Pre-Qin Mythology: Starting with the River God

Time flew by, and three days passed!

At this moment, Quan Ming was sitting upright in the elegantly decorated chess pavilion, filled with jade artifacts and rare treasures.

"Thump!"

Holding a black piece, Quan Ming gently placed it on the chessboard, captured a white piece, and his gaze sharpened for a moment at the gloomy woman sitting opposite him, who was constantly spitting out ink dots as she played chess, before relaxing his gaze again.

She said coldly and respectfully, "Your Majesty's chess skills are superb; Qingyu is no match for you."

Having said that, she put down the chess piece with her delicate hand and knelt down quietly.

It seemed that he didn't want to play chess with Quan Ming anymore. Quan Ming felt helpless. He had finally found a chess partner, so why was he so unmotivated?

Shaking his head, Quan Ming also stopped.

At this moment, Feng Hua, clad in colorful shell armor, rushed in from outside and hurriedly bowed to Quan Ming.

He said, "Your Majesty, Magistrate Qu Wan and Young Master Dou Lian have arrived, ordered to offer sacrifices for you and witness your governance of Zhishui... They are asking when you plan to begin."

"Also, Qu Wan said that he wanted to discuss the autumn harvest with you after the sacrifice. It seems that the King of Chu is currently conscripting soldiers for training, preparing to fight against the Zhou emperor. At this time, Chu does not have enough farmers to participate in the harvest, so this matter needs to be handled by the Quan people..."

Upon hearing this, Qingyu stood up and prepared to tidy up the chessboard.

Quan Ming raised his head and hummed softly, pondering, "It seems that Qu Wan is quite capable. He managed to handle the affairs of the county in just three days. However, he was preoccupied with the autumn harvest, which is why he had time to prepare the sacrificial ceremony for me... Well, the dead gods still need to be worshipped by the living. It's the rule of the enfeoffment."

Just like when the King of Chu offered sacrifices to him and bestowed upon him the title of Water Immortal of Quanshui.

He still needs the decree of the King of Chu and a sacrificial ceremony to declare his intention to Chu Heaven before he can be considered legitimate in his attempt to seize new waters.

Of course, even without this rule, he could still control Zhishui right now.

Quan Ming smiled and stood up as well.

He was also planning to use the autumn harvest as an excuse to do some things.

Ok……

Today he was dressed in a light brown, narrow-sleeved, tie-dyed robe, with a black wooden headband inlaid with white jade to tie his hair, a string of glass and agate beads around his neck, a leather belt around his waist, a red fox double jade pendant hanging from his waist, a red bird jade ring on his wrist, and grass and wood patterned boots... He was dressed loosely, less restrained but not suitable for grand occasions, just everyday home clothes.

"Would you like to change your clothes, my lord?"

Having lived among humans for many years, Feng Hua was familiar with the clothing styles of the Chu nobles.

Faced with the inquiry from Feng Hua, the "manager," Quan Ming thought for a moment and simply said, "Go and fetch my favorite crimson cloak, and replace it with a gold-inlaid white jade bird-shaped fire-patterned crown. That will be proper enough, and it will save the magistrate from waiting too long."

"yes!"

Feng Hua hurriedly went down to make arrangements.

Quan Ming walked around the chess pavilion, looking at his own assets... less than one percent of his total assets.

"Buzz!"

Quan Ming picked up a jade sword placed on a rosewood stand. The jade sword had a scabbard with the patterns of the Ten Heavenly Stems on it, while the hilt was engraved with the seal script of the Twelve Earthly Branches. As he slowly drew it out, the blade was warm and smooth, without any sharpness. The blade was twelve inches long, which subtly reflected the charm of the Dao.

"Bluefish, you said..."

"Will my wealth arouse the covetousness of those Chu nobles? And will the value of that covetousness outweigh the slight disapproval the Chu nobles hold for the powerful, making them willing to employ the powerful as they would treat the people of Chu?"

The bluefish was originally a fish living in the pool of Shao Siming. Over time, it transformed into a spirit and gained a lot of knowledge through its surroundings.

The fact that she would leave Shao Siming's territory to come to Quanshui...

Quan Ming had his doubts.

However, Shao Siming is the deity in charge of "new life" in the Chu region. She did not become a goddess after the death of a Chu person, but rather she was the embodiment of the Chu people's faith, making her a primordial deity. Whether it is the first sprouting of plants, the birth of animals, or the pregnancy of a Chu person, all of these are under Shao Siming's authority. Therefore, influenced by this authority, Shao Siming is a benevolent deity...

