This is how immortals are cultivated

"Speaking of which, how long did it take from the time you received the secret letter from home and left the Jin Family Chamber of Commerce branch you were originally running to the time we first met?"

"One week..."

"Then, do your brothers and sisters who are closest to you and have gone out to gain experience in business have the ability to compete for the position of head of the family?"

"No..." Jin Bailu shook her head.

"That's it." Fang Suichu nodded.

"If the mountain monster we encountered that day was part of the plan, then seven days wouldn't be enough to make such a complete arrangement. After all, no matter how powerful a force is, it takes time to dispatch personnel. Of course, if there's any teleportation trickery involved, just ignore what I said."

"Mr. Fang is probably talking about a magical power like shrinking the earth into an inch..."

Jin Bailu said, "No, at least ordinary spiritual secrets don't have such abilities. Also, if it's a spiritual object, it's very valuable, and using it would require a high price."

"That's right, it means this was premeditated."

"You've been talking to your brothers and sisters for so long this afternoon, I suppose?"

"Well, except for my second brother who won't arrive until tomorrow, I've had some conversations with all my brothers and sisters."

"Where are your fourth and fifth brothers?" Fang Suichu paused halfway through his words.

He had just met Jin Bailu's fifth brother.

"Forget about your fifth brother. He's a bit of a loser, and he's clever but not very wise. He's unlikely to come up with any complex schemes."

"Fourth brother...if I'm not mistaken, it's not him."

"In my opinion, all your brothers and sisters who have grown up and have been assigned to various places in Shuzhou can be cleared of suspicion." Fang Suichu said.

"If the person behind this had a premeditated plan, it would have been more convenient for them to do it in the Jin family's main residence in this state capital. It would be too troublesome to remotely control the situation from outside."

"You mean... it was done by someone who stayed in the family? Then why..."

The strange thing about the Jin family's incident was that Jin Bailu was stopped on his way back.

"Just to ask, you were the only one who had an accident on the way back, right?"

"Yes, just me."

"It shows that you have something special... To understand what makes you special, you need to think beyond the perspective of a competitor for the head of a family."

"Also, as for blocking the road, we should stop you rather than kill you... Maybe the person behind this didn't intend to hurt you, but to protect you..."

Fang Suichu said with a deeper meaning.

When Jin Bailu heard Fang Suichu's words, her body trembled, as if she had been enlightened.

She bowed deeply to Fang Suichu and said, "Mr. Fang, I appreciate your guidance."

Fang Suichu raised his chin slightly.

Jin Bailu's words gave him great emotional satisfaction, and he finally satisfied his Sherlock Holmes addiction.

He asked Fang Suichu if he was living comfortably and if he needed anything. After leaving the so-called elixir reward that had been agreed upon earlier, Jin Bailu left in a hurry.

Fang Suichu opened the two boxes containing pills. Inside the boxes were two pills, one strong and one weak, with strange spiritual powers.

The reward for escort and the reward for providing shelter and assistance in the affairs of the Jin family.

Fang Suichu reached out and touched the two pills. The strange power of the two pills in his hands instantly dissipated and became neutral and peaceful.

Fang Suichu swallowed the two pills into his mouth like eating candy beans.

"The Jin family's affairs are indeed strange..."

Li Qingming and Wu Yuanshuo walked out together from behind the bead curtain on the side of the living room.

Earlier, the two of them had taken a short rest in the side room. When they came to the living room, they found Jin Bailu talking with Fang Suichu, so they did not go out and disturb them.

But they heard everything the two of them were talking about clearly.

At this moment, Wu Yuanshuo's face was full of admiration, and Li Qingming's eyes were also full of brilliance.

"Did you discover anything?" Li Qingming couldn't help but ask.

But what he got was Fang Suichu's bewildered expression: "What did you find?"

Li Qingming was stunned and asked subconsciously: "What about what you said to Miss Jin?"

"Of course I'm just making this up. Isn't that how detective novels are written?"

Looking at Li Qingming speechlessly, Fang Suichu walked into the house humming a little tune.

Now he had to think about his own life.

It must be a big job, strong, powerful and intense.

Chapter 54 Free

In this way, Fang Suichu stayed in Jin's house for one night.

