After sitting down, Sun Desheng did not speak at once. He picked up the teacup and examined the tea leaves, then set it down again. His gaze swept over the room, pausing briefly on the Iron Sword hanging on the wall before returning to Lin Taichu's face.
"I heard that Luofeng City had changed hands from Zhao Laoliu, and I thought some old hand from the city had taken over. I never expected it to be someone as young as Mr. Lin."
"Luofeng City has been half-dead for years. The underground Restriction was useless, more than half the shops in the city had closed down, yet the streets seem much livelier now. Mr. Lin has clearly put in considerable effort since taking over."
"The trade route opened up. With more travelers passing through, the streets naturally became livelier."
Sun Desheng nodded and picked up his teacup again. This time, he took a sip.
"I knew about that small road east of Crosscut Ridge before. Hunters used to take it. The path was narrow and the slopes steep; carts could not pass through, and caravans could not use it. I never expected Mr. Lin to repair it. You have done well. The flow of goods between the Southern Region and Northern Region is much smoother than before. Mr. Lin, you have put your heart into this."
Lin Taichu did not reply after hearing those words. He waited for what came next.
Sun Desheng set down his teacup, circling a finger around its rim.
"After that little road was repaired, quite a few people began using it. I did the calculations. Over these past few days, the goods leaving Luofeng City for the north have increased by more than three times compared to last month."
"These goods originally all passed through White