Protect Our Patriarch-Chapter 61Book 6: : One wave!

……

Tianrui Holy City.

Lower District.

This place was a mix of all sorts, with teahouses and taverns of every kind.

On one particular street, small grain and medicine merchants gathered.

Dongye Fantian was the manager of a small grain shop.

That day, as usual, he opened the shop for business, gave some instructions to his staff, and then took a pot of tea to the grain shop across the street.

Compared to his shop, the grain shop opposite clearly had poor business. The large store had only a few staff, giving it a rather desolate look.

Inside the shop, a middle-aged man in a brown robe was busy with his head down.

The robe he wore was of good quality, but it had been washed so many times it was turning white, and the cuffs were frayed, showing it had been worn for many years.

"Brother Bohong," Dongye Fantian took a sip of tea, smiling at his former competitor with a slow tone, "Still selling your spiritual rice? Tsk tsk, your temperament, not that I want to say, but the price of spiritual rice has been low for over a decade, and sales are sluggish. Can you survive like this?"

A hundred years ago, Dongye Fantian and Beigong Bohong were friends, but ever since they started running grain shops across from each other, their relationship had grown cold and distant.

It's understandable, as competitors are often enemies.

But over a decade ago, both families had hoarded a lot of spiritual rice, only for the price to plummet. After a year or two, Dongye Fantian, being flexible, realized the depressed grain market wouldn't recover soon, so he sold to a buyer at 40% of the price when someone secretly came to purchase.

Although this cut his losses, it freed up capital for him. After some thought, he decided to switch to the spiritual medicine business, and over the next decade, he gradually recovered.

In contrast, Beigong Bohong's hoarded grain remained unsold in the warehouse, as he refused to sell at a low price. Over the years, his shop became increasingly desolate, funds grew tighter, and several staff left.

This made Dongye Fantian even more grateful for his decision, and he would come by every few days to mock Beigong Bohong.

Facing Dongye Fantian's mockery, Beigong Bohong remained silent, focusing on his work and personally wiping the counter.

Dongye Fantian snorted lightly at this, saying indifferently, "Brother Bohong, I advise you not to hold on any longer. Why not close this shop, sell me the store and the grain, and take the money to return to the countryside early?"

Beigong Bohong had heard this countless times over the years. He was truly tired of responding to Dongye Fantian, treating his words as the wind in his ears, and continued with his work.

Dongye Fantian didn't mind, satisfied his sense of superiority with some cold sarcasm, and prepared to return with his teapot.

But unexpectedly at that moment.

An extremely excited voice came from the street: "Brother-in-law, it's up, it's up~~"

Dongye Fantian scanned with his divine sense and found it was Beigong Bohong's brother-in-law, who was in the early Celestial Realm. The young man looked very excited, flying over with his body technique.

"What's up?" Dongye Fantian stopped and reprimanded, "You young brat, don't fly around recklessly. This is the Holy City, if you bump into someone important, you won't be able to handle the consequences."

"What business is it of yours?" The brother-in-law glared at him, then turned to Beigong Bohong with a face full of joy, "Brother-in-law, the grain price has doubled overnight."

Dongye Fantian's face froze first: "How is that possible?"

Although there seemed to be a shortage of grain, Prince Wenyu's related industries were still suppressing the price.

Prince Wenyu was a powerful figure; if he wanted to suppress the price, who could make it rise?

Beigong Bohong's expression remained calm: "Wenle, Fantian is right to criticize you. Being so reckless is indeed inappropriate."

As they spoke.

A group of people suddenly appeared on the street.

Leading them was the head manager of the well-known grain merchant [Li's Firm] in the lower district.

The head manager approached Beigong Bohong with a smile and cupped his hands, "Congratulations, Brother Bohong~"

Grain merchants like Beigong Bohong, who held on for over a decade without selling at a low price, were rare and had become famous among the grain merchants in the lower district.

"Head Manager Li." Beigong Bohong didn't dare to be negligent and quickly returned the greeting.

"Is your grain still in stock?" After some pleasantries, Head Manager Li got straight to the point, "The market price has doubled, I'll offer an additional 20% to buy all your grain."

Beigong Bohong frowned, about to speak when another group of merchants arrived.

Leading them was the head manager of [Zhao's Trading], also a major merchant in the lower district.

