Clan Rise: Starting as a Grandfather

Chapter 342: Chapter 331 Honey and Fruit Wine

Yang Zhenshan took in his surroundings by moonlight, ”Did you buy this place?”

”How could that be?” Luo Shang laughed heartily: ”I only purchased the mountain forests and manor over there.”

”What about this wharf?”

”It has just been built recently!” Luo Shang said.

Yang Zhenshan nodded slightly, ”Good. In the future, this can serve as our transfer station!”

”That’s what I was thinking too! I have already built quite a few warehouses there in the manor! I’ve also arranged for quite a few workers to guard them!”

Luo Shang was always meticulous in his actions. Since he invited Yang Zhenshan over, he naturally had everything prepared.

Moreover, Luo Shang was no longer a small-time merchant. Even in Jiangnan, he had a sizable number of people at his command, including Jianghu Martial Artists, and of course, there was no lack of old soldiers.

”Milord, we can first go rest at the manor!” Luo Shang pointed to a path under the mountain shadows and said.

The manor he referred to was on the other side of the mountain, just past the hill before them, at a distance of about three to four miles.

The Da Fu Ship couldn’t dock, so Yang Zhenshan had to take a smaller boat to shore. By the time Yang Zhenshan had disembarked, the unloading of cargo had already begun at the dock.

The modest dock harbored two merchant ships, illuminated brightly by over a hundred torches. Soldiers and ship workers on the ships were moving goods off, while the workers arranged by Luo Shang transferred the goods onto horse carts, transporting them directly to the manor.

”We could actually have waited until daylight to unload,” said Yang Zhenshan.

Luo Shang replied, ”I’ve already discussed it with Manager Sun. Everyone will take turns unloading the cargo so it won’t be too tiring.”

”Our wharf is still too small, capable of accommodating only two ships at a time, so many people aren’t needed. And since the Da Fu Ship can’t dock and requires transferring cargo to smaller boats, it’s going to take quite some time to finish unloading!”

Yang Zhenshan nodded slightly. These matters were all arranged by Sun Cheng and Luo Shang, and he had merely made a casual remark.

Thereafter, they arrived at the manor Luo Shang had mentioned.

The manor housed over thirty families, including the surrounding mountain forests and farmland of over a thousand acres, though most of it was forest, with only about three hundred acres of farming land.

Such manors were very cheap in Jiangnan because the lands were infertile. Luo Shang had spent just over three thousand taels to acquire this manor.

And the villagers of the manor had become Luo Shang’s tenants.

Behind the manor, at the foot of the mountain, stood a newly built residence, which Luo Shang had arranged for Yang Zhenshan.

In the darkness, Yang Zhenshan carefully surveyed the surroundings and, following Luo Shang, went to the room that had been arranged for him and rested.

Actually, he wasn’t sleeping. Even though it was past 1 a.m., he didn’t feel very sleepy.

With his physical condition, going without sleep for several days and nights wouldn’t affect him much.

He had agreed to rest following Luo Shang’s arrangement because he felt that if he didn’t, others would probably feel embarrassed to rest themselves.

Yang Zhenshan, lacking the desire to sleep, simply entered the Spiritual Spring Space.

Nowadays, the Spiritual Spring Space had become quite large, almost seventy meters in diameter, about five to six acres in size.

The central rock pool had transformed into a bubbling spring, its waters gurgling forth.

Yang Zhenshan had dug several channels to divert the water from the rock pool in all directions, moisturizing the surrounding farmland.

Close to the spring, a circle of Medicinal Field spanned over an acre, with half planted with Treasure Medicine collected by Yang Zhenshan, and the other half with ordinary medicinal herbs.

Beside the Medicinal Field, Yang Zhenshan had also fenced off an area to build a thatched cottage and dug two cellars.

Beyond the Medicinal Field were various fruit and tea trees, all thriving vigorously.

The tea trees received meticulous care from Yang Zhenshan, but the fruit trees only received simple pruning from him. The further from the center, the less care they received.

At the outermost perimeter, Yang Zhenshan simply scattered a mix of random seeds, allowing them to grow wild.

He couldn’t help it—as the space expanded, Yang Zhenshan found it impossible to tend to everything; he spent most of his time inside the space making wine and processing tea, simply not having enough time to look after such a large expanse of farmland.

Despite the lack of his attention, the plants in the space grew extremely well.

Indoors, unaffected by seasons and weather, it seemed to be eternally like a mild spring, with every moment being perfect for plant growth.

Moreover, the Spiritual Spring Space seemed to fulfill any plant’s environmental and geological requirements. Plants have specific needs for their growth environment and geology; some withstand drought better than waterlogging, some are cold-resistant, some prefer shade, etc. However, plants placed inside the space could thrive and grow far faster than in the outside world.

After entering the space, Yang Zhenshan first checked on the Treasure Medicine. These plants grew slowly; except for the ginseng, there was almost no significant change in the rest after several years.

As for ginseng, Yang Zhenshan now had no shortage—there wasn’t much left in the Medicinal Field, but around the perimeter of the fruit garden, he had scattered many ginseng seeds.

After checking on the Treasure Medicine, Yang Zhenshan examined the ordinary medicinal herbs. Many could be harvested now, but lacking time, Yang Zhenshan let them grow freely.

Picking a basketful of herbs for wine brewing, he then wandered into the fruit orchard, plucking a ripe orange, peeling it, and putting it in his mouth, immediately filling his mouth with the sweet and tangy juice.

