Chapter 54: Naming the Shop

Upon discovering the destination, Lu Yang reconvened with the other two and offered his analysis:

"Judging by Qin Yuanhao's gait and his respiratory rhythm, his cultivation should be at the late Foundation Establishment stage."

"His residence is just a common courtyard, and a rather small one at that. There doesn't seem to be any sign of servants, so he appears to be living alone."

"We shall stay nearby and observe him for a while. Firstly, to learn his habits, so that if anyone questions us after we infiltrate the demonic cult, we won't be entirely clueless. Secondly, to tail him and see if we can locate the stronghold of the Yanjiang Helm."

The barbarian expressed his confusion: "Qin Yuanhao has so many underlings; why don't we just follow them to find the location of the Yanjiang Helm?"

Meng Jingzhou dismissed this approach, possessing a deeper knowledge of the demonic cult: "Those people have no cultivation. It is true they are Qin Yuanhao's lackeys, but they are not members of the demonic cult. The cult is not as easy to join as you imagine. Whether those people even know Qin Yuanhao belongs to the demonic cult is highly debatable."

"However, where are we supposed to hide and observe him? There are no inns around here, only a few teahouses and taverns. We can pass the time drinking tea during the day, but what about the night?"

The demonic cult favored nocturnal operations above all else.

Lu Yang found himself in a bit of a dilemma, when suddenly, from the corner of his eye, he spotted a teahouse displaying a sign that read 'For Lease', and his eyes lit up.

"The location of this teahouse is perfect; the second floor can be used to keep an eye on Qin Yuanhao. We can lease this teahouse and use the pretext of running a shop to monitor his movements!"

Meng Jingzhou nodded, then inquired: "What kind of shop are we going to open?"

"Even though the shop is a disguise, it needs to look authentic. I am no good at brewing tea, so we certainly cannot continue running it as a teahouse. I have elders at home who excel in language-based spells, and I spent some time by their side learning the arts of comedic banter."

Meng Jingzhou demonstrated great professional dedication: "I propose we open a crosstalk hall, and I shall perform solo crosstalk."

Lu Yang greatly admired the multi-talented Meng Jingzhou: "But crosstalk is lively during the day, yet hardly anyone visits at night. The best approach is to find a business that operates at night—an entertainment venue that is lively, where people drink and make merry, ensuring everyone has a good time. That way, we can observe Qin Yuanhao from the second floor, and he won't notice us."

Meng Jingzhou blushed upon hearing this, feeling a bit hesitant, but even more excited: "A business that operates at night... could it be you want to open a..."

Lu Yang nodded: "Exactly, I am talking about a barbecue shop."

Meng Jingzhou: "...Right, that is exactly what I thought as well."

Lu Yang had envisioned it beautifully; barbecuing was simple and easy to pick up, and even if one lacked experience, burning and charring the food a dozen times should suffice to learn the craft.

"You can leave the barbecue matters to me." Mangu smiled with immense confidence, and to prove his capability, he drew a piece of paper from his bosom, upon which was written 'Ancestral Barbecue Secret Recipe'.

Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou found this secret recipe incredibly familiar; was this not the very Ancestral Barbecue Secret Recipe on the exchange leaderboard that required a hundred contribution points to redeem!

Mangu smiled innocently: "Back in my hometown, I often roasted wild beasts to eat by myself—black bears, wild boars, little rabbits, and the like. I noticed that while the Wendao Sect purchases plenty of food, there are hardly any barbecue shops, so I put the ancestral barbecue secret recipe up on the leaderboard."

At the time, Lu Yang had wondered who would be bored enough to place a barbecue recipe on the exchange leaderboard, and it turned out to be you who put it there!

"Did anyone actually buy it?" Meng Jingzhou asked out of curiosity.

Mangu replied honestly: "A senior brother told me that after he bought the barbecue secret recipe, he went out on a mission to the wild with a senior sister, and he used the barbecue to capture her heart."

Meng Jingzhou: "..."

I really shouldn't have asked.

A faint smile appeared on Mangu's face as he remarked: "Furthermore, opening a barbecue shop offers another advantage."

