68. Traveling incognito, they argued incessantly.

Half an hour later, she got up quietly, pulled the blanket up, and then went to the courtyard.

"Butler Yang, prepare some food." She said to the waiting Butler Yang, then thought for a moment and opened the two delivered boxes to check.

Upon opening the box, both gifts were quite heavy. The gift for Scholar Guan was a He Shou Wu (Polygonum multiflorum) plant that was about a hundred years old.

Lord Yang is a hundred-year-old ginseng. As the ancients said, a small gift carries great meaning!

Now, neither of them is light. I put the things away. Oh well, I'll just eat them both. My cells instantly felt a surge of joy, rapidly absorbing the nutrients.

Magistrate Meng's close subordinate was reporting news to him: the City God Temple was being repaired and its golden statue rebuilt. As an official, he knew in his heart that the City God truly existed, but he simply lacked the power to see him.

Now that they're building a golden statue, how can I stand idly by! 'Is it true that Constable He is rebuilding the City God's statue?'

"Yes, it's true. The Three Demon Lords are secretly arranging things. But the news spread quickly. Now, several masters are already on-site calculating the time and dates."

Upon hearing this, Magistrate Meng exclaimed, "How can you leave me out of such a big matter!"

So he said, 'The matter of the City God is a matter for Huangtu County, and I, the magistrate, should also pay close attention to it. Let's go and see for ourselves.'

The fact that Gui San had asked someone to repair the City God statue couldn't be kept secret, and they even wanted to build a golden statue. News of something unusual spread incredibly fast.

Even a rebellion probably wouldn't have spread this far. Both men took matters of the supernatural very seriously, but they underestimated the impact of this action. Much of the city knew about it. Even the county magistrate knew and inquired with his servants.

Yesterday, Sister Lan reconciled with Huayu and had the room cleaned. A new six-foot king-size bed was set up inside! It's made of golden nanmu wood, with dragons and phoenixes carved on the headboard. Everything in the room, from the tables to the chairs, has been rearranged.

"Sister, I think that's about enough. Right now, we need to build the city. Once the city is built, we can build a new mansion."

Sister Lan nodded in agreement and said softly, "Yes, thank you for your trouble, little sister."

Then the two women looked around the relatively empty space in the courtyard. There was nothing there, and it seemed like something was missing.

Jie Huayu said, "Sister Lan, this yard would look even better with some decorations. We could put some orchids and other green plants there. The market is bustling with people right now, and there are all sorts of plants. Let's go to the market together tomorrow and buy some!"

Sister Lan rarely goes to the market; usually, Butler Weng delivers her things. She did, however, want to go and browse the market.

But then she asked, "Doesn't my sister need to handle the caravan matters tomorrow?"

"There's no need to handle it daily. The market is now managed by the adults. Besides, it's the Xie family's caravan after all, so no one in them dares to have any designs on it!"

"Okay, I'll listen to my sister."

The two women went to rest, feeling considerable pressure as the others were about to arrive.

Magistrate Meng was dressed in plain blue clothes, wearing a scholar's hat, and had a square jade pendant at his waist. A plain-looking servant in blue followed behind him.

Magistrate Meng has been here for some years, but he hasn't married. He's made unannounced visits before, and now he sees it much more prosperous. Police officers are maintaining order in the streets. There are dedicated street cleaners. There are even newly built pavilions and outhouses!

The streets were neatly maintained and clean! There were vendors selling food, drinks, and toys. Quite a few women were also out strolling around! It almost felt like I'd stumbled into a bustling metropolis!

Originally planning to rush to the City God Temple, I've now stopped my hurried pace and am slowly savoring this rare moment of prosperity!

Thinking to myself, "I hope you can maintain this kind of county town; that would be quite nice!"

Then I saw many people heading towards the City God Temple. Soon I heard people around me talking animatedly.

"Go check it out, the news is true."

"Yes, my relative works at the police station. They just hired several people and are calculating the date to start work."

"We all know that it definitely needs to be repaired. And they'll also be gilded. It'll be real gold."

"Really? Who's that rich?"

"Hehe, the officers at the police station, it's said they're paying for it themselves, not raising any money. Now a lot of wealthy men and scholars have gone there, and the area is already surrounded."

Someone asked,

"Why are you surrounding it? Doesn't the scholar agree?"

That voice also supported the scholars.

"It's not that they disagree, it's that they all want to donate money to repair it together, but the police station wants to pay for it themselves and they don't agree to work with them. Now they're surrounded. Moreover, the Yang family is also here."

An elderly man explained, "This City God is an ancestor of the Yang family from a very long time ago. The descendants of the Yang family must participate in the renovation of the City God Temple this time."

So, following the flow of people, listening to their discussions, I arrived at the entrance of the City God Temple.

At this moment, in front of the City God Temple, the place was bustling with noise—even during the Lunar New Year, it wasn't this lively! A blank space automatically appeared at the entrance.

The outer perimeter was filled with ordinary people, while inside were local wealthy people, scholars, a few successful candidates in the imperial examinations, Feng Buxing, Yang Dexing and his third uncle, and Mr. Wang also came.

The crowd surrounded Gui San and engaged him in a verbal battle!

A man with a long beard cupped his hands and said, "Chief Gui San, the repairs shouldn't be entirely funded by the police station. All the gentry in our city, if they're willing, should participate. Only with the City God's protection can we be unafraid of evil spirits!"

The other local gentry around him echoed, "Yes, Chief Ghost."

This is a city-wide issue; it's not fair for you to shoulder this alone. That would make us seem too selfish. We should all work together!

Gui San cupped his hands and said, "I'm sure the City God already knows of everyone's good intentions, but everyone has a heavy burden at home. Let us cover the repairs. I appreciate your kindness on behalf of my master!" Gui San didn't want to refuse!

Yang Dexing's feelings were also complicated at this moment. "I've never seen you guys repair it before, but now that our Yang family is preparing to repair it ourselves, you're all rushing to do it. And it really is a golden statue!"

This is truly a golden statue! The Yang family really can't afford to build one!

Then, without overthinking it, I decided to get involved first. Judging from Gui San's demeanor, he was going to cultivate alone—how could that be!

But repairing this thing costs money and time. And you can't say anything bad about it.

A commotion erupted, but the local gentry couldn't simply vent their frustrations like ordinary people.

You've at least read the classics! Besides, this is such a good thing, you can't just curse people out for not paying for it, can you?

Lunch at the He residence was served quite late, before the sun had even set! The noisy footsteps outside carried the sound to the He residence.

At this moment, at the dining table, several people were feeding each other. One person put a large piece of braised wolf meat into their mouth! Another person then put a large piece of braised pork, along with a large bluefish! Then they fed them an eel that was three feet long and as thick as a fist—they were practically sentient!