Chapter 48: The Ward of Warding Issues Another Warning

"You are going to uproot all my vegetables just to plant a pear tree?"

"Does a pear tree this small really need to hog the entire vegetable patch?"

"If we stop growing vegetables, what will our family eat in the future?"

"What? You're saying we'll buy vegetables every day from now on?"

"Oh my goodness! What kind of family are we that we have to buy vegetables to eat?!"

Madam Cai blocked the entrance of the vegetable garden like a mother hen protecting her chicks, chattering away at Zhao Xing.

"Madam Cai, won't it be fine if I pay for the vegetables?" Zhao Xing said with a helpless smile.

Madam Cai said with a somewhat reluctant expression, "It's not really about the money. I just hate to part with this vegetable patch. I love growing vegetables with my own hands for the family..."

"I'll pay double for the vegetables!"

Madam Cai's face instantly lit up with joy as she stepped aside. "Uproot whatever you like, uproot away! Do you need my help?"

"..." Zhao Xing couldn't help but find it amusing. Your mood changes way too fast.

"There's no need to trouble yourself, I'll do it myself."

Zhao Xing entered the vegetable garden, preparing to clear space for the Tianyuan pear tree.

At this moment, hearing the commotion, Zhao Ruide walked over. Upon hearing what Madam Cai had said, his brows furrowed deeply.

"You actually asked Xing'er for vegetable money? Is that any way for an elder to behave?"

"The third family's courtyard is sitting idle; why don't you go grow your vegetables over there?"

Madam Cai muttered, "He was the one who suggested it, it wasn't my idea. Besides, won't he be eating the vegetables we buy, too? ...What's wrong with him showing some filial piety to the family with his own abilities?"

Zhao Ruide sighed and said, "You really are short-sighted. That pear tree is far more precious than ten of your vegetable plots. If it survives, will our family ever run short of food?"

Madam Cai asked suspiciously, "How much could a single pear tree possibly be worth? He did promise to pay double."

"You! Simply disgraceful..." Zhao Ruide pointed at her and turned away.

Madam Cai looked at her husband, then back at Zhao Xing in the garden, and was suddenly struck with regret. "Oh dear, if it's that precious, and he goes off to take an official post elsewhere in the future, won't this treasured pear tree be left behind for Zheng'er instead? I must have lost my mind just now..."

Then, Madam Cai's eyes rolled as she had a thought, and she hurried away.

Before long, she had sent Zhao Zheng over.

"Eldest brother, Mother told me to come and help."

"No need, go play somewhere else."

Zhao Xing waved his hand and began to cast a spell.

*Whoosh—*

A strong wind swept through, and all the vegetables in the soil were instantly uprooted, the earth even turning over entirely.

"Wow, Eldest brother is amazing! Eldest brother is amazing!" Zhao Zheng clapped his hands excitedly from the side. "Do it again, Eldest brother!"

"Do you take me for a street performer?" Zhao Xing said, rolling his eyes. What on earth was this little brother thinking?

After clearing the soil, Zhao Xing manipulated the wind spell once more.

It turned into a miniature drilling tornado, carving out a large pit.

Then, he broke the pot and planted the [Tianyuan Pear Tree] into the ground.

"Thrive and grow!"

Another spell descended upon the Tianyuan pear tree.

However, this was not aimed at accelerating the maturation of the Tianyuan pear tree, but rather to help its roots anchor quickly and adapt to the new soil environment.

A third-rank top-grade sapling was not so easily transplanted. To re-establish its roots securely, the spell had to be maintained continuously for at least a fraction of an hour.

"Eldest brother, those pears taste so good, why wasn't Mother happy about you planting it?" Zhao Zheng had tasted a small piece before, and it had left a deep impression on him. He felt it was the most delicious pear in the world—icy, cool, and very comforting.

"Your mother hasn't tasted it yet, so she probably doesn't know."

"Mother really has no taste, then."

"Shut up!" Zhao Xing reprimanded, "You are not allowed to speak of your mother that way."