There is still some time before the battle begins. Not only do we have to wait for all the descendants or managers of the Jin family who are outside to come back to serve as witnesses, but there is also a more complicated set of funeral etiquette.

Fang Suichu was certainly qualified to pay his respects, but he had no interest in such trivial matters, so he simply took the two women with him to stroll around Tongcheng Prefecture.

As the capital of a state, Tongcheng Prefecture naturally had a unique prosperity. Many things were not available in Cangsong County. The three of them ate, played, and strolled around. As for the funds for the tour, Jin Bailu had also thoughtfully prepared them.

The market was bustling with people. Some people gathered in a circle, watching the monkey show performed by the monkeys trained by the monkey breeders inside.

Fang Suichu and the other two were just watching from the outermost edge. Because there happened to be a small stall selling roujiamo, sesame cakes and mutton soup next to them, they ordered a roujiamo and a bowl of mutton soup and started eating and drinking.

Fang Suichu was not wearing his Taoist robes today, but rather his casual clothes. Taoist robes were too intimidating to wear in the marketplace, and he didn't want to spoil the fun by seeing vendors trembling.

However, his slender, handsome figure, adorned with brocade clothes, could not conceal his extraordinary presence. With two beauties by his side, he looked like a young man of noble birth.

"Nice craftsmanship... bro."

Fang Suichu chatted with the stall owner, a middle-aged man.

"Thank you for the compliment, sir. To be honest, my craft has been passed down for four generations. Some guests who live in the west of the city will come here specifically for breakfast."

Fang Suichu nodded.

He quite enjoyed this feeling. As the saying goes, it is the smell of everyday life that soothes the heart. This kind of scene at least allowed him to temporarily ignore the hopeless side of the world.

While talking with the stall owner, Fang Suichu saw a group of seven or eight beggars running towards the street corner, holding bamboo sticks and wooden clubs and ceramic bowls.

As if noticing Fang Suichu's gaze, the stall owner lamented that despite his distinguished appearance, this young man possessed a voracious appetite, perhaps even surpassed by the rough laborers at the warehouse. If that were the case, he could quickly close up shop and return home. While lamenting, the stall owner explained to Fang Suichu the reason for the beggars' hurried appearance.

"There's a soup kitchen further up the street."

"Three times a month, free porridge and steamed buns are distributed. This is a rare opportunity for these beggars to have a full meal."

"Speaking of which, it is the Jin family who is so righteous and does such a righteous act."

"Jin family?" Fang Suichu raised his eyebrows.

"Is this your first time in Shuzhou? I wonder if you're here to study or visit relatives and friends. Of course, when it comes to the Jin family in Shuzhou, there's only one Jin family."

"The Jin family is the richest family in Shuzhou. Their business covers the entire Shuzhou, and they even have branches in other states."

"It sounds like the Jin family is both wealthy and kind." Fang Suichu said slowly.

"Of course..." The stall owner puffed out his chest and raised his hand to give a thumbs up.

"Let's not even mention the porridge shops that distribute food several times a month and are everywhere in Tongcheng Prefecture. The Jin family has built quite a few homes to take in and adopt homeless children and the elderly."

"Not only that, the commission the Jin family takes from renting land outside the city to farmers is the lowest among the wealthy families in the prefecture. You don't know that those farmers without land are all vying to become tenants of the Jin family."

"Besides... the Jin family owns a bank and even offers low-interest loans. For me, I'm able to open this business thanks to the Jin family."

"Is that so..." Fang Suichu nodded and asked, "How long has this righteous act been going on?"

"How long... Seven or eight years, at least. It started a few years after Mr. Jin inherited the family business."

"I heard that Master Jin died suddenly of an acute illness... Look at this... Good people really don't get rewarded."

"However, the Jin family's business has also announced that such righteous acts will continue."

While the two were communicating, the monkey show ended.

A monkey came to the audience holding a copper plate and bowed.

Looking at the two women who looked unsatisfied, Fang Suichu threw a piece of silver and it landed accurately on the copper plate.

In ancient times when the entertainment industry was not well developed, such monkey shows were quite entertaining.

The three of them moved on and continued walking along the street. Soon, they saw an alley filled with long queues of people.

"That is?"

Wu Yuanshuo raised a question.

