"The manager is not a man."
Although Zhao Lin has never been a shopkeeper, he has gone out on two missions and traveled to various markets, so he has a certain understanding of the personnel structure of the store.
In addition to the shopkeeper and clerk, the store also has an accounting room that manages accounts and records income and expenditure;
Managers who are responsible for counting and warehousing, tallying and classifying goods; freight forwarders who purchase and escort goods, as well as errands and handymen who are mostly performed by ordinary people.
These are just the most basic positions. If the store reaches a certain scale, the staff will continue to expand.
After listening to Zhao Lin's explanation, Li Sancai thought for a moment and asked: "Which city? Is it far away?"
"Not far."
Zhao Lin waved his hand, "It's in Dongfu County, Honshu. You can go there and back in one day by spirit boat."
Li Sancai hesitated and said, "But I don't know how."
Zhao Lin said seriously: "No one is born knowing everything. You can learn slowly. Don't worry, doing things is easier than cultivating."
Li Sancai was a little moved, but still had concerns, "When I go to work as a store manager, wouldn't the Talisman Dao that I have been practicing for two years be wasted?"
Zhao Lin smiled slightly when he heard this and said: "Brother Li, you are worrying too much. The manager's salary is higher than that of the apprentice, and he also has more free time. It will not delay his cultivation."
"Think about it, there are so many monks in the city, they can't all give up on their path, right?"
"To tell you the truth, I also work in this store."
Li Sancai's eyes lit up when he heard the last sentence, "It would be great if Senior Brother Zhao is here and there is someone to take care of you, then I agree!"
Zhao Lin palmed his hand and said: "Okay, it's settled! Please ask Brother Sancai to keep this matter secret for you, and don't reveal it to others for the time being. How about it?"
"I know."
Li Sandao said yes repeatedly.
Zhao Lin gave a few words of advice before saying goodbye and leaving.
A few days later, it was the day for the Dharma performance in the three courtyards.
The Dharma performance is held by the three states in turn, and this year it is the turn of Xiniuzhou Spiritual Dao Temple.
As soon as it dawned, the disciples, led by the Head Master and the elders, took a spiritual boat to Xiniu Prefecture.
In order to give the first-year disciples a long experience, Zhou Hongfang specially let the spirit boat dock for an hour when passing by Uehara Immortal Square.
Zhao Lin used to visit the market just to buy what he needed, but this time he had an in-depth observation from the perspective of an operator.
The supporting facilities of Uehara Immortal Square are quite complete, the shops are well laid out, each has its own characteristics, the streets are neat and clean, docks, inns, restaurants, hospitals are all available, and there is even a special place for storing spiritual animals.
There are guard monks patrolling and guarding all the key passes, so that the monks can come and go with confidence.
Zhao Lin couldn't help but nodded secretly, thinking: "The reason why Uehara Immortal Square is famous far and wide is not only due to its superior geographical location, but also the planning of the decision-makers is also very critical."
Before sunset, the group arrived at Xiniuzhou Lingdao Temple.
After a night's rest, the next day, under the leadership of the headmaster of Xiniuzhou, we visited beast control, insect control, alchemy, wine making, and puppet making...
The elders and disciples demonstrated various Taoist skills for everyone.
Zhao Lin is already very familiar with these and has no interest in them.
I followed everyone around and only took a second look during the demonstration of the magic circle.
"The Yin-Yang Four Symbols Formation has a total of eighteen formations. It can be used for both defense and trapping enemies. It is easy to arrange. Many monks camping in the wild will arrange this formation before taking a rest."
The elder of Xiniuzhou explained while carving the formation patterns.
"This formation looks good."
Zhao Lin noticed that in the ninth grid of the spiritual map, the words "Yin and Yang Four Symbols Array" appeared.
Since absorbing the sixteen patterns of the Spirit Sealing Array, Zhao Lin has been thinking about how to use the ninth grid.
In the last square, Zhao Lin was very cautious.
After thinking for a while, Zhao Lin decided not to choose this formation for the time being. He will soon go to Fangshi to explore, and his horizons will be broadened. There may be better choices.
…
Another night passed, and the time came for the day of the battle.
The Yanfa Pavilion was crowded with people, including the disciples of the three academies and the monks who came to watch the fun, there were as many as a thousand people.
The rules of the battle are the same as in previous years. Two disciples from each state will compete against each other and three winners will advance to the second round.
The three of them then compete in pairs to compete for the final championship.
The candidates sent by Nanhezhou were Zhao Lin and Lin Chaoran.
Lin Chaoran has reached the sixth level of Qi Refining, and his magic skills are also quite good.
Not to mention Zhao Lin, who has won the championship twice in a row, and this time his goal is to win three consecutive championships.
"For every win, ten good deeds will be rewarded."
"The final winner will be awarded a Yuan Dan..."
The elder of Xiniu Prefecture announced the rewards for fighting. Before he finished speaking, the audience was in an uproar.
It’s not that the rewards are huge, it’s just that they are too shabby.
