Ziyang Mansion, Joyful Hotpot Restaurant
Not long ago, the Qianlong List was updated again, and two prodigies from a certain provincial sect sent the entire Ziyang Mansion into a frenzy, igniting conversations in every nook and cranny as people chatted over tea and dinner.
“Did you hear? Our Ziyang Mansion’s Qingyuan Sect produced two…”
“Come on, who doesn’t know about the ‘Lucky Wife Fighter’ and the ‘Cold Fairy’ here in Ziyang Mansion?”
“In recent times, among the famous Qianlong prodigies, who could possibly overshadow these two?”
“Tsk tsk, slaying demons in the South Border at the third stage and coming out unscathed, how dashing! Wait, this calls for a drink!”
“Stuttering girl, bring the drinks!”
Listening to the chatter from the customers, a ‘waiter’ in hilariously oversized clothes, with a cloth strip over his eyes, clopped over with drinks in hand, also bringing a pile of flower rice as a bonus.
“Stuttering girl, we want drinks too; why don’t you bring us flower rice?” a curious customer asked.
“You… you just said… Young Hero Li… his nickname isn’t pleasant.”
Jiang Chulong whispered, clutching a tray.
Only those speaking good of Brother Li get the flower rice!
The discriminated customer frowned, but his companions quickly shushed him, gesturing toward the second floor where a girl in palace attire was sitting grandly, squinting at the liquor gourd in her palm. After pouring twice, absolutely nothing remained, which made her beautiful face a bit sour.
The customer shivered and sat down obediently, looking just like a little kid on his first day of school.
“Sister Shang, drinks.”
“Why hasn’t my precious apprentice come back from the South Border yet?”
Shang Wu sighed, taking the drink Jiang Chulong passed her. She smacked her lips; her precious apprentice had gotten spoiled, and even the Qingluo Roast wasn’t doing it for her anymore.
“I… I miss Brother Li too,” Jiang Chulong murmured, glancing at the private room where Aunt Mei and the elders of Qingyuan Sect were situated, quietly asking:
“Sister Shang, has… has Brother Li sent word?”
Shang Wu shook her head, not denying it, but she truly didn’t know.
So, Jiang Chulong stealthily leaned toward the door to listen.
That was Aunt Mei’s voice:
“Those two kids are in the South Border; it can’t just be for a bit of fame. A few of you know the situation—now that there’s no Floating Temple to suppress them, chaos is bound to ensue.”
Qian Bufan, Xue Jing, Han He, and the other peak masters all frowned, deep in thought.
Every peak elder knew some core secrets of the Qingyuan Sect; their sect was bound to the royal mausoleum, guarding the secrets of the ancestors.
And behind the Disaster Beasts were the remnants of Da Shang.
“Why haven’t Li Mo and Ying Bing come back yet?” Qian Bufan pondered.
“Do you think… could he possibly…” Xue Jing remarked, thinking of that kid’s personality, “He wants to help defend the city in the South Border?”
Upon those words, silence fell in the private room.
Only the bubbling of the hotpot and the sound of Qian Bufan chewing while deep in thought could be heard.
This possibility was indeed the most believable one.
“Everyone better make plans. After all, the court has given up on the South Border. It’s only a matter of time before some chaotic events happen. I plan to take Chulong away…”
Before Mei Yun could finish, the door swung open, revealing a timid Jiang Chulong standing there.
Her little face looked delicate and weak, but beneath that timidity lay a trace of resilience, like a little white flower blooming from the cracks in a stone.
“Aunt Mei… Chulong… Chulong doesn’t want to leave.”
Mei Yun was momentarily stunned. She had seen Jiang Chulong with that expression before and subdued her expression:
“Is it hard to let go? We can find another place and open one just like it.”
“It’s not the same… this place… is Brother Li’s gift…”
Jiang Chulong’s face went pale, her voice trembling lightly.
She was oblivious to the grand schemes of the world and had no idea what was unfolding in the South Border.
She wanted to wait here for Brother Li to return.
At that moment, Zuo Qiuyang, a killer from Misty Rain Tower, rushed in holding a sheet of paper:
“Big trouble! Huge trouble!”
