By doing a bit of calculation, it becomes clear that Zhuwei Lake isn’t a particularly large lake, but it does cover an area of about ten thousand mu. Dredging it to an average depth of one meter would amount to six to seven million cubic meters of silt... In this world, Wang Shouzhe has indeed seen dredging ships. They’re manually operated using dredging rakes to dig silt onto the ship. One dredging ship can hold about ten cubic meters of silt. The silt that is usually cleaned out contains adequate organic matter. When mixed and composted with other fertilizers, it becomes a good agricultural fertilizer that can replenish the fertility of farmland. After all, during this era, the silt from riverbeds and lake bottoms doesn’t accumulate heavy metal pollution. But the problem is, six to seven million cubic meters translates to six to seven hundred thousand ships! If ten dredging ships work year-round, with each ship clearing three ships and filling three ships a day, it would take over twenty thousand days, requiring six to seven decades of labor without rest! Moreover, the silt significantly shrinks upon drying. The marshland itself mostly consists of mud, estimating that at most it could fill only two to three thousand mu of good farmland. The entire project is estimated to cost more than ten thousand Qian Gold. Spending such extensive manpower, resources, energy, and time to open up just one mu of land for three to four Qian Gold seems somewhat unwise. Clearing Zhuwei Lake to an additional depth of two meters would not only double the cost but also make dredging increasingly difficult. You might as well purchase good farmland, which only costs two to three Qian Gold per acre. Yet, the calculation isn’t that simple. As Zhuwei Lake undergoes extensive dredging and the water storage increases, it can support the farming of larger fish, potentially even allowing for the introduction of Spirit Fish. From a long-term family perspective, relying solely on wild fishing isn’t a sustainable plan, as the income source is unstable. If they could industrially farm economic fish species or even Spirit Fish species, that would be the correct foundational industry for the family. Although the investment is huge and time-consuming, once successfully constructed, it would provide the family with a constant source of wealth. Moreover, the Government Office encourages the Black Tortoise Clan to reclaim land by offering a ten-year tax exemption on newly developed fields, which amounts to considerable savings. Of course, given Wang Shouzhe’s personality, even if he were to undertake this massive dredging and land reclamation project, he would not spend six to seven decades to do so. By that time, even his great-grandchildren would have been born... This plan has been brewing in his mind for quite some time. Originally, he planned to start small-scale implementation next year, gradually expanding the project’s scale, aiming to dredge Zhuwei Lake by two meters within ten years, and fill the marshland to create four to five thousand mu of good farmland, turning it into the family’s next large-scale farm, with ten thousand mu of aquaculture and several thousand mu of good farmland. The annual output value would certainly not be low, and the total expenditure should be controllable within thirty thousand Qian Gold. But now, there are some changes in the plan! Standing on the awning boat, Wang Shouzhe stood with hands behind his back, surveying the wilds on both banks. He seemed to have the demeanor of overseeing a vast territory, nurturing the family’s millennia legacy. The Seventh male of the Shou Generation, Wang Shouye, sat inside the cabin, his originally anxious heart gradually calming as he looked at his fourth brother standing so tall and majestic, and a feeling of admiration and reverence welled up within him. In the future, I must become a man as steadfast and resolute as the Fourth Brother. The awning boat docked at the small pier of Xingsheng Farm. Under the trepid guidance of the Wang Family’s collateral management at the farm, Wang Shouzhe and Wang Shouye went all the way to find Wang Xiaohan. At this time, Wang Xiaohan was tending to the precious twenty mu of Spirit Field, carefully removing weeds from the Spirit Field. Those weeds were pulled out as soon as they sprouted, preventing them from having extra opportunities to absorb nutrients and Spiritual Qi. Even if it’s just one mu of Spirit Field, if meticulously cultivated, even producing an additional half yield is a significant resource. Wang Shouzhe didn’t disturb him, opting instead to wait patiently. This Xingsheng Farm was the second farm opened by Ancestor Zhou Xuan. It boasted two thousand mu of good farmland, a small livestock farm, and a small orchard and vegetable garden. Most importantly, Xingsheng Farm cultivated twenty mu of Spirit Field. This land was embraced by a small tributary of the Liping Mountain Range. The original land had many fragmented and loose stones, theoretically not a very suitable area for development. However, Ancestor Zhou Xuan chose this place to cultivate farmland, even going as far as to dig through canals to bring in a water source to develop the farm. This was because, within the narrow mountain crevices, there was a gushing Spiritual Spring. The presence of a Spiritual Spring indicated the existence of a small Spirit Vein. By constructing a Spirit Gathering Array around the Spirit Vein, the Spiritual Qi from the vein can be condensed and prevent dispersion, converging and nourishing the land. With the Spiritual Spring irrigating the land and various agricultural techniques used to enrich the soil, one can gradually open up Spirit Fields suitable for planting various Spiritual Objects. Having one’s own Spirit Field allows for the production of one’s own Spirit Rice, marking