Chapter 729: The Antique Shop Got Smashed

Jiang Chenyi immediately spotted the members of the Huo family crowded by the entrance and walked over. "Brother Huo."

Huo Feng turned around. "Brother Jiang."

"What’s going on? There’s such a crowd," Jiang Chenyi said, glancing into the shop.

"A ginseng over ten thousand years old showed up in Jisheng Hall. Every single rootlet is perfectly intact—it’s the absolute cream of the crop," Huo Feng said, his eyes shining. He had never seen a ginseng so perfectly preserved.

"The price can’t be cheap, then."

"Of course. Over one hundred thousand gold. In any case, we can’t afford it," Huo Feng quipped.

"Can’t hurt to look."

"Yeah, and who knows who those two inside are. They’re not batting an eye at one hundred thousand gold, fighting over it like..." Huo Feng’s voice trailed off as his eyes accidentally fell upon Ye Qianning, who was standing beside Jiang Yue. His voice instantly grew quieter.

Ye Qianning happened to turn her head and see Huo Feng as well. She gave him a nod and a smile before turning her gaze back toward the shop’s interior.

A flicker of unease crossed Huo Feng’s face. He snuck a few more glances at her. ’Three different groups were looking for her yesterday, yet she’s standing right here, perfectly fine. Could it really be like Second Uncle said? Same name, different person?’

"I clearly claimed this ginseng first! You people from Beili are taking things too far!" Wang Li, the representative from the East Shu trading house, declared, his face flushed with anger.

"Doesn’t it belong to whoever pays first? Lord Wang, just hand over the ginseng." Li Mu had already paid, but Wang Li was clutching the ginseng and refusing to let go, choked with rage.

"I was the one who found it! While my men were gone getting the money, you lot just swooped in. This is blatant robbery!" Wang Li hugged the ginseng tightly, afraid they would just resort to force and snatch it away.

"If you don’t have the money, don’t act like you do. Cash is king."

"Bullshit! You people from Beili are rich? Ha! Private trade is forbidden there, your common folk are miserable and can’t even afford to eat, and you’re calling yourselves rich? Stop putting on airs!" Wang Li had abandoned all pretense of decorum.

"The state of Beili is not for you to comment on, Lord Wang. Hand over the ginseng!" Li Mu reached out to grab it.

Wang Li refused. As the two of them started pulling and tugging, their retainers began to move as well.

In the blink of an eye, the two groups were brawling inside the shop. Amid the chaos, tables, stools, precious porcelain, and rare curios CRASHED to the floor, shattering into pieces.

"Oh my god! Shopkeeper, call for help!" the young assistant cried out, terrified.

The Shopkeeper, however, was quite calm. He simply waved his hand.

"Shopkeeper, if you don’t get help, there won’t be anything left of the store!"

"Get help for what? It’s not every day we get such ’generous’ patrons."

The assistant froze for a second. His gaze fell upon the shattered antiques and curios on the floor, and he instantly understood. Still, his heart ached.

So many fine items, all smashed to bits—

CRASH...

The piercing sound of shattering continued. The brawl spilled out from the shop into the street, and the crowd of onlookers scrambled to get out of the way.

Just then, Luo Feng arrived on the scene with his men. In an instant, more than twenty guards had both groups restrained.

"How dare you seize me! Do you have any idea who I am?" Li Mu shrieked.

"I don’t care who you are. In Dayu City, you follow Dayu City’s rules," Luo Feng said coldly.

"What rules? I’m— General Zhan?" Li Mu’s shouting stopped mid-sentence as he spotted Zhan Chi in the crowd. A look of delight crossed his face. "General Zhan, you’ve come!"

Zhan Chi stepped forward, his expression cold. "Lord Li, what is the meaning of this little game?"

A game?

"General Zhan, it’s those people from East Shu! They were being unreasonable and stole my ginseng! You must arrest them at once!" Li Mu’s confidence surged now that Zhan Chi was here.

"Your ginseng? I clearly claimed it first! Sirs, this truly isn’t my fault! It’s these people from Beili who are throwing their weight around!" Wang Li protested.

