"Is that so? You think you're up to the task?"
Zhou Lin stood with his hands on his hips, his lewd eyes scanning the Luoli up and down, finding the sight increasingly amusing. She looked like a middle schooler—and she wanted to stand up for a guy named Yang? She should have weighed how much she was actually worth first.
"I never bully kids. Get lost and stand aside!"
Wen Wan did not like the sound of that one bit. She was quite grown up; where did she look like a kid? The Luoli puffed out her chest, pouting as she retorted, "I’m already twenty-three! I am not a kid! And for your information, I’m protecting Yang Fan today. If you dare lay a finger on him, see if I don't have you kicked out of Wanbo!"
Zhou Lin laughed. It was an old saying that the antique trade and stone gambling were cut from the same cloth. In the entire stone gambling street, who didn't know he was the young master of Baobao Pavilion? Besides, the owner of Wanbo was his uncle. Have him kicked out? What kind of ridiculous joke was that?
"Heh, you little sprout. Just for that, I’m definitely going to mess with Yang Fan!" Zhou Lin offered a cold smirk and signaled his henchmen with a glance. "Do it! Give this kid a real lesson!"
"Yes, sir!"
The two henchmen received their orders, rolled up their sleeves, and prepared to throw hands. Seeing that the situation was turning bad, Yang Fan quickly pulled the Luoli behind him and frowned. "Zhou Lin, we’re all just here to gamble on stones. You play your game, I’ll play mine. Why make it into this?"
"I just don't like the look of you, and I want to mess you up. So what?" Zhou Lin remained unmoved, sneering. "If you want me to let you off, it’s not impossible. Kneel down and kowtow to me three times!"
"Kneel to your mother!"
Yang Fan didn't want to cause trouble, but he was a man in his early twenties—what young man didn't have a bit of fire in his blood? Have him kowtow to a piece of trash like this? He could dream on.
"Damn it, are you tired of living? You dare talk to Young Master Zhou like that?"
"Get him!"
The two henchmen swung their arms, charging toward Yang Fan aggressively. They didn't realize that their supposedly fierce attacks were moving in infinite slow motion through Yang Fan’s eyes, and he dodged them without any effort at all.
"Damn it, you dog! If you've got guts, stop dodging!" one of the men cursed, refusing to give up as he launched another attack.
This time, Yang Fan didn't dodge. With a sidestep, he grabbed the man’s arm, used the man's own momentum, and hurled him five or six meters away!
"Holy..."
So fierce!
Zhou Lin was stunned. Wen Wan was dumbfounded. Even Yang Fan himself was shocked, as his understanding of his X-ray Vision had just been refreshed. This was more than just a little improvement; it was a heaven-defying transformation! Yang Fan felt a surge of inner joy. He had only used a light flick to send the man flying; if he went all out, taking on ten or so people at once wouldn't be a problem at all.
"You dog! I didn't realize you were a trained fighter!" Zhou Lin regained his composure. Realizing Yang Fan was tough to handle, he called over the owner of Wanbo. "Uncle Wang, this was the kid who cheated me yesterday. And today, he dares to come and cause trouble in your place. You can't let him off easily!"
"Oh?"
Hearing this, the middle-aged man addressed as Uncle Wang tilted his head, giving Yang Fan a cold, side-eyed glance. "You’ve got some nerve, kid. You dare cause trouble in my place?!"
The man had a large belly and "three-white" eyes; one look was enough to tell he wasn't a good person. And that was indeed the case. His name was Wang Hu. In his youth, he had been a street thug and was a sworn brother to Zhou Lin’s father. Having made a fortune in recent years, he had invested in Wanbo and held a twenty percent stake in the gambling hall. Now that he had encountered someone who cheated his brother's son, it stood to reason that Wang Hu wouldn't let Yang Fan off lightly.
However, before he could make a move, a familiar baby-faced girl caught his eye. The next moment, the Luoli spoke:
"Boss Wang, this small fry doesn't recognize me, but surely you don't fail to recognize me, do you?"
"Miss Wen, what are you saying? You are one of our biggest patrons; how could I not recognize you?" Wang Hu’s attitude took a one-hundred-and-eighty-degree turn, as polite as could be.
Although Zhou Lin was a bit of a spoiled brat, he wasn't stupid. Seeing how respectful Uncle Wang was toward the Luoli, he sensed something was wrong. "Uncle Wang, what’s this girl's background?"
"Don't call her 'girl' so casually!" Wang Hu furrowed his brow, reminding him in a deep voice, "This is the eldest daughter of the Wen Family, the daughter of Master Wen Qirong. Watch your tongue!"
"The Wen Family?!"
Zhou Lin had been in the antique business for years. Even if he hadn't met Wen Qirong, he had heard of his glorious reputation! Across all of Fengcheng, the Wen Family was undoubtedly one of the top families, and as the head of the Wen Family, Wen Qirong was a titan in the antique world, nicknamed the "Master of the Heavenly Eye"!
"Hmph," Wen Wan stood with her hands on her hips, her luscious lips pouting as she looked at him with arrogant pride. "Now do you know how impressive I am?"
"No matter how impressive you are, it’s the Wen Family that's impressive, not you." Zhou Lin’s eyes rolled as he deliberately goaded her. "Since we're at a stone gambling hall, if you've got guts, let's make a bet! If you can cut out a good piece, I’ll admit you're good!"
"If you can't, then you're not allowed to interfere in the grudge between me and this kid!"
"Fine! A gentleman's word is his bond—let's bet!"
Wen Wan agreed readily.
Yang Fan was completely bewildered. Wait, did you hear the terms of the bet? He said if we win, he'll admit we're "good"? That’s it?!
"Hahahaha, as expected of the Wen Family's eldest daughter—truly decisive!" Zhou Lin’s sinister scheme had succeeded. He narrowed his eyes and smiled, "Then let's wait and see whose stone yields the better treasure!"
"Bring it on!" Wen Wan snorted, brimming with confidence. "Yang Fan, it’s up to you now. You must pick a top-tier piece and dazzle everyone!"
Yang Fan twitched his mouth, feeling both helpless and amused. It was a good thing he possessed X-ray Vision, or he would have definitely lost this bet today. Adhering to the principle of making major problems minor and minor ones disappear, Yang Fan didn't bother to raise the stakes with Zhou Lin. Instead, he quietly activated his X-ray Vision, carefully observing the raw stones at the ten stalls.
At the first stall, the quality of the raw stones was decent; a hint of green was vaguely visible. But even if opened, a stone of this quality would only result in a small profit after covering the costs—it couldn't be considered a premium treasure. If he wanted to settle this once and for all, he had to go big!
"Yang Fan, go in and look! Touch them! How can you see anything from so far away?" Wen Wan was anxious, pulling on Yang Fan’s sleeve. "This bet concerns the honor of the 'Heavenly Eye Duo.' We can only win, not lose! You better not screw this up!"
"Hey! Say something, Yang Fan..."
Yang Fan ignored her, focusing all his attention on choosing a stone. It wasn't until he walked in front of the fourth stall that he stopped in his tracks, his eyes flashing with intensity!
"Found it!"
"We’ll take this one!"