Arriving at Luo Changsheng's home, Cheng Xiaofan noticed him tidying up a spare bedroom and couldn't help but ask curiously, "Grandpa Luo, are you cleaning this spare bedroom because you're expecting guests?"
"Heh heh, Xiaofan and President Bai are here!"
Luo Changsheng chuckled. "Today I received a call from my friend Bai Jianshan. He said the air here is good and he wants to come live here long-term. This bedroom is for him!"
He walked over to the table, poured a cup of tea for Cheng Xiaofan and Bai Yiling each, and asked with a smile, "Why have you two busy people come to see me today?"
Cheng Xiaofan smiled. "Grandpa Luo, tomorrow I want to take you and a few village elites to see the Bai Mang Lake area. Also, I want to lease Bai Mang Lake, Lotus Lake, and the Terraced Fields. Then you can help me determine a lease price!"
Hearing that he could visit Bai Mang Lake, Luo Changsheng's hands trembled with excitement.
"Xiaofan, you're saying I can go to Bai Mang Lake tomorrow?" he asked incredulously.
Cheng Xiaofan smiled. "Yes, tomorrow Bai Yiling will arrange two helicopters to pick you and the village elites up to go there!"
Luo Changsheng was overjoyed, his face beaming. He repeatedly said, "That's wonderful! I never thought that at my age, I could finally visit the place where my ancestors lived!"
As he spoke, the old man's eyes welled up with tears.
He looked at Cheng Xiaofan intently and said, "Talking about lease fees is being too formal. President Bai is investing billions to develop Zhuxi Village, so how can we calculate that separately!"
Cheng Xiaofan smiled. "We should keep things separate. President Bai's investment is different from me leasing Bai Mang Lake. After all, it's the ancestral dwelling, not something one person can claim as their own!"
"Alright, I understand you. We'll see what everyone thinks when we get to Bai Mang Lake tomorrow!" Luo Changsheng said with a smile.
Cheng Xiaofan nodded and smiled. "Okay, I'll call Sister Guihua in a moment and ask her to inform the village elites!"
Luo Changsheng chuckled. "That would be best, saving this old bone the trouble of running around!"
After leaving Luo Changsheng's home, Cheng Xiaofan immediately called Tang Guihua and informed her about going to Bai Mang Lake tomorrow.
"Xiaofan, that's great! I've dreamed of seeing what Bai Mang Lake looks like!"
Tang Guihua was incredibly excited and immediately said, "I'll notify the village elites right away!"
After the call, Cheng Xiaofan and Bai Yiling returned home and told Cheng Fugui and Miao Xiuhua about it.
The elderly couple were naturally delighted to hear they could visit Bai Mang Lake tomorrow.
At the same time, two exciting pieces of news spread throughout Zhuxi Village.
The first was that the village elites, along with Luo Changsheng, would take President Bai's helicopters to Bai Mang Lake for a visit tomorrow.
Bai Mang Lake was considered a sacred place in the hearts of Zhuxi Village's residents.
After all, it was the place where the Dong Wu soldiers, ancestors of the village, had hidden from war.
Since the legendary Bai Mang Lake was discovered by Cheng Xiaofan, many people had dreamed of visiting it and paying homage to the place where their ancestors had lived.
The second piece of news was that Cheng Xiaofan's live stream video had gone viral internationally, and a particularly beautiful young lady from Sakura Country, captivated by the picturesque Zhuxi Village, had traveled across the ocean to visit.
Introduced by Cheng Xiaofan, this young lady was staying at Luo Yang's home.
To the frustration of the village bachelors, this girl from Sakura Country and Luo Yang had fallen in love at first sight.
Everyone wondered why Cheng Xiaofan's live stream videos didn't attract more foreign girls to Zhuxi Village.
They also noticed a peculiar phenomenon: everyone who got close to Cheng Xiaofan seemed to experience good fortune.
For example, Feng Xigua married Du Xiaojuan, and Luo Yang now had a girl from Sakura Country by his side.
The second piece of news, in particular, spread rapidly. Within a short time, even people from the entire Jinbao Town knew about it, and some, out of curiosity, even made special trips to Luo Yang's home to visit Sakai Keiko.
...
Yamaguchi Prefecture, Sakura Country.
Sakai Ichiro was pacing restlessly in his room. He had called his daughter several times, but her phone was always out of service.
Sakai Keiko had not followed Cheng Xiaofan's instructions to send an audio message when her father was looking for her.
She hated her father intensely; he had secretly gotten involved with Matsuki Chiyo before her mother's death.
She didn't want to hear her father's voice and had simply removed and discarded her SIM card.
Sakai Ichiro was unaware of what had happened to his daughter in China. After a long period of thought, he dialed Matsuki Chiyo's number again.
After a while, Matsuki Chiyo's call connected.
"Chiyo, didn't you go to Jinbao Town? Why is Keiko unreachable?" Sakai Kazuo questioned anxiously.
Immediately, Matsuki Chiyo's voice came through the phone: "I'm sorry, Mr. Sakai, but I also discovered Keiko was missing yesterday afternoon."
"At that time, I was so eager to control Cheng Xiaofan that I didn't have time to contact you!"
Sakai Kazuo hurriedly asked, "Did you manage to control Cheng Xiaofan?"
Matsuki Chiyo replied, "I'm sorry, my mission failed this time!"
"When I arrived at Cheng Xiaofan's place, I don't know why, but he not only saw through me as a cultivator with a Yin Body at a glance, but he also knew my name."
"In the chaos, he unexpectedly charged forward and crippled the cultivation I had practiced for many years. If I hadn't escaped quickly, I might not have made it back to Sakura Country alive!"
Hearing this, Sakai Kazuo's brow furrowed deeply. "Are you saying Keiko betrayed me and defected to that Chinese peasant, Cheng Xiaofan?"
Matsuki Chiyo responded, "I had suspected that as well. Otherwise, how could Cheng Xiaofan know so much about my background?"
"However, since I have no proof, I dare not make that conclusion!"
"Baka!"
Sakai Kazuo roared with all his might, "It must be that slut defected to Cheng Xiaofan!"
"I'm going to China to kill her myself!"
Matsuki Chiyo smiled inwardly, realizing her scheme had succeeded.
However, in her mind, Sakai Keiko was already a cold corpse.
She deliberately sighed deeply towards Sakai Kazuo and said, "Mr. Sakai, Cheng Xiaofan is very skilled. You are no match for him."
"When I return, we can discuss it further!"
Hearing her say this, Sakai Kazuo couldn't help but sigh and back down.
After all, Zhuxi Village was Cheng Xiaofan's territory. He had no idea if there was a mysterious sect behind Cheng Xiaofan.
If he were to trespass into Zhuxi Village on his own, it would be tantamount to suicide.
What left Sakai Kazuo feeling extremely frustrated was that this mission had not even scratched Cheng Xiaofan, yet he had lost an excellent daughter. It was truly a loss.
After a moment of thought, he immediately dialed Konoe Mieko's number.
"Master Konoe, my daughter's mission in China this time has failed!" Sakai Kazuo said dejectedly.
"What?"
A shocked voice from Konoe Mieko came through the phone, "That's impossible, absolutely impossible!"