Chapter 12: The Layout

"Miss, you've set up quite a grand wager in the hall. Could it be you're just hoping I'll offer some advice?" Lu Xingzhou smiled. "I don't believe you'd dare make such a pact with others if you had no confidence of your own."

Shen Tang did not hide it: "I do have some ideas, but not enough confidence. Since you proposed this matter, you must have a more comprehensive consideration. Two heads are better than one, after all."

Lu Xingzhou glanced at the hall, made a gesture, and said, "Let's change the location to speak. Please."

A'nuo had a headache.

She couldn't push two wheelchairs alone; her arms were too short.

The good news was that Lu Xingzhou didn't let her push; the bad news was that he and Shen Tang paddled away while chatting and laughing.

Abandoned A'nuo stared blankly at the two of them paddling the wheelchairs together, when suddenly a strange thought occurred to her—if the two of them got together, how would they kiss?... She couldn't imagine that scene.

But A'nuo knew Master had no such intention.

Now, Master probably wouldn't have any intention toward anyone and wouldn't dare to easily entertain such thoughts.

After all, the one who falls in love first is always the one who gets hurt first.

A'nuo sighed with her hands behind her back and swayed unsteadily back to her room.

The two of them arrived at a small garden in the rear, which also had a small pond. They stopped by the pond and sighed in unison: "It's really inconvenient."

After speaking, they both paused, seemingly surprised by their synchronization. Then Lu Xingzhou fell silent, and Shen Tang also lowered her head, gazing at the pond water without speaking.

The pond water had not been cleaned and was very turbid, unable to reflect the images of the two of them.

After a long while, Shen Tang finally said: "Wanting swordsmen to do business is inherently forcing people to do the impossible. In the past, there were established channels; things were all laid out, and what everyone actually did was merely serve as bodyguards. This time, I asked them to be responsible for promotion, knowing full well it wouldn't yield results."

Lu Xingzhou made an "Hmm" sound.

Actually, he originally thought Shen Tang wouldn't do it either; now it seems Shen Tang is still different from ordinary swordsmen.

Shen Tang said: "Such things cannot be promoted on their own. The people of Xiazhou do not have this awareness themselves; it cannot be changed by promotion alone. Therefore, such matters must be pushed from the top down by the government. A word from the Pill Department is more useful than anything else. Yet not a single person thought of this; they actually went one by one to sell..."

Lu Xingzhou turned his head to look at Shen Tang with considerable surprise. This kind of thinking pattern, let alone the swordsmen under your command, even ordinary people wouldn't think this way. This is truly the perspective of someone accustomed to being an imperial merchant.

He nodded calmly: "One of the reasons you chose to come to Xiazhou is that you have people within the Xiazhou government, isn't it? Many disciples who graduated from the Tianxing Sword Sect are at the grassroots level in various places; Xiazhou must be one of your main bases."

Even Sheng Yuanyao's choice to come to Xiazhou to polish her credentials might have a lot to do with your background. This is just speculation; Lu Xingzhou did not say it out loud.

Shen Tang smiled: "You thought of this layer long ago, so you gave me this advice, thinking it suits us to do? Then, besides this, what else do you have to add?"

"This product has no technical barriers. Although the Sword Sect is more suitable to do it, others can do it too. And there are many powerful forces locally. Don't let it happen that you get the government to push it down, only to lose the market to others and have the fruit plucked from your tree."

"That is indeed a problem. What ideas do you have?"

"We need to quietly accumulate large quantities first. Once the government pushes it, we immediately seize the market on a large scale, catching others off guard. Of course, if you have the ability to become the government's designated supplier, that would be best. If you can't become the designated supplier, you should also take the opportunity to sign long-term contracts with major pill shops. By the time others think of doing it, only the scattered market will remain."

Shen Tang pondered: "So actually, our main customers are the pill industry practitioners, not the general public."

"Correct. Once the government pushes it, pill shops will inevitably stock up first and bundle sales with pills. No one is a fool; this is simply an extra big business."

Shen Tang showed a slight smile: "Hearing you say this makes the direction even clearer."

Lu Xingzhou said casually: "As for the follow-up... actually, this will later spawn a new variable."

"What?"

"Different pills, due to different raw materials used, naturally have different toxicities. Since the public has to incur this extra expense to solve pill toxicity, they will naturally resist pills with severe toxicity even more in the future. However, ordinary people are not very familiar with such professional details. We can secretly spread popular science. For example, the 'Divine Qi Pill' that the Danxia Gang has been pushing these days has a toxicity seven or eight tenths heavier than the general Qi-Boosting Pill."

Shen Tang's expression became very strange. She looked sideways at Lu Xingzhou's expression of nonchalance, not knowing how to describe it.

You were waiting for this?

Bai Chi was not a decorative pillow; he was a Pill Master who had already reached the Seventh Grade. Liu Yan'er saying he was "striving for the Seventh Grade" was merely like Lu Xingzhou, lacking formal certification and not recognized in the "employment market," but his Seventh Grade strength was indeed there. After taking over the position of Chief Pill Master of the Danxia Gang, he achieved significant results within a few days.

Originally, Lu Xingzhou's main product at the Danxia Gang was the Qi-Boosting Pill, the most common on the market and needed by almost everyone, with high quality as the selling point, allowing the Danxia Gang to occupy a place in the pill market.

The so-called Qi-Boosting Pill is used to assist in restoring spiritual energy, greatly increasing the speed of spiritual energy recovery; it belongs to the category of continuous recovery.

Instant-recovery type medicines are all of high grade; most ordinary cultivators can only use the Qi-Boosting Pill, which is used in extremely large quantities.

