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Chapter 196 Spirit Stone Trade
"I'll stay here for the New Year and won't go back for a long time."

Zhuo Wanqiu received a message from her master and fell into deep thought in the front hall of the Cloud Peak Palace.

For some reason, even from just these few words, she sensed that her appraiser had become somewhat whiny.

This was not the usual way the judge used words. If it were as she usually would, she would say that the affairs in the capital were not yet finished and that time was still needed, so there was no need to rush.

Zhuo Wanqiu looked at the message and wondered what her son-in-law had done to the appraiser that made him so upset that he even wrote it on paper.

When will the appraiser return?

"It will be a long time..."

Ding Yao came down from the mountain, glanced at the letter, and after a long silence, said, "This tone... the more I look at it, the more it sounds like the appraiser when he was young..."

Zhuo Wanqiu raised her head upon hearing the sound and looked at Ding Yao.

She knew that although Senior Sister Ding had been neglected by the Master for many years because of her selfishness, she was indeed the Master's personal maid who had grown up with her since childhood. Therefore, she actually knew the Master better than the Master's parents.

So when she said that her tone sounded like the appraiser's childhood, Zhuo Wanqiu had no doubts whatsoever.

It turns out it hasn't changed.

The original owner of the high and mighty appraisal shop was such a cute and adorable woman who only gradually transformed herself into the appearance of the appraisal owner after taking over the Lingjian.

A gentle breeze was blowing, and although it carried the chill of winter, it was a rare sunny day.

Suddenly, a burst of energy swept across Xuanjian Peak, stirring up the clouds.

The two looked up and saw Yan Zhong, the sect leader of Lingjian Mountain, dressed in a yellow robe, leading dozens of elders at the Yingtian Realm and above. He descended from the sky with overwhelming immortal might and landed in the main hall of Xuanjian Peak below the Cloud Peak Palace.

Yan Jingxiang, the peak master of Xuanjian Peak, dressed in a black robe with cloud patterns, stood in front of the palace gate with his younger brother Yan Jingrui. Upon seeing Yan Chong and the others arrive, they bowed slightly.

"The Pill Sect has started delivering medicine?"

"Yes, Tianjian Peak came here to discuss the share of pills."

The Dan Sect provides a fixed amount of spiritual herbs each year, delivered twice a year, once in the middle of the year and once at the end.

Because the quantity is limited, it is necessary to discuss how much each peak should receive, and who should receive more and who should receive less of each type of medicinal herb.

In the past, Tianjian Peak, relying on its profound foundation and numerous disciples, mainly left Xuanjian Peak and Wenjian Peak with low-grade pills, and in small quantities.

However, as the young master's strength has increased significantly over the years, wielding the Spirit Mirror has gradually become a new spiritual belief for Spirit Sword Mountain. Coupled with his character of balancing kindness and severity, the overall strength of Xuanjian Peak has continued to improve, and its voice has become stronger.

At this time, Tianjian Peak had lost its previous arrogance, and the place for discussing the share of pills had changed from the Tianjian Peak Master's Pavilion to the Xuanjian Peak Master's Pavilion.

"When the master left, he issued an imperial decree that 60% of this year's elixirs must be obtained."

"Sixty percent?"

"The Master said that Sword Inquiry Peak has been declining, and in recent years it has not even been qualified to participate in the council. As a result, its annual share is less than 10%, and it is difficult to recruit disciples. Therefore, the Master plans to help them get back 20% this year."

Zhuo Wanqiu looked at the high mountain under the clear sun: "Excessive internal strife is depleting the overall strength of Lingjian Mountain. That's probably what the Master of Appraisal thinks. If Wenjian Peak, as one of the main branches, really continues to decline like this, it will eventually die out."

Ding Yao glanced at him: "I'm not afraid that Wenjian Peak will be without an heir now, I'm only afraid that the Master of Appraisal will suddenly have an heir."

"So you're also afraid that the appraiser will come back with a big, fat son..."

