So the proprietress forced herself to calm down, turned to the managers behind her, and whispered: Look sharp, everyone. When the person arrives, if anyone dares to make the slightest mistake, do not blame me for showing no mercy!
The managers nodded repeatedly, cold sweat seeping from their foreheads.
Just then, the carriage arrived.
The horses' hooves stepped lightly on the ground, making a crisp clippity-clop sound.
The coachman jumped down from the shaft, placed the footstool, and then bowed and retreated to the side.
The carriage door opened.
A black official boot with cloud patterns stepped out onto the footstool, its sole spotless.
Then came the hem of a moon-white robe, embroidered with dark silver thread patterns that faintly gleamed in the light.
Finally, Gu Chengyin's face appeared—young and handsome, yet currently bearing a look of gravity and confusion.
He stepped down from the carriage and stood in the cleared open space in front of the Fan Restaurant.
His gaze swept over the surrounding eyes, and he frowned slightly.
He only had one feeling right now: it was as if he had been drugged and ravished by Lin Qingyan.
This thought was absurd and utterly outrageous.
But Gu Chengyin could not help it.
Because when he woke up, Lin Qingyan's satiated expression, her unconscious lip-licking, and the soreness in the back of his neck that felt nothing like a lightning strike—everything pointed to this terrifying speculation.
But the question was, was this kind of behavior really something a Golden Core fairy would do?
Gu Chengyin did not know.
He only knew that he was very annoyed right now, so annoyed that everything he saw displeased him.
So when Gu Chengyin saw the grand lineup at the entrance of the Fan Restaurant, the dignitaries blocked outside, and everyone's tense posture as if facing a formidable enemy, the inexplicable irritability in his heart deepened a bit.
At this moment, Qiu Ruxu came forward to greet him, carrying a faint scent of gardenia.
You must be Junior Preceptor Gu, right?
Her voice was delicate and cloyingly sweet, yet it did not make one feel repulsed.
Gu Chengyin looked up.
Before him was a beautiful woman around thirty years old, wearing a goose-yellow ruqun and a golden beizi. She had a falling-horse bun adorned with pure gold dangling hairpins, exuding an air of grandeur and nobility.
Her features were exceptionally fine: willow-leaf eyebrows, almond eyes, a straight and perky nose, and bright red lips. When she smiled, the corners of her eyes tilted up slightly, carrying a natural charm.
But what attracted Gu Chengyin the most were her eyes.
Those almond eyes currently rippled with just the right amount of respect and enthusiasm.
However, deep within them hid a trace of vigilance and scrutiny.
She was evaluating him.
Evaluating this Junior Preceptor Gu from the Divine Capital, who was overly young yet held overwhelming power.
The slight irritability in Gu Chengyin's heart was instantly replaced by vigilance.
He nodded slightly, his tone flat:
That is indeed me. May I ask who you are, Miss?
The proprietress curtsied, her posture as elegant as a dance:
I am fortunate enough to be the manager of this Fan Restaurant. I have long heard of Junior Preceptor Gu's great name, and seeing you today, you truly live up to your reputation.
Her voice was still delicate, but Gu Chengyin heard the weight behind it.
The Chief Manager of the Fan Restaurant.
The Fan Restaurant in Luodu was the true headquarters, the main base. Even the Fan Restaurant in the Divine Capital was merely a branch.
Anyone who could secure this position was absolutely not simple.
Not to mention, she was a woman.
A woman so young and beautiful, yet able to guard such a massive mountain of gold.
She must have had heaven-defying backing or heaven-defying methods behind her.
In any case, he had to be careful.
Alarm bells rang in Gu Chengyin's heart, but his face remained calm as he said politely:
So it is the Chief Manager of the Fan Restaurant. An honor to meet you.
Gu Chengyin paused, his gaze sweeping over the noisy guests still lingering in front of the restaurant.
He then looked at the bustling figures faintly visible inside the Fan Restaurant, suddenly shook his head, sighed, and said:
Proprietress, you are from Luodu, so you might not understand...
My young aunt prefers quiet and dislikes noise.
He spoke tactfully, but the meaning was very clear.
Whether it was the people blocked outside or the people inside the building.
They were all too noisy.
My young aunt does not like it.
So, you figure it out.
The proprietress's pupils contracted.
She had not expected Gu Chengyin to be so direct.
