Deal

It shocked them to see Bai Shuixian so clean, unfettered, and relaxed on a peach tree after lifting a gigantic rock out from the waterfall cave. In fact, it was only now that they noticed that her clothes were a lot different from theirs. It was not the same, nor in the same condition as theirs.

Her clothes seemed to have been made from much more luxurious threads and fabrics than theirs. Not only that, even the hairpins keeping her hair in place were much grander than the womens' here. Really, it shocked them as they had just threatened and even bribed her trying to get her to marry them.

The silence went on for a long time with Bai Shuixian eating while they stared at her until Zhu Jin spoke up, "Are you guys that shocked? Goodness, you haven't even seen half of what she can do."

The men wanted to spit blood. Lifting a giant rock is already more than enough to exaggerate a woman's strength. Is this white haired freak really telling them that there is more to the lady?

However, it seemed that Zhu Jin did not plan to insult their ego as he did not speak to them anymore. Instead, he had called out Bai Shuixian's name loudly. With this, everyone knew her name and her name would begin to spread around the village.

Sighing, Bai Shuixian asked aloofly, "What?"

"You're not just going to remain there the entire day, now are you?" Zhu Jin asked rhetorically.

"If I could, that would be nice," she remarked. "However, since I want to live in luxury, I need to start building a house first. Say, where in this village is there a place to build a good home?"

At that moment, Liao Fang had been able to walk over and hear her question, so he interrupted, "Lady Bai, I'm afraid settling here is not that easy. I propose that you rethink your choice."

"Hm… Why?" Bai Shuixian asked with interest though her eyes did not show it.

With a heavy sigh, Liao Fang explained, "Our village is old with history. It would not be a lie if I were to say that it is at least thousands of years old. However, it is exactly because of this that we are cursed."

"Cursed?" she spoke slowly with inquiry.

"Indeed," Liao Fang affirmed. "Since I first came here, I discovered that it was hard to grow food with the soil hard and dry. Water was limited and the only main source of it was from the river. Due to this, it was against the rules to throw dirty water into the river as it would contaminate the purity of the water. It was also against the rules to do anything in the river other than fish. Lady Bai, the main source of food here is river animals."

"I see," Bai Shuixian muttered. "That rock…"

"That rock that you removed managed to get rid of a problem we have been having for years," Liao Fang said. "Thank you very much. However, even then, I advise you to search for a living place in another area. Even the mountains here grow no food."

"Really?" Bai Shuixian asked.

How strange. She loved it. Especially when Liao Fang mentioned a mountain.

When it comes to nature, she was the best at predicting. Even if she could not identify all the plants in the world, she could definitely grow all the plants in the world. This applied to even the ones that were not supposed to grow next to each other in case the other had stolen all the nutrients from the other.

Though nobody was able to tell what she was thinking, Zhu Jin was able to see and even imagine it based on their friendly relationship. Besides, he has been by her side for long enough to predict her actions. At this moment, he could basically see what she was planning to do.

"So… You guys do not grow food?" Bai Shuixian continued asking.

"Well, aside from rice, we grow a few other items and pickle them to last for winter," Liao Fang answered.

"Where's the mountain?" she inquired.

Pointing north, Liao Fang said, "It is over there. However, I suggest that you not go. There is basically nothing there. Even the mushrooms are not edible."

Though no one saw it, Bai Shuixian was actually interested to see the farm plots and the mountain. She wished to see how they cultivated their plants and if like they said, there was nothing edible in the mountain. In fact, she had a feeling there was plenty of food on the mountain, but the villagers just did not know that they were edible or how to cook them.

"Hm…" Bai Shuixian jumped down from the tree in thought. "Liao Fang, if I manage to cultivate two times more harvest for the year and find food on the mountain, I am proclaiming the mountain to be my territory. Will you be fine with that?"

"Huh? Uh…" Liao Fang stumbled. "Lady Bai, I apologize, but though I have authority, I can not agree to your wishes. If you want something as huge as that, you will have to talk to the village chief."

"Where is your chief?" she asked.

