Liu Rumeng raised her head, peering through the crowd to inspect the stone from top to bottom. A faint glimmer crossed her eyes, and she couldn't help stepping closer to examine it a few more times.
There was treasure inside!
However, she was not the only one who knew it. Everyone here was a major merchant; any one of them could casually toss a sum that would leave her completely bewildered.
Liu Rumeng weighed her pouch and decided to bide her time.
"Everyone, take a close look. I don't need to tell you how exceptional this stone is, and I won't waste your time. Let the bidding begin!"
"One thousand gold!"
"Two thousand gold!"
"Three thousand gold!"
"Five thousand gold!"
...
Goodness, they were driving the price up a thousand at a time, showing just how determined everyone was to win this stone.
Liu Rumeng secretly checked her own tiny money pouch and let out a silent sigh.
In the blink of an eye, the price had already been pushed to eight thousand gold!
Liu Rumeng heard someone beside her gasp in amazement. "Since gambling on stones began, not a single rock has ever reached eight thousand gold!"
"You must not know the history, then. Just the crystal exposed on the outside is worth that much!" The other person waved a hand.
"Five hundred gold?"
"Five thousand gold!"
The other person was shocked. "What kind of stone is worth that much?"
"That's a Green Crystal! Do you remember when the Hong Country and the Wei Country were on friendly terms, and the Hong Country presented the Empress of Wei with a Fire Phoenix crown?"
"I remember, of course I do! I heard she loved it immensely and even wrote a special letter to express her gratitude."
"You think she loved the crown just because its frame was made of Fire Phoenix bones? I heard that a whole, complete Green Crystal was embedded right into that crown—a whole one! Green Crystals are only found in the Hong Country and are exceedingly rare. Even a tiny piece can be refined into hundreds of different medicinal pills, and taking them greatly increases spiritual power, making even breaking through a cultivation rank possible!"
"Really?"
"Look up for yourself."
Hearing this, Liu Rumeng also looked around.
The previously poised and leisurely buyers now all wore tense expressions, staring with absolute concentration at the platform below, terrified that a momentary distraction would cause the precious prize to be snatched away by someone else.
"I remember the last time a Green Crystal was uncovered was seven years ago. A young man in white bought it for two hundred gold. Aside from a thin outer layer of stone, the inside turned out to be a complete Green Crystal. Back then, many people doubted its worth, but who would have guessed it would yield such a treasure? You can only say that young man had extraordinary foresight. Seven years have flashed by, and a Green Crystal is about to appear once again."
Liu Rumeng lightly arched an eyebrow.
Was it really that exaggerated?
Didn't the Hong Country always have plenty of mountains and mines? Couldn't they dig up a few stones from such vast territory?
"Nine thousand gold!"
While she was momentarily distracted, the price hit a new high.
Liu Rumeng's mouth twitched slightly. Did these people's fortunes blow in on the wind?
"Nine thousand gold. Does anyone wish to bid higher?"
Liu Rumeng narrowed her eyes, quietly calculating the value of the stone.
If this Green Crystal was truly as valuable as they claimed, based on her estimate of the crystal's size, its worth should be around sixteen thousand gold. Anything under that was a safe margin.
Liu Rumeng never engaged in losing business; she had already set a bottom line for herself in her heart.
She stepped forward, pushed through the crowd, and tapped her small hand lightly on the table, lowering her voice deliberately. "Twelve thousand gold!"
Whoosh—
A strange, eerie silence fell.
The crowd turned their gazes toward Liu Rumeng in unison.
No one knew where this young girl had popped up from.
Looking closer, she was dressed in coarse, shabby clothes, appearing emaciated and sickly, yet amidst her entire appearance, only her eyes were clear and serene.
"Where did this stinking girl crawl out from? Throw her out, throw her out!"
Disrupting the proceedings was the ultimate taboo in stone gambling, and Liu Rumeng certainly did not look like someone who could produce that much money.
The stone merchant gave a signal to his subordinates, and someone immediately stepped forward, trying to grab Liu Rumeng.
