I run a casino in the immortal realm.

When Zheng Dashan walked out of the council hall, his steps were unsteady.

He carried his son's letter in his arms, and a cloth bag containing five hundred spirit stones, heavy and pressing against his chest.

Zhao Dechang personally escorted him to the door, patted him on the shoulder, and said a lot of polite things, but he didn't remember a single word.

Someone greeted him on the street, and he nodded, but he didn't know who the person was.

The council chamber wasn't far from home; it only took the time it takes for an incense stick to burn.

When he pushed open the door, his wife, Lin, was cooking rice porridge in the kitchen. His daughter and youngest son, who were studying at a private school in the market, had not yet returned.

Since moving to the market town, his family's life has been getting better and better. Not only do they receive dividends from Zhao's Restaurant, but they also receive more than ten spirit stones in wages every month. All of this is thanks to the family business earned by their eldest son.

"Is the head of the household back?"

Lin peeked out from the kitchen, her hands still covered in spirit rice: "The Zhao family sent a carriage to pick you up. What happened? I was terrified."

"Yifei has sent a letter."

Lin's hand slid down from the door frame.

Zheng Dashan handed her the letter.

"Fei'er got accepted into the Qingyun Sect? Am I dreaming?"

Upon reading the letter, Lin became instantly emotional, and tears streamed down her face.

Zheng Dashan squatted down, poured out five hundred spirit stones, and stacked them in a row on the stone table in the courtyard.

Sunlight shines on the surface of the spirit stone, refracting a faint spiritual glow.

The two stood around the row of spirit stones, neither of them speaking.

After a while, Madam Lin wiped her eyes with her apron and took a breath: "Husband, who gave you the letter?"

Zheng Dashan then remembered and recounted everything that had happened in the council hall.

"Inner disciple, Chief Inspector, how did Fei'er manage that?"

The Lin family was shocked once again.

The Zhao family donated 200 mu of spiritual land, the Liu family contributed 500 spirit stones to build a house, and the Wang family also contributed 500.

When Chen heard the words "two hundred mu of sacred land", her legs went weak and she sat down on the threshold.

"Two hundred acres...private property?"

"Private property, the land deed will be written today."

Chen sat on the threshold, unable to stand up for a long time. She had been married to Zheng Dashan for eighteen years, and her greatest hope was to save enough money to buy five acres of sacred land so that she wouldn't have to pay rent to the Zhao family.

Five acres is just a pipe dream.

Now, it's 200 mu.

"Walk."

Zheng Dashan carefully put away the spirit stone, his tone now filled with renewed determination: "I'm going to Zhengjia Village to tell my parents."

It's eight li (about 4 kilometers) from Heishanfang Market to Zhengjia Village, and it takes more than half an hour to walk there.

Zheng Dashan ran there, while Lin waited at home for the children to return.

Zhengjia Village is small, with only about twenty households, all living in mud-brick houses scattered on a gentle slope.

There is an old banyan tree at the entrance of the village, and several stones are placed under the tree as benches. The old people usually sit there to bask in the sun and chat.

When Zheng Dashan entered the village, he happened to see several clansmen chatting under a tree.

"Is Dashan back?"

An uncle greeted him.

Zheng Dashan nodded, and without stopping, headed straight for the old house at the east end of the village.

In the courtyard, Zheng Fuquan was bending over and chopping firewood.

"father."

Zheng Fuquan straightened up, propped his axe on the ground, and frowned when he saw his eldest son rushing into the yard.

"What happened?"

"Father, Yifei has sent a letter."

Zheng Fuquan's hand tightened slightly.

Ever since his grandson went to Qingyun City to take the imperial examination, he hasn't had a good night's sleep.

The chances of a child with five spiritual roots taking the entrance exam for the Qingyun Sect are slim. He didn't say it aloud, but he had already prepared himself for his grandson to be rejected.

Did you pass the exam?

"I passed the exam."

Zheng Dashan's voice trembled slightly, "Not only did he pass the exam, but he is now an inner disciple and a high-ranking official—the chief tax inspector, in charge of the taxes of all merchants in the sect, with ten Foundation Establishment cultivators under his command."

Zheng Fuquan's axe fell to the ground with a "bang".

"What did you say?"

"Father, the Foundation Establishment cultivator from the Su family came to Black Mountain Market in person, saying that she is Yi Fei's subordinate. Zhao Dechang, Liu Chongshan, and Wang Houde were all present. The Zhao family gave us the land deeds for two hundred acres of spirit fields, and the Liu and Wang families each contributed five hundred spirit stones to build a new house for our family."

