Free Web NovelChapter 146: Chapter 146: Sowing Goodwill
The next day, when Lu Sangjiu woke up, she found herself still in the private room at the Moon Viewing Tower.
Outside, the sky was already bright. Chi Yan and Feng Lin were still sleeping soundly, each hugging a wine jar.
Lu Sangjiu stretched and casually cast a Cleaning Technique on herself and the other two, washing away the reek of alcohol before yawning and waking them up.
She remembered everything clearly from last night. Although she had only beaten up Yi Ze because she was drunk, she didn’t regret it now that she was sober.
Chi Yan even lamented, "I should have landed a few more punches back then. I can’t stand his arrogant face!"
Lu Sangjiu found it amusing as well. ’I’m not a kid anymore, but doing something so reckless once in a while actually feels pretty good.’
The three of them chatted for a few moments before leaving the private room.
They had already paid in Spirit Stones for the food and wine the day before, so after heading downstairs, the three of them walked straight for the door.
After a few steps, however, they were met by a female server who greeted them with a beaming smile. "Did you three sleep well last night?"
None of the three thought anything of it, assuming she was just a server making small talk. Chi Yan simply gave a casual nod and replied, "Pretty good."
The female server’s smile only deepened. "I’m glad to hear you slept well. In that case, I’ll have to ask you three to settle the overnight fee. A total of ten Mid-grade Spirit Stones will do."
The three of them...
They all fell silent. The corner of Lu Sangjiu’s mouth twitched. She was once again experiencing firsthand the sheer shamelessness of the Gold and Silver Gate.
’You’re a restaurant. We spent a fortune here last night, and now just because we got drunk and passed out, you’re charging an overnight fee?’
’Charging a fee is one thing, but asking for ten Mid-grade Spirit Stones right off the bat? That’s enough to get a comfortable night’s sleep in a high-class inn room!’
Chi Yan couldn’t take it and immediately yelled, "Ten stones? Why don’t you just rob us? Besides, if you were going to charge extra, why didn’t you wake us up last night? You let us sleep the whole night through and only tell us in the morning you’re charging more. This is a total rip-off!"
Chi Yan had a booming voice, and combined with his muscular frame, he looked rather intimidating.
But the female server was not the least bit afraid, nor was she angry. Her smile never wavered as she said, "Sir, words like that are truly disheartening."
"The three of you were completely wasted last night. If we’d thrown you out, or even woken you up just to kick you out, who knows what sort of trouble you might have run into outside."
"Our tower does not permit overnight guests as a rule. However, our Steward Huo is a kind man. He instructed us to simply collect a small fee in Spirit Stones this morning, rather than drive you out into the night. That was already incredibly generous and benevolent of him."
"You were sheltered by the Moon Viewing Tower for an entire night, and now you say such ungrateful things first thing in the morning. Don’t you think that’s a bit out of line?"
The female server was silver-tongued, leaving Chi Yan speechless in an instant. His face flushed red as he struggled to think of a comeback, and in the end, he could only turn to Lu Sangjiu for help.
After all, when it came to silver-tongued arguments, Lu Sangjiu was undoubtedly the best among the three of them.
Lu Sangjiu ignored him, instead asking the female server with a hint of curiosity, "This Steward Huo you mentioned... is he the Nascent Soul elder from the tower?"
The female server smiled and nodded. "He is indeed Steward Huo Xu."
She looked at Lu Sangjiu and said, "Steward Huo mentioned that he found you rather pleasing to the eye, which is why he chose to be lenient. You’re a smart woman, miss. Surely you don’t share your friend’s opinion of us, do you?"
Lu Sangjiu considered for a moment, then without hesitation, she took ten Spirit Stones from her storage bag and handed them to the female server.
"Please extend my thanks to Elder Huo. We’ll take our leave now."
Chi Yan looked like he was about to say something, but a single glance from Lu Sangjiu stopped him short.
