Chen Xiaocai and Shen Chi traveled at a leisurely pace, taking more than half a month to reach Lin Town.

After entering Linzhen's territory, the two did not go straight back to the village, but instead found an inn in the town to stay at.

Chen Xiaocai's house in the countryside was sold long ago, but Chen Chi's house is still there. However, it has been uninhabited for so many years, so it must be very dirty and messy, and no one can live there for a while.

Over the years, Chen Chi has been accompanying Chen Xiaocai as she goes out to make a living. Sometimes, when he is extremely tired, Chen Chi will think back to the days in the village.

For Chen Xiaocai, life in the village was far from good. In fact, it was much the same for Chen Chi. Chen Chi's parents had died early, and his relatives and friends rarely visited him for fear of him coming to borrow money or things.

However, Shen Chi was slightly better off than Chen Xiaocai. Before Grandma Shen passed away, she had a few acquaintances in the village and received help from them when things were really tough.

Sometimes, when Chen Chi thinks about things from his childhood, he thinks about coming back to visit when he has time. However, when he actually comes back, Chen Chi feels a sense of bewilderment and helplessness.

“Lin Town hasn’t changed much in the past few years!” Chen Chi said.

In Shen Chi's memory, Lin Town should be much more prosperous than Sha County. Back then, when Shen Chi first came to Sha County with Chen Xiaolai, he felt that Sha County was inferior to Lin Town in every way, and for a while, he was not used to it. However, Sha County has developed very quickly in recent years.

Many villagers have become wealthy, and the town appears prosperous and thriving. In comparison, Linzhen seems rather ordinary.

Chen Xiaocai, with his hands behind his back, said, "It must be because Shaxian has developed too fast. Brother Lin is quite capable."

In comparison, the magistrate of Linzhen is far more incompetent; after all these years, nothing has changed. However, a typical magistrate who doesn't levy exorbitant taxes can already be considered a good official.

Chen Xiaocai nodded and said, "Yes!"

"Young Master Chen, Second Young Master." Yang Hengzhi greeted Chen Xiaocai warmly. "My family and servants said they saw you, Young Master Chen, Second Young Master. I thought they were mistaken, but it turns out it was true."

"It's Boss Yang! Long time no see." Chen Xiaocai cupped her hands in greeting to Yang Hengzhi.

"Long time no see, Young Master Chen looks even more energetic." Yang Hengzhi thought to himself. A few years ago, Chen Xiaocai was already a capable person who could stand on his own. In the past few years, he seems to have matured a lot.

"Mr. Yang, you flatter me."

“I’m not flattered. I heard that the young master went to Kyoto to pull off a heist two years ago?” Yang Hengzhi asked.

Chen Xiaocai nodded and said, "I have been there, but I didn't make much money."

It was only a little over a thousand taels. After he returned, Ji Yun'an seemed to have revised the story several times and reprinted it a few more times. Chen Xiaocai received more than a thousand taels of silver as dividends from Ji Yun'an through Ji Chengkang. Chen Xiaocai did not publicize this amount of money.

Yang Hengzhi smiled and said, "Young Master is too modest."

The news coming from Butcher Zhang's side is that Chen Xiaocai earned several hundred taels of silver in less than two months in Kyoto. The silver was secondary; Chen Xiaocai also got involved with people in the Kyoto military.

"I heard that Boss Lu is now serving as a county magistrate at the border, and he is doing a very good job. He has even been praised by the Emperor."

Chen Xiaocai smiled and said, "Brother Lin, it's just that the title of county magistrate sounds good. Sha County is very poor, there's hardly any profit to be made, and they even lose money."

When Lu Lin first became the magistrate of Shaxian County, he really spent a lot of money on the county. However, in recent years, Shaxian has developed well, and many people have come to Shaxian to experience its cuisine, so he has made a lot of money.

Yang Hengzhi smiled and said, "To be able to hold the position of magistrate in Sha County, Lord Lu is indeed no ordinary person!" The magistrates of Sha County have always had tragic fates, and several of them have died unnatural deaths.

Back then, when Lu Lin chose to buy his way into office, Yang Hengzhi didn't approve of it. In fact, he was a little jealous. Being an official in Sha County wasn't easy, but at least it was still an official position. Once you became an official, you were different from ordinary people.

Yang Hengzhi was surprised to find that Lu Lin was doing a good job as an official. It was said that Lu Lin had a very good relationship with the local tyrant, the patrolman Guan, in Sha County. Some time ago, even a prince went to Sha County.

Your Highness! What an extraordinary person! Yang Hengzhi never expected that Lu Lin, who had only become a minor official, would have the opportunity to come into contact with such a great figure.

"Boss Yang's business is getting bigger and bigger. I see that several shops in Lin Town have changed ownership!" Chen Xiaocai flattered Yang Hengzhi. Yang Hengzhi smiled and said, "This is also thanks to Lord Lu."

Lu Lin was cheated by a county magistrate back then, and afterwards, the magistrate sold the business to him, which made him a lot of money.

When Yang Hengzhi first took over the business, things didn't go very smoothly. The previous magistrate of Lin County seemed to be obsessed with making money. After Yang Hengzhi took over Lu Lin's shop, that guy shifted his target to Yang Hengzhi and repeatedly caused him trouble.

