Lu Yang smiled faintly. "Good things take time. I'm not short on Spirit Stones right now, so you can develop things at your own pace. There's no need to rush."
"Yes." Shang Qingzhi hesitated, then said, "This servant dares to ask the young master to help me improve my cultivation. In this vast city of Qingzhou, there are some matters that are truly difficult for me to handle with my Xiantian Realm cultivation."
Lu Yang was taken aback, then smiled. "I was careless. Wait a few days, and I'll be back before long."
Lu Yang naturally understood the little plan Shang Qingzhi had in mind.
She wanted to seize this opportunity to improve her cultivation and prepare for the day she could rescue her parents and kin, who had been exiled.
Even with a reliable master like Lu Yang, she couldn't place all her hopes in him.
But Lu Yang didn't mind.
After all, Shang Qingzhi wasn't speaking without reason.
Her Xiantian Realm cultivation might have been enough in a place like Wanlin Prefecture.
But in the sprawling city of Qingzhou, the most prosperous place in all of Qing Province, where the strongest gathered, mere Xiantian Realm cultivation was nowhere near enough to protect a shop of such great value.
Even the shop assistants hired in Qingzhou City for a handful of Spirit Stones probably had Xiantian Realm cultivation!
As the shop's nominal owner, if Shang Qingzhi had only Xiantian Realm cultivation, she would easily be looked down upon in dealings with others and in business.
To put it plainly, even in the relatively safe city of Qingzhou, this was still a world where the strong preyed on the weak.
Ultimately, Shang Qingzhi's shop had been opened for his benefit, too. If it didn't do well, that wouldn't help him