Chapter 56

I had thought that the Mad Taoist would make great gains at the Long Mengze Trade Fair, and that at least a dozen or twenty of the people on the list I provided would be brought back, fully preparing for the work ahead.

But who would have thought that the only one who returned to Jinzhou with the Mad Taoist from Luoyang City, South River Province, was a half-crazy, half-foolish monk?

"Amitabha... This old monk is Kongwen, greeting young friend!" His face was full of compassionate smiles, but unfortunately, it had a bit of a worldly air.

Looking at Kongwen's round, chubby face filled with smiles, and then at the thin-as-a-bamboo-pole Mad Taoist, Yang Chen inexplicably had a very bizarre image flash in his mind... He temporarily suppressed his doubts, smiled, and bowed in return: "Master, you are too kind..."

They were arranged to meet at a small roadside restaurant at noon. The restaurant owner's wife walked back and forth several times at the door of the private room, clearly very curious about this unusual combination of a Taoist, a monk, and a young man.

With Kongwen the monk present, there was no way to verify anything with the Mad Taoist at the table.

Yang Chen had to frequently raise his cup to avoid an awkward silence, but his mind was racing. How could it be that only Kongwen the monk returned with the things I gave to the Mad Taoist? Did the others all lose their minds?!

Thinking this, his wine cup never emptied. Yang Chen smiled at Kongwen and said, "I have long heard of the great name of Abbot Kongwen of Yunlong Temple, and it is a great regret that I have never had the chance to meet you... Come, Master, let's have another round!"

Kongwen the monk was a half-true, half-false monk. If you said he was a true monk, he ate meat and drank alcohol, and loved to indulge in pleasure. If you said he was a false monk, he was full of Buddhist scriptures and had profound attainments, and was quite famous in the metaphysical world.

Most people would be at a loss when they met Kongwen the monk. Such a monk who both ate meat and drank alcohol, and could still talk a lot of Buddhist Zen sayings, was not someone ordinary people could entertain.

Fortunately, Yang Chen was quite familiar with Kongwen from his previous life, and he handled the situation with ease.

There was no other way, just one word... Drink!

After a few words, they would finish a cup. Yang Chen specially asked the restaurant owner to prepare a whole white chicken. When Kongwen saw the plump white chicken, he smiled warmly and tore off half of it in no time, eating meat and drinking wine without any regard for his image!

They didn't discuss any serious topics in between, mostly telling some pointless jokes, but Kongwen only liked this kind of thing. After he drank four bottles of half-liter Moutai wine in one go, he wiped his oily mouth and said to Yang Chen, "A whole white chicken, proper braised yellow beef, steamed duck legs, stir-fried pork and potato... If I wasn't sure I had never met you before, I would even suspect you were a worm in my stomach!"

"As long as Master is satisfied with this table of wine and dishes," Yang Chen smiled and shook his head, "After three rounds of wine and five flavors of dishes, shall we talk about the main matter?"

"Sure." Kongwen did not hesitate, nodded, and became serious. He had traveled a thousand miles to Jinzhou, not just to enjoy a meal with Yang Chen!

He had not mentioned the purpose of his trip earlier for two reasons: one, the Mad Taoist had praised Yang Chen to the skies, and he wanted to test Yang Chen's depth; two, it was a habit he had developed over the years. He had no interest in discussing any serious matters until he was full and satisfied, because that was not his style!

Clearly, Yang Chen's various performances had already aroused Kongwen's strong curiosity. As a fifth-stage high monk in Buddhism, he had an unparalleled advantage in mental power (spiritual energy) compared to other cultivators, but even so, he could not detect Yang Chen's depth.

This was a very special situation because the Mad Taoist had already told him that Yang Chen was just a fourth-stage peak true cultivator of the Taoist sect.

But now it seemed that either Yang Chen's cultivation was far beyond just the fourth-stage peak, or his mental power cultivation was far beyond his current realm! Either of these would be enough to make Kongwen take the matter seriously.

The Mad Taoist waved his hand, and a light breeze closed the door of the private room.

Yang Chen moved his body slightly forward, straightened his posture, and then asked Kongwen, "I believe the Mad Taoist has already told you about the relevant benefits and welfare policies here, right?"

Kongwen was taken aback, and the Mad Taoist smiled awkwardly and said, "Forgot to mention it..."

