Chapter 61 - Chapter 61: Chapter 56: The 4th Insect Master Technique! (1/2)
Chapter 61: Chapter 56: The 4th Insect Master Technique!
Translator: 549690339
“Your Majesty, calm your anger! Yan Qi dares not utter a single deceiving word, everything spoken is the truth. Although our Yan Family employs twelve superior farmers, each of them excels in only one or two planting projects. Some are good at weeding, some at loosening the soil, two are skilled at sowing seeds, and others specialize in planting just one of these: wheat, maize, or tea. None is expert in all aspects.”
Yan Qi knelt on the ground without daring to raise his head.
Still, he stated his true opinions, never daring to deceive his master.
“Stand up! Sit and talk.”
The elder’s tone became much more gentle, which allowed Yan Qi to breathe a sigh of relief.
To serve the king is to walk with a tiger.
As an underling or a servant, one’s fate is actually not in one’s own hands.
All status, wealth, and power are bestowed by the master.
A single word could uproot one’s very foundation.
Despite that, countless people still wish to cling to the powerful, willingly becoming servants or slaves.
Because once favored by the strong, one could rapidly rise in position.
“According to what you’ve said, does Qin Niu from Shuangfeng Village possess expertise in all areas such as sowing, soil loosening, weeding, and fertilizing?”
“It should be so! If there’s anything of the highest value, it is the mountain mud fertilizer he formulated. I’ve used mountain mud when planting tea trees, but the effect was short-lived and the fertilizer weak; using it in the fields for crops is even more out of the question. Our exploration of mountain mud fertilizer is still only at the breeding stage. Using mountain mud for breeding allows the seedlings to grow strong and without fear of fertilizer damage; the root system also becomes more developed.”
Yan Qi had become one of the stewards of the Yan household, in charge of farming and tea cultivation, naturally possessing real skill.
In his conversation, he revealed a wealth of planting experience and knowledge.
“He refuses to sell the formula for the fertilizer?”
“Before I even named a price, he outright refused. He said the mountain mud was complex with no fixed formula, and by the sound of it, it requires flexible combinations based on experience. Later, 1 probed with a high offer of three acres of fine land in exchange for the fertilizer formula, but he remained unmoved.”
Yan Qi finished speaking with an expression of wanting to say more but hesitating.
“If you have anything to say, speak frankly, I’ve never considered you an outsider. If you can achieve outstanding results in cultivation, 1 will consider adopting you as my godson.”
The elder threw out an even bigger lure.
Being able to mention adopting Yan Qi as his godson, even if merely a promise, showed his high regard for Yan Qi’s capabilities and potential.
“Qin Niu might have been frightened by Wang Haikun of Shuangfeng Village, worried that my Yan family would falsely promise much like a white wolf in disguise, that’s why he hasn’t entertained this notion. I’ve heard that not only did Wang Haikun take a wolf skin from him, but this time he forcefully took several baskets of the mountain mud as well. 1 observe that Qin Niu is calm and collected, deliberate in speech and actions, and highly adaptable; I don’t understand why Wang Haikun insists on bullying someone like him. If this continues, 1 fear it will end badly.”
Yan Qi had done his homework thoroughly.
He had investigated everything related to Qin Niu, no matter how big or small, and understood it all clearly.
n
If Wang Haikun didn’t have an older brother, he would likely have died many times over by now. His reckless behavior will surely get him killed sooner or later. That Qin Niu regards my Yan family in the same light as Wang Haikun is to underestimate us. Since the establishment of my Yan Family over a hundred years ago, the first of our ancestral teachings was to never exploit the common people. By my generation, the fourth, we have never once seized the common people’s wealth or fields.”
The elder held disdain for Wang Haikun.
“Since Qin Niu is as you say, he must be a wise man; after a few more interactions with our Yan family, he will naturally be able to discern good from evil. In future dealings with him, you may offer him more benefits to try to win him over to our Yan family. The locust plague this year is truly worrying, and sadly my Yan family lacks deep roots, without a truly excellent farmer leading us; the yield for these hundred acres of fields is uncertain!”
The elder’s tone was filled with concern.
The Yan family was a sizable operation with land cultivation as its main income.
If the harvest were poor, the family would fall into jeopardy.
The collapse of a high-rise building can happen in an instant.
As the head of the Yan family, he had to consider the future and destiny of the Yan family, ensuring its everlasting prosperity, and prevent decline.
n
I will do my best to win over this person. If we can truly recruit him into the Yan family, he will surely become a leading figure in the Yan family’s cultivation endeavors.”
Yan Qi got the message and immediately showed his commitment.
“Aren’t you worried that he will take your position once he comes?”
The elder looked at Yan Qi and asked softly.
“Not worried at all. I have my value, and he has his future. Only by making the Yan family stronger can I live better myself. Furthermore, 1 have an intuition that although this young man is young, he is ambitiously unwilling to be inferior to others. He might agree to befriend the Yan family, but it will be difficult for him to consent to living under its roof.”
Yan Qi’s expression was calm, his gaze clear.
“Ha ha, you have improved greatly. Reading is beneficial, studying has made you understand many principles; from now on you may freely enter the Yan family’s library to read.”
n
Thank you, Your Majesty!”
Yan Qi showed an expression of great joy and turned to kneel in gratitude.
“From now on, spare such formalities if you can. Go attend to your tasks! At the summer harvest, I hope to see your achievements, and 1 will consider an exceptional promotion for you to become one of the three great cultivation stewards of the Yan family, which many will not accept. You need to produce results that will silence them.”