Senior sister, stop working and go home for dinner.

Chapter 108 At the Foot of Hidden Cloud Mountain, the Cat Cafe is Initially Established

There are few records about the Yunyin Sect in the Maoshan classics, only that it has an ancient lineage but a small population. Yesterday, I met Chen Anran and found him to be calm and composed with solid cultivation; today, I met his senior sister Feng Xiaolu, and she was surprisingly... lively and carefree.

The Yunyin Sect's traditions are quite peculiar.

Qi Lan lowered the brim of her hat to hide the fleeting surprise in her eyes, and walked towards the direction where Zhao Mengmeng and Feng Xiaolu were.

She walked steadily, her figure moving through the busy construction site. As you got closer, you could hear Zhao Mengmeng talking to the engineer.

"...So the drainage here needs to be optimized, taking into account the possibility of flash floods during the rainy season." Zhao Mengmeng pointed to the blueprints, her tone serious.

"Understood, Ms. Zhao. We'll revise the plan immediately." The engineer nodded repeatedly.

Feng Xiaolu had already given up operating the excavator and instead moved closer to Zhao Mengmeng, listening to their discussion and occasionally chiming in, "Mengmeng, could we build an open-air barbecue area here sometime? The kind where you can cook your own food, that would be so much fun!"

Upon hearing this, Zhao Mengmeng immediately looked at Feng Xiaolu and replied with a smile, "Master Feng, it's in the plan, over in the leisure area."

"Oh, that's good!" Feng Xiaolu nodded in satisfaction. She looked up and saw Qi Lan walking over. She blinked, thinking that this person looked a little unfamiliar, but had a unique temperament, so she couldn't help but take a second look.

Zhao Mengmeng also noticed Qi Lan. Seeing her walk straight over, she stopped her discussion and politely asked, "Hello, is there anything I can help you with?"

Qi Lan's gaze swept over Zhao Mengmeng and Feng Xiaolu, finally settling on Zhao Mengmeng. She said succinctly, "I want to rent a shop." She pointed to the small courtyard by the stream that she had just been eyeing, "That one."

Zhao Mengmeng looked in the direction she was pointing, somewhat surprised. That area was positioned at a higher level, and investment promotion had not yet officially started, yet someone had already taken the initiative to inquire about prices so quickly.

Feng Xiaolu curiously approached, circling Qi Lan halfway around her, and asked suspiciously, "A rogue cultivator?"

Qi Lan was not surprised that Feng Xiaolu had seen through her, and readily admitted, "Maoshan, Qi Lan."

"Maoshan?" Feng Xiaolu was taken aback for a moment, then realized, "Ah! You're Shen Zui's... fellow disciple from yesterday?"

"His senior martial brother."

When Qi Lan said this, not only did Feng Xiaolu's eyes widen, but Zhao Mengmeng and the engineer standing next to her were also stunned.

Feng Xiaolu looked Qi Lan up and down again, clicking her tongue in amazement: "Senior Uncle? Section Chief Shen looks much more mature than you! Is the hierarchy in Maoshan so messy?" She was straightforward and said whatever came to mind.

Qi Lan seemed used to this reaction, her tone calm: "For cultivators, appearance and age are not necessarily related." She paused, then turned her gaze back to Zhao Mengmeng, steer the conversation back to the main topic, "How much is the rent for that shop?"

Zhao Mengmeng snapped out of her daze and immediately said, "Master Qi, the detached courtyard you've taken a liking to has a building area of ​​about 80 square meters, with a 30-square-meter courtyard overlooking the stream. According to our preliminary plan, the annual rent is tentatively set at... 400,000."

When Zhao Mengmeng announced the figure of "400,000," she paid attention to Qi Lan's reaction. Seeing Qi Lan frown, Zhao Mengmeng quickly added, "Of course, this is the price offered to the public. Master Qi is a high-ranking Taoist priest of Maoshan, and a friend of Master Chen and Master Feng, so it's naturally different."

Feng Xiaolu, listening from the side, understood perfectly. Although she loved to play around, she knew what was important. This person before her was someone who could be Shen Zui's senior uncle, and his strength was probably not weak. Making good friends with him would only benefit the sect. So she immediately chimed in, "Mengmeng is right! Fellow Daoist Qi, you're new here, we should at least show you hospitality! The rent is negotiable!"

Qi Lan was silent for a moment. She was indeed shocked by the annual rent of 400,000 yuan. She had thought that with the 500,000 yuan she had saved, she would have had more than enough to buy a shop. She did not expect that the annual rent alone would take up most of it.

Although she was aloof, she was not ignorant of human relationships and knew that the other party was showing goodwill.

"Thank you." Qi Lan nodded, her voice still calm, but her tone softened. "After the discount, what will the rent be?"

Zhao Mengmeng quickly did some mental calculations, then exchanged a glance with Feng Xiaolu. After receiving the latter's "It's up to you" signal, she smiled and said, "Master Qi, how about this? For the first year's rent, we'll only charge you a cost maintenance price of 100,000 yuan."

One hundred thousand yuan was within Qi Lan's budget. She breathed a slight sigh of relief, but didn't show it on her face, simply nodding again: "That's fine. Thank you, Miss Zhao, and Fellow Daoist Feng."

"Oh, don't be so polite!" Feng Xiaolu waved her hand with a grin. "We'll be neighbors from now on! By the way, Fellow Daoist Qi, what kind of shop are you planning to open? It's not... a fortune telling shop, is it?" She blinked curiously.

Qi Lan shook her head, her gaze sweeping over the noisy construction site and the misty Yunyin Mountain in the distance.

"Open a cat cafe."

........................

At the Cloud Hidden Sect, in the medicinal herb fields on the back mountain, Chen Anran rolled up his sleeves and carefully avoided the thriving young medicinal plants.

"I'll take care of this." Lin Xiaoman straightened up a little shyly when she saw him coming over, wiping the fine sweat from her forehead. She was wearing simple cotton clothes, with mud on the cuffs of her trousers, and she looked serious and focused.

"It's alright, just stretching my muscles." Chen Anran squatted down, skillfully identifying the weeds and deftly pulling them out with his fingers. "These golden thread grasses are growing well; they'll be ready for medicinal use in a few days."

The two chatted about sect matters as they worked. Sunlight filtered through the sparse clouds, illuminating the herb field with vibrant life. Chen Anran enjoyed this peaceful work, which made him feel exceptionally calm.

"Have you adjusted well since arriving in the mountains?"

"Yes, it's nice up in the mountains, much better than in the mortal world." Lin Xiaoman said with a smile, "Here, I'm carefree, eat and drink well, and the sect leader and everyone else are very kind people. I don't have to worry about earning a pittance."

Chen Anran smiled bitterly to herself. She was supposed to be here to "serve her sentence" and undergo reform, but it seemed like she was actually enjoying it.

"It's been so long since I've seen Sister Wei, I miss her a bit." Lin Xiaoman looked at Chen Anran and asked, "Do you know when she'll be back?"

Chen Anran said, "I estimate I won't be back until summer vacation in July."

"July? That's still two months away?"

"You can contact her by phone."

"It's different," Lin Xiaoman said, then asked, "There are plenty of medicinal herb fields within the sect, why do you still need to cultivate a field at the foot of the mountain?"

Chen Anran straightened up, patted the dirt off his hands, and said, "My senior sister cherishes these medicinal herb fields on the mountain. I dare not touch them."