Compared to these two major firms, Beigong Bohong and Dongye Fantian were just small fry.

"Head Manager Li is too stingy, I'll offer an additional 40%!" Head Manager Zhao immediately took a combative stance.

"I'll offer 45%!"

"I'll offer 50%!"

The other major merchants were equally unwilling to be outdone, bidding one after another, creating an auction-like atmosphere.

Dongye Fantian looked at one, then the other, his eyes growing more shocked, his face turning paler.

This price had already surpassed the highest price of grain back then by a large margin.

Doesn't this mean that Beigong Bohong, who did nothing for over a decade, not only didn't lose but also made an extra profit?

"Gentlemen," seeing the situation, Beigong Bohong was not pleased but alarmed, quickly bowing to everyone, "My shop is small and can only sell slowly, I apologize to you all."

Now he dared not wholesale his grain. Selling to one would inevitably offend the other.

Moreover, seeing the trend, the grain price would likely continue to soar, and he was reluctant to cash out immediately.

Selling slowly would definitely yield more profit than wholesaling.

Hearing this, the two head managers, though regretful, couldn't force a sale if he truly didn't want to sell, so they had to retreat and hurriedly look for the next seller.

Nowadays, as long as they could get grain, it was a profit; grain had suddenly become hard currency.

Dongye Fantian recalled his previous sarcasm, feeling as if his face had been slapped repeatedly.

He stumbled back to his shop, head down, filled with regret.

If he had known, he would have held on like Beigong Bohong.

But alas, there's no medicine for regret in this world, and no matter how much he regretted, there was nothing he could do.

Similar scenes were happening all over the Holy City, and this wave of rising grain prices would quickly sweep across the entire Holy Dynasty and surrounding Immortal Dynasties.

……

As this wave of price increases gradually fermented, some people couldn't sit still.

In the gatehouse of Prince Wenyu's Residence.

Helian Duocai was pacing anxiously.

Recently, he had sensed something amiss and planned to discuss countermeasures with Prince Wenyu, even inviting Yao Xingshu for drinks to subtly probe.

But unexpectedly, before he could act, the sky suddenly fell.

Early that morning, as soon as he noticed something wrong, he rushed to report to Prince Wenyu.

Unfortunately, he was just a minor figure among Prince Wenyu's advisors, without the privilege to enter the residence directly without notice.

Every time he wanted to see Prince Wenyu, he had to make an appointment in advance, and sometimes he couldn't even get an appointment due to Prince Wenyu's busy schedule.

Before long, Yao Xingshu hurried over, leading Helian Duocai to see Prince Wenyu.

In the study.

Having understood the current situation, Prince Wenyu's face was uncertain. Upon seeing Helian Duocai, he coldly reprimanded, "What's going on? How did the grain price suddenly soar?"

"Your Highness," Helian Duocai hurriedly replied, "Actually, in the past three or four years, there have been signs of grain prices warming up, but we continued to use the previous strategy of selling and suppressing prices, keeping them down."

"But this price increase is quite strange, likely someone is fanning the flames behind the scenes. Otherwise, under normal circumstances, we could have suppressed prices for another seven or eight years."

Prince Wenyu's face turned icy: "So it's Jiang's Clan and Wang Shouzhe, causing trouble in the dark?"

"That possibility can't be ruled out," Helian Duocai's eyelid twitched, speaking with difficulty, "However, there should be other factors involved. I investigated some situations earlier, and many families planted Purple Leaf Tuber Fleeceflower Root in their third-grade Spiritual Farmland over a decade ago. Now, it's just about ready to reach 'fifty-year' potency, and after harvesting, it can be used as the main material for 'Cultivation Pills.'"

"Because the price of Purple Leaf Tuber Fleeceflower Root has been rising for years, many families have replanted most of their third-grade Spiritual Farmland with it... This means third-grade spiritual rice will become increasingly scarce in the next decade!"

"Under such inducements, as long as someone with intentions speculates, the grain price will naturally soar."

As Helian Duocai explained, Prince Wenyu roughly understood what was happening.

He said in a deep voice, "Wang Shouzhe's grain has been stuck for over a decade, unable to sell, and Jiang's Clan has been building warehouses to hoard grain. Once the price soars, they might be able to break free~~ The large funds and over a decade of effort we've invested will all go to waste."