Zheng Fuquan stood still, motionless.

His lips were moving, but no sound came out.

Zheng Dashan quickly stepped forward and supported his arm: "Dad, please sit down and talk."

Zheng Fuquan was helped to sit down on a wooden stump in the yard. He rested his hands on his knees, lowered his head, and panted for a while.

"Show me the letter."

He held the letter up to his eyes and read it line by line, very slowly.

After reading it, he folded the letter, held it in both hands, and placed it on his knees.

The old man's shoulders were shaking.

"it is good."

He uttered a single word, his voice so hoarse it was almost inaudible.

Then he said it again: "Okay."

Zheng Dashan squatted down in front of his father, his nose stinging with tears, but he didn't cry.

Footsteps could be heard outside the courtyard gate.

"Big brother's here!"

The two men rushed into the yard one after the other. It was the second brother, Zheng Dahe, and the third brother, Zheng Dajiang. They were covered in mud, so they must have just come back from the fields.

"Second brother, third brother, Yifei has been admitted to the Qingyun Sect and has become an inner disciple and a high-ranking official."

Zheng Dashan could not hide his joy and pride.

"Big brother, is it true?"

Zheng Dahe was stunned for a moment and almost jumped up.

"It's true, the Zhao family is going to give us 200 acres of spiritual land, and the Wang and Liu families are each giving us 500 spirit stones. They're even helping us build a house."

Zheng Dahe and Zheng Dajiang exchanged a glance.

Zheng Dahe plopped down on the ground.

Zheng Dajiang's mouth stretched wide, as wide as it could go, and then he suddenly covered his face.

The 28-year-old man squatted in the yard, his shoulders heaving, crying uncontrollably.

The Zheng family had been farming for generations, and their biggest dream was to have their own sacred land. Now that it had suddenly come true, and it was even two hundred acres! How could anyone not be excited?

"Dajiang, get up."

Zheng Fuquan stood up, his voice regaining some strength, "Why are you crying? The Zheng family will never have to bow down to anyone again."

Zheng Dajiang wiped his face, stood up, and nodded vigorously.

Perhaps because the commotion was too great, more and more people gathered outside the courtyard. All the twenty-odd households in Zhengjia Village who could come came.

Some people peeked into the yard, while others whispered among themselves outside the yard wall.

"Did Yifei really become a high-ranking official?"

"The Zhao family donated two hundred acres of land? There must be some mistake!"

"A Foundation Establishment cultivator from the Su family came in person; how could it be fake?"

The buzzing of voices was like a pot of boiling rice porridge.

Zheng Fuquan walked to the courtyard gate, glanced at the clansmen outside, and said nothing.

He doesn't need to say anything.

Those gazes held surprise, envy, and fawning.

At dusk, the Zhao family's carriage arrived at Zhengjia Village.

A steward from the Zhao family got off the carriage, carrying a lacquered wooden box, and respectfully handed it to Zheng Fuquan.

"Elder Zheng, this is the land deed for two hundred mu of spiritual fields in the east of the village. Patriarch Zhao has already stamped it in the council hall, and it is effective immediately."

Zheng Fuquan opened the box, inside was a spirit paper covered with the name of the market council hall, on which was written clearly: Landowner: Zheng Dashan.

His fingers touched the spirit paper for a long time.

After a lifetime of farming other people's land, in the end, he finally has his own land.

Less than an incense stick's time after the steward left, people from the Liu and Wang families arrived, one bringing spirit stones and the other bringing building materials.

Five hundred spirit stones were wrapped in cloth and stacked neatly.

Timber and spirit stone bricks filled the open space outside the courtyard. The foreman leading the team was a member of the Wang family, who bowed to Zheng Dashan.

"Brother Zheng, we'll start work first thing tomorrow morning and guarantee it will be completed within half a month. It's a three-courtyard house with a spirit wood structure, so it's warm in winter and cool in summer."

A three-courtyard complex.

Zheng Dashan looked at the three dilapidated mud houses behind him, then at the pile of building materials outside the courtyard, and couldn't help but think of his son.

Zheng Fuquan sat on a stone at the entrance of the courtyard, holding the land deed in his hand, and looked up at the northern horizon.

The Qingyun Sect is in that direction.

His grandson became a high-ranking official there.