Celestial Master： I Have an Otherworld

"Just him alone?"

"Yes." Lu Wei nodded:

"Just him alone."

"Strange..." Wang Qi squinted her eyes:

"Coming to the branch to audit at this time, could it be that he heard something? What kind of intention does he have coming alone?"

"Shopkeeper." Lu Wei asked:

"What should we do?"

"When soldiers come, block them; when water comes, cover it with earth. I’ll handle anything that happens, what are you afraid of? Don’t be so spineless." Wang Qi glared at him and said:

"I’ll get the ledger, you go find that person."

"That person?" Lu Wei’s eyes narrowed, his face showed fear:

"Do we really have to do this?"

"If Fang hasn’t discovered anything, of course, it won’t be necessary, but it’s better to be safe than sorry." Wang Qi’s eyes gleamed coldly:

"Let’s hope he’s perceptive!"

"Hurry up!"

"Yes, yes." Lu Wei nodded hastily:

"I’ll go right away!"

......

"Master."

Sun Ping presented the tea respectfully and said:

"This is Spirit Tree Tea from Immortal Return Mountain, there’s an annual quota, and Square Porcelain gets two taels thanks to the fame of Thunder Walking Red Porcelain."

"Have a taste."

"Hmm."

Fang Zheng nodded, raised the cup and sipped it lightly, then nodded slowly:

"Not bad, the fragrance of the tea is abundant, and the aftertaste is endless."

"I’m glad Master likes it." Sun Ping smiled:

"I’ll bring you the remaining tea leaves later, so you can take them with you when you leave."

"That sounds good."

Fang Zheng nodded nonchalantly, looked up at the beams of light filtering through the tree canopy and seemed contemplative:

"You’ve been in Zhaonan Prefecture for two years now, right?"

"Two years, one month, and three days." Sun Ping replied:

"I’ve gone from being worthless in the Sun Family to having the current standing, all thanks to Master’s support, ever grateful."

"Heh..." Fang Zheng chuckled lightly:

"The Sun Family, known for its textile business, apparently sees only you in a favorable light from such a big family. How’s life been these past two years in Prefecture City?"

"Very good." Sun Ping lowered his head:

"Bought a small courtyard, got married, there’s little to worry about in the shop, Shopkeeper Wang and Steward Lu manage everything, I just lend a hand."

"More money and less work — many people dream of such a job."

Hmm?

Fang Zheng squinted his eyes.

There’s something deeper in those words!

Originally, he asked him to come to Zhaonan Prefecture to monitor the branch’s business, yet now he’s just been arranged as a laid-back helper.

Heh...

Indeed,

wherever there are people, there’s Jianghu.

Even a small shop is no different.

"Master!" Lu Wei walked into the backyard, stopping at the pavilion shaded by trees:

"Shopkeeper Wang has arrived."

Wang Qi stepped forward, her demeanor elegant and her eyebrows as if painted; raising her head with a smile at the corner of her lips increased her charisma even more.

"I’ve met Master." She greeted.

"It’s been months since we parted, how have you been, Master?"

"Still alright." Fang Zheng nodded:

"Many thanks to Shopkeeper Wang for managing the business in Prefecture City; Fang really admires how well you’ve handled Square Porcelain as a woman."

"I don’t dare to accept Master’s praise." Wang Qi gently shook her head:

"Thanks to the excellent quality of Square Porcelain’s ceramics, even people from Capital City come from afar to purchase them; I’m merely going along with the flow."

"No need for us to be humble to each other." Fang Zheng chuckled lightly, his gaze paused on the person behind Wang Qi, and he said slowly:

"Where’s the ledger?"

"Here it is."

Wang Qi stepped forward, taking out the ledger from her bosom, the warmth of the ledger carried a faint feminine fragrance. When Fang Zheng received the ledger, he felt his hand being gently brushed.

This woman...

With a slight raise of his eyebrows, Fang Zheng’s expression remained unchanged as he took the ledger and began to open it slowly.

Witnessing this,

The expressions of the people present varied, yet none uttered a word.

It’s unclear how much time passed.

"Ah!"

Fang Zheng sighed lightly, put down the ledger, and shook his head saying:

"Last year at this time, Square Porcelain in Prefecture City had recorded seven thousand taels of silver, but now, with more than two-thirds of the year gone, it hasn’t even reached four thousand taels."

"Expenditures aside, the profits are meager!"

"Master." Wang Qi’s beautiful eyes glistened with tears, her face showed grievance:

"No wonder, my dear, you know the situation this year too: water disasters, unrest, the rebellion never ceases, and business is greatly affected."

"The wealthy client in the Capital City had originally ordered porcelain worth thousands of silver, but suddenly reneged, and this big deal fell through completely."

