Chapter 4, Opportunities for Wealth
The total savings of the entire Four Treasures Peak amount to only fifty spirit stones, and these spirit stones are needed for the disciples and for one's own cultivation, leaving no surplus spirit stones to improve living conditions
Alas, my abilities are insufficient
Even as a time traveler, Cao Zhen has nearly reached his limit after two months of eating fish and meat. Although he wishes to improve the diet for his disciples, he simply has no money
The second senior sister, upon hearing that there would be a performance of "Journey to the West" after dinner, silently sheathed her sword, turned around, and called out to the other senior sisters and junior brothers to help the master clean the fish in preparation for cooking and dining
"West Lake Vinegar Fish, is it the West Lake mentioned in the Legend of the White Snake told by the master?" Xiao Bei said, peeking out from the kitchen with sparkling big eyes, "Bei Yan still prefers the Journey to the West that the master tells. Is today's after-dinner story still Journey to the West? I really want to know how Sun Wukong escaped from being trapped under the Five Elements Mountain."
Everyone was also curiously looking towards the gate of the courtyard. As the tail vehicle of Baifeng, on ordinary days, not to mention people, even a ghost would not come here to knock on the door
After a flurry of activity, the five master and apprentice sat down in an orderly fashion according to their ages. Upon seeing Cao Zhen pick up a piece of fish with his chopsticks and put it in his mouth, they all picked up their bowls and began to serve themselves dishes to eat.
Master, I have been orphaned since childhood, possessing a body that was once that of an ancient immortal but is now a mere shell. I have also joined a dilapidated sect like yours, which is undoubtedly the standard template for a protagonist. Would you not agree?
Bei Yan was initially very happy to see his master leave, as he would finally be free from having to eat the vegetables he disliked. However, upon seeing the frosty Second Senior Sister Yan Yourong, he still felt intimidated! Compared to the Senior Sister, he found himself, like his master, more troubled by the cold words and demeanor of the Second Senior Sister.
"Then what about the odds I win?" Cao Zhen felt as if he had arrived at the moment when time travelers would surely win at gambling and become wealthy, and he quickly put down his chopsticks and asked earnestly.
In recent days, Cao Zhen has been contemplating ways to earn some money. However, he discovered that the previous incarnation of this body was somewhat dull-witted, spending each day either practicing or teaching disciples, and merely waiting for the meager monthly stipend from the sect, completely unaware of how to make money.
Because I (you) am the protagonist
As the senior sister spoke, everyone else also put down their bowls and chopsticks, even Bei Yan, a child of about ten years old, showed a worried expression.
Nowadays, the sweat stains from practicing swordsmanship carry a fishy smell! Yet, my master still takes pleasure in fishing without any sign of fatigue.
Master, I have gained some insights from my recent study of the "Geographical Records." When I have the opportunity to venture out, I will first go to Xianxian Cliff to jump once and see if I can encounter any extraordinary experiences
The chubby boy Beiyan and others waited at the gate of the courtyard to see Cao Zhen return. They hurriedly stepped forward to take the fish basket and slung it over their shoulders, then turned and ran into the courtyard, calling out to the tall, beautiful woman practicing swordplay: "Second Senior Sister, Master caught a lot of fish today..."
Cao Zhen recognized from the Daoist robe worn by the other person that he was a steward of Baifeng, equivalent to a civil servant in his previous world. Only the civil servants of Baifeng are qualified to wear Daoist robes embroidered with the scenery of Baifeng.
He gently tapped the fish on the table with his chopsticks and said: "Let's eat first, let's eat first. If we don't eat soon, the fish will get cold and taste fishy. Lingxi, as the senior sister, you should lead by example and start eating. I will definitely win..."
"Please come in." Cao Zhen called out, and Bei Yan skipped over to pull the latch open and let the person in
Several disciples looked at Cao Zhen with a gaze akin to that of an idiot at this moment
Master! The disciple has shown great disrespect towards you! I humbly request that you punish me!" Lingxi knelt on the ground, burying his head almost into the floor, and said in a rather dramatic manner, "I ask that you punish me according to the rules of the peak.
Gambling? Betting odds? Cao Zhen suddenly realized that if he were to stake his fifty taels of spirit stones on his own victory, he would be counting money until his hands cramped from the effort
My dear disciple... I fear you may not have a second chance to jump... You might as well take a look at your brain? I suspect you may have a serious illness
"Lingxi..." Cao Zhen returned to his seat and said, "You are such a beautiful girl, please do not kneel down so easily in the future. Although I have said this, you never listen..."
In the span of two months, several disciples who were initially not very skilled at handling fish have now become more proficient than the fishmongers outside who sell and slaughter fish
Cao Zhenye could not understand why this senior sister suddenly loved to engage in self-reflection and then knelt down to bow.
The senior sister Lingxi, who had been sitting upright at the dining table just a second ago, suddenly withdrew from the table and knelt down on both knees to bow to Cao Zhen.
Knock knock knock
"You should get up quickly." Cao Zhen hurried to help Lingxi. Over the past two months... the eldest disciple Lingxi has suddenly knelt down to bow her head nearly twice a day on average
You Rong, please keep an eye on Xiao Bei during meals and do not let him be picky. Also, take good care of my colorful betta fish; I will be back shortly. After giving instructions to his second senior sister, Cao Zhen stood up and, stepping towards the door, said to the steward, Since it is an invitation from the elder, let us proceed swiftly.
