Ye Mingxuan coughed when he heard that and said, "Thirty thousand purple crystals? Do you take purple crystals for silver? My Ye Family can't come up with that much all at once. If you want something, kill him. If you don't, then wait half a month for us to gather them. In the meantime, release my Eldest Brother."
At that, Xuanxiao sensed something different and thought, In other words, it's not that they refuse to pay—they just can't produce it all at once right now. Hmm, what harm is there in letting him have half a month?
Xuanxiao deliberately furrowed his brows, his fingers tapping the table intermittently, as if he were engaged in some intense inner struggle. After a long while, he let out a deep sigh and put on an exasperated expression that seemed to say, "Fine, fine. There's really no helping you." He said to Ye Mingxuan, "Patriarch Ye, you know that I've always kept my word. However, since we can be considered brothers who became acquainted through a fight, and since you and I hit it off, I don't want to take things too far."
Ye Mingxuan sneered inwardly. Hit it off? You're just after my Ye Family's purple crystals! Outwardly, however, he put on a deeply grateful expression and repeatedly clasped his hands. "Thank you for your understanding, Brother Xuanxiao! Thank you, thank you! May I ask what you have in mind?"
Xuanxiao held up one finger and waved it before Ye Mingxuan's eyes, speaking unhurriedly. "I can wait, but words alone mean nothing. What if your Ye Family goes back on its word? Wouldn't the two of us have worked for nothing? How about this? I won't ask for much. Pay ten thousand purple crystals as a deposit first. How does that sound?"
"Ten