"Then I'll say it again," Yang Chen glared fiercely at the Mad Taoist. This old Taoist, how unreliable could he be!

"First, after you come to work for me, I can provide you with..."

"Wait, what kind of work?" As soon as Yang Chen opened his mouth, Kongwen's expression changed, and he interrupted, "This old monk is the abbot of Yunlong Temple. Do you want me to come to Jinzhou and work for you?"

"Didn't he tell you?" Yang Chen's face darkened even more, and the Mad Taoist turned his head to the side guiltily.

"Although being chased by the old nun from Jingci Nunnery is a shameful thing, am I the kind of person who would live under someone else's roof?!" Kongwen said firmly, "If you want me to work for you, it would be better for the old nun to stab me to death!"

Clearly, when it came to the topic of work, Kongwen, who was used to a carefree life, had no room for negotiation!

Yang Chen was at a loss. He rubbed his temples and said, "It's not just working for me..."

"I won't work for anyone!" Kongwen stomped his foot, "I can't afford to lose face, and it would be a laughingstock if it got out!"

"But I can offer you very generous returns! I can help you break through to the sixth stage quickly, and deepen your understanding of Buddhist teachings..." Yang Chen made a final effort, as Kongwen the monk was clearly showing signs of anger and embarrassment.

"No need to say more!" Without giving Yang Chen a chance to finish, Kongwen stood up from his seat and said to Yang Chen, "If breaking through to a higher realm means sacrificing freedom, I would rather burn down Yunlong Temple and hide in the Zhongnan Mountains, where I can live freely and happily. Living under someone else's roof is not in my consideration!"

"Really no room for negotiation?"

"No!"

"At least let me finish explaining the benefits and welfare, okay?"

"No way!" Afraid that Yang Chen would continue and he would be tempted, Kongwen the monk simply closed his ears and then clasped his hands together, saying to Yang Chen, "Amitabha... Thank you for your generous hospitality, but everyone has their own aspirations. Forcing someone to do something they don't want to do is like a forced melon, which is never sweet. Young friend, don't waste your energy on me... I must take my leave!"

Saying this, he left the private room as if he were escaping, disappearing at the end of the corridor in the blink of an eye...

The Mad Taoist seemed to sense a brewing, potentially explosive killing aura in the private room, so he immediately stood up and said to Yang Chen, "I just remembered there are still some things to take care of in Mingshan Town..."

"Bang!" A gust of wind appeared out of nowhere in the private room, and the door that Kongwen the monk had just opened was slammed shut again.

"Where do you think you're going?" Yang Chen's face was smiling, but his tone was as cold as the north wind in the dead of winter!

The Mad Taoist looked miserable and explained, "This isn't my fault... You heard it yourself, someone like Kongwen the monk absolutely doesn't want to be controlled. He ran away before you even finished talking... How can you blame me?!"

"I'm asking you, why didn't you explain the benefits and welfare to him in advance? If you had explained them clearly from the beginning, would he have run away like this before I finished talking?!" Yang Chen was furious, "Are you trying to push the responsibility onto me?!"

The Mad Taoist dared not meet Yang Chen's angry gaze and could only say sheepishly, "I just forgot..."

"Then I ask you, besides Kongwen, who else did you contact? Why did only Kongwen return with you? Where are the others?!" Yang Chen was almost at his wits' end. If these people didn't come, he would be at a disadvantage!

First, the breeding base for the Golden Sun Spirit Grass couldn't be quickly set up. After all, maintaining the operation of the array required many people to carefully manage it, not just setting up an array and letting it run on its own!

Second, the Nine Meteorite Gold Rock that Yang Chen had retrieved from Nanshan Temple on Wutai Mountain needed to be studied to develop suitable metal materials, and this process also required the assistance of cultivators from the metaphysical world!

Third, Yang Chen intended to replicate the internationally renowned "Chinese Taoist Energy Particle Research and Application Development Institute" in Jinzhou, taking advantage of the current favorable conditions to lay a solid foundation for future development!

This required many people to work together to achieve this grand vision. If he was left alone... no matter how grand or long-term the plans, they would be stillborn and impossible to realize!

This Long Mengze Trade Fair was truly full of twists and turns, at least for Yang Chen, who had gained almost nothing!

Faced with Yang Chen's almost fiery gaze, the Mad Taoist lowered his head in shame...

