The deflated cultivator refused to give up and vowed to turn the tables.

"What's wrong? Don't you believe me?" Aurora said. "Today marks two months since you arrived here. I promised I wouldn't break my word, but you insisted on crawling through that dog hole instead of believing me. What a peculiar habit! Put me down and leave on your own. I mean what I say and won't chase after you. My father has ordered me not to leave this city."

“If we kidnap you out of the city, it wouldn’t be considered a violation of the rules, would it?” Su Zinong said.

“I’m glad you want to kidnap me. But I’m afraid my father isn’t as reasonable as you think. He’s a blockhead and will definitely think I’m in cahoots with you. Otherwise, how could he let the two of you escape when there are so many six-star, five-star, and four-star people in the entire mansion?” Ou Ruo sighed.

"What if we insist on doing it this way?" Su Zinong continued to ask.

“If you insist on doing this, I can’t stop you. But for now, the guards in this city will obey my orders and won’t chase after us. Once my men leave the city, they will only follow my father’s orders and disregard my safety. They will definitely bring you back, and then you will suffer more losses than gains,” Ou Ruo said unhurriedly.

Su Zinong was skeptical, but Ou Ruo's explanation seemed reasonable, so he half-believed her. He really didn't know whether to release her or take her with him.

"Let's let her go!" Qin Xiangxue said. "After all, we were well-fed, well-clothed and well-housed in that compound. She never hit us, scolded us or killed us. And after two months, she really did want to let us go."

Su Zinong looked at Qin Xiangxue in surprise and said, "What kind of symptoms are these? A kidnapped person would still speak well of the real culprit?"

The carriage arrived at the city gate.

Su Zinong put Ou Ruo down, and the coachman also got off the carriage. He then drove the carriage out of the city at breakneck speed.

When they reached a point ten miles outside the city, they encountered another carriage. Su Zinong stopped the carriage, told the driver to exchange carriages, gave him a thousand taels of silver, and ordered him to speed south without stopping for a day.

The coachman happily accepted the silver note, thinking to himself that this thousand taels was enough to buy ten carriages and marry ten wives, and then he hummed a little tune as he went.

Su Zinong and Qin Xiangxue changed carriages and hurriedly headed east.

The two walked for three days and three nights, only stopping in the small town to replenish their food and water.

They only breathed a sigh of relief after walking six hundred miles.

Having survived a tribulation and been reborn, it feels like a lifetime has passed.

“There’s no need to rush,” Qin Xiangxue said. “I have a feeling she’ll keep her word and won’t come after us.”

"You really trust her that much?" Su Zinong asked, puzzled.

"They just didn't catch up, did they? With the strength of the Heavenly Demon Sect, it wouldn't be too difficult for them to catch up with just one of our carriages." Qin Xiangxue's analysis made sense.

The two turned south, abandoned their carriage, and bought two fine horses in the small town.

Qin Xiangxue's training journey has been fraught with difficulties, and almost half a year has passed. Su Zinong and she headed towards Qin Tianzhuang, and surprisingly, the journey was peaceful, without encountering any enemies.

On the way, Qin Xiangxue seemed preoccupied and became quieter. Su Zinong assumed she was preoccupied with what happened in the secret room and felt awkward about comforting her.

However, Qin Xiangxue was actually feeling unhappy and melancholy because she was about to part ways.

One day, they arrived at Qintian Village in Xiangyang City.

The servants at the gate were overjoyed to see their young lady return and quickly greeted her.

Su Zinong did not enter Qin Tianzhuang again, but bid farewell to Qin Xiangxue and was about to turn and leave.

Qin Xiangxue was reluctant to leave.

The servant said, "Miss, Young Master Huang Chenghe of Yellow River Manor has a letter that he specifically instructed you to give to him as soon as you return."

Qin Xiangxue opened the letter and read that it said that she had learned that Xiangxue and Young Master Su had gone on a training trip together, and that upon returning to the manor, she should immediately ask him to go to Yellow River Manor.

Qin Xiangxue handed the letter to Su Zinong.

After reading the letter, Su Zinong bowed respectfully to Qin Xiangxue and bid her farewell, then rode his large yellow horse towards the Yellow River Manor. All the way, he wondered what urgent matter Huang Chenghe had to discuss with him.

