Lin Yan looked at Piao's determined expression and the retreating figure of Ouyang Ye, who had fled in a hurry. He nodded with a smile, "I believe you."
"Thank you. Let's go back," Piao said calmly.
Lin Yan, seeing Piao's composed demeanor, reflected on his own fervent declaration from a moment ago. "Do you have nothing else to say?" he asked.
Normally, anyone praised would naturally show a touched expression. Yet, Piao remained so calm, which made Lin Yan feel a touch of disappointment.
Piao asked, "What do you want me to say?" He was still composed.
Lin Yan cleared his throat. "Shouldn't you be thanking me at a time like this?" He finally voiced his inner thoughts.
"Why should I thank you?" Piao retorted. He glanced at Lin Yan's face and continued, "Just because you believe in me, I should thank you? If that's the case, then perhaps you shouldn't believe in me after all."
"That's not what I meant, it's just..."
"You do mean that. In any case," Piao said, "I'll ask you now, do you truly believe me, or are you pretending to believe me?"
"Of course, it's true," Lin Yan said earnestly.
"Since it's true, why do you need my gratitude?" Piao said, pointing in the direction of the milk tea shop. "Let's go. I won't bid farewell to them one by one."
Lin Yan followed Piao's gaze towards the way back and then asked, "Does Chen know?"
"She was the first to know," Piao replied. Then, remembering something, he added, "Right, you need to keep a good eye on her."
"Me? Supervise her?" Lin Yan thought he had misheard.
Piao nodded. "Yes, you need to supervise her properly. Don't hit anyone."
Speaking of Chen, she had quite a temper. Ever since the establishment of the Forbidden Forest Search and Rescue Team, she had been arguing with those with immortal destinies daily. If she couldn't win an argument, she would resort to physical force. It was because of this that she became their de facto leader. Now, anyone returning injured dared not see her. Every time they returned, they would first seek out Piao, begging him to persuade her not to hit them.
Piao knew that Chen's actions were meant to teach them a lesson and prevent them from getting injured.
However, violence could not solve all problems. Therefore, whenever such incidents occurred, he would find Chen and persuade her not to lose her temper.
Of course, he hadn't intended to entrust such matters to Lin Yan. But since Lin Yan had brought it up, he casually passed the task to him. It was also a way to distract Lin Yan, so he wouldn't dwell on Feng Qishi.
"I understand," Lin Yan said.
"You understand, then..."
Piao was about to finish his sentence when Chen's voice came from behind him, "Master, you're leaving, and you're making this useless person supervise me. You really have too much time on your hands."
Hearing this, Piao frowned and slowly turned to face Chen, who was completely different from three months ago. He said coldly, "You're becoming more and more disrespectful."
"Master, what do you think if I take those people as my disciples?" Chen interjected.
Piao's expression hardened.
Lin Yan looked at Chen, who had been quite arrogant lately, and pondered her words. He lowered his head in shame.
"Master, I'm asking you," Chen said impatiently.
At the same time, Piao cast a glance at Chen's mud-and-blood-stained clothes and then at her worn-out boots. He said, "Your clothes and shoes are in this state, and you're still wearing them." He then looked at her disheveled hair and dirt-smeared face, expressing disdain, "Look at yourself. Aren't you dirty? You're truly embarrassing."
"My work doesn't allow me to be clean. Before you leave, give me an answer," Chen said earnestly. "Is it okay for me to take them as disciples?"
"They have immortal destinies, not demon destinies..."
"Jiong Ye is also a demon, yet you still accepted them?" Chen interrupted.
Piao's face turned cold. "Jiong Ye is using them, not taking them as disciples. Besides, you said the purpose of forming that team was solely to protect the people here. They have merely found their place to contribute. You..." He paused, then asked, "Honestly, have you run out of money?"
"..." Chen's eyes darted away.
"Speak," Piao commanded.
Chen lowered her head slightly and said, "Master, I'll tell you the truth. We captured those evil spirits, but we had no idea where to send them. In the end, you know, we let them all go, and we didn't get a single coin. As for those who were rescued, they all suffered varying degrees of trauma. We didn't dare to accept their money, did we?"
"..." Piao frowned.
Chen hesitated and continued, "Mu Xiang is also angry."
"Why is she angry?" Piao asked, puzzled.
Chen explained, "Why else? These people have immortal destinies, but they are still human. I can go without eating or drinking, but they can't. For the past three months, Wan Sha has been providing their meals. It was fine at first, but as time went on, of course, people became unwilling."
