Fairy, Don't Be Afraid, I Am Blind

The female disciples were overjoyed at the announcement and hurriedly began tidying up the goods on the shelves. Ji Lingruo and Wangshu helped to check if the floor was clean.

A group of women, vibrant and colorful, approached with charming smiles along the mountain path.

The Third Elder was ecstatic, and the hope that had just been extinguished was reignited.

As a Venerable, she completely set aside her status and took on the role of a shop owner, personally going out to greet the visitors.

Nearly twenty women were welcomed, all surprised and delighted, walking into the exquisitely decorated Bihua Pavilion with smiles under the enthusiastic reception of the Third Elder and the female disciples of Bihua Peak.

The types of products inside Bihua Pavilion were relatively singular, comprising hosiery, with color being the only difference—black, white, purple, and red. The least choosy are naturally the versatile black stockings.

Although Ji Lingruo had provided a few revised versions of different types of hosiery, due to the short construction period and the business philosophy, the store focused on selling basic hosiery at the beginning.

The Third Elder’s business concept was simple: to establish an image of a hosiery specialist in the customers’ eyes. Only after attracting customers would it be easier to expand into other women’s clothing lines. For such an independent store, starting with a general women’s apparel line with a wide variety of products would significantly increase the risk of failure.

The customers entering the store showed great interest in the hosiery, and several female disciples eagerly introduced the products.

However, as time passed, most of the twenty customers left without expressing any intention to purchase.

It’s normal for women to enjoy shopping without buying anything, but isn’t it unusual for not even one genuine customer to be attracted enough to buy anything?

Is there something wrong with our Bihua Pavilion’s products?

Not only did nobody buy anything, but several pairs of hosiery also got damaged during the trying, including two pairs of precious purple hosiery.

Since it was the opening of the new store, the Third Elder wouldn’t haggle over the losses and ask for compensation; she decided to silently absorb the loss, as wear and tear in selling clothes is unavoidable.

Two female customers even took the damaged hosiery after trying, and the Third Elder generously gave them away.

One of the female cultivators felt a bit guilty and intended to pay for a pair herself, but her companion stopped her.

They went aside to whisper, not realizing that the Third Elder, with her Void Realm cultivation, heard everything clearly.

"Why would you spend money unnecessarily, Junior Sister?"

"But Senior Sister, the Third Elder was so sincere, isn’t it a bit bad to take advantage of her... Moreover, I find the quality of the hosiery quite good and worth buying."

"You’re silly, Junior Sister. If you have money to buy this hosiery, why not buy the silkworm hosiery from Qianhua Pavilion?"

"But even with the discount, the silkworm hosiery from Qianhua Pavilion is more expensive than this. And despite being mass-produced, they’re still in short supply and hard to get..."

"That doesn’t mean you should buy this. Just stand in line more; eventually, you’ll get Qianhua Pavilion’s hosiery. It comes with the Qianhua Pavilion’s paper crane mark, which has more prestige. Think about it, so many people are scrambling for Qianhua Pavilion’s products now; if everyone else is wearing Qianhua Pavilion’s hosiery and you’re wearing Bihua Peak’s, how would you hold your head up?"

"Yeah... it might be a bit embarrassing..."

"Exactly! We should just do what we’re paid for. Mr. Ye didn’t give us money to buy hosiery, just told us to show support, so why waste our own money? Let’s go; forget about Henggao City’s Qianhua Pavilion. A few of us hired a carriage; let’s go queue in the Qianhua Pavilion of another city."

?!

The Third Elder’s eyes widened with anger, her impressive chest heaving, creating a tumultuous ripple of fury.

So they were all just paid audience members?!

The female cultivator who felt guilty also gave up on buying after her senior sister’s persuasion. The Third Elder restrained her impulse to erupt, sending off these last two guests with a smiling face.

The once bustling Bihua Pavilion now seemed like a briefly awoken dream, leaving behind nothing but disorganized shelves.

