Chapter 104: A New Service

The next morning, Qiao Ren found Lin Yuan at the counter before breakfast. The merchant leaned against the nearest table with an expression that suggested he already knew what he wanted to ask.

"So?"

Lin Yuan did not look up. "So what?"

"The estimates."

"You’re becoming worse than Xiao Lan."

Qiao Ren smiled. "That means you’ve decided something."

Lin Yuan closed the ledger. "The guesthouse and storehouse are waiting."

"And the bathhouse?"

"I’m considering approving it."

"Good."

"Considering."

"Of course."

Lin Yuan narrowed his eyes. "Do not tell Xiao Lan."

Qiao Ren glanced toward the kitchen.

Lin Yuan followed his gaze and discovered Xiao Lan standing at the entrance, clearly having heard everything. He closed his eyes for a moment.

"This settlement needs thicker walls."

Xiao Lan hurried over. "You’re building it?"

"I said I’m considering it."

"But you already considered it yesterday."

"That doesn’t mean the process is finished."

"When will it be finished?"

"When people stop asking me that question."

Xiao Lan fell quiet for approximately three seconds.

"So tomorrow?"

Lin Yuan pointed toward the kitchen. She retreated, smiling far too happily for someone who had just been sent back to work.

Qiao Ren watched her go.

"She’s excited."

"I noticed."

"It’ll be good for Blackstone."

"Then you can help convince travelers to use it once it’s built."

Qiao Ren straightened. "That I can do."

Lin Yuan suddenly suspected he had made another mistake.

Master Han arrived from the market shortly afterward. His workers had already resumed repairing the tavern entrance, and the sound of tools carried in from outside.

Lin Yuan brought the contractor to an empty table and placed the estimates between them.

"I went through the numbers."

Master Han sat down. "And?"

"The guesthouse waits."

"Good."

"The storehouse also waits."

Master Han raised an eyebrow. "That one will become necessary."

"I know. But we can manage with the current space a little longer."

"For how long?"

Lin Yuan glanced toward Su Mei, who was carrying breakfast to a nearby table. "A little longer."

Master Han followed his gaze and laughed. "I’ll leave the estimate with you."

"Do that."

The contractor turned to the final page. "And the bathing building?"

Lin Yuan tapped the estimate. "I want the small version we discussed."

Master Han studied him.

"You checked the well?"

"The initial test was encouraging. I still want the water level monitored once we begin using more."

"And you’ve checked the full cost, not just the deposit?"

"Yes. I’ve also considered fuel, cleaning, and the other expenses of running it."

Master Han nodded. "Then I have no reason to argue."

Lin Yuan narrowed his eyes. "I expected you to look happier."

"I already suspected you would approve it."

"How?"

Master Han glanced toward the kitchen, where Xiao Lan was pretending not to watch them.

Lin Yuan understood. "I need new staff."

"That seems excessive."

"Does it?"

Master Han thought about it. "Perhaps not."

Lin Yuan returned his attention to the estimate.

"I don’t want anything larger than we discussed. Two separated sections, basic washing spaces, heating, water storage, and drainage. No unnecessary decoration."

"Practical construction," Master Han confirmed.

"Exactly."

"No carved stone entrance?"

"No."

"Decorative roof?"

"No."

"Private cultivation pools?"

Lin Yuan stared at him.

Master Han smiled. "Checking."

"Stop checking."

The contractor laughed before returning to the estimate.

"We can prepare the ground while the entrance and stalls are being finished. Some materials will need to come from outside Blackstone."

"How much delay?"

"Not much, assuming the road stays clear. I brought enough general timber for the repair work, but not everything a bathing building requires."

Lin Yuan nodded. That was reasonable.

Master Han pointed toward the payment terms. "I’ll need the agreed advance payment before ordering the additional materials. The remaining balance will be due according to the construction agreement."

"I’ve accounted for it."

Lin Yuan retrieved the required spirit stones from his physical reserve and counted them carefully onto the table. Master Han waited without comment.

Once the count was complete, the contractor accepted the payment and wrote a receipt recording the advance and the outstanding balance.

Lin Yuan examined it before putting it away with the estimates. The remainder of the construction cost was still money he had committed to spending, even if those stones had not yet left his hands.

He marked the advance payment in his ledger and kept the outstanding balance among his reserved expenses. The bathhouse had now become more than another possibility on his improvement list. He had committed actual spirit stones to it.

Master Han stood.

"I’ll mark the ground this afternoon."

Lin Yuan nodded. "Keep it clear of the road."

"I know."

"And make sure the drainage runs away from the well."

"I know."

"And don’t make it larger while I’m not looking."

Master Han stared at him. "Has another builder done that to you?"

