If you traveled back to ancient times, while others ate Guanyin clay, you would actually have giant

Zhou Wu helped Li Family Village out of respect for Li Baiwei and her family. If they were willing to cooperate, Zhou Wu would naturally help them become wealthy. However, given their current behavior—wanting to make money but not wanting to take risks—Zhou Wu wouldn't shamelessly beg them.

By having his father-in-law act as an agent for purchasing fresh mushrooms and setting up a processing workshop, the villagers of Lijia Village would naturally not have to bear any risks. However, the majority of the profits would go to Zhou Wu.

“Father-in-law, don’t worry, we won’t lose out in this matter. On the contrary, we might even make a fortune. Originally, out of respect for you, I wanted to give this wealth to the villagers, but they didn’t want to take any risks. There’s no such thing as a free lunch.”

"Sigh, they can only blame themselves."

At this point, Li Er stopped speaking up for the villagers, since they were the ones who had hurt Zhou Wu's feelings first.

"But don't worry, father-in-law. Although we can't make them rich and powerful, we can certainly make sure they have enough to eat and wear."

Hearing Zhou Wu say this, Li Er felt a little better. Although he was disappointed by the villagers' behavior just now, they were still fellow villagers he had known for decades.

Zhou Wu said he would build a new house for his parents-in-law, and soon a construction team arrived in Lijia Village from Niujia Town.

"Greetings, my lord."

"No need for formalities, you know what I'm doing now, right?"

"Yes, Mayor Niu has already given the instructions."

"Okay, then you can start working on it. I only have one requirement: quality and quantity must be guaranteed."

"Don't worry, sir, this is my job."

According to Master Niu, after the city wall was completed, he specially kept some outstanding people behind to mainly handle the maintenance work in Niujia Town. This way, if Zhou Wu came back one day and wanted to expand the city, they wouldn't be unable to find suitable manpower.

In this respect, Zhou Wu greatly admired Master Niu, who was able to think of ways to retain talented people.

Along with the construction team came the person in charge of the mushroom workshop, arranged by Deng Yuanliang. Professional matters should be handled by professionals. After Zhou Wu made the arrangements, he also prepared to set off for home.

"Father-in-law and mother-in-law, please feel free to stay here while the new house is being renovated. I have already made sure to inform you."

"Good, good, good."

"Father-in-law, please keep this money for now. If it's not enough, just let me know."

It was fine to stay in the house temporarily, but Li Er refused to accept the bag of silver that Zhou Wu handed over, and quickly declined.

“Father-in-law, we are family now, you are really being too formal.”

“Son-in-law, it’s not a good habit to take money. If I take your money today, what will happen to my sons and daughters in the future? Will they still ask you for money? This is not helping them, it’s ruining their lives.”

Zhou Wu was once again deeply moved by his father-in-law, who had spent his entire life working the land. Such profound words had actually come from the mouth of a farmer.

"Father-in-law, I have learned a lot."

This time, Zhou Wu was very sincere. The other party was not tall, had dark skin, and a face full of wrinkles, but what he said made Zhou Wu, a highly educated man, admire him.

After spending about half a month in Lijia Village, Zhou Wu and Li Baiwei finally embarked on their return journey. This time, their destination was still Niujia Village, because there was still one thing he hadn't taken care of.

. . . . . . .

"Yuanliang, is it possible to buy saltpeter?"

"Salt water? I can buy it, but why would you need it, sir? Do you intend to refine pills as well?"

"Alchemy? What kind of alchemy?"

"Sir, you really don't intend to use it for alchemy?"

"Come on, do I look like a charlatan?"

"My lord, you scared me to death! I really thought you bought saltpeter to make pills."

In this era, saltpeter was mainly used by alchemists for alchemy or for small-scale medical purposes. When Deng Yuanliang heard Zhou Wu want to buy saltpeter, he initially thought Zhou Wu wanted to use it for alchemy.

In this era, alchemists were very popular among the powerful and wealthy. They used the guise of attaining immortality or longevity to amass wealth. Many powerful and wealthy people were addicted to it. In the dynasties before the Great Dragon, even many emperors were deeply involved.

So when Deng Yuanliang heard that Zhou Wu wanted to buy saltpeter, he felt a sense of panic, but fortunately it was just a misunderstanding.

"You're the one who scared me to death. I'm a staunch materialist and a successor to the red cause. How could any of these scams about demons, monsters, or immortality possibly fool me?"

"May I ask why you need to buy saltpeter, sir?"

Deng Yuanliang's eyes still held a hint of doubt. Zhou Wu had originally wanted to surprise him, but it was clear that if he didn't say anything, Deng Yuanliang would not feel comfortable carrying out the task.

"Didn't I mention making ice before?"

"Hmm, the master did mention it before. Could it be that this saltpeter is related to the master's ice-making process?"

"That's right, the key to making ice lies in this saltpeter."

Hearing Zhou Wu reveal the real reason, Deng Yuanliang was finally relieved. However, he remained cautious. Since the saltpeter was related to ice making, and ice making was related to the fishing industry, the main source of income for the entire Niujia Town, Deng Yuanliang decided to purchase it in a decentralized manner, preferably from abroad, in order to keep the secret for longer.

Making ice was a very important and urgent matter, so Deng Yuanliang immediately went to take care of it himself. On his way out, he happened to run into Madam Lin.

"Sir, where is Mr. Deng going? Why is he in such a hurry?"

"Madam Lin is here. Please have a seat. I'll have Yuanliang buy me some things."

"Oh."

"By the way, did you need something?"

Within the territory, Madam Lin's presence has always been relatively low, mainly because Madam Lin is in charge of maritime security. In this era, when it comes to naval power, Niujia Town is definitely one of the top. Don't underestimate it just because it's a town; in terms of ships, personnel, and weapons, it is absolutely at the forefront of the world.

The launch of the Bull Demon King ship alone sparked a boom in maritime trade. Even many pirate groups disguised themselves to buy the Bull Demon King ship. Now, the orders at the Niujia Town shipyard are already booked until next year.

Moreover, Zhou Wu now possesses the even larger Azure Dragon, but information about it has been completely blocked by Zhou Wu, so the outside world only knows about the Bull Demon King and not the Azure Dragon.

"My lord, I have something important to report."

Lin Niangzi's sudden seriousness made Zhou Wu realize the importance of the matter.

"Sit down and speak slowly."

"Intelligence at sea indicates that after Black Dragon's White Skull Pirates absorbed Red-haired Bass, the fourth-ranked Shichibukai, their strength has rapidly expanded. Now, almost the entire Great Dragon Sea is Black Dragon's sphere of influence, and it is said that he is currently brewing a big plan."

"A grand plan? Does he really dare to jump ashore and attack the dragon?"

Zhou Wu had no idea that his joke would actually come true. It turned out that Black Dragon's ambitions had indeed been realized after the **, that the oceans of the Great Dragon Empire could no longer satisfy his desires, and now he actually wanted to seize the emperor's throne.