Yang Hengzhi regretted his actions for a time, having been greedy and bought Lu Lin's shop at a low price. However, not long after, the county magistrate was imprisoned, and things went much more smoothly afterward.

Having learned from the mistakes of his predecessor, the newly appointed magistrate is much more low-key than before.

Yang Hengzhi sized up Chen Xiaocai and felt that Chen Xiaocai seemed to have become much more impressive. Before Lu Lin bought his official position, he was just a merchant. Now he was a county magistrate and had connections with people in higher positions. He was no longer the helpless person he used to be.

"Is Lord Lu alright?"

Chen Xiaomai nodded and said, "Brother Lin is doing well."

Chen Xiaomai thought to herself: Lu Lin is indeed quite good. This guy always has a lot of ideas, but he spends money to hire others to do them. He only needs to talk. Compared to his hard work, Lu Lin is really leisurely.

"Actually, Lord Lu was very farsighted! In the past two years, the system of buying official positions has been abolished, and now it's impossible to buy an official position," Yang Hengzhi sighed.

The year Lu Lin bought his official position, several vacant official positions were suddenly offered by the authorities. However, none of those positions were very desirable. At the time, many wealthy people were interested, but hesitated because the prices were too high. Some people thought they could wait, but by waiting, they ended up losing everything.

All things considered, Lu Lin's decisive spending of three thousand taels to buy an official position back then showed considerable courage.

Chen Xiaocai shrugged and said, "Although the title of county magistrate sounds good, it wasn't really that great when I first came here."

The roof of the county government office is leaky. Luckily, they still have money, otherwise they would have to build a dilapidated house. It's been passable for now.

"I've heard that Lord Lu has been governing Shaxian quite well lately!" Yang Hengzhi said.

Chen Xiaocai nodded and said, "It's alright."

Chen Xiaocai wasn't well-liked in the village, but he was quite popular in the town. Knowing that Chen Xiaocai had returned, several wealthy men in the town joined together to throw him a welcome banquet.

Many people in the town know that Lu Lin went out to take up an official post back then.

Back then, Lu Lin was just a businessman, but now he's an official. Chen Xiaocai's status has also risen along with Lu Lin's.

Many wealthy men said they were hosting a welcome party for Chen Xiaocai, but in reality, they also wanted to get closer to him.

Lu Chengyu and a classmate walked past the Hongyun Restaurant and happened to see a large banquet being held inside.

"What's going on here? It seems quite lively!" Lu Chengyu said.

Sun Hu glanced at Lu Chengyu and said, "A wealthy man has come back to visit his family, so the bosses in our town are hosting a welcome dinner for him."

Lu Chengyu asked with some curiosity, "Which one is it?"

Sun Hu said with a strange expression, "It's that old toy shop that sold dolls, the one that sold the shop and became an official. You know him, right? You're quite close to him!"

Lu Chengyu's expression stiffened slightly. "Are you talking about my cousin, Lu Lin?"

Lu Chengyu frowned. Lu Lin had already become an official; could he really abandon his post without permission?

"It's not Lu Lin, it seems to be his brother-in-law."

"It's not Lu Lin!" Lu Chengyu suddenly felt a sense of relief. Although he was unwilling to admit it, Lu Chengyu did not want to see Lu Lin.

Two years ago, Lu Chengyu took the imperial examination and spent a lot of money, but unfortunately he failed.

During that examination, Lu Chengyu witnessed the difficulty of passing the imperial examination. Candidates from all over the country gathered together, among whom were many outstanding individuals, many of whom were eloquent and insightful. It was extremely difficult to stand out from among them.

In contrast, Lu Lin simply spent money to buy an official position, which was much easier.

Two years ago, after the Emperor's commendation order was sent back, the villagers always spoke of Lu Lin with great admiration. Every time Lu Chengyu heard the villagers talking about Lu Lin, he felt very uncomfortable.

In the past two years, the family's situation has not improved much, and the old man passed away two years ago.

The old lady lives alone. Although she still likes to make a fuss, she is getting old and her husband is no longer around. She doesn't have as much confidence as before, and she hasn't been causing trouble in the village lately. She just stays at home and bosses people around.

Lu Chengyu stood at the door and saw Chen Xiaocai and Shen Chi surrounded by several important figures from Lin Town.

The crowd surrounded Chen Xiaocai, urging her to drink. Chen Xiaocai was busy dealing with the people urging her to drink and didn't notice the people at the door.

Shen Chi vaguely sensed Lu Chengyu's gaze and looked towards the door. Lu Chengyu immediately walked away.

Looking at Lu Chengyu's expression, Sun Hu said, "I'm telling you, your cousin is really heartless. He's an official now, but he doesn't even know how to help you out."

Lu Chengyu kept a straight face and didn't say anything. Even though Lu Lin was different now, Lu Chengyu still couldn't bring herself to rely on him.

"I wonder what Chen Xiaocai is back for?" Lu Chengyu was a little confused. Chen Xiaocai and Chen Xiaomi were cut from the same cloth. It couldn't be that she made too much money and wanted to share some with the Chen family.

Thinking of Chen Xiaocai surrounded by the crowd, Lu Chengyu suddenly felt inferior. Although he was a scholar, the wealthy people in the town didn't take him seriously. These guys, however, were very polite to Chen Xiaocai, even fawning over him. Lu Chengyu suddenly lost interest and walked away with Sun Hu.