Tianlan College.
"Disciple, you want to borrow the school's guards for your use?" Hu Feng asked.
Qi Shaorong nodded and said, "Yes."
Hu Feng looked at Qi Shaorong and said, "What are you planning on doing with them!"
"I have some big business to do, but I lack a little manpower." Qi Shaorong said.
Hu Feng looked at Qi Shaorong with excitement and said, "Big business, just how big? Could it be, disciple, are you going out to hunt level nine monster beasts?"
Qi Shaorong shook his head and said, "No, level nine monster beasts? I'm not looking to die, I just want to sell some small things!"
"To sell some small things, you need the help of the college's guards?" Hu Feng said suspiciously.
Qi Shaorong nodded and said, "Yes! Just in case."
"Well then, how much profit do you think you can make!" Hu Feng asked curiously.
"If everything is all sold out, maybe 20 million." Qi Shaorong said.
"20 million gold coins?" Hu Feng exclaimed.
"Of course! If not 20 million gold coins, then what, silver coins? That's much too little!" Qi Shaorong said disdainfully.
Hu Feng looked at Qi Shaorong and smiled dryly, saying, "Disciple, you really are deserving of being called a person who does great things."
Qi Shaorong smiled and said, "I suppose."
"Disciple, how long will you need them for?" Hu Feng asked.
"Two days." Qi Shaorong said.
"Alright then." Hu Feng said.
Zhuang Family.
"Elder Brother, it's been confirmed that Goddess's Tears will be sold at Luohua Pavilion. They were very vague about it, when they first said that it would be sold in the Imperial Capital, I thought they meant at several of the cosmetics stores here in the capital. I didn't expect that it'll all be sold at Luohua pavilion! Elder Brother, what do you think the owner of Allure Cosmetics is thinking!" Zhuang Qian said, feeling puzzled.
Zhuang Hao glanced at Zhuang Qian and said, "Qi Shaorong's way of thinking is naturally different from everyone else's."
"Big Brother, are you confused or something? What does Fourth Young Master Qi have to do with the owner of Allure Cosmetics?"
"Qi Shaorong—Is the owner of Allure Cosmetics." Zhuang Hao said.
Zhuang Qian did a spit take and said, "Big Brother, what did you just say?"
Zhuang Hao took a deep breath and said, "I said, Qi Shaorong was the one who started up the Allure Cosmetics Store business."
Zhuang Qian swallowed his saliva, looked at Zhuang Hao, and said, "Brother, perhaps you're mistaken?"
Zhuang Hao shook his head and said, "Nope!"
"Fourth Young Master Qi, he's really amazing! Not only does he have an identity as the Ghost Doctor, he even created Allure Cosmetics. That guy always said that he ran a brothel, so I used to think he was just a brothel-keeper." Zhuang Qian smiled, then suddenly thought of something, and said, "Elder Brother, did I say the wrong things again in front of Qi Shaorong?"
Zhuang Hao nodded and said, "Yes! You said that his business was a scam [1]."
Zhuang Qian slapped his forehead, and he felt the impulse to ram himself into the wall, "Why did I say something like that?"
Zhuang Hao looked at Zhuang Qian and said, "Enough already, it's not that serious. Qi Shaorong doesn't care that much about all the stupid things you said.."
Zhuang Hao took a deep breath. Although Zhuang Qian did say a lot of nonsense in front of Qi Shaorong, but Qi Shaorong still seemed to have a pretty good impression of his little brother, at least it was better than his.
Zhuang Qian looked at Zhuang Hao and said, "Elder Brother, what are you thinking?"
Zhuang Hao shook his head and said, "Nothing, I was just thinking that Qi Shaorong seems to like you a lot."
Zhuang Qian looked at Zhuang Hao and said excitedly, "Really? Elder Brother, you think that Fourth Young Master Qi likes me a lot?"
Zhuang Hao nodded and said, "Yes! He seems to have a good impression of you."
Zhuang Qian scratched his head and said, "Big Brother, you're right! Although Fourth Young Master Qi rarely has anything good to say about me whenever we meet, and he always thinks that I'm too fat, but I also feel that he doesn't hate me!"