Bai Chi, hailing from the prestigious Incense Tower, possesses unique pill formulas unknown to the outside world. Recently, the main product he has been refining is called the "Divine Qi Pill." This pill is still at the level of an Eighth Grade pill, yet it can instantly restore a tiny bit of spiritual energy, followed by continuous recovery. Although the instant-recovery part is very, very small, in an emergency crisis, this tiny bit could save a life or turn the tables; it is one of the Incense Tower's signature products.

Its cost is about thirty percent higher than the Qi-Boosting Pill, yet its selling price is double that of the Qi-Boosting Pill. It is still very popular in the market and caused a sensation shortly after being introduced to Xiazhou.

Bai Chi's efficiency in refining this pill is also five pills per furnace, with some premium quality and some good quality. Although not as stable as Lu Xingzhou's, it wins on huge profits and indeed earns more than when Lu Xingzhou was there.

Of course, a gang cannot survive solely on the few pills refined by the Chief Pill Master. The apprentices Lu Xingzhou once trained for them to mass-produce simple Ninth Grade Qi-Returning Pills, Qi-Refining Pills, and so on, are the source of broader revenue. The pills refined by the Chief Pill Master are called the signature dish.

But if the signature dish is resisted, the reputation of the pills produced by the entire faction would be in jeopardy...

The pill toxicity of this Divine Qi Pill is indeed much heavier than that of the Qi-Boosting Pill.

So, when Lu Xingzhou proposed the plan to purify pill toxicity, was he already laying a fuse to deal with the Danxia Gang?

However, it seems at present this can only slap the Danxia Gang once but cannot be fatal. After all, Bai Chi has so many pill formulas; if this one goes wrong, he can just switch to another.

Shen Tang didn't think too much about it either, she just smiled: "Very good. It takes time for public opinion to form scale and ferment. I can send people to spread it secretly right now... This has turned from you giving an idea into mutual assistance between you and me."

Lu Xingzhou smiled slightly: "Correct, it is a mutual assistance."

The two parted ways. Shen Tang ordered the entire sect to work overtime to rush the production of sword talismans, while she paddled her wheelchair out to the City Lord's Mansion.

The true backer of the Tianxing Sword Sect is Xucheng City Lord Xu Bingkun, which is why they came to Xiazhou.

In an age of cultivation, the gap between one City Lord and another can be greater than the gap between a human and a dog.

If there are no particularly powerful forces in the locality, the City Lord naturally has great authority.

If there are powerful sect forces within the jurisdiction, the City Lord basically has little say; sometimes the City Lord is even from that sect and instead listens to the Sect Master's orders.

But even in the latter case, these sects themselves are subject to the Great Qian Immortal Dynasty; few dare to carve out independent territories and refuse submission.

Ultimately, the imperial family needs to be powerful to be emperors, backed by the Tianyao Sacred Land to suppress the world.

There are many other distant kingdoms in the world, roughly following a similar model. Although there is competition between kingdoms, it is not fierce, since all humans have a common great enemy: Demons and Devils.

Xiazhoucheng belongs to the type without particularly powerful forces; City Lord Xu Bingkun's words carry immense weight.

"This proposal is first to be responsible for the health of the Xiazhou people, second to provide me with a political achievement, and third to honor Sect Master Shen's face. How could I have any reason to oppose it?" Xu Bingkun was extremely polite to Shen Tang, smiling broadly: "I thought Sect Master Shen came to Xiazhou to do the pill business as well; I didn't expect you to take a different path. You are indeed a talent gifted by heaven. With Sect Master Shen taking up the burden, the Tianxing Sword Sect, I can rest assured."

He was a graduate of the Tianxing Sword Sect, of the same generation as Shen Tang's master. Having graduated, he was no longer considered part of the sect, roughly considered "alma mater." However, this relationship is much tighter than the alma mater relationship in modern society. Although Shen Tang could not directly order him, by social consensus, he must still give face to the Sect Master; otherwise, he would be pointed at by the people of the world.

Shen Tang, however, had no pretense; she bowed slightly in greeting: "City Lord Xu's high righteousness; Shen Tang thanks you here."

"Well said, well said. I shall have someone notify the Pill Department to cooperate accordingly. Sect Master Shen, why not stay for dinner?"

Shen Tang paused, originally intending to ask if they could designate a supplier, but the other party had already spoken words of dismissal, making it difficult for her to say anything further.

Speaking would be useless anyway; why invite humiliation upon herself?

She quickly resumed her smile: "Our sect is newly established, with many complicated affairs. I will not trouble you further; I shall go to the Pill Department to discuss matters in detail."

"Very well." Xu Bingkun smiled even more kindly: "In the future, simply send a messenger if there is any matter. Sect Master Shen has difficulty walking; why trouble yourself to come in person..."

"How can one meet the City Lord without proper etiquette?"

Xu Bingkun laughed heartily: "Someone, escort Sect Master Shen to the Pill Department."

"No need," Shen Tang said politely with a smile: "I have guards."

As her words fell, the hall seemed to grow several degrees colder, and a white-haired maiden suddenly appeared by her side.

Xu Bingkun's expression changed slightly: "Who is this...?"

"My guard, Dugu Qingli."

Xu Bingkun eyed Dugu Qingli with some wariness, yet continued to maintain a smiling face, seeing them all the way out the door.

Dugu Qingli said nothing until, after pushing Shen Tang two streets away, Shen Tang let out a soft sigh: "The Imperial Preceptor was right; human hearts are treacherous, no less than demons and monsters."

Dugu Qingli spoke in a low voice: "Do you mean Xu Bingkun also harbors ulterior motives?"

"Yes." Shen Tang sighed slightly: "Fortunately, Lu Xingzhou had made contingency plans... Let us go, first to the Pill Department."

(End of this chapter)