“What’s the big trouble?”
“The beef and lamb in the city have been bought out by one person, not a single half-pound left! What are we going to do for hotpot? Isn’t this just malicious competition from other hotpot restaurants?!”
“Scram!”
“???”
………
Yunzhou.
Now the entire Hangtong Trading Company was bustling, the workers scurrying around like ants, darting in and out of the warehouse.
“Short on manpower? What are we feeding you for?”
“If we’re short, go find temporary workers at the docks and offer double… no, triple the pay.”
Son Gui shook off his jiggly belly, the grand manager himself hopping around like a pogo stick.
Just kidding.
This order had come from the God of Wealth! If successful, he might just get promoted from the Yunzhou branch directly to the Imperial Capital’s main branch!
“Goodness, what exactly is Young Hero Li planning?”
“With all this food, we could muster an army, make a call to arms…”
Son Gui wiped the sweat from his forehead, muttering to himself.
“What’s going on?”
Suddenly, a voice came from behind him, and he turned to see Li Mo standing at the warehouse entrance, holding a bottle of miraculous essence—some precious item that replenished the consciousness soul.
Young Hero Li gulped down two swigs, sending Son Gui’s liver into a tremor.
At this rate, what consciousness soul could withstand that?
And when did he arrive? How come he hadn’t sensed a thing…?
That was some speedy business from the South Border—he hadn’t heard a thing about it!
“First batch is about ready—meat, grains, oil…”
Son Gui handed over the list while asking:
“Forgive my blabbering, Young Hero Li, but grain prices in Yunzhou have risen by twenty percent. If we don’t want to affect local livelihoods, the next batch will have to be shipped in from elsewhere, and I can only imagine how much that will cost.”
“Ship it in, that’s the plan.”
Li Mo nodded, using world seeds to pack the supplies in the warehouse.
Seeing that, Son Gui was left gaping.
Such a big mind-bending scenario, he had never heard of anything like it.
Another day for Yunzhou’s richest to get their imagination limited by poverty.
…..
South Border, Qingmu City.
The entire city was on high alert, already in a war-prepared state, with tension in the air.
There were flying Disaster Beasts of foreign tribes acting as scouts, lurking menacingly around Qingmu City.
Before the army moved, the provisions came first, and the granary of Green Wood Camp was naturally the most heavily guarded place.
Guarding this place were the personal soldiers of Qu Sheng.
Flames flickered as this chief stood with hands behind his back in front of the granary.
Cold winds swept through the empty granary behind him, producing a woeful howling sound.
“Did Young Hero Li say he wants the granary of Green Wood Camp to be overflowing?”
“He said that, and then he left.”
Huang Donglai stood nearby, nodding.
“…..”
Qu Sheng frowned, his expression complicated.
Rationality told him that this was not a realistic proposal.
Firstly, with eighty thousand men, they would consume a minimum of hundreds of thousands of pounds of provisions daily. The amount of food consumed during a battle is dauntingly exaggerated, even the Imperial Court would have to think twice lest they suffer great losses.
Not to mention, could they even supply it?
Even if they managed to procure it, how could it be delivered on time?
For one person to supply provisions to an army over vast distances in a short time was an outrageous tale indeed.
If anyone else had said it, he would never take it to heart.
As time passed, Qu Sheng began to wonder if Young Hero Li had already decided to leave but couldn’t bear to show his face before taking off, thus throwing out some grandiose statement.
In his understanding, that young hero wasn’t the type, yet one could never know the mind of another, especially when life and d*ath were at stake…
Suddenly.
Qu Sheng looked startled.
The mournful howling of the wind had inexplicably quieted, like something was blocking it.
He turned around.
There stood a tall silhouette of a youth, and with a careless swipe, opened some kind of wondrous space.
Within, a mountain of supplies was vaguely visible.
“Sorry to keep you waiting, Commander Qu.”
It was him, him, it was really him!
“…You really… came back?”
Qu Sheng was left stunned, a bit slow on the uptake.
Of course.
How could he possibly leave alone?
The Cold Fairy was still in the city!