a Black Tortoise Race as truly having its own foundation. Therefore, Ancestor Zhou Xuan named this farm "Xingsheng Farm," naturally hoping that the family would prosper. This pool of Spiritual Spring, along with the small Spirit Vein, can support a maximum of around sixty acres of Spirit Field. However, back then, the Wang Family was relatively unfamiliar with the technology for growing Spirit Rice. To avoid unwarranted depletion of the Spirit Vein, a Spirit Gathering Array was temporarily built, and twenty acres of Spirit Field were opened. The plan was to wait until the Wang Family had matured in the technology for growing Spirit Rice, and then to open up the remaining forty acres of Spirit Field. Unexpectedly, before the plan could be implemented, the Wang Family faced a great calamity. Afterwards, the family was in a state of fear, and resources were scarce. Investing in the Spirit Field was also a large investment with slow returns. Everyone’s mind was set on first nurturing an Ancestor Spirit Platform, and then slowly saving money to develop the Spirit Field, accumulating the family’s foundation. Unexpectedly, the first candidate for cultivation, the eldest legitimate son, second uncle Wang Dingtian, whether it was due to the psychological trauma from a major catastrophe at the age of five, or because of the pressure exerted by the elders, or perhaps his own anxiety, at the age of twenty, he fell into a state of madness and died. It is important to know that the Wang Family’s "Profound Origin Technique" is known for its balance and harmony. Even if we count from a thousand years ago in the Longzuo Wang Family, practitioners who fell into madness are exceedingly rare. In the family’s grief, attention was shifted to the second legitimate son Wang Dingyue and the sixth Wang Xiaohan. The elders, having learned from experience, did not exert too much pressure on Wang Dingyue, but nurtured him methodically. More pressure actually focused on the gifted direct vein member Wang Xiaohan. However, when he took the path to Spirit Platform, it was already relatively late. It wasn’t until nearly twenty years ago that Wang Xiaohan secretly took the Celestial Spirit Pill, exchanged for many family assets sold off. Subsequently, Wang Dingyue died in the Outer Domain. This matter is quite bizarre. Originally, Wang Shouzhe thought the family had really run out of resources and could not afford to buy Celestial Spirit Pill for Wang Dingyue. But lately, upon careful thought, Wang Shouzhe realized that there is something amiss. Ancestor Longyan could sell the Turtle Scale Treasure Shield, her personal Spirit Treasure, to gather resources, so why did she not buy it for his father Wang Dingyue? Furthermore, after the former Patriarch died, Ancestor Longyan did not show up. Is she afraid of revealing something suspicious? It’s quite possible that during this period, she took forceful action. If the Ancestor acted, then who did she act with? Did she accompany his father Wang Dingyue to the Outer Domain? If the conjecture holds true, why did Ancestor and his father Wang Dingyue go to the Outer Domain at such a critical moment? Was it truly just to procure resources for seeking opportunity? Wang Shouzhe has reason to believe that Ancestor and the clan elders have a significant secret kept from him. Moreover, that secret should be very important to the Wang Family! Perhaps, the Outer Domain holds an opportunity to ascend to Spirit Platform Realm, and it was just that his father Wang Dingyue failed? The more he thinks about it, the more it makes sense, otherwise Ancestor Longyan would definitely choose to sell the Turtle Scale Treasure Shield to buy Celestial Spirit Pill for his father Wang Dingyue, rather than taking risks together in the Outer Domain. If given the chance, he wonders if he can extract some information from Ancestor’s mouth. While Wang Shouzhe was deep in thought, the sixth granduncle finished dealing with the weeds and walked out from the forest field, seeing Wang Shouzhe and Wang Shouye guarding outside, he couldn’t help but relax his brows and smile, saying, "Shouzhe, why have you come? Have you been waiting long? Why not call me earlier?" Although Wang Shouzhe couldn’t discern his cultivation, he could sense a somber and aged aura in his mental state. Clearly, he hadn’t recovered from the failure of investing a lot to ascend to the Spirit Platform Realm. He was only sixty-five years old but felt older than the fourth granduncle Wang Xiaozhi, just like a real old farmer. "Hello, sixth granduncle." Wang Shouzhe bowed. "Grandfather." Wang Shouye rushed up. "Oh, oh, you little rascal, why have you followed your fourth brother to see grandfather?" Wang Xiaohan picked up Wang Shouye, teased him a bit, and then had a member of the collateral line take him aside to play. Afterwards, Wang Xiaohan invited Wang Shouzhe to drink a cup of regular tea in front of his secluded hut, saying, "Shouzhe, have you come this time still to persuade me to pursue the Spirit Platform path again?" Previously, Wang Shouzhe had sent Household Generals with Peiyuan Pill and Spirit Stone and wrote a letter outlining his intentions. However, Wang Xiaohan refused, saying that his ambition had aged, and he only wished to have a grass hut in front of the Spirit Field for the rest of his days. This laid-back attitude, Wang Shouzhe did not blame him. He sipped the ordinary tea, looked around, glanced at his simple hut, and smiled saying, "No, Shouzhe is just here to bid farewell to the sixth granduncle, and to take one last look at the Spirit Field left by Ancestor Zhou Xuan. After all, Shouzhe is nothing more than a dying man." Wang Xiaohan almost crushed the cup, burst out in anger and surprise, "Wang Shouzhe, what nonsense are you talking?" An astonishing aura erupted from him.