"No, the appraiser's mind is always clear and he naturally knows the implications of this matter. He would not easily conceive a child secretly."

Thinking of this, Ding Yao suddenly recalled the scene of the Master of Appraisal coming out to look at the portrait of the man every morning during his seclusion, and suddenly became a little uncertain.

A woman's beauty is deadly to a man, and a man's beauty is equally deadly to a woman.

Let alone the appraiser who was already infatuated with him, even Ding Yao herself dared not look at the painting of the man with his bare chest and head held high.

At the same time, the Heavenly Academy was also greeted by the warm dawn, just like that of the Spirit Sword Mountain, which fell on the snow-covered mountaintops and melted the frost on the branches.

Nothing much to do today, so we kissed in the bedroom.

Yan Shuyi, who was used to sleeping in late, was hugged tightly as soon as she came from her room to the main room. Her snow-white feet curled up and her mouth was full of Ji You's taste.

Then it was time to start cooking and make breakfast.

The young appraiser, meanwhile, was boiling water and making tea in the courtyard, sitting quietly, seemingly lost in thought.

The two people have the same teacup. They used to subconsciously distinguish between them, but now they just use whichever one they can find.

They've already exchanged saliva countless times, so there's really no need to distinguish whose cup it is.

Ji You watched her sitting on the snow, sipping tea, his eyes filled with doting affection.

He knew about the message Zhuo Wanqiu had sent yesterday, and at this moment he felt like a scoundrel who had lured a rich girl into his rented room and was taking advantage of her.

Unfortunately, the young lady herself didn't want to leave, and even had thoughts of not wanting to inherit the family business.

Ji You had watched these kinds of TV dramas before, and every time she would comment with a sober-minded tone, "This rich girl is really too stupid. What's so good about that bastard?"

I never imagined that one day I would become the embodiment of this "diao mao" (a derogatory term for someone who is obsessed with something), and suddenly I could understand this mentality.

Ji You stood with her hands on her hips, waiting for the pot to boil, and looked at Yan Shuyi, who was as obedient as a cat. She thought to herself that as long as she didn't go out and didn't run into a cat with its tail wagging, this obedience was still very charming.

"I'm going down the mountain today. Wait for me at home."

"where to?"

Yan Shuyi asked with a cold arrogance, but her eyes seemed to say, "I want to go too."

"When I got up this morning, I suddenly remembered that Cao Jingsong should have received his monthly salary. I went to check on him. Also, it seems that the Directorate of Immortals wants to see me about something. Anyway, there's nothing fun to do. You can stay home and peel potatoes. I'll stir-fry potato shreds for you tonight."

Ji Youxin said, "I won't take you out on the street anymore, so you won't see that smug cat again."

After breakfast, Ji You went down the mountain to Cao Jingsong's courtyard, vividly demonstrating what it means for what is meant to happen to happen.

However, Instructor Cao was quite aware of the need to take precautions. He had already spent all the money beforehand, and when he saw Ji You enter the courtyard, he casually threw the empty money bag on the table.

Ji You didn't believe it: "You've already spent it all, how are you going to survive the next few days?"

Cao Jingsong stroked his long beard: "For the next few days, I survived on gifts from my beloved disciple."

"Give me half."

"what?"

"It's a gift from my beloved student. I've been spending a lot lately, so I can't just keep spending without earning anything."

Cao Jingsong knew that he was keeping a woman in his yard, and couldn't help but ask, "Whose woman is the one you're keeping in your yard?"

Ji You glanced at her: "Of course she's a woman from my family."

"They're protecting her like a precious treasure, not even telling me, the instructor. Could she really be a mortal woman with no cultivation? Are they afraid she'll be threatened because of her?"

"No, I'm just afraid that I'll scare you if I tell you."

Cao Jingsong thought to himself, "What haven't I seen in all these years? I could remain unfazed even if Mount Ni collapsed before my eyes."

