Chen Xianming brought five people to learn rice planting. While eating in the canteen, they heard everyone read this safety precaution.

They approached Chen San, who was teaching them, and asked if they could take a copy of the safety book with them when they left.

In previous years, during the busy farming season, people in the village would often hear stories of people being struck by lightning.

At the time, everyone thought they were being punished by God for doing something wrong. Today, they finally understand that it was because that place was prone to lightning strikes.

Chen San reported this to Lin Yinan, who then waved his hand and had Lin Fu transcribe a copy for them.

Nanman Prefecture.

Huaizhou City, Zhong Mansion.

The steward of the Zhong family, lifting the hem of his robe, hurried across the hall and headed straight for the study at the back. The study door was tightly closed, so he reached out and knocked lightly twice.

A deep, resonant voice soon came from the study, "Come in!"

"Master!" Butler Zhong entered the study and bowed to the Zhong family head, who was sitting behind the desk.

The head of the Zhong family was in his early fifties, with a tall and upright figure and a gentle and refined appearance. His face was also very well-maintained, making him look no more than forty years old.

He lifted his eyelids and glanced at Zhong Kejia below him, made a stroke on the paper, and then slowly put down his pen.

"Is something the matter?" he asked unhurriedly.

Butler Zhong felt that the head of the household's gaze was like a sharp sword, making him dare not look up and meet his eyes.

"Reporting to the patriarch, the people from Dongshui County have reported that they rescued a seriously injured Dongying ronin on a beach near Xihe County."

The head of the Zhong family trembled, and the ink on his pen dripped onto the half-written sheet of paper. He glanced at the paper ruined by the ink drop and instantly lost interest.

He put down his pen, his face still calm and composed. "Did that Japanese ronin say anything?"

He took out the Yu family token and then fainted.

Butler Zhong took out a token from his sleeve and presented it to the head of the Zhong family.

The Zhong family head took the token and examined it closely. It was indeed the Yu family's token. "Could it be that something happened in Xihe County?"

The fact that the Yu family and Japanese pirates occupied a mine in Xihe was hardly a secret among the powerful families of the south; it was just an open secret.

"Is this the only possibility? Should we tell Patriarch Yu?" Butler Zhong asked.

"Let me think about it."

The head of the Zhong family rubbed his hands together and paced back and forth in his study. He asked the steward with a curious look, "Tell me, who would dare to touch Xihe County? Who would dare to openly oppose the Yu family?"

After pondering for a moment, the butler said, "Didn't we hear a while ago that a group of refugees went to Longtan to settle down? Master, do you think it could be them, or perhaps the Chen family?"

The Zhong family head shook his head. "It can't be that old fox from the Chen family. It must be those refugees from Longtan. Just who are they? How dare they challenge the Yu family as soon as they arrive?"

"Master, should we tell the Yu family about the Dongying Ronin?" the butler asked cautiously.

"Say no nonsense. If I don't say anything, the Yu family actually dared to try to ruin my carefully raised son with their own rotten offspring. Don't think that everyone doesn't know about the filth their daughter has done. Tell me, which noble family in the South doesn't know about it?"

The head of the Zhong family was furious. He really thought that just because the Zhong family needed to rely on the Yu family, they could take advantage of him.

He grew angrier the more he thought about it, and pointed at the steward, saying, "Go yourself and kill that Dongying ronin. Make sure he's cleaned up and doesn't give himself away."

"Master, aren't you afraid of the Yu family blaming you?" The Yu family was all-powerful, and the steward was somewhat afraid.

The head of the Zhong family glared fiercely at the steward, "Tell the people below to keep their mouths shut. If you don't say anything and I don't say anything, who will know? Even if we've seen it, we'll deny it to the death."

"Yes, I'll take care of it right away."

The steward was about to leave when the Zhong family head called him back, "Find two quick-witted men to go to Dragon Pool and scout out the situation."

After the butler left, the head of the Zhong family returned to his desk, removed the paper stained with ink, and replaced it with a new sheet of paper.

"Old man of the Yu family, I'm afraid you're going to suffer a great loss this time." The Zhong family head began grinding ink in a very good mood, muttering to himself.

As the saying goes, there are no permanent friends, only permanent interests. When interests clash, it is difficult to remain friends.

He was happy to see the Yu family suffer. The Fan family had such a big piece of the pie, and it was one thing for the Yu family to take it all for themselves, but now they actually wanted to target the Zhong family as well, which was going too far.

Yongqing City, Chen Family.

Chen Xianming sat in the small flower hall, sipping tea and checking the accounts. He smacked his lips; the quality of this year's summer tea was good, but unfortunately, the yield was low.

"Father, Father!" Chen Gu's loud voice rang out before he even entered the house.

"What are you doing, making such a fuss?" Chen Xianming glanced at his son with displeasure.

Chen Gu picked up the cup on the table, poured himself a cup of tea, and gulped it down.

It was like a cow chewing on a peony; Chen Xianming couldn't hide the disgust on his face.

"The salt from Longtan has arrived," Chen Gu said with a grin.

Chen Xianming paused in his calculations, "How much time has passed? The salt is already ready. How much has been delivered?"

"Two hundred thousand catties, half thick and half thin," Chen Gu held up two fingers and continued, "Should we sell them in the shop?"

Chen Xianming said, "No rush, let's put it in the warehouse first. If we release it now, it will definitely attract some small families that have heard about it. Let's stock up on enough for two or three months."

"Father, this puts our Chen family in the eye of the storm. Won't we become the target of everyone's criticism?" Chen Gu was a little worried. After all, their Chen family had been steady and pragmatic all these years and had not done anything too outrageous.

Chen Xianming squinted at his son, Chen Gu, who felt uneasy under his gaze. "Dad, why are you looking at me like that?"

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