Food System in Cultivation World

The item Chen Xu added to the Glazed Jade Scroll is, of course, MSG.

However, the words "MSG" didn't quite fit the era's style, so Chen Xu gave it another name, calling it "Cloud Frost".

After being specially refined by him using the Spirit Roasting Eight Techniques, MSG presents as a snow-like powder, and under the light, it occasionally reflects a jade-like luster.

Its light apricot color is faintly tinged with pale green, and naming it "Cloud Frost" is truly fitting.

When Chen Xu first mentioned Cloud Frost, although Cui Yunqi and others felt it was extraordinary, they didn't have many other thoughts about it at first.

Until Chen Xu took out a small jar and handed it to Madam Sun with instructions on how to use it, among the three, Ning Xing was the first to have a flash of insight.

He exclaimed, "Brother Chen, does this thing have such an effect no matter who uses it?"

Chen Xu said, "Cloud Frost can enhance freshness and flavor, being no different than salt or sugar in everyday cooking, just with different flavors.

However, no matter how good the seasoning is, it depends on the chef's skills and techniques. Used well, it's like adding flowers on brocade, but if not used well..."

Chen Xu smiled and said, "It can't work miracles with poor quality ingredients either."

Ning Xing immediately breathed a sigh of relief, his eyes moved slightly: "Besides the teahouse, my family also operates some restaurants. Brother Chen, could you sell me some of this Cloud Frost?"

"Sell it to you? Sell it to you for what?" This time it was Cui Yunqi who spoke.

Cui Yunqi spoke bluntly, "Sell it to you, so your mediocre restaurants can get a new lease on life?

Ha, what price are you prepared to offer? Do you want to buy just the Cloud Frost, or are you after the recipe too?"

From his stance, if Ning Xing dared to say he wanted to buy the recipe, Cui Yunqi could immediately kick him out.

Ning Xing immediately protested, "Brother Cui, how can you wrong me like this? Not to mention Brother Chen's current reputation, just considering his kindness to my Ning family, how could I do something so disrespectful?"

In the midst of protesting, the group walked out of the kitchen.

With important business to discuss, they naturally couldn't stay cooped up in the kitchen.

County Magistrate Feng watched calmly, not in a rush, and led everyone to the pavilion in the small garden of the side courtyard.

He then instructed the servants to serve wine and dishes.

After that, he first inquired about the production time and quantity of Cloud Frost from Chen Xu.

If such a thing is hard to come by and only exists as a rare item, then there's no need for trading or supply.

After all, in Feng Yuanbai's view, Chen Xu's primary task now is still studying and taking exams.

With the provincial examination approaching, how could one spend all the candidate's time and energy on mundane affairs?

Of course, Feng Yuanbai was not an aloof gentleman who pretends to disregard worldly matters. As a county magistrate, he understood the importance of money best.

During the inquiry, they heard Chen Xu say:

"Though the production of Cloud Frost is somewhat troublesome, the daily consumption is small. Thirty to fifty catties can supply a restaurant for a month.

If used with limited distinction, this amount can even be halved."

"Limited distinction?" This term immediately caught Cui Yunqi's attention as his eyes lit up and he lowered his voice, saying, "A rare commodity worth hoarding?"

Isn't it just a rare commodity worth hoarding?

Though Chen Xu's intention is for MSG to be known by more people and enter every household, as they say, you have to eat the meal bite by bite and walk the road step by step.

Haste makes waste.

Even if all the people of Yunjiang Prefecture praised him every day, how much could he absorb with his current cultivation?

If he cannot absorb it, blindly spreading it out is a waste, so it's better to proceed steadily.

In the side courtyard, Cui Yunqi eagerly and enthusiastically discussed business strategies with Chen Xu.

Then he discovered that Chen Xu also had quite an insight in this area.

For instance, dishes enhanced with Cloud Frost could initially be offered as free samples to high-spending customers every month at the restaurant.

Or, invention of little games like drinking games, pot pitching, and lantern riddles in the restaurant_daily, allowing patrons to taste Cloud series dishes as rewards.

Or, placing a treasure chest in the restaurant's main hall.

