Chapter 515 (2): Pondering

Chen Ping'an also rose to his feet, and the smile on his face faded as he said, "Before you return to the Golden Crow Palace to commence your sword-cleansing journey, there's one final thing I have to ask you."

"Go ahead," Liu Zhiqing prompted.

"What gives you the right to mandate that everything in the Golden Crow Palace goes according to your will?" Chen Ping'an asked.

Liu Zhiqing offered no response.

"Think of an answer to that question before you begin cleansing your sword," Chen Ping'an advised.

Liu Zhiqing smiled as he replied, "That's a very simple question to answer. If I succeed in cleansing my sword, then the Golden Crow Palace will have a Nascent Tier swordsman. All the hardships they had to endure during my sword-cleansing journey will be compensated for when they get to enjoy the protection of a Nascent Tier swordsman."

"Swordsmen truly are direct and straightforward people," Chen Ping'an scoffed.

"Should I be like you then?" Liu Zhiqing countered. "Should I waste all my time sunbathing in front of a shop or picking pebbles out of a stream?"

"Get out of here, just the very sight of you pisses me off," Chen Ping'an said with a dismissive wave. "I get even more pissed off when I think of the possibility that you could become a Nascent Tier swordsman in the future. Once that happens, how am I going to make you eat dirt during our future sparring matches?"

"You want to act all pissed off, but internally, I know you're laughing!" Liu Zhiqing scoffed. "Those pebbles are only worth a few hundred taels of silver each, but I'm sure you're going to be selling them for at least a snowflake coin each! I bet you've already hatched a plan.

“You're going to hold onto those forty-nine pebbles for now, then sell them when they're at their most valuable. Ideally, you're going to wait until after I've reached the Nascent Tier before you sell them, right?"

"Your business talents are being wasted! You really need to start running a shop like me!" Chen Ping'an chortled.

Liu Zhiqing was just about to depart when Chen Ping'an suddenly said, "I'll give you a piece of advice free of charge. Once you return to the Golden Crow Palace, don't be in a hurry to begin cleansing your sword right away. Instead, you can become... an accountant of sorts. Keep a copy of your ancestral hall's genealogical records with you, then observe the Golden Crow Palace from your mountain for a year or so.

“Observe the words and actions of all of the cultivators in your Golden Crow Palace and record them, then compare them with their initial starting points and their current cultivation bases. Think about why they speak and behave in the manner that they do. The longer you do this, the deeper an understanding you'll be able to gain on everyone around you, and when you do finally begin cleansing your sword, it will feel much easier."

"That sounds like a good idea," Liu Zhiqing replied with a nod.

Chen Ping'an waved farewell as he said, "Best of luck with your sword cleansing, Sword Immortal Liu."

"What's going to happen to that shop of yours after you leave?" Liu Zhiqing asked.

"I'll just leave it to one of Song Lanqiao's disciples or someone from the Nightglow Grass Hall, and I'll split the revenue with them 90:10," Chen Ping'an replied with a smile. "I've left a few immortal treasures in the shop. There's a pair of golden crowns, one large and one small, a throne that once belonged to a certain lake lord of Verdant Bamboo Lake, among some other things.

“In any case, the prices are all set in stone, so once I return to the shop and tally up my stock, I'll know how much money I should've earned. If something goes missing or is stolen in my absence, I'm sure the Spring Dew Garden will compensate me accordingly, so I don't have to worry about incurring any losses."

As for things like the reddish-purple Dao robe, Chen Ping'an wasn't going to sell them.

Immortal artifacts of this nature were quite special and extremely precious. They were like Militarian armor pellets, and one could never have too many of such things, particularly seeing as more and more people were going to be settling on Downtrodden Mountain in the future.

A hesitant look suddenly appeared on Liu Zhiqing's face.

"Alright, spit it out, which item of my collection have you taken a liking to?" Chen Ping'an asked. "I can give you a friendship discount of 20%, but no more than that."

"There are so many sets of divine maiden murals being sold in your shop for two lesser heat coins per set, and it doesn't look like there have been any takers, so how about you gift me a set? It's too hurtful to bring up money between friends."

Chen Ping'an took a glance in the direction of Old Locust Street as he sighed, "My shop's too far away."

"I can go to your shop to get it myself. Make sure to buy a new lock afterward," Liu Zhiqing said.

Chen Ping'an pulled out a set of divine maiden murals from his minimization treasure with a reluctant groan, then tossed it to Liu Zhiqing along with the wooden box.

Liu Zhiqing tucked the wooden box up his sleeve with a pleased expression.

He was someone who appreciated beautiful women and scenery, as well as fine wine and tea. He had several maidservants on the Smelting Peak of the Golden Crow Palace, and they were all exceptional in the looks department, but he treated them much like fine pieces of scenery.

