Endless Winter: My Camp Upgrades Infinitely

Chapter 1360: Chapter 440: Cai Qiu Sword Saint, Baffling Naturalization, Miss Mengya (Part 4)

”The steward of Hong Mansion, Zhou Qing, has been awaiting the four young masters for quite some time!”

The middle-aged man was very perceptive, as Fang Tianhua hadn’t even left before he approached, bowing deeply in front of the four, then gesturing to the people behind him.

”The maids pay their respects to the four young masters!”

”We common folk pay our respects to the four young masters!”

Over two hundred people knelt before the four siblings in a mass.

The four had never experienced such a scene before, and their expressions immediately turned exceedingly awkward.

Mainly, the four of them were wearing plain cotton clothes, while those kneeling on the ground were mostly dressed in silk garments, with a few maids even wearing finer satin outfits adorned with accessories.

Clearly, those on the ground looked more like young lords and ladies. How could they compare?

Most importantly, as the four swept their eyes over the crowd, they found that at least sixty percent of them surpassed them in cultivation.

They all understood what this meant!

Gulp...

Su Xu couldn’t help but swallow hard, and the other three weren’t any better off, leaving the four siblings stunned and immobile.

”Young masters, why don’t you come into the mansion for a look first?”

Zhou Qing noticed their unease and quickly offered a suggestion to ease the situation.

The four nodded and followed him inside in a daze.

”The entire Hong Mansion covers about 10,000 square meters, with the main building at its center as Lord Hong’s residence, cared for by 20 servants and 30 maids; in front of the main building is the Martial Arts Training Ground; behind it are the Quiet Room and the Meditative Pavilion; to the left of the main building are four auxiliary buildings, which are the residences of the young masters, each accompanied by 5 servants and 5 maids to attend to living arrangements and more...”

As they toured the 10,000-square-meter mansion, Zhou Qing gave introductions, taking nearly an hour to finish.

”Young master and young lady, we’ve just picked up some outfits from the tailor, please try them on to see if they fit.”

As Zhou Qing finished his introduction, over twenty maids came over carrying over a hundred various silk garments.

”Alright, I’ll leave it to the maids to continue introducing the mansion to the young masters and ladies from here.”

Zhou Qing instructed briefly, and the four were led dazedly by the maids to their respective residences to change clothes while continuing to be shown around the mansion.

Not until the dinner at midnight, did the four siblings, now transformed with silk garments, gather in the main hall of the main building once again.

Under the service of the maids, the four enjoyed a feast of delicacies they had never seen before. After the meal and when the maids cleared the table, Su Jing finally spoke his first words since entering the mansion.

”Alright, you can all leave first.”

”Yes, the maids shall take their leave!”

The maids were obedient, immediately retreating as Su Jing spoke.

When only the four remained in the hall, Su Jing and the others each took out a silver-made token and a golden Registration Book, exchanged glances, and their expressions suddenly became extremely complex.

”So, we’ve been inexplicably elevated to noble status?”

”I heard from Father before, that to join the citizen registry, one needs at least a cultivation strength of rank 5 and pay 1000 taels of silver. The military registry must be higher; we got the second-level noble status, how much does that cost?”

Upon hearing Su Xu’s question, Su Jing shook his head with a wry smile and said, ”Didn’t you notice that these things were already prepared by that steward Zhou Qing? I suspect that when Lord Hong entered the city, they already had them ready, only waiting to give them to us once we entered the mansion.”

Su Zhi, the third brother, also nodded, wryly chiming in, ”It’s obvious this noble status was given to us, with no need for payment, they’re...”

As he said this, Su Zhi paused, then continued, ”Trying to curry favor with Lord Hong!”

Upon hearing this, the three brothers, including the youngest sibling Su Xing’er, couldn’t help but reveal bitter smiles.

The bitter smiles of the four were intermingled with some melancholy and wistfulness.

In order for the entire family to gain registration, their parents sacrificed themselves three years ago, and even then it wasn’t successful; yet now, the four siblings have done nothing, and the Registration Book was simply handed over to them.

Moreover, what the parents pursued was only the fourth-level civilian registry, while in their hands now is the most precious second-level noble status in all Cai Qiu.

”Second-level noble status allows one to annually receive resources at any Subordinate Bureau within any town in Cai Qiu’s territory according to cultivation level, for Cold Resistance Level alone, one can receive 50,000 taels of current silver, beast meat, beast blood, various Dan Medicine, White Fresh Powder, fine wine... countless; the annual total value of resources received, as said by the maids, sums up to at least 300,000 taels;

Allowed to wear silk and adorn two silver pieces, and to be accompanied by one ring and one jade ornament; everything in the Treasure Pavilion is available for purchase, with almost no restrictions; free movement across all towns within Cai Qiu territory, with no restrictions; registration of up to 100 slaves under one’s name; priority in receiving tasks at the registration bureau...”

Su Zhi recited all the rights enjoyed with the second-level noble status in one breath. Although the other three heard some of this from their respective maids, it’s clear they didn’t remember as vividly as Su Zhi did, and as they listened, their eyebrows twitched faster and faster, their facial expressions shifting from joy to a short-term inability to accept surprise.

After Su Zhi finished speaking, Su Jing raised the Registration Order in his hand and spoke with a complex expression, ”The over 1 million people in Evergreen Valley probably never dreamt that obtaining noble status would actually be this simple...”

”Elder brother, not simple at all!”