Cultivation: I Have Studied Abroad in the Modern World
Chapter 107 - 13 Help Me

Chapter 107: Chapter 13 Help Me

Yuan seemed deeply moved.

However, Zhang’s eyes turned slightly colder. She looked at Zheng Fa and did not speak for a long while.

After a lengthy silence, she spoke up, "Yuan, I need to talk to Zheng Fa alone."

Yuan nodded, giving Zheng Fa a worried and pleading look before she gently descended the stairs.

As she went down, she turned back to look at Zheng Fa, as if wanting to say something, but ultimately, she remained silent.

Once her figure vanished around the stair corner, Zhang drew a golden soundproofing talisman in the air. The talismanic script crumbled into golden specks, quickly dissipating in the room’s corners.

Zheng Fa felt the room suddenly quiet down. The boisterous hawking from the workshop below and the hustle of footsteps were all barred outside by this soundproofing talisman.

Now, the only thing he could hear was Zhang’s long, profound breathing.

"Why refuse?" Zhang asked.

Both knew that Zheng Fa’s earlier remark, which appeared to be in support of Yuan, was actually more of a refusal to Zhang.

Zhang had known from the start that the ledger was organized by Zheng Fa and her intention in coming here today might have been to hand over the workshop’s management to him.

"Yuan is very diligent," Zheng Fa first spoke a word of fairness for Yuan.

Initially, when Han Qi said Yuan was idle, he believed it too.

But after working with Yuan for some time, he discovered that though she was not very proactive in accounting, she indeed cared about the workshop.

"I know," Zhang nodded, but her face remained somewhat cold as she continued to explain, "Affairs Hall has two main sources of revenue, one of which is the workshop. If she wasn’t diligent, I would never entrust it to her."

"Two?"

"Do you think we can support the entire Jiushan Sect with just these Spirit Stones?" Zhang looked at him, explaining, "The main income of Jiushan Sect comes from buying disciples’ talismans at Affairs Hall and selling them to other sects within the Hundred Immortals Alliance."

I see, state-owned versus private enterprises!

"Then... Why me?"

"I’m short-staffed and there’s some disorder outside the sect," Zhang said candidly. "There are things I need her to do, and so the workshop can only be handed over to someone else..."

Zheng nodded in understanding.

"Someone else... I don’t trust," Zhang looked at Zheng Fa as she explained, "Everyone is lacking spiritual materials now, with so many Spirit Stones at stake daily. I’m afraid of dirty hands if I put someone else in this position."

Zheng Fa fell silent, finally grasping why Zhang was so urgently pushing to place him—a mere second-level Qi Cultivation practitioner—in charge of the workshop.

This was indeed forcing his growth.

And it would certainly stir a great commotion.

But Zhang’s assessment of other Jiushan Sect members, he believed—Who doesn’t know the current value of Spirit Stones?

"In my lineage of the Jiushan Sect... currently, there are only a few I dare say who won’t be tempted," Zhang raised her eyes to look at Zheng Fa: "Yuan is one, you are another."

Zheng Fa was startled.

"Sister trusts me that much?"

"Because you’re sufficiently talented, so you wouldn’t endanger your future over such trifles."

Zheng Fa humbly responded, "Sister, you flatter me."

"And you’re cowardly, that’s the most important," Zhang added.

...My thanks were too early.

After some thought, Zheng Fa still demurred, "I understand Sister’s intention, but with my cultivation... it’s truly hard to convince the masses."

"You are a Xuan-grade Talisman Master, and except for insufficient Spiritual Power, you are virtually equal to someone in the Foundation Establishment Stage," Zhang shook her head, "Though Foundation Establishment is still a bit low, it’s barely enough."

"..."

Seeing Zheng Fa still not speaking, Zhang suddenly said, "If someone objects, beat them until they submit."

"?"

"With my Golden Core status in charge of Affairs Hall, are there no challengers?" Zhang glanced at Zheng Fa.

Indeed, the head of Discipline Hall is Master Pang, who possesses a Nascent Soul.

The control over Jiushan Sect’s funds lying in the hands of Zhang, a Golden Core practitioner, likely incites more dissatisfaction than Zheng Fa running the workshop.

"Since my initiation, the atmosphere within Jiushan Sect has not been great. The strife in the Discussion Talisman Pavilion even resulted in injuries," Zhang said.

Zheng Fa was surprised, "So it’s considered good now?"

"Once I beat all my contemporaries in Jiushan Sect, they accepted my no-harm rule."

Zhang continued, "I was the fastest to reach Foundation Establishment in the history of the Hundred Immortals Alliance, and within Jiushan Sect, some say I’m the foremost talent of talismanic Dao within the Alliance. Of course, there are those within the Alliance who disagree. Once I beat most Foundation Establishment practitioners in the Alliance, they acknowledged my title."

"After reaching Golden Core, I took charge of the Affairs Hall. Those Golden Core True Inheritors who were unsatisfied—I beat all Golden Cores of my generation."

Zheng Fa grinned wryly.

What an aggressive path where the whole world is an adversary?

He couldn’t help but praise her, "Sister’s talent is heaven-sent; just hearing it makes my blood boil with excitement, as if I wish to take your place..."

"You can too."

"Cough cough, I don’t have that kind of talent."

