Ye Chen strode forward with large steps, almost heading straight toward Liu Qingyou. The muscles on his face tightened as he forced out what he thought was a deep and magnetic smile.
He deliberately lowered his voice, adding a fake raspy tone he had learned, trying to sound mature and charming. “Miss, how have you been?”
The voice was sticky, like something scooped straight from an oil pan and stuffed into a person’s ears.
Liu Qingyou’s stomach churned violently, her hair standing on end as she instinctively stepped half a pace back, wanting to increase the distance.
The discomfort this man brought her far surpassed her earlier wandering thoughts.
She took a deep breath, suppressing the nausea, and replied with polite formality that kept people at arm’s length. “This is a place for buying and selling antiques. If you’re only here to look around, I’m afraid…”
Even Du Xie, who had been standing behind Ye Chen with a perpetually cold expression, couldn’t stop the twitch at the corner of his eye.
Clearly, even as his subordinate, he could barely stand his young master’s sudden display of greasiness. He lowered his voice and reminded him, “Young Master, the main matter is more important.”
Only then did Ye Chen reluctantly put away his “romantic” demeanor, nodding impatiently.
His sharp eyes swept the store like searchlights, quickly looking for his true objective—the ancient jade that held great fortune. Soon enough, his gaze locked on the display case in the center of the hall. Inside lay a simple yet lustrous jade pendant, faintly exuding spiritual energy. That’s it! His heart skipped a beat, excitement surging within, though his face remained composed.
Pretending to casually inspect a bronze vessel for a few seconds and then asking about the price of a plain porcelain bottle, he strolled closer to the display case with purposeful steps. Pointing at the ancient jade, he turned to Liu Qingyou with just the right hint of interest in his tone. “Miss Liu, how much for this piece of jade?”
Liu Qingyou was just about to quote the marked price when a lazy yet confident male voice cut in without warning. “One billion.”
Ye Chen’s brows furrowed instantly as he turned toward the voice.
A flashily dressed, slightly chubby young man stood there with his arms crossed, a mocking smile on his face, openly sizing him up—it was Geng Yu.
Not understanding the situation, Ye Chen glanced back at Liu Qingyou. She bowed slightly and explained evenly, “Apologies, sir. This jade was purchased by Mr. Geng here just a few minutes ago. Our store is only keeping it in storage for now.”
Geng Yu studied Ye Chen with interest.
Ye Chen, on the other hand, looked at Geng Yu’s typical rich wastrel airs and felt his own anger boil. He had just been left in a mess by that cunning Qin Xiao, and now this foolish fat man appeared to cause trouble!
But catching sight of Liu Qingyou’s refined beauty out of the corner of his eye, he forced his temper down. In front of a woman—especially one he had already decided to make his—he had to keep his composure.
Trying to sound less confrontational, he said, “Mr. Geng, isn’t a billion a bit too much? The jade is good, but…”
Geng Yu reacted as if he had just heard the funniest joke of the century, dramatically cleaning out his ear. “Too much? I think it’s a fair price, more than worth it.” He paused, his smile turning more mischievous. “But… looking at your outfit, you may look sharp, but I doubt you have much cash on you. Tell you what, I’m in a good mood today. Consider it charity—I’ll give you a discount, 500 million! Cash or card? Take it away, no thanks needed!”
500 million?
Ye Chen’s fists clenched, his knuckles cracking as veins bulged.
He had just probed the jade with his inner strength—while the spiritual energy was rich, its actual market value was at most a few hundred thousand, certainly under a million. And this fat fool dared ask for 500 million?
Was he taking him for an idiot?!
Seeing Ye Chen’s dark, constipated expression as he held back his fury, Geng Yu was secretly delighted and stoked the fire further. “What? Too expensive? No way, no way, it’s not like there’s really someone these days who can’t take out a mere 500 million, right? Tsk, tsk… how pitiful.”
Picking up the jade, he tossed it lightly in his hand, clicking his tongue in fake admiration. “Ah, the quality is nice, good water content too. I heard using fine jade to make soup—what was it… oh right, jade marrow soup! Extremely nourishing! If I use this to make it, it’ll taste amazing. Might even prolong life!”
Jade marrow soup?!
Ye Chen’s expression changed instantly. The true value of this jade was in its pure spiritual energy—if this ignorant fool really boiled it at high temperature, the energy would disperse, and the treasure would be ruined forever!
He could never let such waste happen.
“Stop!” he barked, almost shouting.
Turning sharply, he ordered Du Xie, “Du Xie, get the money!”
Du Xie’s face became even gloomier, his voice awkward and low. “Young Master… the liquid funds we had were all invested a few days ago to target the Qin family’s businesses and for follow-up plans… they’re all gone…”
“How much is left?!” Ye Chen gritted his teeth.
After a quick, nervous glance at him, Du Xie replied almost in a whisper, “Your personal account… currently has only 300 yuan and 8 cents left…”
300 yuan… and 8 cents? This chapter was copied from g.com without permission.
Ye Chen’s vision went black.
He, the young master of Dragon King Hall, once a feared mercenary king overseas, now had only three hundred yuan to his name?
If this got out, how could he ever show his face again?!
His jaw clenched as his eyes darted around, searching for a way out. Then his gaze fixed on a small stone-gambling section in the corner of Treasure Pavilion.
Yes—stone gambling!
With his extraordinary eyesight and past lucky encounters, finding a top-grade emerald in one of these raw stones would be child’s play. 500 million, even fifty billion, would be easy!
Hope rekindled in his eyes as he snorted coldly at Geng Yu. “500 million? You wait, I’ll get the money right now!”
He strode toward the stone-gambling area, picking up a fist-sized, gray-skinned rock that looked unremarkable. Wearing a confident smile, he declared, “This one. Inside will definitely be imperial green emerald of the highest quality!”
Liu Qingyou frowned at his fortune-teller-like behavior but reminded him politely, “Sir, by our store’s rules, you must purchase the stone before cutting it.” She pointed at the small price tag beside it. “This stone is 50,000 yuan.”
50,000 yuan…
Ye Chen’s confident smile froze, the corner of his mouth twitching. He didn’t even have 50,000 now. The embarrassment washed over him like a physical wave—he wished he could disappear.
At that moment, a calm, leisurely voice came from behind a jade sculpture. “Oh? Stone gambling? Seems lively today. I know a bit about that too.”
Qin Xiao stepped out from behind the sculpture, holding a small brass magnifying glass, as if he had really been studying an antique. The moment Ye Chen saw him, his sharp eyes filled with blood, like a beast provoked before a kill.
All the humiliation, anger, embarrassment, and the sting of having only three hundred yuan and eight cents finally found their target. “Qin Xiao!” he roared, pointing at him. “You useless second-generation brat who only hides behind women, playing petty tricks! Besides eating, drinking, and whoring, what else can you do?! Lazy! Shameless! Vicious! Scum like you should go to hell!”
Qin Xiao didn’t even glance at him, as if Ye Chen were nothing but air. Instead, he turned to Liu Qingyou with a gentle, slightly apologetic smile, nodding—an unspoken reassurance and apology for leaving earlier, as if to say she needn’t mind the current farce.
Liu Qingyou quietly took in the scene—one man raging like a madman, spouting insults like a street thug, the other calm and unruffled, without a trace of unnecessary emotion. The contrast was crystal clear.
In her heart, the thought that had been muddled by Ye Chen’s greasiness and crudeness earlier now solidified with certainty—Qin Xiao could not possibly be as vile as others claimed. At least, the man standing before her now, facing all this with composure, was not. There was a steadiness in him that made her feel safe… and curious to know more.