Book 7: Chapter 40: Archer

Auspicious Virtue’s master Xing Derong was flipping through an account book, his hands slightly shaking.

It was because the trading company’s performance was just too great.

Previously, in these past two years, Auspicious Virtue was always ranked in the top a hundred companies by relying on Lin Xi’s family shop, cash on hand able to reach the top twenty merchant companies in Deereast City. This type of development speed was already extremely shocking.

However, compared to before he met Lin Xi, Auspicious Virtue’s daily income was already more than twenty times greater, and it was still growing at an astonishing speed.

The items Auspicious Virtue previously relied on, like soaps, oil lamp covers and honey, their income was already only supplementary.

What increased the balance sheet right now were still the soaps, but because of Lin Xi’s ideas, after the soaps had fragrances, flower juices and other things added, the market for them improved by who knew how many times. Right now, in all of East Forest Province’s major cities, Auspicious Virtue already enjoyed market dominance on this soap business. This was especially the case with some well-known restaurants, many residences and courtyards, all of them refusing to use products sold by anyone other than Auspicious Virtue. Then, what Lin Xi said was even more correct, that by adorning some decorative designs on the soaps, even the soaps for scholars became a success.

Just this soap business alone was quickly expanding even outside East Forest Province. Even if Auspicious Virtue gave up on all of its other businesses right now, Xing Derong was still certain that in the following three years, the ledger’s revenue would still quickly increase without a cap in sight.

However, Auspicious Virtue still had the Golden Pomelo Tea business.

Unlike Lin Xi’s previous world, in Yunqin, only the easternmost few places produced sweet pomelo. Most people in Yunqin never even tasted it before, to the extent where they never even saw what it looked like.

More than ten days ago, Valiant Cloud Town’s nearby mountain forest produced an early batch. When the early pomelo was used to make Golden Pomelo Tea, Xing Derong was still a bit doubtful. However, in just ten days, the first batch of Golden Pomelo Tea were already completely used up.

This made Xing Derong see that this was a flame that had just begun to burn. Moreover, this flame was one only Auspicious Virtue could start.

It was because all of the mountain forests that produced the golden pomelo had already been taken over by Auspicious Virtue. They already completely monopolized this business.

Auspicious Virtue ran an outstanding honey business. The business of sending golden pomelos out of the province was originally not that great due to the price, but under Lin Xi’s simple plans, it instead made two businesses that didn’t seem all that outstanding grant Auspicious Virtue a pair of wings.

Because he heard that Lin Xi already returned and because the performance of the company was too shocking, Xing Derong couldn’t resist the urge to see Lin Xi, report the good news to him.

It was because Lin Xi was also one of Auspicious Virtue’s masters.

However, just as Jiang Xiaoyi was seriously asking Wang Simin if she was willing, Wang Simin about to cry her heart out on this afternoon pier, a woman dressed as a man with a pair of swords behind her appeared before Xing Derong not long after he lowered the ledger.

“I was sent by Sir Lin.”

This pretty woman who had dual blades on her back, dressed like a scholar, age impossible to tell from her face explained with a calm voice to Xing Derong, “From today on, he will do his best to not directly interact with the merchant company. According to your previous agreement, Master Xing cannot let anyone find out that he is also a master of Auspicious Virtue… in the future, I will represent him in Auspicious Virtue.”

From the blades on her back and the unique temperament she carried, Xing Derong could sense that she wasn’t an ordinary woman. While a bit taken aback by her appearance, he also felt more and more excited. It was because only some enormous merchant companies had a chance of having cultivators watching over them.

“I cannot show myself all the time.” This woman said again with emphasis.

Because of this sentence, Auspicious Virtue thus obtained a mysterious great shopkeeper that normal people couldn’t meet.

“This is what Sir Lin wanted me to bring you.”

Then, this pretty woman produced a small clay container sealed with oil paper, bringing it over into Xing Derong’s hands.

Xing Derong undid the oil paper seal, and then took a whiff. When he saw the chunks of something soaked in the broth, he couldn’t help but look at this pretty woman with a bit of shock, “What is this? This can be eaten?”

“Lin Xi said this is called pickled tofu.” The pretty woman revealed a slight smile. “You can give it a try, but it is a bit salty, so you should only try a little bit.”

Xing Derong didn’t care about his own status or mannerisms, he couldn’t help but get a bit on his finger and put it into his mouth. Then, his expression became even more brilliant, filled with even greater shock.

The pretty woman smiled again, handing him a list. “This is the recipe… Right now, only Sir Lin, myself, Lin Xi’s parents and you know about the recipe. That is why if you don’t want others to learn it, then don’t let this recipe circulate around.”

“This type of thing is really made only with tofu?” Xing Derong looked through the recipe’s contents, becoming even more shocked, unable to help but say absent-mindedly.

The pretty woman chuckled and said, “I didn’t believe it either, so the previous pot, with noodles, beef rolls and vegetables… I already ate all of it. This pot was made by myself through this recipe.”

Xing Derong stared blankly for a long time, and only then did he release a long sigh.