"..." Piao sighed, unsure what to say.
However, Chen knew Piao would react this way, so she hadn't intended to tell him in the first place. She had only come to see him off, and asking about taking them as disciples was just a casual remark. In reality, she had no intention of listening to Piao's opinion.
"Alright, Master, you can go," she said.
Piao was taken aback. "Don't you need my help?"
"No need. I'll figure it out myself. Anyway... I finally understand why Mu Anxiao loves money. In this world, even with ability, being without money is also a very awkward situation, just like my disciples."
"Disciples?" Piao said. "Can you stop making arrangements haphazardly?"
Chen argued, "Master, it's not me making haphazard arrangements. Only if they cultivate demons with me will they not go hungry. What do you know?"
"You cannot take them as disciples," Piao stated firmly.
Chen became displeased. "Why not? I'm doing this for their own good, not harming them. You... why are you being unreasonable?"
"I'm not being unreasonable. They have immortal destinies, not demon destinies. Besides, you said yourself that the group was formed solely to utilize their potential. Now you want to deprive them of their right to become immortals," Piao took a deep breath. "Chen, you've gone too far."
"I..."
"Alright, come with me," Piao interrupted.
Chen was momentarily stunned and asked, "Why should I go with you? I still need to manage the team. Besides... those people trapped in the Forbidden Forest are still waiting for me to rescue them."
"You don't need to worry about these things."
"Don't need..."
"Stop talking," Piao interrupted again, bypassed Chen, and walked towards the milk tea shop.
Chen looked utterly bewildered. She turned to look at Piao's receding figure, blinked, and then turned back to Lin Yan, who was staring at her blankly. She asked ungratefully, "What did you say to my master?"
"I didn't say anything," Lin Yan distanced himself and walked past Chen.
Subsequently, Chen glanced at Lin Yan's departing figure, tutted, and followed him.
Before, Piao had never believed Chen to be an ambitious demon, nor had he expected her to recruit disciples in such a manner.
At this moment, he truly felt fortunate that he had asked an extra question. Otherwise... these people with immortal destinies would have been terribly tricked by Chen.
A quarter of an hour later.
Piao sat inside the shop, looking at Mu Xiang, who had just returned from outside, and then at Chen, who was sitting beside him. He cleared his throat and called out, "Um... Mu Xiang, come here."
Upon hearing the call, Mu Xiang stopped, looked down at the ledger in her hand, then turned sideways to look at Piao, who was summoning her. She hesitated and asked, "What do you want me to come over for?" She glanced at Chen.
Seeing Mu Xiang glance at her, Chen quickly pretended nothing was wrong and turned her face away.
Mu Xiang observed Chen's reaction, knitted her brows, and walked to the table. "You called me here... do you have something to say?" she asked, looking down at Piao.
Piao said calmly, "Are you angry because you've been providing them with meals?" He fixed his gaze on Mu Xiang's face.
Upon hearing this, Mu Xiang shifted her gaze to Chen's face. "You said it."
Hearing this, Chen cleared her throat and looked towards Mu Xiang, using Piao as an intermediary. "Yes, I said it."
This matter was something Mu Xiang had discussed with Chen the previous night. At the time, Chen had told Mu Xiang that she would absolutely not involve Piao, and even said that if she told Piao, she would be a dog.
It was because of this statement that she thought of a way to take them as disciples.
Who would have thought that... just one night later, she would become a dog.
"You said it," Mu Xiang said with a hint of sarcasm, chuckling.
Chen felt awkward.
Piao asked, confused, "What are you laughing at?"
Upon hearing this, Mu Xiang sat down at the table, still laughing. "She told me she would absolutely not seek your help. If she did, she would be a dog," she said, pointing at Chen.
"A dog..." Piao uttered the word, turned to look at Chen, who dared not look up, and said, "Disciple, you're too embarrassing."
"I didn't want to involve you, Master. Also, I thought..." Chen swallowed and summoned the courage to look up at Piao. "Since I am your disciple, I should bring you honor. So I thought of taking them in, with you as the grand-master. Wouldn't that be great?" She raised her chin.
"Your ambition is quite significant."
"..." Chen dared not speak.
Piao glared at Chen, then looked at Mu Xiang and said, "They're not having it easy, you should understand this."
"Of course, I understand. But... but I have no other choice, you see, ever since Mu Anxiao..." Mu Xiang's eyes welled up with sadness halfway through her sentence. "After she left, all these people came. And you know, although the shop's business is quite good, because we have to cook for those people, we've made virtually no profit these past three months. If this continues, the shop might as well close down."
