Chapter 1 Prologue: Tianji Meets Spring Mountain. There is a Tianji in the world…

There is a Heavenly Ranking in the world. Once selected, one can become famous and make a comeback.

Rumor has it that once the Heavenly Ranking is revealed, strange cases will surely emerge in the world.

It covers everything from the highest heavens to the mortal realm, and down to the realm of ghosts. It can be said to integrate humans, gods, and ghosts into one, bringing together extraordinary people and eccentrics from all over the world to solve strange cases.

Encountering gods and ghosts is merely a temporary novelty; making a name for oneself and achieving fame is what people truly pursue.

Seven hundred years ago, the Tianji Ranking emerged, creating the "Four Gentlemen of Tianji" at that time.

Although the four men ultimately met tragic ends—two died, one rose in rank, and one fell from grace—their legend continues to be widely circulated to this day.

People say, "If you can get Tianji to bow down now, you will surely be a superior person in the future."

Even if you end up being shattered to pieces and your soul scattered, at least you were once famous. Whether it was good or bad, it was all worth it.

Just as people were eagerly anticipating another bizarre case in the world, the Heavenly List disappeared from the world due to a catastrophe.

This means that people's dream of becoming superior to others has been shattered.

Now that the Heavenly Ranking has returned to the world, how could it not cause jubilation throughout the Three Realms?

However, there are many clear-headed individuals among them who know that those truly involved are no ordinary people, and the process of solving the case is fraught with danger; a single misstep could cost them their lives. They themselves are not cut out for it, and naturally, they wouldn't blindly rush in to their deaths.

Although we can't experience it firsthand, that doesn't stop us from getting together over tea and meals to discuss the hot candidates who could be selected by the Tianji List.

Among them, the most popular choice is none other than the owner of Chunshanlou.

This Master Chunshan is an extraordinary person.

It is unclear whether it is a man or a woman.

It is unknown whether it is a human, a god, or a ghost.

It's unclear whether it's one person or many people.

During the century that Chunshanlou has existed, there are two widely circulated anecdotes.

The first story is called "Spring Mountain's Fake Shells Exchanged for a Thousand Pieces of Gold".

At that time, Chunshanlou was just a spice and herb stall called "Chunshan" that was sold by two old men pushing a cart along the street.

The incense and herbs they sell have a wide range of effects; there's nothing they can't do that people can't imagine.

Because of its authentic ingredients and excellent results, it is praised by the world.

However, the transaction method was primitive and casual.

barter.

A serving of incense can be purchased with equivalent monetary value, or with strange tales, rare treasures, or even a pot of tea or a bowl of porridge.

Everything you have can be exchanged; whatever you exchange, you can do as you please.

If someone is short of money and has nothing to exchange, but really needs something, they will give it away for free.

From royalty to beggars on the street, anyone could possess it, regardless of their status.

But there is only one requirement for the items being exchanged: authenticity.

Honesty is fundamental; every exchange is based on sincerity.

At this point, some people will surely wonder: "Can this method really make money? If someone deliberately sells inferior goods as superior ones, and these sellers can't tell the difference, wouldn't they lose everything?"

Is this doing business or doing charity?

If that were the case, wouldn't everything have come to nothing, and all our efforts would have been in vain?

However, this is not the case.

Legend has it that someone once offered to trade a century-old giant clam from the bottom of the North Sea for a set of fragrant medicine. The giant clam was a full five zhang long and one zhang high. It was covered with the finest gold and red silk cloth, and the four sides of the base were made of pear wood plated with copper, firmly encasing the giant clam. Ten horses rode side by side, and guards with swords stood in front, behind, left, and right, each with a serious expression, as if someone really could steal this behemoth.

The buyer, dressed in a brocade robe, rode a fine horse with his head held high and chest out, displaying an arrogant and smug demeanor. He was at the head of the procession, followed by four servants who walked with their heads bowed in silence.