Yet she nimbly dodged aside, her delicate brows lifting as a chill flashed in her eyes. "Could it be that everyone is afraid a woman might win the stone and make a fool of you all, so you want to chase me out?"
"I'm only afraid you can't produce that much money!" someone immediately retorted.
Liu Rumeng chuckled coldly. "Does this older uncle know more about my finances than my own accountant? Even he would need to open the ledger and calculate it out, yet you can tell I can't afford it with just a single glance? And to take a step back, even if I couldn't pay, whether to punish or beat me should be decided by the manager here—what need is there to trouble you? Or perhaps you've been plotting to take my place all along?"
"You, you!" The man's face turned a mottled shade of red and green, unable to utter a single word.
"What a sharp tongue," Situ Shao'an sighed, preparing to drag Nan Liefeng along to watch the commotion, only to find that the latter was already watching intently.
"I must say, a woman has never participated in stone gambling before. Coming here today was truly the right choice."
Nan Liefeng furrowed his brow, feeling that this figure was unusually familiar, though it was impossible for Yang An to appear here.
Besides, given her personality, she would never have uttered those words.
The two men watched closely, failing to notice the gauze curtain gently fluttering in the breeze. The man's side profile was exceptionally handsome, the corners of his alluring lips curving upward with a hint of indulgent fondness.
Finally, the stone merchant spoke up. "Young lady, stone gambling is no child's play. I advise you to think twice."
A flicker of icy coldness crossed Liu Rumeng's eyes, though her expression remained as calm and tranquil as untroubled water. "Is there a rule stating women cannot gamble on stones?"
"Well, no."
"Since that is the case, wouldn't it be better for everyone to foster harmony and wealth?" Liu Rumeng smiled faintly. "I am new here and don't understand anything. If I make a wrong choice, consider it my contribution to saving everyone else's gold."
Only then did the expressions of the crowd soften slightly.
Just then, someone stepped out from the crowd. "You make such a high bid right off the bat—how are the rest of us supposed to raise it? I think you're in cahoots with them, deliberately driving up the price! You might fool them, but you can't fool me, Lord Huang San."
The speaker was a man in cyan. His cyan robe was fluttering and ethereal, but unfortunately, he looked quite wretched. He hadn't placed a single bid himself, yet he was always the first to jump out to watch the spectacle.
Scoundrels like this were everywhere—all talk and no action. They were Liu Rumeng's absolute most detested type.
Liu Rumeng looked at him, her delicate brows lifting slightly. "I wonder how much gold this Lord Huang San intends to bid?"
"I haven't taken a fancy to a single one of these worthless stones!"
"Oh~" Liu Rumeng smiled knowingly. "In that case, even if I bid a single gold piece, you have no intention of raising it anyway. So why bother concerning yourself with how much I want to offer?"
Snickers broke out all around them.
Lord Huang San found it hard to maintain his composure. "Even if these worthless stones were given to me for free, I wouldn't want them!"
Liu Rumeng smiled. "Lord Huang San, these are all major merchants from various regions. You can say I don't know the trade, but why drag everyone else into it? That's a rather heavy accusation to throw around."
The people present turned to glare at the man in cyan one after another, their expressions quite ugly.
Especially those who had previously placed high bids; they wished they could strangle him on the spot!
According to him, the rest of them were complete fools!
Seeing the collective hostility suddenly shift toward him, Lord Huang San panicked inwardly.
"Don't all of you be fooled by this woman! I've gambled on stones for so many years and I've never missed. There are no crystals of any kind inside these stones; it's all just a trick they've orchestrated."
As soon as these words were uttered, he offended the stone merchant as well.
"Does the young master have any evidence for such claims? I, Zhao, have run this stone-gambling business for many years, always operating with utmost integrity and a clear conscience. If the young master cannot give Master Zhao an answer, don't blame Master Zhao for being discourteous today!"
"That's right! He has no money to bid himself, so he accuses others of cheating!"