You scared me? Unless the person in your courtyard is the Junior Appraiser of Spirit Sword Mountain!
but……

Cao Jingsong looked up at Ji You and thought to himself that the woman's methods must be quite sophisticated to make this kid willingly support her.

Ji Youxin said, "Just guess," and then got up and headed down the mountain.

The city of Shengjing was even more bustling than in the past few days, with a large number of carriages crossing the main street and gathering in front of the Chongwang Mansion, causing Ji You, who was passing by, to stop in his tracks.

These carriages were all marked with stone-like symbols, and were escorted by several experts from the Upper Five Realms. They were greeted by the Chong King, who stood in front of the gate with his hands clasped in greeting.

Ji You had seen these markings before on his journey to the snowy region.

That night, countless carriages soared into the sky, inviting the immortal prodigies who had traveled with them to a banquet, and all of these carriages bore the same emblem.

It is the Ling Shi United Chamber of Commerce in Yunzhou...

Ji You watched from the side and noticed that they did not enter the Chongwang Mansion. After a brief exchange of pleasantries, they headed towards the south city, the sound of wheels rolling echoing around them.

After thinking for a long time, he walked towards Kuang Cheng's courtyard.

Kuang Cheng had already changed into his official robes and was waiting at the door early in the morning: "Brother Ji, how is Fairy Yan's health now?"

"?"

"I've collected some eggs from free-range farmers; they're perfect for nourishing the fetus."

Ji You pursed her lips, thinking to herself that the cunning little appraiser had tricked her into eating eggs by pretending to be pregnant.

However, freebies are always good: "I just saw people from the Yunzhou Spirit Stone Merchant Guild. They seem to be heading towards the Imperial Observatory."

"This matter is also related to the Imperial Observatory's search for Brother Ji."

"Spiritual stone?"

"To be precise, it's the Snowfield Demon Stone."

Kuang Cheng turned around and locked the courtyard gate: "Brother Ji, let's talk as we walk."

The human delegation's arrival in the snowy region triggered a night raid, and the Scaled Clan chieftain and his demon generals were imprisoned in the snow dungeon.

The indirect consequence of this incident was that the supply of Snowfield Demon Stones to Kyushu was halted for most of the winter.

Previously, members of the seven major immortal sects had come to Great Xia to inquire about the situation because they could not obtain the Snowfield Demon Stone.

Recently, the demon race has finally resumed supplying spirit stones to the Nine Provinces, which should have been a good thing, but the transportation was obstructed by the Yunzhou aristocratic families.

The price of Snowfield Demon Stones is low, but their quality is extremely high, causing the price of Yunzhou Spirit Stones to continue to fall, and sales to shrink accordingly.

Yunzhou is full of powerful families that rely on spirit stones for their livelihood, so naturally they couldn't just stand by and watch this situation continue.

So, under the pretext of repairing roads throughout the region, they blocked several major trade routes in Yunzhou and secretly offered conditions to the Great Xia.

In addition to those sent to the Immortal Sect, the Spirit Stone Merchants Association of Yunzhou wanted to impose a transportation tax on every Snowfield Demon Stone, and the transportation tax they proposed was almost equal to the original price of the spirit stone.

The demon merchants naturally disagreed, since their Snowfield Demon Stones were stored below the permafrost, making them extremely difficult to mine and yielding meager profits. Such high taxes would be unbearable.

But for the Great Xia, there was nothing they could do.

In recent years, with the decline of imperial power, they have been unable to afford the repair and maintenance of official roads. Therefore, as early as when the late emperor was still alive, they sold the operating rights of several major roads in Yunzhou.

Therefore, although the Ling Shi Chamber of Commerce in Yunzhou's attempt to raise transportation prices seems unreasonable, it is actually in accordance with the rules.

The matter remained deadlocked, with no progress made in half a month. Then, the Yunzhou Spirit Stone Merchants Association proposed another solution: that the Great Xia should hand over the management rights of the Snowfield Demon Stones to them, and that they could set the prices.

