Doing Business

The night sky was as dark as ink, the moonlight was bright, and the stars were twinkling.

The disciples of Yunxi Sect all finished their evening classes and returned to the dormitory to wash and rest. The room was brightly lit and full of people.

Shen Leyan sat on Zheng Ziheng’s sword, and Qingli followed behind them. They looked for a place where no one else was around and where they could talk in peace.

The first stop was a small forest outside the gate.

Before they flew closer on their swords, Qingli said to them loudly in surprise: “I saw a male cultivator and a female cultivator in the forest. They hugged each other and kissed!”

Shen Leyan was so scared that he quickly asked Zheng Ziheng to put a silence spell on Qingli, fearing that the Taoist couple who were kissing in the forest would fly up on their swords and curse them.

It was okay for them to lose face, but Senior Brother Zheng’s reputation could not be ruined.

The second stop was the classroom for teaching.

 This time, Shen Leyan saw that there were still candles lit in the classroom. Several outer disciples whose palms were swollen by bamboo boards were crying and cursing the instructor for being so cruel to hit their palms, while staying up late to copy classics.

This scene brought back some bad memories for him.

They should not disturb others’ study…

The third stop, Qingli strongly requested to go to Lingxi Pavilion.

Zheng Ziheng said gently: “There are disciples patrolling and guarding in Lingxi Pavilion. It is not appropriate.”

Qingli: “Then no one will see us if we sit on the roof?”

A few moments later, the three of them sat on the roof of Lingxi Pavilion.

The roof was wide and flat, with a wide view, even enough for them to lie down.

Shen Leyan put his hands on the back of his head and lay down with his knees slightly bent. Qingli quickly imitated him and leaned against the roof ridge.

He looked at Zheng Ziheng, whose back was still as straight as a pine tree and his posture upright. It was obvious that he was used to sitting like this. 

He briefly told the story of how Sect Master Lu gave him the Qingying Xuan Jue, and then asked.

“Brother Zheng, I heard that our Yunxi Sect is a little short of money, is that true?”

He remembered that the original book mentioned that although Yunxi Sect was one of the four major sects in the world of immortal cultivation, it often adopted orphans and donated money to the court for disaster relief, so it always spent more than it earned.

Cultivating immortals is very expensive. It costs money to buy skills, magic weapons, elixirs, and to stay in inns when going out to kill demons and exorcise monsters…

Although the rewards for exorcising monsters for some wealthy gentry and dignitaries are not cheap, it is easy to encounter poor people being harmed by monsters.

They can’t just leave it alone, right?

As time went by, the money spent in Yunxi Sect increased.

Zheng Ziheng nodded, smiled quickly, and comforted him.

 “We are a little short of money, but Master and several elders will sell the refined pills from time to time. The sect still has money to feed the disciples.”

High-grade pills are indeed valuable, but it is more difficult for alchemists to practice than for monks, so it is not something he can help with.

“I have a way to make money, but I lack some start-up capital. Brother Zheng, would you like to listen to it?”

A trace of surprise flashed across Zheng Ziheng’s brown eyes, and he said seriously.

“Please speak, Junior Brother.”

“I want to open a restaurant in Yunxi Sect. Today I made some food, Qingli tasted it, and Sect Master Lu also tasted it – Qingli, do you think it tastes good?”

Qingli smacked her lips in memory: “Delicious!”

Zheng Ziheng: “Could it be a smell of chili oil…”

“Yes, that’s the smell of hot pot. Hot pot is good in every way, but it’s easy to get the smell on clothes after eating – how did Senior Brother Zheng know?”

Zheng Ziheng: “…”

“… Is it Sect Master? The Sect Master told you. “

“I think the restaurant will mainly sell hot pot, with some desserts and drinks. Of course, if the inner sect cultivators want to eat, the store can buy some rare and exotic meat to help their cultivation.”

“But most of the inner sect disciples are fasting and don’t need to eat. The outer sect cafeteria provides free meals to the disciples. Will anyone really come to the restaurant?”

Shen Leyan had long observed the composition of the disciples of Yunxi Sect. Half of them were from ordinary families like him, and the other half were from wealthy families, even young masters and daughters.

Those people have a lot of spare money, and they buy dozens of kinds of food for their spirit pets. As long as the hot pot in his restaurant tastes good enough, those people will definitely be willing to spend a little money to eat.

Just like modern college students, the cafeteria in the school is cheap, but how can it be as delicious as takeout?

And the outer sect disciples can also come to the restaurant to work, which is considered a task for the sect.

 It’s great to make money for Yunxi Sect while finding jobs for outer disciples.

Thanks to the fact that there are many food bloggers and short videos teaching people how to cook, it’s no problem for him to make some hot pot seasoning.

He told Zheng Ziheng all these things one by one, and his mouth was dry: “I will write a detailed charter for opening a restaurant in the next two days for Brother Zheng to see. How about it?”

“I don’t know much about business, but I will give the charter to Master and several elders for review.”

Then this matter has some clues.

“Why do you suddenly want to open a restaurant to make money?”

“Well…” Shen Leyan patted the Qingying Xuan Jue in his arms, “I have to pay back the favor I have received. There are not many things I can do for Yunxi Sect.”

Zheng Ziheng didn’t know what he was thinking of. His eyes were very soft, and he gently stroked the top of his head.

 “If you want to work for the sect, there is a problem now. I wonder if you have any ideas.”

“Hmm?”

“Recently, the disciples of the sect… always like to spread rumors. Today, Qingli was transformed from a test spirit stone into a human, and flew out of Lingxi Pavilion in full view of everyone.

When I came to find you, I heard many disciples saying… something like ‘The elder in charge of Lingxi Pavilion is an old pervert who likes little lolita. He clearly heard that the test spirit stone was a cute lolita voice’.

 There is also the matter of you using the sound transmission talisman, and many disciples are discussing whether you are the illegitimate child of master and a common woman.

As for some other rumors, there are some strange statements every month, and the elders and disciples of the Law Enforcement Hall really don’t know how to deal with it. “

Qingli was angry: “The elders of Lingxi Pavilion are obviously very kind, and those people are simply talking nonsense!”

Shen Leyan found it a little funny, but Zheng Ziheng looked too serious and spoke seriously. He was embarrassed to laugh and his stomach hurt.

Pinching himself to stop laughing, he slowly spoke.

“Is the perverted elder of Lingxi Pavilion in the rumor an old man?”

“No. It’s a female elder with a family.”

Shen Leyan: “…”

He still underestimated the imagination of the disciples of Yunxi Sect.

 “Does the Yunxi Sect have its own newspaper? It’s similar to the court’s official bulletin.”

The official bulletin is used by the court to inform the emperor of the emperor’s edicts, the promotion and demotion of some officials, and major events in the capital and various prefectures.

“This… this is not the case.”