When the Earth God left, Cheng Xiaofan gave him twenty jin of Golden Tea, telling him to enjoy it slowly.
As he was about to rest, Cheng Xiaofan leaned back on his bed, playing with the two pure gold ingots in his hand, a question forming in his mind.
Back in the Three Kingdoms period, there were no gold ingots. From the reign of Emperor Wu of the Western Han Dynasty, who minted the "Wuzhu" coin for circulation, until the early Tang Dynasty, the "Wuzhu" coin was used throughout the dynasties.
Cheng Xiaofan noticed that each end of these gold ingots had a hole for threading.
Could these two gold ingots not have been used as currency, but rather a special commemorative item cast during the Eastern Wu period?
For a while, Cheng Xiaofan couldn't figure out what these gold ingots were used for.
He casually tossed the ingots aside and closed his eyes to sleep.
In a daze, Cheng Xiaofan dreamed again that he had transformed into a golden dragon.
But as the golden dragon turned over and found the two gold ingots by his pillow, its eyes lit up. It opened its mouth and inhaled sharply, a golden light bursting from the ingots, which it swallowed into its belly.
"Roar—"
With a sharp dragon's roar, the golden dragon soared into the sky.
In the vast starry sky, a dragon boat flew in from the horizon.
The dragon boat was exquisitely crafted, like a tower ship, with glazed tiles for the roof and pure gold for its bones. It shimmered with layers of dazzling Dao patterns all over its body.
Amidst a whistling sound, the golden dragon landed on the dragon boat.
With a shake of its body, the golden dragon transformed into a handsome young man with well-defined eyebrows and bright eyes, dressed in a white casual outfit, exuding a suave demeanor.
This young man also shimmered with layers of Dao patterns.
Unlike the Dao patterns displayed on the dragon boat, these appeared particularly unique and elegant.
With his left hand behind his back, the young man held a brush in his right, tracing another set of Dao patterns in the void.
Strange fluctuations would appear under his brush from time to time, only to disappear rapidly the next moment.
Boom!
With a loud crash, a space that was being traced in the void suddenly collapsed.
The dragon boat then shot out from the collapsed space like lightning.
At this moment, the dragon boat, carrying the young man, arrived before a snow-covered cliff. The young man waved his brush by the cliff, continuing to trace Dao patterns.
Instantly, the cliff melted of ice and snow, a hundred flowers bloomed, bees and butterflies flitted about, creating a magnificent scene of spring prosperity.
As if he had comprehended the Great Dao, a relieved smile appeared on the young man's face.
And this young man was none other than Cheng Xiaofan!
"Ah-choo!"
Cheng Xiaofan sneezed and woke up from his dream.
He opened his eyes and saw that it was already dawn.
At this moment, Cheng Xiaofan instinctively glanced towards his pillow and was immediately stunned into speechlessness.
The pile of gold ingots had turned into two black lumps, devoid of any trace of gold color.
Did the golden dragon in his dream like to absorb golden energy?
Immediately, he leaped out of bed. His joints felt as hard as steel, and his body was filled with a mysterious power.
Could this be related to the golden dragon absorbing the golden energy?
Cheng Xiaofan went to the balcony and took a deep breath. Following the memory from his dream, he traced intricate and mysterious curves in the air with his fingers.
These were what were known as Dao patterns.
The curves appeared in the air as golden lines, mesmerizing to behold, seemingly containing infinite power that stirred the soul.
Looking at these Dao patterns, Cheng Xiaofan couldn't immediately think of any use for them.
He took another gentle breath and blew towards the patterns. Instantly, the patterns vanished like smoke.
Huh!
How magical!
Cheng Xiaofan washed up, took the more than ten bags of lotus leaves, and rode his motorcycle home.
Recently, Miao Xiuhua had been very displeased with her son not eating at home often. Last night, before Cheng Xiaofan went to the back mountain, she had caught him and given him a stern lecture.
Miao Xiuhua's point was that Bai Yiling was now at home, and this was a wonderful opportunity. As a man, he should spend more time with her.
Don't treat home as if it's not home, disappearing for days on end.
With such a habit of disappearing, what girl would be willing to marry you?
In short, Miao Xiuhua insisted that her son eat at home for all three meals.
Of course, exceptions could be made in special circumstances.
However, he had to ask for leave from home beforehand!
His mother had spoken, and Cheng Xiaofan had no choice but to listen!
As he reached the doorstep, Cheng Xiaofan couldn't help but pause. Next to the winery, a row of quite beautiful steel-frame work sheds had already been erected.
When Cheng Xiaofan worked out of town, he had seen this type of house. The frame was connected by steel bars, the outer and inner surfaces were inlaid with polished wooden boards, and the middle was filled with integral fireproof foam boards.
The floor and roof were of the same structure. Once the materials were delivered, assembly was very fast.
The advantage of this type of house was that it was warm in winter and cool in summer, and it could also be moved.
"Xiaofan, you're back!"
Bai Yiling happened to come out of the work shed and spotted Cheng Xiaofan at a glance. She greeted him with a smile, "Come and take a look!"
Cheng Xiaofan walked over and said with a smile, "Yiling, when did your technical personnel arrive? How was the house assembled so early in the morning?"
Bai Yiling smiled and said, "To meet the schedule, my technical personnel arrived at one in the morning. To assemble this house before dawn, I specifically called and transferred twenty workers from the construction site to help here."
Entering the house, Cheng Xiaofan's eyes lit up.
Electricity had already been connected, each work area was clearly categorized, and all the instruments had been installed. The technical personnel, wearing specialized work clothes, were adjusting the instruments in their respective work areas.
At the same time, bathrooms and dormitories were also partitioned within the work sheds.
Seven technical personnel had been transferred this time, five women and two men, all vibrant young people.
Meals for the three daily meals would temporarily be provided by the Cheng Xiaofan family.
This was great, Cheng Fugui would now transform into a standard "pot hero" at home.
Bai Yiling called out all seven staff members and, pointing at Cheng Xiaofan, introduced them with a smile, "Everyone, let me introduce you to Cheng Xiaofan, whom I've mentioned to you, and the president of the future company group of Zhuxi Village!"
"Hello, President Cheng!"
The seven people called out to Cheng Xiaofan in unison.
"Hello, everyone,"
Cheng Xiaofan responded somewhat uncomfortably, "Thank you for your hard work coming to Zhuxi Village!"
He then turned to Bai Yiling and said, "I'm dizzy, Yiling, why am I the president of the future company group of Zhuxi Village in your eyes?"
Bai Yiling's beautiful eyes narrowed slightly and said, "Xiaofan, judging by the development trend of Zhuxi Village, a company group will definitely be established in the future."
"At that time, can you, the president, still escape?"
"Forget it, Yiling, don't try to pin this on me. If Zhuxi really develops to that day, you should be in charge!"
Cheng Xiaofan waved his hands repeatedly, looking frightened.
Bai Yiling couldn't help but chuckle, "Look at you, why are you so scared!"