"Come, I’ll take you to tour the herb garden. We’ll also pick out a plot of land for you to plant your own herbs."
Teacher Lin was not surprised that Zhu Yanyi wanted to choose her own field. It had become a tradition at the Sage Academy for every new student to select a plot to grow the herbs they needed.
"Look at our herb garden. Almost everything you see belongs to the Academy. In its busiest days, the fields stretched as far as the eye could see. It’s a pity that with fewer students now, there is less land being cultivated. In recent years, we’ve even had to buy herbs from outside due to shortages." Teacher Lin sighed.
She led Zhu Yanyi into a specific area. Inside, there were very few developed plots. They were clearly new, as some fields only showed tiny sprouts. "This section is for new students. It’s just starting to take shape, but it looks promising. The barren land behind it is not yet claimed. Pick a plot. In the southeast corner of each field, there is a stone slot. Place your identity token there to record your name. Once done, everyone will know the field is yours, and no one will disturb you."
By "disturb," she simply meant clarifying ownership. Zhu Yanyi understood perfectly.
She didn’t hesitate. After scanning the area, she chose a plot that looked suitable. She walked to the southeast corner and placed her jade token into the stone slot. The slot flashed, and the number "Fifteen" appeared on it.
Zhu Yanyi smiled, retrieved her token, and returned to Teacher Lin. "Teacher Lin, I’ve chosen this one."
"Good choice. It’s spacious and close to a water source. Once I record this, you can manage it yourself. I’ll leave now. After you finish setting up, you can return on your own. From now on, this field is yours. However, for ordinary herbs, you must submit fifty percent of the mature harvest to the Academy. If you cultivate rare herbs, you submit thirty percent. The rest is all yours." Teacher Lin spoke seriously. "Do you have any objections?"
"None at all," Zhu Yanyi nodded with a smile. She didn’t think the contribution was excessive; in fact, it was quite reasonable.
Seeing her calm reaction, Teacher Lin knew the elders must have already discussed the terms with her. Satisfied, she added, "If you need herbicide powder to clear the weeds, you can come to me to collect it." Then she left.
Once Teacher Lin was gone, Zhu Yanyi began her work. The land was truly barren, but thanks to the abundant spiritual energy, weeds had grown thickly.
She felt no impatience. Her Ruyi Space contained plenty of eco-friendly herbicide she had made herself. She took out a sprayer and covered the field. Satisfied with the result, she left to buy seeds, planning to return the next day when the weeds would be gone.
Back at her dorm, Zhu Yanyi showered and changed before heading out to buy seeds.
Although the Academy provided seeds, Zhu Yanyi wasn’t sure of her field’s spiritual capacity yet. She didn’t want to rush into growing rare herbs immediately. Instead, she decided to buy common seeds first.
Many medicinal recipes required common herbs as a base. For example, licorice was needed in large quantities for certain pills. These herbs had a gentle nature and a sweet taste, which was essential for the final product. Zhu Yanyi felt it was necessary to stock up on them.
Fortunately, the seed vendors had plenty of common varieties. Zhu Yanyi bought a good amount of herb seeds and headed back.
As she approached her dormitory, she found Ouyang Tianyun waiting at the door.
"Third Senior Brother, why are you here?" Zhu Yanyi asked curiously.
Ouyang Tianyun smiled. "Fifteen, do you have any other plans for today?"
Zhu Yanyi shook her head slightly. "I just need to organize the seeds I bought. I claimed a herb field earlier and bought some seeds. I plan to spend the next few days planting."
"That’s good. Come, I’ll take you somewhere." Ouyang Tianyun said with a grin.
Zhu Yanyi didn’t refuse. "Okay, let’s go, Senior Brother." The items in her space could wait.
To her surprise, Ouyang Tianyun led her to the Punishment Hall.
"Why bring me to the Punishment Hall?" Zhu Yanyi looked at her, confused. "I haven’t done anything wrong."
"I know you haven’t. I brought you here because of Qiu Qi." she paused, realizing she might not remember the name. "The ball-shaped person we met on the street a few days ago? The Golden Core ancestor who was taken away by Uncle Xu?"
"What about her? She has nothing to do with me," Zhu Yanyi tilted her head, thinking.
Ouyang Tianyun smiled. "He doesn’t, but his brother, Qiu Zheng, has arrived. Qiu Zheng is the current head of the Qiu family in Linwaishan. He’s a decent man, but he spoils his younger brother, Qiu Qi. Qiu Qi’s current personality is largely due to Qiu Zheng’s indulgence."
Zhu Yanyi was still confused. "How does this concern me? What use is telling me this now?"
Ouyang Tianyun shook his head quickly. "I know it doesn’t directly concern you. But we need your input. Remember the rare herb and the protective artifact you mentioned? Uncle Xu wants you to speak up since you were there. His intention is to impose a heavy fine—based on the severity of the offense. We need your advice on the amount."
Zhu Yanyi looked at her with a strange expression. "I feel like you’re trying to trick me."
"How could that be? Everyone in our Academy is so kind. We would never trick anyone," Ouyang Tianyun answered with a straight face.
Zhu Yanyi tilted her head, looking her up and down with disbelief. "Senior Brother, do you really think anyone would believe that? Probably no one would."