Even less did she expect him to use the term young aunt to refer to Lord Jingzhe.
The intimacy and implication in this caused her heart to tremble violently.
But the proprietress was the Chief Manager of the Fan Restaurant after all, so she only froze for a moment.
She immediately reacted, her smile undiminished and even deepening a bit:
I understand.
She turned around to face the managers behind her. The smile on her face vanished instantly, her eyes as sharp as two knives:
Clear the venue immediately!
Her voice was not loud, but it carried an unquestionable majesty.
The managers looked at each other, failing to react for a moment.
Clear the venue?
In all the years the Fan Restaurant had been open, there had never been a precedent for clearing the venue.
Even when the Commandery Governor came, he would only book a certain floor; they had never emptied the entire building.
What is more, there were currently a few guests with special statuses inside.
A manager cautiously stepped forward and whispered:
Chief Manager, there are still a few VIPs in the building, they are...
The proprietress did not even look at him. She cut him off directly, enunciating every word:
I! Said! Clear! The! Venue!
Her gaze swept over all the managers, her voice as cold as the winter wind in the twelfth lunar month:
Tell everyone that the Fan Restaurant will not be entertaining any guests today. All expenses will be compensated tenfold.
If anyone is dissatisfied...
The proprietress turned to look at Gu Chengyin, a smile piling back onto her face, her voice becoming delicate again:
Then have them come find Junior Preceptor Gu.
This was said cleverly.
It not only showed the Fan Restaurant's attitude but also shifted the blame to Gu Chengyin.
It was this Junior Preceptor Gu who wanted to clear the venue, not me.
Have a problem? Find him.
Gu Chengyin understood, but he did not speak.
He merely nodded slightly in tacit consent.
The proprietress breathed a sigh of relief, turned around, and shouted at the managers:
What are you standing around for? Go!
The managers finally snapped out of it, scrambling into the building to execute the order to clear the venue.
Soon, a commotion broke out inside the Fan Restaurant.
There were dissatisfied complaints, angry questioning, and even the sounds of tables and chairs being overturned and cups and plates shattering.
But all of this gradually subsided under the persuasion of the Fan Restaurant's guards.
In just the time it took an incense stick to burn, the entire Fan Restaurant, all guests regardless of their status or how much they had spent.
All were invited out.
The massive building emptied out in an instant.
Only the staff and maids dressed in green clothes stood with their hands by their sides along the stairs, heads bowed, not daring to breathe loudly.
Only then did the proprietress turn around and curtsy to Gu Chengyin, her voice still delicate:
Junior Preceptor Gu, it is done.
Gu Chengyin nodded, turned, and walked to the side of the carriage, raising his hand to lift the curtain.
Inside the carriage, Lin Qingyan still maintained her cold and aloof posture.
She was resting with her eyes closed, as if everything happening outside had nothing to do with her.
Young aunt, we have arrived.
Lin Qingyan slowly opened her eyes and glanced at Gu Chengyin, her gaze calm and placid.
Then she reached out her hand, placed it in his palm, and using his leverage, stepped down from the carriage.
Her movements were as elegant as a fairy maiden descending to the mortal realm, every step carrying an innate ethereal aura.
The moment the proprietress saw Lin Qingyan, her pupils dilated abruptly.
She finally understood why Gu Chengyin had said those words.
For this Lord Jingzhe simply did not belong in such a mundane world.
He should be residing high above the Nine Heavens, coldly looking down upon all living beings.
Untainted by a single speck of dust.
ing gift was a patch of barren land, and disciples were all picked up along the way. He spent fifty years diligently building three "ramshackle little sects," thinking he could finally live a carefree life relying on his disciples. But right at the fifty-year mark, he was suddenly swept away by a spatial rift and exiled to the Chaos Desolation, the Disorderly Ruins. There was no spiritual energy there, only slaughter. Relying on the cultivation feedback from his disciples, Gu Changyuan hacked his way through a sea of blood for eleven hundred years. When the system finally fished him back out, he discovered the ramshackle little sects he'd built back then had developed a rather... unusual style. Hold on... I vanished for a thousand years, so how did my ramshackle little sects become holy lands?!
