Chapter 50: Planning, The First Step and Sixty Million for a Restaurant

The search for a location began the next morning. Yu Liang met Lin Meihua at a small noodle shop near the eastern market. She arrived carrying a rolled map and a leather bound ledger.

"I marked twelve potential properties," she said, spreading the map across their table. "Three are near the market district, four in the merchant quarter, and five along the main street."

Yu Liang studied the markings. "The main street locations will be expensive."

"And crowded with competition." Lin Meihua tapped one of the market district marks. "But these three have better foot traffic from cultivators and less established restaurants nearby which gives us more opportunity to stand out."

"Then let’s start from there."

They spent the morning walking between properties. The first was too small, barely large enough for a kitchen and dining area.

The second sat in a cramped alley that reeked of garbage from the surrounding shops. Lin Meihua wrinkled her nose as they approached.

"This was recommended?" Yu Liang asked.

"The price was listed as negotiable." She glanced at him. "That usually means the seller is willing to come down quite a bit."

They left without going inside.

The third property was at the corner of two busy streets. It had three floors, a wide frontage, and could be seen easily from either side. The building was old, but it had been well maintained. Its walls showed their age, though there were no obvious signs of serious damage.

"This one has potential," Lin Meihua said, looking over the exterior. "Good visibility, enough space for—"

"Watch out!"

Her foot caught on a loose cobblestone, and she stumbled forward. Yu Liang reacted immediately, catching her by the elbow and steadying her before she could fall.

She froze for a moment, then looked down at the uneven stone beneath her feet.

"Careful," he said.

Lin Meihua’s face flushed slightly. "Thank you. I wasn’t paying attention."

"You were too busy looking at the roof," he said casually, giving her an easy way to brush off the embarrassment.

"The tiles require replacement," she said, straightening up and brushing dust off her robe. "However, the structure is good. See how the walls connect? There aren’t any cracks or any settling. The person who constructed this building knew what he was doing."

Yu Liang released her arm, and they continued their inspection. The ground floor had high ceilings and wide windows. The second floor offered more intimate spaces that could be converted into private dining rooms. The third floor was currently storage, but with proper renovation it could serve as either additional seating or administrative offices.

"What do you think?" Lin Meihua asked as they stood in the empty main hall.

"We could make it work. However, we would have to rip apart the interior and build it up from scratch using proper structures."

"Three to four months depending on the craftsmen that we hire. Less time if we pay for spending things up."

Yu Liang nodded. "Find the owner. I want to see the price."

The landlord was a retired businessman who had owned the property for a long time and had not found a suitable buyer yet. The meeting was the next day when the landlord showed them the property again.

"The location alone is worth the investment," he said, gesturing toward the windows. "Daily traffic is in the thousands. Cultivators pass by constantly heading to and from the markets."

"What’s your price?" Yu Liang asked.

"One hundred and twenty million low grade spiritual stones."

Lin Meihua started to speak, likely preparing to negotiate, but Yu Liang cut in.

"The roof requires total replacement. There is some water damage to the foundation on the eastern side. Your asking price is based on perfect condition, which sadly isn’t."

The merchant stuttered. "I... well, perhaps there’s room for—"

"Sixty million and I’ll pay in full today."

"Sixty? That’s—"

"A fair price given the repairs needed. If you’d prefer to wait for another buyer who’s willing to overpay, that’s your choice."

The merchant’s mouth opened and closed. Lin Meihua pressed her lips together, clearly fighting back laughter.

"I... suppose sixty is acceptable," the merchant said finally.

"Good. Let’s have the deed transferred by tomorrow."

They left with the purchase agreement signed. Once they were out of street, Lin Meihua let her laughter escape.

"You just—" she gasped between giggles. "You didn’t even pretend to consider his price!"

"Why would I? We both knew it was inflated."

"Most people would at least negotiate gradually. Start with a counteroffer, work toward compromise—" She shook her head, still smiling. "You just stated your price like it was obvious."

"It was obvious."

Yu Liang remained calm on the outside, but inwardly, he sighed. ’If she weren’t here, I wouldn’t have bothered negotiating at all. Hell, I’d be happy if he doubled the price or even tripled it.’

His gaze drifted away for a moment.

’I just shamed the system...’

Her laughter continued for another block, light and genuine. Yu Liang found himself smiling as well, though he wasn’t entirely sure what was so amusing.

They stopped for lunch at a modest restaurant that specialized in local spirit beast meat. The owner was a Foundation Establishment cultivator who personally supervised every dish. Lin Meihua ordered the braised phoenix tail, while Yu Liang chose the dragon scale soup.

When the food arrived, they ate in comfortable silence for several minutes before Lin Meihua spoke.

"This is what we’re competing against," she said, gesturing with her chopsticks. "This meal costs eight hundred low grade spiritual stones per person. The quality is decent, the ingredients are real spirit beast components, but the preparation is... ordinary."

Yu Liang tasted the soup. The broth was rich but one dimensional, lacking the layered complexity that truly skilled cooking could achieve.

"It appears that the dragon’s scale has not been tempered well, and therefore it is releasing excessive spiritual essence."

"Exactly." Lin Meihua’s eyes brightened. "And the phoenix tail, they roasted it instead of slow braising. The meat is tough so a proper preparation would take eight hours minimum."

They spent the rest of the meal discussing techniques, ingredient quality, the balance between spiritual potency and actual taste. The conversation flowed naturally, both of them leaning forward, talking over each other occasionally in their enthusiasm.

By the time they finished, the sun was setting. They walked back toward the purchased building, discussing renovation priorities.

"We’ll need a master formation specialist," Lin Meihua said. "Temperature control, preservation arrays, spiritual energy circulation and many more as these all are critical for the kitchen."

"I’ll handle that. Just focus on securing the ingredients."

"Already started. I reached out to three ranches this morning."

They reached the building as twilight settled over the city. Lin Meihua pulled out a stack of documents which were preliminary renovation estimates, craftsmen recommendations and timeline projections.

"These are the contractors I trust," she said, handing them to Yu Liang. "They’re a little expensive, but they’re reliable. Though, for a rich young master like you, I doubt the price will hurt much."

Their fingers brushed as he took the papers. The contact lasted a moment longer than necessary.

Neither of them moved right away.

Lin Meihua was the first to pull back. She lowered her hand, her gaze briefly shifting away.

"I should get back to the pavilion. Steward Le will probably be wondering where I’ve been all day."

Yu Liang nodded. "Yeah... you should probably go before he comes looking for you."

She turned to leave, then paused. "Yu Liang?"

"Yes?"

"Thank you for trusting me with this."

He met her eyes. "Thank you for seeing the potential in it."

She smiled once more before walking away.

Yu Liang looked down at the documents in his hands, then up at the building that would become their restaurant.

There was a lot to do before getting the place ready, far more than he had initially expected.

But somehow, with Lin Meihua as a partner, the task ahead felt less daunting.