"I remember he's been here for ages, yet he hasn't even bid a single piece of gold. Who knows how many copper coins are rattling in that pouch of his!"
"Now that I think about it, the last time he only bid two hundred gold and dug up a piece of purple quartz, and no one would buy it from him even when he begged!"
Liu Rumeng crossed her arms, watching the scene unfold with detached indifference.
The mockery of the crowd made Lord Huang San frantic.
He suddenly pointed at Liu Rumeng. "Dare you gamble with me? We'll wager on this very stone!"
Liu Rumeng raised her eyes lazily. "Oh? What kind of wager?"
"If this stone yields a Green Crystal, I will buy it at full price! If it doesn't yield a good crystal, you will kneel before everyone and apologize!"
"Lord Huang San is truly a crafty schemer; heads you win, tails I lose," Liu Rumeng remarked with derision.
"What kind of man bullies a young girl?!"
"If that stone yields a Green Crystal, its price will multiply several times over. You want to buy it at the original price? You're dreaming!"
Amidst the noisy uproar, Lord Huang San grew somewhat irritable. "This won't do, that won't do either! Then you tell me, how should we wager?!"
Liu Rumeng waited for the crowd to quiet down before speaking. "If I lose, losing twelve thousand gold is already punishment enough. But if I win—"
The corners of Liu Rumeng's lips curved upward, a flash of mischievous malice sweeping across the depths of her eyes. The smile vanished as quickly as it came, yet it was precisely captured by someone.
"The little thing is up to no mischief," a voice echoed from behind the gauze curtain, carrying a faint indulgence and a trace of a smile in its deep, dark eyes.
The man set down his teacup and extended his right hand slightly. A pure white little crane landed on his palm, tilting its head to look at him while making soft cooing sounds.
"You have accompanied me for many years. Now, I want you to protect someone else."
The tiny, dark bean-like eyes blinked, and the little white crane suddenly lowered its head, rubbing affectionately against the crook of his thumb in reluctance to part.
"Go."
The white crane held its head high, spread its wings, and flew out.
Downstairs.
Everyone was still waiting for Liu Rumeng to finish.
Concealing the hint of mischief in her eyes, Liu Rumeng said indifferently, "If I win, I ask that Young Master Huang serve as a petty errand boy in this gambling den for a few days, at everyone's beck and call."
As soon as these words were spoken, a burst of boisterous laughter erupted all around.
This fellow surnamed Huang had just offended the stone merchant and all these merchants as well. If he were reduced to an errand boy, his days certainly wouldn't be pleasant.
This truly was borrowing a knife to kill, inflicting harm without leaving a trace.
Lord Huang San must have truly angered everyone for them to push him down now that he was falling; everyone was eager to watch him make a fool of himself.
They all began jeering and egging them on.
Riding the tiger and unable to dismount, Lord Huang San had no choice but to grit his teeth and accept.
"Fine, a wager it is! If you lose, don't go crying!"
"And if Young Master Huang loses, don't try to slink away."
The commotion finally came to an end.
Liu Rumeng bid twelve thousand gold—an unprecedented price.
Someone hesitated and raised a hand. "Thirteen thousand gold!"
Liu Rumeng followed up. "Fifteen thousand gold!"
The scene erupted into an uproar once again.
Not a single person dared to bid any further.
Liu Rumeng glanced up at the upper floor. Although the buyers looked eager to try, quite a few of them were shrinking back in hesitation.
"Fifteen thousand gold. Does anyone wish to raise it?"
Liu Rumeng swept her gaze across the crowd, but everyone averted their eyes.
"Does anyone else want to bid?"
Silence reigned.
The auction mallet was raised, just about to fall.
"Twenty thousand gold." A voice pierced through the air from the upper floor, deep, powerful, and utterly majestic.
Dead silence followed, as if time itself had frozen.
Even Liu Rumeng was startled.
Twenty thousand gold!
Could this stone really yield a price like that?
He was sitting so far away that he probably hadn't even seen the stone; it was simply too absurd!