In fact, whether it's raising freight taxes or raising prices, the amount of money involved is not much for the Yunzhou Chamber of Commerce.

Their reason for doing this was actually to raise the price of Snowfield Demon Stones, thereby driving up the price of Cloud State Stones and preserving their family's foundation.

Da Xia naturally didn't want to agree, so there was only one way left: to change the route.

But changing the route required someone to cooperate, and that person needed to be capable enough to withstand the targeting and hatred from the Yunzhou aristocratic families. "So they found me?"

"After thinking it over and over, I realized that only Brother Ji could do this kind of thing."

Ji You looked at Kuang Cheng: "Does the Directorate of Immortals think that since I'm being targeted by aristocratic families and immortal sects everywhere, having a dozen or so more won't make a difference?"

After hesitating for a while, Kuang Cheng nodded: "But the fact is that there are thousands of cultivators in this world, but Brother Ji is the only exception."

Ji You pondered for a while and said, "This is actually a good thing for Fengzhou, and I will be able to make a fortune."

"Indeed, the transportation of spirit stones will bring economic prosperity to Fengzhou, and the fact that Great Xia is willing to rebuild the official road in Fengzhou is also a good thing for our Fengzhou."

Kuang Cheng paused for a moment: "But if Brother Ji agrees, he may face tremendous pressure in the future. That pressure will come from Yunzhou, and even the entire Kyushu Mining Group, since this is originally competing with Yunzhou for profits."

Ji You raised her eyes: "There's no way you're going to let me shoulder this pressure for nothing."

"That's right, of course we should make demands of them."

"I want ownership of all official roads in Fengzhou, the right to operate horse stations, and the Great Xia must also agree to abolish the transportation tax for the people and halve the tax revenue of related industries."

Upon hearing this, Kuang Cheng immediately looked up and said, "The Great Xia should also issue an order to cancel the private orders allowing people from various regions to migrate across states."

Ji You shook his head after hearing this: "This matter is probably difficult. Although the appointment and removal of officials is still decided by the Great Xia, in reality, the officials in various prefectures and counties are basically dependent on local aristocratic families and immortal estates, and may not pay attention to the orders of the Directorate of Immortals."

"But at least this will make local officials more restrained, and there will be fewer cases of people having their legs broken after being caught smuggling themselves..."

"Suddenly I remembered there was another benefit."

"What's the benefit?"

"Let's talk about it after we've finished."

Spirit stones are essential for cultivators, so managing and transporting them is a major undertaking.

The sudden arrival of the Yunzhou Ling Shi Chamber of Commerce in the capital attracted much attention, and the news quickly spread.

At this moment, in the back garden of the Prince Chong's Mansion, a group of nobles from the capital were gathered, with singing girls playing instruments and the aroma of tea wafting in the wind.

These nobles from the capital were all involved in the spirit stone business in Yunzhou.

Especially Prince Chong, because when his elder brother was in power, he spearheaded the sale of the Yunzhou official road to the Spirit Stone Merchant Guild, and he also held a significant stake in Yunzhou. This is why Princess Chang Le often met with Lu Qingqiu.

"The Snowfield Demon Stone is currently stuck in the Northern Territory. The final outcome will simply be who backs down first."

"The imperial power of my Great Xia has declined to this extent. For thousands of years, it has always been the one that has retreated the most. In my opinion, this time is no exception."

As Prince Chong spoke with a smile, a servant from the manor suddenly rushed over: "Your Highness, I have something to report."

King Chong stopped smiling and tossed down a pinch of fish food: "Speak."

“Our spies have just sent word that the Imperial Observatory may decide to change the transport route.”

"Replace? Heh, they really know how to think. Putting aside where to replace it and how to enter from, in this Qingyun world, who can ignore the hostility of more than a dozen families? The peace between the demon race and our human race is only temporary. Once the Snowfield Demon Stones are gone, who can withstand having no stones to use?"

The servant swallowed hard as he watched the Prince Chong's mocking remarks.

