Xu Kuo sneered as he watched the two men being drowned in saliva and looking utterly disheveled.
Foolish! Utterly foolish!
You dare to show off your meager skills in front of him?
He couldn't be bothered to look at these two clowns anymore. He turned to Niu Erbao and the other villagers who had helped him and raised his chin: "From today onwards, my vegetable stall will not sell to these two people or anyone in their family! Not even a single leaf!"
These words were like a final judgment, leaving Xu Jianguo and Xu Jianjun completely panicked!
They knew better than anyone how good Xu Kuo's dishes were and how much money he made! If this path were truly cut off... how would they live a good life in the future? Not to mention they were still hoping to profit from Xu Kuo!
"No! Third brother! Third brother, we were wrong!" Xu Jianguo reacted the fastest and was the most spineless. He knelt down with a "plop," hugged Xu Kuo's legs, and cried his eyes out.
"We were bewitched! We were jealous of you! Please forgive us this time! We'll never do it again!"
"Yes! We know we were wrong!" Xu Jianjun also knelt down, crying and shouting, "For the sake of our parents, for the sake of our brotherhood, please give us another chance! We will never oppose you again!"
Seeing the two men's utterly undignified and shameful state, Xu Kuo felt no emotion, only deep disgust.
"Erbao," Xu Kuo didn't even bother to say another word.
"Alright!" Niu Erbao had long disliked these two, and now that he had received the order, he was pleased.
Several people immediately stepped forward, grabbed Xu Jianguo and Xu Jianjun, who were still crying and begging for mercy, and dragged them out of the crowd like chickens, without any mercy, and threw them outside the vegetable market!
"Ouch!"
"I almost fell to my death!"
Two cries of pain were followed by even more pitiful wails and curses, but they were quickly drowned out by the noise of the market.
The farce has come to an end.
The villagers looked at Xu Kuo with shame and embarrassment on their faces.
“Um… Xu Kuo, I’m sorry, we were just now…” an older woman began hesitantly.
Xu Kuo waved his hand, his expression indifferent: "It's alright, ignorance is no excuse. Alright, everyone disperse, those who need to buy groceries can continue, they're still fresh."
He didn't care about the villagers' attitudes at all. In this day and age, survival and a good life are the only real things.
Seeing that Xu Kuo truly didn't care, the villagers breathed a sigh of relief and admired his methods and magnanimity even more. After this incident, Xu Kuo's vegetable stall business actually boomed even more.
Another day has passed.
In the early morning, at the vegetable stall, Xu Kuo finished instructing Niu Erbao and several trusted villagers on the day's sales arrangements. He then took off his muddy overshoes, changed into a cleaner set of clothes, and went to find Zhou Changke.
"Brother Xu, are you ready?"
"Alright, Brother Zhou."
"Let's go."
The county auction house was located in an inconspicuous little building, with no eye-catching sign at the entrance, but the people who came in and out all exuded an aura that was different from ordinary people.
Zhou Changke was clearly a regular here. He skillfully led Xu Kuo through the process of verifying his funds and registering him. After receiving a number, they entered the auction hall.
The auction hall wasn't large, but it was decorated quite elegantly, and there were already quite a few people sitting inside.
Xu Kuo was dressed in a faded Zhongshan suit and cloth shoes. Although clean, he looked particularly "rustic" among the group. As soon as he entered, he attracted many subtle glances, many of which were disdainful and disgusted.
"Who's this? Did Brother Zhou bring him?"
"You look unfamiliar, are you from the countryside?"
"Dressed like that, you dare to come to a place like this?"
The murmurs reached Xu Kuo's ears, but he seemed not to hear them. He looked around the auction hall with interest, calmly conversing with Zhou Changke in a low voice, as if the disapproving looks and whispers had nothing to do with him.
His composure, ironically, made some people who had originally wanted to see him make a fool of himself start to have doubts.
The two had just sat down in the front seats when a sarcastic voice rang out from beside them.
"Oh, isn't this Boss Zhou? What brings you here today?"
Xu Kuo turned his head and saw a man in his forties, dressed in a sharp suit, with slicked-back hair and gold-rimmed glasses, looking at Zhou Changke with a forced smile.
The man sat down in the empty seat next to Zhou Changke, his gaze sweeping over Xu Kuo with undisguised contempt: "What? Is Boss Zhou getting worse lately? Bringing just any Tom, Dick, or Harry here? When did the bar for this place become so low?"
Xu Kuo raised an eyebrow almost imperceptibly and looked at Zhou Changke.
Zhou Changke's face darkened, and he snorted coldly, "Bai Donghua, what people I bring is none of your business! Mind your own business! You're not welcome here, get lost!"
Zhou Changke lowered his voice and quickly explained to Xu Kuo, "This bastard is called Bai Donghua. His family has some money, and he likes to deal in antiques. He and I have never gotten along. He always tries to snatch things that I want. He's a complete scoundrel!"
Bai Donghua's hearing was quite good, and he sneered upon hearing this: "Zhou Changke, are you getting angry out of embarrassment? Did I say something wrong? Look at the man next to you," he raised his chin slightly and glanced at Xu Kuo out of the corner of his eye.
"Smelling like dirt, he probably's never even seen what an auction gavel looks like. This country bumpkin doesn't even deserve to step into this place! He's dragging down the whole venue's standards!"
"Bai Donghua! You better watch your mouth!" Zhou Changke slammed his hand on the armrest, glaring angrily.
"What? You want to make a move?" Bai Donghua leaned back in his chair, looking at Zhou Changke defiantly. "Try touching me."
Zhou Changke was so angry that his chest heaved and his fists clenched so tightly they cracked.
Seeing this, Bai Donghua became even more smug and continued to ridicule Xu Kuo's attire, his words full of sarcasm.
Xu Kuo remained silent throughout, simply listening quietly.
The moment Bai Donghua sat down, the [Super Treasure Hunting System] that came with him from his transmigration had already started operating automatically in his mind.
[Ding! Target detected: Bai Donghua]
[Item scanning in progress...]
[Rolex gold watch (high-quality replica, value: 80 yuan)]
[Emerald Ring (Synthetic Glass, Value: 5 Yuan)]
[Ming Dynasty Blue and White Snuff Bottle (Late Qing Dynasty Replica, Value: 150 RMB)]
[...]
A series of scan results flashed through Xu Kuo's mind.
He looked at Bai Donghua, who was dressed impeccably and spoke of "class" with great flair, and a meaningful sneer curled at the corner of his mouth.
A country bumpkin? What class?
Ha, a guy covered in fakes from head to toe has the nerve to spout nonsense here?
Zhou Changke was so angry that his face turned pale. He slammed his hand on the armrest and tried to stand up: "Brother Xu, we're not going to sit with such an ill-mannered person! Let's find another place!" Getting angry with this kind of person would only lower his own status!
"Brother Zhou, don't rush." Xu Kuo reached out and firmly pressed down on Zhou Changke's arm.
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