He had accepted Lin Zhenhai’s pact, not to seize the Lin Residence’s assets and take what wasn’t his.
On the contrary, he intended to repay the Lin Family for the kindness they had shown him. This way, Lin Ruyue could use his name to manage the Lin Family’s business as a woman.
He would take silver coins from the Lin Family’s shops to support his Cultivation, but at this point, what Ji Xiu needed was nothing less than the Pill of a Centennial Demon—a Seventh-Grade Secret Medicine. And beyond that...
There were also Earth Treasures, Spiritual Objects born of heaven and earth. How could such things possibly be bought with mere silver taels?
The things he lacked were far too many! But the Lin Residence’s wealth could hardly provide any of them.
And the reason he wanted to be called ’Boss’...
Was simply to give his past self, the one who had struggled day and night, a form of validation!
Even as a servant, one should not have to bow their head and lower their brow, content to live out their life in a muddy swamp.
As long as you held on to that single breath of ambition, no matter how dire the circumstances, there would always be a day to rise above. It was a day to make all those who had looked down their noses at him take a good long look, willingly kowtow, and call him ’Boss’!
Lin Ruyue, having just heard the news, had rushed from the boudoir where she had been imprisoned by Lin Du. She arrived just in time to hear the young man’s resonant departing words and froze, stunned.
The fair-featured woman, dressed in a light-blue jacket and skirt covered with a light gauze, was twenty years old—in the full bloom of her youth.
With a trembling hand, she steadied Lin Zhenhai in his wooden wheelchair.
"Father, he..."
She remembered that afternoon. Even though he was nothing but skin and bones, Ji Xiu, dressed in simple cloth, had charged forth to rein in the frenzied steed. While everyone else fled, he alone rode against the tide, his posture heroic and dashing as he brought the wild horse under control.
The scene had left an incredibly deep impression on a sheltered young lady like Lin Ruyue.
Afterward, she had experienced a series of upheavals. The attempt by her third brother—born of a concubine—to usurp power and imprison her had, in a short time, forced Lin Ruyue to transform from a delicate, sheltered maiden.
Now, experiencing this latest shock, her heart finally began to harbor different feelings. The young maiden’s heart was stirring with affection.
However, Lin Zhenhai, from his chair, had already taken it all in.
At this, he merely sighed and said softly:
"Ruyue, our family isn’t what it used to be."
He pointed distantly toward Ji Xiu’s departing figure and the young woman from the Cai Family’s direct lineage, who was still looking dazed after hearing his speech. His tone held a trace of bitterness:
"That young woman, did you see her?"
"Though I don’t know her origins, her physical foundation surpasses what I had even at my peak."
"Even so, before our new Boss Ji, she still defers to him, letting him take the lead in all matters..."
"Where in our county town could such an outstanding young woman possibly come from?"
"Perhaps she’s a descendant from some direct lineage in Jiangyin Prefecture who slipped away to our poor backwater. She saw the local sights and, before she knew it, was captivated by such a heroic and dashing young man."
"Shallow waters cannot contain a True Dragon."
"This young man will one day break free from the mountain paths and enter the East Canghai. The reason I risked asking him to become the Lin Residence’s ’Boss Ji’ when that rebellious son of mine tried to usurp power was so that he could one day be your backer."
"If he cannot be your husband, then he can be your Boss. Either way, it will make others think twice before daring to swallow our Lin Family’s decades of work whole."
"Today’s discussion shows that despite his youth, the boy is broad-minded and possesses world-encompassing talent. But I never thought... that his rise would be this swift."
"It’s for the best. For the best."
"The more powerful he becomes, the easier your future path will be."
"For now, he might still use some of the Lin Residence’s silver coins for his Cultivation, but in a year or two, what you stand to gain... will be far, far greater than that!"
"In the future, his wife is destined to be one of the proud ladies from the prefectures, not someone who will settle down in a county."
"After your sister passed, if you can rely on your past connection with him to perhaps win the position of a concubine, then that would be your good fortune. But if you cannot... do not force it."
Lin Ruyue bit her lip. After a long moment, she replied in a low voice:
"I understand, Father."
Having managed the Lin Residence for decades, Lin Zhenhai was both farsighted and philosophical.
As for Old Yao and his apprentice, Yao Shi... their perspective was far more superficial.
Yao Shi, who once shoveled horse manure for Ji Xiu, was now a Groom, having taken over a shift from Old Yao, the former Steward. Seeing this scene, he exclaimed in astonishment:
"Master, Brother Ji has made it! He’s really made it!"
"From now on, when we see Brother Ji, our new Boss, are we going to have to kowtow...?"
Old Yao’s eyes went wide, and he smacked his apprentice on the back of the head.
"The new Boss is kind and magnanimous. Didn’t you see? He didn’t even hold a grudge against those who spoke ill of him."
"Next time you see him, you’d better hurry up and curry favor. Who knows, maybe one day the new Boss will be in a good mood and pick you to feed his horse!"
Hearing this, Yao Shi was overjoyed.
"Then I’ll definitely feed it until it’s plump and strong!"
The thought of rising above their station never once entered their minds.
Of course.
Perhaps in their simple world, being able to feed the horse of a more powerful person was already something to be proud of.
In this world, everyone sweeps the snow from their own doorstep; each person has their own way of life.
...
Anning County Yamen.
"The Dragon Head of the Lion Hall and the Eagle Falcon Gang... actually escaped? You’re telling me he escaped?"
Zhao Jiu, clad in the crimson official robes of a County Magistrate, slammed one foot on the table. He glared at the Instructors from the Three Great Halls and the three leaders of the Wind and Cloud Association—a total of six county-level experts—and roared in fury:
"I ordered you to gather your men and eliminate the Central Yellow Remnants! Yang Daohan, an Outer Gang master, has already escaped, and you can’t even handle the Mad Lion and Cangying who were left?"
"These are remnants of the Central Yellow Sect! On Jiangyin Prefecture’s No. 1 extermination list, even the scattered Chaotic Heaven Bandits aren’t as great a threat as these bastards!"