Chapter 274: The Formation of the Guard Team

Early the next morning, before the inn opened for business, Lin Dong brought the prepared messages from the merchant guild to Ma Chun. Upon reading the content, Ma Chun suddenly understood what Lin Dong had said the previous day.

A prince who had lived in seclusion for decades and held great prestige in the Han Empire suddenly appeared in court, harshly criticizing all the officials and resisting the establishment of an oversight body. Considering Fu Tongshan’s disappearance and the questions Lin Dong had asked, Ma Chun realized that this highly respected prince might be a fabrication. Yet, it was entirely possible that there was a powerful figure overlooked by many who was opposing the creation of such an oversight body. That figure was undoubtedly Fu Tongshan.

Fu Tongshan had held high positions for decades and was the leader of the Scholar Party. Although the Scholar Party was utterly defeated and Fu Tongshan was demoted to a local governor within just a few years, even a “thin camel” is still bigger than a horse. Though the Scholar Party was no longer in power, there were still countless officials of scholarly background throughout the Han Empire. If Fu Tongshan raised his voice, he could still stir up a storm in the empire. Moreover, after decades of maneuvering, it was unlikely he hadn’t planted allies in the court, giving him a real chance to turn the situation around.

Undoubtedly, Fu Tongshan was acting under the orders of Emperor Qianwei. Emperor Qianwei had ruled for over forty years, having seized the throne through bloodshed. If he really wanted to confront all the officials head-on, relying on Fu Tongshan and the Scholar Party, there was a chance of victory.

Normally, Ma Chun wasn’t very interested in the merchant guild messages Lin Dong occasionally gave him. In his view, the more messages there were, the more high-ranking officials would be involved, increasing the risk. But this time, after understanding everything, the smile on Ma Chun’s face was a hundred or even a thousand times brighter than the sun yet to rise outside the inn. His enthusiasm also soared immensely.

A faint ray of dawn filtered through the window paper into the inn. Ma Chun slapped his hands together and opened the doors for business. Customers flocked in, and important news from the merchant guild spread slowly from the inn throughout the entire Qiufeng City.

For the wealthy and ultra-wealthy customers, there was another surprise as well. The remaining eighteen signature dishes at Lin’s Inn, along with various third- and fourth-tier spiritual beasts and materials, had seen a significant improvement in taste, aroma, and appearance—far better than the day before, to the point where they were highly praised.

On the first day, without any promotion, business on the second and third floors of Lin’s Inn was still slightly lower than the previous day.

On the second day, after significant news spread within the merchant association—reporting a sudden and dramatic improvement in the quality of Lin Ji Inn’s signature dishes and the spiritual materials from level three and four beasts, sparking much discussion—business on the second and third floors of Lin Ji Inn finally stopped declining and even showed signs of improvement.

On the third day, after spending the entire day studying the information on various restaurant owners, Ling Zhengyang could no longer stay seated. That evening, Lin Ji Inn welcomed an ally who intended to cancel their partnership. The next day, Lin Ji Inn had to remove two of its signature dishes, while Fenglin Restaurant added two new ones. It seemed the balance had tilted slightly in favor of Fenglin Restaurant once again.

However, Ling Zhengyang didn’t enjoy this victory for long. The quality of Lin Ji Inn’s signature dishes and the spiritual materials from level three and four beasts improved once more, knocking him back to the ground just as he had managed to get up. Inside the inn, Yun Lan sipped her Hongyun tea leisurely, while Lin Dong stood in the center with his eyes closed. In midair, three benches were flipping and moving around.

Since fully mastering the techniques of the Air Control realm, Lin Dong could now channel his energy not just through his hands but from any part of his body. This meant he could control dozens or even hundreds of objects simultaneously. Yet, these objects could only move together—rising, falling, or moving in the same direction—as any excess spiritual energy would cause them to act as one. Controlling them to move along various different paths was still far beyond his reach.

With Yun Lan’s guidance, Lin Dong’s daily practice goals included not only improving his control speed by using the benches to touch the edges of Yun Lan’s clothes but also learning to control more than two benches moving in different directions at once. Three benches was already Lin Dong’s limit. Of course, this limit was only temporary.

As he was practicing diligently, a dark figure appeared at the entrance of the courtyard. Lin Dong focused his gaze and saw Wang Liuze, dressed in black combat attire. Compared to the petty thug he used to be, Wang Liuze now moved with agility and carried a calm expression—showing significant changes.

“Owner, the testing is complete,” Wang Liuze said. These words caused the three benches floating in midair to fall to the ground all at once. If the testing was complete, did that mean Lin Ji Inn finally had guards and branch managers?

Lin Dong took a deep breath. After his racing heart slowed down a bit, he asked solemnly, “How many in total?”

Wang Liuze clicked his tongue and replied, “Forty-eight!”

“Including Mu Ling and the other three?” Lin Dong pressed further.