"However, since Jiang's Clan and Wang Shouzhe finally couldn't hold back and made a move, they are likely already at their limit. If we suppress their operation this time, Wang Shouzhe will surely have to cooperate with us!"

Helian Duocai quickly said, "Your Highness, over the years, we've used up our original stock to suppress prices, even borrowing from various Immortal King Palaces and Immortal Clans. Now, there's not much grain left, and it's hard to suppress this momentum."

In this situation, suppressing the price would require low-price grain sales, which couldn't be done without enough spiritual rice stock.

Prince Wenyu's face was as dark as iron: "We still have Storage Warehouse One, Storage Warehouse Two, and Storage Warehouse Three in the Holy City. Each warehouse equals the annual output of the entire Holy Dynasty and surrounding Immortal Dynasties. Take my order, open the warehouses for sale, and crush Wang Shouzhe."

As long as Wang Shouzhe compromised, everything would be worth it.

As Basalt cultivators, their lifespans aren't measured in hundreds or thousands of years, and in the long run, the benefits outweigh the immediate drawbacks.

A Holy Dynasty's foundation is indeed strong. Besides each family hoarding grain, the Holy City has several large storage warehouses built to cope with disasters, wars, and other special situations. The grain in each warehouse, at normal market prices, would be worth about three Chaos Spirit Stones.

If they open the warehouses for sale, it would surely cool the grain prices.

But as soon as Prince Wenyu said this, Helian Duocai's expression became somewhat strange: "Has Your Highness forgotten?"

"What did I forget?" Prince Wenyu was puzzled.

"In recent years, to suppress grain prices and keep them low, we've been continuously selling at low prices, gradually using up two warehouses." Helian Duocai's face was bitter, "With grain merchants from all over the dynasty coming to buy, we couldn't refuse to sell, could we? If we didn't sell, the price would rise immediately!"

Prince Wenyu nearly spat out a mouthful of old blood.

He vaguely remembered giving Helian Duocai the prince's order and decree before. But over the years, he had been embroiled in fierce battles with the Crown Prince and the Third Prince, overwhelmed daily, with these matters occupying over ninety percent of his energy and attention.

Originally, he thought that as long as he held off Wang Shouzhe, once he completely suppressed the "internal strife," he could negotiate with Wang Shouzhe from a position of victory and resolve the matter.

But unexpectedly, in the blink of an eye, the situation had deteriorated to such an extent.

"Well played, Wang Shouzhe, taking advantage of my inability to act, delivering such a vicious backstab." The more Prince Wenyu thought about it, the angrier he became, his voice turning cold, "Yao Xingshu, send my decree, ordering all related major families and Immortal Dynasties to immediately switch to planting spiritual rice. Once we get through this period, watch how I deal with him!"

"As long as I don't agree, no one can come in and take over!"

As he spoke, his tone was firm and confident, knowing the terrifying amount of spiritual farmland owned by the supporting families and their massive output.

Take the super Immortal Clan Yao's Clan, for example. They have no less than dozens of estates within and around the Holy City, with countless spiritual farmlands, producing nearly one-thirtieth of the entire Holy Dynasty's annual output.

"Yes, Your Highness."

Yao Xingshu bowed to accept the order but looked at Prince Wenyu with an awkward expression, not moving.

"Xingshu?" Prince Wenyu raised an eyebrow, slightly confused, "Is there a problem?"

"Ahem~"

Yao Xingshu cleared his throat and said seriously, "I don't know about other families, but I'll speak for Yao's Clan... Our current grain stock is limited, only enough for the family's consumption for two years. Most of the spiritual farmland in our estates has been planted with [Purple Leaf Tuber Fleeceflower Root], [Nine-leaf Ginseng], and various fourth and fifth-grade spiritual medicines."

"Moreover, our family is taking a long-term approach to spiritual medicine cultivation, planting fifty-year Purple Leaf Tuber Fleeceflower Root in first-grade spiritual farmland and hundred-year Purple Leaf Tuber Fleeceflower Root in second-grade spiritual farmland. The planting cycle for these two grades alone will be nearly a hundred years, and higher-grade spiritual medicines have even longer cycles, some reaching several hundred or even thousands of years."

For a super Immortal Clan, planning the family's future development isn't as stingy as a small family. Even a hundred-year plan is merely short-term for an Immortal Clan.

