Chapter 00211: The Golden Chicken That Lays Eggs
# The Golden Chicken That Lays Eggs
Chapter 211
Novel: After the Immortals Disappeared
Chapter 211: The Golden Chicken That Lays Eggs
He Lingchuan stared blankly at the note, a warmth suddenly blossoming in his heart.
Without needing Hu Min to explain, he understood at once: these items were all tokens of gratitude from the families of the troops under General Nan Ke.
If He Lingchuan had not risked his life to destroy the lair of the Earth Spider in the Ghost Needle Stone Forest and lured away the great demon Zhu Erniang, General Nan Ke might have escaped, but who knows how many of his men would have perished in the Ghost Needle Stone Forest.
These lives were not mere numbers; behind them were wives and children, aged parents, the livelihoods of families, and the joys of life.
How many families had he spared from heart-wrenching pain by sacrificing himself this time? Human emotions are sometimes so simple and unadorned, requiring a gesture of thanks in the form of a gift.
“Surprised? Unexpected?” Hu Min said, withholding the surprise for himself to reveal, “There’s so much here; let me help you carry it inside.”
The two of them moved the items into the courtyard, taking up half the space.
As He Lingchuan was moving, he found it strange: “Why didn’t the thief take these instead, and instead stole the fish and firewood from my house?”
“How would I know?” Hu Min shrugged, “Maybe it was too conspicuous to take things right in front of your door. Your house has been quite lively lately.”
At that moment, a five or six-year-old child peeked around the door.
Hu Min asked him, “Little ghost, what do you want?”
“I live over there,” the boy pointed to the east.
“I know,” He Lingchuan recognized him as the child from the neighbor’s house.
The last time the Emperor’s Flowing Paste appeared, He Lingchuan had seen his father tie him to a table leg.
“You’re He…” The child couldn’t remember the rest.
“Yes, that’s me.”
“Wait a moment, don’t close the door!”
The child ran off, and He Lingchuan heard him open and close his door, with the sound of his footsteps echoing.
Then the boy reappeared at He Lingchuan’s door, holding a bouquet of flowers: “My dad told me to bring these to you when your door is open, and to say thank you.”
This was quite a large bouquet.
He Lingchuan recognized the Amaryllis and the red flowering crabapple, while the white ones looked like daisies; he didn’t recognize the others, but they were all blooming vibrantly, some still glistening with dew.
Of course, outside in the cold wind, the dew quickly turned into icy beads.
He Lingchuan hurriedly took the flowers and brought them inside to prevent them from freezing: “Is your dad also a patrolman?”
He remembered that the boy’s siblings were still young and couldn’t possibly join the army.
“No,” the child shook his head like a wave drum, “But my parents said you saved many people; you’re a good person.”
He Lingchuan couldn’t help but pat the boy’s head: “Thank you, and thank your parents.”
Hu Min remarked, “In this cold weather, where did your dad get so many flowers?”
The child grinned, revealing a gap where a tooth was missing: “I don’t know.”
“Where does he work?”
“He often goes to the command post to deliver things!”
He Lingchuan and Hu Min exchanged smiles, realizing the situation.
In the city, there were specialized greenhouses for growing flowers, not only supplying wealthy households but also the residence of Commander Zhong, who needed them as well.
It was said that his wife loved flowers while she was alive, and the Zhong residence would change their flowers every few days.
He Lingchuan rummaged through the pile of gifts and pulled out a bag of toffee, handing it to the child: “This is for you; take it home and enjoy.”
The boy thanked him and happily ran home.
Hu Min patted He Lingchuan’s shoulder: “Didn’t expect it, did you? You’re already a celebrity around here; you could eat for free.”
He Lingchuan felt a mix of emotions: “I really didn’t expect that.”
Since the adventure in the Panlong Ruins, He Lingchuan had faced life-and-death battles several times.
He had saved the villagers of Xianling from bandits at Woling Pass, rescued his entire family and Ke Jihai from the Demon Puppet Master Dong Rui, yet no one had ever expressed their gratitude so directly and warmly.
This feeling of being appreciated and thanked felt… quite nice.
“How did the news spread so quickly?” He Lingchuan touched his nose, “The battle in the Ghost Needle Stone Forest just ended a few days ago, right?”
“After every significant battle, the Military Meritorious Department sends people to announce the heroic deeds throughout the city. The day after General Nan Ke returned to Panlong City, you and Sun Jiayuan were both posthumously honored as heroes. If it weren’t so cold now, there would probably be people sending flowers to your door. Later, when you were rescued, it caused quite a stir around here, but unfortunately, you were in a coma and couldn’t come out to receive the admiration.”
He Lingchuan understood.
Panlong City mobilized everyone to participate in the defense of their homeland by showcasing exemplary deeds in this manner.
He never expected that one day he would also be regarded as a model and an example.
This feeling was quite subtle.
After all, only he knew that his bravery was built on the foundation of “not dying.”
For anyone here, death represented eternal slumber; for him, it was merely waking from a dream.
If his life here was only once, would he still have dared to jump into the spider's nest without hesitation back then?
He Lingchuan didn’t know.
He sighed and pushed those thoughts away: “So, there are people thanking me, and there are people stealing my things?”
Hu Min laughed heartily, stepping out first: “Is this your first day in Panlong City?”