Customers with spending history at the restaurant can receive chances to draw exquisite dishes from the treasure chest, and so on.

With this multifaceted approach, once the fame of the Cloud series dishes spreads, why worry about the restaurant's prosperity?

Chen Xu casually spoke this in a few words.

Cui Yunqi couldn't help but exclaim, "Brother Chen, it's a pity you're not a merchant; otherwise, wouldn't the world have another Taozhu Gong?"

"Brother Cui, don't flatter me to death." Chen Xu laughed.

He said, "Though Taozhu Gong is the Sage of Business, it's not truly because he became a sage through commerce.

Managing a shop is merely a minor path.

One who is skilled in human relationships, has acquaintances everywhere, can plan strategies for a nation, and manage the world is truly a Sage of Business.

Brother Cui, if the restaurant weren't opened by you, and I were the one, no matter how many methods I have, I'm afraid I'd find it hard to move an inch in the Seven Prefectures of the South."

Chen Xu raised his wine glass, offering a slight salute to Cui Yunqi.

He left one thing unsaid: Did Taozhu Gong become the Sage of Business because he was Taozhu Gong?

No, it was because he was once the Grand General Fan Li of the Yue Kingdom!

Without extraordinary power and strength, could anyone become the Sage of Business?

Even the crumbs on the bones wouldn't be left for you!

The path of business in the world is always the hardest from having nothing to having something.

Once you have some capital, you'll find that whatever you do, it will go much smoother than for others.

But Chen Xu never forgets his true goal.

He aims not for fleeting wealth and prosperity, but for the true power to belong to himself.

To stand atop the summit and look at the mortal world again.

By then, what in the world wouldn't be within his reach?

Thus, he doesn't mind who helps promote his food, as long as he can balance everything now.

After this, Chen Xu signed various agreements related to Cloud Frost with Cui and Ning.

Cui Yunqi personally owns seven restaurants, one of which is in Yunjiang Prefecture City, five in county towns under Yunjiang, and the remaining one is in the main city of Celestial South Dao, Pingyang City!

However, the restaurant in Pingyang City is now declining, facing difficult operations, and on the verge of closing down.

Cui Yunqi said confidently, "Brother Chen, for this occasion, I've allocated twenty percent of the revenue from my seven restaurants to obtain the purchasing rights to your Cloud Frost.

As for the price of Cloud Frost itself, how about setting it at one tael of gold per pound?"

Priced like gold!

Yes, this is indeed Cui Yunqi's purpose.

He wants the price of Cloud Frost to surpass gold.

Ning Xing silently listened on the side, and at this moment could only sigh inwardly. Then he raised his cup and said, "Brother Chen, I'm willing to pay two taels of gold per pound to purchase Cloud Frost!"

Cui Yunqi immediately let out a cold snort and gave Ning Xing a sideways glance.

...

In the pavilion, the three discussed point by point, with County Magistrate Feng listening on the side, also serving as a witness.

Being a local official, he couldn't "compete with the people for profits," so he didn't participate in the Cloud Frost matter.

Yet when he occasionally made a point, it always hit the nail on the head.

In the end, the price of Cloud Frost wasn't as outrageous as two taels of gold per pound but was temporarily agreed at one tael of gold per pound.

But in reality, is Cloud Frost really worth one tael of gold per pound?

No, its worth is in rarity!

As for its intangible value, that remains incalculable.

This essentially also means that Chen Xu's value has risen.

Back when he was the top scorer in the academy exam, he signed a publishing fee agreement with Cui and Ning, and even though Cui and Ning intended to be generous, Chen Xu refused to accept it.

Now, with Cloud Frost at one tael of gold per pound, Chen Xu is instead willing to sell it!

With the matter of the MSG decided, Chen Xu took out the first volume of his newly written "Chronicles of the Strange and Mysterious".

All present were not businessmen; when it came to restaurant operations, their interest did not wane, but once "Chronicles of the Strange and Mysterious" was mentioned, their attitude changed immediately.

Feng Yuanbai almost instantly became spirited, grabbed the fresh manuscript paper, and laughed aloud, "Xu, oh Xu, you know how hard it has been waiting for your writings!"

With a cheerful laugh, the wind stirred shadows.

