Chapter 160: Chapter 124: The Family’s 9 Basic Fraworks (Part 2)
"Master Gao, you’re a seasoned expert. How do you propose we arrange this?"
Gao Yongzhuang hurried to reply, "I wouldn’t dare, Young Clan Leader. As the saying goes, it’s hard for an outsider to ddle in family affairs. Only the Clan Leader can make such arrangents, and we will simply build as he directs. I’m afraid I can’t offer any worthwhile advice."
Cheng Zongyang thought for a mont, then said, "Then let’s separate it into a front and a back."
As he spoke, he took out another, more detailed blueprint from his robes.
This was the plan for the second phase. He pointed at the blueprint and whispered to Gao Yongzhuang:
"My father said to build one in the center of this area. The second will be built further in, here on the edge of this hillside."
At this, Gao Yongzhuang was stunned, not understanding the reasoning behind this move.
But as he looked from the blueprint to the surrounding environnt, and then to the small hill about a li deeper into the Inner Mountain, he had a sudden realization. He looked back at Cheng Zongyang, cupped his fists, and said with admiration:
"Young Clan Leader, your foresight is brilliant. This humble one is truly impressed."
Cheng Zongyang smiled faintly. "So this will work?"
"Of course it will," Gao Yongzhuang said with a nod.
"Alright, then I’ll leave it in your hands, Master Gao. There’s no rush with this matter. Take your ti," Cheng Zongyang said with a smile.
"Yes, Young Clan Leader."
’I didn’t expect the Young Clan Leader to have already planned so far ahead, even to the later stages of construction.’
’So this is just the first phase. Building an ancestral hall here for the Zhou Family ans they will be confined to this area. The Zhou Family’s future is to manage the affairs Beyond the River on behalf of the Cheng Family.’
’But the area deeper inside will belong to the Cheng Family, serving as their core domain. It creates an outward-radiating hierarchy: Cheng, then Zhou, then the outside world.’
’That small hill is on slightly higher ground. If the surrounding trees are cleared and an ancestral hall is built on it, you’ll be able to see most of what’s happening at the Inner Mountain Pass from there.’
"By the way, Master Gao, do you know how to fire roof tiles?" Cheng Zongyang asked.
"Fire tiles?" Gao Yongzhuang paused, then shook his head slightly. "I’ve seen it done, but I’ve never tried it myself."
Cheng Zongyang said, "No matter. Once everything here is settled, you can try when you have the ti. Firing bricks, firing tiles—we’ll have to try our hand at them sooner or later. I’ll bring more people in later on. You can take on a few apprentices, so you won’t be so overworked."
"Hahaha, thank you for your concern, Young Clan Leader. This humble one will rember," Gao Yongzhuang said with a laugh, cupping his fists.
Cheng Zongyang waved his hand dismissively and walked ahead. A short while later, he arrived on the mountainside of the small hill designated for the ancestral hall.
Looking at the bustling scene at the Inner Mountain Pass, Cheng Zongyang couldn’t help but shake his head slightly.
’We still don’t have enough people. But at least the basic frawork is in place,’ Cheng Zongyang murmured to himself.
With an insufficient population, many things would have to be improved gradually.
’Everything is a process of trial and error. There will be mistakes, but they can be corrected. Likewise, things are never set in stone, and it’s impossible for everything to go according to my plan. Adjustnts will have to be made as circumstances require.’
He was in no hurry.
"Zongyang, co here!"
Just then, a shout ca from the Extragalactic Region. It was his second uncle, Cheng Guangshan.
Cheng Zongyang looked over and activated his Body Technique. His body beca light, and he stepped out with the wind, covering nearly ten feet in a single stride!
「That night.」
After everyone had completed their Foundation Establishnt dicine Baths and Martial Arts dicine Baths, all the adults gathered in the ancestral hall for a eting.
They held a eting every seven days, mainly to address the various issues that arose at the Inner Mountain Pass.
The attendees were Cheng Guanghai, Cheng Guangshan, Zhou Hansong, Zhou Hanchang, and their respective eldest sons: Cheng Zongyang, Cheng Zongwen, Zhou Zhenyuan, and Zhou Zhendong—eight people in total.
This eting had been called by Cheng Zongyang. The main topics were issues concerning the dicinal materials for the dicine baths, food supplies, and the structural developnt of the clan lands.
Over the past half-month, the amount of food consud had been astonishing. If not for the several thousand jin of grain that Cheng Zongyang had "brought" back during this ti, they likely would have run out of food.
But today, there was one more person at the eting than usual—Mrs. Chen of the Cheng Family.
Cheng Guangshan was the first to speak:
"Clan Leader, everyone. The issue of dicinal materials is a long-term one. Whether for the Foundation Establishnt dicine Bath or the Martial Arts dicine Bath, we need to start growing the necessary dicinal materials ourselves. We’ve already used up a third of our supply during this period; we need to start preparing now. We can’t keep having Zongyang go to the County Town to find them. It’s bound to cause problems sooner or later."
Everyone was generally aware of the eting’s agenda; the task now was to propose solutions.
After listening, Cheng Guanghai looked down at his son and asked, "Zongyang, didn’t you propose establishing a Hunting Hall? What’s the status of that?"
Cheng Zongyang stood up and said, "The plans are set. Initially, the Hunting Hall will be led by my uncle and , with my two cousins and Zongwen as deputies. We will recruit another twenty people to form a team.
"This team will include Martial Artists and people who can identify dicinal materials. They will not only hunt but also gather herbs. Later, once my uncle and two cousins beco more familiar with the work and their skills are honed, we can split them up, and each can lead their own team.
"The Hunting Hall is a necessary, long-term institution. Once everyone is experienced, we can continue to split off more teams. However, my uncle will be the overall person in charge in the future."
Hearing this, everyone thought it was a good proposal.
Zhenyuan and Zhendong were Martial Artists. Although they had been training continuously, with Cheng Zongyang sparring with them from ti to ti to guide their practice, they still needed real combat experience.
Although Zongwen was still undergoing the Foundation Establishnt dicine Bath, he knew about dicinal materials. It wouldn’t be a problem for him to join the team to identify and gather herbs.
"Zhenyuan, Zhendong, Zongwen, any objections?" Cheng Guanghai asked, looking at the three young n seated below Cheng Zongyang.
"None!" the three of them imdiately stood up and replied.
Cheng Zongyang had already discussed this with them, so of course it wasn’t an issue.
"Good," Cheng Guanghai said with a smile. "This way, we can handle both herb gathering and hunting without neglecting either."
"The second matter is food," Zhou Hansong said, speaking up after the first issue was settled. "Currently, we have cleared forty mu of land for farming, and we’re still clearing more in other areas. We expect to have about fifty mu in total soon. Our goal for spring planting next year is to have about a hundred mu of high-quality paddy fields ready. However, it will be about a year until we can harvest. We will need to continue acquiring grain from the County Town."
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