Huang Deyou

The next day, after school, Jiang Ding wandered aimlessly through the city.

"Steamed buns for sale..."

"Pancakes... wontons..."

Jiang Ding rested a hand on his sword hilt. It was early morning, and the fragrance of every kind of street snack wafted into his nose, but he had no desire to sample them. He would not put food from another world into his mouth.

Among the passing crowd were wealthy families dressed in silk, well-off families in ordinary cloth, laborers and shop hands in short outfits from all walks of life. Most wore decent expressions. There were beggars too, but few of them.

There were also quite a few wanderers carrying sabers and swords. Even when they were occasionally bumped by passersby, they merely cursed angrily; no bloody incidents occurred.

"By the standards of an ancient feudal society, this probably counted as an era of great peace and prosperity?" Jiang Ding thought silently. "This Marquis Zhen Dong is a capable and diligent official, the sort who has won the people's hearts. With this level of productivity, martial artists, gangs, sects, all sorts of local tyrants and officials interfering and plundering... being able to achieve this is impressive."

Up ahead, people had gathered in a crowd, most of them wanderers armed with weapons.

With nothing to do for the moment, Jiang Ding followed the flow of people over.

Before he drew near, dense clangs of metal weapons striking each other rang out from a fighting platform, surrounded by a circle of wanderers watching the show.

Jiang Ding looked over and saw two young martial artists in fitted black and white outfits fighting. Both carried the aura of initial Inner Qi Realm cultivation.

Between the saber and staff flashing back and forth... it was difficult to put into words.

Not only were they far inferior to his Inner Qi Realm classmates, they even seemed much weaker than Gong Caiyu and that iron-spear martial artist he had encountered before.

"As expected of River-Mixing Monkey Yuan Ye. Breaking through to the Inner Qi Realm at such a young age, he must have inherited the true teachings of Old Master Yuan, the Heaven-Overturning Divine Monkey..."

"Our Righteousness Gang's young gang leader, Righteousness Saber Yang Dong, isn't weak either!"

"These two are both outstanding talents of East Spirit Prefecture. If they temper themselves for another few years, they may well have a chance at the Dragon-Phoenix Ranking!"

The surrounding martial artists discussed enthusiastically, while the young fighters looked on with envy.

"Why are these two fighting?" someone asked.

"What else could it be? One is the young hall master of Dragon Tiger Martial Hall, the other is the young gang leader of the Righteousness Gang. They've looked down on each other since childhood, and they're both pursuing the Flying Snow Fairy of the Dragon-Phoenix Ranking. Neither could gain the upper hand, so today, after one broke through, he wanted to hold his head high and vent his pride. Who would've thought that, by sheer coincidence, the other had broken through too?"

"The Flying Snow Fairy... is that the one from the Seven Profound Sect?"

"Of course. It wasn't easy for East Spirit Prefecture to produce a Dragon-Phoenix Ranking prodigy. Perhaps she may achieve Innate cultivation in the future."

"Innate cultivation is easier said than done..."

Clang!

As they spoke, River-Mixing Monkey Yuan Ye smashed the long saber away with one strike of his staff. His bronze staff stopped above his opponent's head as he declared in high spirits, "The Righteousness Saber is nothing more than this!"

Righteousness Saber Yang Dong's expression darkened.

Yuan Ye grew even more energized.

"This is only the beginning. One day, I will surely shatter all enemies with my staff, set foot upon Gold Iron Mountain, and rescue..."

"Ahem, ahem!"

An old man beneath the platform coughed, interrupting his grand speech.

"Hmph!"

River-Mixing Monkey Yuan Ye snorted coldly. Without even looking at his defeated opponent, he leaped off the platform and left.

With the excitement gone, the crowd dispersed. Jiang Ding did as well.

As he wandered about with the crowd, a proper-looking young servant in blue approached him before long and bowed. "Greetings, Young Master. This humble one is Huang Gui of the Four Seas Merchant Guild. You may call me Little Gui."

