Chapter 12 Wandering around the Jade Shop
His master, Mo Qitian, and his close friend, Ye Qingyu, were already accustomed to Qing Yi's boasting. This kid was born with this erratic nature, and it was difficult to change.
His rather self-absorbed personality was somewhat similar to that of his mentor, the Demon Lord. However, compared to the Demon Lord's outward ego, Qing Yi was more intelligent and sophisticated, and his self-protective psychology was more deeply hidden and complex.
"Qing Yi, remember what your master said. The capital is under the Emperor's rule. You must be careful with your words and actions." Prince Shi knew Qing Yi might not listen, but he couldn't help but give him another warning. If this kid really got into trouble, it would not only implicate Qing Yu, but also Mo Qitian.
"Yes, Your Highness! Don't worry, I promise I won't cause any trouble." Qing Yi made another solemn promise, but he was muttering in his heart. He really didn't understand what was wrong with these people. They kept nagging, making it seem as if he was born to be a troublemaker.
"Alright, get back to your work!" Mo Qitian started to chase them away. If it weren't for the need to teach Qing Yi how to wield the two internal energies, he wouldn't have wanted to bring these two "followers" along.
As an elder, he always has to maintain his status and dignity in front of the younger ones. It is rare to have such a long time alone with Chu Shi. It is not very convenient to travel along the way with Qing Yi and Ye Qingyu.
"Yes, Master." Ever since Ye Qingyu had been around, Qing Yi had become less willing to hang around his master, lest he be lectured from time to time. Of course, the most crucial thing was that he had a keen intuition and sensed that his master disliked him.
Seeing nothing else to do, Qing Yi and Ye Qing Yu went out for a stroll. This place was called Xihua Mansion, located at the intersection of the north and the south, and was very bustling and prosperous.
"Xiaoye, there's a jade shop here. Let's go in and take a look!" Qingyi said, stepping in first. This time, he had specifically paid out ten thousand taels of silver from Senior Brother Beichen, exchanging them for banknotes and carrying them with him. He was waiting for Xiaoye's birthday to come and buy her a decent gift.
He had originally intended to give Xiaoye the piece of ice jade he'd spent hundreds of thousands of taels of silver on. But later, while on his way to visit the old immortal, he met Li Wan'er, and they hit it off so well that they became sworn sisters. In a fit of rage, he gave his most valuable ice jade to his sister. Although Xiaoye wasn't picky about his gifts, Qingyi still took this one particularly seriously.
"Two gentlemen, what would you like to order? We have the finest Hetian jade from the Western Regions, as well as the top-grade colored jade from southern Xinjiang." Seeing that the two men had extraordinary temperaments, the boss greeted them warmly.
"Well, let's just take a look and see if there's anything that catches our eye. Boss, don't hide away the good stuff if you have any." Qing Yi said as he looked around the shop and found that it was quite large.
"Don't worry, sir. All the items here are top quality. I guarantee we have the jade you like." The boss said with confidence.
"Hahaha, that's good." Qing Yi looked around and finally shook his head.
"Young Master, is there anyone you like?" The boss was very good at observing people's expressions. Seeing Qing Yi shaking his head, he hurried forward to ask.
"Boss, I think you are exaggerating a bit." Qing Yi acted like he knew a lot, but in fact, it was because he heard that the prices the boss mentioned were not low, at least more than 100,000 taels of silver. How could he have so much silver?
Ye Qingyu was used to seeing the truly fine jades in the imperial palace and the royal palace, so the items displayed in this shop were really hard to please him. However, he didn't know whether Qingyi really wanted to buy anything or was just browsing, so he didn't say anything.
"Ahem, ahem, sir, you are joking. Our shop is the most famous jade shop in the whole Xihua Prefecture." The boss said helplessly.
"Oh? In my opinion, it's just average. Xiaoye, let's go, there's nothing worth buying." After Qing Yi said that, he asked Ye Qingyu to leave.
"Wait, gentlemen, please wait! I have a few more treasures here. Would you like to take a look inside?" The owner only took out the real treasures when he saw Qing Yi and Ye Qingyu were about to leave. This is also a common practice in the jade business. Customers are first allowed to see the goods on display. If the customer is not satisfied, the real treasure will be brought out.
"Oh? The boss has hidden treasures? I'm very busy. If it's an ordinary item, don't take it out and waste your time." Qing Yi said this deliberately, but he was very curious in his heart what kind of treasure it was.
The boss invited Qing Yi and Ye Qingyu to the back room of the shop and let them rest for a while. After a while, he brought a large box and said mysteriously, "Take a look at these, sirs. How do you like them?"
Qing Yi and Ye Qingyu didn't say anything. They just saw the boss open the box, which was filled with jade artifacts, including jade jars, jade plates, etc.
These jade pieces were exquisitely carved, with delicate patterns and a soft, even color. Their value was evident at first glance. Qing Yi picked up the jade vase and examined it carefully. It was smooth and delicate, with a soft luster. It was truly a piece of top-quality art. Drinking from this jade vase would surely enhance the flavor of even ordinary wine.
"Hey, sir, what do you think?" The boss was full of confidence. He thought that anyone who saw these treasures would be tempted, but most people simply couldn't afford them.
"Well, not bad. I wonder how much silver the boss plans to sell it for?" Qing Yi asked.
"I'm always honest and never exaggerate prices. If you really like it, I'll give you a fair price: ten thousand taels of silver per piece."
"Well, it's not much, not much!" Qing Yi pretended to be indifferent, but he was thinking in his heart: I like it, but I really can't afford it. I can't let Xiao Ye pay for it.
"Sir, do you plan to take all of them, or just pick a few?" The boss was delighted. He didn't expect to meet such a rich man. Judging from the man's words and actions, it seemed that he was interested in these treasures.
"Hey, what's engraved on the bottom of this jar?" Qing Yi played with the jade jar and found that there seemed to be a word engraved on the bottom of the jar, but he didn't recognize it.
Upon hearing this, Ye Qingyu took the jade vase from Qingyi's hand and examined it, frowning immediately. How could this thing be sold here? This is really not right!
"Hey, sir, you really have a keen eye. You can tell where this thing came from, right?" the boss said mysteriously.
Qing Yi didn't understand what his boss meant, but Ye Qingyu did. As expected, just as he'd guessed, these things had leaked out of the palace. To avoid alerting the enemy, Ye Qingyu remained silent.
"Hmm!" Although Qing Yi didn't understand what the boss meant, after looking at Xiao Ye's expression, he also pretended to deal with the boss to see how Xiao Ye planned to respond.
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