This sort of ratio wouldn't make the fruits and vegetables grown too peculiar. Now, the vegetables from Xishan Manor were already incredibly delicious. If they were irrigated with the full ratio of Spirit Spring Water, the vegetables would definitely arouse suspicion.

Because of special instructions, the Spiritual Spring Pond was very well-protected. Apart from a water pump that could extract water, the entire pond was locked behind an iron gate, preventing anyone from seeing inside and guarding against vandalism.

After inspecting the Spiritual Spring Pond, Ling Zhenfei stood by the pond, deep in thought. That morning, while chatting with Zhou Yun, he had suddenly mentioned that washing one's face with the water from the pond could greatly improve one's skin, making it fair and eternally youthful. Thus, a business idea struck him—if he could bottle the water from the Xuantian Spirit Spring Pot into small bottles and sell it as cosmetic products, it might attract a lot of buyers.

Regarding selling the water of the spiritual spring as a cosmetic product, it was just an idea for now. Maybe later, once the company had scaled up, it could seriously consider venturing into the cosmetics industry. It wasn't just about the water from the Xuantian Spirit Spring Pot; his medical book also contained many elixir recipes, including ones that could preserve youth. If he started producing and selling these elixirs, they would undoubtedly become extremely popular.

Ling Zhenfei sat in his office, reviewing the many documents from Xishan Manor. He first checked the sales data, which was almost as he had predicted. Because they were simultaneously selling and building, it was no surprise that there wasn't much money in the company's accounts. He was already very pleased to be breaking even, with a small surplus, probably thanks to Zhou Yun's foresight, fearing that Ling Zhenfei might find himself completely out of funds.

While he was looking through the documents, Bai Lin suddenly rushed in, "Master, Master, the Town Mayor is here. Sister Zhou asked you to come."

Ling Zhenfei was startled by the news of the Town Mayor's arrival. Since he was staying within the manor and not going out, it didn't seem like a good situation. So, he hurried out to meet the mayor, who was not someone to be offended.

The trucks carrying vegetables had almost all left, but a convoy of seven or eight vehicles was approaching from afar—the mayor's convoy. The arrival of the Town Mayor was quite grand indeed.

At that moment, Wang Changhe was beaming at the entrance of Xishan Manor. It was unclear when he had arrived, but seeing the cars nearing, he somehow produced a string of firecrackers and lit them, which truly shocked Ling Zhenfei.

The convoy stopped at the entrance, and several people emerged from the cars. Ling Zhenfei couldn't tell which one was the Town Mayor, but each person stepping out carried such an aura that they all seemed like they could be the mayor.

Wang Changhe clearly knew the town mayor, walking directly up to a person from the frontmost car, greeting him with deep respect. After discussing something, he then led the group to the entrance of Xishan Manor.

"Here, Mayor Wang, let me introduce you. This is Ling Zhenfei, the owner of Xishan Manor I've told you about."

"Ling Zhenfei, this gentleman is our town's mayor. You're lucky he could visit today; make sure to treat him well."

Ling Zhenfei knew not to offend such a person, "Mayor Wang, hello. I'm truly delighted that you could visit our humble place."

Mayor Wang nodded slightly, speaking very formally, "My visit here has several purposes. First, to see the scale of your farm, to check on your farm's conditions, and also to relay our town's agricultural support policies."

"Then please come inside, Mayor Wang. Let me give you a tour of our farm." Ling Zhenfei led a large group of people on a tour.

They walked through the greenhouse, tasted the vegetables, and checked out the wild chickens raised behind the manor, but Mayor Wang's expression was not pleasant, looking quite unsightly throughout, which made Ling Zhenfei very uneasy, unsure of what the Mayor intended.

As they reached a newly constructed pavilion, several people sat down, and Mayor Wang, with an unpleasant look, said to Ling Zhenfei, "It's commonly said that your farm is the most profitable in Binyang, but after walking around today, something seems off. It's just a few greenhouses growing some vegetables, which is quite rudimentary."

Upon hearing this, Ling Zhenfei suddenly felt indignant. What did this mean, calling his greenhouses rudimentary? He didn't know how that could be said; although he had few greenhouses, each one was built to the highest standards. Yet he could not show this irritation verbally.

"Yes, our farm is just getting started and it is somewhat rudimentary. If we could get some policy support, perhaps we could develop on a larger scale."

"What do you mean, you want our town's support? That's right, our town is very supportive of small businesses. I came today prepared to lend you a hand," Mayor Wang said with complacent officiousness.

Ling Zhenfei was delighted internally, not expecting Mayor Wang, despite his unpleasant way of speaking, to actually handle matters earnestly, preparing to support them. How could he not be thrilled?

"Thank you, Town Mayor. May I know what preferential policies you plan to offer Xishan Manor?"

Mayor Wang laughed coldly and said, "Isn't it quite simple? Our town has already been busy setting up seven or eight farms, each one quite excellent. You should really go and learn from their experiences. Here's what, I'll sign a contract with you in a bit, to transfer ownership of Xishan Manor to the town, and then you won't have to pay taxes anymore. How about that for a policy?"

Upon hearing this, Ling Zhenfei became furious. Have his manor transferred to town ownership? In his dreams! He had built his farm from scratch and would not just hand it over, which simply was not possible. Not paying taxes was obvious, for if it belonged to the town, why would it need to pay any taxes? Moreover, whether to tax or not was a matter that could be decided by these very people.

"I'm sorry, Town Mayor, our manor's business is decent, and we still want to contribute more to the country by paying taxes. I appreciate your goodwill," Ling Zhenfei politely refused.

"What do you mean, Ling Zhenfei? The Town Mayor is doing you a favor, offering such a generous policy and you dare to refuse? Are you trying to embarrass the Town Mayor deliberately?" Wang Changhe burst out, certainly wanting to make a good impression in front of Mayor Wang.

"I am not trying to embarrass the Town Mayor, it's just that our Xishan Manor does not need such policies," Ling Zhenfei stated righteously.

Mayor Wang laughed heartily and said, "Think carefully, Ling Zhenfei. Everyone here today is a government official, with representatives from every department. If your manor is transferred to our town's ownership, the benefits are substantial. Not paying taxes is just one of them; the other benefits are unsaid but you understand."

"I'm really sorry, but I truly cannot accept your conditions. Thank you," Ling Zhenfei firmly declined.

Seeing how resolute Ling Zhenfei's attitude was, Mayor Wang's expression grew even more frosty.

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