Apr 24, 2026
Chapter 82 — Building the Road • Village Head Ling Qicai
After leaving Qingchen Bookshop, Ling Jingxuan stopped by Xinyuan Restaurant to inform Shopkeeper Zhang about the situation. On the way back, he bought some meat and vegetables. As usual, the butcher generously tossed in several large pork bones for him.
By the time they returned to the village, several supervisors from the construction teams had already arrived. The thirty workers brought earlier by Broker Liu had begun working on both sides of the site, and the boundary trench around the outer perimeter had long since been dug.
The foreman responsible for building the courtyard walls inspected the area and then hurried back to gather more workers, promising that construction would begin no later than noon. The other foremen had already walked through their respective areas under Yan Shengrui’s guidance. Although the covered corridor would have to wait until the fish pond was excavated, they could begin laying the foundations for the “workshops” Ling Jingxuan had mentioned.
As for the thatched cottages they currently lived in—because they were backed against Mount Yuehua—Ling Jingxuan’s preliminary plans already accounted for them. That area would eventually become a duck shed, so no matter how the construction proceeded in front, it would not affect their daily lives.
Such a large undertaking—especially involving the notoriously infamous Ling Jingxuan of Lingjia Village—naturally drew attention. Villagers who had no fields to tend or had already finished their farm work gathered to watch the commotion.
Some even tried approaching Ling Chenglong and his sons, hoping to pry out how exactly Ling Jingxuan had suddenly become wealthy. Unfortunately for them, Ling Chenglong simply grinned foolishly and laughed things off, while Ling Jinghan and the others were slicker than loaches in mud. No matter how many questions they asked, they got nothing useful.
In the end, the villagers could only stand around the edges, pointing at the bustling scene while whispering among themselves with naked envy and jealousy.
“Father, how come that wretch bought land without going through you?”
Within the crowd stood the village head and his son, their expressions difficult to read. In the village, no matter how big or small the matter, it normally had to pass through the village head. Yet Ling Jingxuan’s move had been so swift and decisive that the village head learned about it even later than the other villagers.
To outsiders, it looked like a direct slap to his face.
“Shut up!”
Ling Qicai glared fiercely at his son. “Don’t go around calling him ‘wretch’ anymore. He’s not the same person he used to be… and our family also…”
He sighed deeply.
Thinking about what had happened yesterday in the eldest branch of the family, Ling Qicai could not help feeling uneasy. Strictly speaking, the matter had little to do with him, but they all came from the same clan line. The scandal between Ling Chenghua and Ling Jingwei—their incest—had brought shame to everyone.
At this point, what right did they have to keep calling Ling Jingxuan a disgrace?
“Father… what is Uncle’s family planning to do about it?”
Understanding what his father meant, Ling Chengyu, the eldest son of Ling Qicai, frowned heavily.
The scandal had already spread everywhere. Early that morning, the Clan Leader and Elders from the ancestral hall had sent people to intervene. If a resolution wasn’t reached soon, the situation could spiral completely out of control.
An aunt and nephew committing incest—and even losing control in public, grabbing anyone nearby to violate them…
The impact was far too serious. There was no way Uncle and his father alone could suppress such a scandal.
“What else can they do?” Ling Qiyun replied grimly. “Handle it according to the clan rules.”
According to clan rules?
That meant expelling Ling Chenghua and Ling Jingwei from the ancestral clan register.
Would Uncle’s family ever agree to that?
Ling Chengyu seriously doubted it. Leaving aside Aunt’s doting indulgence toward Chenghua, Ling Chengcai and his wife had always granted Jingwei whatever he asked for. They weren’t like Ling Chenglong and his wife back in the day, who would allow such chaos to go unchecked.
“Lizheng, Uncle Ling—you’re here too. Perfect, I was just looking for you. Saves me the trip.”
Suddenly, Ling Jingxuan’s voice cut clearly through their conversation.
By deliberately addressing them as Village Head and Uncle Ling, he instantly drew a line between them. The simple form of address made the father and son’s expressions turn extremely unpleasant, yet they had no grounds to object.
Once they had been direct relatives—grandfather, uncles, nephews of the same family line.
Now… things have become like this.
Meanwhile, Ling Jingxuan and Yan Shengrui walked over with one of the construction foremen. By the time they returned earlier, most of the other supervisors had already left; only this man, Wang Da, remained.
After briefly discussing his idea about building a road with Yan Shengrui, the two of them immediately reached an agreement. They had brought Wang Da out to survey the terrain.
