Yin Ze and Wang Hong carefully surveyed several locations, considering aspects like rent, location, foot traffic, and the neighboring businesses and residents.
After inspecting several shops, they had a good understanding of the general situation of each one.
"Yin Ze, if it were up to you, which one would you choose?" Wang Hong asked.
Upon hearing this, Yin Ze felt a surge of enthusiasm. He knew it was time to prove himself. While he had decided to follow Wang Hong unconditionally to repay a life-saving favor, he didn't want to be a mere bystander.
He straightened his robe and replied, "East Master, out of these five shops, two are in remote locations with low foot traffic and cheap rent, making them unsuitable options.
The remaining three include one at the intersection of Boundary City's four main streets, which is in the most prosperous area of Boundary City. The surrounding shops are all owned by major factions, and given our current strength, it's not suitable for us to establish ourselves there.
The other two locations have similar geography and foot traffic. The difference is that the shop on West Street has more Qi Cultivation Cultivators nearby, while the one on East Street has more Foundation Building Cultivators. The combined wealth of dozens of Qi Cultivation Cultivators doesn't match that of a single Foundation Building Cultivator.
Moreover, there are only fifty thousand Qi Cultivation Cultivators in the entire Boundary City. Even if we capture the entire Qi Cultivation business, the profits won't be significant. Therefore, if it were up to me, I'd choose the shop on East Street."
After listening to Yin Ze's reasoning, Wang Hong nodded in agreement. "In that case, I entrust this matter to you entirely. You can go ahead and secure the lease for the shop. I have three hundred thousand Spirit Stones here, which I'll give to you as startup capital."
Wang Hong took out three hundred thousand Spirit Stones and handed them to Yin Ze, without inquiring about how they would be spent. Yin Ze was free to make his own decisions on how to use the Spirit Stones.
Trust those you employ, and employ those you trust. Since Wang Hong had appointed Yin Ze for this task and wanted to assess his abilities, he didn't hesitate to provide the three hundred thousand Spirit Stones. If this amount could help him better understand Yin Ze, it was a reasonable price to pay.
"Thank you, East Master, for your trust," Yin Ze accepted the Spirit Stones and expressed his gratitude.
"No need to be polite. Just give it your all," Wang Hong waved his hand.
With the Spirit Stones in hand, Yin Ze departed. From that point on, he took charge of renting the shop, hiring assistants, purchasing inventory, and finding suppliersall on his own.
Several weeks later, Yin Ze returned to Wang Hong. He had nearly completed the preparations for opening the shop.
"East Master, I've contacted twelve suppliers. The Li Clan Caravan is willing to provide one Tier-Two Spiritual Herb at ninety percent of the market price per month and offer a discount of fifteen percent for one hundred Tier-One Spiritual Herbs.
There's also the Zhang Clan Caravan, which is willing to supply one Tier-Two Spirit Fruit each month at a ninety percent discount, and Tier-One...
In total, these fifteen suppliers can provide us with ten Tier-Two Spiritual Herbs, two Tier-Two Spirit Pills, and thousands of Tier-One Spiritual Herbs and Spirit Pills every month."
Yin Ze reported the numbers with a lack of confidence, somewhat anxious as he looked at Wang Hong.
Even though he had worked diligently to find suppliers, many powerful ones had rejected him due to his status as a Qi Cultivation Cultivator. In the past month, he had visited every merchant caravan in Boundary City, some multiple times, to achieve the modest results he had now.
With the current achievements, they should be able to break even every month.
"Hmm, not bad!" Wang Hong affirmed Yin Ze's achievements. He was well aware that for a Qi Cultivation Cultivator like Yin Ze with no background, achieving such results was quite challenging.
Especially the Tier-Two Pills; after Zhu Yan's disappearance, there were only two Tier-Two Alchemists in the entire Boundary City. Obtaining two Tier-Two Pills was considered quite an achievement.
Having received Wang Hong's approval, Yin Ze breathed a sigh of relief.
"East Master, when should we open for business?" Yin Ze cautiously asked.
"These minor details are for you to decide. However, we do have a bit of a shortage of Tier-Two Spiritual Herbs and Pills.
I can provide you with fifteen Tier-Two Pills, fifteen Tier-Two Spiritual Herbs, one thousand Tier-One Spiritual Herbs, and five hundred Tier-One Pills every month at an eighty percent discount," Wang Hong replied.
"So... so many?" Yin Ze couldn't believe it. He had scoured the entire city and hadn't found even half of what Wang Hong was offering.
Wang Hong smiled and didn't confirm or deny it. Instead, he handed Yin Ze a Storage Bag.
"Take these for now. When you're just starting, you need ample inventory to make a good impression on customers."
"Thank you, East Master!" Yin Ze gratefully accepted the bag, realizing that Tier-Two Alchemists indeed had generous resources.
"You're working for me, no need to thank me. Now, go and focus on your tasks," Wang Hong waved him off.
Three days later, on East Street in Boundary City, a Spiritual Herb shop opened its doors. Although the shop was not large, it was bustling with activity.
This was because those in the know were aware that one of Boundary City's two Tier-Two Alchemists owned the shop. An Alchemist opening their own shop meant there would likely be plenty of Pills, which attracted countless Cultivators.
At this moment, two assistants stood at the door, welcoming guests, while Yin Ze handled the collection of Spirit Stones at the counter.
On the first day of opening, all the Tier-Two Spiritual Objects were sold out. This meant that the entire month's stock of Tier-Two Spiritual Objects had been sold in a single day, and the shop would face a shortage of stock the next day.
With no other choice, Wang Hong had to supply more Tier-Two Spiritual Objects.
However, starting from the next day, Tier-Two Spiritual Objects would be limited in quantity.
On the second day, many Foundation Building Cultivators entered the shop, only to find that Tier-Two Spiritual Objects were being sold in very limited quantities each day.
Most Cultivators respected the Alchemist and patiently registered and queued up before leaving.
In the afternoon, a Foundation Building Mid-Stage Cultivator entered the shop.
"Young man, I need ten Nourishing Essence Pills!" The Cultivator made an exorbitant request. It took this shop about ten days to produce ten Nourishing Essence Pills, a quantity on par with other similar-sized shops, if not less.
As a Foundation Building Mid-Stage Cultivator, he couldn't be unaware of the market situation and was likely looking for trouble.
"We've already sold out of Nourishing Essence Pills for today. You'll need to register and wait in line to purchase them," the assistant responded cautiously.
"Hmph! If you don't have the Pills, why even bother running a shop? You should just close it down!" The Foundation Building Cultivator spoke rudely and released his Foundation-Building Pressure, causing everyone in the shop, from the shopkeeper Yin Ze to the assistants and other customers, to freeze in place, unable to move.
The customers in the shop were mostly Qi Cultivation Cultivators. While they were not directly involved, they dared not make any move, not even daring to take a breath, for fear of attracting trouble.
"Young man, please calm down and give me a moment to think of a solution. Right now, we really don't have any. I'm helpless," Yin Ze explained cautiously, having just sent a message to Wang Hong, hoping to buy some time.
[Read at /shanefreak, and heartfelt thankyou for your support!]