The crowd evidently shared the same thought, all of them raising their heads to look upward, trying to figure out who had placed the bid.
Yet none of them could catch a glimpse.
Nan Liefeng stiffened; he knew all too well where that voice came from.
Situ Shao'an lowered his voice. "It seems this stone really isn't ordinary. Should we..."
Nan Liefeng had already raised his hand. "Twenty-five thousand gold!"
Situ Shao'an: "..."
*I was just talking casually, Big Brother, you don't have to be so enthusiastic...*
Amidst the absolute silence, Liu Rumeng raised her head.
Instantly, her gaze collided with a pair of arrogant eyes. Liu Rumeng gave a slight start, then calmly averted her gaze.
Nan Liefeng stared intently at Liu Rumeng, intense warmth flowing in the depths of his eyes—just like his very nature, wild, arrogant, and direct.
Liu Rumeng lowered her head slightly, her mind occupied by whether she should raise the bid.
Nan Liefeng probably didn't understand stones; he was most likely just joining in for the excitement, which made someone like him even more dangerous.
With money to burn and total caprice, he wouldn't care whether it yielded a Green Crystal or not; no matter how much she increased her bid, he would follow along.
Liu Rumeng felt a twinge of regret.
There had once been such a fine piece of stone placed right before her, yet she hadn't managed to secure it. If Heaven gave her another chance, she reckoned she still wouldn't be able to get it.
Liu Rumeng sighed and decided to give up.
Suddenly, a voice rang out in her mind.
*"Little girl, open your hand."*
*"Who?!"* Liu Rumeng looked around, only to realize that absolutely no one was paying attention to her.
Yet she had clearly heard a voice just now.
And that voice was extremely familiar...
Perplexed, Liu Rumeng opened her hand, and saw a tiny white crane fly straight into her palm, tucking its wings and settling down gently.
Liu Rumeng blinked in surprise, thinking it was just a hallucination, when the white crane suddenly rubbed against her palm and spoke aloud: *"I'm still little, Master has to pamper me."*
*"..."*
*"Why isn't Master saying anything?"*
*"You... you..."*
*"Master, don't call me 'you', I have a name. My name is Qingye."*
Liu Rumeng hurried away to a secluded spot. *"Where did you come from?"*
*"I came out of an egg."*
*"..."*
*"Master, there isn't any Green Crystal in that stone. Don't waste your money; save it so Qingye can buy little fish to eat, okay?"*
*"..."*
*"Qingye doesn't eat much—just six liang of dried little fish, two eggs, and a small cup of fruit wine every day. Qingye also needs to take a bath every day, so Master has to help me clean my feathers daily, or Qingye will feel uncomfortable."*
*"You..."* Liu Rumeng simply didn't know where to start complaining. After thinking for a moment, she asked, *"You're saying... there's no Green Crystal in that stone?"*
*"Qingye doesn't eat much—just six liang of dried little fish, two eggs, and a small cup of fruit wine every day. Qingye also needs to take a bath every day, so Master has to help me clean my feathers daily, or Qingye will feel uncomfortable."*
*"You..."* Liu Rumeng simply didn't know where to start complaining. After thinking for a moment, she asked, *"You're saying... there's no Green Crystal in that stone?"*
*"Of course not. Not only is there no Green Crystal, there isn't even any purple quartz."* Qingye stood up, stretched its little claws, and tilted its head to look at her. *"There's only the lowest-grade black stone in there. It tastes super awful."*
*"How do you know?"* She had clearly seen that there was a wonderful treasure inside. Could her professional knowledge have failed her?
*"I've secretly eaten a lot of crystals before, my belly was about to burst. Doesn't Master know that we are born loving to use crystals to build our nests?"*
Using crystals to build... nests... truly extravagant enough...
The white crane licked its claw. *"Black stone smells foul and tastes terrible, and eating it will even poison you. But its hardness is very similar to a Green Crystal's, which must be why Master made a mistake."*
Liu Rumeng understood now. So that was how it was.
She could only discern that there was a large crystal inside, but she couldn't tell what kind it was—that was her greatest blunder.
