Punishing Him with Women's Clothes—What Are You Up To?

Xiao Family Back Mountain.

Xiao Yan sat cross-legged on the grass, closed his eyes, focused his mind, and began cultivating.

As the Dou Qi in his body steadily rose, he finally reached the Fifth Stage of Dou Qi.

Not long after, Xiao Yan opened his eyes and carefully sensed the Dou Qi within him, immediately breaking into delighted excitement.

"I've finally reached the Fifth Stage of Dou Qi."

Old Yao floated out, looked at Xiao Yan with satisfaction, and stroked his beard.

"Not bad, not bad. Fifth Stage of Dou Qi already, though your cultivation is still a little slow."

"Teacher, I've reached the Fifth Stage of Dou Qi in such a short time. Even geniuses can't be faster than me, can they?"

Xiao Yan looked at Old Yao with a wry smile.

"That's true. Then keep cultivating. My soul cannot remain out for too long."

"Mm."

He picked up the Dou Technique Scroll, returned to his room, and opened the cabinet, only to find that there were just two pieces of Peach Pastry left.

"Only two pieces of Peach Pastry left. I'm going through them pretty quickly. I'll go buy a few more from Ruyi Zhai later, then come back and focus on cultivating."

On the second floor of the Mittel Auction House, in that same room, ten pieces of Peach Pastry wrapped in paper, which Gu Ni had brought back, were laid out on the table.

Ya Fei sat beside the table, examining the paper package as she spoke.

"This is the Peach Pastry rumored to raise Dou Qi over at the Xiao Family Market?"

Gu Ni answered from the side.

"Yes, Miss."

"Then I must see whether this Peach Pastry is truly as miraculous as they say."

As she spoke, Ya Fei opened the package and took out a piece of Peach Pastry, examining it carefully. The surface was dotted with crushed Walnut and Black Sesame. A fragrance blending walnuts and black sesame drifted into Ya Fei's nose, startling her slightly.

"Just this fragrance alone is rather extraordinary."

She then lightly took a bite of the Peach Pastry, and an indescribable flavor instantly spread through her mouth.

A few seconds later, Ya Fei felt her Dou Qi rise a little.

It was not that she disliked cultivating; her talent was simply lacking, and her Dou Qi cultivation was very low. Yet this Peach Pastry had brought her a glimmer of hope.

Perhaps she could use Peach Pastry to raise her Dou Qi cultivation.

From what she could tell, this Peach Pastry would not bring her any side effects.

"It truly is good stuff. Master, who is the shopkeeper of that store? Would he be willing to cooperate with our auction house?"

Ya Fei put down the Peach Pastry in her hand, turned to Gu Ni, and asked.

Gu Ni said apologetically.

"The shopkeeper of Ruyi Zhai is named Xiao Cheng. He seems like a decent man, but he firmly refused to cooperate with us. He even said we were driving up prices."

Gu Ni shook his head helplessly, feeling rather regretful.

"Oh, Xiao Cheng. An interesting shopkeeper. We can try to build a relationship with him."

"That store really is not simple. I observed its decorations—they are quite unique, unlike anything I have ever seen. And I have always felt that Shop Owner Xiao must have a major force supporting him from behind."

"If it is truly as you say, Master, then I will have to make a personal trip to Ruyi Zhai. I am quite interested in this Shop Owner Xiao."

Ya Fei smiled softly, her smile carrying a captivating charm.

Xiao Cheng searched through the back kitchen for the method of making Peanut Candy.

"First roast the peanuts, then split them all into halves. Next, boil the sugar syrup, then pour the peanuts into it. Finally, put it into a mold. To keep it from sticking, brush a layer of oil over the surface, press it flat, cut it into pieces, and package it."

Although those were roughly the steps, there were still some details he needed to recall carefully.

"Forget it. I'll just start making it first."

He first took out the high-quality peanuts provided by Xiao Dian. Since they were already roasted peanuts, he did not need to spend more effort roasting them. He only needed to remove the skins and split them into halves.

Just processing the peanuts kept him busy for more than half an hour, and his hands were beginning to ache.

"Phew... Good heavens, I finally finished dealing with the peanuts. Next is boiling the sugar syrup."

The sugar syrup could be made with ordinary white sugar, or with glucose and maltose. However, the syrup for Peanut Candy did not require glucose or maltose, though a small amount of glucose could be added to improve the flavor.

