Chapter 9: The First Big Shot

A stall owner remarked, "I wonder if that young girl snuck out of her house by stealing money. She wasted so much; she's probably in for a real scolding when she gets back."

The young man shrugged. "She wanted to buy it herself. What does that have to do with me?"

"What if her parents come knocking and claim you swindled her? You'd better be careful." The stall owner added a cautionary word, then suddenly nudged the young man's arm. "Look, that big spender is back!"

All the stall owners looked over.

It was an elderly man dressed in a suit.

His hair and beard were silver-white, yet his stride was steady and powerful, his commanding presence undiminished.

A young man followed behind him, also dressed in a formal suit.

Customers rarely dressed like this at the underground market; even Nie Chaolai wore casual clothes when he came to play.

The stall owners all knew that a big spender had visited yesterday—someone with deep pockets who only bought antiques. Consequently, they had stocked up on plenty of goods today, just waiting for his return.

The eyes of the stall owners were burning with anticipation.

The old man walked at an unhurried pace, but today he did not stop at any stall. Instead, he followed the girl who had just departed not long ago.

The young man behind him spoke up, "Miss, my master wishes to acquire that silver 'Ban Liang' coin in your hand for six million. Would you be willing to part with it?"

Ying Zijin stopped in her tracks, her brow twitching slightly.

*Here they come.*

The young man continued sincerely, "If the price is insufficient, we can increase it."

The stall owners were all shocked, simultaneously looking toward the young man who was still counting money.

"What kind of coin is that? Six million isn't enough? You actually sold it?"

"A silver Ban Liang? That's a rare find! Didn't you appraise it when you bought it?"

The young man glared. "It was just something I picked up, not something dug out of the ground. I just took a look; how was I supposed to find a professional appraisal agency?"

If it truly was a silver Ban Liang, it was indeed worth six million. At an international auction a few years ago, an identical silver Ban Liang had eventually fetched a high price of 7.6 million.

Ying Zijin took out the ancient coin. "Deal."

"Thank you for parting with it, young lady." The old man nodded, a slight smile appearing on his face. "Mu Cheng."

Understanding the cue, Mu Cheng took out a bank card and handed it over. "Hello, Miss. Here is six million. It is a Black Card from Laurent Bank, accepted internationally."

In the upper right corner of the Black Card was a golden iris.

Ying Zijin took it.

Good. The bank where she used to store her gold had not gone bankrupt.

The on-the-spot transaction of six million left the stall owners filled with envy.

The young man clutched his chest, filled with immense regret. "I shouldn't have sold it!"

Six million!

The money was secondary; more importantly, a big spender capable of producing six million on the spot must come from a prominent family. He had missed a chance to make connections with the powerful for nothing.

One stall owner gasped, "That girl is so lucky."

No one would believe that a young girl could have such profound research into antiques; even they, who had been in this business for years, hadn't seen anything special about that coin.

***

The bartender, who had witnessed the entire scene, spoke in surprise, "Can this little friend of yours really identify the era of that ancient coin at a single glance?"

"Mhm."

"That's a funny joke. I'm actually laughing."

Fu Yunshen shot him a glance.

The bartender shrugged. "But she's quite cold, acting like she doesn't want to be approached. She seems hard to get close to."

"What nonsense are you talking?" Fu Yunshen's peach-blossom eyes curved. "She is clearly both well-behaved and adorable."

The bartender was speechless.

This filter was far too heavy.

He asked again, "Why don't you go over and say hello? It's quite dangerous for a young girl to leave here with six million. With your skills, why bother having the management escort her secretly?"

Fu Yunshen's eyelashes fluttered as he chuckled softly. "I can't go."

The bartender was stunned. "Why?"

"Hmm—" Fu Yunshen pondered for a moment. "I have to protect her feelings. After all, we only said goodnight to each other two hours ago."

Meeting again in the underground market would be quite awkward, wouldn't it?

Although he had long guessed that she would come to the underground market after hearing Nie Chao's words, he had timed it perfectly.

The bartender was left speechless. "It seems that since you came back, you've spent all your time trying to please women."

"You think so?" Fu Yunshen lowered his head to mix a drink. "Do I need to?"

Looking at the man's world-toppling face, the bartender was completely silenced.

Fine. He had the looks to be willful and the beauty to get away with anything.

No wonder everyone believed this man's act of being a useless, pampered playboy.

***

Across the street, in an alleyway.

"Master, if only we had come earlier," Mu Cheng sighed. "Six million wasted for nothing."

"It wasn't a waste." The old man waved his hand and said calmly, "At least I got to see such an interesting young girl. She didn't just stumble upon that coin by luck."

Mu Cheng hesitated. "That's impossible, right?"

He knew that after Mu Heqing stepped down, he had no other hobbies except collecting antiques to donate to the National Museum, which was the reason for their visit to the ancient city of Shanghai.

Mu Heqing didn't say much more, merely coughing a few times. "Let's go."

Mu Cheng didn't ask further and followed him.

Suddenly, Mu Heqing's coughing intensified.

He clutched his chest, unable to catch his breath. His body convulsed, his legs failed to support him, and he collapsed straight down.

Mu Cheng was terrified and rushed forward. "Master!"

Damn it. No one expected Mu Heqing's condition to flare up at this moment, and they hadn't even brought a doctor.

Mu Heqing had always been physically robust, but before he retired, he had been shot near the heart. Although he had been successfully resuscitated, it had left him with a chronic condition that flared up from time to time.

But he had just undergone surgery recently; it shouldn't have flared up this soon.

What should they do now?

Miss Meng was far away in the Imperial Capital; there was no time to get her.

Mu Cheng was sweating profusely from anxiety. His hands trembled as he tried to give Mu Heqing medicine, but he couldn't get him to swallow, making him increasingly frantic.

"Don't prop him up; it will make his breathing more difficult. Lay him flat."

Someone spoke calmly from behind him.

Mu Cheng looked up in astonishment, meeting the girl's calm gaze.

She walked over in a few steps and knelt before Mu Heqing, her hand discreetly grasping his wrist to feel the strength of his pulse.

Mu Cheng finally snapped out of it.

Seeing the girl's actions, he was both shocked and enraged. He immediately tried to stop her, rebuking her sharply, "Don't touch him! What exactly do you think you're doing?"

What was Mu Heqing's status?

The head of the Mu family, a figure revered by everyone in the Imperial Capital.

If something happened to him, no one could take responsibility.

Ying Zijin continued checking the pulse. "Saving him."

Mu Cheng laughed in anger. "You're just a young girl."

Medical skill is a matter of experience and expertise. Aside from a few masters in the field of traditional medicine in China, who would dare claim they could treat Mu Heqing?

Fu Yunshen: *My little friend is both well-behaved and adorable.*

Ying Zijin: *? You've lost your mind.*

(The Emperor Ying is a "Zen" type in the Taoist school; if he can use his hands, he definitely won't waste a single word. 2333)

(End of Chapter)