The rewards for good deeds were reduced by half, and the winner only had a single Yuan-Zeng Dan, which was only worth dozens of spiritual stones.
"This is too stingy! It's not as real as the rewards from our little competition in the hospital."
"Who says it's not the case? Is Xiniu Prefecture so poor?"
"You don't understand this, right? In this fight, Nanhe Prefecture will definitely win. In that case, why does Xiniu Prefecture set up generous rewards to make wedding clothes for others?"
"Nan Hezhou will definitely win? Brother Dong, how do you say this?" A first-year disciple from Xiniuzhou asked curiously.
"You newcomers don't know that Zhao Lin, who competes for Southern Hezhou, is a genius in Taoism. He has won the first place in Taoism twice in a row. This year, his strength will only be stronger. There is no suspense about this championship."
The "Brother Dong" explained.
"Really? I only heard that there is an Earth Spirit Root disciple in their Spiritual Dao Academy who has reached the peak of the sixth level of Qi refining. I didn't expect there to be someone stronger."
"Lin Chaoran has no talent in cultivation, but when it comes to fighting skills, he is far behind Zhao Lin."
"I see, Nan Hezhou is so powerful..."
Zhao Changxing participated in the Dharma performance meeting for the first time. Hearing everyone's comments, he felt extremely proud and wished that everyone would know that Zhao Lin was his uncle.
When the elder of Xiniu Prefecture heard the discussion in the audience, he looked a little confused and said in a deep voice: "Don't make any noise. The disciples who are participating in the competition now come up to draw lots."
Zhao Lin and five other disciples walked into the field and stepped forward to draw lots.
"The word A."
Zhao Lin showed the wooden sign in his hand.
"I am also a character."
The Juyanzhou disciple opposite said with an ugly expression.
"Two of you will stay on the field, and the rest will leave."
The elder of Xiniu Prefecture raised his voice and said, "Zhao Lin of Nanhe Prefecture will face Qin Fangping of Juyan Prefecture!"
Zhao Lin walked to the prescribed circle and stood there, placing his palm on the handle of the knife at his waist.
After getting the Zangetsu Sword, Zhao Lin went to the market to find someone to make an animal skin scabbard and carried it with him at all times, leaving the original iron ruler on the shelf.
Because the blade of the Zangetsu Sword is bent inward, even though it hasn't been unsheathed yet, its strange shape has attracted everyone's attention, and they all speculated on what kind of magic weapon it was.
Qin Fangping held a golden short spear in his hand, with a serious expression on his face, and swallowed hard.
The scene fell silent, and everyone held their breath and concentrated, especially the first-year disciples from Xiniu State and Juyan State, who wanted to see what powerful methods Zhao Lin had.
"let's start!"
The elder Chuan Gong gave the order, and Qin Fangping took action first.
The golden spear turned into a golden light and shot out.
Qin Fangping was a third-year disciple. He had seen Zhao Lin's performance in the previous two terms, and knew that Zhao Lin's skills in ice knife skills could not withstand his own defensive spells, so he simply used attack for attack to catch him by surprise.
Zhao Lin looked calm, drew out the Zangetsu Sword with his backhand, and struck out with his hand.
"What a big sword!" Many disciples exclaimed.
Although the Zangetsu Sword is not long, anyone can tell from its broad back and majestic blade that it is full of weight.
clang!
The sound of metal clashing sounded in the field.
Qin Fangping wanted to win with speed, so the golden spear deliberately made an arc.
However, Zhao Lin's ice sword skills were approaching perfection. The moon-cutting sword turned downwards, easily blocking the path of the golden spear and slashing it down heavily.
The golden spear flew away in response, and the Moon-Zhancing Sword only paused for a moment before accelerating again, heading straight for Qin Fang's plane gate.
"I surrender!"
Qin Fangping knew that there was no point in resisting any longer, so he simply raised his hands and admitted defeat.
The scene was completely silent, and no one expected that the fight would be over in just one breath.
"Concession!"
Zhao Lin took back his Zhanyue Sword, cupped his fists and said.
I am very satisfied. This is the first time that Zangetsu Sword has been used in actual combat, and the effect is very good.
"Ah, my magic weapon!"
Qin Fangping picked up the golden spear on the ground and found a gap on the tip of the spear. He couldn't help but cry out in pain.
"Zhao Lin, show me your magic weapon."
Zhou Hongfang waved to Zhao Lin.
"yes."
Zhao Lin strode forward and presented the moon-cutting sword.
"This sword is a bit interesting. It seems to be more powerful than an ordinary machete."
Zhou Hongfang grabbed the handle of the knife, gave it two false blows, and said in an approving tone.
"It's so heavy. Is it considered a heavy-duty magic weapon?"
"It definitely belongs. Even if you encounter an iron axe, you won't necessarily suffer a loss."
The two elders Nie and Wu also came over and were amazed.
"Zhao Lin, where did this knife come from?"
Zhou Hongfang turned his head and asked.
"My disciple had seen this sword in the mortal world and felt comfortable using it, so he asked Master Zheng Tu to help him make one."