Over the past century, the Yellow River Manor has gained immense prestige. Originally ranked in the middle of the Five Rivers Manor Alliance, it has risen to become the leading manor in the alliance.

However, things have been unusual for the past ten years or so, with strange occurrences and a slight decrease in strength. What could be the cause? Su Zinong was very curious.

Upon arriving in Huanggang City, Su Zinong did not go directly to the Yellow River Villa, but instead took a walk around it as was his habit.

The Yellow River Villa is enormous, covering over a hundred acres. It is backed by mountains, faces a main road, has the distant White Mountain to the right, and the Azure Dragon, or Tengchong River, to the left. Its raging waves surge, exuding a menacing aura, and its waters are murky. A large bridge spans the Tengchong River beneath the Yellow River Villa.

A situation is one where advantages and disadvantages coexist.

After reading it, Su Zinong nodded and then shook his head. This seemingly perfect geography concealed a deadly danger that urgently needed to be resolved.

After entering the Yellow River Villa, Huang Chenghe was very happy and held a grand banquet to entertain Su Zinong.

Even the estate owner, Huang Donglang, personally came to entertain him, which made Su Zinong feel embarrassed, and he almost got drunk that night.

The next morning, Huang Donglang sobered up and asked Su Zinong to have breakfast together.

"Zilong, it's been two years since you last visited Yellow River Manor, hasn't it?" Huang Donglang asked kindly.

"Ah, yes, Uncle. This time I felt both familiar and nostalgic about Huanggang City, so I wandered around the area for a long time before coming here. I am amazed by the unique geographical advantages of Huanghe Mountain Villa."

"Oh, so you can read geography too." Huang Donglang found it slightly amusing.

"Father, you may not know this, but Brother Su is proficient in medicine, divination, and astrology," Huang Chenghe praised from the side.

“Oh, not at all. I was quite moved when I saw it yesterday, but then I noticed something unusual. The Tengchong River is getting worse and worse, showing signs of overflowing. I asked some local elders, and they said it started becoming increasingly turbulent more than ten years ago, and it even seems to have a hint of menace,” Su Zinong said.

"Oh, is there any way to resolve this?" Huang Donglang frowned.

"The rise and fall of the Yellow River Villa is at stake, so we will probably have to carry out extensive dredging, especially in the middle and lower reaches of the river. In addition, if there are any surplus funds, we should provide condolences and relief to the victims of occasional disasters on both sides of the river. Within the villa, silt and sand are mixed together. As the Yellow River Villa grows, some filth will inevitably need to be cleaned up."

Yellow River Villa has indeed grown considerably in the past ten years, from a little over one hundred people to three hundred now, but inevitably the quality of its members varies.

Huang Donglang had always been proud of the Yellow River Villa. He was displeased by Su Zinong's words, but he did not want to directly criticize him. He simply said, "Dredging the river is a huge project that requires a lot of effort and money. It will cost at least 500,000 to 600,000 taels of silver to complete. My villa has always done a lot of work to comfort the people on both sides of the river who have been affected by the disaster. We can increase our efforts in this area in the future."

He did not mention cleaning up the interior of the villa.

“If Uncle is willing to do this, I can donate 200,000 taels of silver,” Su Zinong said.

Huang Donglang was slightly surprised after hearing this, but he didn't comment or say anything, and changed the subject.

After finishing breakfast and chatting, Huang Chenghe led Su Zinong to the eldest son's bedroom.

"Why were you talking to my father about all that nonsense just now?" Huang Chenghe said. "I could tell he wasn't happy about it."

“Honest advice is hard to swallow,” Su Zinong said. “Feng shui and geomancy are things that you either believe in or you don’t, so it’s understandable. But now that I’ve seen it, I feel compelled to speak out, as if it’s stuck in my throat.”

“I know you mean well,” Huang Chenghe nodded. “I’ll talk to Father about it in detail later.”

After taking the pulse of the eldest son, Huang Chenghai, Su Zinong sighed heavily with a grave expression, shook his head, and said, "I cannot cure this illness..."