Furthermore, given their beauty and mediocre aptitude, if he didn't take them under his wing, then they would surely be killed by the cruel wife of the Golden Crow Palace Master.

"These are already some premium murals, but I actually have two sets of Pang Shanling's most prized work, which excel far beyond even these," Chen Ping'an suddenly said.

"You can keep those for yourself," Liu Zhiqing said with a shake of his head. "A gentleman never takes someone else's prized possessions."

Chen Ping'an raised his thumb and index finger before rubbing them together.

"I have no money!" Liu Zhiqing snapped.

Chen Ping'an lowered his hand with a smile as he said, "I can't give you those two sets of murals, but once I return to the Flax Robe Sect in the future, I can have a chat with Pang Shanling and try to convince him to illustrate another set for you. If he agrees, then I'll send the finished product to the Smelting Peak of your Golden Crow Palace. If not, then just pretend like this conversation never happened."

Liu Zhiqing departed from the Luminous Jade Cliff atop his flying sword, while Chen Ping'an also returned to the sea of bamboo on his talismanic boat.

Late that night, Chen Ping'an removed his Sword Nurturing Gourd from his waist before setting it down onto the table, then pulled Sword Immortal out of his bamboo case. After that, he pulled out a rectangular whetstone out of Fifteenth before drawing his sword and swinging it down in a lightning-fast motion, slicing the whetstone into two.

First and Fifteenth hovered in the air beside him, itching to pounce on the split whetstones. Chen Ping'an's entire sword-wielding arm had been rendered completely numb, but he still hurriedly raised Sword Immortal and carefully inspected every single inch of its edge from top to bottom, only heaving a sigh of relief once he ensured that there wasn't even the slightest of chinks or blemishes.

He sat down with his legs crossed, then commenced a process of basic refinement of the two pieces of Dragon Slaying Platform. His plan was to store them in two of his acupoints for First and Fifteenth to use once they left the Sword Nurturing Gourd. From there, they would slowly sharpen themselves while whittling down the two chunks of Dragon Slaying Platform.

This piece of Dragon Slaying Platform was the largest of the three pieces given to him by the sword spirit in Old Dragon City, and he had always been reluctant to feed it to First and Fifteenth.

However, now that he had truly embarked on the path of cultivation and had decided that he was going to refine both First and Fifteenth into bonded items of his, it was the right time to put this piece of Dragon Slaying Platform to use.

Through his sparring matches against Liu Zhiqing, Chen Ping'an had come to realize that he still didn't have anywhere near enough trump cards up his sleeve. Then again, trump cards were something that one could never have too many of.

Even his talismans could be used as a deceptive red herring.

By putting on a Dao robe and hiding a large stack of talismans up his sleeve, he could pose as a cultivator who relied mostly on talismans in battle.

Once the opponent identified this and closed in for melee combat, he would transform into a pure martial artist.

During the battle, he would find the right opportunity to transform into a swordsman, slaying the enemy with his two bonded flying swords.

If all of that didn't work, then he would resort to Sword Immortal as his final trump card.

Early in the morning, Chen Ping'an paid a visit to Old Locust Street, but he didn't open his shop for business. Instead, he went to the shop that specialized in selling scholastic supplies and approached one of the apprentices to propose his business idea.

The young apprentice saw no problem with the proposal, and he told Chen Ping'an that he could craft the forty-nine pebbles from the Luminous Jade Cliff into into various scholastic goods, and that he could get the job done in three days for ten snowflake coins, but on one condition: the finished products were not to be sold in the Pi Fu shop.

Chen Ping'an agreed to this condition, and the two of them agreed to discuss some further details at Chen Ping'an's shop once the apprentice was finished with his work for the day.

After that, Chen Ping'an traveled to the Nightglow Grass Hall to meet Immortal Tang, one of the two wealthiest cultivators of the Spring Dew Garden. He was quite a legendary figure within the Spring Dew Garden. In his formative years, his aptitude was nothing special, and he wasn't even made a disciple of one of ancestral hall's three direct branches.

However, he was an exceptional businessman, and thanks to the immense wealth that he accumulated, he was able to make one breakthrough after another, finally reaching the Golden Core Tier. He would perhaps be looked down on elsewhere, but the Spring Dew Garden had always held business and commerce in high regard, so his efforts earned him a great deal of respect.

Tang Qingqing was naturally also present, but Wei Bai and the old woman had already returned to the Great Guan Empire.

Tang Qingqing brewed tea for the two, and while chatting, her father learned that Chen Ping'an was planning to have someone else look after his shop in his absence, so he volunteered to send a clever and diligent cultivator to look after the shop.