Prince Wenyu nearly exploded with anger, slamming the table, "Yao Xingshu, is your Yao's Clan planning to betray me?"

Hearing his bluntness, Yao Xingshu felt a surge of anger, his tone hardening, "Your Highness, our Yao's Clan is indeed your supporter, but not your servant, right? Besides, you never forbade us from planting spiritual medicines, so how is this betrayal?"

"The family's development plan concerns Yao's Clan's fate for thousands of years, decided by many elders and the family head. I'm just a mere True Immortal Seed of Yao's Clan; how could I dictate the family's development policy?"

Yao Xingshu dared to speak this way because he had confidence.

Tianrui Yao's Clan isn't like Jiang's Clan, which is on the decline. Yao's Clan currently has four True Immortals, with a good chance of a fifth appearing in the future.

Most importantly, the Saintess of Shuiyue, who joined Shuiyue Cave Heaven, is also from Yao's Clan and is destined to become a Holy Sovereign.

Besides these strong figures, Tianrui Yao's Clan has numerous influential members holding key positions in the Holy Dynasty's court.

Yao's Clan supporting Prince Wenyu's rise doesn't mean they are his dogs! On the contrary, Prince Wenyu, both now and in the future, needs Yao's Clan's strong support.

Facing Yao Xingshu's "counterattack," Prince Wenyu realized he had lost control of his emotions and spoken too harshly.

He quickly suppressed his feelings, showing Yao Xingshu an apologetic expression, "Xingshu, we've known each other for years, you know my temper. I'm not blaming you or Yao's Clan, just overwhelmed by too many troubles lately, causing me to lose control."

Seeing Prince Wenyu offering a way out, Yao Xingshu's stance softened, speaking gently, "I understand Your Highness's difficulties, but Yao's Clan isn't just mine. I hope Your Highness can understand."

In fact, Yao's Clan's actions weren't surprising, driven by "interest."

After returning from Helian Duocai, Yao Xingshu inquired within the family, learning that it was his sister Yumei who facilitated the connection, with the Saintess of Shuiyue guaranteeing no worries, allowing the family to boldly switch from spiritual rice to spiritual medicine for greater benefits.

As for Yao's Clan's own spiritual rice, there was no need to worry, as the Saintess of Shuiyue had secretly promised not to let Yao's Clan lack spiritual rice.

However, these findings wouldn't be detailed to Prince Wenyu. Yao Xingshu was first a direct descendant of Yao's Clan, then a subordinate of Prince Wenyu.

In any Immortal or Holy Dynasty, "family" comes before "state." After all, the Tianrui royal family, Qiu Clan, is just a larger Holy Clan, no different in essence from other families.

"Your Highness, as far as I know, other major families, and even many Immortal King Palaces, have switched to spiritual medicine, just varying in proportion." Yao Xingshu sighed, "No one expected the grain price to become so unsustainable."

Prince Wenyu's face was extremely grim: "Is there still a possibility of switching back to spiritual rice? I can compensate for their losses..."

"Difficult!" This time, it was Helian Duocai who spoke, "Your Highness, let me do the math for you. Most families started planting spiritual medicines a decade ago, but due to the longer growth cycle compared to spiritual rice, many families have yet to see substantial returns."

"If grain prices were normal, the annual total output of grain in our Holy Dynasty and surrounding Immortal Dynasties, converted to spiritual stones, would be about two to three Chaos Spirit Stones. Now, planting spiritual medicines yields more than spiritual rice, so let's say the annual total output reaches three Chaos Spirit Stones!"

"Suppose all families were to uproot spiritual medicines and switch to various grades of spiritual rice, the compensation needed would exceed thirty Chaos Spirit Stones."

"Thirty Chaos Spirit Stones?!" Prince Wenyu was first stunned, then his face turned extremely ugly.

Could the Tianrui royal family produce thirty Chaos Spirit Stones at once? The answer is yes! But it would require piecing together, even mortgaging some assets, potentially harming the foundation.

If the one raising these thirty Chaos Spirit Stones were the Holy Emperor, it would be fine, but Prince Wenyu is just one of the princes of the Tianrui Holy Dynasty, lacking the power to mobilize such vast funds.

As he was troubled.

Suddenly.

The air in the study trembled.

