The smile vanished from Ya Fei's face. Her already jade-white complexion turned a little pale as she looked at Zhang Yuan with humiliation and anger in her eyes.
She indeed remembered Zhang Yuan deeply, because not only was this youth's appearance and bearing the most outstanding she had ever seen, but he also possessed the cultivation talent she envied most.
When they first met, he had been fourteen and already possessed the strength of a Six-star Dou Zhe, while she had only just entered the Dou Zhe realm.
Now, two years had passed. He had likely become a Dou Master, while she was still a Low-Rank Dou Zhe.
And now, she hated this youth enough for her teeth to itch. If she had enough strength, she truly wanted to rush up and bite him hard to vent the hatred in her heart.
He was actually using the person she hated most to threaten her!
"You know Mu Zhan?" Ya Fei straightened her posture, her tone becoming extremely serious.
"We're very familiar." Zhang Yuan lifted his teacup and nodded. "Two years ago, I went out to train. After honing myself in the Magical Beast Mountain Range for half a year, I went to enlist at the three great fortresses in the southern part of the empire and successfully joined the Black Armored Guard."
"During the Black Armored Guard selection, Mu Zhan was the formidable opponent in my group competing with me for the position of squad captain. At the time, he was a Peak Dou Zhe. I heard he was a direct descendant of the empire's Mu family."
At this point, Zhang Yuan paused and looked at Ya Fei. Seeing that her expression was still unpleasant, he continued, "You could say we became acquainted through a fight. He lost to me, but we became friends. Now, he and I are both battalion commanders in the Black Armored Guard."
"He's straightforward by nature. Whenever he gets leave, he often treats me to food and wine. The moment he drinks too much, he starts bragging about the woman he loves—Miss Ya Fei of the Mittel Family."
Ya Fei pursed her lips, no longer wearing the calm composure she had possessed upon arriving.
Xiao Yan wore an expression of someone enjoying the show.
"That Mu Zhan is probably the clingy type. He must have pushed this little girl so far that she fled to Wutan City," Old Yao's voice sounded beside Xiao Yan's ear.
Xiao Yan was already used to it. With a quick turn of thought, he cooperated with Zhang Yuan. "Cousin, you'll be returning to the army in a few days. You can tell Mu Zhan that Miss Ya Fei is training in Wutan City."
Ya Fei's heart lurched, and she immediately said, "No, absolutely not."
"Why not?" Xiao Yan asked.
Ya Fei pursed her lips but said nothing.
Zhang Yuan was such an understanding person that he helped explain, "My brother Mu Zhan is nursing a one-sided love. In the empire, he acts without restraint. As long as any man shows interest in Sister Ya Fei, he takes people to cause trouble for him, drawing plenty of criticism even toward the Mu family."
"To punish him, the head of the Mu family arranged for him to train in a border military camp. I imagine Sister Ya Fei came to Wutan City to avoid these troubles."
"That's right." Ya Fei wore a miserable expression. "My cultivation talent is average, and the clan elders all favor marrying me to Mu Zhan for an alliance. But I don't want to accept such a fate, so I volunteered to come to Wutan City and manage an auction house."
"As long as I achieve results and prove that I can bring greater benefits to the family, I can escape the fate of a political marriage."
As she spoke, Ya Fei even took out a handkerchief to wipe the tears from the corners of her eyes.
That sorrowful appearance was truly pitiful enough to melt anyone's heart.
Xiao Yan glanced at Zhang Yuan and awkwardly rubbed his nose. His skin was still too thin.
But Zhang Yuan remained unmoved by the sight. He said flatly, "It is precisely because I understand the difficulty in Sister Ya Fei's heart that I'm giving you a choice. Can we make a deal for a Fourth-grade Wind Elemental Core?"
Ya Fei's expression froze, and she looked at Zhang Yuan in shock.
She was already acting so pitifully. Did this man have no heart!?
My cousin really is incredible. Xiao Yan silently gave Zhang Yuan a thumbs-up.
Otherwise, how could he have won over Xun Er and that fierce woman Xiao Yu?
A faint smile appeared at the corner of Xun Er's eyes instead. She was very satisfied with Zhang Yuan's straightforwardly obtuse behavior.
"I can sell you one at market price." Ya Fei gritted her silver teeth.
Since coming to the Mittel Auction House in Wutan City, this was the first time she had suffered such a setback.
"Sister Ya Fei, this is an auction house, not a store." Zhang Yuan placed his auction house gold card on the table and said blandly, "As a distinguished guest, I can get a twenty percent discount."
Ya Fei took a deep breath.
If she could, she wanted to beat Zhang Yuan until his bones were broken.
"Fine." Ya Fei swallowed this hidden loss.
"I want both." Zhang Yuan added.
"Impossible." Ya Fei's face turned slightly cold. "Of the two Fourth-tier Wind Elemental Cores, one belongs to my Mittel Family, so I can make the decision. But the other was entrusted for auction by a passing Dou Ling. I cannot overstep my authority. There is only one."
