Chapter 4118 — Seeking Cooperation
The Blossom Guardian · Page 1 of 2
"Hey, hey, am I seeing things? How can there be so many top-grade pills here?" No sooner had one man stepped inside and cast a first glance around than his jaw dropped in sheer astonishment.
"That's right, that's right. This Celestial Pill Pavilion looks rather plain, and the pills on display aren't all that high-grade at first sight—but more than half of them are rare top-grade specimens. Even the Five Elements Merchant Guild doesn't seem this extravagant, does it? Could they be fakes?" The crowd was torn between wonder and doubt.
"Fakes? Just because you're ignorant, you call another's goods fake? A man like you has the nerve to come here to Middle Island and make a fool of himself? This quality, this luster—what part of it looks fake to you?" someone immediately shot back.
"They are indeed no fakes. I am a professional pill appraiser; I have seen no fewer than a thousand pills, or several hundred at the very least. And yet this Celestial Pill Pavilion is plainly a small shop with scarcely a handful of assistants, while the quality and luster of its pills seem in no way inferior to the Five Elements Merchant Guild's. The other guilds simply cannot compare. Most curious indeed!" an old man in the crowd affirmed.
"I'd wager with any of you that the owner of this Celestial Pill Pavilion must have deep connections—perhaps some great figure from the Pill Hall pulling the strings behind the scenes. That would explain how they obtained so many top-grade pills. Otherwise there is simply no explaining it!" another man chimed in, deliberately stirring up attention with his dramatic tone.
"Who cares about all that? As long as they are genuine top-grade pills and the price is this cheap, we'd better snatch them up now—later on there may be no such fine goods left!"
Watching the packed, bustling scene before them—some customers already scrambling to buy—Wei Zhao and the others exchanged glances and breathed a collective sigh of relief. The first day of business had opened with a rare and splendid start.
In truth, such a scene was hardly surprising. Though the shop was newly opened, Cloud Terrace Island—Middle Island especially—was full of discerning eyes that knew quality when they saw it. With so many top-grade pills on display, the kind that could not be bought even by fighting for them at ordinary times, and at prices far cheaper than other shops, it would have been downright strange if they had felt no temptation at all.
Business was booming, and Wei Zhao and the others were naturally run off their feet. Wei Zhao himself took the field as shopkeeper, with Tianchan at his side to help, while Xueli changed into a maid's uniform, deliberately veiled her face, and bustled about as a serving girl.
Hiring beautiful women as serving maids was a tactic many large merchant guilds employed. It not only drew customers but made it easier to close deals with male patrons—after all, few men are willing to lose face before a beauty. So Xueli's appearance aroused little suspicion.
Even if some wondered why she wore a veil, they merely assumed the Celestial Pill Pavilion had contrived it to create an air of mystery and attract customers.
Moreover, she was exceedingly careful, never flaunting her charms before customers while at work. Even those struck by her beauty and Tianchan's were, for the moment, merely feasting their eyes. So no trouble of the sort anticipated had yet arisen—after all, these people had come for the pills, and under normal circumstances would never stare at a serving girl.
Watching the spirit jade pour in ever greater quantities, Wei Zhao could not help but be overjoyed. At this rate, the Celestial Pill Pavilion would soon be on the right track, and this was the very foundation upon which they would establish themselves on Middle Island in the days to come.