"The free porridge stall run by the Jin family."

While he was talking to the stall owner, the two women were watching the show intently and were unaware of the content of Fang Suichu's conversation with the previous stall owner. Fang Suichu then began to explain.

Among the people queuing up, there were not only beggars in tattered clothes, but even civilians who had brand new clothes and were obviously not too poor and could easily take care of their own food and clothing were queuing up to fight for them.

"The Jin family is indeed wealthy."

Looking at this scene and listening to Fang Suichu's words, Li Qingming also nodded.

These food shops opened for charity usually have regulations.

For example, only young children and the elderly can receive it, and even ragged, skinny beggars can receive it.

However, judging from the current situation, the Jin family's porridge shop obviously does not have so many restrictions.

Moreover, the food was not just a perfunctory drink that was half water and half porridge, but thick rice porridge and white flour buns.

This kind of food specification was nothing to Fang Suichu in his previous life, but it was really exaggerated in ancient times when productivity was not very developed.

"But the free things in the world are the most expensive."

"If there is unprovoked kindness, be wary."

Fang Suichu looked at the Jin family's porridge shop and spoke. This time he really felt something was wrong, but he couldn't put it into words.

This was just a small episode. After the three of them had a great time touring Tongcheng Mansion, they returned to the Jin family.

Within a few days, all the members of the Jin family who were still outside returned to the Jin Mansion one by one, and the battle was about to officially begin.

Chapter 55: Feast

This day is the fifteenth day of the month, the day for burial.

The Jin family's huge team came out of the mansion and onto the street.

At the front of the procession, spirit-calling banners fluttered high, white flags swaying in the wind, guiding the deceased souls forward. Following behind were servants carrying ever-burning lamps, paper money, and incense sticks, along with musicians and drummers in plain clothing. The massive black coffin was carried by several strong men, flanked by members of the Jin family.

The streets had already been deserted, but there were still people from the city standing on both sides of the road, watching this grand funeral procession.

Fang Suichu was also in this group, secretly watching Jin Bailu beside the coffin.

Wu Yuanshuo and Li Qingming were not with him. Following this funeral, a battle of magic followed. Fang Suichu was worried about potential complications during the battle, so he asked Jin Bailu to secretly escort the two women out of the city. By then, the Jin family incident would be over, and Fang Suichu could take the two women and set off, continuing on their journey to their original destination.

The Jin family's destination was the ancestral home outside the city, nestled on a single hill. This place was rich in strange spiritual energy, ideal for the permanent residence of Daoist veins. It was also the seat of the Jin family's power within the cultivation world.

The procession stopped at a somewhat eerie mountain path a hundred miles outside the city. Ordinary people stopped here and began to return to the city. Only the direct descendants of the Jin family, the main Jin family stewards, and the strong men carrying the coffin remained.

Of course, among them were also the strange cultivators invited by the Jin family's sons to help.

Just as Jin Bailu said, including his own words, there are only four Ling Mi, representing the four most competitive descendants of the Jin family.

Fang Suichu had already met the fifth son of the Jin family, Jin Quefan, and the assistant he invited, 'Mr. Gong'.

Mr. Gong seemed to sense Fang Suichu's gaze, his body stiffened, but he pretended not to feel it and just moved slightly.

Fang Suichu's gaze quickly shifted and looked elsewhere.

The spiritual secrets of the strange cultivators are indeed outstanding among mortals. If they are not deliberately concealed, their inhuman spirituality will be extremely eye-catching.

A little further away from Jin Quefan was a young man of similar age. Jin Bailu had told him that he was his fourth brother, Jin Qushan. Beside him stood a tall, thin Taoist priest. His robes were enormous, yet they were supported by his thin frame. It seemed as if there was something beneath them.

The Taoist priest was followed closely by four others. They were three men and one woman, their faces pale, clearly the best of the Jin family's servants. Like the maids arranged for the other courtyard before the New Year's Eve celebration, these four were likely gifts from the Jin family.

As if feeling Fang Suichu's strong, undisguised gaze, the Taoist raised his eyebrows and glared at him, something rolling under his robe.

It was this rolling that allowed Fang Suichu to see clearly what was rolling under the Taoist's robe.

It was a thin arm, as white and tender as a newborn baby's arm.