"You gave me those little booklets..."

"What about them?"

"I took them into the bathroom and they all got ruined..."

"What did you say?!!" Yang Chen was almost driven mad, gritting his teeth and asking, "You took those little booklets into the bathroom?"

"The old Taoist never takes off his clothes when bathing..." The Mad Taoist explained dryly, "Those little booklets were so precious, I kept them on me... After bathing and washing my clothes, I only remembered the booklets when I was using my cultivation to dry them... But by the time I remembered, the writing was already blurred and unreadable..."

"..." Yang Chen stared at him angrily for over ten seconds before sitting back in his chair, looking dejected.

He had been too trusting, knowing that the Mad Taoist could only be trusted with spiritual plants, not with other matters... Now, what could he do in this situation?

Kongwen the monk was the ideal "pioneer" in his original plan. Once he was convinced, others would follow his lead, making it easier to solve the rest of the problems.

But now, Kongwen the monk had probably fled a mile or two away, and might even break out in a cold sweat at the mention of his name! For someone like him, nothing was more terrifying than losing freedom.

One wrong move, and the whole game was lost. Yang Chen felt particularly aggrieved, as this was truly an unforeseen disaster!

Seeing Yang Chen sitting there sighing, the Mad Taoist felt uncomfortable and laughed sheepishly, then said softly, "The breeding base for the Golden Sun Spirit Grass in Mingshan Town can start small... Why rush to become a fat man all at once? After all, it took me decades to cultivate just five plants..."

Seeing that Yang Chen didn't respond, the Mad Taoist grew bolder and continued, "Moreover, although people like Kongwen from Yunlong Temple and Chen Yuan from Yulong Manor are ready helpers, it's hard to get them to fully commit to this. If someone has a change of heart and wants to start their own operation, you can't kill them, can you?"

Yang Chen still didn't respond, so the Mad Taoist spoke more freely...

"Furthermore, the Golden Sun Spirit Grass, as one of the nine spirit plants, if the news leaks during the initial breeding stage, you will be thrust into the spotlight, criticized by thousands, and cursed by ten thousand. The people in the metaphysical world consider these things the foundation of their livelihood. If the secrets of the spirit plants become accessible to ordinary people, you will be attacked by everyone, and it will be very difficult to move forward."

"In my opinion, it's better that Kongwen left... You originally planned a ten-thousand-acre breeding base for the Golden Sun Spirit Grass, with two harvests per year. But the old Taoist only has two living Golden Sun Spirit Grass plants left. To obtain seeds and expand the planting area, it will take at least five to six years to fill the entire breeding base."

"There's no need to rush to build the array. Some simple methods can be used to get by for now. At least for the first three years, the old Taoist can manage it alone. Having too many people might not be a good thing..."

"Finally, a very practical issue... Have you considered how much gold and mineral powder it would take to cover ten thousand acres of land? I did a rough calculation late one night... According to the rule of planting one Golden Sun Spirit Grass plant per three square meters, each three square meters would require 580 grams of gold and 5.7 kilograms of mineral powder. Although this is a one-time investment, it's still terrifying..."

"Based on the current international gold price, 580 grams of gold would cost over 150,000 yuan, and one acre would cost 33 million yuan. For a ten-thousand-acre breeding base, 33 million times ten thousand is how much? That's over 300 billion! Including other investments, it would be at least 500 billion... Can you afford it?!"

The returns from breeding the Golden Sun Spirit Grass are undoubtedly huge, but the initial investment is also terrifying!

The Mad Taoist's words completely woke Yang Chen up.

He had been thinking about how to quickly set up a ten-thousand-acre breeding base for the Golden Sun Spirit Grass and lay the foundation for future development, but he had never carefully considered the investment!

This calculation made even Yang Chen break out in a cold sweat... A 500 billion yuan investment? Where could he get that kind of money now?!

The temptation of a ten-thousand-acre base is great, but reality is cruel.

He couldn't help but laugh bitterly, "So, you're saying it's a good thing that Kongwen left?"

"Of course it's a good thing! At least until you can afford this much money... What would you do bringing them here? Feed them and pay them for nothing? So, young man, you need to think more carefully. If it weren't for the old Taoist's foresight, who discovered this problem early and took care of it for you, you... cough... Why are you looking at me like that? I won't say anything else, okay..."