Suijun starts with the principle of rewarding diligence.

Buqu moored the awning boat next to the wooden wharf.

Zhong Su and his two companions had been waiting at the wooden wharf for quite some time.

Bu Qu sized up the two people beside He Ye, thinking to himself, "This white-haired old man must be the master of the Zhong family, right? And this young lady beside him, is she the daughter of the Zhong family?"

My gaze fell on He Ye, only to find her clothes were filthy. It didn't look like she had accidentally fallen; rather, it looked like she had been kneeling there.

He looked somewhat rushed and disheveled.

"Was it because I arrived late that I was reprimanded by my master?" Bu Qu thought to himself, somewhat displeased.

Becoming a maid in a wealthy household was something many people from lowly families dreamed of.

But a maid is still a maid; she has no human rights. Being dependent on someone else's household means she can only depend on them for survival.

The young woman glanced around the awning boat but didn't see any rippled fish. She frowned and asked, "You're the fisherman who made the appointment with Lotus Leaf, right? Why don't we see any rippled fish on your boat? Are you playing a trick on us?"

Her tone was a bit harsh.

The girl only calmed down a bit after being glared at by the old man.

"Young man, are you Bu Qu?"

Buqu nodded to the old man.

"My name is Zhong Su, and she is my granddaughter Zhong Ling."

Zhong Su spoke calmly and patiently. Although he was somewhat disappointed to see that there were no water-patterned fish on Bu Qu's boat, he was not as blunt as Zhong Ling.

"I heard that the two rippled fish that Lotus Leaf collected earlier were caught by you, young brother. I thank you for that."

Bu Qu cupped his hands in thanks: "You're too kind, sir. We each got what we needed, so there's no need for thanks."

Zhong Su smiled slightly and looked Bu Qu up and down.

Although he was just a fisherman, he spoke with neither servility nor arrogance. Unlike other lowly people who couldn't hold their heads high and looked down upon officials and gentry.

He couldn't help but think more highly of Bu Qu. The fact that Bu Qu could maintain his confidence in front of him showed that the man was indeed capable.

"Since you didn't catch any rippled fish today, young man, I'll come back tomorrow. I've already waited three days, so a few more won't make a difference."

"Three days?" Bu Qu asked, puzzled, his gaze fixed on the lotus leaves.

Didn't we agree to come on a sunny day?

The past few days weren't exactly sunny, so there's no way you'd catch any ripple fish. Isn't it a waste of time to just wait here aimlessly?

Lotus Leaf lowered her head, not daring to speak, her face full of grievance.

Seeing her expression, Bu Qu guessed what had happened.

"That's true. This old man urgently needs the rippled fish to treat his illness. Hearing there was hope of catching fresh rippled fish, he naturally rushed over. He didn't care whether it was sunny or not."

He couldn't speak up for He Ye at this moment. It was someone else's family matter, and he, as an outsider, had no right to interfere.

Bu Qu also sized up Zhong Su. Although he had a full head of white hair, there was nothing particularly wrong with him from his appearance alone.

Perhaps it's an internal injury?

Zhong Ling complained, "It's all because you said you could catch rippled fish that Grandpa came here to wait. I never expected that after all this time, we'd finally get to see you, but we haven't seen any fish..."

"An amateur," Bu Qu interrupted, not tolerating it.

He was unaware of the situation, only assuming that Zhong Ling's personality was just like that.

Zhong Ling choked on her food and was displeased.

How dare you, a mere fisherman, call Miss Zhong an "amateur"? You've got some nerve!

Just as he was about to reprimand her, Bu Qu said, "Who said I didn't catch any rippled fish?"

Upon hearing this, all three were startled and their eyes searched back and forth on the awning boat. After searching for a while, they found no place where the fish could hide.

Buqu stood at the stern of the boat and pulled up the fishing net that had sunk underwater.

The three looked closely and saw a rippled fish trapped in the net, thrashing its tail, trying to break free.

Zhong Su was overjoyed and jumped into the water, took the rippled fish out of the net, and stuffed it into his mouth.

A moment later, Bu Qu and the others saw that Zhong Su's white hair had turned black and his complexion was rosy.

Zhong Su leaped out of the water, returned to the wooden wharf, and laughed at Bu Qu:

"Young brother, please don't laugh at my loss of composure. When I was young, I injured my meridians in a fight, and I have never been able to heal them."

When you're young, you can control injuries with your blood pressure and vital energy; but as you get older, you can no longer control those injuries.

Bu Qu nodded.

It is not surprising that Zhong Su, as the head of the Zhong family, possesses cultivation.

It seems he had previously tried using rippled fish to treat his injuries, but it didn't cure them completely.

