National Division

Chapter 34 Shen Xian: ...all of these cannot be separated from the four words: wealth, companion, law, and land.

Shen Xian walked through the covered corridor and came to the back hall, where he saw his father sitting down at a small table, drinking ginseng soup.

Xue Zhihua sat down to the side. The beautiful woman was in her early twenties, slender and graceful. She had changed into a sky-blue dress, and her expression no longer showed the coldness of the previous night, but was clearly more elegant and noble.

The three-petal peach blossom mark between her eyebrows, bathed in the morning light, softened her cool and aloof aura, making her even more radiant and captivating.

"Greetings, Father, Lord Xue." Shen Xian stepped forward and bowed.

"Have you had breakfast yet?" Shen Bin asked.

"Not yet," Shen Xian said.

"Have a bite with Lord Xue. The martial arts techniques you asked me to collect yesterday have already been gathered by others, and they should be ready in the next day or two," Shen Bin said.

Shen Xian smiled and asked, "Father, are you going to the yamen later?"

With his father's support, collecting ordinary martial arts and internal energy cultivation techniques shouldn't be difficult, and of course, he will also look for them.

"I wanted to ask for a few days off, but the county wouldn't approve it," Shen Bin said, putting down his bowl of ginseng soup.

I feel this ginseng soup isn't as delicious as the one Xian'er made.

Xue Zhihua watched the father and son talking with great interest, her gaze involuntarily falling on Shen Xian's hand, and asked, "What are you holding in your hand?"

Shen Xian said, "This is a perfume, made by extracting the essence of fragrances. I would like to ask Lord Xue to appreciate it."

Upon hearing this, Xue Zhihua was taken aback.

I originally thought that Shen Xian had come up with the idea of ​​starting a newspaper, but I didn't expect him to have such a clever idea as well.

Xue Zhihua said with great interest, "Let me see it."

Shen Xian handed over the perfume bottle in her hand.

He used to be indifferent to things like glass mirrors, wine, soap, salt, and perfume.

However, for people from previous lives who transmigrate to other worlds to make money, there is indeed no other way without these methods.

Xue Zhihua unscrewed the bottle cap and was immediately greeted by a rich, subtle sweet fragrance. Raising her eyebrows in surprise, she asked, "Is this perfume?"

"The top notes are citrus, the middle notes are peach blossom, and the base notes are musk and cedar," Shen Xian said.

Xue Zhihua suddenly realized and said, "It is indeed a mixture of several fragrances, with distinct layers, sweet but not cloying. This kind of perfume is incomparable to a single fragrance."

After all, he was a powerful cultivator at the third level of the Immortal Path, with keen senses that surpassed those of ordinary people.

In this world, whether it's incense or stick incense, the ingredients are relatively simple.

Shen Xian felt a little more at ease and asked, "May I ask, Lord Xue, is this perfume likely to be a bestseller in the capital?"

Xue Zhihua smiled and said, "This perfume has never been seen in the capital. It should be very popular. However, there must be a formula in it."

Shen Xian said, "It's an exclusive recipe, available only at this one store, there are no other branches."

Xue Zhihua held the perfume bottle with obvious delight and asked, "If this were to be transported to the capital, what price would you set it at?"

Shen Xian sat down, took a sip of tea, and said, "The price of one bottle is five taels of silver."

Shen Bin was drinking tea when he nearly spat out a mouthful of hot tea. His eyes widened as he asked, "What's the price?"

"Five taels of silver per bottle."

Shen Bin clicked his tongue in amazement and exclaimed, "Truly, no merchant is without cunning, and no businessman is without cunning."

How much is his monthly salary? So he can only afford to buy two or three bottles of perfume?
Shen Xian looked puzzled and said, "This price is already cheap."

It was originally positioned in the mid-to-high-end market, sold to wealthy women in the capital and even in the surrounding counties.

Xue Zhihua's bright eyes sparkled as she softly said, "If it's only five taels of silver, it's not expensive."

Shen Xian glanced at her father and thought, "See? Five taels of silver is actually too low. The spending potential of noble ladies from high-ranking families in the capital is limitless."

Xue Zhihua raised her eyes and said, "I can help you bring it to the capital for sales."

Shen Xian said, "Then let's sell the Xue family's shop and split the profits 50/50."

Perfume is a minor matter; the key is to get on board the powerful Xue family's ship.

Xue Zhihua seemed to think for a moment and said, "I won't take advantage of you. A 30% commission is fine. I'll help you get introduced to the noble ladies and young misses of the wealthy and powerful families in the capital."

Although the Xue family was a prominent and wealthy household with no shortage of money, Xue Zhihua's spending habits were not necessarily satisfactory.

Previously, the newspapers were primarily literary publications and were not expensive, so Xue Zhihua didn't care much about profits. However, it was foreseeable that the perfume would become a sensation throughout the capital.

Xue Zhihua naturally saw the potential in it, but of course, these were all superficial; her real investment was in Shen Xian as a person.

"How could you come up with such a wonderful idea?" Xue Zhihua said with admiration, her cold aura dissipating considerably, her eyebrows curving into a smile with a hint of inquiry.

Who would have thought that the son of a mere county official would possess such ingenuity?
Shen Xian thought to himself, "If you read too much at a certain point, you'll become like that too."

Of course, he was primarily looking to create a source of income to fund his martial arts training.

