"I know you would be fine even if I don't help." Ye Yunji turned his head slightly to look at Gu Fenghua looking at him. He spoke at a volume that was only audible between the two of them, "Just leave them to me. No sense in soiling your hands."
"Thanks then." Gu Fenghua smiled at Ye Yunji.
"Who are you?" said Jiang Ziyi angrily as he stood up and looked at Ye Yunji.
Ye Yunji glanced at Jiang Ziyi before he replied coldly in a distant voice, "The Jiang family are the only people in Guanghua who carry two swords. It appears that Jiang Huaigu hasn't been beating you up enough. That is the reason you are still a troublemaker and haven't learned your lesson."
"Who are you! How dare you say my grandfather's name with such disrespect?" Jiang Ziyi promptly looked livid. However, Gu Fenghua detected an imperceptible sense of uneasiness in his voice.
His servants were at a loss before one of them suddenly recognized the man and worriedly went close to Jiang Ziyi and whispered to him. No one knew what they were talking about, but Jiang Ziyi's face instantly looked anxious as he raised his head and looked at Ye Yunji. A look of shock surprisingly emerged on his face.
"Jiang Ziyi, work hard for the tournament and go straight home when you're done." Ye Yunji's voice sounded deep and slow, but it sent chills down Jiang Ziyi's back.
"Okay…" After Jiang Ziyi composed himself, he realized he had unknowingly acknowledged Ye Yunji obediently. He glared at Ye Yunji angrily before he swiftly left with his servants. From behind, he looked a little like he was fleeing the scene.
"Ye Yunji!"
"Ye Yunji!"
Everyone cheered. Ye Yunji had given Jiang Ziyi a tight slap on his face and defended Celestial Academy's honor.
Gu Fenghua looked at the young man whom Jiang Ziyi had sent flying with a single strike of the sword. She went over to him and smiled as she asked, "Are you okay? Thanks for your help. Consider this pill my gift."
Blood was flowing from the corner of the young man's mouth as someone helped him up. The moment he caught sight of Gu Fenghua's beauty and lovely smile, he ended up with a nosebleed.
"Are you okay?" asked Gu Fenghua once more.
"He should be fine." The injured fellow student said nothing. Instead, Ye Yunji walked over and spoke on his behalf. He took the pills from Gu Fenghua's hand and stuffed them into the young man's hands and said thoughtfully, "It is good that you tried to stand up for her, but you have to be able to defend yourself before you can protect others."
Luo Enen automatically interpreted this as him saying not to act tough if one was not strong enough. She agreed that Ye Yunji certainly made sense.
"You are right. I get it. I will cultivate diligently from now on." The young man instantly woke up when he saw Ye Yunji. Since he was a big fan of Ye Yunji, he was absolutely thrilled now that he had the opportunity to talk to his idol.
"Good." Ye Yunji nodded before he turned to look at Gu Fenghua. "Fenghua, let's go. You wanted to go shopping, right? I will come with you."
"Huh?" Gu Fenghua finally gathered her thoughts and nodded. "Sure. Thanks for helping."
"Let's go." Ye Yunji, Gu Fenghua and Luo Enen left. A few steps later, Gu Fenghua heard Ye Yunji say softly, "Fortunately, the pills you gave him weren't that good. However, it was quite a waste to give them to him."
"Huh?" Gu Fenghua turned to look at Ye Yunji quizzically. Instead, Ye Yunji looked like he meant what he said.
"Nothing." Ye Yunji remained calm and seemed as though everything he had just said to Gu Fenghua was nothing but an illusion.
Gu Fenghua was at a loss, but she did not keep thinking about it.
Ye Yunji asked Gu Fenghua as they walked in the streets, "What do you want to buy?"
"Hmm… Some snacks. I also want to visit the garment shop and see if they have any new outfits," replied Gu Fenghua. Every woman wanted to look good. It might be inconvenient for a female martial artist to wear too many accessories, but clothes were fine. Also, the garment shop was able to create fighting gear that looked trendy.
"Sure. I will pay for everything in gratitude to my savior." Ye Yunji's gorgeous face remained expressionless. Only his eyes looked slightly softer.
"Thanks then." Gu Fenghua was happy to take up Ye Yunji's offer. She teased, "I'm starting to think that your life is worth more than 15 flower pigs."
Did she have to talk about this? A slight look of powerlessness swept across Ye Yunji's eyes.
The moment the Five Spices' employee spotted Gu Fenghua, he hurriedly welcomed her with great enthusiasm. The shopkeeper smiled so brightly that his face was crumpled. Each time Gu Fenghua visited their shop, she would buy almost 90% of their stock.
Luo Enen stood in the shop and inhaled deeply. Even the air smelled sweet. She felt as though she was in heaven!
"Stick to my usual order. This time, give me 50 kilograms each," said Gu Fenghua to the shopkeeper.
"Certainly. Miss Gu, please take a seat while we prepare your order right away." The shopkeeper rubbed his hands with his eyes gleaming brightly. Gu Fenghua was a big spender and always left a tip. Even if they overcharged her, she did not mind.
All three of them sat down as the shopkeeper sent for tea. He supervised his employees as they brought the snacks out so that Gu Fenghua could place them inside her interspatial bracelet easily.
Luo Enen kept staring at the snacks in the shop and almost drooled.
After some time, the shopkeeper smiled as he said, "Miss Gu, all set. Please check and settle the bill. That's a total of 800 silver taels."
Gu Fenghua nodded. She stood up to place all the snacks inside her interspatial bracelet.
Ye Yunji stood up as well to look at the shopkeeper and said, "Are the prices you have listed right?"
"They are correct. We have been in business for over a century, so we are an honest business." Even though the shopkeeper did not know Ye Yunji, he could recognize the dragon pendant hanging from his waist and knew he must be a member of the royal family, so he spoke cautiously.
"Perfect," said Ye Yunji calmly. "You got your math wrong. You are overcharging her two silver taels and three copper coins."
"Huh?" The shopkeeper's face smile instantly froze as he stammered. "N-no, you must be mistaken. I just checked the number and it was right." The shopkeeper turned for the abacus.
"It's okay." Ye Yunji whipped out a small gold abacus like he was performing a magic trick. The sound of the abacus beads going tick tack rang in the air. "50 kilograms of spiced beef jerky costs 58 taels. 50 kilograms of spicey beef jerky costs 57 taels…"
The shopkeeper watched dumbstruck at the elegantly dressed man as he went into a daze looking at Ye Yunji's gold abacus. Could someone please tell him why a member of the royal family was capable of using the abacus more quickly than an old shopkeeper?
Hang on. That was not the point. More importantly, how could a man of such high-status lack money? Why was he being so calculative over two taels and three copper coins? Occasionally, even the tip that Gu Fenghua gave them was worth over ten taels!