The other party is known for being selfless and not interfering in any disputes between God and others; one could say that he is detached from worldly affairs, dwelling peacefully in the Mengze of Chu, and managing the affairs of Chu's rebirth.

Why would a god like this send spies...?

Or was he sent to the jurisdiction of this little fairy god?

Unfortunately, despite Quan Ming's repeated inquiries, Qing Yu remained silent and refused to answer.

But judging from Qingyu's features and her...constantly spitting out her eggs and then swallowing them herself, combined with Shao Siming's power... Quan Ming guessed that perhaps something had happened to Shao Siming, forcing Qingyu to leave. That's how she ended up in Quan Shui by chance, becoming his spirit.

With that in mind, Quan Ming put the matter aside for the time being.

Qingyu, having already prepared her answer, said to Quan Ming, "The nobles of Chu... are the most greedy. When they are with the Lesser Master of Fate, their prayers are the loudest. They use the finest jade, gold, and delicacies to pray for abundant offspring, hoping to perpetuate their noble families. Their prayers are sincere. But when they pray to the people of Chu for the King of Sui, the offerings are outwardly gleaming, but inwardly corrupt and empty. All they want is for the people of Chu to be forever at their beck and call..."

Looking closely at Quan Ming, Qingyu's eyes showed some confusion.

In truth, Qingyu had seen far too many immortals and gods, but few valued human existence as much as Quan Ming. She asked directly, "Does Your Majesty intend to offer up your wealth in exchange for the Chu nobles accepting Quan Ren?"

"Well?"

Quan Ming was taken aback by his words, then laughed and said, "Do you think my wealth is endless, or that the greed of the Chu nobles has an end?"

The bluefish paused, speechless.

Quan Ming shook his head. He knew that although Qingyu was knowledgeable, she was not good enough to understand people's hearts.

He tucked the jade sword into his waistband and said, "They will covet my wealth and are willing to confront powerful people for it, but once I give it to them, they will immediately change their tune."

"Therefore, wealth should not be given to them, but only shown to them!"

"and……"

Quan Ming raised his eyebrows and smiled. He had already figured out how to make those Chu nobles "have no choice" to take Quan Ren seriously, or even value him.

It's actually quite simple.

If those Chu nobles have assets in Quan, they can be trapped once war breaks out around Quan. These Chu nobles will be more anxious than anyone else. At that time, it will not be the people of Quan begging them, but the people of Quan begging the people of Quan!

As for how to implement it.

It's not that difficult; all you need to do is make the Chu nobles feel that Dequan is a good place where they can make money.

It's not easy to say but it's not easy either. If it were a mortal, say, if that young upstart Qu Wan were to govern Quandi, who knows when it would be possible to make Quandi prosperous.

...Therefore, this requires the methods of immortals and gods.

Immortals and gods possess extraordinary abilities. As long as they are willing to expend the effort and the will of the Chu region, they are fully qualified to make a barren place prosperous in a short period of time. Of course, they are only qualified; in addition to being qualified, they also need sufficient ability.

A fool can't accomplish anything while he's alive.

Does death allow one to accomplish great deeds?

It's a good thing that Quan Di, a place already ruined and destroyed, is not destroyed by leaving a fool like Zhi Xian there.

Quan Ming believed he had some ability to govern a country; otherwise, he wouldn't have communicated with the two states of Quan and Chu before his death, giving them enough time to buffer each other. The King of Chu wouldn't have trusted Quan Ren to be entrusted to him, and Quan Ren wouldn't have started trying to integrate into the state of Chu.

"Da da da..."

Feng Hua arrived with Quan Nu, carrying a magnificent crimson cloak and an exquisite bird-shaped jade crown on a wooden tray.

Quan Ming put his mind at ease.

Quan Nu immediately stepped forward, draped a robe over Quan Ming's shoulders, and placed a jade crown on his head.

"Let's go..."

"When the Zhishui River rightfully belongs to me, my waters will connect to the Yangtze River... We'll have more to do, so you all need to get moving. Living a leisurely life in this water palace is not what I want."

"If you do well, I will not be stingy with the will of Chu."

"……promise!"

The three people had different expressions.

Feng Hua was overjoyed. Could it be that he could be promoted from a half-insider to a full-fledged one?

Quan Nu was rigid; as a clay figurine used for sacrifice, she simply followed Quan Ming's arrangements.

Qingyu frowned, as she preferred peace and quiet, but she quickly relaxed her brows... What Quanming was doing now did not offend her; on the contrary, she vaguely approved of it. As for the will of Chu... she really needed it.