Chapter 40: Honest Business

【Deng Li Buduo】 is evolving too slowly; it is necessary to set up a competitor for him and use a little whip to lash him from behind.

One might only be able to acknowledge one eldest brother, but a teacher can teach many students.

When the students start competing, the teacher naturally has it easier.

In Lin Bai's eyes, there are no useless people; naturally, there are even fewer enemies.

"Brother Lin, I see the environment here is crude; is there anything else that needs investment?" With his long-held anticipation finally about to come true, Luo Congwen was exceptionally excited, trying his best to find ways to draw closer to Lin Bai. "The Luo Family has money when money is needed, and people when people are needed. I see this little shop assistant of yours doesn't look very sharp."

【Resentment from Deng Li Buduo; +1+1】

"Young Master Luo, just mind your own business." 【Deng Li Buduo】 looked at Luo Congwen leisurely. "Having me here is enough for Master."

"So it is a fellow disciple, my apologies!" Luo Congwen hurriedly offered an apology to 【Deng Li Buduo】.

"Little Deng, curb your jealousy." Lin Bai looked at 【Deng Li Buduo】, a flash of perfectly measured disappointment crossing his eyes. "If you cannot control your own emotions, I fear you and I will never have the affinity of master and disciple."

What the hell...

Endure it!

【Deng Li Buduo】 almost jumped up. He took a deep breath, suppressed his irritable emotions, cupped his hands, bowed low to Luo Congwen, and said helplessly, "Young Master Luo, my apologies."

"No matter, no matter." Luo Congwen supported 【Deng Li Buduo】 up with both hands and said sincerely, "So Brother Deng is also a person of affinity chosen by Brother Lin. Since that is the case, we should encourage one another."

This world does not have Confucianism, but its cultural traditions are similar.

Luo Congwen yearns for immortality cultivation, but he has studied literature since childhood; Lin Bai using Confucian standards to demand things of him is simply tailor-made for him.

Compared to him, the restless player 【Deng Li Buduo】 lost from the very beginning.

The most critical point is that Luo Congwen has absolutely no intention of monopolizing Lin Bai. In his impression, immortality cultivation can be done by everyone together; once one enters the gate, they are fellow disciples.

Comparing from this aspect, 【Deng Li Buduo】, who thinks about monopolizing the plot quests, has fallen into a lower tier.

Lin Bai's gaze swept between the two, sighing inwardly; the natives are indeed more in line with the Haoweirenshi System System System's requirements for disciples!

However, the reward the Haoweirenshi System System System gives to the teacher is the feedback from the results of the disciples' cultivation.

On this point alone, the natives are completely defeated; the cultivation feedback Lin Bai needs is something they can never achieve with the barrier-free, rapid leveling of players.

Yet, Lin Bai does not possess the discerning eye to pick a child of destiny from among the thousands of natives...

However.

If he can stimulate 【Deng Li Buduo】, he does not mind taking Luo Congwen as an auditor.

After all, his starting capital was provided by the other party; to a certain extent, Luo Congwen counts as Lin Bai's benefactor, and he cannot let him down.

Song Qing and the others watched from over there, whispering to each other.

Luo Congwen glanced over there, then recalled his own purpose, and could not help but feel a bit awkward: "Brother Lin, I..."

Is the matter of giving money and people just going to pass like this?

Lin Bai looked at Luo Congwen and nodded at him: "A person of cultivation should be unrestrained and free; being timid, fearful, and overly concerned with personal gain or loss is also a flaw."

Luo Congwen was stunned, then overjoyed: "Many thanks for the guidance, Brother Lin. In that case, I shall go!"

Lin Bai watched him return to the shop entrance.

Seeing the joyful look on Luo Congwen's face, Song Qing asked with a smile: "It's settled?"

Luo Congwen laughed: "A misunderstanding, it has already been resolved. Several brothers, Shopkeeper Lin is a benefactor to me; if you dare to bully him, I will not let you off."

"Brother Luo, you think too highly of us. Shopkeeper Lin is a rare talent of a generation; it has only ever been him bullying us, how would we dare to bully him?" Zhu Huan laughed heartily. "With a ghost serving dishes, I don't know what kind of program Shopkeeper Lin has prepared for us. To tell the truth, I really have no bottom line in my heart."

