The Auction

The attendants moved quickly.

The leftovers were cleared away, the long dining table was pushed to the side, and the seats were rearranged into the layout of an auction.

Mayor Bartok even personally moved a high-backed chair to serve as the auctioneer's podium, producing a decorative wooden gavel from somewhere in his robes.

Ye Wei'an smiled as he handed a stack of property deeds and certificates to the mayor, then sat to the side, watching their performance with amusement.

"Gentlemen, the first 'restitution' item we are selling concerns the permanent lease of the Old Oak Leather Shop's warehouse in the West District, as well as... as well as the thirty percent 'non-contractual dividend' that Gray Crow previously held in the Thorn Timber Guild."

Bartok gave a dry cough, his eyes sweeping quickly over the crowd. "Everyone here knows that whether it was the warehouse or the shares, the previous owners were forced to 'gift' them to him due to Gray Crow's 'suggestions'."

Hearing this, Thorn, the head of the Timber Guild, felt his face twitch.

This so-called dividend was, in essence, his kickback to Gray Crow.

Under Gray Crow's protection, he had monopolized the town's timber trade, forcing the townspeople to pay double the market price while he raked in massive profits.

Thorn stood up and shouted with his head bowed, "For these thirty percent of shares... I offer two thousand Gold Lion Coins to buy them back! Furthermore, I admit that for the sake of 'operational convenience,' I previously helped Gray Crow process some timber of questionable origin..."

"That is called 'straying from the path,' Guildmaster Thorn," Ye Wei'an said, holding his wine glass with a faint, mocking smile.

"Yes, yes! Straying from the path!" Thorn chimed in hurriedly.

"Does anyone else wish to bid?" Bartok asked the others, purely as a formality.

Of course, no one would bid; these shares were the lifeblood of the Timber Guild, and no one would make things difficult for Thorn at a time like this.

"Then, shall we consider it sold?" Bartok looked cautiously toward Ye Wei'an.

"Since no one else is bidding, then it is sold," Ye Wei'an nodded slowly.

Only when Ye Wei'an spoke did Thorn finally let out a sigh of relief.

In Faerûn, the value of such industrial shares is typically three to five times their annual net profit.

Excluding taxes paid to the Summerstar Family and wages, the Timber Guild's normal annual profit was roughly 2,000 Gold Lion Coins, meaning the annual return on those thirty percent of shares was 600 Gold Lion Coins.

When making his bid, Thorn's heart truly ached for the money; the auction price he proposed was essentially at the lower limit of a standard transaction.

He had been mentally prepared for Ye Wei'an to make things difficult for him, but it seemed this young master was indeed quite magnanimous.

With the first auction serving as a successful precedent, the other wealthy merchants roughly understood Ye Wei'an's bottom line.

Next, it was the turn of the grain merchant, old Krillin.

What he needed to "buy back" were several shell warehouses that Gray Crow had registered under his grain company's name.

Many at the banquet knew that those were used specifically by Gray Crow to hoard stale rice and fence goods after colluding with bandits to rob his competitors.

Back then, to crush his rivals, old Krillin had often sought Gray Crow's help, even going so far as to lend his own guards to help the bandits transport grain.

"For those warehouses, I offer one thousand... no, one thousand two hundred Gold Lion Coins!" old Krillin gritted his teeth as he made his bid.

Still, no one competed, and the item was sold quickly.

Following this, the entire auction process moved extremely fast, filled with a tacit understanding between the auctioneer and the buyers.

Some of the "shares" had no paper contracts at all—they existed simply because Gray Crow had once announced in a drunken stupor that he owned a portion, and Ye Wei'an counted them regardless.

Yet, even for such flimsy agreements, these local tyrants had to obediently cough up the gold coins to "buy them back."

They were forced to admit, in front of everyone, to those unspeakable verbal agreements and acknowledge how they had once run rampant through the town by leveraging Gray Crow's tyranny.

The most ironic scene occurred at the very end of the auction—the sale of the two-story building housing the Old Oak Leather Shop.

In reality, that plot of land had been Mayor Bartok's own handiwork years ago.

To cover up a deficit from embezzling bridge construction funds, he had sought Gray Crow's help, and in return, he had privately granted this land to Gray Crow.

Now, Bartok had to step onto the stage himself, gritting his teeth to bid at a price far higher than market value, effectively filling the hole he had dug all those years ago.

In truth, with Gray Crow's downfall, these local tyrants could have easily defaulted on these so-called assets and shares.

