Chapter 72

After finishing his tea, Xia Zhi put down his cup and said, "Miss Yanfei and I still need to discuss business. Miss Shenhe, shall I take you back to the shop first?"

Shenhe looked at him and said, "I want to go with you."

Xia Zhi thought for a moment and nodded, "That's fine. Zhu Zi might be out playing now, so you'd just be alone at the shop anyway."

Walking out of the teahouse, with the passionate Yanfei on his left and the ethereal Shenhe on his right, plus himself wearing black glasses, Xia Zhi clearly noticed more passersby turning to look at them.

Following Yanfei's lead, the three walked for a while before arriving at a shop next to the Ministry of Civil Affairs.

A bespectacled man stood at the entrance, saying with a smile, "Miss Yanfei, what brings you to the Feiyun Commerce Guild today?"

Yanfei smiled and replied, "Of course I'm here to introduce some business. This is Boss Xia, who wants to discuss business with your guild."

"Wonderful! Please, come in!"

Under the warm welcome of the man called Xu, the three entered the guild. As soon as they sat down, servants brought hot tea.

The hospitality was impeccable, making everyone feel well-treated.

Shortly after, a refined young man walked in, smiling, "Miss Yanfei, it's been a while."

He wore fine brocade clothes and carried himself with grace. At his waist hung an ornamental knot with a Hydro Vision embedded in it.

Unsurprisingly, he had a silver progress bar above him.

Yanfei stood up, smiling, "Young Master Xingqiu, it has been a while. Actually, this isn't any major business, there's no need for you to handle it personally."

Xingqiu shook his head: "Business is business, regardless of size. I'm happy to handle it. Welcome to Feiyun Commerce Guild, honored guests."

Xia Zhi stood up and politely greeted him: "Hello."

Shenhe followed suit and said coolly: "Hello."

Yanfei made introductions: "Boss Xia, this is Young Master Xingqiu of the Feiyun Commerce Guild. Young Master Xingqiu, this is Boss Xia of the Summer Shop."

Upon hearing this, Xingqiu's expression showed surprise: "Summer Shop? The new beverage shop at Feiyun Slope?"

Xia Zhi nodded: "Yes, Young Master Xingqiu knows of our summer shop?"

Xingqiu smiled wryly: "I just came from there. These past few days, several friends have been raving about the rainbow juice sold there. I wanted to try it today, but when I arrived, the shop was closed. Only after reading the notice on the door did I learn it wasn't operating these two days."

"I'm sorry to have made Young Master Xingqiu waste a trip. Next time you visit our shop, the drink will be on me."

"Thank you, Boss Xia. What business would you like to discuss with Feiyun Commerce Guild?"

"I heard from Miss Yanfei that Feiyun Commerce Guild has extensive connections, dealing with materials and goods from all over Liyue. As it happens, our shop plans to add a takeaway service and needs large quantities of bamboo and reeds."

"Just bamboo and reeds? How much is a large quantity, according to Boss Xia?"

"We'd need dozens of bamboo stalks and hundreds of reeds daily."

"Must they be whole stalks?"

"Not necessarily. The shop plans to use bamboo tubes as cup replacements. If transport is difficult, they can be pre-cut to cup size. The same goes for the reeds."

"I see... However, these items are too cheap—they're everywhere in Qingce Village and Dihua Marsh, and easy to collect. While reeds are manageable to transport, bamboo tubes take up too much space. It's less profitable than transporting glaze. Few merchant caravans would want such a thankless job unless Boss Xia is willing to pay extra."

"What's the current transport fee for glaze at Feiyun Commerce Guild?"

"Glaze is fragile and relatively more expensive than other items, about 20 Mora per piece, more for longer distances."

"That is quite expensive... Then forget the bamboo tubes, just the reeds."

"That's simple. Reeds are light and compact. I'll tell the caravans to bring a bundle from Dihua Marsh on their way back. Just give them a small tip, Boss Xia."

"I appreciate Young Master Xingqiu's kindness, but since this is business, we should still sign a contract."

"Very well."

Yanfei and Xingqiu then conducted negotiations.

After the contract was drafted, Xia Zhi signed it and kept his copy.

"Young Master Xingqiu, farewell."

"Boss Xia, farewell."

Xia Zhi "looked" at the [Progress: 4%] silver progress bar above Xingqiu and turned to leave.

Like with Miss Yun Jin, their social circles had little overlap. He couldn't unlock Xingqiu's treasure chest for now—he'd have to wait for future opportunities.

Leaving Feiyun Commerce Guild, it was nearly noon. Liuli Pavilion was right across the street—perfect for treating Miss Shenhe to a good meal.

Entering Liuli Pavilion, Xia Zhi handed menus to Yanfei and Shenhe, smiling, "Please order whatever you like."

Yanfei smiled: "How generous, Boss Xia. Then I won't be polite."

Despite saying this, Yanfei didn't order anything expensive, just mapo tofu like last time.

She seemed to really love tofu.

Shenhe looked at her menu with hesitation.

"Miss Shenhe hasn't decided what to order?"

"No..."

"What do you usually like to eat?"

"Qingxin, Glaze Lily, Violetgrass... these are what I usually eat."

"Aren't those all herbs?"

"I've never been sick. These are what I gather in the mountains."

"Miss Shenhe, can't you cook?"

"I... can't... though Master can. She loves good food and even invented cooking mechanisms."

"Then why do you only eat those things?"

"Because I believe too-delicious food hinders cultivation."

"I see."

Xia Zhi fell silent for a moment, looking at Shenhe's serious expression.

"I'm sorry, I should have asked you first."

"It's fine. Since I've decided to return to human society, my previous insistence has no meaning now. I'm not troubled, I just don't know what dishes to order since I've never tried any of these. You should order for us."

"Then let's order some of Liuli Pavilion's specialties: Triple-Layered Consommé, Dry-Braised Mountain Delicacies, Stir-Fried Filet, and Lotus Root and Pork Rib Soup."

After ordering, Yanfei looked at Xia Zhi curiously: "Mr. Xia, you're not going to use bamboo tubes anymore?"

Xia Zhi nodded: "The transport cost is too high. I have another plan."

"What plan?"

"While walking at Huaguang Stone Forest, I visited a shop called Spring Fragrance Pottery. They had excellent quality porcelain, and the attendant, Ying'er, said it was made at a local kiln."

"Mr. Xia means to..."

"Yes, rather than paying high prices to transport bamboo from far away, we might as well purchase porcelain locally."

"But wouldn't that increase costs significantly?"

"For drinking in the shop, prices will stay the same; for takeaway, customers will need to pay extra for the cup."

"In that case... if the cups are beautiful enough, it's like buying another nice product. Many customers should be willing to pay for that."

"That's not all."

"What else does Mr. Xia have in mind?"

"I plan to order custom porcelain cups from Spring Fragrance Pottery with our shop's exclusive design. The cups will have patterns of the seven elements on their exterior."

"What's the purpose of that?"

"Once customers collect cups with all seven different patterns, they unlock an increased purchase limit, allowing them to buy one extra juice from our shop each day."

"!"

Holy crap! This kind of strategy exists? They're going to buy like crazy!

Yanfei looked at Xia Zhi with admiration.

"Mr. Xia."

"Yes?"

"Running a shop like this is really wasting your talent."

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