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Chapter 637: A General Store
Chapter 637: A General Store
"There's no need to rush. We can take our time." Lu Chen said gently.
"Also, I intend to hire a cultivator to act as a temporary store owner who will handle the buying and selling of various treasures within the store."
"After all, I usually focus on nurturing spiritual herbs and my cultivation, and I don't have the extra energy to manage the store."
"Elder Mu, do you have any suggestions?"
"Finding a cultivator to manage the store is no easy task. They must be trustworthy, intelligent, quick-witted, adept at reading people, and well-versed in knowledge about artifacts, talismans, pills, and more.
As far as I know, there are generally two ways to go about this. One is to search through tooth guilds, which usually have a good reputation and save time and effort, although the price may be a bit high."
"The other option is to scout in the loose cultivator markets, which is relatively cheaper, but the reliability of the cultivators you find may vary."
"Oh right, there's one more method that I'm not sure if you'd consider, Elder Lu."
The tall elder suddenly remembered something and spoke excitedly.
"You could try borrowing a cultivator from the Merchant Guild. You would just need to pay them a monthly salary."
"Those who come from the guild are usually well-trained, have clean backgrounds, are skilled at understanding people, and have a wide range of knowledge and experience. They are trustworthy."
"If you're worried they might run off with the store's treasures or spirit stones, you can purchase surveillance talismans or arrays that can monitor every corner of the store, or even use tracking insects or spells. You could also establish a contract with them to constrain their behavior."
The tall elder, Elder Mu, spoke enthusiastically, and each of his suggestions was quite useful to Lu Chen.
"Alright, then. Let's borrow a manager from the guild to be my store owner. Gender doesn't matter, but their cultivation should preferably be in the late Qi Refining stage to the early Foundation Establishment stage."
Lu Chen felt that this idea was indeed feasible.
The Sea Pavilion Merchant Guild was the largest merchant group in Liyang Realm, and the cultivators they trained would undoubtedly be of much higher caliber than those from tooth guilds. Additionally, as a guest elder of the guild, he had a certain degree of connection with them, making it the best choice.
"Then, I'll trouble you, Elder Mu, to help me find a suitable store and cultivator." Lu Chen said with a bow.
"It's my duty."
Elder Mu returned the bow and hurriedly left the branch building of the guild.
Lu Chen, on the other hand, made his way to the upper floors of the branch building to handle some mundane matters.
The guild headquarters had sent over some peculiar spiritual herbs from various places, and since they were unsure of their origins and uses, they had entrusted Lu Chen, who was both a guest elder and an expert in spiritual herbs, to identify them.
With his unique ability, Lu Chen effortlessly identified most of the spiritual herbs' varieties and uses.
To avoid drawing too much attention to himself, he deliberately remained vague in certain aspects and did not reveal all the information he knew about the spiritual herbs.
Nevertheless, even with this partial display of his knowledge, the guild's upper management was extremely satisfied and their evaluation of Lu Chen rose even higher.
"Elder Lu, I've found a potential store. Would you like to take a look?"
One day, Elder Mu found Lu Chen and excitedly suggested they go see the store he had in mind.
Lu Chen nodded and accompanied him to the location.
The store was situated in the middle to lower section of the Star-Plucking Tower. Each floor of the tower was expansive, and Elder Mu led Lu Chen to the end of a street on one of the floors.
"It's right there. The owner is looking to sell due to some family changes."
Lu Chen observed the surroundings and noticed a steady flow of cultivators passing by. Most were at the Qi Refining stage, with a small number at the Foundation Establishment stage. There were a few small shops nearby, each specializing in different cultivation resources—some sold only talismans, while others focused on array discs.
"The location is decent."
He followed Elder Mu into the store.
The interior wasn't very spacious. There were a few wooden shelves with an antique feel, currently empty. Behind the shelves was a small door that led to a room where one could rest or store treasures for sale.
"Whoa," Lu Chen exclaimed inwardly, astonished by the steep rent. 15,000 low-grade spirit stones could almost buy two fourth-grade magical artifacts, yet here it only rented a small shop for a month.
However, he could understand the high price. After all, this was the Star-Plucking Tower, a place where every inch of space was invaluable. With countless cultivators passing through, as long as the business stayed above average, one could make a steady profit.
"The rent for the Sea Pavilion Merchant Guild's branch office, which is dozens of times larger than this place, must be an astronomical figure," he mused, once again impressed by the guild's immense wealth.
Buying this shop was out of the question for Lu Chen, as he didn't have enough spirit stones. For now, he could only rent it.
Seeing Lu Chen's agreement to rent the shop, Mu Daoren called the shop owner over and helped Lu Chen sign a three-year lease, with rent payable quarterly.
"Let's call it 'Your Variety Store,'" Lu Chen said softly, gazing at the blank signboard above the door.
"Congratulations, Elder Lu, on acquiring your desired shop. May your business prosper and your wealth abound," Mu Daoren congratulated with a smile.
"Thank you, Fellow Daoist Mu. Also, I'd like to trouble you to help me find a trustworthy and reliable merchant cultivator to manage the store on my behalf," Lu Chen requested.
"Of course, leave it all to me," Mu Daoren assured, patting his chest.
True to his word, less than half a day later, Mu Daoren brought over a young man with a steady and honest-looking face.
"Elder Lu, this is Wen Qian. He is a distant relative of Wen Liuzhou, the head of our guild branch. He has a perfect Qi Refining cultivation and has attempted the Foundation Establishment stage three times without success. So, he joined the guild to help with business matters," Mu Daoren introduced.
"Wen Qian, this is Elder Lu, our esteemed guest elder. Please serve him well and don't disappoint him," Mu Daoren instructed.
"Greetings, Elder Lu!" Wen Qian said excitedly, bowing and keeping his head lowered.
"He seems decent, and since Fellow Daoist Mu helped choose him, I trust him," Lu Chen said.
"Then, I'll trouble you with everything from now on, young friend," Lu Chen said with a gentle smile.
"It's my honor to serve you, Elder," Wen Qian replied immediately.
"I won't be at the store often, so I'll leave all the daily matters to you. If there's anything urgent, you can contact me or find Fellow Daoist Mu. I'll come by regularly to provide goods and collect spirit stones," Lu Chen explained.
"To be upfront, if you want to earn my trust, we must establish a contract. Are you willing?" Lu Chen asked.
"I have no objections," Wen Qian answered.
The two of them then set up a contract, stipulating that if Wen Qian violated any terms or damaged Lu Chen and the store's interests, he would suffer immense mental and physical agony, far worse than death.
"How much does the guild usually pay you?" Lu Chen asked.
"1,800 low-grade spirit stones per month," Wen Qian replied.
"Working for me will likely mean more responsibilities. How about this—I'll pay you 3,000 low-grade spirit stones per month. What do you think?" Lu Chen offered.
"Thank you, Elder!" Wen Qian expressed his gratitude sincerely. When he had learned that he would be managing a small store, he was initially reluctant. After all, he had already established himself at the guild branch, earning a surplus of spirit stones each month. With more time, he could buy the spirit medicines to strengthen his foundation and attempt the Foundation Establishment stage again.
However, due to Lu Chen's status as a guest elder, he had no choice but to follow Mu Daoren's arrangement.
But now, with Lu Chen's generous offer, any displeasure he felt instantly vanished, and he became wholeheartedly devoted to serving Lu Chen.
(End of Chapter)
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