Chen Ping'an proposed a 90:10 revenue split, one that Immortal Tang initially turned down with a smile. In his words, a 10% revenue split was far too much for someone who only had to look after the shop and perform basic money-handling duties. Instead, he suggested setting a fixed yearly salary of thirty snowflake coins. However, Chen Ping'an still felt like a 90:10 revenue split was more reasonable, so Immortal Tang relented.

He asked Chen Ping'an what he planned to do in the situation that something in his shop was able to be sold for above its marked price, to which Chen Ping'an replied that the amount over the marked price that the item was sold for would be split evenly among himself and the person looking after the shop in his stead. Immortal Tang then asked if he could have Chen Ping'an's permission to mark up the prices of the items in his shop by 10% to 20%.

That way, customers would be able to barter, but of course, any price below the original marked price would not be accepted. Chen Ping'an approved and told him that this was a great idea. Sure enough, he was still too inexperienced as a businessman, and having the Nightglow Grass Hall manage his shop was his best option.

After having some tea together and discussing the important matters at hand, the two of them exchanged some more small talk and pleasantries before Chen Ping'an departed.

Tang Qingqing was standing at the entrance with her father, and there was a puzzled look on her face as she said, "Father, I told you everything that happened on the ship. Right now, it's clear that our Spring Dew Garden holds him in very high regard, and even Sword Immortal Liu personally went to the Jingzhe Residence to invite him for tea.

“It's a huge honor for us that he was willing to come here and have some tea, so why were you so stingy? If we really want to establish close ties with him, then why don't we just buy his shop and all of his remaining stock? It's not like we lack the funds. That way, he'll be raking in massive profits, and we'll only incur slight losses. Wouldn't that have been a much better way to handle the situation?"

"That's not how business is conducted," her father replied with a shake of his head. "If he had come to us with the clear intention of asking for money, not only would I have given it to him, I would've given a huge sum without any hesitation.

“However, seeing as he's come here to do business with our Nightglow Grass Hall, then we need to follow the rules. Only then can we expect to enjoy a sustainable collaborative relationship. Otherwise, we could easily be turning a good thing into a bad thing."

Tang Qingqing's father could tell that she still didn't quite understand, so he smiled and continued, "Setting aside extraordinary circumstances in which one was able to come into immense wealth out of the blue, all businessmen under the heavens who want to do business in a sustainable fashion have one common trait, regardless of how they earn their money."

He pulled a copper coin out of his sleeve as he spoke. It was the most ordinary type of copper coin that one would find in a mortal empire, but he had kept it like a prized treasure for many years, and he laid it down onto the palm of his hand as he concluded, "They must all have respect for this thing."

After that, Chen Ping'an paid a visit to an old woman. She was Song Lanqiao's mistress and had instructed him in his cultivation. She was also a Golden Core Tier cultivator, but unlike Song Lanqiao, there was a spot reserved for her in the Spring Dew Garden's ancestral hall.

Essentially, whenever a meeting was held in the ancestral hall, the old woman had the right to occupy one of the eight chairs alongside Matriarch Tan Ling. Tang Qingqing's father also had a seat for himself, but it was near the end, and as for Song Lanqiao, he could only stand.

The old woman was very pleased to see Chen Ping'an, and she chatted with him for close to two hours. Chen Ping'an remained patient and amicable, only getting up to leave once the old woman herself declared that she had already taken up too much of his time, and that she wouldn't keep him any longer.

He had brought the old woman a gift in the form of a spirit tool that wasn't being sold in the Pi Fu shop. It wasn't a particularly precious gift, but it was very thoughtful and unique.

The old woman wanted to reciprocate with a gift of her own, but Chen Ping'an turned her down, telling her that it would be too wearisome if they felt obligated to exchange gifts every time he came to visit, in response to which the old woman burst into laughter.

By the time Chen Ping'an returned to Old Locust Street, it was just past noon, and he opened his shop before sitting down to sunbathe on the small bamboo chair as usual.

Business was not great.

There wasn't a lack of customers, but he only made a single sale in two hours for six snowflake coins. The customer in question was a young female cultivator, and after picking up the item that caught her eye, she tossed down the six snowflake coins onto the counter before leaving in a hurry.

Chen Ping'an was about to tell her to come again next time, but she was already out of earshot.

He regretted not dragging Liu Zhiqing to serve as an employee at his shop.

He was shameless enough to ask for a set of divine maiden murals free of charge, surely he wouldn't feel ashamed working at his shop.

If he refused, Chen Ping'an would tell him that this was also a type of mental cultivation.