Prince Chong then turned to look at him: "Did the message say where the Imperial Observatory plans to change the route to?"

"I don't know, but they just invited Ji You from the Heavenly Academy over."

Upon hearing this, King Chong's smile froze, then his eyes slowly widened, and his expression changed drastically in an instant.

At this moment, Qin Rong, the head of the Imperial Household Department, and Lang Hetong were sitting facing each other, playing chess.

They had known about the Spirit Stone Merchant Guild's large-scale visit to Shengjing for some time, but upon hearing that Ji You had been invited to the Imperial Observatory, they suddenly fell silent.

"No one in Qingyun Tianxia is unafraid of being targeted and antagonized by powerful families, except for Ji You. The Director of the Immortal Bureau has truly found the right person..."

Qin Rong placed a chess piece: "Those who have nothing to lose are not afraid of those who have something to lose. Ji You always has a crazy feeling of taking life and death lightly and fighting if you disagree."

Lang Hetong glanced at him: "A few days ago, the second uncle of a distant relative's neighbor somehow got through to me and wanted my help to move his family to Fengzhou."

Qin Rong raised his sleeve: "Have you heard of this saying?"

"Ok?"

"The greatest tragedy for those with exceptional talent is being born in Fengzhou, while the common people feel that being born in Fengzhou is the luckiest thing."

At this moment, Ji You had arrived at the Sixianjian and was looking at the government office that had only been built last year.

Unlike any building he had ever seen, the Sixianjian was entirely white, with a square, rectangular shape. The building had eight floors and a very deep courtyard.

Its pure white walls are carved with intricate patterns, and in the center hangs a golden fire wheel, surrounded by flickering flames.

In terms of specifications and style, this government building is taller than the main hall of the imperial palace, and its unique appearance is contrasted by the surrounding red walls and gray tiles.

Ji You glanced around and suddenly noticed a man standing in the courtyard. He was only a few years older than him, dressed in luxurious brocade robes, and staring at him with sharp eyes and a hint of resentment.

"Who is this person?"

"I came with the Lingzhou Chamber of Commerce."

Ji You didn't pay much attention and followed Kuang Cheng through the deep courtyard, along the long corridor, and arrived at the banquet hall of the Imperial Observatory.

At this moment, He Jingyuan, the supervisor of the Immortal Administration, and Wang Mingchang, the official who had spoken with the Demon Emperor, were both present at the banquet.

As Ji You and Kuang Cheng stepped through the door, Wang Mingchang rose shakily and bowed deeply to them.

Such courtesy was unprecedented, even towards His Majesty the current emperor, for Wang Mingchang, an elderly minister in his seventies.

Upon seeing this, He Jingyuan and Peng Dongyang also stood up, and while bowing, they couldn't help but glance at Ji You a few more times.

I came here for Fengzhou.

Are you really capable of persuading the Demon Emperor not to ally with the barbarians?

Actually, if I ran on my own, I had a chance to run back.

I don't mind dying here, but you'd better keep your word.

After the mission returned from the snowy region, they recorded their journey in detail based on the oral accounts of the ministers.

Some of those sentences still resonate powerfully when recalled today.

At this moment, Kuang Cheng leaned close to Ji You's ear and said, "Several representatives of the Yunzhou Ling Shi Chamber of Commerce are currently in the next hall, accompanied by Deputy Supervisor Peng."

Ji You nodded, his divine sense already sensing the other party's presence.

The people from the Yunzhou aristocratic families were all cultivators, including experts in the upper five realms. They must have sensed his aura as well.

He Jingyuan then bowed slightly: "Young Master Ji, Kuang Tisi must have already informed you about the matter of the demon race's spirit stones on his way here."

Ji You nodded: "You want to pass through Fengzhou, but Fengzhou is full of powerful families from outside the region and the environment is complicated. So you hope that I can be involved. But the Supervisor should know that this matter is a great pressure for me."

“We are aware of this, of course. If Young Master Ji is in any difficulty, please feel free to speak.”