"Arrest them?" Zhan Chi stood his ground. "Lord Li, this is Dayu City, not Beili. Perhaps you should rein in that temper of yours."

"General Zhan, the Emperor sent you here to..."

"The Emperor dispatched me to protect you, Lord Li, not to clean up your messes."

"Zhan Chi, you..."

"Lord Li, when in Dayu City, it’s best to follow Dayu City’s rules." ’Just as I thought,’ Zhan Chi mused. ’Once they got the invitation, they’d be scrambling to curry favor. It’s completely predictable.’

Li Mu gritted his teeth in hatred. "Zhan Chi, just wait. When I get back, I will report you to the Emperor!"

"If you’re still alive to do so, it will mean I haven’t failed in my duty to the Emperor."

"..."

Standing in the crowd, Ye Qianning felt the corners of her lips curve into a small smile.

’She could feel that Zhan Chi’s Inner Strength had grown stronger, and his aura was even more frigid than before. But it seemed his knack for comebacks had improved as well.’

Huo Feng recognized Zhan Chi at a glance as the man who had stabbed his second uncle in the throat the day before. He reflexively glanced at Ye Qianning again. ’Is that her father?’

’Probably not...’

Ye Qianning sensed Huo Feng’s gaze on her again and turned to face him. "Mr. Huo, is there something you wish to say?"

Huo Feng froze, then quickly shook his head. His gaze darted back toward the crowd in a fluster.

Wang Li was, at least, more versed in etiquette than Li Mu. He had been to Dayu City before and knew its rules were inviolable. In front of Luo Feng and his men, he was much more cooperative.

"Officer, this really wasn’t our fault. The Shopkeeper was present for the whole thing. It was the man from Beili who tried to force the sale, which led to all this."

"We’ll determine the facts of the matter after our investigation," Luo Feng said, giving a meaningful glance to a man beside him.

The guard nodded and entered the shop. The Shopkeeper, looking perfectly calm, walked out.

"Earlier today, this gentleman," the Shopkeeper began, gesturing toward Wang Li, "was the first to arrive and expressed interest in that ginseng. He didn’t have enough money on him at the time, so he sent one of his men to retrieve it." The Shopkeeper then pointed at Li Mu. "Later, this gentleman entered my establishment and immediately saw the ginseng in the other customer’s hands. Upon learning he hadn’t paid yet, this gentleman declared he would buy it and even produced a gold note. I told him it was already spoken for, but he insisted on shoving the money at me, saying he would ’talk’ to the other customer. I never expected their ’talk’ would end in a brawl, and that their two parties would smash everything in my shop."

The Shopkeeper’s explanation was detailed, and the crowd understood the situation perfectly.

Immediately, all fingers pointed toward Li Mu, and the crowd’s murmurs turned to accusations.

Li Mu’s face turned beet red.

Wang Li, still clutching the ginseng, saw the clear understanding in the eyes of the crowd and felt a surge of gratitude.

Luo Feng turned to Wang Li. "As long as you pay for it, the ginseng is yours."

"Oh, thank you, Officer!" Wang Li exclaimed, thrilled.

Li Mu was seething with hatred, but with so many eyes on him, he didn’t dare cause more trouble. He shot a vicious glare at Zhan Chi, who stood there as if the matter had nothing to do with him.

"Hmph! It’s just a stupid ginseng. I don’t even want it anymore. Let me go!"

Luo Feng gestured with his hand.

The guards released him.

Li Mu straightened his robes, snorted coldly, and strode toward the Shopkeeper. "Give it here."

"Give you what?"

"My money! I just gave you a ten-thousand-tael gold note."

"Your lordship did indeed give me ten thousand taels a moment ago," the Shopkeeper said. "But my lord, take a look at my shop. Look at this floor covered in shattered curios and antiques. While they may not be as precious as a ten-thousand-year-old ginseng, there’s a large quantity of them. Each piece is worth at least a few hundred taels, and my shop was stocked with over a thousand such items. You tell me what the total comes to." The Shopkeeper finished speaking and held out his hand. "Pay up."