Chapter 149 The Sharp Rules of Bargaining
It was three days later when Linghu Zhuoyu had finished dealing with the matter of Duan Yuechi. Only then did he have time to talk to Mu Jianjian and Sang Wanyue about the matter of making pills with the water of the sacred lake.
Sang Wanyue had already been reborn into a new life. With her extremely high talent for alchemy and her hard work, she quickly got the hang of it and began to refine pills using her own alchemy furnace.
Mu Jianjian took on a logistical role, making a lot of steamed cakes and stir-fried snacks in her spare time, and continuing to ponder the incense poison and other secret techniques left to her by Cai Hua.
Although this body belongs to the young lady of the Xuan Shuang Sect, Mu Jianjian always felt that she did not have the same kind of familiarity with the Xuan Shuang Technique as Yueyue did. The system even complained that she "did not have a personality as cold as frost." Because of this, the two had a childish argument, and Mu Jianjian narrowly won in the end.
"The team sent by the Xuanshuang Sect has arrived in the capital." After receiving the message from the jade slip, Sang Wanyue immediately went to Mu Jianjian's courtyard to tell her.
She actually set off with the Xuan Shuang Sect's team, but she was worried that Jianjian would get separated from the group halfway and arrive at Duan Yuechi first.
"Phew—" Mu Jianjian blinked and took a deep breath. "Looks like we have to go."
She had to set off for Yingzhou Kyoto to meet them, just in case something unexpected happened due to the large and diverse forces that had recently entered Yingzhou. After a leisurely period of recuperation, she would start doing the main quest.
It's been so long since I've seen my senior brother...
I wonder how my senior brother is doing, and whether he has been bullied or wronged at the Kyoto Demon Palace.
Sang Wanyue saw the girl's slightly open mouth and blank expression and knew that she had been lost in thought again. She sighed and decided to tell Jianjian some things on the way.
"After we bid farewell to Lord Linghuchi, we left for Pingdu first,"
"So soon?" A cool voice reached Mu Jianjian's ears, and she couldn't help but ask, as if she hadn't had a proper rest over the weekend and was immediately heading into the work week mode, "Aren't we going with Yuyu?"
She remembered that the "Five Eccentrics" of Yingzhou were also going to attend the grand banquet; they even appeared at the banquet as the Demon Lord's "right-hand men," even though most of them were despicable demonic cultivators despised by everyone—
At this moment, Mu Jianjian was completely unaware of the consequences of succeeding Cai Chu as the "Garden Master" and becoming one of the "Five Eccentrics".
“After Lord Linghu arrives in Kyoto, he can go directly to the Demon Palace, but we still need to make many preparations. Going ahead of time will ensure there are no mishaps.” Sang Wanyue said seriously. Of course, she would not admit that she wanted to be alone with Mu Jianjian more.
“Okay, let’s go now.” Mu Jianjian believed the female lead Sang Wanyue’s words without a doubt.
After bidding a reluctant farewell to Linghu Zhuoyu, the two left Duan Yuechi and headed to the capital.
——
The two encountered no unexpected events along the way and arrived in Kyoto in three days.
After handing a jade slip to the city guard, Mu Jianjian took Sang Wanyue's arm and whispered, "It's so strict! There are even jade slips of true qi to record the comings and goings of each cultivator. It's not like the capital I imagined."
Sang Wanyue raised an eyebrow, "What kind of Kyoto do you imagine?"
“Every cultivator looked fierce and menacing, and the demonic cultivators swaggered around the city, snatching children. At night, their ‘hehehe’ laughter echoed everywhere.” Mu Jianjian described the scene very earnestly using her meager vocabulary.
In the original book, Chi Wenqing, as a villain, only made a brief appearance in the middle and later stages. Even the moment when the Demon Lord invites the world to a banquet, which is an important turning point for Chi Wenqing's descent into darkness, is only mentioned in passing. Later in the book, when the author describes Yingzhou Pingdu, it is indeed as she described.
Sang Wanyue: ...
“Jianjian, although most demonic cultivators advance their cultivation by damaging their Dao heart through crooked methods, they are all intelligent.” She tried her best to correct her silly younger sister’s strange ideas.
Mu Jianjian was silent for a while, then quickly put the question out of her mind and began to look around and observe the bustling street scene of Pingdu like a curious child.