"No."

"Then why would I?"

"I’ve learned to be specific."

Master Han folded the estimate. "Fair enough."

News traveled through Blackstone before Master Han had even marked the first corner.

Lin Yuan blamed Xiao Lan, who denied responsibility. Qiao Ren also denied responsibility, and Lin Yuan believed neither of them.

By midday, two merchants had already asked when the bathing building would open. A caravan guard wanted to know whether it would be available to travelers who weren’t staying at the tavern, while another customer asked whether hot water would cost extra.

Lin Yuan had answers for none of them.

"It hasn’t been built yet," he told another traveler who approached the counter.

The traveler nodded. "So how much?"

Lin Yuan looked at him. "The building currently consists of empty ground."

"I was only asking."

"So are several other people."

The traveler laughed and returned to his meal.

Lin Yuan went looking for Su Mei, who was behind the counter updating a supply list.

"We need rules."

"I told you."

"I know."

"And a price."

"I also know."

Su Mei looked at him with a faint smile.

"You’re enjoying this," Lin Yuan said.

"A little."

He pulled out a chair and opened a fresh page in the ledger. They began with the practical decisions.

The bathhouse would be available to travelers whether or not they rented a room. That made sense if Lin Yuan wanted it to function as a separate service rather than merely an additional benefit for overnight guests.

Opening hours would need to match the availability of whoever managed the heating and water. The two bathing sections would remain clearly separated, and cleaning would need to happen at least once each day, more often if customer traffic required it.

They would also need to track the amount of water drawn from the well.

Lin Yuan added that requirement himself. The initial test had been encouraging, but regular bathing would place a different demand on the water supply. He wanted the well checked daily once the service opened, especially during the first several weeks.

Su Mei agreed, and they moved on to pricing.

Lin Yuan examined the unfinished operating-cost notes. Fuel would be the main concern, followed by cleaning supplies and the time required to manage the facility. Until they understood those expenses better, setting a price would involve too much guessing.

Qiao Ren appeared beside their table.

"Charge one spirit stone."

Lin Yuan turned. "How long have you been listening?"

"Long enough."

"One spirit stone for a bath?"

"For access."

"That is the same thing."

"Cultivators will pay," Qiao Ren said. "You charge two stones for a room now. One for proper hot bathing facilities after several days on the road isn’t unreasonable."

Lin Yuan disliked that the argument wasn’t terrible, but it was still only a guess.

"We’ll decide the price after we know what it costs to operate."

Qiao Ren looked disappointed, while Su Mei nodded approvingly.

"That makes more sense," she said.

Lin Yuan pointed toward her. "See?"

"I still think one stone."

"You’re welcome to think privately."

"I prefer sharing."

"I know."

Lin Yuan returned to the ledger and wrote another reminder beneath the operating arrangements.

Set bathing price after confirming fuel and labor requirements.

It could wait until the building was closer to completion. There was no reason to settle every question before the first wall existed.

That afternoon, Master Han marked the proposed bathhouse site behind and slightly to the side of the tavern, leaving space between the building, the well, and the main routes used by travelers.

Lin Yuan walked the marked outline with him. It looked larger on the ground than it had sounded during their discussions.

"You said small."

"This is small."

Lin Yuan looked across the proposed space. "Your definition worries me."

"Two separate sections require walls."

"I know how walls work."

"Then we’re making progress."

Lin Yuan ignored him.

Master Han showed him the proposed drainage route, which followed the natural slope away from both the well and the main market road. Used water would need to be carried far enough from the bathing areas that it wouldn’t pool around the building or return toward the clean-water supply.

He also indicated where the clean-water holding tank would stand and where the heating area could be placed without filling the bathing sections with smoke.

For the first time, Lin Yuan could picture the bathhouse as something real rather than another line in his ledger. A modest building with hot water for dusty travelers, separate bathing spaces, proper drainage, and a service Blackstone had never offered before.

It wasn’t particularly grand, but it was another step toward making the settlement more than a place where people stopped because they had nowhere better to go.

Nearby, the tavern entrance was already losing its temporary supports. Across the road, one damaged stall had been dismantled, with reusable timber stacked beside it. The locations for two additional stalls had also been marked.

Blackstone was changing again.

This time, the changes had nothing to do with a raid or a buried structure. They came from growing traffic, crowded rooms, limited space, and travelers willing to pay for services that hadn’t existed when Lin Yuan first arrived.

He looked down at the bathhouse outline.

The first payment was already gone, and the remaining cost was waiting in his ledger. Whether the building would eventually earn those stones back remained to be seen.

For now, Master Han’s workers had another project to prepare, and Lin Yuan had another page of expenses to manage.