Zheng Fa hurriedly denied, Zhang’s path was her own, not the one Zheng Fa wished to take—he felt he was already busy enough with the Talisman Dao Foundation Establishment Method, Five Thunders Dharma Body, Chi Xiao Technique, modern exploration of the talismanic Dao, and the college entrance exam...

Who has the time for constant conflict?

This path of being opposed by the whole world sounds exhausting, right?

"I’ll help you."

"?"

Zheng Fa looked at Zhang with a question mark slowly appearing over his head.

"Or rather, you help me," Zhang looked at him and gently said.

Looking into Zhang’s eyes, Zheng Fa clenched his teeth and nodded, "I’m willing to help, Sister, but I have one request."

"Speak."

"If it’s not urgent, it would be best to allow Yuan and me to jointly manage the workshop for a while longer."

"You sure are considerate of her."

"It’s more that I want Yuan to continue to give me support in managing the scene." Zheng Fa said with a smile.

"That’s fine, indeed there’s no rush." Zhang nodded and said, "She wants to be the manager of the workshop because she used to be too lonely. Now she loves the bustle, loves wandering around the workshop."

"Lonely?"

"She’s a green phoenix, raised by the Sect Leader."

"..."

Zheng Fa’s pupils dilated, recalling the large bird that had covered the sky.

"Then Yuan is..."

"Golden Core. She was raised by the Sect Leader to Golden Core on top of Jiushan, overcame the Transformation Heavenly Tribulation, and then she came down the mountain to be taught by me."

Zheng Fa nodded.

Looking at Yuan’s round face downstairs, he couldn’t help but think of the round head of the bird he had seen before.

You know, just going by the shape of the face, they really do look alike.

Yuan looked a bit anxiously at the two of them.

"Yuan, in the future, Zheng Fa will take charge of the workshop affairs."

Yuan’s expression darkened slightly.

But she nodded without a word, seemingly very obedient to Zhang’s instructions.

"However, Zheng here said he hopes you would help out for a bit longer." Zhang changed her tone, and Yuan couldn’t help but show a hint of joy on her face: "In half a year, the workshop will be entirely under Zheng’s management."

If this had been said earlier, Yuan might not have been pleased.

But now, this statement seemed like an unexpected joy, making her grin so wide that her eyes almost disappeared.

"During these six months, you should properly guide Zheng."

Zhang reminded her.

Yuan grabbed Zheng Fa’s arm and said, "I will definitely teach well!"

...

At Han Qi’s stall, the Xuan-grade talismans drawn by Zheng Fa quickly sold out.

The two beside him were all smiles.

"Brother, our talismans are selling faster and faster!"

"One Xuan-grade talisman coupled with three yellow-grade talismans is indeed a bit more cost-effective than before. It sells well! Brother, you’re indeed clever!"

The skinny, tall guy even complimented Han Qi.

"I see that other talisman sellers will soon start to imitate us."

Han Qi shook his head but didn’t look as happy as the other two, frowning with a look of concern.

"That’s true; those people aren’t fools either." The skinny tall guy nodded, but seeing Han Qi’s worried face, he reassured, "Brother, you don’t have to worry too much. We still have Zheng’s reputation. We will always do better in business than others."

"I’m not worried about that."

Han Qi sighed.

"Then why the long face, brother?"

"Do you guys remember Yuan from this morning?"

"Of course, we remember!"

"We may have offended Yuan." Han Qi said with a worried heart.

"Ah?" The skinny tall guy was taken aback, his face turning pale: "How did we offend her?"

"Don’t you know how we behaved around Yuan and how earnestly we acted under Zheng?" Han Qi said: "With such a big change, if Yuan saw that, she could not be indifferent."

"Indeed, as they say, ’women and vile characters are hard to raise.’ Will she make things difficult for us?"

Han Qi was silent for a moment: "Yuan is in charge of the workshop, and her cultivation is profound. Even if she doesn’t make things difficult for us, offending her is not a good thing."

"Don’t we still have Zheng?"

The skinny tall guy said uneasily.

"Zheng..." Han Qi’s face became even more troubled: "I’m afraid the three of us might even cause trouble for Zheng, getting Yuan’s anger transferred to him."

"..."

"After all, he’s still practicing Qi Cultivation, and Yuan is Zhang’s confidant."

Hearing this, the other two’s smiles were slowly replaced by worry.

"So, brother, what should we do?"

"If it really comes to it, we’ll go to Zheng’s house later to apologize, so he can be prepared. First, we’ll talk to Zhang." Han Qi gritted his teeth and said: "If Zheng faces any punishment, we will accept it!"

"Brother... it seems we don’t need to go to Zheng’s house anymore."

"?"

"Isn’t that Zheng over there?" The skinny tall guy pointed in that direction and said, "What you said about Yuan taking out her anger on him, is it like that?"

Han Qi looked up.

Zheng Fa was wandering around the workshop.

Beside him was a familiar yet strange figure, pointing enthusiastically to the surrounding shops, with a warm smile on her face, incessantly talking.

The three of them couldn’t hear what Yuan was saying, but it didn’t seem like she was scolding anyone.

"Is that... Yuan?"

Han Qi said blankly.

"It looks like her from the face, but the expression doesn’t seem quite right." The skinny tall guy also hesitated.

"..."

"So, brother, do we still go to Zheng’s house to apologize?"

"Apologize my ass!" Han Qi slapped the foolish sidekick beside him.

"How she behaves in front of us and in front of Zheng?"

"Does she have the face to blame us?"