The streets are lined with tall buildings and shops, and many small vendors with stalls and large umbrellas are scattered along the roadside. If you look closely, you can see some interesting ornaments, and even some elixirs and magical artifacts. The sunlight shines on the red bricks and green tiles, and colorful lanterns and silks hang from the eaves of the pavilions. Below, there is a constant stream of pedestrians.
Because the Xuanshuang Sect is a large sect, unlike the numerous demonic cultivators in Yingzhou who are ruled by demon lords, it has gained more popularity than the capital city, and its cultivation has a more ethereal and detached feel.
The Jingxu Garden and Duan Yue Pond, where Mu Jianjian had stayed, always carried a sense of oppressive gloom in the crowds. Now, in Kyoto, it was the first time she had experienced shopping in a way that was closest to the ancient cultivation world.
She lingered at each stall and shop, wanting to try on every single golden ornament before buying it.
Sang Wanyue knew that Mu Jianjian was playful. She originally wanted the two of them to go to the Xuan Shuang Sect members who had already settled in the Demon Palace to report the situation before coming to accompany her. However, looking at the girl's bright eyes, she couldn't bring herself to say the words of advice she was about to say.
"Yueyue, do you think this is pretty?" Mu Jianjian picked up a milky white bracelet hanging on a wooden hook and pointed to the jade-carved flowers and moon on it. "Let me help you try it on."
Regardless of whether Sang Wanyue agreed or not, he put the chain on her wrist.
"It's beautiful! How many spirit stones does this cost, boss?" The milky white, carved jade complemented her fair wrist, and Mu Jianjian turned to ask the boss directly.
"Ten medium-grade spirit stones." The merchant looked the two well-dressed and beautiful women in front of him up and down, then smiled and narrowed his eyes.
So expensive!
This is just an ordinary chain, neither a magical artifact nor a spatial bag, so selling it for this price is already outrageous.
Mu Jianjian clicked her tongue inwardly. Not wanting to be ripped off, she naturally started bargaining, "Two medium-grade spirit stones, I'm just asking if you'll sell it to me?"
"Two pieces? Young friend, you're joking. Don't let the ordinariness of this bracelet fool you; the jade here is formed from the spiritual energy of heaven and earth gathered from Mount Tian. I couldn't even break even with two mid-grade spirit stones!" The merchant's eyes were strange, but he forced a smile and said, "Young friend, you look familiar. How about seven pieces?"
Could it be that he misjudged the situation?
Impossible. The Demon Lord has invited many influential people to the capital for a banquet, and these two with their superior demeanor and attire must be among them.
"Three dollars. If you don't sell it, I'll go look at other shops," Mu Jianjian raised her hand and made a gesture of "three," as if she was about to take the chain off Sang Wanyue's hand.
At this point, the merchant, fearing that he would lose everything he had almost gotten and end up with nothing, finally gave in.
Sang Wanyue's eyes lit up with a smile. She had never actually seen a pampered young lady haggling with a street vendor.
They even went back and forth in the fight.
Mu Jianjian felt a great sense of accomplishment, even though it was just a small bracelet.
She can't handle you!
"Jianjian, shall we go to the Ni Chang Pavilion to buy some clothes first?" Sang Wanyue remembered that Mu Yutian had specifically told her this when she left.
Mu Yutian's original words were as follows—
"Take my little girl to the Rainbow Pavilion there, take this token to the people there, and let her choose the most beautiful clothes to dazzle those old geezers from the Supreme Palace!"
The Rainbow Pavilion is the most famous shop on the entire continent that makes custom clothing for cultivators. The dresses inside are made of the finest materials. Because there are weapon refiners working in the pavilion, the dresses may even be adorned with high-grade magical artifacts.
However, the clothes inside are priceless, mostly provided by major sects, and few ordinary cultivators can afford them.
"Okay!" Mu Jianjian was confused. She automatically filtered out parts of Yueyue's words, and only two words filled her mind—
shop.
The back-and-forth bargaining between the vendors and Mu Jianjian attracted the attention of many people on the street, while nearby, a small, gilded room being pulled by a demon beast slowly drove across the road.
The small room was square, with two specially made chains connecting it to two demonic beasts at the front ends, while its bottom was wrapped in a huge lotus base, floating steadily in the air with nothing underneath.
The small windows on both sides were covered by hanging wooden fans. At this moment, a slender hand lifted the wooden fans, slightly revealing a woman's eyes.
"Miss Ji, it seems there are two women over there buying things. They got into an argument with the vendor over the price, which caused the commotion."
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