CMWKSD -Chapter 65 An Unexpected Delight

Jiu Yue dashed off in a valiant, dashing manner, leaving behind Ji Yiqing standing there dumbfounded, his face flushed red.

Broad daylight… broad daylight—what on earth was Jiu Yue doing?!

Ji Yiqing sat down and touched his own lips. Even the voice of his inner grumbling carried an upward lilt, curling at the ends, while the corners of his mouth nearly split all the way back to his ears.

He hadn’t even realized how happy he was at this very moment.

By the time he came back to his senses, an entire page had already been filled with notes about the intelligence network base Jiu Yue wanted to establish.

Ji Yiqing: …

So… was the power of a single kiss really that great?

If… if in the future they did that—aiyo—what would he do then?!

The next day, Ji Yiqing harnessed the carriage and waited for Jiu Yue to come out. Ever since Jiu Yue started training, Ji Yiqing had begun waking up early to train with her as well.

Ji Chaomian couldn’t put force on his legs yet, but he still got up to move his upper body.

Then the two of them watched as Jiu Yue did one hundred push-ups while carrying a hundred jin of weight, single-arm push-ups, a hundred high-knee raises, handstands, boxing…

Especially after Jiu Yue bought a large batch of embroidery needles.

You think they were for embroidery?

Don’t joke around. Other people’s embroidery needles were for stitching—Jiu Yue’s embroidery needles were for killing. Every morning, they could see her practicing with them.

How did she practice? Roughly like this: a wooden board clamped in place, and Jiu Yue would use an embroidery needle to pierce straight through it—embedding it directly into the wall behind.

The first time Ji Yiqing and Ji Chaomian saw this, they felt that what she pierced through wasn’t the wooden board, but their own skulls.

At the beginning, Jiu Yue didn’t even use embroidery needles—she used silver needles. Later she watched some movie—she’d forgotten which one—only remembered a line like “To practice this skill, one must first castrate oneself” or something along those lines.

After that, she felt embroidery needles would do just fine.

But this wasn’t some wuxia world. What Jiu Yue was training wasn’t martial arts at all—it was her technique and hand strength, focusing on finesse and precision.

In any case, once Jiu Yue rolled out these bizarre “martial skills,” the Ji family was thoroughly worn down, left without the slightest bit of temper, and followed Jiu Yue’s lead unquestioningly.

The two made their way to the county town. Originally, Jiu Yue wanted to ride a horse, but then she remembered that in this era, two people riding the same horse would surely draw gossip.

So she gave up on that idea.

Upon arriving, they parked the carriage in the usual designated area.

Jiu Yue pulled Ji Yiqing along to find Shao Qing. “This person is very smart, and he can make money specifically by selling information. He clearly has some ability, so let’s go look for him first.”

Ji Yiqing nodded. Jiu Yue had already told him who this person was—he hadn’t expected to run into the young benefactor from that brief act of kindness before.

Jiu Yue had a good memory and easily found her way to the slum district.

Just as she reached the entrance of an alley, she saw Shao Qing leading his mother out. He froze for a moment upon seeing Jiu Yue, then hurriedly called out, “Doctor Jiu Yue.”

Jiu Yue smiled faintly, while Ji Yiqing gave Shao Qing a proper greeting.

Shao Qing had been planning to take his mother out for some fresh air, but seeing Jiu Yue arrive, he didn’t want to delay important matters. “Doctor Jiu Yue, Young Master Ji, please wait a moment. I’ll take my mother back home first.”

The two stood at the alley entrance and waited.

Before long, Shao Qing jogged back, breathing lightly. After catching his breath, he began reporting to Jiu Yue.

Jiu Yue had given him his monthly pay just yesterday, so Shao Qing had started carrying out her instructions immediately.

“I’ve already looked into that shop. The owner signed a contract with the broker for two hundred taels, but after asking around, I think it can be taken for one hundred seventy taels.”

As Jiu Yue and Ji Yiqing walked along listening to Shao Qing, they exchanged a glance upon hearing this—this boy really had a sharp eye for details.

And there was even more unexpected good news to come.

“After buying it, it’ll need some simple renovations. I’ve asked around among the foremen in the county—there are two good options…”

“The shop sign can be made at Old Wang’s place. His work looks good, lasts a long time, and he has a solid reputation.”

“I’ve also looked into potential shop managers. There was one at Yunxiao Tower—surname Zhuang. He worked there for over ten years and did a great job, but later he was replaced by the boss’s concubine’s younger brother. Fate can be cruel. After he was dismissed, that concubine’s brother has been suppressing him everywhere.”

“He hasn’t found work for two months now. Several places that could afford his wages have ties to the Yunxiao Tower owner and don’t want to offend him. Manager Zhuang also isn’t willing to work at a small shop. I think he’s quite suitable, though.”

“Yunxiao Tower’s business has declined a lot these past two months. The new manager lines his own pockets and uses cheap, poor-quality ingredients—he probably won’t last more than a few months. The owner might invite Manager Zhuang back then.”

“But Manager Zhuang may not go back, so we could hire him. His monthly pay at Yunxiao Tower was three taels. If we offer two taels and five hundred wen, it should be enough.”

“I’ve also found several quick-witted assistants, but which ones to use should still be decided by Doctor Jiu Yue and Young Master Ji.”

“Yesterday I heard Doctor Jiu Yue mention the items you want to sell—they sound very high-end. I wasn’t sure what you planned to use to package the pills, so I took the liberty of asking around at the porcelain workshops…”

…

Jiu Yue listened in astonishment. Even Ji Yiqing found himself completely absorbed. From big matters to tiny details, Shao Qing—a boy of only twelve or thirteen—had arranged everything meticulously.

He had gathered information thoroughly, leaving Jiu Yue with absolutely no worries.

Jiu Yue smiled so broadly her eyes nearly disappeared. She lifted her chin toward Ji Yiqing, as if to say: See? I have good judgment, right?

Seeing her smug expression, Ji Yiqing couldn’t help but laugh. He really wanted to rub her head, but didn’t dare—and it wouldn’t be appropriate to do so in public anyway.

Jiu Yue said with a smile, “You’re truly capable. At this rate, once I buy the shop, I won’t have to worry about much else at all.”

Shao Qing scratched his head. He was used to thinking three steps ahead when doing things—sometimes even ten.

Just based on that alone, Jiu Yue felt that paying him one tael a month was far too unfair.

She decided that once the shop officially opened, she would raise Shao Qing’s monthly pay.

With Shao Qing leading the way, Jiu Yue didn’t need to think much—she simply followed along. Ji Yiqing, meanwhile, leisurely verified both openly and subtly everything Shao Qing mentioned.

Shao Qing didn’t feel that Ji Yiqing’s actions showed distrust. After all, this was their first collaboration—skepticism was normal.

He also wanted to complete everything as perfectly as possible. First, because Jiu Yue was his lifesaving benefactor; second, because she would also be treating his mother.

No matter the reason, Shao Qing had decided to follow Jiu Yue wholeheartedly for the rest of his life, and absolutely—absolutely—never betray the trust she had placed in him.

After getting the transferred property deed from the county office, Jiu Yue decided to go talk with Manager Zhuang that Shao Qing had mentioned. There was no way she would personally watch over the shop.

She didn’t work nine-to-five in the twenty-second century, and she certainly wasn’t about to start doing so here.