CHAPTER 27: CHAPTER 27: THE LONG ROAD AHEAD

Two days had passed in a blink, yet the village still wallowed in the grief and anguish of deaths and pillaging by bandits.

As Chen Ku had guessed, under the wise leadership of Old Master Li, the Li Jiyang family had escaped the calamity.

Over these two days, Village Chief Chen had finally played his role, taking several villagers to each household to tally the population, cancel household registrations, and tally the upcoming autumn taxes.

"Bandits have ravaged our lands; this is a man-made disaster. The only thing I can do is go to the township over these next two days to beg for a favor from the authorities and have those who perished removed from the poll tax..."

Village Chief Chen’s home had also been raided, but his loss wasn’t as great as that of Guo Xiangshen’s household. Even so, he had aged by seven or eight years and seemed cloaked in an air of twilight. During these two days, Chen Ku had almost confirmed that his actions were faultless.

He had secretly attacked and killed those behind the bandits, and indeed, he had heard that the bandits had largely scattered now. They were merely a ragtag group without a leader, so this was the only possible outcome.

It’s just that, I wonder what kind of people were behind those two I killed? Chen Ku guessed with an uneasy heart. Especially during the autumn harvest and tax season, orchestrating bandits to plunder the villagers’ harvests. The result of this would be that, without food to pay their taxes, the villagers would have to sell their land... If you consider who benefits, it is obviously those who try various means to monopolize the land.

Without any leads or clues, it was pointless to think more about it. He was confident in his clean and decisive handling, eliminating all traces, and no one could suspect him, but still, he felt a slight unease.

This is the fear of inadequate strength! Chen Ku looked at his own palm and clenched it slightly. A thousand catties of strength, in this age, is still too weak!

His mind reflected the Transformation Diagram. He chewed over the conditions for achieving the second transformation again. Entry into Force Transformation Martial Arts. Ferocious Beast Level Evil Qi.

All the needs, it seems, can be resolved at Medicine King Hall, but I wonder, what position do I need to attain to be taught Force Transformation Martial Arts? As he pondered these things, a donkey cart suddenly appeared outside the courtyard.

"Ah, it’s Guo Wen! These are..." His sister-in-law was cooking, and upon seeing the cartful of grain brought by Guo Xiangshen’s son, she was at a loss for words.

Chen Ku walked outside.

Guo Wen looked displeased, "My father asked me to bring this to your family. Just accept it. I’m leaving."

Having said that, he unloaded ten bags of grain and then, without saying anything more, had the cart pull away, not even looking back.

Mother Chen also heard the commotion. Seeing the ten bags of grain in the yard, she stared at her son in astonishment and asked, "Son, what does this mean?"

Recognizing the significance of the ten bags of grain, and having figured it out, Chen Ku smiled at his sister-in-law and mother and said, "Didn’t I save Guo Xiangshen’s family? He gave us fifteen acres of land, and this happens to be the autumn grain required for those fifteen acres. This Guo Xiangshen... he’s truly considerate."

Mother Chen and his sister-in-law looked at each other, dumbfounded.

Was this still the wealthy and feared landlord from the village? Why would he willingly dig so deep for their family? Simply because of the life-saving grace? Or perhaps... They both looked at Chen Ku, dressed in his long robe, vaguely understanding something, yet their plain village wisdom left them unable to articulate it clearly.

"Anyway, let’s accept it. We can do so with a clear conscience," Chen Ku said with a smile, then turned and carried the grain to the side house.

Mother Chen watched her son busily handle the situation with ease and hesitantly said, "Son, when do you plan to go to town?"

Chen Ku could feel his mother’s concern, worry, and reluctance about him leaving soon. After a moment of silence, he said, "I can leave with peace of mind after our family pays the autumn tax."

Mother Chen cautioned, "So that would be in a day or two. When you’re in the county town, don’t be too hard on yourself. Remember to visit your brother-in-law frequently. Now that you’re doing well, your brother-in-law might look upon our family favorably again. After all, we’re family, and he could possibly support you in some ways."

Chen Ku nodded. He still remembered that this body had a sister in the city. However, ever since she married, she had her own family. Although she had offered a lot of help, they sometimes didn’t want to bother her too much. Furthermore, her brother-in-law held a clerical position in the county. Before his elder brother had gotten into trouble, the two families had gotten along harmoniously. But since the incident with his elder brother, that brother-in-law had been frequently harassed and attacked by his colleagues. Consequently, he had grown resentful of Chen Ku’s family. Therefore, the assistance his sister provided was actually sent in secret.

"I’ll handle things once I’m in the city," Chen Ku reassured his mother.

At that moment, another voice was heard outside the courtyard.