Whether the road would connect directly to the village or bypass it and run straight to the market outside had to be approved by the village head.
Originally, they had planned to visit his house to ask—but unexpectedly, they ran into him here.
“Hehe… Jingxuan, you’re making quite a spectacle,” Ling Qicai said with a stiff smile, forcing away his embarrassment. “So what exactly are you planning? Reclaiming land for farming, or building houses?”
Compared to Ling Qiyun’s stubborn pride and the usual arrogance of the Ling clan, Ling Qicai, as the village head, was clearly far more shrewd and adaptable.
“You’re making fun of me,” Ling Jingxuan replied lightly. “It’s just that my parents and brothers recently left home with nothing. Those few thatched huts of mine aren’t enough to house everyone, so I bought a piece of land to build a couple of rooms.”
Stopping no more than an arm’s length away from them, Ling Jingxuan exchanged a glance with Yan Shengrui, the two of them smiling faintly at each other before he finally spoke.
Every word he said carried a sharp edge of ridicule toward the Ling family. Regardless of whether his parents had been driven out back then or had chosen to leave themselves, the fact remained that they had been forced to leave with nothing. For Old Master Ling to treat such a filial son that way had been utterly wrong.
From now on, no matter what Ling Chenglong and the others did, Ling Qiyun should forget about clinging to them under the excuse of close kinship.
The village head was not a fool. He understood the meaning behind Ling Jingxuan’s words immediately and hurriedly frowned.
“Jingxuan, Second Grandpa knows you still hold resentment over what happened back then—resentment toward your uncle and aunt. What they did to your parents was indeed excessive, but after all they are still your—”
“Don’t.”
Ling Jingxuan cut him off before he could finish. The smile that had hung on his face moments earlier vanished, replaced by a sharp and imposing coldness.
“Lizheng, don’t try tying us together with them again. They are them, and we are us. The old scholar once said it best: each family lives its own life. Life or death, wealth or poverty—none of it has anything to do with the other.”
He paused slightly.
“Today I came because I have something to discuss with you. If you’re willing, we can continue talking. If not, then I’ll save myself the trouble.”
Even though the matter of building the road required the village head’s approval, Ling Jingxuan had no intention of trading that for a renewed connection with the Ling clan.
At worst, he could endure things for now. Later, when he began purchasing land in large quantities, he could take the matter directly to the county magistrate. Building roads—no matter the era—was something that benefited both the state and the people. He refused to believe the magistrate would oppose it.
“You… ah…”
Pointing at him helplessly, Ling Qicai let out a deep sigh.
He knew now that Ling Jingxuan would never turn back. In the future, his elder brother would probably regret everything to the very end.
“Fine,” he said at last. “If you don’t want to hear it, I won’t say any more. What is it you wanted to talk to me about?”
A moment later, when he lifted his head again, his expression had already changed into the calm, impartial face of a man conducting official business.
“It’s like this, Lizheng,” Ling Jingxuan said evenly. “I want to build a road that bypasses the village and goes straight to the entrance of the market outside. Can you authorize it?”
Just moments ago he had made up his mind about the route.
His sons would have to travel that road every day for school. He had no desire for them to pass through the village constantly—enduring people’s gossip or being stopped along the way.
Bypassing the village was the only choice.
Of course, it would cost far more money.
“Bypass the village?”
Ling Qicai frowned again.
So he intended to abandon the village altogether?
Although Ling Jingxuan still appeared to be a member of Ling Family Village, the truth was different. When he had been driven out of the family years ago, the clan had never formally established a separate household for him. Simply put, neither he nor his father and brothers were recorded in the Ling clan’s ancestral hall.
In other words, they were practically outsiders living in Ling Family Village—worse even than newcomers who had moved there later.
If he built a road that avoided the village entirely, it would mean cutting himself off from it completely.
“Yes,” Ling Jingxuan replied calmly. “Lizheng, you know well enough that my sons and I have never been welcomed here. Now that my children study in town, they travel back and forth every day. If they had to pass through the village each time… wouldn’t that be rather awkward for everyone?”
On the surface, he sounded as though he were considering the villagers’ feelings.
But anyone listening could hear the naked sarcasm beneath his words.
Standing beside him, Yan Shengrui could not help smiling in amusement. Inwardly, he raised a silent thumbs-up.
As expected of their Jingxuan—he even managed to ask a favor in a way entirely his own.
“You want to bypass the village, but almost every piece of land here that can grow crops has already been reclaimed and planted,” Ling Qicai replied carefully. “There isn’t much spare space left for a road. Why not simply build a road connecting your place to the village instead?”