“They’re the first batch; of course, they’re not included here,” Wang Liuzhi said without hesitation.
Lin Dong’s heartbeat quickened significantly. Forty-eight more had joined, bringing the total to fifty-eight loyal members of Lin’s Inn—four from Muling, five from Wang Liuzhi, and Ma Chun.
The managers of the ten branches not only had enough staff but could also select carefully. The remaining forty-seven would form Lin’s Inn’s guard team.
Of course, some of these forty-seven would need to be assigned to train and test other thugs. But anyway, for the first time, the inn had enough personnel.
“Are they all in Qiufeng City?”
Wang Liuzhi nodded. “Except for those three—Slim Bamboo and the others sent to the Tianjian Sect to deliver messages—everyone else is in Qiufeng City.”
“Bring them all to the inn!” Lin Dong said without hesitation. “I have tasks for you.”
“Now?” Wang Liuzhi hesitated. “Bringing so many people at once might arouse suspicion.”
Lin Dong nodded, pondered for a moment, then decided, “Then come in the middle of the night, disguised as a merchant caravan, entering through the back door.”
“Okay! Shall I go arrange it now?” Wang Liuzhi asked.
Lin Dong nodded and smiled. “There’s still half a day left. When you go back, ask Ma Chun to distribute a thousand taels of silver. As long as they don’t cause trouble, they can do whatever they want.”
Wang Liuzhi grinned. A thousand taels of silver meant each person would get around twenty taels. In Qiufeng City, there weren’t many places where twenty taels could be spent in just half a day.
After Wang Liuzhi left, Lin Dong suppressed his excitement and once again made the three benches fly in the air.
In the middle of the night, under the bright moon, Lin Dong opened the side door of the back yard and sat down at the stone table, thinking about what to do next. His slightly furrowed brows appeared even deeper in the moonlight.
Soft hoofbeats grew louder as they approached. Lin Dong perked up, his gaze instantly shifting to the side door.
A moment later, a group of men dressed in short jackets, pretending to be servants and guards, entered one after another. Wang Liuzhi, dressed in fine clothes and holding a folding fan, looking like a young master, led the group and stopped about five meters in front of Lin Dong.
In an instant, the group split into two lines.
“Good evening, manager!”
The neat formation, the firm greetings, the intense gazes… Lin Dong’s heart surged. These people were truly his own force.
This force might not have many members now, nor might it have any martial artists or highly talented individuals. But Lin Dong believed that one day, as the inn grew stronger, so would these people.

Slowly rising, Lin Dong’s voice cut through the night.
“Do you wish to join Lin’s Inn?”
“Yes!” Fifty-four voices replied without hesitation.
“From now on, you are the most trustworthy people at Lin’s Inn,” Lin Dong said slowly. “Some of you, due to your abilities, will eventually become managers of branch stores; some will become leaders or members of the guard team; and some may have to live incognito for the sake of the inn. No matter which path you take, I hope that in your hearts, you will always remain the most trustworthy brothers and companions.”
Everyone nodded firmly, their determination evident in silence.
Lin Dong smiled leisurely, activated the inn’s system, and displayed each person’s attributes one by one.
“Huaning, Yang Shui, Li Dacheng…”
Lin Dong called out their names one by one, and those named stepped forward. In moments, ten people stood out.
All ten had relatively outstanding skills in eloquence and reflexes.
Glancing at them, Lin Dong said slowly, “Starting today, you are the managers of Lin’s Inn’s ten branch stores. I’ll give you a few days, and Ma Chun will train you in managing an inn. As for the secrets of the inn that must not be revealed, be extremely careful. Any mistake could have severe consequences.”
The ten replied in unison, “Understood!”
“Xiao Liu, you are the head of Lin’s Inn’s guard team, responsible for the defense and training of the guards,” Lin Dong declared.
Wang Liuze nodded and patted his chest, saying, “Don’t worry, boss. I’ll make sure those who dare cause trouble at the inn come in standing and leave lying down.”
The troublemakers within Qiufeng Mansion had already been identified. To bring in new members, they needed to expand to other counties. But gathering troublemakers from various counties posed a significant threat to the authorities, and trying to establish connections one by one would not work. Only by securing ties with the Lingnan County government could they achieve more with less effort.
After some thought, Lin Dong decided to put that aside for now. The current group was sufficient, and he could address the rest once the inn expanded its influence in the county government. He then said, “For now, everyone else’s task is simply to train—this includes all the inn managers. Training is your top priority.”
Everyone agreed.
Lin Dong exhaled deeply. The guard team was finally formed.
With loyal subordinates, things would be easier. As for training, since the number of people was still small, a three- to four-fold training bonus would suffice, and there was no shortage of spirit stones.

The top priority is to open branches. Only by opening branches can the inn’s income keep increasing, allowing more silver to be spent on spirit stones. Moreover, a news network that provides information about various regions via the notice boards can also be established. If there are ample spirit stones, the branches in different places can serve as bases for growing advanced spiritual materials and raising high-level spiritual beasts. To open branches, one must personally add each established inn to the inn system. After some consideration, Lin Dong made up his mind: he had to put his cultivation on hold for now and visit all ten counties in Qiufeng City.