The sheer scale and extravagance of the event drew crowds from all over the city, who stopped to watch and discuss it endlessly.

"This Spring Mountain Herbal Shop is truly remarkable! They've managed to amass such a large fortune these days. But what exactly is it?"

"Judging by this young master's demeanor, the things inside must be priceless!"

"Look at you, so ignorant! There must be a mountain of gold inside!"

"This stuff is enough to buy several Spring Mountain Herbal Medicine Shops..."

The grand procession stopped in front of the cart. The fair-faced young man strode over, bowed sincerely to the two old men, then turned his head and gestured with his chin toward the huge object behind him, looking mysterious without saying a word.

The shop was surrounded by people, who crowded around it from the front to the back, making it impossible to move. Everyone was curiously looking at the big thing while observing the reactions of the two old men.

The old man, however, remained remarkably calm.

Both old men were dressed in coarse linen clothes. One had white hair and was resting with his hands on a rocking chair with his eyes closed. The other had his hair styled in a hairpin style, with one hand behind his head and the other stroking his beard, which was braided into a small braid.

The old man with the braided beard slowly stood up, as if he hadn't spoken for a long time. He raised his hand to clear his throat and said in a calm and unhurried tone, "Young master, are you here to buy incense?"

He didn't even glance at what was behind him.

The pale-faced young man said, "Of course, I came with absolute sincerity."

Having said that, he reached out and pulled, and the red silk fell down. A flash of white light revealed a giant clam shell that had already been jadeified. Under the backlight, the pearl was as clear as water, with no insect cracks on the surface. The white lines or textures were extremely faint, even invisible to the naked eye. At first glance, it was indeed a rare treasure that one could only dream of.

The onlookers were surprised, but mostly disappointed, and a chorus of murmurs of disapproval filled the air.

"What is this? It's just a big seashell? How much is it worth?"

"Didn't you see that thing was glowing? How could something that's sparkling not be valuable?"

"The stars in the sky are still shining brightly, but they can only be admired from afar and cannot be taken. Do you think those stars are valuable?"

"In my opinion, apart from being a bit big and shiny, this thing is something you can't take with you when you die. It's not as practical as real gold and silver."

Seeing that everyone looked like they'd never seen anything like it, one of the guards sneered, "What do you ignorant fools know! This is a giant clam shell that has been deposited at the bottom of the sea for hundreds of years, worth a fortune! Such a treasure is not something you commoners can even dream of!"

Someone shouted from the crowd, "So what if it's worth a fortune? You're just a servant, you can only look at it, and you can probably only touch it in your dreams!"

Seeing that the two sides were about to clash, the pale-faced young master coldly restrained the guard who was about to draw his sword. The guard, holding his breath, had no choice but to retreat in a huff.

Throughout, the old man simply watched from the sidelines, a smile playing on his lips, though it didn't reach his eyes; he was clearly enjoying the spectacle.

The pale-faced young man turned around, his face beaming, and asked, "Is his heart sincere?"

The old man glanced at the giant clam shell again and said, "Sincere."

I don't know if it's just my imagination, but this answer didn't sound very sincere.

The pale-faced young master laughed heartily and instructed his servants to purchase all the necessary incense and herbs. Before leaving, he even thoughtfully asked if they needed help transporting the giant clam shell to their home.

The old man said, "No need, just leave it here. It won't be long before it's taken away anyway."

The pale-faced young man didn't think much of it, assuming he wouldn't have to make another trip and was happy to have some peace and quiet. With a flick of his whip, he rode off into the distance.

Just as everyone was wondering how the two old men would carry away the enormous object, the pale-faced young man returned the next day.

The pale-faced young master clutched his stomach and howled in pain. He lashed out with his whip, knocking over the fragrant herbs displayed on the cart, and demanded, "You keep saying you're acting in the best of your ability, but in reality, you're doing filthy and despicable things!"