"Master, we talked until our mouths were dry, yet no one bought anything... Do only we think our products are good?"

A female disciple looked dejectedly at the torn hosiery in her hands. The other disciples also took large sips of tea, nodding one after another.

The Third Elder exhaled a long breath of frustration, "Chuchu, that’s not the case. We must have confidence in ourselves. They didn’t buy for other reasons."

"What reasons?"

"Because they were invited by your good senior, Ye Qingchen!"

"What?!"

The disciples expressed their shock, unsure if they should feel touched.

This second senior specifically hired so many actors to avoid their disappointment. Yet it backfired, not only leaving them more frustrated but also leaving the store in a mess, with many of the carefully stitched pairs of hosiery ruined.

Even if they wanted to feel moved, they couldn’t. It had to be admitted that Mr. Ye’s good intentions resulted in poor outcomes.

Right then, a bright male voice echoed from the mountain path.

"Master!"

The Third Elder remained silent, her face somewhat gloomy.

The person who came wasn’t anyone else; he was Ye Qingchen, looking thrilled.

"Second Brother..."

The female disciples greeted him, but Ye Qingchen ignored them and went straight to the Third Elder, bowing and saying:

"Master, I saw many female cultivators laughing and chatting while descending the mountain as I was coming up. I assume they were guests of our Bihua Pavilion? Master is truly impressive; such a small shop opened at will is thriving like this. Once it grows bigger, wouldn’t it outshine Qianhua Pavilion? My Ye Family holds some capital in Henggao City, and since Master is on good terms with us, why not collaborate with my Ye Family to grow and strengthen our Bihua Pavilion together?"

Ye Qingchen spoke earnestly, his face beaming with excitement, seemingly satisfied with his mix of praises and bait.

However, the Third Elder remained unmoved, her face looking as grim as an overcast sky.

This mature female cultivator with a constant smile had rarely looked so serious.

"Senior Brother, can you not talk about our Bihua Pavilion as if it’s yours? You didn’t contribute, did you... Moreover, our Bihua Pavilion wasn’t opened casually; we prepared very seriously!"

Lin Si Han listened to Ye Qingchen’s words, feeling a bit uncomfortable.

Even with her gentle nature, she could not tolerate the grievance and bravely retorted to the Second Brother.

"Exactly, exactly, it was Master and our careful preparation that led to Bihua Pavilion’s prosperous business!"

Ye Qingchen faintly sensed something was off and quickly corrected himself.

"Qingchen, haven’t I told you that men are not allowed in Bihua Pavilion?"

The Third Elder glared at Ye Qingchen coldly.

Ye Qingchen quickly bowed his head and apologized, "Master, I didn’t enter..."

"Senior Brother, it’s not about entering, but being nearby!"

Yutong immediately grasped her Master’s meaning and stuck out her tongue playfully.

She always felt that Ye Qingchen’s earlier remarks were indirectly calling them stupid, that their carefully prepared store has such sparse business, what else could it be besides stupidity?

"Ah? Then I misunderstood. I’ll step aside now, and I hope Master won’t be angry... As for collaborating with my Ye Family, Qingchen is serious about it, and I hope Master will consider it."

Before Ye Qingchen left, he didn’t forget to offer his solicitations to the Third Elder.

"Qingchen... Master truly appreciates your efforts. Do you feel proud of hiring so many people to humor poor us?"

"Master, I didn’t..."

"Do you find it amusing to deceive us like this?! Do you think we would accomplish nothing without your charity?!"

"Master, I really didn’t..."

"Silence! Go to Siguoya and reflect for three days! If you don’t repent, the punishment will continue!"

The Third Elder shouted coldly, startling everyone with her anger.

Ji Lingruo pursed her lips, feeling no sympathy for Ye Qingchen.

Maybe his initial intentions were good, but unintentionally, he did harm and got caught up in the Third Elder’s mood.

Alas, how on earth can we salvage the business of Bihua Pavilion...