"Chen... is Brother Chen Ku home?"

"Brother Chen Ku?"

The voice was hesitant and fearful, but also familiar.

"That voice... it sounds like Guo Fu and Guo Qiang?" His sister-in-law’s expression changed; she knew very well what kind of reputation these two brothers had in the village.

Chen Ku, on the other hand, had no particular reaction, although he was curious about what these two were up to.

When he stepped out of the courtyard, he saw not only Guo Fu and Guo Qiang but also two other villagers.

Chen Ku, hearing these two men, considerably older than himself, calling him "brother," guessed their intention, "Is there something you need?"

He looked at the two men.

Guo Qiang, who had been slapped by Li Jiyang because of him, bowed his head, blushing, seemingly at a loss for words.

On the other hand, Guo Fu, whom Chen Ku had kicked, although also bowing his head, spoke up, "My Seventh Master said he has transferred the five acres of land our family rents at the east end of the village to you. Is that true?"

A slight understanding dawned on Chen Ku; he now grasped their purpose. Maintaining a neutral expression, he said, "Indeed. Guo Xiangshen gave me fifteen acres of land, including those five acres you’ve been farming this year."

Guo Fu asked in a low voice, "Brother Chen Ku, our family has rented those five acres for over a decade. We’re experienced in managing them, knowing what to plant, so we would like to continue renting them from you. We won’t use the previous rate but will pay the standard rent so as not to shortchange you. Is that okay?"

Guo Xiangshen had over a hundred acres of land in the village, which he naturally wouldn’t farm himself. Instead, he leased it to tenant farmers, including his family’s nephews. Because they were relatives, they paid less in rent. They were farming prime land. The original rent was seven bushels of grain per acre. However, because Guo Xiangshen was their Seventh Master, he treated it as average land and only required five bushels of grain per acre from them. Their willingness to pay Chen Ku the standard rent showed they likely couldn’t bear to part with those five acres. As they said, having farmed those five acres of prime land for over a decade, they knew what to plant and had never gone hungry, even in disaster years.

Once Guo Fu spoke up, the other two villagers who followed also said, "Yes, exactly, that’s our thought as well. So we came to ask, Kid Ku, can we continue to rent this land for farming next year?"

The two other villagers were Tian Shuhuai and Sun Youhou. They were honest farmers without any family relation to the Guo Family. They paid the normal rent and had come hoping to continue renting the land.

These words left Mother Chen and Xu Lan in a slight daze.

This, this is truly a turning point. Even when the eldest son was around, times were not bad, but never this good. How could their family suddenly transform into the village’s major landowners?

Chen Ku, regarding their intentions, did not refuse.

He smiled and said, "Of course. If you want to keep renting, that suits me perfectly. I’m also worried about how my mother and sister-in-law can handle cultivating these extra dozen acres of land. If you’re interested, I have seven more acres that I can rent out to you as well."

The four villagers looked at each other in surprise.

Guo Fu and Guo Qiang’s eyes were red. They had been prepared to be ridiculed and leave with nothing achieved, but unexpectedly, Chen Ku agreed so readily. He was even willing to rent out more land.

Mother Chen and Xu Lan, however, grew anxious. Neither of them was incapable of work; why rent it all out?

But they were stopped by Chen Ku.

So, half a day later, Chen Ku and these people went to Village Chief Chen’s place. There, they renewed the leasing agreements, and Chen Ku ended up leasing out all of his family’s twenty-odd acres of land.

Upon returning home, Mother Chen was extremely puzzled, tears welling in her eyes, and said, "Child, our family members have been farmers for generations. How can we not keep some land for ourselves?"

Chen Ku looked at them and said, "From now on, Mother, Sister-in-law, you’ll be living differently. No more farming, just collecting rent—this is what a good life looks like."

His sister-in-law murmured, "Then Mother and I will become like the leisurely wives of a landlord..."

Chen Ku laughed and said, "That’s nothing. Once I go to the city, settle down there, and bring our family over, then as city folks, we’ll have Hu Zi study. Who knows, my elder brother might even see his son become a top scholar in the future."

Mother Chen and his sister-in-law were both captivated by the beautiful vision Chen Ku painted.

City folk, studying... even becoming the top scholar? These are things people from the countryside dare not even dream of...

Chen Ku smiled and said no more.

Over the next two days, he cherished his time in this home. Then, after watching Village Chief Chen come and collect the autumn grain, Chen Ku’s last worry vanished.

「Early on the morning of the third day.」

Dressed in a long gown, he finally and completely walked out of this impoverished village, heading towards Baojiao County.

Looking forward, the road ahead stretched far and shone bright.