Zhuang Hao looked at Zhuang Qian, who was practically bouncing with joy, and he couldn't help but feel a little annoyed in his heart.
Zhuang Hao walked into Luohua pavilion, and saw that Luohua Pavilion was decked out and hung with decorations everywhere. The people inside were all busy preparing for the upcoming sales exhibition, and outside Luohua Pavilion, stood the guards from Tianlan College.
"It's Zhuang Hao! His identity is a little special, should we stop him?" One of Tianlan College's guards asked.
"Zhuang Hao and Student Qi, who hired us, are familiar with each other. Let's just wait and see what happens." Another guard said.
"Right! Zhuang Hao and Student Qi were even engaged in the past."
"Young Master Zhuang, we're not open today, you'll have to wait until it��s nighttime." A female dancer from Luohua Pavilion said, stopping Zhuang Hao.
"I know, I'm here to look for your boss." Zhuang Hao said and directly rushed into Luohua Pavilion
"Zhuang Hao, our boss isn't seeing any guests at the moment."
"Feiyue, Young Master Zhuang isn't a stranger, you can go." Bi Liuyun slowly walked down the stairs, "Young Master Zhuang, what a rare visitor!"
Bi Liuyun waved his folding fan, looked at Zhuang Hao, and said, "Young Master Zhuang, is there anything I can do for you?"
"Is he here?" Zhuang Hao asked.
Bi Liuyun tilted his head and looked at Zhuang Hao, saying, "He? Who?"
"Bi-qinshi [2], you've known him for a long time, haven't you? Are you like Yi Fan, secretly laughing at me behind my back this entire time?" Zhuang Hao said.
Bi Liuyun smiled and said, "Young Master Zhuang is overthinking it, who would dare to laugh at you!"
"So where's Shaorong?"
"Young Master, he's in the inner courtyard?"
"Thank you." Zhuang Hao said.
"Young Master Zhuang, there's no need to be so polite with me." Bi Liuyun said.
In the courtyard.
Dozens of dancers were currently rehearsing for their upcoming performance.
Qi Shaorong was standing in front of several of the dancers, giving them some guidance.
Qi Shaorong didn't know much about dancing, but he had seen many dances on Earth, so he could still bring up a few suggestions here and there.
Zhuang Hao looked at Qi Shaorong and said, "You sure are busy!"
Qi Shaorong nodded and said, "Of course! I don't nearly have as much free time on my hands compared to Young Master Zhuang."
"Fourth Young Master Qi, you're really amazing." Zhuang Hao said.
Qi Shaorong waved his hand and said, "These kinds of compliments, I've heard them so many times before that my ears are about to grow calluses. Everyone already knows how great I am, you don't need to say it."
Zhuang Hao: "…"
"Disciple."
Qi Shaorong and Zhuang Hao had been in the courtyard for quite a while, when Hu Feng barged in.
Qi Shaorong looked at Hu Feng and asked, "Master, why did you come?"
"I'm here to help out!" Hu Feng patted his chest.
Qi Shaorong smiled at Hu Feng and said, "Thank you Master."
Hu Feng waved his hand and said, "Don't mention it, we're master and disciple, it's not a problem!" Hu Feng looked back and forth between Qi Shaorong and Zhuang Hao, "Disciple! Master didn't disturb you and Zhuang Hao's intimate moment, did I?"
[T/n: Ok so I can't really translate this to English, but the original phrase in Chinese is used to describe whisperings/private words, often between husband and wife, lovers, etc. Thank you Em for your suggestion! I changed it to "intimate moment" and it sounds better lol.]
"Of course not? We had nothing to talk about in the first place." Qi Shaorong said.
"Disciple! Why did you bring all the guards here? I heard that Allure Cosmetics will be holding a sales exhibition here for their Goddess���s Tears really soon. What's your relationship with the guy who opened up this fraudulent shop!" Hu Feng asked curiously.
Qi Shaorong looked at Hu Feng and said, "Master, I'm the one who opened up this fraudulent shop."
Hu Feng, "…So it's like that! Disciple, your business is very good! Actually, your business really isn't that much of a scam."
