Li Jun did not answer him immediately. Something in his expression was taut.
"Xiaoliang," he began, "can't you help me fulfill my wish, just this once?"
Wang Xiaoliang froze for a moment.
"Fulfill your wish?"
"One important reason I became a Daoist back then was that I'd borrowed money from you. As for why, you and this teacher know better than anyone." Li Jun straightened the hem of his Daoist robe and crossed his legs the other way. "All these years practicing Daoism, my mind hasn't been pure-I've kept thinking about how to make money. Later, I actually worked out a method for making money using Daoist thinking and traditional culture. I put it into practice, and the returns have been decent."
"If the returns are decent, why leave the religious life? Keep being a Daoist. Any Daoist with some real attainment is worth money." Wang Xiaoliang had heard both Liu Xinyu and his son and Fan Qishan's uncle say that making money was easy for Master Yimu. But Master Yimu had genuine abilities. Whether this Sanmu had any was still uncertain.
"A Daoist's status does offer certain inherent advantages when making money." Li Jun paused. "But it also makes many things inconvenient. I've wanted to return to secular life for a long time, but practitioners of Daoism believe in the right circumstances. We can't simply walk away. Borrowing money from you back then was the cause, and it also left a knot unresolved. Once it's repaid, once I've settled this debt to you, my wish will be fulfilled, and the right circumstances will have arrived. There'll be no more obstacles to returning to secular life. Then the road to making money will be wide open."
Wang Xiaoliang stared at the leather case without a word.
The man in sunglasses