As they discussed, Shaohe suddenly jumped, startled.

"What happened?" Mei asked.

"Um... nothing!" he said frantically.

She stared at him with a look of suspicion. Wait, she could sense a thread of soulsense reaching to him!

She activated soulsense and realised Ning Xing was right outside.

What were they talking about? She was suddenly reminded of back when she fought a bandit, where she broke his qi threads...

Hmm... what if she could eavesdrop like this?

Mei reached out a thread of soulsense to it. If she got caught, it wasn't going to be a big deal anyway.

"-were supposed to be convincing her! What were you thinking?" Ning Xing's soulsense boomed.

Ah! It worked!

"You... you were listening from outside?" Shaohe said in alarm.

"I wanted to see what you were going to do! How would I expect you'd actually encourage her instead? Saying it's admirable she doesn't use her talents? What? Are you out of your mind?"

Shaohe looked at Mei with some panic.

"Ah, excuse me while I do a few stretches, my legs are a little sore..." he made a bad excuse.

Mei turned away and held back a chuckle.

"Of course I don't actually think that! Anyone who thinks that would actually be insane!" he said. "I was... just trying to convice her. Ning Xing... you know I've been struggling to advance without resources... I can't support my young master if I remain this weak."

Mei's face darkened.

So Shaohe was just buttering her up for his business idea! She should have known better.

"Hey, Shaohe. So what's stopping me from just reselling stuff on my own?" she asked. "I'm the one paying for the actual teleports and stuff, aren't I?"

"Eh? But I trusted you!"

Shaohe struggled to keep up with two coversations at once.

Hah! What trust? He was just making use of her.

"I'll just give you 100 jade later for sugesting the idea." she grinned deviously.

Shaohe put his hand to his face.

"I should have known this would happen..." he mumbled.

Mei decided to just open the door and walk right out.

"Ah, don't go out right now!" Shaohe cried but the door was already ajar.

Ning Xing, seeing Mei suddenly leave, froze briefly.

"Oh, Mei Xiu! I was just heading back. Sorry if I came off a little strong earlier..." she smiled.

Such good acting...

"So when can I get my token back?" she asked.

"Um, once you finish today's lessons, I suppose..." Ning Xing said

Bah.

"Just get it over with." Mei grumbled.

"You really weren't kidding... I don't see any signs of your inner demon at all." Ning Xing said.

Hunched over a grassy herb of sorts and channeling her qi into it, Mei sighed.

"But still... to reject it when you have this talent, what a waste. Say, how were you earning jade previously?"

Under Mei's hands, the herb almost seemed to be dancing, its leaves turning more green and vibrant.

"I was helping the octopus chop vegetables."

"But Mei... if you were working to earn money anyway, why not just do what's easier and makes you more money?" Ning Xing sighed. "You make no sense to me..."

Mei froze.

Wait... she was so adamant rejecting farming, that didn't even occur to her! Ning Xing was actually making a good point.

The old lady appeared again, but Mei swatted her away.

"Well! Right now, I have something else I want to try! If it doesnt work out, then I'll try horticulture..."

Ning Xing sighed.

"Are you thinking of trying to resell goods in the sect outside? For some reason, I have a feeling."

As if! Mei already knew she overheard them.

"Maybe."

"Mei Xiu, you are far from the first disciple to have thought that. But the sect has regulations, you know?" Ning Xing said. "Anyone producing goods is required to sell at least 25% of their stock in the sect itself. And it's against sect policies to to resell goods from the sect outside!"

"Ehhh?" Mei was taken aback.

"Who would sell their stock here if they could just teleport off to a country buying it at a premium? Such rules are to ensure the sect is still full of amenities!"

"Sure, you might be able to get away with it for a bit. But eventually a spirit will catch you in the act and report you to an elder."

Gahh! She knew it wouldn't be easy, but for her plan to fall apart so fast... and she even agreed to give Shaohe 100 jade! Was she going to lose more karma if she didn't fork it up?

"So will you work with horticulture after all?" Ning Xing asked.

"Maybe..." Mei grumbled.

"Well, you don't always have to worry about the long wait!" Ning Xing smiled. "Actually, using your qi to sprout seeds is a popular way for disciples with higher talent to start making some money."

"Huh?"

"You probably already know this, but not all seeds germinate. But applying wood qi to them increases the odds many times!"

"We do have incubation chambers, but those tend to be reserved for the rarest seeds. Once you hand in the germinated seeds, you will be paid accordingly."

"Right..." Mei said.

"And while sprouting seeds daily, you can also work on growing your own plants that would otherwise take a while to grow!"

So in the end, she really was destined to be a farmer? Mei felt rather saddened.

...

Hours passed, Mei toiling away. Finally, Ning Xing left her be, letting her take a break.

This sucked...

She wanted to do cool stuff like actual fighting with magic! Not just tending to crops all day.

Suddenly, she felt a presence behind her.

"And yet... you refuse to work on practising your techniques. And even if you did, remember what the sect master said. In the end, fighting won't make you a living." something whispered.

Mei turned around to swat her inner demon away, but there was no figure to dispel.

Laughter rang through the air.

"You can't run from reality forever."

With that, it was once again quiet. Mei bit her lip.

"If I listened to you, wouldn't it just work towards making you dissipate?" she asked. "Why don't we work together or something?"

"Excuse me?"