…

 

"Who are you?" Lu Xiaoxiao hugged Wang Shouzhe's arm and stared at Wang Luo Jing, "Let go of my cousin's hand, it's not proper for a girl to act like this."

 

In the Changning Wei region, most of the noblewomen don't follow a specific naming convention and choose names based on their own preferences. However, because of the long history of the Wang clan, the ancestor Zhou Xuan personally set the naming convention for the women, which has been followed ever since.

 

"I am Fourth Brother's sister, and he dotes on me the most." Wang Luo Jing held onto the other side without giving in, mocking, "I don't think you're shy at all, jumping into Fourth Brother's arms as soon as you meet him."

 

"You're lying, my cousin Shouzhe dotes on me the most." Lu Xiaoxiao pouted, "Every time we meet, he brings me gifts."

 

"Fourth Brother is the best to me. He gave me a purple crystal spirit bee hive to play with just the day before yesterday, worth more than two hundred Top Gold." Wang Luo Jing boasted with her head held high.

 

"Cousin Shouzhe, I want a purple crystal spirit bee hive too." Lu Xiaoxiao felt a little inferior and started to act cute, not understanding what a purple crystal spirit bee was.

 

"Uh…" Wang Shouzhe was speechless. How did two little girls start fighting over him as soon as they met? Especially Wang Luo Jing, who was actually a year younger than Lu Xiaoxiao. She was usually well-behaved, but now she was fighting for attention.

 

"Shouzhe, did you really buy a purple crystal spirit bee hive for the kids to play with?" Lu Zhengjie, who was accompanying them, was also surprised. "That's too extravagant and wasteful. I wonder how you're going to pass your cousin's test now."

 

Two hundred Top Gold was already a huge amount of money for both the Wang and Lu clans. For example, Wang Dinghai's fishing fleet, ten ships sailing through wind and rain all year round, could only make a profit of about two hundred Top Gold after working hard.

 

As one of the pillar industries of the Wang clan, Fenggu Farm had two hundred tenant farmers and thousands of acres of farmland. Operating on such a scale, it could only make a profit of six to seven hundred Top Gold a year, which was only a book profit.

 

They had prepared some gifts for the Lu clan this time, but they were all small items.

 

"Little Uncle, is there something going on?" Wang Shouzhe sighed, "Can you persuade your niece? Even if I sell myself now, I can't buy a purple crystal spirit bee hive."

 

"I can't persuade her." Lu Zhengjie shook his head in a hurry, "She's the most spoiled one in the family, even the ancestor dotes on her. Big Brother can't do anything about her. Shouzhe, you have to rely on yourself."

 

The ancestor dotes on her?

 

Wang Shouzhe was a little confused. Lu Mingsheng, the ancestor of the Lu clan, was the direct descendant of the Ming generation of the Lu clan and was over a hundred years old now, right? In terms of blood and lineage, he was Wang Shouzhe's great-grandfather.

 

Most of the ancestors of the major Xuanwu noble families didn't like to show their faces. They usually closed themselves off for cultivation and only came out for major events.

 

Wang Shouzhe had lived for eighteen years and could only count the number of times he had seen Ancestor Mingsheng on one hand. He was only summoned once, when he was seven years old and showed good aptitude. Ancestor Mingsheng praised him and rewarded him with some resources.You should know that Wang Shouzhe's aptitude is almost at the middle-grade level, yet he only receives such treatment. This little girl, Lu Xiaoxiao, how could she have won the favor of the ancestors…

 

But now that things have come to this, he couldn't produce a gift worth two hundred Top Gold, even if he could, he wouldn't want to give it. He could only perfunctorily say to Lu Xiaoxiao, "Xiaoxiao, that beehive was picked up by my cousin…"

 

"Wow! Cousin Shouzhe doesn't like me anymore, boo hoo, Cousin is bullying me." When she heard that it wasn't for her, Lu Xiaoxiao suddenly felt thoroughly inferior, crying as she ran back to her room.

 

Meanwhile, Wang Luojing was holding Wang Shouzhe's arm, looking proud of herself for defeating the "bad guy," which made Wang Shouzhe roll his eyes. She really was a little girl, even getting jealous over this.

 

But this was just a small episode, and Wang Shouzhe didn't care.

