Chapter 205: Xiaofeng's News

"Don't go!" the three of them shouted in unison. As soon as the words left their mouths, they glared at each other, looking like powder kegs ready to explode at any second.

"Explain yourself before you leave. What is your relationship with Sister Fei?"

"Sister Fei, Sister Fei, you sure make it sound sweet!"

"Jia Qingbai, don't think I don't know what kind of trash you are. If you disrespect Sister Fei one more time, I'll tear your mouth off!"

"You..."

The two sitting across from me started arguing again. Jiang Fei couldn't stand it anymore; she slammed her purse onto the table. "Both of you, quiet down!"

Her newly dyed black hair fell loosely over her shoulders, and her expression was growing increasingly ugly. "If you two want to throw a fit, take it outside. Stop embarrassing me here."

Only at this moment did Jiang Fei finally match the image I had of her from our first meeting, though she had lost a bit of her arrogance and gained a touch of maturity.

Jia Qingbai had long despised Jiang Fei and sneered mockingly, "I'm talking to my boyfriend. Did I ask you to interrupt?"

Ye Weilong also felt his pride couldn't take much more of this. "Sister Fei, I went through a lot of trouble to sneak out behind my dad's back. Can't we just go out and have a meal?"

"You're not leaving, are you?" Jiang Fei's beautiful face was frosty as she picked up her phone and walked toward the exit. "Gao Jian, wait for me a moment. I need to make a call."

She walked past me, her enchanting figure drawing the gazes of many men around us.

"What even is this?" I smiled bitterly, sitting in the booth while hugging my heavy black cloth bundle.

Since I had nothing else to do, I rummaged through the black cloth until an ordinary-looking bamboo stick fell out.

"One-Day Fortune Lot."

Although this bamboo lot only cost a single point to exchange, its function was perfectly suited for someone with terrible luck like me. According to Blind Liu, the One-Day Fortune Lot could guarantee me a day of prosperous luck, offsetting some of my misfortune.

I reached out and picked it up. It was an ordinary, slender piece of bamboo, though it looked somewhat old. The words "Minor Fortune" were faintly written on it.

'I wonder how I'm supposed to use this thing?'

Right as the thought crossed my mind, the bamboo stick snapped in my hand.

"Snap!" I was left holding half of it while the other half fell to the ground. Even more awkwardly, I had been holding the lot upside down; right now, I was only holding the word "Minor," while the word "Fortune" was on the broken half.

"Fuck! What does this mean? Is there no fortune in my destiny? Or could even the fortune lot not change my terrible luck, so it died of shame?"

The sudden crisp snap from my side caught the attention of the two across from me. "A bamboo piece? What do you have packed in your bag?"

"None of your business." I put away the broken One-Day Fortune Lot and glanced at the other items inside: a palm-sized Brocade Box and a strange, pitch-black stone tablet.

"I advise you not to get too close to Sister Fei in the future. She's not someone the likes of you can match. Don't overestimate yourself like a toad lusting after swan meat. Sister Fei is just playing around with you." Ye Weilong dressed me down from head to toe. From my looks and aura to my clothes and style, he criticized me until I was worth absolutely nothing, acting like I was some country bumpkin who had just entered the city.

Jia Qingbai chimed in from the side, assuming I was just like her—someone willing to sell out everything for money and power.

The two of them chattered back and forth, but I couldn't even be bothered to pay attention. Compared to the scene five years ago when a thousand people pointed their fingers and framed me as a murderer, these two were just a pair of insignificant flies.

I let out a yawn, my mind pondering my next step in cultivation. Facing the increasingly terrifying broadcasts, the only thing I could do was make myself stronger.

'I still haven't used the Qi Gathering Pill I exchanged for last time. Once I cultivate to the great completion of the Following the Middle Path Realm, I can try guiding my qi to form an internal circulation and become self-contained.' True cultivation realms actually didn't differ much from one another; the differences were reflected more in one's state of mind, in a kind of understanding of the universe and all living things.

Time ticked by, but Jiang Fei still hadn't returned. Instead, a waiter suddenly walked over. "Were you the ones asking for the bill earlier? Here is the receipt."

"It's finally over." I sighed in relief. Just as I was about to take out my wallet, I patted my pockets and only pulled out a few pieces of Talisman Paper.

"Sir, the total is two hundred and ten yuan."

The waiter held the receipt, looking at the Talisman Paper in my hand with utter confusion. "Sir, you can pay by card as well."

I showed a look of embarrassment. I had rushed out in such a hurry that I didn't bring my wallet. It seemed I could only wait for Jiang Fei to return.

"He really is a gigolo. I have no idea what your Sister Fei actually sees in him."

Jia Qingbai made her sarcastic remarks, and Ye Weilong looked at me with disdain. "Relying on a woman. What a pathetic way to live."

