Setis slowly squatted down, picked one up, and turned it over in her hands for a few moments before holding it up to Li Yuan's eyes.
“What is this?”
“A peace talisman. Just a little trinket I made. It can—”
“How much for one?”
Before he could finish, she was already playing with it in her hands with great interest. It seemed that rather than its function, she viewed it more as a common accessory.
“Fifty gold coins each.”
He had originally planned to sell them for one hundred and fifty, but since she was a regular customer, he gave her a discount.
“There are only five in total?”
“Yes.”
“Then I’ll take them all.”
As she spoke, she gathered all five peace talismans and stood up, naturally instructing the young man beside her, “Brother, pay him.”
The young man stepped forward and pulled a silver card from an inner pocket of his jacket, leaning down to hand it to Li Yuan. This kind of card was somewhat similar to the stored-value cards commonly used on Blue Star, but these cards could be redeemed at major banks, with face values ranging from five hundred to ten thousand.
The amount engraved on the one he gave Li Yuan was five hundred. This was a bit of a problem; Li Yuan didn't have enough money on him to give back change.
“Keep the rest for me. Consider it credit for my next tea session,” Setis said dismissively, noticing Li Yuan's predicament. She then glanced at the young man standing beside her and introduced him. “This is my brother, Reinhardt von Sebas.”
“Hello, I am Li Yuan.”
“Hello.”
Li Yuan stood up. Their gazes met in the air, and both gave a slight nod and a smile.
“Your clothes are nice. Very distinctive.”
Setis also nodded slightly, looking him up and down before giving a soft nod of approval, clearly admiring the cyan robe.
However, the two didn't stay long. Setis needed to prepare for the anniversary celebration at the academy over the next few days. She had only happened to see Li Yuan while passing through the plaza today and decided to stop by.
After a brief farewell, they left.
“Not a bad haul. Today is definitely my lucky day,” Setis thought as she took out the peace talismans she had just bought and began playing with them.
Sebas watched the faint smile on his sister's face and her lightened steps, his brow furrowing involuntarily. An ominous feeling suddenly rose in his heart.
As a certain bold idea formed in his mind, he looked at his sister’s blatant happiness... and the more he thought about it, the worse it felt. Then he considered the place she had been frequenting lately...
A headache began to set in. Once the seed of suspicion is planted, it does not disappear. Soon, Sebas fell into a whirlpool of possibilities, and without realizing it, Setis had already pulled ahead of him by quite a distance.
It wasn't until they were almost at the academy that he shook his head, trying to suppress the terrible thought. Taking a deep breath, he put back on his usual smile.
“It seems... I’ll have to find some time to have a good talk with my sister...”
...
Now that he had money, Li Yuan felt his confidence return. He packed up his stall, ready to continue his culinary tour.
But this time, he had to make some adjustments. He couldn't just focus on eating and spend all his money early; he had to plan. Recalling his past path of cultivation, he couldn't help but remark with feeling,
“Sigh... money. No matter what world you're in, it’s a good thing. The more, the better.”
“Young man, do you have any more of those peace talismans?”
An unexpected voice came from behind him. Li Yuan turned to see a handsome young man looking at him with a smile.
“If you do, how about selling me a few?”
“Sorry, they’re all sold out.”
“Eh? None left?”
The man was stunned for a moment, but he quickly recovered his composure. He tried to clap Li Yuan on the shoulder with practiced familiarity but failed—out of a habit of maintaining necessary distance from strangers, Li Yuan dodged the gesture.
The young man withdrew his hand sheepishly and gave an embarrassed laugh.
“Actually... my young master would like to invite you to a private suite nearby for a meeting.”
As he spoke, he pointed toward a luxury hotel at the entrance of the plaza.
“Your young master?”
Li Yuan searched his mind, and after confirming he had no information on the person, he said, “Thank you for the invitation, but I don’t know your young master. If there’s nothing else, please excuse me.”
“Is that so... perhaps this will help you remember.”
With a flick of his wrist like a card trick, a gold card suddenly appeared in the young man's hand—a stored-value card with a face value of five thousand.
When the card was pressed into Li Yuan’s hand, the young man's smile instantly became incredibly sincere. In response, Li Yuan naturally returned an equally sincere smile.
“Though I don’t know your young master, such sincerity is truly moving. It is an honor to receive his invitation. Let’s go, we shouldn't keep him waiting.”
As he spoke, he tucked the card away without a trace. It was rare to encounter such a generous benefactor; building a good relationship wouldn't hurt no matter how you looked at it.
The corner of the young man’s eye twitched visibly, but his professional discipline kept his expression in check. He made a “please” gesture and led Li Yuan toward the hotel.
On the third floor, in front of an extravagantly luxurious suite, the young man knocked gently on the door. After receiving a response, he opened the door and signaled for Li Yuan to enter before remaining outside.
Stepping inside, the door slowly closed behind him. It was then that he saw the young master who had moved him with such sincerity.
He wore the uniform of the Magic and Martial Arts Academy and appeared to be about twenty years old. His profile was cold and noble, complemented by short, silver-white hair that gave him an air of superiority. He sat quietly by the window, gazing into the distance, with a cup of hot tea sitting on the table beside him.
“Sit.”
A single word, yet spoken with a tone that brooked no refusal.
After Li Yuan took a seat in the empty chair by the table, the young man spoke slowly.
“One night a year ago, I happened to enter your shop and... had a cup of tea.”
The sentence served both as an explanation for why Li Yuan was there and as a prelude for what was to come. Although Li Yuan was certain he still had no memory of him, he didn't interrupt.
The young man gave a soft sigh, withdrawing his gaze from the distance to glance at Li Yuan. He picked up the teacup, brought it to his lips for a sip, and frowned slightly.
“Your tea is very good, better than any I have ever tasted. For a year, no matter how many tea leaves I’ve changed or how many tea masters I’ve sought out, none could replicate the taste of that night. So, I am curious.”
As he spoke, he poured the tea directly onto the floor, his gaze turning cold and deep as he looked at Li Yuan, as if trying to see some hidden secret within him.
But clearly, he had the wrong person—if Li Yuan, a cultivator at the Mahayana stage, were that easily seen through, he might as well stop cultivating and become a clown on a stage.
Meeting his gaze, Li Yuan maintained a faint smile, as gentle as when he hosted guests in his shop.
“It might be a matter of technique. Brewing tea is often like creating a work of art... and as you know, every work of art has its own unique signature.”
“So you're telling me it can't be replicated?”
The young man remarked with a sigh. After a moment of silence, he spoke again.
“Become my private tea master.”
“Hmm?”
The sudden request caught Li Yuan off guard, but he shook his head in refusal the next second.
“I’m sorry, but I don't think I’m suited for such a restricted lifestyle. Thank you for your kindness.”
“A salary of one thousand gold coins.”
The other party seemed not to hear his refusal, naming a lavish salary on his own. One thousand gold coins—that was more than Li Yuan had earned in the two years since coming to this world, excluding the five thousand from the earlier bribe.
But Li Yuan, accustomed to freedom, only wanted to do what he enjoyed. One thousand gold coins was a lot, but it wasn't enough to sway him. He shook his head again.
“It’s not a matter of money. If you like my tea, you can come directly to the shop—”
“Per day.”
Before he could finish, he was interrupted by those two words. After a few seconds of silence, Li Yuan asked with some uncertainty,
“What... do you mean by that?”
“One thousand gold coins per day. I’ll buy ten days of your time first.”
Rate on N.U.