Zhao Lin replied respectfully.
Zhao Lin was a martial artist, and Zhou Hongfang had no doubts about him. He commented: "This knife is good for chopping and has great power, but it is quite challenging."
"People who don't have enough spiritual power and spiritual consciousness can't use it at all. Only martial arts practitioners like you who have practiced the Nine Transformation Condensation Technique can use it."
Elder Wu took the Zhanyue Sword and made two gestures before agreeing: "Using this sword, the attack range will be reduced by about 20%. Remember to control the distance when fighting with others..."
Zhao Lin nodded quickly to express his acceptance.
While several people were talking, the next two competitions ended one after another.
Lin Chaoran and Xiniu State's Guo Quan defeated their respective opponents and entered the second round.
In the first game of the second round, Zhao Lin played against Lin Chaoran.
"Brother Zhao and I both belong to Nanhe Prefecture, so we won't fight among ourselves here. I admit defeat."
Lin Chaoran knew that he was no match, so he raised his hands and said to everyone.
"I also admit defeat."
Before anyone could react, Guo Quan also came on the stage and said, rather than being beaten and defeated by Zhao Lin, it would be better to save some dignity.
"Ah, is this the end?"
"How can it surrender without a fight?"
"Hey, you said it easily, it's not you who got beaten..."
The disciples talked a lot.
"In this case, the battle is over and Zhao Lin wins the championship."
The limelight was stolen by Nanhezhou, and the elders of Xiniuzhou were eager to end it as soon as possible, so they announced directly upon seeing this.
In this way, the performance will come to an end.
Seeing that it was still early, Zhou Hongfang led his disciples back home.
…
As the new year is approaching, many third-year disciples have no intention of practicing and are running around looking for jobs that can earn them good deeds and spiritual stones.
Zhao Lin already has a place to go, so there is no need to worry about this matter, but he is not idle. After practicing, he often consults Gude Zhao to discuss the opening of a store.
He gradually came to understand that Lu Yuanxiu provided him with this position, on the one hand out of friendship as fellow martial arts cultivators, and on the other hand, probably because of his excellent completion of two sect tasks.
No matter what, once you get this opportunity, you must seize it.
As long as the store runs well, provides financial resources for the state government and helps Hanchi County open up sales, it is equivalent to giving a big gift to Lu Yuanxiu and Zhou Hongfang each.
In this way, he has two more powerful backers in the sect!
There are so many things that need to be prepared to run a store that it is impossible for an outsider to start.
Gude Zhao worked his way from clerk to shopkeeper and had rich experience. Zhao Lin lowered his profile and asked for advice humbly on everything. He accompanied Gude Zhao to visit the leading monks in each church every day.
As the saying goes, every line is like a mountain. Since you don't know how to manage, you should watch more, listen more, and talk less. If you have any guidance in your mind, hold it back for now.
Gudzhao had seniority, and Zhou Hongfang had greeted him in advance, and the supply of various cultivation resources was successfully negotiated.
"Thank you for your hard work, Gu. If I came forward on this matter, I would definitely not be able to negotiate such a low price, and people might not even pay attention to me."
Zhao Lin was impressed.
"You're welcome, Xiaoyou Zhao. To be honest, there aren't many secrets here. The key is whether we can sell the goods. If we purchase a large quantity, everything will be easy."
Gudzhao was modest, but a smile appeared on his face unconsciously.
Zhao Lin nodded and said in a deep voice: "Gu Gu, do you think our store can be opened? Are there high risks inside?"
"Well..."
Gude Zhao cleared his throat and muttered: "Dongfu County Fangshi has just been opened, and there are not many monks coming and going. It will definitely be difficult to do at first. But as long as you work hard, things will gradually improve."
"Uehara Senbo was not prosperous from the beginning. It took hundreds of years of operation to reach its current scale."
Zhao Lin knew that he was telling the truth and said sternly: "Gu Gu, the two of us will work together to get things done, and we will live up to the hard work of Elder Lu and Master Zhou."
Gude Zhao said with a smile: "This is natural."
Zhao Lin continued: "My younger brother has a classmate with whom we have a close relationship. He is modest, simple and kind. I would like to arrange for him to be the manager. What do you think?"
Gudzhao was stunned for a moment, then immediately smiled and said: "Fellow Daoist Zhao is the boss. You have the final say on personnel arrangements. I have no objection."
Zhao Lin felt relieved and said: "It's good if Gu Gu agrees, but when opening a new store, it's safer to use experienced people. I will only arrange for this one candidate, and Gu Gu will decide the other positions."
A hint of joy flashed in Gude Zhao's eyes, "Seriously?"
Zhao Lin nodded seriously, "Seriously!"
Gude Zhao twisted his beard with his hand, thought for a moment, and said: "I retired from Uehara Immortal House, but I still have some old subordinates. I can do things properly and my character can be assured."
Zhao Lin said cheerfully: "I can definitely trust the people brought by Gu Gu, so it's settled."
(End of chapter)