A faint hum of energy vibrations, imperceptible to human ears, sounded, and a vast energy appeared out of nowhere, quickly condensing.

In an instant, an old man in imperial robes appeared in the study.

He wore a gold-inlaid jade crown, his imperial robes heavy and intricate, adorned with numerous gemstones and spiritual stones, exuding grandeur and luxury.

Despite his age, with even his hair turning white, his posture remained upright, his aura fierce and strong, full of royal majesty.

His appearance seemed to freeze the air in the study.

Everyone was stunned.

After a full breath, Prince Wenyu reacted, quickly stepping forward to salute, "Junxi greets Ancestor."

Yao Xingshu and Helian Duocai also hurriedly bowed deeply, "Greetings to His Majesty the Holy Emperor."

This imposing old man was naturally the current Holy Emperor of the Tianrui Holy Dynasty.

However, this time the Holy Emperor came only as a projection, with strength slightly above an ordinary early True Immortal Realm cultivator.

"Junxi, what have you been doing?" The Tianrui Holy Emperor, having heard the news, immediately reprimanded Prince Wenyu upon appearing, "I heard the major storage warehouses are empty? All the major families' grain in the Holy Dynasty has been emptied, with only enough left for less than two years?"

Prince Wenyu trembled, his face turning pale, not daring to hide anything, quickly explaining everything.

After listening, the Tianrui Holy Emperor's face turned uncertain.

He never expected that in the blink of an eye, a mere decade, Prince Wenyu could hollow out the Holy Dynasty to such an extent.

A decade is a long time for ordinary people without cultivation, enough for them to grow from babbling toddlers to starting families, but for a Holy Emperor with nearly forty thousand years of lifespan, it's just a nap.

"Wang Shouzhe! You say all this is because you wanted to suppress Wang Shouzhe, forcing him to cooperate with you?" The Tianrui Holy Emperor frowned slightly, "I've heard quite a bit about this Wang Shouzhe~~"

Whether due to various rumors, Qingyang's matters, or Yunpeng Holy Sovereign's open admiration, it all indicated that Wang Shouzhe had an extraordinary background, and the Tianrui Holy Emperor had long wanted to meet him.

But he was the Holy Emperor, and no matter how impressive Wang Shouzhe's background, he was just a junior.

The junior hadn't come to pay respects, so how could he lower himself to meet him? If word got out, it might lead to ridicule and make Wang Shouzhe look down on him.

Therefore, all these years, he had only heard of Wang Shouzhe.

"Rest assured, Ancestor." Prince Wenyu quickly promised, "Give me a few decades, and I'll slowly clean up this mess. The grain in Wang Shouzhe's hands is only about one-tenth of the entire Holy Dynasty's total output. I'll let him make that money, and I'll try not to provoke him in the future."

"A few decades?"

The Tianrui Holy Emperor was infuriated, his voice turning cold, "Do you think our Tianrui Holy Dynasty has a few decades for you to squander?"

"Ancestor means... Tianxing Holy Dynasty?" Prince Wenyu's heart trembled, his face turning pale, "Indeed. If we were in Tianxing Holy Dynasty's position, we wouldn't miss this opportunity either."

Now, with the Tianrui Holy Dynasty facing a grain shortage, only able to last a year or two, if Tianxing Holy Dynasty launched a full-scale attack, the advantage would be too obvious.

It's well known that during war, grain consumption is several times higher than usual!

And the supply of logistics and grain is the lifeline of war.

Once there's a full-scale grain shortage, how can the war be fought? Even if they barely make it through, the Tianrui Holy Dynasty would be severely weakened, unable to recover its former glory.

Thinking of such a dire situation, Prince Wenyu's heart trembled.

It was only at this moment that he finally realized he might have caused a major incident this time.

Not only him, but everyone else in the study also realized the seriousness of the situation, their expressions turning grave.

"Your Majesty, Your Highness." Helian Duocai's face was pale, but considering his current situation, he finally gritted his teeth and cautiously spoke, "I have an idea, but I'm not sure if I should say it."

The Holy Emperor glanced at him, "Speak."

"Wang Shouzhe comes from a noble background, going out to gain experience, and the grain business is a merit to prove his ability. His deeper purpose isn't to bring down the Holy Dynasty or become its enemy." Helian Duocai explained his thoughts, "Over the past decade, we've used official means to restrict them and low grain prices to suppress them. As a result, their grain sales have been very limited."