young master of the Shen family—a figure of immense power and wealth beyond measure—and awakened the "Destined Ultimate Villain System"! His starting scenario? Running into his icy fiancée who shows up with a mountain-descending divine doctor to break off their engagement. The divine doctor arrogantly taunts: "What does your Shen family have besides a bit of stinking money? You're not even worthy of tying Qingxue's shoelaces!" Shen Fei just smiled. He completely defied the usual script: "Fine, I agree to break off the engagement. Also, notify the finance department to withdraw all investments from the Su family." Minutes later, with its capital chain severed, the Su Group teetered on the brink of bankruptcy! The once aloof and proud ice queen CEO was thrown into utter panic. That very night, she went to Shen Fei's villa, casting aside all dignity to beg and plead desperately... From then on, in this world teeming with Sons of Destiny, Shen Fei embarked on a path of extreme dimensional suppression! A mountain-descending divine doctor? Peerless medical skills? Shen Fei: "Reporting you for practicing medicine without a license! I'll gladly take your ancient medicinal cauldron and twin sister assassins." The Crooked-Smiling Dragon King? Commanding a hundred thousand soldiers with a single order? Shen Fei: "Illegal assembly and suspected treason! Let a fleet of attack helicopters sanitize the area and teach you what the state apparatus really means!" A reborn tycoon? Knows all the golden opportunities of the next decade? Shen Fei: "A trillion in capital to reverse and pump the stock market, making you blow your margin and jump on the very first day of your rebirth!" What Chosen Ones? What bearers of Heavenly Fortune? In Shen Fei's eyes, they're all just chives (i.e., suckers/marks) waiting to be harvested! Shen Fei: "Sorry, but as the Destined Ultimate Villain, I don't play by the rules of honor. I only play the game of dimensional suppression."
rowess are unmatched, commanding a million-strong army! Yet, the Emperor wants to depose him for the sake of a false prince? Hold on, are you throwing me into some female-oriented romance plot? How can I tolerate this? With a grand wave of his hand—the Nine Clan Extraction Technique! Slander the Emperor? Very well, all of you shall die! ... The False Prince: "Although I am not the biological son, Father and Mother love me more. The throne should be mine!" The Female Lead: "Qin Xiao, you are the Emperor, and I am a commoner. If you wish to marry me, you must abdicate. Otherwise, you will never have me!" The Empress: "After we divorce, you must give me half the empire!" The Transmigrator Consort: "You worthless Emperor, why should I kneel to you? All men are equal—I advise you to be kind!" The Great General: "The enemy general is my childhood sweetheart. For her sake, I willingly abandon the frontier defenses!" The Retired Emperor: "Although Yu'er was adopted, I prefer him. Qin Xiao, you should abdicate and let him become Emperor!" ... Very well! So this is how you want to play? Facing this twisted world of female-oriented tropes, Qin Xiao grins and raises his hand to unleash—the Nine Clan Extraction Technique! I am the Emperor. Why would I bother reasoning with you? Seal the gates! Leave none alive!
transmigrates into the world as the sect master of the Heavenly Yan Sect, which is on the verge of being wiped out. He binds a system that grants him cultivation power based on the number of disciples he has: for each disciple, he automatically gains a year's worth of cultivation every single day! Take one disciple: every day he gains 1 year of cultivation power. While others struggle through a year of bitter training, he gets the same just by sleeping through a single night. Take ten disciples: every day he gains 10 years of cultivation power. Foundation Establishment, Core Formation, Nascent Soul—he breezes through all bottlenecks without lifting a finger. Take one hundred disciples: every day he gains 100 years of cultivation power. Even a Soul Transformation Venerable before him can’t survive a single blow. Take ten thousand disciples: every day he gains 10,000 years of cultivation power! With a wave of his hand, he topples empires. With a single step, he crushes the sacred grounds of the universe. ... While others fight tooth and nail for secret techniques, Lin Yan casually hands out Nascent Soul-level cultivation manuals as beginner textbooks. While others strain to find talented recruits, Lin Yan opens his doors to anyone—so long as they’re human. In just three short years, the Heavenly Yan Sect went from a backwater sect made up of three crumbling huts to a sacred land that every cultivator under heaven would kill to enter. ... One day, otherworldly demon gods invade, with a million demon soldiers pressing down upon the realm. Lin Yan, yawning, rises from his lounge chair and glances at the system panel: [Current Disciples: 1.28 million] [Daily Cultivation Increase: 1.28 million years] He waves his hand casually, and the countless demon soldiers are reduced to ashes in an instant. “So noisy… interrupting my fishing.”
