Douluo: Let me loot an airdrop first.

Chapter 22: Tang 3 Misses Out on the "Golden Dragon Beard Needle with Crystal Hair"

After the battle ended and the dust settled, Ning Yuanshan and Tang San reminisced about the past.

"Are you going to stay here? Then Xiao Wu and I will go somewhere else to stay..." It would be too lewd to bring Zhu Zhuqing to stay in such an ambiguous hotel. Ning Yuanshan came in purely to join in the fun. When he saw that Tang San was about to offer him a room, he quickly refused: "Men and women should not touch each other. There is no room for two people in one room. Zhuqing and I will find another place."

"Ahem..." Tang San was a little embarrassed. "Then let's find a place to stay together. Let's change our place..." It wasn't that Tang San suddenly realized something was wrong with the hotel's decor, or that he was reminded by Ning Yuanshan's words about "men and women not touching each other." It was just that he had just lost money and was short of cash.

"Third Brother, let's stay here! I love roses the most..." Xiao Wu didn't notice her third brother's embarrassment. He had just gotten into a fight over a room, and although he had chased the person away, he had even suffered a loss because of it. How could he not stay? Besides, this was a couples' hotel, and there was only one room...

Manager Wang, having served customers for many years, had long since developed a keen eye. He could tell that Tang San was embarrassed because his wallet had been emptied, so he waved his hand and said cheerfully, "Young sir, why don't you stay at our hotel? I'll waive three days' rent for you. If you stay for no more than three days, you don't need to pay anything."

Manager Wang was naturally generous, and Dai Mubai was also very open-handed, immediately handing over a thousand gold soul coins. However, under Ning Yuanshan's fair mediation, Tang San and Dai Mubai each ultimately paid five hundred to compensate for the loss. With a thousand gold soul coins, Manager Wang would have been more than happy if Tang San and the others had fought again while he was there.

Manager Wang was happy to have made money, but Tang San couldn't be happy at all. At this moment, he only had two hundred left in his pocket, including Xiao Wu's assets.

Tang San, penniless, was about to decline, but Xiao Wu happily accepted the golden key respectfully offered by Manager Wang. Without even saying goodbye to Ning Yuanshan, she grabbed Tang San and ran upstairs.

Ning Yuanshan was already used to Xiao Wu's impetuousness and rudeness. He guessed that Xiao Wu was eagerly looking forward to sleeping in the same room as Tang San, so he smiled and didn't bother her anymore. He then turned around and left the hotel with Zhu Zhuqing.

"So young and already learning bad habits, only twelve or thirteen years old..." Several waitresses were whispering among themselves when Manager Wang heard them and immediately scolded, "Watch your mouth! Didn't you see he has two spirit rings? Who knows which family's young master he is? Is this something you can talk about?"

The waiter stared at Ning Yuanshan's departing figure with a smug look, and muttered, "That young man is so much better. He's handsome, pure and innocent, and so fair..." Zhu Zhuqing's lips twitched slightly. Possessing the Netherworld Cat Martial Soul, her senses were heightened. Even though she was outside the hotel, she could still hear their praise of Ning Yuanshan. For some reason, Zhu Zhuqing felt a surge of pride and satisfaction...

Ning Yuanshan was unaware that his refusal to stay with Zhu Zhuqing and his actions of making Dai Mubai stay and pay compensation had left a mark on the minds of several waiters. At this moment, he was wandering around with Zhu Zhuqing, trying to find the small shop opened by Flander so that he could intercept the Dragon Beard Needle.

Even though the original story clearly stated the location of Flanders' shop, Ning Yuanshan couldn't remember it at this moment. Fortunately, Soto City wasn't that big, and no matter how small or remote Flanders' shop was, he could find it after walking for a day. After leaving the Rose Hotel and finding a place to stay, Ning Yuanshan even went back to leave his address with Manager Wang, instructing him to pass on a message as soon as Tang San left, telling Tang San to come and find him and Zhu Zhuqing first.

This arrangement was naturally to buy himself time so that Tang San wouldn't run into Flander before him. However, Ning Yuanshan didn't expect that Tang San, because he had no money, didn't dare to agree to Xiao Wu's request to go shopping. They even relied on the free meals at the Rose Hotel for their meals.

The Rose Hotel, as its name suggests, is characterized by its ubiquitous rose decorations, which are changed daily to ensure freshness. This extravagant display of wealth shocked Tang San.

"What! Ten gold soul coins a day?" Tang San asked about the room rate while the waiter was bringing food and changing roses. This made him wince in pain, and he deeply lamented that he was penniless. For Tang San to lose so much money meant he'd spent five hundred gold soul coins on the hotel!

"The roses are changed every day? That's too extravagant!" Tang San thought to himself. Even if roses weren't expensive, having a thousand and one flowers in one room, and changing them every day, wasn't cheap.

If Ning Yuanshan were here, he'd probably criticize Tang San's shallow understanding again. In his previous life, a thousand roses in Yunnan Province would only cost four or five hundred yuan. In the Douluo Continent, transportation costs might be higher, but with the existence of Soul Masters' extraordinary power, is it really that difficult to cultivate roses on a large scale regardless of region or climate?

Local planting and local processing directly save on transportation costs.

Tang San was heartbroken and beating his chest, but he put aside his grief over not having enough money for now. Meanwhile, Ning Yuanshan finally found Flander's shop.

"This must be a crystal plate, right?" After searching for a while, Ning Yuanshan successfully found a crystal about the size of a human head, transparent in color, but with large patches of dark yellow impurities inside. He speculated in his mind, but remained expressionless on the surface. He secretly glanced at the inconspicuous crystal hanging on the wall near the door, then casually picked out a few more lustrous crystals and took them to the counter. "Boss, how much are these?"

While asking the price, Ning Yuanshan deliberately showed off the ring on his pinky finger, almost shoving it into Flander's eyes.

"Huh? Where did you get this ring?" The cunning merchant Flander's narrowed eyes suddenly widened like saucers as he asked in astonishment.

"This was a gift from my teacher, do you recognize it?" Ning Yuanshan had been waiting for this moment. Seeing Flander recognize him, the two slowly built up a relationship. Flander's character in Douluo Continent might have many flaws, but his treatment of his brothers was impeccable, and Elder Qi also held Flander in high regard. Now, Ning Yuanshan was talking to Flander about Elder Qi's praise of him, which made Flander's face light up with joy.

"Hahaha, so that's how Brother Qi sees me? Then I'll definitely take good care of his student..." Flander scratched his head, opened his mouth, and stuck out his tongue, laughing in a way that made Ning Yuanshan feel like he was seeing the shadow of Kogoro Mouri. "Since you're Brother Qi's prized student, these crystals will all be given to... cough cough... I'll just sell them to your little girlfriend at a discount!"

"Then thank you, Principal Flander... But Zhu Zhuqing isn't my girlfriend..." Before Ning Yuanshan could finish speaking, Flander, with his back to Zhu Zhuqing, raised an eyebrow and winked, adding, "Young people are just shy, what's there to be embarrassed about..."

Huh? Why are you giving me that helpful look, like you've done me a huge favor?