Hearing this, Zhang Yuan shook his head. "Sister Ya Fei, Mu Zhan is my dearest friend and family, a comrade who entrusted his life to me, a brother who fought beside me—"
"Stop!" Ya Fei interrupted with a livid expression. "I can arrange a meeting with that Dou Ling. You can discuss it with him privately."
Discuss it themselves? Wouldn't that let him name whatever price he wanted?
The Xiao Clan could not afford to offend a Dou Ling for the time being.
"Sister Ya Fei, if I tell Mu Zhan that you're here, he would probably be very willing to sell me a Fourth-tier Wind Elemental Core at a low price." Zhang Yuan wore an expression that said he had her completely cornered.
Ya Fei wanted nothing more than to punch his handsome face, but she still forced herself to endure it. "At most, I can use my identity as the person in charge of the Mittel Auction House to buy this Magic Core from that lord. You can purchase it at my acquisition price."
"Deal." Zhang Yuan set down his teacup.
Everyone: "..."
Ya Fei left with a face full of anger, too lazy even to pretend to be polite anymore.
But Zhang Yuan had completely pinned her down with just the two words "Mu Zhan," without the slightest concern.
Xiao Yan gave Zhang Yuan a thumbs-up and praised him. "Cousin, you're amazing. You can control Ya Fei just by casually getting to know someone. Come to think of it, you've already met direct descendants of the Nalan family, Mu family, and Mittel Family, haven't you?"
"I also know you, a direct descendant of the Xiao Clan." Zhang Yuan smiled. "The former four great families of the Jia Ma Empire."
At those words, longing and guilt flashed through Xiao Zhan's eyes.
Seeing this, Zhang Yuan smiled. "Uncle, one day our Xiao Clan will surpass them."
Xiao Zhan clenched his fists and smiled. "With you and Yan'er, Uncle believes it."
At that moment, Xun Er suddenly asked, "Brother Zhang Yuan, you and Mu Zhan aren't actually friends, are you?"
Zhang Yuan turned to look at her. "Xun Er truly is clever. Mu Zhan and I aren't friends. We even find each other somewhat unpleasant to look at. More precisely, he is a little unable to accept defeat."
"Just as I thought." A smile bloomed on Xun Er's pretty face. "With your personality, Brother Zhang Yuan, if you were truly friends with Mu Zhan, then even if you didn't tell him that Ya Fei was here, you wouldn't use this matter to pressure Ya Fei."
Xun Er considered herself to understand Zhang Yuan well. This cousin of hers was a true gentleman.
Xiao Zhan and Xiao Yan nodded in sudden realization. They had wondered why something felt strange; so that was the reason.
Zhang Yuan: "..."
I'm not in the entertainment industry. Why is someone establishing a character setting for me?
But it didn't matter. As long as they were happy.
About a quarter of an hour later.
Ya Fei returned, but she was no longer alone. An elderly man with graying hair and green robes followed beside her. His clothes looked ordinary, but a faint light flowed over their surface, suggesting they had received some kind of magic crystal protection. His appearance was plain, but he carried undisguised pride—something every Alchemist possessed.
What drew the most attention was the badge on the old man's chest, shaped like a medicine furnace. Two dazzling silver ripples adorned it, signifying that he was a Second-grade Alchemist.
"Master Gu Ni." Xiao Zhan stood and cupped his fists in greeting.
The old man was not only a Second-grade Alchemist backed by the Mittel Family, but also a Three-star Da Dou Shi—the stabilizing pillar of this auction house.
"Clan Head Xiao." Master Gu Ni casually nodded at Xiao Zhan, then turned his gaze to Zhang Yuan.
With a catlike stride, Ya Fei walked over to Zhang Yuan. Her expression had returned to normal as she placed a jade box on the table and smiled seductively. "Little Brother Zhang Yuan, there is a Fourth-tier Wind Elemental Core here. Its market value is two hundred thousand gold coins. You only need to pay one hundred and sixty thousand."
There was only one, which meant she had failed to secure the one held by that Dou Ling.
She had brought Master Gu Ni back with her. Was she planning to use both soft and hard tactics?
She truly was a capable woman.
Zhang Yuan did not immediately take the Magic Core. Instead, he asked, "That Dou Ling is unwilling to sell?"
"He is willing to sell it, but his asking price is not low." Ya Fei straightened the ample cleavage that could leave most men dry-mouthed, placed one hand on her hip, and sighed. "If you had come a few days earlier, it would have been easy to handle, because that lord urgently needed gold coins. But today is the auction day, so naturally he wants to wait a little longer."
"If I want to secure it in advance, he will only accept an exchange of goods, or he wants the Mittel Family to owe him a favor on top of purchasing it at market price. I cannot make that decision."
As soon as she finished speaking, Master Gu Ni said, "This old man is qualified to agree to owe that favor on behalf of this auction house. But boy, do you think your threat against Ya Fei is enough to make this old man speak?"
(End of Chapter)
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