But with Ye Wei'an orchestrating this event, they were forced to bite the bullet and pay these "atonement fees."

Everyone did the math in their heads:

Although the money had flowed out, the industries previously held in a chokehold by Gray Crow were finally back in their own hands, now legitimate and above board.

More importantly, through this auction, they had completed a high-profile whitewashing of their reputations—transforming overnight from Gray Crow's "accomplices" into "philanthropists" who supported the lord and compensated the townspeople.

When the banquet ended, Mayor Bartok held a thick stack of Waukeen gold vouchers, while his attendants carried two chests of clinking gold coins, respectfully presenting them to Ye Wei'an.

"My Lord, all the 'restitution' has been tallied. Please, have a look."

Ye Wei'an looked at these spoils, and the last shred of apprehension he felt toward Lady Selina at Firefall Fortress dissipated.

These local tyrants had no idea that Gray Crow's true backer was the Baroness.

Now, they had spent real gold and silver to buy back the properties and shares that "belonged" to the Baroness.

For these stingy, greedy merchants, handing over the cash they had scraped together over a lifetime to atone for their sins was like cutting off their own flesh.

Once that flesh is cut, it is gone; it is impossible for it to be cut a second time.

If Lady Selina ever wanted to reclaim these industries in the future, she would have to forcibly seize them from these local tyrants.

By then, the Lady would no longer be facing submissive merchants, but a group of desperate outlaws pushed to the brink, fighting to protect their homes and wealth.

Amidst the enthusiasm of the wealthy merchants, Ye Wei'an departed from the brightly lit official residence.

The cool breeze of the late night cleared his head significantly.

His carriage had been waiting for him at the main gate for some time.

As soon as he stepped into the carriage, a dainty figure greeted him.

It was Ailian; as she spread a blanket over Ye Wei'an, she pouted, "Young Master, if you hadn't come down any sooner, I would have started to suspect that you were bewitched by the town mayor's chubby daughter. That banquet went on for far too long."

"I wanted to slip away earlier myself, but the enthusiasm of these local snakes was simply too 'valuable' to ignore." Ye Wei'an ruffled her hair and casually patted the stack of Waukeen gold notes into her arms. "Take these; this is the harvest from tonight."

Ailian muttered to herself while counting them by the dim light of the carriage lamp. At first, she flipped through them carelessly, but after counting only a few, her movements froze. Her eyes widened until they could go no further, and she eventually held her breath entirely.

"One, two, three... eighty-six, eighty-seven... Good heavens, over eight thousand gold coins in notes?" she exclaimed, then looked toward the two heavy money chests nearby. "And there are five thousand gold coins here... Young Master, did you rob the entire Firefall Town?"

"This is all thanks to that 'Gray Crow'," Ye Wei'an leaned back against the soft cushions, watching the little maid's greedy yet adoring expression with a relaxed look. "I told them that Gray Crow had harmed too many people, and I had no choice but to liquidate the assets he left behind to compensate the victims. To absolve themselves of responsibility, these local snakes had no choice but to scramble to pay up."

"Young Master, you are truly amazing!" Ailian had already started counting on her fingers, lost in fantasy. "With this much money, we could buy so many handsome suits, hire the top chefs, order the finest maid dresses... we could even buy a grand manor with a fountain in Suzar!"

She still remembered that the black-and-white maid outfit she was wearing had been designed by her master himself and custom-made by a tailor.

It was just a pity that her master hadn't had much money back then, so he couldn't choose the best materials.

Ironically, the design of this maid outfit later became popular throughout Suzar.

She was clearly the first maid to wear such an outfit, yet the one she wore was inferior to those of the later adopters, which had infuriated her.

"Don't just think about dresses." Ye Wei'an pointed to the two heavy chests of cash. "I intend to distribute those five thousand gold coins to the townspeople who were harmed by Gray Crow and the bandits first thing tomorrow morning. Not a single coin of that money is to be touched."

Ailian was stunned for a moment, but then the adoration in her eyes grew even deeper. "Young Master, you are truly too kind. I was being shallow."

Ye Wei'an did not respond, merely watching the streetscape recede outside the window, though a strange thought stirred within his heart.

He felt secretly grateful that when he had chosen his class, he had opted for Sorcerer rather than Wizard.

Without a Charisma score as high as 18 to support him, he would never have possessed that innate aura of leadership and powers of persuasion.

It was precisely this intangible charisma that allowed him to shatter the defenses of the local snakes in a single night, making them feel a sense of trust in him even amidst their fear.