{{ HOLI-SHOP --shop discount
HOLI-MEMBERSHIP -- membership discount }}
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By the time Snow Princess returned to the shop, Li Rong was already preparing to rest. Bi Ji and the others had finished tidying up as well, restoring the shop to its usual quiet order.
After everyone exchanged goodnights, Bi Ji naturally turned to leave with Snow Princess. Dugu Yan's eyes lit up at once—she had been waiting for this moment, eager to follow along and ask Bi Ji exactly how she had managed to get Li Rong to agree.
"Where are you going?" Li Rong suddenly reached out and caught Bi Ji's hand. "Wrong room?"
"Ah?" Bi Ji hadn't even reacted yet when Li Rong pulled her over, lifted her cleanly off the ground, and carried her straight into his own room.
The three remaining women froze on the spot, staring at one another in stunned silence.
Li Rong woke the next day well into the afternoon.
After a quick wash, he ignored the strange looks Ye Leng Leng and Snow Princess were giving him at the table. He sprawled lazily onto a chair, opened the virtual interface to watch a combat livestream, and casually popped a slice of watermelon into his mouth.
"Isn't it time for a raise?" Snow Princess spoke first, using salary as her opening salvo. "Yesterday's temporary event alone gave everyone more than sixteen thousand sacrificial coins. Meanwhile, we only earn two hundred thousand per year. That's not even enough to advance properly. Doesn't that feel a bit… stingy?"
"That amount isn't small," Li Rong replied lazily. He genuinely enjoyed arguing over numbers—especially when the other party was a beautiful woman.
"Not small?" Snow Princess shot back. "I got word from Ditian that Gui Mei and Yue Guan led teams for over ten days clearing Wolftaken and earned more than a million units of merit. Merit converts to sacrificial coins at a one-to-one rate."
"We work a full year, tied to the shop, unable to leave freely, and only get two hundred thousand. How is that enough?"
She pressed on while she had momentum. "Their income might be unstable, sure. But ours is capped. And we can't even participate in activities. That's tens of thousands of sacrificial coins lost every year."
Li Rong nodded thoughtfully. "That does make sense. How about this—I'll reduce the number of activities. Then no one gets extra sacrificial coins. Fair for everyone."
Snow Princess nearly exploded. She looked like she wanted to bite him.
Ye Leng Leng couldn't help laughing. "Boss, can we at least get an advance? Right now, aside from Sister Bi Ji, none of us even has a complete set of secret manuals. Snow Princess and I don't even have cultivation techniques yet, let alone fourth-grade sets."
"An advance?" Li Rong glanced at them. "Are you sure?"
Snow Princess remained calm. "Bi Ji already told us everything."
"As long as we truly like the shop and agree with its way of doing things, we can stay," Ye Leng Leng added softly. Then she looked at Li Rong. "So… do you like us staying?"
"I'm asking whether you like the shop," Li Rong said flatly. He waved Snow Princess aside and turned to Ye Leng Leng. "What about you?"
Ye Leng Leng tilted her head and thought for a moment before answering shyly, "I like it."
"What do you like about it?"
"I like that this shop gives people choices." Her voice slowed as memories surfaced—of the night before her Spirit Awakening, when her grandfather held her under the stars, telling her stories of the Ye family's past glory.
That warmth had vanished the moment she awakened her Nine Heart Sea棠 and returned to see only his lifeless body.
"I want to stay here," she said quietly. "I want to give others another path. Another choice."
Li Rong nodded. "Not bad. You can stay."
Snow Princess frowned, clearly confused about what she'd said wrong.
Ye Leng Leng leaned closer and whispered, "Snow Princess… do you like the atmosphere of this shop?"
The words shop and atmosphere were emphasized.
Snow Princess fell silent, thinking for a long time. Finally, she looked up and spoke with sincerity. "I like the shop's impartiality."
"No one is born inferior, yet the world is ruthless. This place gives anyone with ambition a chance to defy fate."
Her hesitation vanished completely. "I like this shop."
Li Rong smiled faintly. "Good answer. Your authority is elevated as well."
Then his tone shifted. "Authority can be granted—and taken back. This isn't for abusing power. Every expenditure is recorded. At the end of each month, we'll review them together."
"Leng Leng won't abuse it," Snow Princess said immediately.
"Do public activities count as legitimate expenses?" she asked, already planning ahead.
"Too frequent isn't good," Li Rong replied. "Balance matters."
"And no more universal rewards. My goal is to cultivate strong people—not lazy ones waiting for coins to fall from the sky."
"So… once a year?" Snow Princess asked.
"Once before each auction," Ye Leng Leng suggested. "Open to everyone. Absolute fairness."
Li Rong nodded. "That works."
Everyone agreed.
Everyone—except Dugu Yan.
At noon, when the shop closed and Dugu Yan learned that Ye Leng Leng and Snow Princess had both secured lifetime positions, she panicked.
She rushed forward, straddled Li Rong's lap, grabbed his shoulders, and blurted out, "I like this shop too! I want to be a full-time employee!"
"So," Li Rong asked calmly, "do you like the shop—or do you just want the position?"
Her cheeks flushed. She cupped his face. "I like you."
Li Rong didn't respond.
The silence stung.
"I don't like my job," Dugu Yan said suddenly.
"I know," he replied. "You've been tired of repetitive work for a long time."
"I don't like authority either."
"I know. You don't crave power. You just hate people currying favor."
"I don't like you that much either," she muttered, turning away.
"I know. You prefer loyal, reliable people. Someone like me—lazy and indulgent—shouldn't be your type."
"…But I also like you very much," she whispered.
"I know," Li Rong said gently. "You lost your parents young. You've lacked security since childhood. And I can protect you."
"That's part of it," she admitted. "But there's another reason."
Li Rong truly didn't know.
Then she said softly, "Because you don't bully the weak."
He paused.
She explained how she'd seen him handle the first mercy-seeker at the shop—how he upheld rules but still guided goodness through incentives instead of force.
"And after that," she smiled, "bullying at the academy dropped visibly. Even nobles started doing good deeds."
She laughed. "They even formed a 'Good Deeds Alliance.' Patrols. Visiting lonely elders."
Her expression softened. "In the past, no one helped when you cried for help. Now, people rush over afraid they'll miss out."
She held his hand. "I like this atmosphere. So I like you."
Li sighed. "But there will be more employees."
"That's fine," she said. "I want to spread this atmosphere to every world you visit."
"And if the next world is lawless?"
She smiled mischievously. "Then help me fix it."
Li chuckled. "Chaos isn't good for business anyway."
She kissed him.
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