"I will lead you to the chief," Liao Fang said.

Leading Bai Shuixian and Zhu Jin for a few moments, they finally reached a building that was bigger than Liao Fang's but definitely not enough to be called huge or a mansion. It was built to look much grander than the courtyard Liao Fang lived in too, but it was still a bit scrappy. In all, it could be called fancy according to the villagers, but in Bai Shuixian's standards, it was low in visual and harmony.

Though Bai Shuixian did not explicitly show her thoughts and emotions, Zhu Jin still said, "Xiao Xian, don't judge. Goodness. This is not the temple. Do not judge."

Hearing his reminder, she only hummed in accordance. Bai Shuixian really did not care about the exterior or interior of the place. It was not her home, so why should she care how it was decorated?

"Village Chief," Liao Fang called out when they entered the hall of the building.

"Oh, it's Fang-gege!" a feminine voice excitedly called out. "Father, Fang-gege is here!"

As they walked deeper, they saw a handsome, but bulky man also enter the hall. Based on inference, the person should be the village chief. At the same time, this made Zhu Jin remember that they had not asked Liao Fang for the chief's name yet.

"Physician Fang, I did not expect you to come today," the village chief said. "For what reason have you come?"

"I saved these two from the river yesterday. They seek to live here, however, I am afraid that we will not be able to accompany them for the year. The harvest has not been good recently," Liao Fang answered with respect.

"Hm… What are your names, strangers?" the chief asked whilst sitting on his seat in the middle of the hall.

"Bai Shuixian. Zhu Jin," she curtly introduced themselves while pointing to show whose name belonged to who.

"I see. Well, then, let me address what Physician Fang has said," the chief said while coughing. "As he said, we do not have enough food to accommodate more strandlers. If we had enough, I would not mind. However, with our growing population and the climates growing harsher, we will not be able to survive. Strangers, please do not take offense."

Though the chief was someone in power, when standing in front of Zhu Jin and Bai Shuixian, he had for some reason, surrendered to be the lower person. This shocked Liao Fang and his own daughter, Xue Shuren. It had to be known that the chief did not become the head easily and he had never lowered himself in such a way.

"Father, why do you speak in such a humbling way?" Xue Shuren asked despite being in front of the guests.

Sighing, the chief explained, "Ren'er, do you not see their clothes? Do you not see their condition?"

Xue Shuren shook her head in confusement. She did not understand what her father meant. The two guests looked normal to her and there was no outstanding part.

"They wear clothes too luxurious to be anywhere poor. Though Physician Fang said they were rescued, they look more like they had not been harmed at all. In what way do they look like the usual torn down and weak travelers you always see?" the chief asked his daughter.

It was now that Xue Shuren finally understood. At the same time, she also started to examine the woman standing in front of her father. Staring up and down at Bai Shuixian, she admitted that she was more beautiful than her and that the fabric from her clothes probably cost a fortune.

Ignoring the conversation between father and daughter, Bai Shuixian said, "I came to make a deal. If I can improve the harvest by two times and find food on the mountain, I want to become the owner of the mountain."

"That is impossible," the chief rejected. "Though there is no food, there is still wood and animals that we can hunt."

"I did not say that I would make it off limits," Bai Shuixian replied.

"Saying…" the chief asked, confused on what Bai Shuixian was trying to say.

"I merely want to make the top of the mountain become an isolated area for myself. If I should live in this village, I would like to have my peace. When glancing at the village, I can see that it is a bright and lively village despite what it is suffering," Bai Shuixian explained.

"I understand," the chief said. "Well then, I shall agree to your deal as long as you make it possible."

As soon as the chief agreed, Bai Shuixian turned towards Liao Fang and ordered, "Bring me to the farm plots."

Liao Fang was a bit unsure about the decision of the chief, but he was more elder and experienced than him, so he could only follow and agree with what Bai Shuixian told him to do. Though it shocked him as to why the chief would listen and agree so easily to what she said, he still followed the orders she gave him. At the same time, he felt that he who had risen to become a physician just ranked lower and became a slave instead.