"Eldest brother, I was wrong." Zhao Zheng pinched his ear and obediently lowered his head.

Madam Cai came from a background of singing girls and had given Zhao Ruide a son late in life. Anyone else in her position would have had their tail up in the air with pride.

Yet, despite Zhao Ruide having some savings, she still didn't mind the dirt and fatigue of growing vegetables and cooking at home. She could already be considered virtuous!

It was true that she loved money, but she mostly just talked about it and had never actually demanded that Zhao Xing be driven out of the house. Wasn't it simply because Zhao Xing, as an adopted son, also shared inheritance rights, leaving her feeling insecure? That was merely her protective coloration.

Zhao Xing held no prejudice against Madam Cai; in fact, he understood her completely. One could say all of Madam Cai's selfishness was centered on her son.

"Don't let me hear you speak ill of your mother again, or else you'll have a spanked bottom waiting for you. Do you understand?"

"Understood." Zhao Zheng nodded, half-comprehending.

***

"Understood. Zhao Xing's home is in Pingkang Lane, and I have a relative in Tongji Lane just two streets away. There will be plenty of chances to run into him. Chatting a bit as neighbors is completely fine, so Revered One can rest assured."

"Don't be too obvious," the Hall Master of the Three Bays Hall instructed. "When you go to the East Market to sell fish as usual, just chat idly with people normally."

"I know," the fishmonger nodded.

"The Profound Heaven will protect you."

"Willing to die for the Profound Heaven." A trace of fanaticism flashed in the fisherman's eyes before he shouldered his carrying pole and moved on.

***

[Jingxin Calendar Year 15, September 13th, mid-morning, first quarter of the Si hour.]

[Disaster-Warding Warning: Minor inauspiciousness; prying eyes and ears, hidden perils in all four directions.]

"Hmm?"

That day, as Zhao Xing was on his way to the Agricultural Bureau, he suddenly discovered that the Disaster-Warding Almanac had flipped its pages automatically, displaying a warning.

Immediately afterward, the panel provided a more detailed explanation.

[You have triggered the effect of the third-rank treasure 'Disaster-Warding Almanac'. Based on your fortune level and known information, you have received the following hint:]

[Your three consecutive top-tier 'A-plus' ratings have attracted the attention of the Profound Heaven Sect. They have decided to send believers as eyes and ears to monitor and probe you. Walking in any of the four directions will bury potential disasters for you.]

"The Profound Heaven Sect again?!" Zhao Xing's brows furrowed. "Why are they still around Gucheng? Will this never end?"

"I don't go out of my way to provoke you lot, why must you keep staring at me?"

It was deeply annoying. Zhao Xing currently only wanted to peacefully farm and develop himself; he had zero desire to court any trouble. He had originally thought that after the recent thorough crackdown, the Profound Heaven Sect members had scattered elsewhere. He hadn't expected them to still be lingering here, and they had even started keeping tabs on him.

"It's only a minor inauspiciousness level, which proves the Profound Heaven Sect won't take immediate action yet, but they will inevitably act in the future. During the Jingxin Strange Case, what exactly did the Profound Heaven Sect do?" Zhao Xing recalled the details.

"Ah yes, they captured so many agricultural officials in order to artificially manufacture natural disasters across the Great Zhou. Capturing weavers and mechanical artisans was purely to throw people off the scent; their primary targets were indeed agricultural professionals."

"The Profound Heaven Sect as a sect is closed off, but the believer forces under its command are quite substantial. Making trouble in Great Zhou is meant to assert their presence, plant the seeds of the Profound Heaven Sect among the common folk, gather incense and faith, and lay out their plans for the future revival period."

"After the Jingxin Strange Case was reviewed by players, the Profound Heaven Sect's kidnapping operation lasted a full ten years. The first nine years were all about stealthily capturing people, brainwashing officials, and secretly cultivating them, while in the tenth year they sowed chaos everywhere and erupted all at once. And their ultimate goal was..."

"The Yuanling Grotto-Heaven in Guangling Province!"