Upon hearing Ye Qianqiu's words, Zhao Mengde was struck dumb, frozen in place, his face filled with disbelief.
"Young Master Ye, I would never dare to deceive you! You haven't been fooled by those people at the Fang family's pill shop, have you? The Fang family has always been able to refine low-grade Body Tempering Pills at most. Where did they get high-grade Meridian Opening Pills from?"
After regaining his senses, Zhao Mengde discovered the flaw in Ye Qianqiu's words.
"Young Master Ye, what Steward Zhao said is absolutely true. The Fang family opened eighteen pill shops in one go, hoping to make a big splash, but in reality, they are deserted and have almost no business. They actually claim to have high-grade and even top-grade Meridian Opening Pills, which is utterly absurd and pure lying. Think about it, how precious are high-grade Meridian Opening Pills? Even the renowned Divine Doctor Valley can only refine a handful a year. These are all monopolized by the wealthy and powerful families of Tianyuan County. How could the Fang family possibly have a chance?"
At this moment, an elderly man with white hair and a hunched back slowly stepped forward from the crowd, bowed slightly, and spoke unhurriedly.
"Exactly, the Fang family is just creating hype. I think the head of the Fang family, Fang Zhendong, has lost his mind."
A short, stout middle-aged man with a face full of fat crossed his arms, curled his lip, and shouted with a look of disdain.
"The Fang family probably thinks that the Zhao family has been keeping a low profile lately, as if something has happened, so they want to snatch the business of the powerful in the field of pills."
A man in a gray robe with shrewd eyes stroked his chin thoughtfully and replied.
Immediately, the surrounding crowd nodded in agreement, one voice after another echoing the doubts raised by the other side.
"You're saying the Fang family's medicine shop doesn't have Meridian Opening Pills?"
Upon hearing everyone's comments, Ye Qianqian's lips curled up slightly, forming a cold arc, and a hint of mockery flashed in her eyes.
She took out an exquisite porcelain bottle, gently shook it in front of everyone, and said in a crisp voice, "This top-grade Meridian Opening Pill is what my brother and I just bought at the Fang family's medicine shop for 30,000 taels of silver."
Everyone's attention was instantly drawn to the porcelain bottle. The bottle had a simple and elegant shape, with exquisite and intricate patterns engraved on its body. It was the style of the elixir bottle used by the Fang family.
"Young Master Ye, Miss Ye, you've probably been scammed by the Fang family! A low-grade Meridian Opening Pill costs at least 50,000 taels of silver, a mid-grade Meridian Opening Pill costs as much as 70,000 taels, and as for this high-grade Meridian Opening Pill, you can't get it for less than 100,000 taels of silver."
Zhao Mengde frowned, his eyes filled with worry, and earnestly advised, "How could anyone sell a top-grade Meridian Opening Pill at such an outrageously low price of 30,000 taels of silver? There must be a scam!"
"Master Huang was just here, wasn't he? Let Master Huang appraise the pill that Young Master Ye and Miss Ye have. What is its grade?"
From the crowd, the white-haired old man spoke again. Although his voice was old, it carried an undeniable confidence.
"Yes, yes, Master Huang is the number one alchemist in Tianyuan County. Let him appraise it; he's absolutely authoritative and can make the final decision."
"How could the Fang family possibly refine a high-grade Meridian Opening Pill? This time, the Fang family is about to be exposed."
The crowd erupted in excitement once more, loudly echoing their agreement that inviting Master Huang to judge the matter would surely reveal the truth and convince everyone.
"Young Master Ye, Miss Ye, since that's the case, then this old man will humbly request Master Huang to appraise it. What do you two think?"
Zhao Mengde was secretly delighted and said eagerly.
In his heart, he was convinced that Ye Qianqiu, this notorious playboy, had deliberately come to cause trouble.
The Ye family wields considerable power in this area, and he dares not offend them lightly. He was just wondering how to deal with them when Master Huang happened to appear in his shop today. This was truly a "golden opportunity."
Zhao Mengde thought that with Master Huang, a highly authoritative figure in the field of elixir appraisal, present, Ye Qianqiu would have to think twice before trying to cause trouble.
He smugly imagined that when Master Huang exposed the "lie" of the Fang family's elixir, Ye Qianqiu would lose face, and he would be able to easily resolve this crisis.
Little did he know that Master Huang had an unknown connection with Ye Qianqiu and Ye Qianqian, and he was still immersed in his self-righteous "good luck".
“Master Huang is undoubtedly a true master in the field of elixirs, that is certainly true.”
Ye Qianqiu's lips curled up slightly, a hint of cunning flashing in his eyes, and he responded frankly.
Then, he changed the subject, his expression suddenly becoming serious, "But let me make this clear from the start: if this pill of mine is truly a top-grade Meridian Opening Pill, and if I did indeed purchase it for 30,000 taels of silver, then Manager Zhao, you will have to bear the responsibility of deceiving me."
“Very well! If this pill is indeed made by the Fang family, and is a genuine top-grade Meridian Opening Pill, and is only priced at 30,000 taels of silver, this old man is willing to compensate Young Master Ye with 500,000 taels of silver!”
Zhao Mengde puffed out his chest and agreed without hesitation.
In his view, the Fang family simply did not have the ability to refine high-grade meridian-opening pills, and he was confident of victory in this matter.
"Everyone, did you all hear that clearly?"
Ye Qianqiu suddenly raised his voice, his eyes sharp as he scanned the surrounding crowd and shouted, "If Zhao Mengde tries to cheat me and refuses to pay me back, then I will smash this pill shop! Not only that, I will smash all ten of the Zhao family's pill shops in Yanming City, and I will absolutely not allow the Zhao family to sell pills in Yanming City again!"
Ye Qianqiu's harsh words caused an uproar among the surrounding crowd. People whispered among themselves, becoming increasingly eager for the upcoming "elixir appraisal storm."
Zhao Mengde dared not delay any longer and rushed anxiously toward the back of the shop, running all the way as if afraid of missing something.
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