"What is it?"

Mangu summoned two changgui ghosts: "I don't have to do the work myself; I can just let these two changgui handle the grilling in the back kitchen. There's no need to pay them wages, which is exceedingly convenient."

In this manner, they wouldn't even need to hire shop assistants, saving money while ensuring secrecy—a truly thorough consideration.

Having spent so much time learning from Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou, Mangu had indeed picked up a few things after all.

Lu Yang adamantly refused to admit that Mangu had learned this from him.

Mangu stayed up through the night researching the secret recipe. His hometown was in the wilderness, and many ingredients in the original barbecue recipe were exclusive to the wild, so he needed to figure out what could be substituted.

"By the way, do you guys eat roasted insects or roasted cattle eyes?" Mangu suddenly inquired.

Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou shook their heads in unison, advising Mangu to stick to grilling things within the boundaries of what normal people could accept.

Mangu uttered an 'oh' and pondered briefly. Firstly, he was a normal person; secondly, he could accept these things; therefore, anything he could accept could be accepted by normal people.

The deduction was complete.

Mangu retained a series of regional specialties on the menu, such as roasted insects and roasted cattle eyes, hoping the people of Yanjiang County would take a liking to them.

Early the next morning, Meng Jingzhou demonstrated financial power far exceeding that of ordinary men by purchasing the entire teahouse outright.

"Hold on, didn't we agree to lease it?" Meng Jingzhou had acted too quickly; before Lu Yang could even react, the teahouse was already under the names of the three companions.

Lu Yang looked at Meng Jingzhou in astonishment. Our mission only lasts for a few months; do you intend to run this shop for the rest of your life?

Meng Jingzhou argued righteously: "I have always preferred using my own things. If I can buy it, I absolutely will not lease it! Worst comes to worst, we can just sell it after the mission is completed."

Seeing that Meng Jingzhou paid without a moment's hesitation, the original owner of the teahouse packed up his belongings swiftly and departed.

After the owner left, a very serious question presented itself before the three of them—what should the barbecue shop be named.

"I propose we call it the Meng the Second Barbecue Shop," Meng Jingzhou suggested.

Lu Yang cast a sideways glance at Meng Jingzhou and said disdainfully: "That name of yours is far too vulgar. I propose the Three Bowls Cannot Pass the Ridge Barbecue Shop. Eating skewers and drinking wine, then going up the mountain to beat tigers—perfectly fitting."

Meng Jingzhou and the barbarian shook their heads in unison, failing to see what was fitting about it.

Mangu rarely voiced a differing opinion: "Three Bowls Cannot Pass the Ridge is too long a name. Why not use the style of our tribe and call it the Hahaha Barbecue Shop, or the Hehehe Barbecue Shop."

Lu Yang had heard of the naming conventions used by the barbarians of the wilderness, which were considered quite progressive even within the forward-thinking Wendao Sect: the Heiheihei Weapon Shop, the Houhouhou Tavern, the Aoaowow Brothel...

"How about the Tribulation Transcending Stage Barbecue Shop?"

"Better yet, the Becoming an Immortal Barbecue Shop."

"I think the Light Boat Barbecue Shop works well."

"Who on earth gives a barbecue shop such an elegant name?"

The three debated for a while, ultimately forced to reluctantly acknowledge a reality—none of them possessed any talent for naming things.

"Forget it, let's each write a name on a paper ball, and whichever one we draw is the one we use." Lu Yang proposed a solution, which met with the agreement of the other two.

Considering that the intentions of Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou were not entirely pure, it was deemed safest to let Mangu shake the paper balls.

Mangu brought his hands together, enclosing the three small paper balls, and shook them up and down. As he opened his thumbs, two of the small paper balls flew out.

He opened them to take a look; one slip of paper read "Try Again".

Filled with bewilderment, Mangu opened the other slip of paper, which read "Thank You for Your Patronage".

Mangu: "???"

For a moment, Mangu's mind failed to grasp the situation. He was supposed to be deciding on a shop name, not drawing a lottery... right?