…
An hour later, He Lingchuan and Hu Min stood at the Pengcheng Office.
Liu Gongcao had taken half a day off, and today they were received by Xu Gongcao, a thin and small man with a blank expression.
“You’re alive?” Xu Gongcao said after He Lingchuan reported his name, flipping through the ledger.
Finally, he said, “I’ll add you back to the military roster, and your merits will be recalculated.”
“Everything else is fine, just give me that set of tin houses first.” He Lingchuan hadn’t thought that his stronghold in the dream would be robbed, “My original shabby house was just stolen.”
“Only the families of fallen heroes receive tin houses as compensation,” Xu Gongcao looked at him with raised eyebrows, “Are you a fallen hero?”
He Lingchuan insisted, “Regardless of whether I’m dead or alive, I burned down the Earth Spider’s lair; why should my merits be recalculated?”
“Living people receive commendations, while the deceased receive compensation. Compensation is more substantial, understand?” Xu Gongcao replied stiffly, “Since you’re alive, you can’t receive compensation; the tin house will be downgraded to a water house.”
Hu Min interjected to smooth things over: “A water house is also good. I’ve been to the water house in Zeng Jiayi Lane; it’s spacious and bright. The residents are either merchants, soldiers, or officials from Panlong City, quite different from your original wooden house.”
Choosing a house is about choosing a location, right?
Choosing a house is about choosing amenities and neighbors, right?
Isn’t it just a pile of wood and a few tiles?
Xu Gongcao added, “I live in a water house.”
He Lingchuan had no choice but to concede.
Since he had recorded a significant individual merit this time, the rewards were more substantial than all previous ones combined, with a cash reward of five hundred taels, along with ten acres of high-quality rice fields, thirty acres of medium-quality fields, and various other rewards that he didn’t bother to listen to in detail.
His land holdings skyrocketed from two acres of medium-quality fields to a total of forty acres? Had he completed a leap from a poor farmer to a landlord?
Going out to fight indeed was the fastest way to gain military merit.
Of course, it was also the most dangerous.
“I can’t manage the fields myself; help me rent them out.” He remembered Hu Min saying that the Pengcheng Office also handled such business.
Soldiers usually practiced or patrolled; when would they have time to tend to fields? Renting out their fields allowed tenants to grow food crops for money, providing them with a means of livelihood.
Tenant farming was a crucial part of Panlong City’s economy.
“Or—” Xu Gongcao suddenly produced a land deed, “You can also choose to exchange all the rewards from this military merit for a shop on Wanglin Avenue, with a ten-year lease.”
“A shop?” This was the first time He Lingchuan had heard that a shop could be exchanged for military merit.
Hu Min shouted from the side: “Exchange, exchange, we definitely want to exchange!”
“Do you know how hard it is to get a shop in Panlong City? Not to mention a place like Wanglin Avenue that makes money daily!” Hu Min pounded his chest, “Why can’t I encounter such good fortune? Xu Gongcao, can you get me a shop too?”
“There’s only one shop, and it’s being returned because the twenty-year lease expired. This is public property; you can run it yourself or rent it out, but you can’t sell it.”
“Does all the merit you mentioned include the water house?” The water house was at least two levels higher than the wooden house.
“Of course. If you exchange it for a shop, then when you leave the Pengcheng Office, you’ll only have a land deed in your hands,” Xu Gongcao said bluntly, making him unlikable, “Hurry up and decide; you’re not the only one who wants it; people are lining up from here to Wanglin Avenue.”
The military merit rewards He Lingchuan received this time, including the rice fields and other bits and pieces, along with the cash reward of five hundred taels and a water house that money couldn’t buy, were already enough for him to live a comfortable and decent middle-class life in Panlong City.
To exchange these for a shop of unknown size and location, with a lease of only ten years?
Heh.
“Alright, I’ll exchange.” He Lingchuan pushed everything forward, trusting Hu Min’s judgment.
He could only watch as the land deed for the water house he had just received was taken back.
The dream of upgrading to a larger house had to say goodbye to him for now.
As Xu Gongcao completed the final procedure, a hint of a smile finally appeared on his serious face: “Congratulations, this is what you deserve.”
“Huh?” Xu Gongcao wouldn’t happen to have a nephew in General Nan Ke’s troops, would he?
He Lingchuan thought his next words would be “Listen to me, thank you,” but Xu Gongcao was very concise:
“Done, next!”
So when He Lingchuan left the Pengcheng Office, he only had a shop deed that could be blown away by the wind in his pocket.
“If this shop doesn’t earn me back a thousand taels of silver, along with ten years of interest on that thousand taels, I’ll take your house!”
Hu Min didn’t care about his threats at all, hooking his arm around He Lingchuan’s neck: “Quick, treat me to a drink! No, since you’ve picked up a golden chicken that lays eggs this time, you have to invite Xiao Toudou and A Luo to drink together!”
“Not even knowing the specific location, how could that shop be so good?”
“Have you ever strolled down Wanglin Avenue?” Hu Min looked at him with disdain, “Right, a poor ghost like you wouldn’t have the qualifications to stroll. Wanglin Avenue only sells the best goods, and all sorts of new and interesting things from other places; high-ranking military officers and their families frequent there.”
(End of Chapter)