Brain storage area. （Dear book friends, rest assured, I have dispatched sufficient forces to protect everyone's brains from being devoured by zombies and brain-eating beasts. ）
Handsome men here.
Beautiful ladies here.
Those who are both handsome and beautiful here.
……
Aelteranchi Continent, West Territory, Desco County, Horseshoe Fief.
"Madam, look, these are Black Stockings, these are white stockings, these are sheer stockings, these are lace ones. We are having a huge promotional sale right now, buy ten get one free, and you even have a chance to win a grand prize!"
"But one pair of Stockings for one Silver Coin is too expensive, isn't it?"
"Madam, you must understand that for an item like Stockings, one Silver Coin per pair is completely worth the price."
"Madam is not a first-time buyer of Stockings, so you should know the effect of Stockings. Furthermore, I'll share some news with you, Madam Diana bought fifty pairs of various Stockings from me the day before yesterday through an intermediary."
"Hee hee hee, Madam, you wouldn't want your husband to stop coming to your room at night, would you? *^_^*"
"What, how did that slut Diana get so much money to buy Stockings? Fine, it must be that heartless man who gave her the money. It seems I've been too lenient."
"Black Stockings, white stockings, sheer stockings, lace ones, fifty pairs of each. Hmph, trying to compete with me in wealth, she's asking for death."
"Madam is generous!"
"Xiao Bai, please wrap up what Madam Stella ordered. Also, give Madam Stella an extra twenty pairs of assorted Stockings and our special gift."
A cute, round-faced young girl, about 1.6 meters tall, responded softly.
"Yes!"
The most distinctive feature of this young girl was the pair of cat ears atop her head.
Watching the Cat-eared Girl leave, Stella said.
"I didn't expect Lord Yang to favor beast-eared women. Do you need me to keep an eye out for you at the Slave market in Nord City?"
"Madam Stella, Xiao Bai is not a Slave. I treat her like a younger sister."
"Oh, I understand, I understand, a sworn sister!"
Seeing the expression on Stella's face, Yang Zhiwen knew that any further explanation would only make things worse, so he chose to remain silent.
Looking at the retreating figure of the Cat-eared Girl, Yang Zhiwen couldn't help but recall two and a half years ago.
Two and a half years ago, Yang Zhiwen was just an ordinary, utterly ordinary university student.
After facing repeated setbacks post-graduation, Yang Zhiwen failed to secure a good job and decided to return to his old home in the countryside.
Originally, Yang Zhiwen planned to return home to farm, raise pigs, and then film videos to post online.
Unexpectedly, in the cellar of his old home, Yang Zhiwen accidentally activated a Space Gate hidden in the Basement.
Through this Space Gate, Yang Zhiwen arrived in this world.
When he first discovered the Space Gate, Yang Zhiwen thought he could finally make a name for himself.
But reality did not unfold as he had anticipated.
Upon arriving in this world from Blue Star, the first issue to resolve was the language barrier.
Due to the language barrier, for the first year, Yang Zhiwen could not establish himself in this world at all.
Because he couldn't communicate with the people of this world.
Not only did Yang Zhiwen fail to rise above others, but his understanding of this world was also minimal.
It took Yang Zhiwen a full year to finally solve the language problem.
The language issue was resolved, but it wasn't because Yang Zhiwen learned this world's language. After all, as someone not native to this world, he dared not casually converse with others.
The speed of language acquisition naturally couldn't be fast, and Yang Zhiwen was merely an unremarkable existence, not a genius with photographic memory.
He could understand this world's language because of a Potion; after drinking this Potion, Yang Zhiwen could understand the language of this world and use it fluently.
Only after resolving the communication issue could Yang Zhiwen finally begin to develop slowly in this world.
And the key to Yang Zhiwen's development was becoming a Middleman.
Due to the vastly different development models and living standards between the two worlds, many common items from Blue Star were extremely rare in this world.
Thus, Yang Zhiwen began to arbitrage various common items from Blue Star to this world for huge profits.
Take the Stockings from just now; they are commonplace on Blue Star, but in this world, they are a scarce item that all local clothing designers would rack their brains trying to replicate.
Through buying low and selling high, Yang Zhiwen quickly accumulated his first pot of Silver Coin.
But even though Yang Zhiwen could arbitrage numerous items from Blue Star that this world had never seen, his development was still not smooth.
As a Middleman, although the Middleman quickly earned a lot of money, the problem was that the highest status in this world belonged to Nobles and Transcendent.
Wealthy merchants naturally held some status, but only major merchants. Since Yang Zhiwen was limited by the Space Gate, although he earned a lot of money quickly, he could only be considered a small merchant.
And small merchants did not hold high status.
Yang Zhiwen still remembered that when he first started as a Middleman, he was extorted by thugs every other day.
As for reporting to the officials, Yang Zhiwen had certainly tried. After being extorted the first time, he immediately reported it, but the result was that the official responsible for resolving the matter extorted him even more ruthlessly.
The most crucial part was that the bastard only took the money and did nothing.
So, from then on, Yang Zhiwen never reported anything again.
Fortunately, an event six months ago completely changed Yang Zhiwen's situation.
Six months ago, a large-scale Plague broke out in the wealthy district of Nord City, the County Seat of Desco County.
After investigating, Yang Zhiwen discovered that the Plague breaking out in Nord City was Cholera.
So Yang Zhiwen immediately returned to Blue Star, purchased medicine to treat Cholera, memorized the method for effectively treating Cholera, and then headed to Nord City.
Since the Plague originated in the wealthy district of the city, the City Lord of Nord City, unable to resolve the Plague, issued a conscription order to the public, stating that anyone who could resolve the Plague would be granted a Fief and become a Noble afterward.
Yang Zhiwen accepted the City Lord's conscription order, bringing the medicine and method for treating Cholera, and successfully resolved the Cholera in Nord City after three months.
The City Lord of Nord City kept his promise, but Yang Zhiwen considered the location of the Space Gate, so he gave up a relatively affluent area and chose the Location of the Space Gate as his Fief, sacrificing a better and larger Fief for it.
However, Yang Zhiwen knew that the Space Gate connecting to Blue Star was his foundation.
Thus, Yang Zhiwen obtained a Fief on the western side of Nord City, in the border region of Desco County.
The area of the Fief Yang Zhiwen obtained was a full four hundred square kilometers.
The population reached over five thousand three hundred people.
"Madam Stella, safe travels, come again when you have time!"
"Lord, are Stockings our new product? Is one Silver Coin too cheap?"
"Xiao Bai, how many times have I told you, don't call me Lord, just call me Brother."
"Understood, Lord."
"Sigh, forget it."
"The reason one pair of Stockings sells for one Silver Coin is because..."
"Thump, thump, thump..."
PS: There is a map in the chapter discussion.