He didn’t know just how many more wonderful ideas there were in Lin Xi’s brain, all he knew was that with this thing, some things that were originally bland and tasteless would also become full of flavor. It wouldn’t be too expensive, so even the more impoverished families’ meal tables would have a bit more flavor.

He was now no longer worried about Auspicious Virtue’s business being good or not, only worried if Auspicious Virtue’s growth was too fast, if the company suddenly bit off more than it could chew. With his current abilities as a merchant, he really couldn’t properly manage everything.

“This thing, let’s wait a few days first, place it on hold for a bit…” Xing Derong had another taste, and then said to the pretty woman with a deeply moved voice.

The pretty woman laughed and said, “On matters regarding business, we will do as Master Xing suggests.”

…

Swallow Descent Town was extremely calm.

Apart from the dam that already began work, Lin Xi didn’t have too many things that he had to pay attention to.

Jiang Xiaoyi and Bian Linghan already returned to their respective posts.

Lin Xi didn’t have to always remain in the Town Supervisor Manor. That was why most of the time, Swallow Descent Town’s other officials often didn’t know where Lin Xi was either.

These officials didn’t know, but Zuo Qingqiu understood extremely clearly.

Zuo Qingqiu’s status on the surface was just that of a small tung oil merchant, but his true identity was a secret agent.

Yunqin, Tangcang, Great Mang, they all had many officials who didn’t enjoy much glory, but brought back the empires astonishing contributions. Hidden individuals and secret agents were merely two types.

Zuo Qingqiu didn’t even know which great figure he was serving in Yunqin’s Central Continent Imperial City, he only knew how to loyally complete the missions handed down from above. Then, he would record all of the information he observed and pass it on through a special channel.

During these days, his job was precisely to secretly examine Lin Xi’s each and every move.

Today, he saw that Lin Xi was just like before, a wooden chest on his back, walking towards a barren mountain outside Swallow Descent Town’s riverbank.

As such, just like normal, he always maintained a far enough distance, and then climbed up a peak on the other side of that barren mountain. Afterwards, he would produce a special long copper Hawkeye, observing him from afar.

He saw that Lin Xi began to practice archery again. After producing the Divine Pear wood bow, he would produce several bags of ordinary black arrows, continuously firing them from the barren mountain into the valley one after another.

Even though Zuo Qingqiu wasn’t a cultivator, whenever he watched Lin Xi practice archery, he would also feel extremely shocked, feeling that Lin Xi’s archery skills were entirely different from an ordinary person’s.

It was because whenever Lin Xi’s arrow was released, when the black arrows flew through the air, they would always make the surrounding air produce a white whirlpool of air flow.

Suddenly, Zuo Qingqiu suddenly saw an abnormal cloud of dust erupt from the distant official path.

Through his Hawkeye, he saw a group of riders currently heading towards Swallow Descent Town.

…

There were eleven people total in this group of riders.

The ten people in the back were all ordinary Martial Sector soldiers, according to conventional practice, they were present to ensure the safety of the official in front.

However, the official at the front didn’t need these local troops’ protection at all.

It was a forty something year old meager looking middle-aged man, face like white jade, eyes exceptionally dark, but also exceptionally bright. His skin looked even more fine than some womens’. However, his arms were extremely crude, full of thick calluses and old scars.

On his back was a metal longbow made of three different types of metals. On the gold, silver and dark red bow, there were light green peacock feather-like runes.

The bowstring was like jade. It was as black as a dark night.

What this official was currently wearing was a Martial Sector official uniform. However, that night, when he was trying to stop Lin Xi in Three Reeds Peak, he instead wore dark green leather armor, his face covered in a dark red scale shaped mask, making him look like a terrifying lizard.

He was precisely the powerful archer whose arrow penetrated the great pine tree that night.

That night, he still belonged to Judicial Sector, but now, he had already been transferred to Martial Sector, becoming a Martial Sector official.

This line of eleven individuals quickly approached Swallow Descent Town, arriving before Swallow Descent Town Supervisor Manor.

When he heard that Lin Xi wasn’t actually in the Town Supervisor Manor, this pale-faced, meager looking middle-aged man, unknown as if it was because he heard roughly where Lin Xi went or if he had some type of special reaction, after giving the bustling river dam construction a look, began to quickly walk towards the barren mountain Lin Xi was currently at.

He didn’t notice Zuo Qingqiu.

After making his way past the deserted mountain where Zuo Qingqiu was, he suddenly stopped, gazing towards the mountain where Lin Xi was at.

For normal people, even those with the sight and listening ability of cultivators, at this type of distance, there was completely no way of seeing or hearing any traces of Lin Xi’s archery in the mountains.

However, this meager middle-aged man instead saw the faint black lines running through the skies, as well as the faintly discernible white streams around the black lines.

“This is the Falling Moon archery skill… an archery technique only passed down to Windstalkers!”

“No wonder Green Luan Academy attaches such great importance to him, those three great cultivators from East Forest Province all leaving in low spirits… turns out he is a Windstalker.”

The meager middle-aged man didn’t continue forward. His serious appearance suddenly became dazzling, quietly saying these words to himself with unknown intentions.

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