"It's not too difficult. After all, since joining the Heavenly Academy, I've offended almost all the major forces in the cultivation world. But you should know my style of doing things. I never like to leave empty-handed."

He Jingyuan then picked up the wine pot: "Young Master Ji, you may state your terms."

Ji You and Kuang Cheng exchanged a glance and then recounted what they had said on the way back.

The ownership of the official road in Fengzhou, the operating rights of the horse stations, the abolition of the transportation tax borne by the people for transporting goods on the official road, and the halving of taxes levied on related industries...

Upon hearing this, He Jingyuan frowned instantly.

The predicament they are facing now is because when they handed over the ownership of the official road in Yunzhou to the Ling Shi Chamber of Commerce, Ji You is now making even more demands than the Yunzhou Chamber of Commerce.

So he looked at his mentor, Wang Mingchang, only to find that his mentor was looking at him with the eyes that seemed to say, "What are you thinking? Hurry up and agree, then thank Young Master Ji profusely."

Meanwhile, in the next hall, Peng Dongyang had already subtly revealed that the Sixian Bureau planned to change the transportation route.

The next second, a richly dressed young man barged into the hall where Ji You was with an icy expression.

The president of the Yunzhou Chamber of Commerce is Lu Qingqiu's father, Lu Xiong, the head of the Lu family, while the vice president is Ding Mao, the head of the Ding family, who is related to Ding Ang, an outer court instructor at the Tianshu Academy.

The young man who rushed in was Ding Mao's only son, named Ding Shaojie.

And this Ding Shaojie is the young man who stared intently at Ji You in the courtyard earlier.

He and Lu Qingqiu were childhood sweethearts, and their families had been on good terms for generations. When he was young, people around him would often whisper in his ear about the young couple getting married.

Ding Shaojie believed it, and has always believed it.

It wasn't until a year after Lu Qingqiu was sent to the Heavenly Academy and returned home that he discovered many people were saying that his sister Qingqiu wanted to marry a rural private cultivator, and that he had also heard that his sister Qingqiu had sent him a bib she had worn close to her body.

At this moment, Ding Shaojie looked at him coldly and arrogantly: "Ji You, is that right?"

What advice do you have for me, sir?

"You're so unafraid of offending my Spirit Stone Merchant Guild, I'm afraid you haven't figured out the relationship between the demon race and my human race. I'm here to clear up your doubts."

Ding Mao then pulled him back, saying, "Shaojie, there's no need for further words."

"Father, let me finish speaking, lest he think he's gotten the better deal."

After finishing his sentence, Ding Shaojie turned his head back and said, "Everyone in Qingyun Tianxia knows that the demon race has coveted the Nine Provinces for a thousand years, and the peace between them and our human race is only temporary. Have you ever thought about what will happen to you if the demon race stops providing spirit stones to the Nine Provinces and you offend us again?"

After a moment's thought, Ji You cupped his hands in thanks and said, "Thank you for the reminder, brother."

"Aren't you afraid?!"

"I was starting to get scared just now, but then I suddenly remembered that I don't think I ever use spirit stones."

"?"

Ding Shaojie was taken aback, then opened his mouth to laugh, but found that no one in the room was laughing, and a look of disbelief flashed in his eyes.

Lu Xiong glared at him menacingly: "Young Master Ji, are you truly someone who has nothing to lose and isn't afraid of those who have something to lose?"

Ji You stood up: "I'm not interested in the spirit stone trade. Actually, there are some things we can sit down and talk about."

"You can state your conditions directly, whether it's a spirit core or a daughter, it's up to you."

"How about we demolish all the foster homes in Yunzhou and give those miners' children their freedom?"

Upon hearing this, Ding Mao spoke up: "Do you really intend to uproot the foundation of my Yunzhou?"

Ji You finished his drink: "It suddenly occurred to me when I came here. If your spirit mine collapses, Yunzhou won't have so many mine slaves anymore."

(The scheduled posting has stopped working????)

(End of this chapter)