Thinking of this, Bu Qu couldn't help but ponder to himself: 'Freshness has such a significant impact on the effectiveness of the treasure fish! If I ever need treasure fish in the future, I must eat it while it's fresh.'

Zhong Su then asked, "Oh, I heard from He Ye that you wanted a household registration in the county town?"

Bu Qu nodded: "That is indeed true."

Zhong Su asked with a smile, "I wonder if you would be willing to work for my household, young man?"

Bu Qu shook his head: "I am used to a leisurely life. If I were to come to your residence, I am afraid there would be many inconveniences."

Seeing He Ye's predicament, he didn't think twice and refused decisively.

Zhong Ling blinked, staring at Bu Qu, thinking to herself, "So many people in Blackwater County have tried to curry favor with the Zhong family, yet he actually refused?"

She had assumed that Buqu wanted to get close to Heye in order to board the Zhong family's big ship.

But the current situation seems to be completely different.

Lotus Leaf said that she used to help him press down the boat, all for official business.

"Could it be that she wasn't lying to me? Did I wrongly accuse her?"

He Ye was Zhong Ling's personal maid, so naturally she couldn't stand seeing He Ye getting close to other men.

However, upon seeing that the facts were not as they seemed, Zhong Ling's hostility towards Bu Qu gradually diminished.

Zhong Su was also taken aback by Bu Qu's decisive refusal, and his expression froze for a moment.

However, he had lived to be so old and had seen quite a few people.

Zhong Su stroked his beard and smiled: "I am deeply grateful for your kindness, young brother. I will certainly get you the county household registration you desire."

Thank you.

"Oh, by the way. A few years ago, I bought a small fishpond in the outer city. I wanted to try to raise treasure fish in it. Unfortunately, treasure fish are creations of nature and cannot be raised by human hands."

Over time, the fishpond was abandoned.

Since you're moving to the city, I imagine you'll be buying property.

"If you're so kind as to accept this, I'll give you this fishpond."

Bu Qu thought about it and realized that Zhong Su's words made sense.

She had cured his illness herself; a fishpond was nothing to the Zhong family, just a drop in the ocean. She accepted it without hesitation.

If he frequently refuses the olive branches extended by the Zhong family, people will think he is arrogant and dislike him.

"Alright."

Zhong Su nodded slightly: "Since you are acquainted with He Ye, I will have He Ye send you the keys, property and other items later."

After discussing the matter of property and household registration, Zhong Su continued, "Young brother, you should know that our Zhong family needs a wide variety of precious fish. I wonder if you have ever caught a Red-scaled Sturgeon? If you have, please be sure to deliver it to my residence. I will certainly reward you handsomely."

Upon hearing Zhong Su mention the Red-scaled Sturgeon, Zhong Ling's eyes lit up, and her gaze fell on Bu Qu's face.

"Red-scaled sturgeon? If I remember correctly, this treasure fish is used to replenish qi and blood, nourish the meridians, and is most suitable for assisting cultivation. Could this treasure fish also be used to assist in healing?"

Bu Qu asked, "You're eating?"

Zhong Su shook his head and chuckled: "I'm already quite old, and eating the Red-scaled Sturgeon won't benefit me much anymore. My daughter is currently at the stage of consolidating her foundation, and she needs the Red-scaled Sturgeon to assist her cultivation."

Bu Qu looked at Zhong Ling, surprised that this somewhat unruly girl actually had such talent.

Their eyes met, and Zhong Ling's eyes revealed anticipation.

She had completely forgotten her earlier thought of reprimanding Bu Qu.

Since Buqu has the ability to catch fresh water bream, he must also be able to catch red-scaled sturgeon.

"Is there any way?"

Instead of answering directly, Bu Qu asked, "May I ask, Miss, do you practice martial arts or cultivate Taoism?"

"Cultivation," Zhong Ling replied simply.

"Cultivating Tao? Cultivating Tao is good." Bu Qu was overjoyed.

He currently possesses the art of water control, which is a water-attribute ability.

Martial arts training emphasizes the tempering of the body's qi and blood, while Taoist cultivation focuses more on the compatibility of the five elements and their techniques.

If one is rewarded by Heaven for their hard work, then theoretically, they could choose either path.

However, if you choose to learn martial arts, you will have to start all over again; if you choose to cultivate Taoism, you can go with the flow.

Since Zhong Ling is cultivating Taoism, it means that the Zhong family has relevant channels for cultivation.

Bu Qu asked Zhong Su, "If I can catch a Crimson Scaled Sturgeon, could you please introduce me to it? I also wish to cultivate the Dao."