Today, another elderly man arrived, dressed in coarse linen clothes, with a composed expression.

The old man rubbed his temples, dusted off the dirt on his clothes, snorted coldly, and said, "That's the question I should be asking you, young master."

The pale-faced young man frowned slightly and asked, "What do you mean?"

The old man said, "Our rule is that whatever is exchanged, regardless of its value, must be genuine. What kind of logic is it for you, young master, to try and exchange my incense for a fake?"

This statement caused an uproar.

The pale-faced young man was taken aback, but still said confidently, "You're talking nonsense! I transported this giant clam shell all the way here just to show my sincerity in buying incense and medicine. How can you prove that it's fake?"

Seeing that he wouldn't admit it, the old man wasn't in a hurry. Instead, he took out a handkerchief from his sleeve, walked up to the giant clam shell, and gently wiped it, revealing a severely cracked shell with scattered rust spots around it. With just one glance, it was clear that this giant clam shell, worth "a thousand pieces of gold," was beyond repair.

This is indeed a giant clam, but its quality is vastly different from what I saw yesterday.

It turned out that the pale-faced man had applied a rare pigment to the giant clam shell, which, under light, produced a lustrous, translucent sheen like white jade. The only drawback was that once exposed to light, the pigment would only last for three days at most before fading, revealing its original appearance. Therefore, it could never be exposed to light. Due to its short shelf life, although rare, its use was limited, and thus it wasn't considered a particularly rare item.

The play about the pale-faced man is about how poor people don't recognize good things and only recognize gold and silver.

His entourage was grand enough, his influence powerful enough to convince anyone. He was convinced that the two old men, like the common folk, despite their widespread fame, were simply ignorant of the value of genuine products in the impoverished Xialing. He planned to resell the fragrant herbs he acquired at a high price, gaining far more than these counterfeit, mangled shells. Once he was gone, the tridacna shells would fade, and the distance would be too great for them to find him, leaving them no choice but to accept their fate.

The old man had seen through his intentions, which is why he added something good to the incense he had prepared yesterday, forcing him to return the way he came.

When everyone came to their senses, they realized that this was a premeditated scam, which was truly despicable!

Seeing that his scheme had been exposed, the pale-faced man's face contorted in pain. He could no longer care about the increasingly intense cramps in his stomach; all he wanted was to leave as quickly as possible.

The man had barely taken a step when the old man grabbed him by the back of his collar and pulled him back. He stumbled and fell to the ground, his whole body trembling and cold sweat pouring down his face.

The old man leaned down to look at the pale-faced man, a faint smile on his lips, but his emotions were unreadable, and a sense of oppression washed over him.

The old man said, "Young man, the price of this thing is just a pretext for external consumption, while its true value lies in your heart. By acting in this way, aren't you just merging your own value with that of this tridacna shell?"

The old man rubbed his temples with a hint of helplessness, thinking to himself that this young man was really troublesome.

The old man sighed softly and said, "Since you broke your promise first, young master, my incense is genuine. Since you say this giant clam shell is worth a thousand gold pieces, then you should compensate me a thousand gold pieces to even things out."

Everyone burst into laughter upon hearing this. Since the swindler claimed that this broken shell was worth a thousand gold pieces, he must have assumed that the incense was worth a thousand gold pieces. If it wasn't worth that thousand gold pieces, wouldn't that mean the swindler was worthless?

Knowing he was in the wrong, the pale-faced man had no choice but to give her the thousand taels of silver and slunk away.

The old man stopped him, saying, "Take this thing away. If you run into a junk collector on the road, you might be able to exchange it for some money."

Everyone suddenly realized that the person they could take away was right here.

Chunshan Herbal Shop thus evolved into Chunshan Tower.

The second story is called "Sanzhen's Identity Remains a Mystery".

As Chunshanlou grew larger, it also hired more and more staff.

