Zhu Cunji puffed out his chest proudly.
"That's right. That's my body double. His real name is Zhao Si. He's an actor. Dao Xuan Tianzun even gave him a special nickname. 'Nicholas Zhao Si.'"
He scratched his chin.
"I have no idea why that name. But if Dao Xuan Tianzun names someone that way, there must be profound meaning behind it."
Zhu Yujian looked deeply impressed.
"You actually found someone like that? He looks almost identical to you. And he can act."
He paused.
His eyes slowly drifted upward toward Zhu Cunji's head.
The implication was obvious.
"If even your own women cannot tell the difference… then wouldn't that mean…"
Zhu Cunji burst out laughing before the suspicion could grow roots.
"Do not let your imagination gallop like a wild horse! My princess consort knows his true identity. The eunuchs know. The loyal guards in the Prince of Qin's Mansion know. Most importantly, Dao Xuan Tianzun knows."
He pointed at himself.
"He cannot act out of line. He is an employee. A salaried one."
Zhu Yujian nodded slowly.
"Even Dao Xuan Tianzun supervises this matter… He truly looks after you."
That sentence inflated Zhu Cunji's ego like a bellows feeding a furnace.
"Dao Xuan Tianzun did not think much of me before," he admitted honestly. "But after I built two railway lines, he started favoring me more often."
He chuckled smugly.
"In the future, I will build even more railways. I will live up to Dao Xuan Tianzun's cultivation and trust."
Then he clapped his hands.
"Come. Let us go with the logistics team. As princes, what we lack most are chances to roam freely. Do you not wish to see the mountains and rivers of our vast empire?"
Zhu Yujian's gaze turned distant.
"I wish to see the mountains and rivers. But more than that, I wish to see this empire stand upright. With a straight spine."
Zhu Cunji grinned.
"Then this trip is exactly what you need."
Zhu Yujian considered.
Then nodded.
"That is true."
Back at the station, the grand train was still being loaded.
Crates.
Barrels.
Sacks.
More crates.
The loading went on for hours. By the time it finished, the train looked like it had swallowed an entire warehouse and was still hungry.
Passengers who had originally planned a comfortable journey to Hanzhong Prefecture found themselves squeezed between cargo stacks. Many sat directly on wooden boxes, packed shoulder to shoulder.
It looked less like transportation and more like a mobile storage unit with breathing decorations.
Zhu Cunji and Zhu Yujian squeezed in with their loyal guards. The space was tight. The air smelled like grain and ambition.
Zhu Cunji was in excellent spirits.
"We depart! Another journey!"
His triumphant declaration had barely settled when a ticket inspector approached.
"Straw hat gentleman," the inspector said flatly, "your ticket."
Zhu Cunji froze.
"A ticket?"
His voice rose indignantly.
"Do I need to buy a ticket? Do you know who I am? For this train? This train?"
The entire carriage turned to stare.
The ticket inspector narrowed his eyes.
"Dao Xuan Tianzun personally decreed: no matter how important you are, even if you hold a key position in Gao Family Village, you may not put on airs. No abusing authority. No using power for personal gain. No infringing on private enterprise rights."
He crossed his arms.
"If you have no ticket, purchase one immediately. Otherwise I will report this to the Saintess."
Zhu Cunji's face stiffened.
He wanted to shout, This is my train.
But that would ruin everything.
So instead, with the expression of a man swallowing pride whole, he dug into his pouch and paid.
The ticket inspector took the silver cheerfully and walked away humming.
Over his shoulder he added, "In Dao Xuan Tianzun's domain, no one dares be arrogant. No matter how grand you act, once I invoke his name, you still buy your ticket."
Zhu Cunji trembled.
"You… I… you…"
Beside him, Zhu Yujian burst into laughter.
It was loud.
And sincere.
The train rolled out of Xi'an, crossing the Guanzhong Plain toward Hanzhong.
Zhu Cunji pressed his face to the window like an excited child.
Mountains.
Fields.
Villages.
Everything fascinated him.
Zhu Yujian, however, did not look at the scenery.
He looked at the people.
Years ago, he had heard about the catastrophic drought in Shaanxi. Land scorched for a thousand miles. Starvation. Cannibalism.
But what he saw now was different.
Green fields stretched across the plain.
Crops stood tall and thick.
Farmers worked with relaxed expressions, even smiling.
"The drought here…" Zhu Yujian began slowly.
Zhu Cunji chuckled.
"When Dao Xuan Tianzun descended, he brought the Four Dragon Kings. They brought several years of continuous rain. The drought ended."
Zhu Yujian blinked.
"Brought?"
"Yes. Brought."
Zhu Cunji gestured dramatically.
"I personally saw it. Dao Xuan Tianzun's golden hand pinched the East Sea Dragon King by the neck, lifted it above Xi'an, and ordered it to spray water. The Dragon King dared not disobey and spewed rain for days."
Zhu Yujian inhaled sharply.
He needed a moment.
Then he looked back at the fields.
"The crops grow better than in our region even during normal years."
"That," Zhu Cunji said proudly, "is because of Celestial Fertilizer."
"Celestial Fertilizer?"
"A heavenly technique derived from something called chemistry. Far superior to manure. Apply it once and yields double."
For an empire built on agriculture, doubling yields was more terrifying than any cannon.
Zhu Yujian's expression grew complicated.
"Such a treasure… will attract greedy eyes."
Zhu Cunji's face twisted.
"Yes. It will."
He pointed at himself.
"For example. Me."
Zhu Yujian stared.
Zhu Cunji did not hide his embarrassment. He openly recounted how he had once tried to seize Wu Shen and Shi Kefa's chemical fertilizer, only to smash headfirst into Gao Family Village's authority. The emperor's name had been used against him. The Prince of Qin's Mansion had paid fifty thousand taels in disaster relief before the matter settled.
Zhu Yujian listened.
Then sighed.
"You truly are a wealthy scion."
Zhu Cunji laughed heartily.
"I truly am."
After a long journey, the train finally arrived in Hanzhong.
This was Zhu Cunji's first time here.
The moment the train stopped, he jumped off with enthusiasm.
Then he froze.
Hanzhong North Station looked… tragic.
Only a short section of platform was concrete. The rest was uneven stone. The ticket booth was covered by a crude thatched roof. It looked less like a symbol of modern progress and more like a temporary farming shed.
Zhu Cunji frowned.
"Why is Hanzhong North Station so crude? It is not on the same level as Xi'an South Station at all."
Zhu Yujian stepped down and scanned the surroundings.
He nodded slowly.
"This is supposed to be one end of the same railway line. Yet its standard is worlds apart."
The wind blew across the rough platform.
Behind them stood a train full of supplies that could change Sichuan's fate.
Before them stood a station that revealed a truth.
Development was uneven.
And uneven development, in an empire this large, was not just inconvenience.
It was destiny waiting to be corrected.