Jiang Ding was not surprised that the Four Seas Merchant Guild had found him. His features were obvious enough; if the Four Seas Merchant Guild truly held the power the other party had claimed, finding someone would be easy.

"Brother Huang..."

"You honor this humble one too greatly. Please just call me Little Gui," the blue-clad servant hurriedly said.

"Brother Huang, may I ask how your guild has handled the matter of the Fierce Tiger Stronghold bandits?" Jiang Ding asked with a smile. The other man was around twenty-six or twenty-seven; calling him Little Gui was inappropriate.

He himself was merely an ordinary commoner, without ability or wealth. He relied entirely on the immortal sect's platform and was no nobler than the other man.

"In reply to our honored guest, Deity Bai of the guild has already led people up the mountain." The blue-clad servant spoke carefully. "Deity Bai is an expert at Inner Qi Great Accomplishment. He will certainly make the Fierce Tiger Stronghold pay dearly in compensation and ensure that, after collecting tolls in the future, they no longer attack the Four Seas Merchant Guild's goods."

"Oh? Only that? Could the Fierce Tiger Stronghold be some great power?" Jiang Ding was surprised. According to what he had learned, the Four Seas Merchant Guild counted as a major merchant guild throughout the entire Yue Kingdom. Long San had not merely been boasting.

"That is not the case."

The blue-clad servant said cautiously, "The Four Seas Merchant Guild is a merchant guild, and has always sought harmony and prosperity. So long as no Long Clan descendants are killed, there generally will not be bloodshed. At most, we retaliate through methods such as blocking trade routes and raising prices. Therefore, it is perfectly normal for us to be suppressed in certain places."

"Your guild's far-sighted wisdom is truly admirable."

"Perhaps such conduct is often looked down upon by others," Jiang Ding flattered him, "yet it allows your guild to spread everywhere without arousing the jealousy of local rulers, thus earning the name Four Seas."

Huang Gui forced a smile.

After pondering for a moment.

"I want to rent a shop with goods sold in the front and living quarters in the back. A remote location is fine. The annual rent should be around ten taels of silver. Do you have anything suitable?"

The blue-clad servant thought for a moment. "Honored guest, this way, please."

The two turned left and right, passing through clean, orderly Stone Tablet avenues before stepping onto dirt roads. The clothes of the people around them gradually became worn and tattered, many covered in patches, while puddles and small pits appeared on the road from time to time.

Soon, they arrived before a blacksmith shop with its main doors shut.

"Honored guest, please take a look."

The blue-clad servant lowered his voice. "This Mo Family Blacksmith Shop perfectly meets your requirements. Its storefront spans more than three zhang, with a small courtyard in the rear where fruits and vegetables are grown. It used to rent for fifteen or sixteen taels, but now you need only pay five taels."

"It's just that there are some loose ends..."

"Brother Huang, please explain." Jiang Ding's tone was calm.

"There is a small gang nearby called the Wild Wolf Gang. One of their minor leaders, Liu Qi, wants to purchase this property at a low price. He has repeatedly sent people here, forcing the owner, the blacksmith, to the point where he cannot continue his business. If you open a shop here, you may likewise come into conflict with him."

"Do you know him?" Jiang Ding smiled faintly.

"Honored guest, please forgive me!" The blue-clad servant panicked. "This humble one..."

"No, it's fine."

Jiang Ding waved a hand. "Let's find another place. Smaller is fine too."

Even if there was some suspicion of being used, they had made everything clear beforehand, and the price was indeed much cheaper.

But he did not wish to invite trouble.

After circling around, the two came before an even more secluded shop. Huang Gui took out a key and led Jiang Ding inside.

The storefront was only a little over one zhang wide, and the rear courtyard consisted of merely two small rooms, barely enough to house several people.

"The owner is asking nine taels for this place. In this humble one's view, seven taels should close the deal." Huang Gui smiled ingratiatingly.

"Fine. We'll take it."

Jiang Ding asked again, "At current rates, how much monthly pay does it take to hire an experienced general-store manager?"

