With the rise of my family, I can summon the Daoist Soldiers' Nest.

"So I'm going to assign you new jobs."

"My Lin family has just become the lords of Xiang County. At present, Xiang County is in dire need of reconstruction. We will never let it remain in ruins. We must carry out large-scale construction and restore order." He turned his gaze to the outside of the courtyard.

"However, Xiang County is sparsely populated and has a wide range of affairs, from people's livelihood to public security, from commerce to defense, and every single matter must be sorted out."

Therefore, I need someone who can collect information on a daily basis and promptly transmit various intelligence from the territory, so that I can be well-informed and make appropriate deployments.” Lin Ye looked directly at Sun Qian, his tone gentle but leaving no room for argument.

"I wonder if Chief Sun is interested in doing this?"

Upon hearing this, Sun Qian's spirits lifted, and he hurriedly cupped his hands in greeting, saying, "Sun Qian will obey Your Excellency's orders, even at the cost of my life!"

"Alright, since you've agreed, go back and disband the Black Tiger Gang. From now on, your expenses and costs will be covered by my Lin family."

"The Black Tiger Martial Arts Schools in various locations will continue to operate, and will be renamed Lin Family Martial Arts Schools, serving as intelligence gathering agencies while also teaching martial arts."

Lin Ye's tone was decisive. As he spoke, he reached for the booklet that Sun Qian had brought earlier, saying, "I won't read the information about Xiang County here; you can take it back."

He handed the book back to Sun Qian and said seriously, "Ten days from now, I hope you can bring me more detailed information, especially the specific situation of the eighteen market towns, as well as the distribution and movements of local forces."

On this day, Lin Ye and Lin Qiang were discussing strengthening patrols in the surrounding area inside the Wubao council hall.

Recently, a large number of people who have moved from the county town have gathered around the outskirts of the fort. Although the five major families are helping to maintain order, with so many people, some chaos is inevitable and precautions need to be taken early.

As they were talking, Madam Li pushed open the door and entered, her eyes brimming with an undisguised smile.

Lin Ye looked up and saw the joy on her mother's face, knowing that something good must have happened. She quickly stood up to greet her, "Mother, what's the matter?"

Li's smile deepened as she slowly approached: "The spiritual plants outside the fortress are ripe."

According to the people from the Sword Sect, the third-rate spiritual plant Jade Sprout Rice and the unranked spiritual plant Iron Wire Vine will be ready for harvest in two days; the third-rate spiritual plant Dew-Gathering Flower is also mature, and the dew can be collected every morning.

She paused slightly, her tone cautious, "Although the bandits didn't destroy these spiritual plants, there's no guarantee they won't keep an eye on them."

However, our family currently lacks third-rate soldiers capable of farming to help us, and relying solely on manpower is ultimately insufficient, so we fear the yield will not be high.

According to estimates from the Sword Sect, he might only have about half the physical attributes he had when he was still with the sect.

Lin Ye laughed heartily upon hearing this: "Mother, that's good enough. Right now, the clan's population isn't that large. Once the trade routes are established, we can make up for the shortfall with less valuable resources from outside."

As for third-rate spiritual plants, only three third-rate martial artists in the clan can use them once a day, while the rest of the unranked martial artists can only use them once every few days.

After all, the medicinal effects are more pronounced for them, and they absorb it slowly. So this amount of production is enough for our needs.

His tone grew increasingly confident: "Once the nest has been in place for a full year, it will be able to breed Dao soldiers. One rotten soil ant servant will be produced every month, and by having them take care of the third-rate spiritual plants, the yield will naturally increase."

Moreover, the sword sect will provide more seeds, which will not only be enough for our needs, but we can also sell some to supplement the income of other families in the county.

Hearing this, Madam Li's face relaxed, and she nodded repeatedly: "My son has thought this through so well, I'm relieved. I will take good care of these spiritual plants for you, so just go ahead and do it."

Actually, Lin Ye mostly said these words to comfort his mother.

Third-rate spiritual plants were indeed as he said, enough for the territory's own use in a year, but second-rate spiritual plants were a different story.

Family warriors cannot stop at the third-rate level; they must break through to the second-rate level. Only by gathering three second-rate warriors can the family nest manifest as a second-rate nest.

The best way for a third-rate martial artist to advance to the second-rate level is to consume a second-rate spiritual plant every now and then.

However, second-rate spiritual plants are very delicate and require the care of second-rate Dao soldiers. If we continue to rely entirely on human labor as we are now, we will surely reap no harvest.

However, these concerns need not be known to the mother at this moment.

Li suddenly changed the subject, looking Lin Ye up and down in his baron's uniform, her smile now tinged with a motherly mischief: "Ye'er looks so dashing in this baron's uniform. After we finish harvesting the spiritual plants, I'll take you to meet people."

Recently, many people have asked me about your marriage. Your mother has met a few of them, and this time she paid special attention to their appearance and family background.

Although there is a gap between them and our current situation, our family has just been ennobled and it will take time for us to establish relations with other territories. We cannot find a suitable match for them in the short term.

"You're not young anymore, you can't delay. Why don't you take a few concubines first, and have a few children?"

"Mom, why are you bringing this up again? Uncle Lin Qiang is still here!" Lin Ye was immediately embarrassed, raised her hand to her forehead, and didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

Seeing his embarrassed look, Li couldn't help but laugh out loud: "Alright, alright, let's not talk about it anymore, our Lord is embarrassed."

"Mother's leaving first; she still needs to instruct everyone on how to harvest the spiritual plants. These aren't ordinary crops; they're very precious, so we have to be careful."

With that, she turned and walked out the door with light steps, leaving Lin Ye and Lin Qiang to exchange a smile.

"Young Master, what Sister-in-law said makes sense. The family is not thriving these days, and there are few direct descendants. Apart from you, Young Master, there is only the young master left."

"Young Master should have an heir as soon as possible. That way, everyone will feel at ease and have something to look forward to." After Madam Li left, Lin Qiang unusually continued the conversation and offered this advice.

"I know, I'll consider it," Lin Ye replied calmly.

He looked at Lin Qiang's serious yet somewhat worried expression and was speechless for a moment.

It's all my fault for making the "martial arts fanatic" persona too deeply ingrained in people's minds recently. Now even the people around me are starting to worry about his indifference to women, almost putting me in a very difficult position.

In fact, Lin Ye himself also wanted to settle down and start a family. He was not a saint who was detached from worldly affairs, and he was not without longing for love between men and women.

The reason I practiced martial arts so hard recently was to manifest the lair as soon as possible and successfully complete the challenge.

Now that he has become a baron, possessing a vast fiefdom and governing hundreds of thousands of people, he should naturally enjoy himself; otherwise, wouldn't it be a waste to have transmigrated into this world?

Thinking of this, he couldn't help but chuckle.