Chapter 9 Tianxing Sword Sect
At this moment, at the entrance of the newly renovated residence, a group of Tianxing Sword Sect members were gathered around the door, watching the Little Daoist sitting at the entrance.
“This little girl looks so auspicious.”
“She became a monk so young…”
“Young Sect Master, don't tell me this little chubby girl is our landlord?”
A Nuo’s gaze became very resentful.
Shen Tang found it amusing and asked softly, “Little girl, why are you sitting here alone? Where is your Master?”
A Nuo sniffled, “Master said that if I sit here to greet guests, guests will find me cute and give me candy. He lied to me. Not only did you not give me candy, but you also scolded me.”
As soon as she said this, the old man from the Tianxing Sword Sect who had blurted out ‘little chubby girl’ immediately felt embarrassed. He fumbled around, realizing he didn't have any candy, and then offered a red envelope with a compensatory smile: “Little girl, take this for candy.”
The next moment, more than a dozen red envelopes were tucked into A Nuo’s arms. A Nuo stood up, hugging the red envelopes, and dashed through the main gate, closing it with a bang.
The old man: “?”
A Nuo’s voice came from inside the door: “Master said that children are not allowed to open the door until he returns.”
Outside the door, there was silence.
So you were sitting here acting cute just to scam money?
“Miss Shen arrived quite early.” Lu Xingzhou’s voice came. Shen Tang turned to look and saw Lu Xingzhou approaching slowly, alone, in his wheelchair, looking quite strained.
Shen Tang pursed her lips. She often saw herself in Lu Xingzhou, and each time she did, her heart softened considerably.
She knew this mindset wasn't quite right… This man shouldn't need anyone's sympathy.
She sighed, and said softly, “You intentionally had A Nuo put on such a show at the door… Are you satisfied with the character of my Tianxing Sword Sect, Mr. Lu?”
Lu Xingzhou was startled. This Shen Tang was even more perceptive than Sheng Yuanyao, who came from generations of the Demon Suppression Division. She saw through his intention to observe the character of the Tianxing Sword Sect at a glance.
“Miss, you’re overthinking.” Lu Xingzhou looked around: “Where is Miss Qingli?”
“Qingli has other important matters.” Shen Tang’s expression was somewhat strange. You really care about Qingli, huh…
But one of her important matters is to investigate you, you know…
Lu Xingzhou opened the door and pointed to a corner of the west wing: “That’s where A Nuo and I live, and the Alchemy room. It’s not for rent. The other places are yours; you can arrange them yourselves.”
After speaking, he went directly inside. It seemed that since Qingli wasn't there, he had no interest in greeting anyone else.
A young man, watching Lu Xingzhou’s retreating back as he entered, muttered unhappily, “This person is rude.”
Shen Tang said indifferently, “Ultimately, it’s just a landlord-tenant relationship. How much enthusiasm is needed? We are down on our luck now, no longer what we used to be. Put away your arrogance.”
The young man pursed his lips in defiance and didn't respond.
Shen Tang ignored him, turned to the old man who gave A Nuo the red envelope, and said, “Uncle Zhong, put up the plaque.”
The old man nodded, soared up, and hung the plaque from behind him on the door.
The plaque's covering was removed, revealing the words “Shen's Commerce.”
The expressions of the Tianxing Sword Sect members varied, with quite a few showing displeasure.
Although they were essentially refugees and couldn't display the Tianxing Sword Sect's name, needing to use a commerce name as a cover, they could have chosen a different commerce name. What was the meaning of using “Shen”? Did this become your Family business or something?
You, Shen Tang, are only a Disciple of the former Sect Master, not his daughter. Even if you were his daughter, we are a Sect, not a Sword Dao Family!
But for some reason, no one openly challenged her. Only a few exchanged glances. Shen Tang took in everyone’s expressions, smiled slightly, and led the way through the door.
“Such a pack of stray dogs, yet they’re already at odds.” In the Alchemy room, Lu Xingzhou and A Nuo sat opposite each other, eating biscuits, and sighed, “Actually, it’s not bad if outsiders misunderstand it as a Family business; they won’t suspect it’s a Sect. Since it’s meant to be a disguise, the more complete the misdirection, the better. What are they struggling with?”
It’s unclear how the Master and Disciple saw the scene outside the door.
A Nuo propped her chin: “They’re just unhappy with a girl being in charge. Even Fish Sister, who was so formidable back then, had a lot of extra trouble because she was a young girl.”
“Yuan Muyu looked fourteen or fifteen on the outside; in others’ eyes, she was a true young girl… Shen Tang is at least twenty-one or twenty-two.”
“Anyway, whether it was Fish Sister back then or Sister Shen Tang now, they’re both older than you, right?”
“…What does being older or younger have to do with me?”
“Hmph hmph.” A Nuo grumbled, “Are you really closing your heart to love?”
“Women only affect my efficiency in raising a child.”
A Nuo’s expression brightened considerably, and she said happily, “Right, Master, didn’t you say they might not be the Tianxing Sword Sect?”
“Uncertain, I always feel something is strange.” Lu Xingzhou said half of it, then suddenly froze: “Shen Tang is coming this way… She just arrived; why isn’t she arranging personnel and rooms first, but coming to find me instead?”
A Nuo closed her mouth, watching the door with curious eyes.
Soon after, a knock came, and Shen Tang’s voice followed: “There are some things I’d like to discuss with Mr. Lu.”
“Come in, the door isn’t locked.”
