Something happened. This is not going to be bloody.

Yao Qing took the first sip, which was actually to show that the wine was not poisonous. He put down the wine glass and said, "We have been working together for some time, and I don't know if you five have any families to bring over."

Gui Yan said, "Brother Yao Qing, you are joking. The five of us were adopted by the village leader Han and worked for him. We have no family, no wife or children. We are just licking blood on the edge of a knife. How dare we think so much?"

Yao Qing poured himself another glass of wine, then raised his glass and said:

"Let's not talk about the past. From now on, we brothers will live peacefully in this inn. If there is a suitable young lady, you should pay attention to her and let Sister Yirong propose marriage to you. Although the head of Lin Village said that you followed me, it doesn't make sense to work for nothing. I have discussed with Yirong and will give you five strings of cash every month in the future. You can save this money to marry a wife or go to Lin'an City to buy things. From now on, we will all live a good life here."

Gui Yan's expression relaxed a little. He was the first to pick up the wine glass, and the other four followed suit. The five of them toasted together and said, "Thank you, Brother Yao Qing, for taking care of us. We will do our best to help you."

After saying this, he drank it all in one gulp.

Yao Qing smiled and said, "That's great. In the future, we brothers will work together to make this inn prosperous. I'll marry each of you and give birth to a few children so that there will be successors."

Several people poured wine and picked up food, and gradually the atmosphere became more lively. After everyone was quite drunk, they said goodbye and went back to their rooms. Zhou Leng then came out to clean up the leftovers without complaint, and then went back to his room to practice.

The next day, after yesterday's conversation, the five people were more enthusiastic and tried hard to make this place their home. In fact, their current living standard is better than that in the mountains, where they had to sleep in dormitories, but here they have separate rooms.

It was almost noon, and when everyone's enthusiasm was almost worn out by the boredom of life, a group of people arrived outside the inn.

Yao Qing went out to meet them and saw that it was a group of traveling merchants, about thirty people, who seemed to be traveling together because they knew there were bandits on this official road. He smiled and said:

"Dear guests, please come in, have some hot tea, eat some fruit, and let the horses rest."

The merchant hesitated and asked tentatively, "Boss, when did you open this inn? I passed by last month and didn't see your inn."

Yao Qing replied, "Sir, you may not know that the prefect of Lin'an Prefecture sent people to the mountains to suppress the bandits. Later, I heard that the bandits in the Sanyuan Mountain Stronghold were fighting each other again, and the leader of the stronghold, Han, was killed. The bandits in the mountains were scattered, so I brought my family here to open a shop to make a living."

The traveling merchant was still hesitant, but he was indeed a little tired. Besides, there was only one person on the other side and he had thirty people, so he felt confident.

Five traveling merchants came in, and the rest were waiting outside.

After the five people entered and sat down, Ju Yan brought out the "menu" made by Zhou Leng. It was a thin piece of wood decorated with words and pictures, which looked quite elegant.

The merchant ordered two pounds of cooked meat, a jar of wine, a plate of scrambled eggs with wild vegetables, and a dozen pancakes.

After a tiring journey, it was a real treat to eat some hot food and drink some hot wine. Several merchants sighed in comfort.

These people were very cautious. After five of them finished eating, they went to the roadside to rest. Half an hour later, another ten people came into the house to eat and drink.

This went on for half an afternoon before Yao Qing, Gui Yan, Ju Yan and Ju Zheng finished the work. After eating and drinking, these people did not go into the store to rest, but left directly.

Today is the day for the new business and we have some income.

As time went by and word of mouth spread among merchants, more and more people took this official road. The inn now had to prepare the noodles a day in advance. Many people in the village would also come to the inn to sell some of their own wild vegetables and meat.

The teahouse was Zhou Leng's mistake. No one went to that small room to drink tea, so the teahouse has become a grocery store. Yao Qing buys some daily necessities that the passing merchants can use, so that the residents in the village can go down the mountain to buy some necessities if they need them, unlike before when they had to wait a long time before going to Lin'an City to buy them.

Slowly, a path was created from the mountain to the inn.

The days passed in dullness until three months later, when the winter solstice arrived.

The temperature has started to drop in Sanyuan Mountain, and snow is already falling in the north.

One evening, a group of traveling merchants arrived at the inn. They unloaded the wagon themselves, tied up the horses, and then took hay from their own wagon for the horses to eat.

Ju Zheng asked, "Dear guests, please come in."

Everyone in the group was wearing animal skin coats. The carriage was loaded with goods wrapped in oilcloth. Several of them had knives hanging from their waists, looking like they were not to be trifled with.

The leading man said loudly, "Brother, the carriages and horses in your inn are all unloaded outside, and there is no yard. Aren't you afraid that they will be lost?"

Ju Yan replied: "Don't worry, sir. There is no other inn within a radius of more than ten miles. Besides, we have two big dogs in our yard. They are very human-like and will bark if there is any movement at night."

"Bring up the food that's provided by your restaurant."

"Okay, then please take a seat inside, sir."

The group of people entered the store and sat down, and the leader turned his attention to Zhou Leng who was sitting behind the counter.

Today, Yao Qing and the people in the village went to Lin'an City to buy things, so Zhou Leng, who was obsessed with cultivation, played the role of shopkeeper for a day. She looked back at the other person's eyes, and the teasing and joking she imagined did not happen. The man stood up and walked to the counter and whispered:

"Boss, I have some beef in my car. I wonder if you can eat it?"

Zhou Leng raised his eyebrows and said, "Sir, please don't joke. Not to mention that beef is expensive, the cattle have to be handed over to the government after they die. We don't dare to sell beef in a regular store like us. If we kill the cattle, it will be against the law."

The man frowned slightly. He clearly saw murderous intent in the woman's eyes. This person must have stained blood. She dared to open an inn in this desolate mountain. She was beautiful but not afraid of bandits. She must not be someone who is easy to deal with. He was firm in his thoughts and said in a deep voice:

"Don't worry, boss. This beef was brought from Beichen. It was watered and frozen in Beichen. I thought the boss should be able to buy it, so I came to talk to him."

Zhou Leng asked in a low voice: "You came from Beichen, but the war has already started?"

The man opened his eyes slightly, and he came closer and said in a lower voice: "The shopkeeper is a wise man. There must be news here before the end of the year. The shopkeeper should make preparations early."

Zhou Leng nodded slightly and said, "Please take me to have a look at the mutton. If it's fresh, I'll buy some to sell in my shop."

The man smiled and nodded, leading Zhou Leng to see the goods in the car.