Chapter Seventeen: The Path to Relief

Chen Xuan had to maintain a composed expression at this moment, as if everything was under control. “So… this room shouldn’t be any worse than the guest rooms provided by the government office, right?”

“Not just not worse, the two are incomparable!” Liu Shuyue murmured. “I can feel the abundant spiritual energy here, which is immensely beneficial for cultivation. Even the meditation chamber at the Lotus Cloud Sect can’t compare to this place.”

Abundant spiritual energy? Why couldn’t I feel any of it?

Chen Xuan raised an eyebrow but suppressed his doubt. “Only VIP customers enjoy this privilege. Naturally, the price of this room isn’t cheap either. I’ll give you a discount—five thousand per day.”

That five thousand was, of course, a price he set on the spot.

“Five thousand what? Five thousand taels of silver?”

“Five thousand universal currency.” Chen Xuan had wanted to show her a note but remembered that all payments were now electronic wallets; no one carried paper money anymore. He quickly corrected himself, “This currency doesn’t have a physical form and isn’t exchanged one-to-one with silver… But don’t worry, our pricing is absolutely reasonable. You definitely have the means to pay. Even if you can’t pay now, it’s fine—I’ll extend you credit.”

Liu Shuyue was half convinced.

Yet, she was truly reluctant to leave such a paradise.

If word got out to the sect, the elders would undoubtedly do everything in their power to claim this place.

More importantly, she needed to see this shopkeeper every day, not be separated for years—at least until the refugee situation was resolved.

Well, she could owe the money for now… she wasn’t one to shirk repayment.

After some inner struggle, Liu Shuyue bit her lip and nodded, “Then I’ll trouble you.”

Chen Xuan had already guessed one thing—perhaps the environment of each room changed according to the guest’s identity. The moment a customer registered, the room automatically matched their status and background, providing a sense of homely comfort. The emphasis was on personalized care.

If he ever retired, could he come back as a high-quality VIP customer with his abilities to become the next shopkeeper?

“Why is there another door over there?” Liu Shuyue suddenly noticed.

Chen Xuan followed her gaze and saw a door embedded in the rock face opposite the pool.

“Open it and you’ll see,” he said vaguely, not really knowing himself.

Without suspicion, Liu Shuyue leapt into the clear pool, skimming across the water and opening the door. She gasped in surprise, “Outside is… my residence!”

At that moment, Chen Xuan also circled around the pool.

He saw that beyond the door was an ordinary side-room, with incense burning in a bronze censer, faintly scented with osmanthus, closely matching Liu Shuyue’s aura. The window was half-open, revealing a familiar corridor and courtyard outside.

If not the government office in Zhangweicheng, then where else could it be?

He could even see where the shop should be—directly diagonally across the room.

But it was only the “location” that remained; now, the diagonally opposite building was just an ordinary house with neither plastic strips nor rolling shutters—mundane beyond words.

It seemed that if he closed the shop door, the store would indeed temporarily vanish.

“After all this wandering, we’re back at the government office?” Liu Shuyue couldn’t help but chuckle—a rarity for her since Chen Xuan had met her—and said, “That’s fine; at least I don’t have to greet the governor.”

“Now you understand, right? The back door doesn’t stay fixed in one place,” Chen Xuan had figured out the guest room’s rules. “Its purpose is to allow guests to return to their VIP suite at any time, and since the suite’s door connects to the shop… you can contact me whenever you want.”

“Is this the Subtle Transfer Technique?” Liu Shuyue marveled. “I’d only heard of such a wondrous method before, never imagined I’d witness it today.”

Chen Xuan smiled silently.

It was best that she came to her own conclusions.

“Well, no time to waste. I’m heading to the outskirts to organize the refugees,” she said, revitalized. “I’ll leave the food issue in your hands.”

“Of course,” Chen Xuan reminded her. “Food is important, but don’t underestimate the importance of organization. These supplies have nothing to do with the government, so handling, storage, distribution, and record-keeping must be managed by the refugees themselves. You must fully utilize your abilities to become a leader everyone trusts; only then can this relief effort succeed.”

After seeing Liu Shuyue off, he returned from the guest room to the first floor and opened the shop’s rolling shutter.

As expected, outside was the familiar Tianlu community.

“Now it’s a matter of how much food I can procure.”

Chen Xuan was confident.

After all, in famine-stricken areas, food was precious, yet here it was abundant.

Currently, there were seven thousand refugees. Even if that number rose to over a hundred thousand, as Liu Shuyue predicted, it wouldn’t be an outrageous figure.

Moreover, the Great Qi’s disaster relief system was already in operation, with neighboring cities sending grain and funds to Zhangwei. Delivery would take one week at the shortest, half a month at longest. He just needed to help the refugees through this period.

What gave Chen Xuan such confidence was the first bucket of gold he earned from the Herbal Hall.

Two million—how much rice could that buy?

He casually tapped on a calculator. Based on local wholesale rice prices, he could purchase a full 364 tons of raw rice! Assuming an adult consumes 250 grams per day, that would feed 100,000 people for a month!

Of course… that was for three full meals. For those suffering famine, even a bowl of porridge was a blessing; doubling that number would be feasible.

Even if expenses exceeded the budget later, he could make up the difference by producing more pills. At worst, he could rope Liu Shuyue in to help, as producing hundreds of pills daily would also be a significant income.

Chen Xuan immediately pulled out the wholesale market seller’s contact numbers and began calling around.

“…You want to buy that much rice? Do you have approval?”

“Price is negotiable… but we can’t fulfill such a large order privately.”

“Right, you’d better cooperate with a supermarket authorized to purchase grain nearby.”

After a few calls, Chen Xuan realized this wasn’t so easy.

As a private merchant, there were limits on how much grain he could buy!

He hadn’t known before, but upon checking, he found something called a “Grain Purchase Certificate.” Without it, he was limited to buying only 50 tons per year!

For a neighborhood grocery store, 50 tons a year was plenty, and selling half of it would be good.

But for a goal of 364 tons, this quota was insufficient.

What to do now?

Chen Xuan scratched his head. He had already boasted to Haikou and couldn’t back out halfway.

Obtaining the certificate was clearly too slow—so what about connections?

The Herbal Hall’s owner had been in business for years and might have channels, but what relationship did Chen Xuan have with Xu Wangxian? Why would she help him break rules?

Pacing back and forth in the shop, Chen Xuan’s gaze suddenly landed on the shelves.

There were two packs of instant noodles.

Brand new stock he had just acquired.

Of course! A sudden inspiration struck him. Main staples like rice had purchase limits, but instant noodles didn’t!

What if he switched to supplying instant noodles?

Retail price was 2.5 yuan per pack; bulk wholesale was much cheaper. Switching to a cheaper brand, 1.5 yuan per pack was negotiable.

He immediately grabbed his calculator and tapped. Though the cost would be higher than buying rice outright, it wasn’t excessive. At 1.5 yuan per pack, that was 1.33 million packs. One pack per day could keep people alive; high salt and oil were actually advantages, and nutrition was better!

He called the wholesaler again.

“Boss, are you sure you want this many cartons of instant noodles?” the person on the other end was flattered.

“Yes, and don’t send near-expiration stock; do you have enough?”

“Of course! I’ll pull supplies from all over the city! But… the order is huge, so you’ll need to prepay.”

“No problem. Add me on WeChat. I’ll transfer whatever you need,” Chen Xuan said decisively. “My only demand is the fastest delivery possible.”