The Pursuit in Progress

Seeing the anxious expressions on the Wang sisters' faces, Zhao Sheng smiled faintly and said, "I'll be responsible for making the Perfume, and you'll be responsible for selling it. We split the profits fifty-fifty."

"Impossible!" Wang Yuyan blurted out.

Zhao Sheng said unhurriedly, "Nothing is impossible! I imagine you don't want the Wang Family to know about something like Perfume either."

By then, he had firmly seized control of the situation.

The Wang sisters were simply too green. Zhao Sheng easily saw through their thoughts.

"How did you guess?"

When Zhao Sheng exposed their purpose, Wang Yuyan's expression changed drastically.

Zhao Sheng felt he could not keep provoking them. If it produced the opposite effect, that would be troublesome.

He explained, "If the Wang Family knew about this, I don't think the ones who came today would be you two..."

Only then did the Wang sisters realize they had exposed such a huge flaw.

After recovering her composure, Wang Yuyan said seriously, "Half the profits is too much. Eighty-twenty. I take eighty, and you take twenty!"

Zhao Sheng shook his head. "No. Fifty-fifty is my bottom line. After all, I'm providing the raw materials, manpower, and formula. Besides, making Perfume involves complicated steps and is not easy to prepare."

"Without us, your Perfume could never be sold to cultivators. Young Master Zhao, do you have sales channels?"

After Wang Yuyan finished rebutting him, Wang Yuqi suddenly added, "If my grandfather finds out, not only will you fail to earn even these Spirit Stones, you might not be able to keep your life either."

"Oh, that does count as a reason. Fine, I'll take a step back. We split it sixty-forty."

"No..."

Half an hour later, after a round of cordial and friendly discussion, the two sides finally agreed on a seventy-thirty split. Zhao Sheng also generously stated that he would allow the Wang sisters to buy on credit first.

After the negotiation succeeded, Zhao Sheng had imperceptibly drawn closer to the Wang sisters. This had been his greatest purpose today.

Though the plan had changed midway, it had turned out to be a blessing in disguise. With "business" dealings between them, their relationship would only grow closer and closer, until everything fell into place naturally.

After discussing the monthly output of Perfume, Zhao Sheng glanced outside the pavilion and suddenly asked, "Is the person you brought reliable?"

Wang Yuyan was stunned for a moment, then nodded and said firmly, "Wang Si was raised and trained by my father from childhood. He will never betray us!"

"Is your father currently at home?" Zhao Sheng probed.

Though Wang Yuyan lacked experience, she was quite clever. She immediately understood the hidden meaning in Zhao Sheng's words and quickly replied, "He left on business. He won't return for at least half a year."

Mm.

Zhao Sheng nodded after hearing this, temporarily putting aside his intention to kill Wang Si.

At the same time, Wang Si outside the pavilion secretly let out a breath of relief.

Just moments ago, a powerful and piercing Sword Intent had suddenly erupted from that Young Master Zhao and locked onto him.

In that instant, his entire body was pricked with pain by the Sword Intent, and he suddenly had the illusion that he was facing a powerful Innate Sword Sect head-on.

What a terrifying young man! Wang Si was filled with fear. Could it be that this man has already advanced to the Innate realm?

Wang Si could never have imagined that Zhao Sheng possessed powerful Innate Sword Intent, yet had not cultivated Innate True Qi.

Even after exhausting all the True Qi in his body, he could only unleash one killing move equivalent to the full-power strike of an Innate Sword Sect.

And that move was Zhao Sheng's greatest trump card, capable of easily killing any martial artist below the Innate realm.

After that day, their little group of three was officially established.

Zhao Sheng sent a message back to his family by Carrier Pigeon, giving them a general account of the matter.

Before long, a secret workshop somewhere within Zhao Family Fortress was tightly sealed off. At the same time, a large number of trusted clan members were sent inside to begin producing Perfume in bulk.

Meanwhile, Zhao Sheng used the excuse that the Wang sisters lacked experience and might expose flaws, insisting that he accompany them.

Thus, after disguising themselves, the three traveled in and out of the various Cultivation Markets throughout Liang Kingdom, selecting specific shops through which they began selling Perfume in bulk.

During this time, the three encountered danger several times, but Zhao Sheng resolved each crisis one by one with his wealth of experience.

The reason they did not sell retail was because Zhao Sheng knew well that making Perfume was not complicated at all and could not be hidden from those with ulterior motives. Therefore, before the formula was cracked, they had to seize the greatest possible windfall.

The Wang sisters thought the profits could flow on in a thin but steady stream. They could only be said to have been thinking too simply.

The benefits of Perfume were obvious, so the three promoted it very smoothly, and things soon got on track.

Time flew, and in the blink of an eye, four months passed.

During this period, the three earned so much their bowls overflowed with gold and silver, far exceeding even their most optimistic prior estimates.

Yet Wang Yuyan and Wang Yuqi remained gloomy the entire time, wearing long faces every day.

Because that guy had been right again. Sure enough, the Perfume formula had already been cracked by cultivators.

Compared to refining pills, making Perfume truly was very simple.

Zhao Sheng did not care about such paltry profits.

In just two days, he had figured out the sisters' personalities.

The elder sister was rational and clever, but she was a money grubber. The younger sister was impatient and muddleheaded, very vain, and fond of fine food and beautiful clothes.

Four months of constant companionship had caused his relationship with the Wang sisters to advance by leaps and bounds. The younger sister, Wang Yuqi, had fallen deeply in love with him and was already unable to pull herself free from the whirlpool of love.

The reason the progress had been so fast was inseparable from Zhao Sheng's painstaking schemes, as well as two secrets of romance.

One was "Pan, Donkey, Deng, Small, Leisure." The other was a saying: "If she has not yet seen much of the world, take her to witness all its splendor; if her heart is full of life's vicissitudes, take her on the Carousel."

A handsome and dashing young talent, brilliant beyond measure and willing to humble himself, who spent every day thinking up countless ways to please you and make you laugh. Every day, he brought you all kinds of delicious food and gorgeous clothing.

How many women in this world could withstand such temptation?

Wang Yuqi could not. Her elder sister Wang Yuyan appeared clear-headed, but whenever she looked at Zhao Sheng, her eyes often shone with a strange light as well.

"Eight hundred and three, eight hundred and four, eight hundred and—"

In an elegant, spacious room, Wang Yuyan wore a serious expression as she recited numbers, counting the total number of Spirit Stones the three had earned during this period.

On the table before her, a small mountain of Spirit Stones had already piled up.

At that moment, Wang Yuqi, seated beside her in a pink long dress with tassels, suddenly complained impatiently, "Sister Yuyan, stop counting. There are eight hundred and fifty-four Spirit Stones in total. You've counted them dozens of times already. Haven't you had enough?"

"Eight hundred and nine, eight hundred and ten."

Wang Yuyan ignored her younger sister and continued counting at an unhurried pace.

Wang Yuqi was immediately driven nearly mad and cried out, "Zhi Qin-ge said he only wants two hundred and forty Spirit Stones. He doesn't want the remaining change!"