Chapter 22: The First Tenant

Four days later, shortly after noon, a familiar wagon stopped outside Wandering Cloud Tavern.

Lin Yuan recognized it through the kitchen window.

The broad-faced merchant who had supplied the materials for the expansion climbed down and entered the tavern.

He stopped just inside.

His gaze traveled across the expanded dining hall.

"You actually finished it."

Lin Yuan continued cutting vegetables.

"You brought the builder."

"I didn’t say he’d finish."

"He did."

The merchant looked toward the new section again.

"Master Han complained about you."

"Did he?"

"Said you might call him again."

"That sounds like fear."

The merchant laughed and chose an empty table near the counter.

"Food first."

Su Mei approached.

"The usual?"

"You remember?"

"You order the same thing every time."

"Then yes."

As Su Mei headed toward the kitchen, Lin Yuan glanced through the window.

Someone else stood beside the wagon.

A man in plain gray robes was looking across Blackstone. His attention wasn’t on the tavern, but on the surrounding land.

Lin Yuan put down the vegetables.

"Who’s that?"

The merchant followed his gaze.

"Part of the reason I’m here."

The man entered a moment later.

He appeared to be in his thirties, with a storage bag hanging from his waist.

The merchant gestured toward him.

"Owner Lin, this is Qiao Ren."

Qiao Ren nodded.

"I’ve heard quite a bit about your tavern."

Lin Yuan looked at the merchant.

"From him?"

"Unfortunately."

The merchant frowned.

"I brought you here."

"Which is why I said unfortunately."

Su Mei placed water on the table before moving away to serve another group.

Qiao Ren looked around.

Several tables were occupied. A group near the stairs had just finished eating, while two cultivators near the window were discussing their route over a map.

His gaze moved upstairs.

"You have rooms?"

"Eight."

"And the stable outside?"

"Mine."

Qiao Ren looked through the window again.

"Who owns the land around the tavern?"

"I do."

Qiao Ren nodded.

"Then I’d like to rent some of it."

Lin Yuan stopped.

"For what?"

"A shop."

That was unexpected.

"What kind?"

"General cultivation goods."

Qiao Ren touched the storage bag at his waist.

"Common pills, talismans, medicine, beast feed, rope, lamp oil. Things travelers realize they need after they’ve already left the city."

Lin Yuan stepped out from behind the kitchen counter.

"Why Blackstone?"

Qiao Ren glanced at the merchant.

"Because he won’t stop talking about it."

The merchant looked offended.

"I mentioned it."

"Every time you returned to Green River City."

"I travel here regularly."

"You also told me the tavern was expanding because it couldn’t handle the customers."

Lin Yuan looked at the merchant.

The merchant lifted his cup.

"It was true."

Qiao Ren continued.

"I’ve sold from a stall in Green River City for six years. When he kept talking about a tavern operating successfully in Blackstone, I became curious."

"So you came here to rent land?"

"I came to see whether he was exaggerating."

Lin Yuan glanced across the dining hall.

Another customer had just entered. Xiao Lan approached him before he had taken more than a few steps.

"And?"

Qiao Ren followed his gaze.

"Not enough to matter."

Lin Yuan looked back at him.

"Why not open another stall in Green River City?"

"Because Green River City already has more shops than it needs."

Qiao Ren nodded toward the road outside.

"Travelers already stop here for food, water, rooms, and their spirit beasts. If they realize they’re short on medicine or talismans before continuing their journey, there’s nowhere nearby to buy them."

Lin Yuan understood the idea.

"You want my customers."

"I want travelers."

"They became my customers first."

Qiao Ren smiled.

"Then I’ll rent the land from you."

That was harder to argue with.

"I’m not asking you to build anything for me," Qiao Ren continued. "I’ll pay for the building myself."

Lin Yuan looked outside.

Blackstone had no shortage of empty land.

But Qiao Ren wasn’t interested in some distant patch of wasteland.

He wanted land beside Wandering Cloud Tavern.

"Finish eating," Lin Yuan said.

Qiao Ren paused.

"Then?"

"We’ll look outside."

Half an hour later, Lin Yuan, Qiao Ren, and the merchant walked east along the road.

Dry ground stretched ahead of them, broken by scattered stones and stubborn patches of grass.

They hadn’t gone far when Qiao Ren stopped.

"Here."

Lin Yuan looked back toward the tavern.

The location was close enough for travelers to notice, but far enough that it wouldn’t interfere with wagons entering the courtyard or reaching the stable.

"How much space?"

Qiao Ren paced out a rough rectangle.

"Enough for a small storefront and storage room."

It wasn’t large.

If they agreed, this would be the first building on Lin Yuan’s land that belonged to someone else.

"How much are you offering?"

Qiao Ren named a price.

Lin Yuan shook his head.

"Too low."

Qiao Ren looked around.

"It’s empty dirt."

"Then rent empty dirt farther from the road."

The merchant laughed.

Qiao Ren ignored him.

"This is Blackstone."

"And you’re here because travelers stop at my tavern."

That ended the argument.

They settled the terms shortly afterward.

Qiao Ren would rent a small plot beside the road and pay monthly. He would handle the construction and maintenance himself.

Simple enough.

Once they were done, Qiao Ren looked toward the merchant.

"I’ll need timber."

The merchant sighed.

"Of course you will."

"Stone too."

"Anything else?"

"Roof tiles."

The merchant stared at him.

Qiao Ren smiled.

"You brought me here."

"That was clearly a mistake."

"You’ll charge me for delivery."

The merchant considered that.

"Less of a mistake."

Lin Yuan left them to discuss materials.

By afternoon, several wooden stakes marked the boundaries of the future shop.

Qiao Ren spent some time checking the plot before leaving with the merchant. He would arrange the materials in Green River City and return when everything was ready.

Lin Yuan went back to work.

The rest of the day passed normally.

Customers ate.

Spirit-Touched Water was carried out to waiting wagons. 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

A group rented two rooms for the night.

After sunset, the dining hall gradually emptied.

Lin Yuan stepped outside.

The road was quiet.

Several wooden stakes stood in the dirt beside it.

He focused briefly.

The Territory Core remained quiet.

That was fine.

Lin Yuan looked at the marked ground once more.

Tomorrow, the stakes would still mark nothing but empty ground.

Soon, there would be a shop there.