Under the same sky, Yunjiang Prefecture enjoyed clear weather today, while the Linchuan Prefecture was shrouded in fine drizzle for ten consecutive days without sunshine.

Atop Cuiwei Ridge, the mountain silhouette was faint.

In the misty rain, there stood a small shrine, only about three feet high, built by the rugged mountain path.

Inside the shrine sat a deity statue, bald and without hair, yet donned in Daoist robes.

Though it rained, passersby still offered incense.

Perhaps due to the flourishing incense offerings, the clay statue, though a sculpture, gradually gave the impression of being alive.

On this day, a white-haired Daoist came to the clay statue with a flower hoe in hand.

He stood silently on the temple steps, softly sighing, "Saint Venerable, you have woven your net for years, doing good and committing massacres. Have you found the way to immortality now?"

The clay statue remained silent and motionless, like a dead thing.

The white-haired old Daoist, clutching his flower hoe, murmured again, "I recently observed the stars at night and found immortal Qi stirring in the south, but alas, the immortal opportunity appeared and vanished like the fleeting clouds, easy to sense, hard to trace.

What is to be done?"

The clay statue still resembled itself, unaffected, and the white-haired old Daoist continued to mutter:

"Was it that someone possessing immortal opportunity was born, or some Immortal Treasures emerged? I rather incline towards the latter.

After all, we humans are truly not favored by the Heavenly Dao; for thousands of years, how many have become immortals, and how many have gained longevity?

Ha ha ha, not a single one..."

He laughed repeatedly, his tone low and eerie, gradually questioning:

"There are plant and rock spirits, who can live for thousands of years, and azure birds and dragon turtles that witness the rise and fall of ancient dynasties.

After thousands of autumns and frosts, pines and cranes remain evergreen. But for us, even if we once dominated an era and amazed the world, we are still subjected to the brief fickle hundred years of human life.

Even if you could live one, two, or three lifetimes, what difference does it make?

Still not enough, just a few hundred years, and compared against the vast heavens and earth, how are we any different from mayflies?

Why, why is it that though we humans are the most intelligent and wise of all, we still cannot attain immortality?

Are you content, Saint Venerable, are you?"

Swish—

Before his voice fell, the old Daoist suddenly lifted the small flower hoe in his hand.

The flower hoe swung into the temple, furiously smashing at the seated clay statue.

Just as the flower hoe was about to land, a thunderous bolt fell from the sky, striking towards the old Daoist.

"Oh!" The old Daoist exclaimed in surprise.

He immediately advanced towards the lightning, bursting into laughter, "Mere thunder and lightning, what have I to fear?"

Neither dodging nor evading, the hoe in his hand fell like a landslide.

Boom!

With the lightning strike, the clay statue was also shattered by the flower hoe.

Boom boom boom!

Simultaneously, the wild thunder struck the old Daoist, making his hair stand on end, and his Daoist robe was split here and there.

Yet the old Daoist himself was completely unharmed, as he continued to smash wildly, the hoe falling like a storm.

Hardly, the already fractured clay statue was shattered into fragments.

Under the relentless lightning, the old Daoist used his flower hoe to sift out a small amber-colored bead as translucent as glazed glass among the fragments.

Seeing the last stroke of lightning about to descend from the sky, the old Daoist held the flower hoe up to the sky.

Boom—

The thundercloud above seemed to be hit by an invisible giant force.

And in an instant, the thundercloud dissipated.

The old Daoist laughed heartily, holding the flower hoe in his right hand and pinching the glazed pearl in his left, stepping over the mountain path.

‌"Willing to give up this body, to ascend the path of immortality early. Forever leaving the three paths, long departing the five sufferings."

The old Daoist walked and sang: "Swallowing a boat into the sea, steering high waves to Penglai. Immortals rise through the clouds, behold the golden and silver terraces.

I too once broke the waves riding dragons, stirring rivers and seas, let the years and frosts not invade me!"

He lifted the glazed pearl, suddenly chanting an incantation: "Primordial origin, purple Qi comes from the east. Northern Dipper and Celestial Pivot, light my spiritual dais..."

"Whence comes the immortal opportunity, go!"