"Not only is there no bottom in my heart, but there is also no bottom in my purse." Song Qing shook his head and smiled. "The price for the night session is three times that of the day, yet the food inside is all common in the market. Shopkeeper Lin is truly a top-tier businessman."

"Count all the expenses on me." Luo Congwen looked at Lin Bai, full of high spirits.

"Brother Luo is generous." Zhu Huan closed the folding fan in his hand and pointed inside. "Then shall we go in?"

"Go." Song Qing stepped inside, but upon reaching the door, he discovered Lin Bai had not followed, and could not help but be stunned. "Shopkeeper Lin, are you not coming in?"

Lin Bai shook his head and smiled: "The night session is different from the day; the ghost provides full service. If I go in, it will lose its charm. You young masters just go in; I have no grudges or enmity with you all, I will not harm you, and besides, I am not doing a one-off deal..."

"Go, go, go." Luo Congwen urged. "Brother Lin will not harm us..."

As he spoke.

Luo Congwen took the lead and stepped into the shop.

As soon as he entered the door and saw the Song Jinnan family floating in the air, he froze on the spot, even ignoring the Flaw in the shop's layout: "Is it real?"

"Naturally, it is real." Song Jinnan gave an honest smile and floated over to pull out a chair. "Whatever meal the young master would like to have, just instruct my wife and daughter."

"It looks no different from a True Person!" Perhaps it was because Lin Bai gave him enough confidence, Luo Congwen quickly came back to his senses. He took two steps forward, sizing up the Song Jinnan family, and finally, his gaze landed on the white-clad, floating Song Ling, exclaiming, "The world says ghosts are terrifying; it turns out it was all a lie..."

Song Qing and Zhu Huan also walked in. They stood behind Luo Congwen, looking curiously at the Song Jinnan family: "Feet not touching the ground, not played by a person. Not a wasted trip; today I have truly gained some knowledge. Shopkeeper Lin is indeed a rare talent of a generation."

"Three brothers, please take your seats." Song Ling floated over timidly, leading them into the room. "Whatever dishes you want to order, just tell Little Ling..."

"Young Master Luo is treating, just serve one portion of all the wine and dishes." Zhu Huan stared unblinkingly at the gentle and delicate Song Ling. He hesitated for a moment, then turned to Song Jinnan and asked tentatively, "Brother Ghost, after the wine and dishes are served later, may I ask your daughter to join us for a drink? We have no other meaning, we just want to experience the fun of dining at the same table as a ghost..."

At this moment.

Wu Xiuxiu and Song Ling had already filled the table with wine and dishes, standing timidly by the side of the table.

Song Jinnan glanced at him indifferently and said: "Naturally, no problem. Shopkeeper Lin said that as long as the guests' requests are not excessive, we will try our best to satisfy them."

"Shopkeeper Lin is indeed a wonderful person, very thoughtful." Song Qing clapped his hands and laughed, sitting in a chair first and reaching out to pat the seat next to him. "Little Ling, sit next to me in a moment."

"I am the one spending the money, naturally she should sit next to me." Seeing Song Ling, Luo Congwen felt as if he saw Nie Xiaoqian; his mind was filled with romantic thoughts. "If I had known this, I should have come alone. What is the point of drinking with you two oafs? Little Ling, sit by my... Holy crap!"

A cry of alarm.

Luo Congwen bumped backward, knocking over the stool, stumbling and falling to the ground with a look of horror, pointing at Song Ling, unable to say a single word.

"Brother Luo's courage is truly small..." Song Qing laughed, turned his head to look at Song Ling, and was just about to speak.

Within his line of sight, he saw a pitch-black, terrifying face with blood flowing from the seven orifices...

Ah!

A scream.

Song Qing rolled his eyes and fainted cleanly.

Seeing that the situation was not good, Zhu Huan turned and ran toward the outside of the shop.

Bang!