Shen Tang pushed the door open and saw one large and one small figure sitting opposite each other, eating biscuits. She couldn’t help but smile: “I hope I’m not disturbing your meal.”
Lu Xingzhou said, “Miss, you’re not here to freeload, are you? I can’t afford to feed hundreds of you.”
Shen Tang laughed, “Quite the opposite. We will hire a cook to be responsible for the commerce’s meals. In the future, you and your Master can eat with us.”
“You’re too kind. Miss Shen, what do you need your landlord to do?”
“These past few days, the Danxia Gang has been spreading rumors in the city, saying that your Alchemy skills are very ordinary, that the Medicinal Pills you refined before were the result of others’ assistance, and that you even embezzled…”
Lu Xingzhou raised an eyebrow: “Oh, they actually know?”
Shen Tang was momentarily choked, then continued after a while: “I don’t think they know; they’re just maliciously slandering you to make it impossible for you to get by in Xia Province, so no one will be willing to take you in. After all, you offended the Danxia Gang severely this time; it would be strange if Liu Qingcang didn’t vent his anger.”
Lu Xingzhou smiled: “More than that… He even hired assassins to kill me last night.”
Shen Tang’s expression changed slightly, but then Lu Xingzhou continued: “Now that I’m living with Miss Shen, if they still plan to use force against me, someone will help me stand up to them, won’t they?”
Shen Tang gazed into his eyes: “Did you design for me to rent this house just to have us take the fall for you?”
Lu Xingzhou did not deny it: “That’s partly the reason… But you’re also willing, aren’t you, Miss? After all, Bai Chi was poached from you, and you also want to give them a taste of their own medicine, otherwise, your team will be hard to lead in the future.”
“Since Mr. Lu needs our martial strength, and we need your Alchemy skills, we should naturally cooperate. As newcomers, even if we wanted to trouble Bai Chi, it wouldn’t be appropriate to forcefully engage in a martial conflict with the Danxia Gang. If we can strike at them from the Medicinal Pill level, that would be the best option.”
“I said I would not join your Sect.”
“Mr. Lu doesn’t need to join the Sect. We will provide the medicinal ingredients and pay you to refine Medicinal Pills. Mr. Lu himself needs a lot of Alchemy to improve his Alchemy standard, which was one of the reasons you were willing to stay in the Danxia Gang as an Alchemist before, wasn’t it?”
Lu Xingzhou looked at Shen Tang with some surprise for a long time, and said curiously, “I have calculated quite a bit against you, Miss, why are you still so accommodating… There are many Alchemists in Xia Province. I don’t believe you can’t find excellent Alchemists willing to join your Sect. Why bother with this…”
Shen Tang smiled gently: “A person who is full of worries themselves yet still bothers to persuade me not to commit suicide… is worth accommodating.”
Lu Xingzhou pursed his lips and did not answer.
It was A Nuo who felt compassion, not himself, so this kindness was undeserved.
“What’s more…” Shen Tang patted her wheelchair, then looked at Lu Xingzhou’s legs, a hint of melancholy in her smile: “We are both unfortunate souls; we should help each other.”
A Nuo had been very sensible, not interrupting, eating her biscuit in small bites, her gaze flitting back and forth between her Master and Shen Tang.
Lu Xingzhou’s gaze also fell on Shen Tang’s legs, but it seemed unfocused, as if he was lost in thought. After a long while, he said, “My embezzlement in the Danxia Gang was real. I wonder if Miss Qingli saw it then.”
Shen Tang was startled and did not answer immediately.
Lu Xingzhou continued: “With my character, do you really dare to associate with me? Aren’t you afraid I’ll take advantage of you?”
“Heh…” Shen Tang laughed: “I looked into it. The treatment they gave you was only slightly higher than that of an ordinary eighth-grade Alchemist, yet the returns you gave them far exceeded expectations. Not only did your Alchemy exceed the required grade, but you also selflessly helped establish an Alchemy system and train apprentices. You were just an Alchemist, not a hall Master; you weren’t supposed to bother with such things. Wasn’t it your intention to pay them for the Medicinal Pills in this way?”
Yes, that’s why the Liu Family father and daughter felt Lu Xingzhou was doing too much and couldn’t understand it, so they all imagined he was doing it for Liu Yan’er.
However, in reality, he was merely repaying the cost of the embezzled Medicinal Pills in this manner. How could others understand?
Sheng Yuanyao, who observed the whole thing, never understood this point, yet Shen Tang, just by hearing Qingli’s account, could comprehend it so well.
“You’re good at finding excuses for me.” Lu Xingzhou was silent for a long while, then said indifferently, “Is it possible that I’m just someone who uses unscrupulous means to make money?”
Shen Tang looked at him, her eyes soft: “Let’s just say that’s the case.”
Lu Xingzhou suddenly felt that this gaze was a bit dazzling. He pursed his lips, turned his head, and asked, “Your Sect, having transitioned from a Sword Sect to a commerce, what kind of business do you mainly do, and what’s your model?”
Shen Tang was stunned for a moment, realizing that this person had finally moved from the distant “landlord and tenant” relationship to wanting to help each other a bit.
She smiled, her eyes curving, looking very beautiful.
— — — —
PS: Why did confessing failure become a female-oriented thing? I scratched my head all day yesterday reading your comments and couldn’t figure it out. Didn’t Minghe also reject Qin Yi before? Is Grandfather Qin really a female-oriented demon concubine?