 

Later, led by his uncle Lu Zhengjie, Wang Shouzhe and Wang Luojing arrived at the main hall of the Lu Clan's mansion.

 

At the same time, the leader of the Lu Clan, Lu Zhengxiong, and his wife, Wang Shi, were already dressed in formal attire waiting there.

 

Lu Zhengxiong was already in his fifties, with a square face and three strands of beard, appearing quite dignified.

 

His wife, Lu Wangshi, was actually Wang Shouzhe's biological aunt, Wang Liuling, who was already in her fifties, but with good maintenance and dress, sitting there made her look like a middle-aged beauty.

 

"Wang Shouzhe brings the fifth sister of his family, Wang Luojing, to pay respects to Uncle and Aunt." Wang Shouzhe stepped forward and greeted them according to the etiquette of younger generations to elders. He had already sent someone to report his visit beforehand, and this trip was to pay respects to his elders, not to meet them as the leader of the clan.

 

"Quickly, Shouzhe, no need for formalities." Lu Zhengxiong went forward and helped Wang Shouzhe up, looking him up and down. "It's been a long time, and you've grown so much, Shouzhe."

 

"Uncle, Aunt, this matter is not a hardship." Wang Shouzhe said, "Our Wang Clan and Lu Clan are connected by blood, mutual assistance is our duty."

 

Because his biological mother was the eldest daughter of the Lu Clan, Wang Shouzhe's feelings towards the Lu Clan were very deep since childhood. The exchange of the eldest lineages of both sides in the previous generation also made the blood ties between the two families very close.

 

After a brief exchange of pleasantries, Aunt Wang Liuling took Wang Luojing aside to talk.

 

Meanwhile, Lu Zhengxiong sat opposite Wang Shouzhe and talked. However, what he served was not the usual spirit tea, but the special product of the Lu Clan's Yingxiu, the Ice Crystal Dew Drink.

 

The Lu Clan occupied the geographical advantage of the Yingxiu Lake, not only making some achievements in aquatic farming, but also enclosing a "spiritual water" area, specializing in the cultivation of an aquatic spiritual plant called Crystal Dew Grass. Crystal Dew Grass would bear a thumb-sized spiritual fruit, which looked like grapes, but was transparent like cicada wings. After taking out the juice and chilling it, it was an excellent drink.

 

After taking a sip, the cool and clear feeling flowed into the stomach through the throat, followed by a refreshing feeling spreading throughout the body. The whole person shuddered with a sense of being washed and shaved, feeling extremely comfortable.Speaking of which, Wang Shouzhe had only drunk Ice Crystal Dew three times. This was a rare and precious spirit drink, and just one cup required several hundred gold coins. Even the Lu Clan's direct lineage could rarely afford to drink it.

 

The Lu Clan of Yingshi was not a particularly powerful family, with only one Ancestor presiding over the clan. However, their Ice Crystal Dew was a major specialty, and most of the output was currently exclusively supplied to the Purple Mansion Academy, with only a small portion shared among some powerful families.

 

Wang Shouzhe didn't know how much net profit they made in a year, but he estimated it was unlikely to be less than eight or nine hundred gold coins.

 

In addition to Wang Shouzhe's cup, Wang Luo Jing also received a cup. It was her first time drinking such a good drink, and her eyes widened in amazement.

 

After the good drink, it was time for a feast of spiritual food, which made Wang Shouzhe and his sister feel full of vitality.

 

Afterwards, they naturally moved on to the main topic. Wang Luo Jing cooperated with the Lu Clan members to carry out an insect extermination operation. The mode of operation was simple, just copying the disposal method used by the Gongsun Clan in Shanyang. Moreover, Yingshi Lu Clan's fields were not too large, only six or seven thousand mu, so it was not too difficult to handle.

 

Originally, Wang Shouzhe also wanted to help, but just before he left, he received a transmission from Ming Sheng Ancestor summoning him to meet.

 

This made Wang Shouzhe feel uncertain. Could it be that Lu Xiaoxiao went to Ming Sheng Ancestor to complain about him, causing Ming Sheng Ancestor to have a grudge against him?

 

But this absurd idea only flashed through his mind. Ming Sheng Ancestor was the important pillar of the Yingshi Lu Clan, and he would not get involved in petty disputes between children.

 

…