main reason was that Cheng Yurou liked it very much.

“Rou’er, here is a thousand taels in banknotes.

Take them first to purchase some things.”

“Ah, why does buying things need so much money… Xiao Chen, you are out doing important things, so you should keep more silver on you for expenses.”

Cheng Yurou shook her head repeatedly, not tempted by such a large sum of money, only thinking of Jiang Chen.

“I still have plenty more,” he said.

“Giving you too much at once might not be safe.”

“Besides, you’ll have to manage all the household affairs, Rou’er.”

Jiang Chen said, and after repeated persuasion, Cheng Yurou finally accepted it.

After all, such a large house indeed required considerable expenses.

However, Cheng Yurou also planned to keep careful accounts, as every penny was earned by Xiao Chen through hard work and unknown risks, so she naturally had to be frugal and avoid extravagance.

Afterward, the two went out again to purchase everything they needed, which would be delivered by a dedicated person.

Jiang Chen also bought two fine horses for his daily External Guard duties.

Carriages would be added later; after all, buying a carriage would require hiring a coachman and stablehands.

Midway, they also called a carriage to pick up the Xia Sisters and settled their room fees.

By evening, the vast Purple Bamboo Manor finally came to life.

Many clothes, bedding, and kitchenware were added.

Xia Si柠 had also rested well, and the three women had been busy working inside and out.

Night fell.

Jiang Chen walked a few laps around the manor, then chose a spot and took out the Nine Yang Spirit Gathering Array Plate.

Upon activating it, the Nine Yang Spirit Gathering Array instantly unfolded.

The Formation Plate was connected to Jiang Chen’s mind, and he quickly controlled the range of the Spirit Gathering Array to cover the entire Purple Bamboo Manor.

Whoosh!

A gentle breeze filled with Spiritual Qi blew, and the entire manor was immediately enveloped by an invisible Qi field.

Any impure Qi was excluded, and even the plants and vegetation in the courtyard became invigorated at that moment.

The people in the courtyard also seemed to gain a certain Divine Qi.

Even Jiang Chen felt a nourishing sensation in his lungs with each breath.

“The Spiritual Qi multiplier doesn’t fill up all at once; it accumulates slowly.”

“Fortunately, this Formation Plate doesn’t require energy consumption,” Jiang Chen breathed a sigh of relief.

If the Formation Plate required some precious energy, it would be another significant burden for Jiang Chen.

With this Formation protecting them, at least the safety of Cheng Yurou and the others was guaranteed.

With a thought, the Formation Plate concealed itself.

Jiang Chen also planned to hire a Martial Master later to teach Cheng Yurou and the others martial arts; after all, in a martial Dao world, knowing some self-defense techniques was beneficial.

“Providing reliable demon intelligence only gives 1 to 5 contribution points.”

“Slaying a Body Tempering Realm demon gives 10 contribution points.”

“This means that every three months, I need to slay at least thirty Body Tempering Realm demons just to barely maintain my status.”

“Although it’s said that there’s no need to report or be on duty, in reality, to keep the External Guard status, I have to constantly take on missions.”

Jiang Chen still wanted to accumulate more contribution points to exchange for a suitable Cultivation Technique.

However, for a Mind-Cultivation Technique, a High Grade Yellow Rank one would require at least 500 contribution points.

It would take a considerable amount of time to accumulate that many contribution points.

But now, it seemed he might only be able to use his financial power.

After dinner, Jiang Chen practiced his Cultivation Technique for a while.

First, the Teng Snake Step, then the Four Severing Palms.

The process of mastering the Heart Shattering Force was also a process of Jiang Chen mastering his own strength.

Although he currently had no Cultivation Technique, Jiang Chen also bought some stone blocks for training.

However, after a few attempts, he found that these stone blocks, weighing over a thousand catties, had no effect on him whatsoever.

“Xiao Chen, the hot water is ready for you.”

It was almost bedtime, and Cheng Yurou had prepared hot water in advance.

“Okay, thank you, Rou’er.”

As expected of a large manor, the bathroom’s area was comparable to a bedroom in Bancheng Inn.

“Oh, Rou’er really kept her word and got such a big mirror for the bathroom…” Jiang Chen chuckled when he saw the mirror in the bathroom.

This mirror probably wasn’t cheap, but the effect was great.

After a day of Cultivating, Jiang Chen comfortably soaked in the hot water.

The water temperature was just right.

Suddenly, there was a creak.

The bathroom door was pushed open, and Jiang Chen initially thought it was Cheng Yurou.

But when he opened his eyes, he saw Xia Si柠 and Xia Sixuan.

“Young Master, I’ll scrub your back…” Xia Si柠’s pretty face was slightly red, while Xia Sixuan next to her had an excited look.

Jiang Chen had previously wondered why Cheng Yurou bought such a large bathtub.

Now he understood.

In the room, Cheng Yurou curled up in the quilt, her cheeks slightly flushed.

“This boy, he doesn’t know how to be considerate of the young girls,” Cheng Yurou thought to herself.

Just as Cheng Yurou turned over to go to sleep, she felt a figure quickly slip into her quilt.

“Rou’er isn’t asleep yet; are you waiting for me?” Jiang Chen’s mischievous laugh instantly made Cheng Yurou succumb.

Cheng Yurou was startled.

Listening to Jiang Chen’s excited voice, she wondered if Xiao Chen wanted to be a bit rough tonight.

It… it wasn’t impossible.

“Stay here and don’t move; I’ll be right back.” Jiang Chen’s gaze turned to the window, and his expression instantly became stern.

Cheng Yurou also noticed Jiang Chen’s change and nodded slightly.

“Okay.”

However, when she turned her head, she found that Jiang Chen’s figure had already rushed out the window.