At around dusk, the apprentice from the scholastics supplies shop arrived, and after welcoming him inside, Chen Ping'an closed his shop before pulling out the forty-nine pebbles and spreading them all over the counter.

"Are these really from the Luminous Jade Cliff?" the young man asked in an uneasy manner.

"Rest assured, these are not particularly valuable, nor were they stolen. As for exactly how I came into possession of these pebbles, that's not for you to worry about," Chen Ping'an said with a smile. "All you need to know is that I have a shop on Old Locust Street, and I have many things of value here. Do you think I would risk incurring the wrath of Sword Immortal Liu just for a few pebbles?"

The young man was very much reassured to hear this, and he picked up one of the pebbles.

After a thorough inspection, he smiled and remarked, "As expected for a stone from the spring on the Luminous Jade Cliff. It's abundant with water fortune and contains none of the fiery energy that's very difficult to completely eradicate from normal stones. If you brought this to a mortal artisan, they would probably tell you that it's too precious to be used as a crafting material.

“You have yourself a deal, Shopkeeper. I've been learning from my master for many years, but given the high standards of our shop, it's difficult to find suitable materials to work on. Whenever we come across a piece of good material, our master always likes to work on it himself in case it goes to waste, so us apprentices can only stand by and watch. This will be a great opportunity for me to get some practice in..."

The young man's voice trailed off into an awkward silence here, but Chen Ping'an smiled as he said, "It's fine. That was a little blunt, but I'm glad you're telling me the truth. Even if these are only going to be used as practice for you, I still want you to do the best job possible. That's all the materials that I have, so each pebble that you screw up will be one fewer pebble for you to work on."

A confident look appeared on the young man's face, and he clasped a hand over his chest as he promised, "These will be my first-ever works, so I'll be sure to give them my full attention and care."

"In that case, I'll give you the first pebble as a congratulatory gift," Chen Ping'an said with a smile.

"I can't accept that," the young man said in an embarrassed manner.

Chen Ping'an pointed at the pebbles on the counter as he smiled and said, "You can pick whichever one you like, but you have to promise me to take just as much care with all of the pebbles as you will with the first one."

"You can count on me, Shopkeeper!" the young man declared with a look of resolve and gratitude in his eyes. "I will put my heart and soul into every single one of these pebbles, and I'll be sure to vindicate your decision to choose me."

Chen Ping'an smiled and nodded in response.

Just like pottery firing, experience was required for one to improve at stone carving, and the initial steps were always going to be the most difficult ones.

As long as the young man truly put his full effort and care into carving the first pebble, that would carry over to all of the remaining pebbles. Even if he were to slack off just a little, the overall quality of the final products would still be superior compared with if he were to carve all of the pebbles purely on a transactional basis.

The better the finished products, the more they would sell for, and the overall improvement in quality could easily cover the cost of a single pebble.

Nothing was truly simple, it was just a matter of how much thought one was willing to put in.

As for whether the young apprentice would ruin his own future with his master by taking on this private job, that was not something for Chen Ping'an to worry about.

There was no lack of shrewd individuals in the Spring Dew Garden.

Chen Ping'an told the young man to take all the pebbles with him, and that all he needed to do was have the finished products delivered to the Pi Fu shop with each one that he completed. Chen Ping'an told him to tell the new shopkeeper that he was a friend of the old shopkeeper. That way, there would be no confusion on the part of the new shopkeeper.

Alternatively, he could come to the shop each time he was finished with a pebble to pick up a new one. After some contemplation, the young man decided that the latter option was safer. He assured Chen Ping'an that if he were to somehow lose a pebble, then he would pay one snowflake coin out of his own pocket.

With that, the young man departed, while Chen Ping'an watched from the entrance of his shop.

He felt as if he could see a past version of himself in the young man, a young boy in straw sandals delivering letters for a single copper coin apiece.

From there, the Pi Fu shop was closed for two days, and upon its reopening, it had a new shopkeeper. Those who were in the know identified the shopkeeper as a cultivator from the Nightglow Grass Hall. He provided impeccable customer service, tending to the needs of every customer, and finally, bartering was permitted.

On this day, Chen Ping'an put on his conical bamboo hat, and with his bamboo case on his back and his hiking pole in his hand, he declared to the two maidservants of the residence that he was going to be leaving the Spring Dew Garden.

The young woman that was the direct disciple to the Golden Core Tier cultivator informed him that Matriarch Tan had instructed them to tell him that the talismanic boat was his to keep.

Chen Ping'an thanked the young woman and accepted the gift.

He traveled to Old Locust Street atop his talismanic flying boat, and at the end of the street were several acres of old locust trees.

He stood under one of the trees for a long while, looking up at the tree as he reminisced about his past.