Huang Gui considered it. "At least five hundred copper coins. The more experienced they are and the better their past performance, the higher the monthly pay. It also depends on the size of the shop and so on."

Jiang Ding took out an official silver ingot of ten taels and handed it to him, then added another two or three taels of silver.

"I won't meet the original owner. Just bring me the deed. Handle the government matters as well. Also, how many days will it take to clean, arrange, and hire a manager for this general store?"

"One day will do."

"Fine, then that's settled. Whatever remains is yours."

Stuffing the silver into Huang Gui's arms, Jiang Ding walked into the dust-filled shop.

The next day, when the shop doors opened, a little dust scattered in all directions.

Two people stood outside, covered in morning dew. It was unknown how long they had been waiting.

"Greetings, honored guest. Greetings, proprietor." The two bowed respectively.

"Hello, both of you."

Jiang Ding was rather satisfied. His whereabouts had always been uncertain, so it was naturally excellent when others knew how to observe proper boundaries. He looked toward the short, stout middle-aged man behind Huang Gui.

"Brother Huang, who is this?"

"I was just about to introduce him." Huang Gui hurriedly said, "This is my clan uncle, Huang Deyou. He previously served as the steward in charge of procuring medicinal herbs for the Four Seas Merchant Guild. After Shopkeeper Long arrived, he replaced him with his own trusted people, so my uncle became idle."

"He asks for one tael of silver a month. This humble one used the money you gave me to pay three months' wages in advance. If you are dissatisfied, I can find someone else for you."

The short, stout middle-aged man cupped his hands. "This humble one is Huang Deyou. Greetings, Proprietor."

Jiang Ding could not make much of him at a glance, so he nodded.

"Fine, this will do. Brother Huang, many thanks."

Huang Gui nodded and bowed, then departed.

"Manager Huang used to handle medicinal herbs. That does fit the work..."

Jiang Ding pondered for a moment before stating his requirements. "I want to purchase plants. Every kind of plant, one specimen each, with roots, stems, and leaves intact. More or less like this."

He took out a specimen board of a grass-family plant that he had prepared yesterday and handed it over.

"Can this be done?"

Huang Deyou accepted the specimen board. Though puzzled, he did not ask further questions. After examining it carefully for a long while, he said, "Proprietor, it can be done. The herb-gathering children of the Four Seas Merchant Guild can easily do this, and ordinary people can as well, though they will need more instruction."

"If we purchase specimens like this, how much should we offer?"

Huang Deyou considered for a long time before answering, "Proprietor, for plants like this, skilled herb gatherers can dig up and prepare more than ten specimens in half a shichen. Finding them takes time, of course, and we will not purchase duplicates... At the beginning, one copper coin for two specimens will do."

Jiang Ding was astonished. "One copper coin for two specimens? Isn't that too little?"

"It is not too little, Proprietor." Huang Deyou said seriously. "A sheng of rice costs only twenty-one or twenty-two copper coins! Working five or six shichen a day, they can earn two sheng of rice! And we are not collecting medicinal herbs from deep mountains. Even wild grass growing everywhere by the roadside will do."

"Let's make it one copper coin per specimen."

Jiang Ding sighed and casually took the remaining seventeen-plus taels of silver from his purse, handing them to him. "Start collecting from now on. I want them tomorrow. Also, fix up the storefront and the rest of the shop."

The instant Huang Deyou touched the silver, his heart jolted.

They had only met for the first time and barely knew one another, yet Jiang Ding had placed such a large sum of money directly in his hands.

"There is only one thing."

Jiang Ding said faintly, "Every specimen must be complete. The roots, stems, and leaves must not suffer the slightest damage. Understood?"

Huang Deyou's expression turned solemn. "Rest assured, Proprietor. These eyes of mine have examined medicinal herbs for so many years. There will absolutely not be the slightest mistake!"

"Mm."

Jiang Ding said nothing further. His hand lightly stroked his sword hilt as he stared into the distance, seemingly lost in thought.

Huang Deyou bowed slightly and went off to hire people and get to work.