Chapter 1368 - 42: Great Emperor vs. Earth Emperor

"Marshal, rest assured, I’ve got this matter covered."

...

Changning Guard Xinping Town.

In less than a century, Xinping Town has become the leading town in both the Panan River Basin and the General Donghai River Basin.

"Ever-changing" is the best word to describe Xinping Town.

Nowadays, according to the statistics of the household registration center in Xinping Town, the total population within the district has reached three million. Among them, aside from the local population, there is also a large number of migrant workers distributed across various farms, major production bases, and a variety of industries.

The first batch of civilians relocated from near the Wang Family’s Main Residence in Ping’an Town are now extremely wealthy; the land they initially were allocated for building houses and renting out is enough for the whole family to live an idyllic life.

If the commercial firms and Noble Families from all over Daqian do not have branches or bases in Xinping Town, they are truly falling behind.

Thanks to the Wang Family’s ever-deepening expertise in [cement] research, high-grade cement has been widely used within Xinping Town, turning into steel-reinforced concrete structures that maximize the utilization of limited land area.

However, cement is a high-energy-consuming and somewhat polluting industry, leading Changning Guard to progressively phase out the outdated cement industry in this area. The cement manufacturing has now been gradually relocated to the Longzuo Yan Family’s territory.

Of course, while transferring the outdated industry, the Wang Family has also repeatedly improved the new production processes in terms of environmental protection and energy consumption, aiming to minimize the negative impact on the natural environment.

Naturally, this is merely as much improvement as possible.

Currently, the demand for cement across all of Daqian, including the Wang Family, continues to grow annually; the current production capacity is far from meeting demand, and halting is absolutely impossible.

Xinping Town, Xitang Street.

A hundred years ago, this place was still considered a frontier area of the Outer Domain.

Now, it has transformed into a bustling, lively commercial street teeming with people.

The geographic advantage of being close to Xinping Port has made shops along the street popular with branches from various industries and Noble Family bases, turning these storefronts into valuable locations that change in price daily, often exceeding those in Longzuo County City.

The fifty-year-old renowned restaurant—Xinshun Tower—stands as a majestic building in the most prosperous area.

"Waiter, a pot of [Fire Crystal Burn], five pounds of Spirit Horned Yak Roasted Beef, a big plate of Steamed Red-tailed Spirit Carp, and some Spirit Vegetables, please, at a window seat." Today, Captain Zhuge Liangcai is enjoying a rare rest day, dressed in a well-tailored outfit, entertaining some "distant" relatives.

"Oh, isn’t this Captain Zhuge?" The waiter greeted Zhuge Liangcai with a broad smile, "I’m really sorry, there are no window seats available today, but shall I arrange a quiet private room for you instead?"

Just as Zhuge Liangcai was about to reply with a smile, one of the distant relatives, a middle-aged woman, said, "Uncle Liangcai, you are the captain of the Wang Family’s patrol, how can you not even secure a window seat?"

Zhuge Liangcai hesitated, feeling a bit embarrassed.

He glanced around and indeed saw no available window seats, then said, "Sixth Sister-in-law Guihua, Xinshun Tower’s business is booming, and there really are no available seats today. How about we make do for now, and I’ll reserve a window seat for tomorrow?"

The Zhuge family’s ancestors hailed from Lingbei County and fled south seeking refuge during the Anjiang flood, later taken in by the Wang Family and settled in a refugee camp.

Later, they settled in Ping’an Town thanks to working on river embankments and canal clearing for the Wang Family. After the Wang Family’s main residence expanded, the Zhuge family relocated to Xitang in Xinping Town. Over the years, riding the wave of prosperity from the Wang Family’s development, their family’s conditions have increasingly improved.

As the saying goes, when poor in the midst of bustling towns, nobody asks; when wealthy in secluded mountains, distant relatives come calling.

It’s somewhat their old ancestor’s fault for insisting on returning to his hometown once he got settled, declaring something about "one must return to their roots after death." As a result, family ties were recognized, but a heap of trouble followed. Now that Xinping Town has grown increasingly prosperous, distant relatives frequently visit seeking refuge.

Captain Zhuge Liangcai alone has hosted seven batches of distant relatives, painstakingly arranging living and work accommodations.

Honestly, he is beyond annoyed at heart, yet fears these distant relatives might secretly gossip upon returning home, tarnishing the Zhuge Family’s reputation. Hence, he has to endure it for now.

After all, the tombs of Grand Ancestor Zhuge Wenya and Second Ancestor Zhuge Tiedan are still in the ancestral land, and there’s concern about any potential grievances causing trouble.

"Haha~" Sixth Sister-in-law Guihua lifted her eyebrows, "The folks say your branch is thriving in Xinping Town, powerful and wealthy. If you disdain a few of us poor relatives, just say so, and we won’t stay."

The expressions of several other distant relatives also turned somewhat sour.

A patrol captain, unable to secure a window seat—does that not show complete disregard?

"Liangcai, you mustn’t be ungrateful, we have been tending to your ancestral tombs..."

"Sixth Sister-in-law Guihua, Sixth Brother, and both uncles." Zhuge Liangcai sighed deeply, "Please wait, I will try to coordinate."

With that, he surveyed the situation at the window seats once more.

Many appeared conspicuously wealthy and influential, seeming difficult to approach, but one table was seated by two elderly people dressed plainly, whispering and looking around, who didn’t seem to carry much status.