The two of them echoed each other, drawing the gazes of many onlookers around us.

It wasn't easy for me to retort at the moment, so I took the receipt first. Just as I pulled out the Black Card given by the Underworld Live Show, the boss who had tried to mediate the argument earlier came running over. He glanced at the number on the receipt and then forcefully grasped my hand.

"Congratulations! You are the ten thousandth customer since our store opened three years ago! All your food and drinks today are completely free. Please wait a moment, we have other gifts to present to you shortly!" The boss beamed, respectfully gesturing for me to put the Black Card away.

"This lucky? That's not my style," I murmured. Stowing the Black Card, I untied the black cloth bundle and looked at the broken bamboo stick. "Did the One-Day Fortune Lot take effect?"

"Lucky you." Ye Weilong, who had been ready to watch a joke unfold, curled his lip, still wearing that same disdainful look. "Even if two hundred yuan were thrown on the ground, I couldn't be bothered to pick it up. I remember the last time my sports car got a scratch on the paint, it cost me something like five or six thousand to fix."

"It was fifty or sixty thousand." Jia Qingbai leaned against Ye Weilong. At the mention of money, she was like an alley cat in heat. She reached out to show off her hand. "And there's this diamond ring you bought me. A hundred thousand yuan. Some people probably couldn't earn this kind of money in years."

"Enough! Even if you two don't find it embarrassing, I'm blushing for you." Jiang Fei had finished her call and walked back into the restaurant. Following behind her was a middle-aged man wearing glasses.

"Uncle?" Ye Weilong shuddered in fright when he saw the middle-aged man and immediately stood up. "Why are you here?"

"If I wasn't just nearby discussing business, you little punk probably would have caused trouble for your father again!" The middle-aged man looked gentle and refined, yet he gave me a sense of imposing authority without being angry. Actually, in Xinhu, Ye Weilong's uncle had a much louder reputation than Ye Weilong's father. He was the true founder of Meiwei Electric Appliances, though he had now retreated behind the scenes and no longer showed his face in public. These days, he preferred to spend his time studying jades, stones, and antiques.

"Hurry up and come back with me!"

Ye Weilong and his uncle started arguing. Thoroughly bored, I fiddled with the Brocade Box inside the black cloth.

This Brocade Box holding the United Heart Jade was exquisitely packaged. The patterns on it were entirely embroidered with gold and jade threads. On the top of the box sat a small, leftover piece of jade engraved with the character for 'heart', perfectly threaded through by a gold wire. It looked quite extraordinary.

'Just this box alone could probably sell for a lot of money. The items from the Underworld Live Show really are all premium goods.' I only took a casual glance, but even so, it caught the attention of an observant eye. Ye Weilong's uncle suddenly stopped arguing and walked toward me.

"Little brother, could you let me see that jade box in your bundle?" His eyes revealed a hint of fiery obsession. "It's an Upper Vehicle seed jade, yet I've never seen jade of this quality before. The gold thread weaving uses a miraculous technique. I am willing to pay a hundred thousand yuan to buy that Brocade Box from you."

"Not for sale." I frowned. Why was this whole family picking a bone with me? I really shouldn't have come out with Jiang Fei today.

"How about two hundred thousand?"

"This item is not for sale."

The middle-aged man looked supremely confident. "This Brocade Box will only gather dust with you. You might as well sell it to me. I won a piece of Heart Connecting Jade at an auction in Myanmar for over a million. It's a pair of jades fitted together. Although there are a few minor cracks, it is still exceedingly rare, and right now it just happens to lack a box that matches its worth. If you feel two hundred thousand is too little, how about I add another fifty thousand?"

"Not interested." I had already exhausted all my patience here. I didn't care about giving face to anyone; I just picked up my bundle and turned to leave.

"Young man, don't be too greedy. Two hundred and fifty thousand is my bottom line. If it weren't for the fact that the Heart Connecting Jade is rare in this world, and your box just happens to have the character for 'heart' on it, I wouldn't even..."

"The Heart Connecting Jade is rare in this world? If you really understand jade, then tell me, how much is this piece of jade worth?" I was thoroughly annoyed by the Ye family. I stopped in my tracks, pulled out the jade box, placed it on the table, and casually flipped the lid open with one hand.

A jade body like emerald bamboo in a clear pool, exquisite as dewdrops radiating colorful light. The twin jades were of one heart, naturally formed and flawless—like the favored children of heaven. Only this could truly be called unparalleled in the world!

I sneered, just getting ready to properly admire the middle-aged man's expression, when my phone suddenly rang. An unknown number was calling.

"Hello?"

"Gao Jian! Come quick! I found Xiaofeng!" Mr. Gu's voice conveyed an extreme urgency, and it sounded like he had suffered serious injuries.