"Based on the previous sales figures from Jiang's Clan, the grain they supply annually is about one-tenth of the Holy Dynasty's total output. After ten years of hoarding, the grain they have is roughly equivalent to the entire Holy Dynasty's annual output."

"If we can get this grain, we can solve a large part of the military's preparation needs, indirectly curbing Tianxing Holy Dynasty's ambitions and avoiding war."

The Holy Emperor nodded frequently, "Your idea is good. Even if we have to pay a price first, as long as we resolve the immediate crisis, we'll have enough time to gradually clean up the mess. Junxi, since you caused this, you go and ask Wang Shouzhe to sell the grain."

"I obey Ancestor's decree."

Prince Wenyu agreed with a dark face.

The thought of having to bow to Wang Shouzhe, even beg, made him feel extremely uncomfortable, but this was his mess, and now with the Holy Emperor's direct order, he dared not refuse.

"Alright~ go handle it."

The Holy Emperor's projection, not wanting to linger, vanished into a light shadow of energy after giving instructions.

Prince Wenyu breathed a sigh of relief, immediately gathering his spirits, "Duocai, Xingshu, accompany me to meet Wang Shouzhe."

"Your Highness, this matter may not be so simple." Helian Duocai sighed, "Over the years, someone has been secretly buying grain at low prices and promoting the spiritual medicine industry. Now it seems, it's likely Wang Shouzhe. This kind of grand manipulation has shown me what true business tactics are."

"Your Highness, you might have to be prepared for a lion's share demand this time."

Hearing this, Prince Wenyu felt as if he had been force-fed a fly, feeling nauseous. But what could he do? If this matter wasn't resolved, the entire Tianrui Holy Dynasty would face a crisis.When the time truly comes, this prince's reign might just be over.

Suppressing the nausea in his heart, Prince Wenyu eventually went directly to the Returning to Origin Courtyard to present his card and request an audience with Wang Shouzhe.

At this moment.

Within the Returning to Origin Courtyard.

On the waterside pavilion of the lakeside pavilion, Wang Shouzhe was reclining in a grand chair, enjoying the breeze, sipping immortal tea, and telling stories to the slightly grown "Bamboo Shoot" Wang Zongzhu in his arms.

Beside his right hand was a dish of fish food. As he told stories, he casually scattered fish food, feeding the spiritual fish in the lake.

Unconsciously, a large number of spiritual fish gathered under the waterside pavilion. The dense mass of fish heads surged in the water, creating a lively scene.

"Eeya eeya~"

Bamboo Shoot squirmed in Wang Shouzhe's arms, indicating he didn't want to listen; he wanted to hear Dream of the Red Chamber.

"Alright, Father has a few simple math problems here. Once you solve them all correctly, Father will tell you the story." Wang Shouzhe smiled and took out a test paper.

"Crackle!"

Bamboo Shoot's body stiffened, and a series of golden lightning bolts burst from him.

Math, math again!

Wang Zongzhu felt like he was about to explode on the spot~~

"Young Master, Prince Wenyu has presented his card for an audience." At this moment, Jiang Muxian hurried over and whispered in his ear, "Do you want to see him?"

"Hehe~~ Can't hold on any longer, can he? It seems the pressure on the Tianrui royal family is quite significant." Wang Shouzhe shook his head and said with a smile, "Tell him to go back, saying that this young master is in seclusion and has no time to see him."

"Yes, Young Master." Jiang Muxian immediately responded and retreated.

"Zhu'er." Wang Shouzhe picked up Wang Zongzhu, smiling at him, "Do your problems well. For every mistake, Father will give you another test paper. No matter how late it gets, Father will stay with you."

What could be more important than his son doing exercises?

"Eeya eeya!"

In the form of Bamboo Shoot, Wang Zongzhu's eyes welled up with tears as he hurriedly wrapped his pen with divine sense and started writing furiously, feeling as if ten thousand alpacas were galloping through his heart.

Why is this problem so dumb?

A swimming pool that is both draining and filling at the same time... Is someone out of their mind? Who came up with this ridiculous problem? Isn't this deliberately making things difficult for a little bamboo like him?

Wuwu~~ Sister Daiyu, wait for Zhu'er, Zhu'er will accompany you after finishing these exercises~~