He knew perfectly well Ling Jingxuan was mocking them, yet this was the only suggestion he could offer.
After all, the land Ling Jingxuan had bought now extended nearly to Zhao Dalong’s house—not very far from the village at all. Rather than clash with him directly, it would be better to give him a bit of face.
For some reason, Ling Qicai had a faint feeling that Ling Jingxuan might be even more formidable than he appeared. Perhaps someday the entire village would have to rely on him.
Under no circumstances could he allow Ling Jingxuan to sever ties with the village completely.
“Isn’t there that empty stretch over there?” Ling Jingxuan said lightly, pointing in the distance.
“The Neihai basin has been barren for years—nothing grows there, and no one owns the land nearby. If I build the road out through that side, wouldn’t it work perfectly?”
It suited his plans exactly. Once he bought the nearby half-saline land, he would no longer need to bring up road construction again. He could simply run a straight road along the edge of it all the way to the market.
“You—Jingxuan, you’d better think this through,” Ling Qicai said, nearly exasperated. “Building a road from that direction won’t cost a small amount of money.”
He was almost driven to anger.
So the man had already chosen the route? Was he truly determined to cut himself off from the village entirely?
“Hehe…” Ling Jingxuan chuckled lightly. “That’s not something Lizheng needs to worry about. What I want to know is—what do you think of the idea?”
Since he had already brought it up, would he really be afraid of spending money?
Ling Jingxuan could not help laughing softly. No matter how much money it cost, could it possibly be more important than the future and psychological well-being of his little buns? Besides, he had long planned to buy the half-saline land in that direction anyway. Sooner or later, a road would have to be built there.
“This is a matter of great importance,” Ling Qicai said at last. “I’ll need to discuss it with the clan leader and the elders first.”
He knew perfectly well that building a road was a good thing. If, as village head, he simply rejected it outright, and word spread, who knew what people might say about him? He needed time to think it over carefully.
Hearing this, Ling Jingxuan’s brows knitted almost imperceptibly.
So he intended to stall?
A trace of coldness surfaced in the depths of his phoenix eyes. Just as he was about to press further, the man beside him spoke first.
“Alright, Jingxuan,” Yan Shengrui said casually. “Building a road is a serious matter. The village head is only a local official—how could he decide something like this on his own?”
He turned to look at Ling Jingxuan as he spoke, but the words were clearly meant for the village head and the crowd of villagers gathering nearby.
“Last time we went to the apothecary, didn’t the shopkeeper say that Magistrate Hu had been looking for you? Why don’t we take a trip to the county town in a couple of days? Since Magistrate Hu is the local authority of this district, I’m sure he can make the decision.”
Every word subtly conveyed the same message: Ling Jingxuan already had connections with the county magistrate. Coming to the village head first was merely a matter of giving him face. If he kept refusing, they could simply bypass him—just like when they bought the land.
“Hehe… If you hadn’t mentioned it, I would’ve forgotten,” Ling Jingxuan said with a smile, immediately playing along.
“After all, I helped him with quite a big matter. I doubt he’d refuse such a small request. Besides, I’m paying for the road myself—it won’t cost the village a single coin. There’s really no reason for him to oppose it.”
How could Ling Jingxuan fail to understand Yan Shengrui’s intentions? With a simple exchange of glances, the two of them fell perfectly into step.
Meanwhile, Ling Qicai and the surrounding villagers stared with wide eyes, stunned.
None of them had ever imagined that Ling Jingxuan actually had ties with the county magistrate.
When he first began buying land, cattle, and even a horse cart, everyone had assumed the money came from the man beside him. Otherwise, how could he have become wealthy overnight?
Who would have thought—
“Forget it, Jingxuan,” Ling Qicai interrupted hurriedly. “There’s no need to trouble the county magistrate over something like this. I was only worried you might not have enough money. Since you’re so determined… then go ahead and build it.”
With that, he turned and left the crowd.
There was nothing more he could do.
“Hehe…” Ling Jingxuan chuckled.
“Wang Da, let’s go take a look at the soil conditions over there.”
Their goal achieved, the two men exchanged a smile. Ignoring the mass of villagers surrounding them, they calmly led Wang Da toward the barren stretch of land.
If Ling Qicai thought he could outmaneuver Ling Jingxuan and Yan Shengrui in a battle of wits…
He probably wouldn’t have a chance even in the next lifetime.
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Translator: LazyHermitGal
Author: LazyHermitGal
A Lazy Hermit Gal wondering in the void and falling into the translation abyss.