Whether it's cultivating Taoism or practicing martial arts, one cannot do without the four elements of wealth, companionship, method, and location.

To catch up with these immortal prodigies, besides innate talent and comprehension, all that's left is resources.

At the tender age of twenty, he has already reached the third realm of immortality. This is the mark of a scion of a noble family, winning at the starting line from birth!
Meeting Xue Zhihua's probing gaze, Shen Xian could only vaguely reply, "I used to dislike literature and preferred reading miscellaneous books. The more I read, the more ingenious ideas I had."

Xue Zhihua asked casually, without delving into the details.

After thinking for a moment, he asked, "Since it's a perfume, it should have an elegant name, as noble people in the capital value refined tastes the most."

Without hesitation, Shen Xian looked at Xue Zhihua and said, "Let's call it Peach Blossom." Xue Zhihua asked in surprise, "Peach Blossom?"

Shen Bin's expression changed, as if he had just remembered something.

Shen Xian was silent for a moment, then a look of reminiscence appeared on his face: "The peach tree in the courtyard of my house was planted by my mother before she passed away. She said that when the peach blossoms bloomed on both sides of the valley river, she would come back."

Since he has taken on this body, or rather, this body is more like his counterpart in another world.

Whether in memory or in reality, Mr. and Mrs. Shen loved and cared for him the most.

For someone who struggled and was isolated and helpless in their previous life, they felt some warmth.

Upon hearing this, Shen Bin felt a surge of heat rising in his tiger-like eyes.

However, with his resolute nature and the presence of outsiders, he suppressed the turbulent emotions surging within him.

Xian'er, you've really grown up.

Seeing this scene, Xue Zhihua felt a pang of emotion. Her gaze softened as she looked at the young man, and she said, "Then let's call it Peach Blossom. I imagine that when this perfume becomes popular, people will ask about its origin, and this story will be passed down through the ages."

Only now did she realize that this County Magistrate Shen had raised the boy in front of her single-handedly.

Lin Jing emerged from the outer room, looking at the young man with a complicated expression, and said, "If this perfume is used properly, it can bring in a fortune every day."

Shen Xian looked in the direction of the voice and asked, "Uncle, you're here too."

Lin Jing said, "However, there are many types of perfumes, all called peach blossom, which can be confusing."

Shen Xian thought it made sense and pondered for a moment before saying, "Then let's call it Lanxi Shenji."

Later generations had Lancôme, but his was called Lanxi.

Xue Zhihua praised, "This is good. The shop name is elegant and has less of a commercial feel to it."

Lin Jing smiled and said, "Let me tell you, I contacted the bookstore in the city yesterday, and they will send over the newspaper proofs this afternoon. If there are no problems, it can be sold tomorrow."

Before the newspaper issue was even settled, they came up with the perfume thing.

Shen Xian said, "Uncle is quick."

Lin Jing laughed and said, "Strike while the iron is hot; that's the key to doing business."

Shen Xian said, "Uncle, we need manpower to extract fragrances and blend perfumes. Uncle, do you think you can recruit some trustworthy female workers?"

The limited production capacity of small workshops makes large-scale industrial production unsuitable at present.

Lin Jing nodded and said, "This is easy; I will take care of it."

Shen Xian then turned to Xue Zhihua, who was standing to the side, and began to eat with her.

Shen Bin left the hall to go to the yamen for his shift.

"What are you collecting low-level martial arts techniques for?" Xue Zhihua asked, picking up her chopsticks.

Shen Xian didn't hide anything: "I've been stuck at a bottleneck in my martial arts for a long time, so I thought I could learn from others to improve myself."

Of course, no one can reveal to anyone the details of using merit to deduce cultivation methods.

Every husband is not guilty, and he is guilty of his crime.

Xue Zhihua said, "Practicing martial arts requires studying the martial arts of various schools. However, the mysteries and variations of martial arts are insufficient. Moreover, once you reach a certain level, you also need to focus on comprehension and artistic conception."

As she spoke, Xue Zhihua continued, "In the path of immortality, the most important thing is comprehension, followed by innate talent. Therefore, one should read the Tao Te Ching and the Book of Changes more often."

Shen Xian said, "Thank you for your guidance, Lord Xue."

He actually wanted to ask about immortal cultivation techniques.

However, given their relationship, it's best to avoid such boundaryless behavior.

Xue Zhihua said, "The day after tomorrow, Princess Qing and Princess Anyang will be coming. I plan to buy a house in advance. You, as a local, can help me choose one."

Shen Xian nodded in agreement.

Now it's time to keep this young lady company.

Shen Xian was about to leave the Shen residence with Xue Zhi.

Suddenly, Green Pearl came from the backyard and said, "Young Master, my young lady has something to discuss with you."

"I'll be right back," Shen Xian replied, turning to look at Xue Zhihua with an apologetic expression.

Xue Zhihua said gently, "You go ahead and do your work. I'll wait for you here. There's no rush."

Shen Xian was puzzled, wondering what Yu Qingchan's intentions were.

In truth, he couldn't really say whether he liked or disliked Yu Qingchan. His insistence on fulfilling the marriage contract stemmed more from his adherence to a certain moral principle.

We will never kick someone when they're down.

I didn't value marriage much in my past life.

Thinking this, he followed Green Pearl to the courtyard where Yu Qingchan lived.

……

……

(End of this chapter)