"I’ve done my best, but heaven doesn’t comply with one’s wishes!"

"Indeed, indeed." Lu Wei hurriedly nodded in agreement:

"Master, I’ve been running around and know it best, this year’s business is hard, not just for our Square Porcelain."

"Is that so?" Fang Zheng’s expression remained unchanged:

"But as far as I know, the porcelain sent to the Prefecture City this year has doubled compared to last year, and Square Porcelain’s reputation in the Prefecture City has already been established."

"Though the business is not booming, the customers in the store come and go ceaselessly."

"Absolutely not!" Wang Qi’s eyes widened as she said:

"Master, don’t believe the rumors. If you don’t believe me, you can go with me to a couple of shops to see how deserted the business is."

"As for there being more porcelain than last year..."

"The damaged ones are more too!"

"I see." Fang Zheng still kept a calm demeanor, nodded, and continued:

"How coincidental, I also know the porcelain merchant from the Capital City, and his version is different from Shopkeeper Wang’s."

Wang Qi’s face turned pale.

"The merchant said he originally intended to order from Square Porcelain, but someone suggested a private collaboration, the same Square Porcelain’s porcelain at only sixty percent of the price."

Fang Zheng took a sip from his tea cup:

"Sixty percent not accounted for, Shopkeeper Wang has made a good calculation!"

"Nonsense!"

Wang Qi’s beautiful eyes flickered, suddenly shouting in anger:

"Master, don’t slander me without proof, although I’m just a woman, I won’t be humiliated by anyone!"

"Is that necessary?" Fang Zheng frowned, his expression showing displeasure:

"You’re selling porcelain that’s not from Square Porcelain in the store, not accounting for the income; deliberately increasing the destruction items, selling privately at high prices; stealing business from Square Porcelain for your own pockets."

"In all these ways..."

"If it weren’t so, Shopkeeper Wang wouldn’t be able to buy a mansion and luxury car, or maintain several handsome lovers outside in just a year, would she?"

"You...you..." Wang Qi’s delicate body trembled, pointing at Fang Zheng:

"Master, you’re bullying me too much!"

"Enough!"

Fang Zheng shouted softly:

"Everyone has greed, there’s nothing to say about it. If you were a bit less greedy, I wouldn’t have minded, but unfortunately, Shopkeeper Wang, you’re too greedy."

"So here’s the deal!"

He waved his hand:

"You pay out ten thousand taels of silver and leave Square Porcelain, and this matter will be over."

"Ten thousand taels of silver?" Wang Qi gritted her teeth:

"In your dreams!"

She hadn’t embezzled that much in the past two years, and there were still expenses to manage and spend, so the amount of savings wasn’t much."

"Oh?" Fang Zheng raised an eyebrow:

"Won’t give?"

"Then let’s see each other at the Government Office!"

"Government Office?" Wang Qi took a step back, sneered:

"I’m afraid you won’t even get out of this courtyard!"

"Oh!" Fang Zheng chuckled softly:

"Such arrogance, could it be..."

"Are you relying on this person to deal with me?"

He turned his head to look at the person behind Wang Qi, who had followed Wang Qi and Lu Wei in but hadn’t spoken a word.

Only now did he raise his eyebrows to look over.

An icy gaze hiding a sharp sword, captivating the spirit.

"Indeed!"

Wang Qi lifted her head, her face filled with pride:

"So you know, he is an elder uncle of mine from the Wang Family, with a cultivation base of Martial Arts Grand Circulation. Since you, Master, plan to make things absolute, don’t blame me for being ruthless!"

"Elder Uncle?" Fang Zheng shook his head:

"This person is just over thirty years old, and he is your elder uncle?"

"What?" Wang Qi was taken aback, then laughed:

"Nonsense, Elder Uncle Wang Can is long past sixty years old. How could you be so blind as to see him as just over thirty?"

Lu Wei and Sun Ping in the scene also had strange expressions.

The person named Wang Can had graying hair, wrinkles on his face, and a hunched body, this sense of age couldn’t possibly be thirty.

"He’s right."

Suddenly, the ’elder’ spoke up:

"I am indeed just over thirty."

Wang Can squinted, stared directly at Fang Zheng, his expression a mix of confusion and a hint of dread, his words also stunned the people present:

"How did you see through it?"

"The Lin Family’s Shocking Spirit Force." Fang Zheng slowly said:

"To harm others, first harm oneself, Shocking God-Breaking Limit, damaging lifespan, you have quite the talent, you should have cultivated the Shock Body Force to the sixth level, right?"

"Such pity!"

"You won’t live long."

Wang Can’s expression was one of shock, he slowly straightened his back, speaking solemnly:

"You actually know Shocking Spirit Force?"