The Legend of Fangren

Chapter 182 Opening Imminent

"Have you heard? There's been a lot of rumors going around the city these past few days. That pill shop is actually going to turn into a restaurant and they're even launching some kind of medicinal hot pot that's supposed to be good for your health. Apparently, even ordinary people like us can afford it."

"Is this really true? I've often heard that a single elixir of immortality can cure all diseases, but unfortunately we are not fortunate enough to enjoy it. Now we must go and see if it's true."

In the days following that night, rumors about the alchemy shop began to circulate in Emerald City, growing increasingly outrageous with each word, until they reached the heavens.

Those who heard the rumors focused on the medicinal properties of the hot pot, which was also the proprietress's main point of promotion that night, causing many people to lose interest in the so-called "unique" fragrant soup.

Humans cannot imagine things they have never seen, especially things related to the five senses; it is difficult to describe them in detail without personal experience.

But this is precisely where Fang Shi's cunning lies. He certainly knows that good food relies on deliciousness, but what kind of people are usually interested in alchemy shops? They are all medicine customers, not food customers.

The sudden and hasty transformation of Dandian, followed by its aggressive promotion under the guise of food, not only risks attracting customers who were originally there to buy medicine, but also makes others who are unaware of the details think that it's just a novice drinking blindly.

Thus, the original advantages of Dandian were not only wasted, but also resulted in a double loss, damaging its original reputation.

Therefore, Fang Shi now uses this strategy to convert the existing customers of the medicine shop into diners. This not only achieves a high conversion rate and retains customers to the maximum extent, but also ensures the reputation of the medicine shop. It allows the medicinal hot pot to be accepted by old customers as a new product called "medicine". Once these customers, who are attracted by the so-called medicinal properties, have truly experienced the deliciousness of the hot pot, there is no need to worry about subsequent promotional materials. The diners will call their friends and family to come on their own.

Zhu Huan'e has been very busy these past few days. Fang Shi has the experience of his previous life to back him up, so he has no worries about planning. However, he has never been in charge before, so his master still needs to arrange things for him to implement the plans.

At noon that day, the busy Zhu Huan'e finally found some free time and came up to the alchemy room, where Fang Shi prepared some cold dishes for her.

"During the time I've been with you, my palate has become increasingly discerning."

She sat down and took the bowl and chopsticks handed to her by the servant. The two had developed a tacit understanding and ate like this every day, except recently Zhu Zhu had joined them.

"How's the new hot pot restaurant setup going?" Fang Shi has been busy planning these past few days and hasn't had much free time. He's been running around in his room, not only during the day but also at night in his spiritual space, where he's been choosing from various options until he selects the most suitable one before writing it down and handing it over to his master during the day.

"It's all finished," said Zhu Zhu, who had been supervising the project for the past few days.

Zhu Huan'e also said, "Luckily, we didn't abandon the medicine storage room downstairs. It had been filled with clutter for several years. After cleaning it out and renovating it, it now looks like a nice shop."

This medicine storage warehouse is located behind the alchemy shop. In this prosperous Emerald City, probably only Zhu Huan'e's alchemy shop can keep a piece of land that is not very useful for a long time.

However, this was not because of Zhu Huan'e, but because of the sect above this pill shop, the Xuan Dan Sect.

As one of the three treasures of cultivation, elixirs are also one of the three treasures of military strategy. When marching on horseback, injuries and tragedies are common, and it would be extremely dangerous without elixirs. Therefore, the elixir shops are actually backed by the Ministry of War and official families.

Although the Xuan Dan Sect has declined in power, its main family is still alive, and its reputation still exists. In particular, Emerald City is located on the border and is quite remote, so it has no influence there.

So why did Zhu Huan'e almost resign herself to her fate and comply with the elimination? It was precisely because, as the proprietress, she clearly understood her own position in the alchemy shop.

Even though she had done a lot in the city over the years and accumulated a lot of connections, most of these were overshadowed by the reputation of the Xuan Dan Sect, rather than by her personal efforts.

When those high-ranking officials and dignitaries socialized with her, they all called her the young lady of the Xuandan Sect, as if that was her true identity. This is why she rarely socialized in the following years and almost always went alone. It was because deep down, even she herself refused to admit that without the Xuandan Sect, she could not achieve anything significant with her status as a fifth-level alchemist.

But what could she do? Given her status within the family, she was destined to be a pretty but useless young lady, much like Zhu Zhu, after her rebellious departure from home. Who could she confide in about her loneliness and confusion over the years?

But—now it seems I can talk to "him" about it.

This "he" was sitting right in front of her, so real.

"Master? Master? Are you listening?"

"Hmm? Yes, I'm listening."

It turned out that Fang Shi had heard that after the renovation was completed, he began to tell his master and his aunt about the plans for the opening.

Another advantage of hot pot is that it doesn't require a kitchen. It only needs to provide broth, dipping sauce, and ingredients. The restaurant already has these things, so there's almost no need to add extra space. This means that the entire preparation area can be converted into the dining hall for customers.

In Fang Shi's plan, the hot pot restaurant was set up behind the pill shop, completely opposite to the pill shop. This was to distinguish between the pills and the hot pot. The previous night was to attract customers, and after it became famous, it was natural not to let customers continue to disturb the pill business at the main entrance.

At this moment, Zhu Zhu asked Fang Shi, "Speaking of which, where did you find those stones and timber? Even with her connections, Sister Zhu couldn't have moved such good building materials in two days."

These so-called building materials are of course smooth stone blocks and log blocks. Under the structural recasting of the power of dissolution, the wood and stone materials are of uniform thickness and flawless in texture. It would be difficult to find such large pieces of good wood even in the deep forest, let alone transport them to Emerald City.

Fang Shi replied, "These are the goods I stored in my Heavenly Ring. I originally intended to purchase them for the renovation of the Heavenly Pavilion, but since I need them now, I'll use them."

"Won't your master be angry if you do this?" Zhu Huan'e was naturally referring to Master Qu Yang. Her recent interactions with him had made her realize that Fang Shi's character was far more mature than his appearance suggested. She naturally attributed this achievement to the teachings of her former master, and consequently, she also developed some respect for Qu Yang.

In front of someone who could teach such a disciple, she was even ashamed to call herself Fang Shi's master, and usually called him Xiao Fang, referring to herself as his older sister.

Fang Shi simply said, "No, no, my master is a very easygoing person, and now that he's the lord of a city, he's probably too busy to care where I am. Even if I pawned the Heavenly Ring, let alone a piece of stone or timber, he wouldn't scold me, hahaha."

Qu Yang: ?

With the emperor far away and Master Qu Yang not around, Fang Shi can just boast however he wants.

"Besides, speaking of masters, isn't the master in front of me also my master?"

Fang Shi smiled and, taking advantage of the conversation, made a simple remark that touched Zhu Huan'e's heart even more.

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