The front door was slammed shut from the inside by Song Jinnan, who also returned to the ferocious appearance he had before his death, black Qi vibrating: "Stupid, you think you can leave after coming here? Do you really think Lin Bai can control us?"

"Oh no, the ghosts are out of control."

Outside the door, Lin Bai's panicked knocking could be heard, "Three young masters, hold on for a moment, I am going to invite Daoist Qingfeng right now..."

Hearing these words, Zhu Huan's expression changed abruptly, and he roared hysterically: "Lin Bai..."

The candlelight flickered.

Then it went out.

The room was suddenly plunged into darkness.

Zhu Huan only felt a chill behind his neck, as if someone had blown a breath behind him.

Immediately after, a hair-raising voice rang in his ear: "Young master, this slave will serve you your meal!"

"No!" A warmth spread in Zhu Huan's crotch; he scrambled forward, but after running two steps, he came to his senses and threw himself on the ground, kowtowing like a pestle pounding garlic: "Spare my life, spare my life, I was wrong, I shouldn't have asked you to keep me company for drinks..."

"Lin Bai, you liar, I will not share the same sky with you. Today, if I can survive, I will surely tear you into ten thousand pieces."

Luo Congwen felt a cold hand touch his neck; goosebumps rose all over his body, and he kicked and struggled, roaring hysterically.

Before the words had even faded.

The candlelight was lit once again.

"Young master, the performance is over. May I ask, are you satisfied with the dining environment?" Song Jinnan suppressed his laughter, trying to keep his voice as calm as possible.

Luo Congwen's voice came to an abrupt halt.

He opened his eyes blankly; the terrifying ghosts were gone, and before him was the neat and tidy Song Jinnan family once again.

Wu Xiuxiu was holding Song Qing's neck, pinching his philtrum.

Song Ling was busy arranging the tables and chairs they had knocked over.

It was as if all the terrifying things had never happened.

Noticing Luo Congwen's gaze, Song Ling turned her head and gave an apologetic smile: "Young Master Luo, don't blame us, it was Shopkeeper Lin who ordered it. He said that every customer should feel a home-away-from-home experience, and that every copper coin you spend must be worth it..."

How could Luo Congwen not know he had been played by Lin Bai again? A mouthful of old blood stuck in his throat, tears streamed down instantly, and his lips trembled: "Lin Bai, I f*** your ancestors."

"By the way, are you still going to eat the food on the table?" Song Ling asked, "The shopkeeper did say that whether you eat it or not, you must pay the full price. Also, there are clean trousers upstairs; if you need them, you will have to pay extra..."

Hearing this, Luo Congwen felt as if he had returned to the day he was teased by Lin Bai. Looking at the embarrassed Zhu Huan and then at the innocent-looking Song Jinnan family, he gritted his teeth: "Lin Bai, you are really not a human being!"

Outside the door.

Deng Li Buduo listened to the conversation inside and looked at the leisurely Lin Bai, a black line appearing on his forehead—this is just too damn vicious!

He couldn't help but ask: "Master, which part of the Gentleman's Virtue does this count as?"

Counting the income brought in by this operation, Lin Bai glanced at him and smiled: "Integrity!"

"..." Deng Li Buduo choked on his breath, suddenly setting his heart at ease; according to Lin Bai's standards, Luo Congwen would never be able to become his disciple even if he died.

At this moment.

A person dressed in ordinary clothes walked out from the shadows. He came before Lin Bai, cupped his hands, and asked: "Are you Shopkeeper Lin?"

"It is I." Lin Bai looked at the visitor and returned the salute, "Who might you be, guest?"

The man gave Lin Bai a deep look and snorted coldly: "Dark Guard from the City Lord's Mansion."

"So it is an officer of the Dark Guard!" Lin Bai's eyes lit up, and he said with familiar ease, "Are you here to experience dining in the Haunted House? For the sake of the City Lord's Mansion, I can give you a two percent discount, and I can even have the ghosts inside put in more effort."

【Resentment from Zhou Jiang; +1】

The muscles at the corner of Dark Guard Zhou Jiang's eyes twitched uncontrollably, and he said: "No need, Shopkeeper. Come with me! The City Lord requests your presence."

(End of chapter)