Looking at the fruit-laden branches, Yang Zhenshan felt a bit bothered.

He didn’t know how to deal with so much fruit; previously, many had fallen to the ground and seedlings were sprouting everywhere.

This was the most troublesome part; Yang Zhenshan surely couldn’t let these seedlings grow wildly, he had no choice but to uproot them.

As Yang Zhenshan was uprooting some unnecessary seedlings, a buzzing sound rose around him.

The only animal in the space was the bee.

Yang Zhenshan had placed them there especially for pollination.

To this end, he had purposefully placed over a dozen bee boxes in the space.

The little bees seemed very dissatisfied with Yang Zhenshan’s arrival, buzzing towards him as soon as he showed up, trying to drive him away.

Unfortunately, in this place, Yang Zhenshan was an invincible existence.

He discovered this after he started raising bees.

He found that in this space, his body was different from the outside world; his physique, strength, and even his cultivation remained the same, but there seemed to be a fundamental difference.

It was as if, in this space, his body was a kind of energy, not flesh and blood.

What the specific situation was, Yang Zhenshan couldn’t explain clearly, but in any case, within this space, his body would not suffer any harm.

Seeing the bees, Yang Zhenshan remembered the beehives.

He walked through the dense orchard and found the place where the beehives were set.

He casually pulled out a row of frames and, looking at the honey inside, his eyes lit up.

This was his first time harvesting honey from these little creatures!

He scooped a little to taste; it was delicate and silky, melting in the mouth, gliding over the tongue, sweet and full of floral fragrance filling his nostrils.

After the honey entered his stomach, there was a warm and moist sensation spreading in his belly!

”What is this?”

Yang Zhenshan’s eyes suddenly brightened.

This feeling was somewhat similar to the first time he drank Spiritual Spring Water.

Back then, his body was greatly depleted, and after drinking a bowl of Spiritual Spring Water, he felt incredibly refreshed.

However, his physique is now too strong, and drinking Spiritual Spring Water no longer gives him any sensation.

But the fact that this honey could bring him a warm flow indicates that the honey also had the effect of Spiritual Spring Water, and perhaps even more potent.

But thinking about it, that made sense. The plants in this space all grew with the nourishment of Spiritual Spring Water, and the nectar collected by the bees should be considered the essence of the plants, so it was logical for it to have the effects of Spiritual Spring Water.

As for why the honey’s effects are even better than Spiritual Spring Water, that might be attributed to the bees’ hard work.

After tasting a few more mouthfuls, Yang Zhenshan simply brought two jars, disregarding the bees’ interference, and filled them up with honey.

Back in the thatched cottage, Yang Zhenshan fetched another jar of liquor, not the Hundred Herbs Brew, but a fruit wine.

He had brewed quite a bit of fruit wine before, but had never taken it out.

Hundred Herbs Brew had many effects and could be attributed to medicinal herbs, but there was no clear explanation for why the fruit wine would have such effects.

Therefore, the fruit wine Yang Zhenshan brewed was only for his own consumption, and even Yu Qingyi hadn’t tasted it.

Adding honey to the sour and sweet fruit wine made the flavor even more extraordinary.

Yang Zhenshan looked at the two jars of honey in front of him and decided to directly take one jar to the wine cellar, found the vat of fruit wine, and poured all of the honey into it.

After mixing it evenly, he then separated and filled up more than a dozen jars of fruit wine.

”Right, Bee King Honey’s special effects should be explainable!”

”The fruit wine blended with Bee King Honey having special effects should also be explainable!”

That’s what Yang Zhenshan said.

Explaining is just concealing, and some concealments are full of holes, but as long as one does not widely spread it, few people would probe further.

After all, this world inherently contains many mystical things; as long as there’s a plausible explanation, it’s often enough.

As for the remaining jar of honey, Yang Zhenshan planned to give it to Yu Qingyi and Little Ming Zhao after he returned.

For his beloved wife and son, naturally, he wanted to give them the best.

Yang Zhenshan busied himself in the space all night, and by the time he emerged from the space, it was already broad daylight.

Dressed in lightweight clothing, Yang Zhenshan walked out of the sleeping quarters.

In March, the temperature in Jiangnan was already quite warm. In Liaodong, one needed to wear a fur coat, but in Jiangnan, a single layer of clothing was enough.

Yang Zhenshan had personal followers by his side, but these sturdy men were somewhat rough in taking care of others; fortunately, Luo Shang had also arranged a few maid-servants for him.

Luo Shang understood his preferences, so the breakfast wasn’t lavish, just a bowl of clear porridge with a few side dishes.

Just as Yang Zhenshan finished breakfast, Luo Shang came over.

”My lord!”

”Ah! Have you eaten?” Yang Zhenshan casually asked.

”I’ve already eaten!” Luo Shang replied with a smile.

”Is there something?” Yang Zhenshan, having finished his meal, took the towel handed over by a maid-servant and wiped the corner of his mouth.

”Today, I need to go deal with the buyers for the goods, and won’t be able to attend to you. Please forgive me, my lord!” Luo Shang said with a smile.

Yang Zhenshan laughed heartily, ”Why are you being so formal with me now! Just go ahead and do your thing; don’t mind me. I’ll go out for a stroll later!”

It was rare for him to come to Jiangnan, so Yang Zhenshan naturally wanted to take a walk around.

The fleet would likely stay here for two or three days. The affairs of the merchandize were managed by Sun Cheng and Luo Shang, so he didn’t need to worry about it personally, allowing him some time to enjoy the sights.