Chapter 28: Meeting Yu Houwen Again

To ensure their departure, Yang Tian assigned two Yang family guards to follow them.

They were like wolves—naturally, one had to be cautious. Yang Tian firmly believed that one must never let down one’s guard, especially against those whose intentions were clearly hostile.

“City Lord, what are we to do? The meat from those wild beasts won’t keep for long,” said Chen Qinglin, the city’s guard commander, his face clouded with worry.

It was a rare occasion for Desolate City to reap such a bounty, yet now this situation had arisen. Previous trade dealings had always proceeded smoothly—at most, prices might have been a little lower than hoped. But in the past, it was only after stockpiling materials from wild beasts over six months or even a year that a trading company would make the journey, and the meat was usually either given to the soldiers as reward or used as compensation, since the harvests were meager.

The trading companies that came before were always small or medium-sized, domestic firms. This time, with the sale of five hundred whole wild beasts—a significant transaction—the top trading houses arrived. Chen Qinglin had been delighted, believing the deal would go through without a hitch, since these leading firms had the resources to make such a purchase with ease.

But Chen Qinglin was no fool; he could see something was amiss. Merchants should never turn away from profit. Their disdain for Desolate City was but a pretense; the true reason likely lay with City Lord Yang Tian himself.

Yet Chen Qinglin harbored no resentment toward Yang Tian—there was no cause for it. Yang Tian and Desolate City were one and the same, and besides, it was Yang Tian who had slain the beasts. If Yang Tian wished to develop the city, Chen Qinglin would only ever support him.

“Let’s wait two more days and see,” Yang Tian said calmly.

He felt anger simmering inside, but there was no need to show it—unbridled rage was the refuge of the powerless.

Chen Qinglin understood. The City Lord wanted to wait and see if any other trading houses would arrive.

His hopes were slim. The two trading houses that had come seemed to act with impunity; even if others wished to come, they would likely be blocked by now.

“Go about your duties. I know what needs to be done,” Yang Tian said, waving Chen Qinglin away.

This turn of events was unexpected, but it made Yang Tian more acutely aware of his dire circumstances. The matter had come to pass—now he had to find a solution. He had not been killed the moment he arrived in this world; any further hardship was trivial in comparison.

Coming to Desolate City, he found that his enemies had not given up completely. Now, it seemed they sought to impose an economic blockade, to starve him out.

But this was not a dead end.

He still had a way out—he could leave the Qin Kingdom if it came to it.

Of course, that would be a last resort.

An economic blockade? It was an effective tactic.

But to completely isolate Desolate City was wishful thinking.

Unless the enemy controlled all of Qin, it would be impossible. And if they did control the entire kingdom, there would be no need for such methods—they could simply crush him by force.

“I will find you,” Yang Tian vowed.

Yet even he felt a headache coming on.

In his plans, he intended to establish Desolate City’s own trading company, sending merchants far and wide. Unfortunately, the present circumstances fell far short of what was needed.

Without enough goods to trade, and not even enough people to form a merchant caravan, it was impossible to get started.

Population was a stubborn flaw in Desolate City.

His policy was to encourage childbirth, but that required economic development first. Without money, children could not be raised.

He pondered for a while, but no good solution came to him. Every factor was intertwined with the next, forming a vicious cycle that left the situation perilous. Without a way to break the loop, Desolate City would never come to life.

Still, Yang Tian remained optimistic. He was not one to get stuck in a rut or anguish endlessly—there was always a way. For now, he would focus on the tasks at hand, untangling the mess one thread at a time.

The school was under construction, the wilderness was gradually being cleared, and more and more potatoes were being gathered. Yang Tian began experimenting with cultivating potato seedlings.

He only knew the basics: let the potatoes sprout, then cut them into pieces for planting, keeping the soil loose and moist. The rest would require trial and error.

There was no shortage of land—enough to experiment with as much as he wished.

Who would have thought that, after traversing worlds, he would end up researching agricultural cultivation? Yet he found it rather interesting—watching plants sprout, take root, grow strong, and finally be harvested brought a sense of satisfaction and happiness.

At dusk, the guards returned with news: the people from the two trading houses had left Desolate City and were heading toward Zhen’an City.

Yang Tian, unwilling to vex himself, put troubling matters out of mind.

At least he had a city to start with.

That was better than having nothing at all.

As the last light of the setting sun cast its glow, Desolate City appeared even more desolate—like the dying sun at dusk.

Yet Yang Tian felt no disappointment or sorrow; instead, he was filled with fighting spirit.

After a day’s work, Yang Tian returned to the courtyard for his meal, but had barely begun to eat when a soldier arrived with urgent news.

It was about Yu Houwen.

Yu Houwen had sent word through the soldier—he was willing to talk.

Yang Tian considered it and decided to visit once more, hoping for something of value.

The prison at night, though lit by torches, was still gloomy—Yang Tian couldn’t help but long for the electric lights of the modern world.

“Yang Tian, do you truly feel no urgency to know who the murderer is?” Yu Houwen looked at Yang Tian intently. Yang Tian’s composure left him feeling inexplicably unsettled. He wondered if, had he not taken the initiative, Yang Tian might never have come to question him.

Yang Tian replied coolly, “Would being anxious help? Even if you know, what difference does it make? You know your own situation, don’t you?”

Yang Tian had found that his greatest gain after coming to this world was learning to maintain inner calm. He understood that impatience solved nothing—it only made matters worse, clouding the mind and crippling judgment.

He was not a clever man, which meant he all the more could not let emotion override reason.

“Haha, true enough. Pity I’ve lived half my life and still can’t see as clearly as you,” Yu Houwen said, a little dazed, his tone tinged with dejection and loss.

Yang Tian had made a good point.

From the moment he sensed something was wrong, through his family’s downfall and his own imprisonment, Yu Houwen had been consumed by hatred and anxiety.

But what use was it to know the murderer?

For years, he had been powerless to do anything.

After a long silence, Yu Houwen spoke again.

“Do you know the current state of affairs in Qin, or rather, do you know which factions hold power at the highest levels?”

Yang Tian shook his head slightly.

He had asked Wang Fu before, but perhaps the former Marquis’s household had truly been indifferent to worldly matters—apart from war, they seemed to care about nothing, and had no contacts among the royal family or court officials. The intelligence he’d gleaned from Wang Fu was rudimentary at best.

He could only sigh at this.

“I don’t know much, but I’m eager to hear,” Yang Tian replied.

Yu Houwen paused, then gave a wry smile. “I shouldn’t have asked like that. Ah, Champion Marquis…”

He seemed about to say more, but thought better of it and moved on to the main point.

“Three years ago, there were fifteen adult princes and princesses in the Qin royal family—five princes with both ambition and ability, and one favored princess who was as capable as any man. At the time, the position of crown prince was vacant, and you can imagine what that meant.”

Yang Tian nodded, keeping silent, content to listen.

“In Qin, it has never been the rule that the eldest son inherits the throne. The worthy are chosen, so until a crown prince is confirmed, all sides vie for power. Behind each prince stands a host of civil and military officials…” Perhaps it was the long confinement, but Yu Houwen’s need to talk was strong, and he spoke with unusual detail.