A rogue who frequented gambling dens was sent by his family to work as a waiter at Chunshan Tower in the hope that he could turn over a new leaf. However, the manager refused to let him in, saying that "Chunshan Tower does not accept lazy good-for-nothings."

Perhaps provoked, that scoundrel underwent a complete personality change overnight. The very next day, he returned, his attitude sincere and humble, appearing as if he had suddenly realized his mistakes and repented. He even solemnly swore in front of Chunshan Restaurant, to his family, the manager, and the crowd of onlookers: From now on, he would turn over a new leaf, start anew, and strive to achieve great things!

Five or six years later, he did indeed achieve something.

This achievement was due to stealing the incense recipe from Chunshanlou and starting a new business elsewhere to expand and strengthen the company.

Finally, they even tried to annex Chunshanlou.

That's truly a grand ambition!

The mysterious Lord of Chunshan finally made his appearance, but he was wearing a faceless mask. However, judging from his figure, he should be a woman.

She sat gracefully before the entrance of Chunshan Pavilion, one jade-like hand supporting her head. Her blue dress resembled an iris, and though her expression was obscured, her languid ease was evident. Behind her stood the towering Chunshan Pavilion, a full ten feet high, grand and majestic yet not cold, exuding instead a welcoming and welcoming atmosphere. From afar, she and the pavilion blended seamlessly, appearing less like a beautiful woman and more like a fairy from a painting.

The woman's voice was ethereal and her tone was unhurried as she said, "You really have a lot of potential."

"You think that Chunshanlou's recipes are closely guarded secrets, and you think that what you said that day was an insult to your dignity, but in reality, all learners are taught everything they know, and everyone is treated equally."

"So that when you leave Chunshan Tower, or even if Chunshan Tower is no longer there, you can still rely on your own abilities to start a new life."

"Therefore, your actions cannot shake Chunshan Tower at all."

The man never imagined that all his scheming, all for the sake of avenging the humiliation he suffered that day, would end up being completely ignored by the other party.

The owner of Chunshan Tower stretched his back, as if yawning, his voice tinged with a hint of weariness, and said, "Just a friendly reminder, you have a big appetite, but unfortunately, Chunshan Tower can't swallow it all."

"You shouldn't be too idle."

She suddenly stood up, raised her arms to greet the crowd, and announced loudly: "Ladies and gentlemen, today I hereby announce some news: 'From this day forward, Chunshan Pavilion will no longer sell only incense and medicine; all things in the world, regardless of value, will be sold here!'"

A shop specializing in incense and herbs has transformed into a general store; the accumulation of the past century was all for this day.

But the master of Chunshan Pavilion said that he was not the master of Chunshan Pavilion, but merely a person in charge of a generation.

These words drew astonishment from everyone: the Spring Mountain Master was mysterious and unpredictable, and it was rare to find someone who wasn't even the real Spring Mountain Master.

Who are they then? Those two old men?

But a century has passed, and those two old men have gone through the cycle of reincarnation at least twice.

But then again, how could such a long-term and meticulous plan have survived for a hundred years without someone planning it behind the scenes?

Could it be some deity from heaven or some ghost from the underworld?!

This speculation was quickly refuted.

Chunshanlou opened branches in Guiyu and Tiandu respectively.

They truly achieved this: everything in the world is sold here.

Six hundred years have passed, and Chunshan Tower is a renowned place in the Three Realms. However, the mysterious master of Chunshan Tower behind it has only appeared a handful of times in the past century, and remains a secret that everyone in the Three Realms wants to uncover.

The Heavenly Rankings were announced, and people from all three realms placed bets, gambling on whether the Spring Mountain Master would come.

A note from the author:

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Welcome, everyone, to Chunshan!

First, here's a bag of dried apricots that the female lead loves (dried apricots that make you feel happy) and the male lead's favorite iced grape juice (it makes your mouth and heart sweet)!

Hope you enjoy watching! Have a happy day!