He first found a large pot and poured in a large amount of White Sugar. Then he lit the fire—not too high—and stirred clockwise with a large spoon until the granulated sugar turned into Syrup.

Boiling the sugar syrup was a slow process; there was no rushing it.

About twenty minutes passed, and the syrup was nearly done. He then poured the prepared peanuts into the pot, followed by some Sesame, which could improve the flavor of the Peanut Candy.

He quickly stirred the peanuts and syrup until they were evenly mixed, then prepared the mold and brushed a layer of oil over its surface to prevent sticking.

He poured the Peanut Candy from the pot into the mold and used a tool to press the surface flat.

For this step, Xiao Cheng slowly pressed it down with a spatula. It took him a full seven or eight minutes to finish.

Wiping the sweat from his forehead, Xiao Cheng said,

"I've finally made the Peanut Candy. All that's left is to turn it out and slice it."

Immediately afterward, Xiao Cheng overturned the mold onto the chopping board, used a large knife to cut it into long strips, then divided those strips into small pieces of Peanut Candy.

It took about ten more minutes before the Peanut Candy was finally complete.

He swiftly arranged the cut Peanut Candy on the Iron Tray. At the same time, Xiao Dian's notification sounded in his mind.

Side Quest completed. Would you like to claim the Quest Reward?

"Hehe, this shopkeeper is a genius. Look, I completed the quest in such a short time. Hahaha!"

"Host, do you need me to cancel the Quest Reward?"

"Cough, cough. No, absolutely not. I'll claim it, okay?"

He was genuinely afraid that Xiao Dian would cancel the quest reward. Sure enough, he still could not get too full of himself, or he would easily get beaten down.

Then Xiao Cheng felt the Dou Qi within him rise rapidly, breaking through into the Ninth Stage of Dou Qi. He was a full Fourth Stage of Dou Qi higher than Xiao Yan's current realm.

Feeling the Dou Qi in his body, Xiao Cheng clenched his fist.

"I've grown stronger again. Other people grow stronger through cultivation or swallowing pills, while I grow stronger by running a store. I'm one of a kind."

He smiled and shook his head, no longer dwelling on it. He carried the Peanut Candy over and placed it inside the Glass Cover. Only then did he remember that he had not set a price for it, so he asked Xiao Dian.

"Xiao Dian, how many Gold Coins should this Peanut Candy cost?"

"The Peanut Candy was made by the host, so you may set the price yourself."

"Oh, there's something that good? If I set the price myself, how many Gold Coins would be suitable?"

He rubbed his chin and stared at the Peanut Candy on the Iron Tray, deep in thought.

After a while, he smiled.

"I'll set it at 66 Gold Coins. As the saying goes, sixes bring smooth sailing. It also goes nicely with eighty-eight."

Thus, Peanut Candy marked at 66 Gold Coins was added to the pastry prices at Ruyi Zhai.

But just as he was feeling pleased, Xiao Dian's notification sounded again.

Upon hearing Xiao Dian's notification, Xiao Cheng suddenly had a bad feeling.

He opened the Personal Panel and saw a new quest. Just as expected.

Host: Xiao Cheng
Identity: Shopkeeper of Ruyi Zhai, Xiao Family Market
Shopkeeper Level: Novice Level
Realm: Ninth Stage of Dou Qi
Martial Skill: None
Items: None
Evaluation: You are merely a rookie who has just started out. You could be wiped out by the big shots at any time. Develop carefully for the happiness of you, me, and everyone.

Main Quest: Have the host learn and proficiently make God-Tier Honeyed Shortbread, then sell one hundred portions (61/100)
Quest Reward: Method for making God-Tier Honeyed Three-Knife Pastry
Quest Failure: The host sings "Conquer" on the street
Quest Time: Seven days

Side Quest: Have the host sell one hundred portions of Peanut Candy (0/100)
Quest Reward: One random pastry recipe
Quest Failure: The host wears women's clothes for seven days and may not take them off
Quest Time: Seven days

When Xiao Cheng saw the punishment for quest failure, several black lines immediately appeared across his forehead. His expression turned furious, and he opened his mouth to curse.

You actually want me to wear women's clothes. What... what are you up to?!

"@##@#@*"

No matter how he cursed at Xiao Dian, there was no response at all.