The only thing that is truly understood is the backup regarding the senior sister from Zhonghua Cloud, specializing in: a hundred percent kneeling and kowtowing style, what exactly is it
The newcomer was not very old, and his blue robe was embroidered with a scene of a hundred peaks. Upon seeing Cao Zhen, he quickly bowed and said: "Peak Master, Elder Tong Die requests your presence"
The master has returned, the master has returned
Cao Zhen caught a colorful phoenix tail today, completing the final ingredient for the Little Dragon Tiger Pill. He is well aware that it will only take two days to refine the pill. Not to mention being a major disciple of Xingyao Peak, by then he could confidently declare, 'I can take on ten of them.'
Cao Zhen could not help but applaud repeatedly from the side, indeed! This is his third disciple, Xiang Ziyu! This is his fourth disciple! Each of their thought processes is so astonishingly unique!
The steward took Cao Zhen onto the department's dedicated celestial cloud vehicle sent by the Ministry of Works, heading straight to the cave dwelling of Elder Tong Die of the Baifeng Sect
The second senior sister frowned instinctively upon hearing the word "fish". After eating fish every day for the past two months, she was truly on the verge of being sick of it! Although the master prepared the fish differently for each meal, it was still fish after all
"Disciples, we will have West Lake vinegar fish for dinner tonight." Cao Zhen walked into the courtyard and immediately felt the discontented gaze of the second senior sister, yet he continued to speak cheerfully to himself, "It's very delicious."
Although it is a great disrespect for a disciple to look at their master with a gaze of a fool
When Cao Zhen first heard Xiang Ziyu say that he was the protagonist after just crossing over, he also doubted whether the other party had also crossed over. However, after some communication, he discovered that this child had merely read too many legendary tales and believed himself to be the protagonist
Second Senior Sister Yan Yourong, holding a bowl of rice, was coldly peeking at the Senior Sister Lingxi beside her. The Senior Sister, who was eating, sensed the urging gaze and let out a soft sigh, putting down the bowl of rice in her hand to look at Cao Zhen
Xiangzi Yu raised his head for the first time to look at Lingxi while holding a book, revealing a very serious expression as he said: "Senior sister, our Four Treasure Peak will not lose! Master will definitely win with the library!"
Cao Zhen rubbed his face vigorously with both hands several times and sighed, "Here it comes, here it comes again..."
Master! Do you also think that I only need to leap off a cliff once to gain a fortuitous encounter? Have you also noticed that I am gravely ill? Indeed! It is often the case that the protagonist must endure a serious illness before rising to prominence! It seems that the disciple is getting closer to the moment of ascendance!
If there are no fortuitous encounters at Xianxian Cliff, I will jump off the Divine Demon Cliff once more! I have discovered several mysterious cliffs, and by jumping a few more times, I am sure to have a fortuitous encounter, so you need not worry about my cultivation.
"Master, when will you practice again?" Lingxi looked at Cao Zhen with difficulty, "On that day, you practiced day and night, and we were all worried that you would fall into madness. It was hard to return from the gates of hell, and we were afraid you would rush to practice again. Fortunately, you did not become obsessed with practicing again, which made us very happy. However... now you are completely not practicing..."
Master! I was wrong!
"Kneel until death, I understand now," Cao Zhen interrupted Lingxi's words and said, "Every time it's this phrase, are you an NPC? How many times do I have to say it differently... Fine, fine, fine! According to the rules of the peak, I punish you to copy the master's greatest one hundred times."
The sudden knock on the door interrupted Cao Zhen's instruction to his disciples
I can't believe it... here we go again...
Cao Zhen was unaware of the many psychological activities that Li Ke had regarding him. He hurriedly caught the scheduled Xianyun carriage and returned to the rather desolate Sibao Peak in half an hour
"Master, do you know the odds at the city market casino?" Senior Sister Lingxi sighed, preparing to give her blindly optimistic master a good lesson, "Master, the odds for you to sustain three breaths without defeat is 1 to 5, and the odds for sustaining five breaths without defeat is 1 to 7..."
As the master, Cao Zhen's strength was still not as high as that of his eldest disciple. Although he had reacted mentally, his actions were delayed, and the opponent had already struck down.
Such a beautiful female disciple, why does she always suddenly do such childish things
What does this indicate? Senior Sister Lingxi suddenly felt that she had made a grave mistake! She had actually shown disrespect to her master! Otherwise, how could she have overlooked the odds of her master winning?
As for Elder Tong Die, Cao Zhen knew that this person was a close friend of his previous incarnation's deceased master. The last time they met was at his master's funeral, after which this elder went into seclusion
Cao Zhenyi recalled the conversation he had with his three disciples that day, and he felt a strong desire to find the author "Ha Shiyi," who had written a large number of supernatural tales, to give him a good scolding to vent his frustration. A good disciple had been led astray by this author.
If the master does not punish, the disciple will...
Master Sister Lingxi was taken aback when asked; she realized that she had only considered the odds of how long her master could endure, and had not looked at the odds of her master winning at all
Cao Zhen noticed the sudden change in Ling Xi's expression and immediately understood what his eldest disciple was about to do. He quickly set down his bowl and chopsticks, wanting to support the other person.
Bei Yan and Xiang Ziyu, who had temporarily set aside the script, both shouted in unison with equally serious expressions
Why?" Lingxi looked at her junior brother with a puzzled expression. The moment the words left her mouth, she regretted it, for she knew what her junior brother was about to say next
Lingxi slowly got up after hearing about the punishment and returned to the dining table once again
However, the disciples truly did not know what other methods to use to remind their master to wake up and stop dreaming
Cao Zhenfa, without understanding the economic principles of the Baifeng Sect, is unable to leverage the economic advantages of a time traveler, and is at a loss as to how to even start with something like Pinduoduo