She had never imagined that a single stone could conceal two entirely different minerals.
*"Master, please don't buy it, okay? Qingye is getting hungry."*
*"Why are you calling me Master?"* Liu Rumeng looked around, utterly bewildered as to why this little creature had latched onto her in particular.
She had neither money nor spiritual power; she truly wasn't a good master to serve.
*"I like you, that's why. Qingye doesn't need to look for a mate, why shouldn't my Master be pretty?"*
*"That... is true..."* Liu Rumeng didn't know whether to laugh or feel comforted.
*"Master, pet Qingye."* Qingye nuzzled its little head forward.
Dazed, Liu Rumeng reached out and stroked its little head. Qingye purred with pleasure, showing not a shred of the elegance a white crane ought to possess.
Liu Rumeng amusedly thought, *Are you really a white crane?* Or rather, a puppy?
Qingye blinked. *"I'm not a white crane, I'm a White Phoenix."*
Liu Rumeng was taken aback.
White Phoenix: a level-seven spirit beast, possessing human-like intelligence and loyalty, but gluttonous. Its temperament changes drastically upon reaching adulthood, requiring extensive training and guidance before it can achieve greatness.
She looked again at the little creature before her, the corners of her mouth twitching slightly.
*"But you clearly..."* wore the face of a white crane...
*"We can turn into all sorts of things when we're little. Does Master not like white cranes?"* Qingye suddenly puffed out its belly.
*Pop.* After a flash of white light, a miniature little piglet unexpectedly appeared in her palm.
*"Oink oink, does Master like this? Oink oink."* It even proudly wagged its tail.
*"..."* Liu Rumeng rubbed her forehead, utterly defeated. *"You'd better change back to your original form."*
Qingye transformed back into a white crane and flapped its wings. *"I'm still little. When I grow up, I'll look like a White Phoenix."*
Looking at this talkative little spirit beast, Liu Rumeng suddenly recalled the voice that had rung in her mind earlier.
Could this little fellow have been sent to her by *him*?
As soon as that thought crossed her mind, the voice sounded once again: *"Do you like it?"*
Suppressing her shock, Liu Rumeng remembered what the man had said before leaving about some sort of curse he had placed inside her body.
This was probably one of its functions.
Liu Rumeng curled her lip in silent disdain. *"Is this also a method for you to control me?"*
*"Qingye seems to like you very much."* The man avoided answering her question, his deep voice resounding in her mind, carrying an exceptionally seductive quality.
Liu Rumeng raised her head to scan her surroundings, but found no trace of the man.
*"No need to search, I'm not here."* The man seemed to read her thoughts, chuckling softly.
Cupping little Qingye in her hands, Liu Rumeng asked offhandedly, *"You wouldn't give me something for nothing, would you? Tell me, what do you want?"*
*"Haha..."* To her surprise, the man laughed heartily, the sound echoing within her mind and lingering for a long time.
Liu Rumeng wanted to plug her ears, only to realize it was completely useless. She couldn't help saying coldly, *"How long are you going to laugh?"*
*"When a man gives gifts to a woman, what other purpose could he have? Little girl, you're so smart, why are you playing dumb again?"* The man's voice suddenly turned deep and meaningful.
Liu Rumeng furrowed her brows slightly, struggling to comprehend the man's intentions.
Was he trying to court her?
But why?
Right now she was destitute, poor, ugly, and foolish, with no family background or backing, and she was even a sickly invalid. Even if he were blind enough to fall for her at first sight, couldn't he use a more normal way to pursue her?
Implanting brainwave control and tracking on her—she asked you, what woman would ever agree to that?
*"I only know that if you don't remove this thing right now, you will definitely regret it!"*
*"Oh?"* The man seemed to find it amusing. *"What are you planning to do this time?"*
Liu Rumeng's beautiful eyes narrowed into slits, a wicked smile tugging at the corners of her lips. *You brought this on yourself!*
Suddenly, she gathered her breath into her dantian.