It wasn’t until they were out of the Moon Viewing Tower that Chi Yan grumbled, "They were asking for so much. Why did you just pay them?"
Feng Lin, who was standing nearby, thought for a moment before looking at Lu Sangjiu. "Was it because of that Elder Huo?"
Lu Sangjiu nodded. "You both saw it for yourselves. Every business in Muxian Town is controlled by Cultivators from the Gold and Silver Gate. And knowing their obsession with Spirit Stones, it’s a safe bet that the more profitable the business, the higher up the Cultivator in charge."
"The Moon Viewing Tower is the biggest restaurant in Muxian Town. It must be backed by a Cultivator with an extremely high status in the Gold and Silver Gate."
"When the female server mentioned Elder Huo Xu just now, her tone was filled with reverence. Plus, he’s apparently not that old, yet he already has a Nascent Soul Cultivation. That’s enough to prove he holds a high position within the Gold and Silver Gate."
"This tower probably belongs to either him or his master. Since he’s shown us a bit of goodwill, spending ten Mid-grade Spirit Stones to build a connection isn’t a loss."
"We are on their turf, after all. Who knows when a connection like that might come in handy?"
After hearing Lu Sangjiu’s explanation, Chi Yan seemed to understand, but he couldn’t resist asking, "But what if you’re wrong?"
"Wrong...?" Lu Sangjiu shrugged. "It’s only ten Mid-grade Spirit Stones. Besides, I’m already used to being ripped off by the Gold and Silver Gate." free𝑤ebnovel.com
Chi Yan was speechless. He couldn’t help but sigh. "Listening to you say that, I can almost imagine your tragic history of suffering in the Gold and Silver Gate’s territory."
The Sword Seizing Conference was set to officially begin the day after tomorrow. So, after escorting Lu Sangjiu back to her inn, they didn’t linger and went their separate ways to prepare.
When Lu Sangjiu got back to her room, she found that Luo Linlang still hadn’t returned from her "human trafficking" venture. So she went downstairs by herself to eat breakfast.
Halfway through her meal, she saw Zhou Yun rushing frantically down the stairs. She collared a waiter and demanded, "Have you seen Yi Ze?"
The waiter shook his head again and again. "I haven’t seen him come down. Maybe he’s still in his room?"
Zhou Yun shot back, "If he were in his room, would I be down here asking you? You’re useless!"
After yelling at the waiter, she spotted Lu Sangjiu. Her expression instantly turned venomous as she stormed over. "You finally decided to show your face!"
Lu Sangjiu said unhurriedly, "You have time to pick a fight with me? Your precious Yi Ze is missing. You’d better watch out, or some other woman might steal his heart away. If you don’t go find him soon, it’ll be too late to do anything about it."
Her words infuriated Zhou Yun, but she couldn’t think of a retort. A sliver of doubt even entered her mind—what if Lu Sangjiu was right? After all, Yi Ze had the gall to fool around with Du Xing’er right in front of her.
At that thought, she lost all interest in wasting time on Lu Sangjiu. She shot her a vicious glare. "I’ll deal with you later!"
Zhou Yun had only been gone for a moment when Luo Linlang returned, looking dusty and worn from her travels.
The moment she saw Lu Sangjiu, her eyes lit up. She hurried over excitedly. "We hit the jackpot this time! I got fifteen hundred Mid-grade Spirit Stones for the sale, and I just squeezed another five hundred out of them for the tip! This is way more than I’ve earned doing business these past few days!"
Lu Sangjiu was surprised as well. "He’s worth that much? Tsk. Looks like Zhou Yun is about to have her wallet drained."
’Since Zhou Yun is frantically searching for him, she’s bound to ask Yi Ze’s martial brothers. With a huge sucker like her on the scene, why would they need anyone else to front the money?’
Luo Linlang sat down, gleefully counting out a pile of Spirit Stones. "Here, finder’s fee. This is your cut. Take these other two shares to your friends later. When one of us strikes it rich, we all strike it rich!"