Those people had tasks of varying degrees of difficulty every day, and the Forbidden Forest was far from here, so they naturally needed to replenish their energy. Therefore, they ate twice as much as normal people.
Such an appetite would intimidate anyone.
Thus, Piao understood Mu Xiang's reasoning. After some thought, he said, "How much money would it take to support them for a year?"
Mu Xiang asked, "What do you mean by that?"
"I am Chen's master, so naturally, I won't let her act recklessly. Just tell me how much money is needed," Piao stated firmly.
Seeing Piao's resolute expression, Mu Xiang casually opened the ledger and looked. "There are nearly twenty of them in total, and they have large appetites. It would take at least three hundred taels."
Upon hearing this, Chen exclaimed excitedly, "Three hundred taels! Mu Xiang, how can you set such a price arbitrarily?"
"I'm not. The ingredients have to be bought, and the chefs have to cook. You haven't even calculated the costs. Moreover," Mu Xiang said, "for a shop to support so many people for a year, three hundred taels is already quite a small amount."
"You..."
"That's enough," Piao glanced at Chen and conjured two bulging money pouches. "Is this enough?"
Seeing this, both Chen and Mu Xiang's eyes widened. Chen asked, "Master, where did you get so much money? Did you conjure it from stones?" She tilted her head up and stared at Piao.
Piao was speechless for a moment. "I am a renowned wealthy merchant here. It's just that after that incident, I dismissed all my servants, which is why the courtyard appears so empty now. You..."
"Master, are you still doing business?" Chen interrupted.
Piao lowered his eyes and stared at Chen's face, which was clearly scheming to get money from him. "The money is all mine. Don't even think about taking a single coin. If you want money, earn it yourself."
"I don't want to," Chen said, reaching out and grabbing Piao's arm. "I'll work with you." She raised an eyebrow.
Piao looked at Chen's money-grubbing expression and couldn't help but think of Mu Anxiao again. His eyes darkened, and he said, "You're really becoming more and more like her."
"..." Chen frowned.
Mu Xiang pointed out, "You're still thinking about Mu Anxiao."
"..." Piao nodded slightly and said, "Yes, I'm still thinking about her."
"I miss her too," Chen added.
Since learning of Mu Anxiao's 'death', Chen had only cried once and had not mentioned Mu Anxiao since. In the shop now, only Mu Xiang, Xiao Zeng, Lin Yan, and Wan Sha spoke of Mu Anxiao.
Others either didn't know her, were indifferent to her, or, like Chen, never mentioned her.
Therefore, upon hearing Chen's words, Piao was greatly surprised. "You miss her too? I really can't tell." He shook his head slightly.
"I just don't want to mention it. Those people are the same," Chen said, her eyes welling up with tears. "Master, you must find Mu Anxiao."
"You come with me," Piao said calmly.
Chen frowned and retorted, "Master, do you know why I've been desperately searching for evil spirits with those people and protecting them?"
Piao: "..."
Chen continued, "It's because of Mu Anxiao. Every time we enter the Forbidden Forest, they cry. They say that perhaps Mu Anxiao's soul is there, perhaps we can find her, perhaps..." She started crying. "She's living in seclusion in the depths of the Forbidden Forest, healing her injuries. When she's recovered, she'll appear, and then we can bring her back." She then looked up and wept loudly.
Seeing Chen like this, Piao lowered his gaze.
After listening, Mu Xiang looked at Chen, then at Piao, and asked, "Where are you planning to look for her?"
Hearing this, Piao let Chen cry and looked up at Mu Xiang. "I don't have an exact direction yet, but before that, I need to go to Jin City to see someone."
"See someone?"
"Yes. To be frank, I have some business there," Piao said calmly.
"Is that so? Then..." Mu Xiang heard that Piao was going into business, and then thought of those people. She didn't hesitate to take the two money pouches from Piao's hands. "Then I'll take them."
"..." Piao pursed his lips and smiled, retracting his hands and looking at Chen, who was still sobbing incessantly. "Come with me."
Chen pouted. "Master, I want to stay. You..."
"You must come with me."
"Master... you've helped me solve my problem, and I no longer intend to take them as my disciples. I just want to work here properly. You..."
"There's five hundred taels of silver in here. Remember to pay them their wages every month," Piao interrupted, looking at Mu Xiang.
Mu Xiang weighed the money pouches in her hands and said, "Understood."
Piao nodded, then looked at Chen. "Come with me."
Chen was speechless.