Qi Shaorong smiled and said, "Of course I know that my business isn't a scam. You should know, I'm a conscientious, just, and morally upright businessman. My store has always been fair and honest towards the public, and we offer sincere treatment to all. Many people even think that my products are really too cheap…"
Qi Heng leaned close to Qi Shaorong and said, "Young Master, aren't you exaggerating too much?"
Qi Shaorong glanced at Qi Heng and said, "What are you talking about?"
Qi Heng smiled and said, "Nothing, nothing."
Yi Fan strode towards Qi Shaorong and said, "Shaorong, Bi Liuyun said that everyone has pretty much arrived already, and we can open up soon."
Qi Shaorong nodded and said, "Good."
The sound of a zither and flute traveled out from the front hall [3].
Hu Feng perked up, "The music is very good! One zither and one flute, the combination is flawless. They both also seem to be music masters, they can use music to calm people's spirits and break through their cultivation bottleneck. I know the one playing the zither is Bi Liuyun, but who's playing the flute? The sound of this flute isn't inferior to the sound of the zither."
Qi Shaorong shrugged and said, "It's Tingxuan."
"Disciple, you have many impressive people working under you!".
Qi Shaorong nodded and said, "Of course, I'm so outstanding, it's no surprise that my subordinates are excellent as well."
Hu Feng: "…"
Bi Liuyun stood upstairs, looking down at the stage. The audience seats were full, and many noble ladies were dressed in splendid attire and had brought their partners here with them.
On the stage of Luohua Pavilion, a dancer dressed in colorful clothes was dancing gracefully.
Smoke rose from all directions on the stage, and seven-coloured crystals reflected and refracted colorful light all around. Qi Shaorong looked at the audience, held his chin, and said, "The response seems to be pretty good."
"A lot of people came." Yi Fan said.
Qi Shaorong nodded and said, "It seems so."
Qi Shaoru sat next to Qi Shaokang and asked puzzledly, "Second Brother, why is Allure Cosmetics holding their sales exhibition for Goddess's Tears here, at Luohua Pavilion?"
Qi Shaokang shook his head and said, "I'm not too sure either, you'll have to ask the owner of Allure Cosmetics about this."
"Does the owner of Allure Cosmetics have a problem with his head or something? Actually choosing this kind of place, are they not afraid that this will lower their image." Qi Shaoru said, pulling her sleeves.
"They opened a black-hearted shop! They never had much of a good image anyway." Qi Shaofu said.
Qi Shaokang: "…"
Qi Shaoru's eyes roved around the room. Several of the guests who came here were wearing veils covering their faces, they seemed to be imperial concubines.
"Second Brother, later on, help me buy a bottle of Goddess's Tears. In the future, I'll slowly pay you back with my pocket money." Qi Shaoru said.
Qi Shaokang looked at Qi Shaoru and said, "Really?"
Qi Shaoru nodded and said, "Of course, I promise."
Qi Shaokang smiled and said, "Fifth Sister, your promise isn't worth much, and besides, your Second Brother doesn't have a lot of money on hand either."
"Second Brother, if you don't even have enough money, then who else would? Second Brother, please just help me this one time." Qi Shaoru said.
"Your Fourth Brother has a lot of money! He's so rich, he can't be any more rich," Qi Shaokang said sourly. "The people who are keeping order here in Luohua Pavilion are all guards from Tianlan College, around a hundred of them came. Your Fourth Brother was very generous, he gave each person a commission of 1000 gold coins, and a set of cosmetics worth 1000 gold coins."
Qi Shaoru managed a smile with an effort and said, "Second Brother, it's not like you don't know how bad my relationship with him is. Although, what does the sales exhibition Allure Cosmetics have to do with Fourth Brother! What is he getting involved for."
Qi Shaokang looked at Qi Shaoru and said, "Your Fourth Brother might have a close relationship with Allure Cosmetics.."
Qi Shaoru: "…"
"The owner of Allure Cosmetics isn't simple! They even managed to invite two music masters here." Qi Shaokang said.
Footnotes:
Scam: "Black shop", meaning a fraudulent store/business or a scam.
Qinshi: This is used to refer to someone who's a player of a stringed instrument.
Zither, flute: The zither here is probably a guqin, which is a seven-stringed plucked instrument, and a type of zither. The flute here is a xiao, a type of vertical bamboo flute.