Half a month later.
Before the Royal Mansion took any action against Sun Family Pharmacy, the news that Soucan County was occupied by the rebel army had widely spread.
The public was in an uproar, and the streets were filled with discussions about the rebels. Even Yulan, who rarely ventured outside, asked Yu Xian curiously about the appearance of the rebel army.
Overall, the atmosphere seemed rather relaxed, with most people treating it as a spectacle.
After all, there was a thousand miles between Soucan and Prosper County, so it was highly unlikely that the rebels would make a quick attack.
Also, no one believed that the rebels would amount to much.
Yue Kingdom consisted of thirty-two counties and twelve great Dukes, with millions of soldiers. Nobody thought that the trouble in Soucan County could cause significant turmoil.
The traders heading south were the ones most affected.
At this time, information was primarily spread by horses and boats.
With the southern waterways blocked by the authorities, boats unaware of the situation still kept coming from everywhere. In the end, they were all stuck in the port.
The brothers who had spoken to Yu Xian earlier were considered fortunate. They had sold their goods at a reasonable price to Treasure Tower without making great losses.
However, many traders could only store their goods in the port, with the losses increasing every day. The prices of perishable goods kept plummeting day by day.
At this point, they could either hold on and gamble that the court would put down the rebellion soon and continue to head south, or they could sell their goods at a low price and salvage whatever value was left.
This was a competition of who could sell faster.
The prices collapsed, with goods once worth ten taels of silver now being sold for one tael. Everyone just wanted to clear their stock and leave, causing the market to continue trending downward.
Southern traders were extremely unlucky, but the businesses in Prosper City were thriving, especially the Treasure Tower, which swallowed up countless goods at an extremely low price in a short period.
Frequent transactions led to a bustling market, and many small traders flocked into Prosper City, hoping to get a share of the profits from this feast.
The whole Prosper City became lively as a result.
Amidst this false prosperity, the Jade Appraisal hosted by Treasure Tower finally commenced.
On that day,
Yu Xian took Yulan and prepared 5,000 taels of silver, strolling leisurely to the Treasure Tower like a young master from a wealthy family on a sightseeing trip.
Chen Yi, on the other hand, persisted in her cultivation practice, refusing to go out.
In her words, it would only be another two days before she could begin Guiding Qi into her body. However, she had been saying the same thing ten days ago.
Every two days, there were more two days. Who knew how many more had to pass?
Seeing her piety in cultivation, Yu Xian almost couldn't resist giving her a spirit stone to help her.
But considering that Yulan, with her dull talents, might not even be able to sense spiritual energy with the aid of the two spirit stones, he cast aside the thought.
He was reluctant to give up the spirit stones, but this time, he could choose some jade pieces with higher spiritual energy for her.
At the entrance of Treasure Tower's first floor, there was a sea of people. The noise was almost deafening.
"Wow, there's so many people."
"Master, should we push our way in?"
Yulan clung tightly to Yu Xian's arm, with a trace of fear on her face but excitement in her eyes.
After all, she was just a teenage girl who loved lively scenes.
"No need, let's take another route."
Yu Xian patted Yulan's hand and walked towards another entrance.
There were fewer people here, and Treasure Tower's guards lined up on both sides, looking formidable and intimidating.
For a large business association like Treasure Tower, there was naturally a VIP passage, accessible only with an invitation letter.
Yu Xian didn't have an invitation letter, but he had a token from the Royal Mansion.
Duke Fu's Mansion was like the sky of Prosper City.
The token in his hand allowed him to move freely in most parts of the city, a hidden benefit.
When Yu Xian showed the token, a tall female attendant appeared.
The female attendant was in her early twenties with an ordinary appearance and a plain figure. She had a high ponytail, exuding an efficient energy.
"Greetings Lord Yu. Steward Liu couldn't make it today, and he sends his regrets for not being able to attend to you in person. My name is Lan Xiaohe, and I will be your attendant for the rest of the day. We have several suitable jade pieces for you during this exhibition. Would you like to take a look now?"
"It's nice that Steward Liu still remembered my request. Thank him for me, and you can just lead the way."
Yu Xian was quite impressed by the female attendant, thinking that Steward Liu knew how to choose his staff and hadn't sent him someone useless.
"Very well, please follow me."
Lan Xiaohe maintained a respectful attitude and proper posture, slightly bowing her body all the way, showing her professionalism.
Soon, the three of them arrived at the exhibition hall on the second floor.
Compared to the hustle and bustle on the first floor, this place was obviously much more spacious.
The hall was divided into several booths, filled with various colored jades and large stones of different shapes, and people would occasionally come forward to negotiate prices.
The method of negotiation was quite interesting, as two people would place their hands in their sleeves to bid, making it impossible for outsiders to hear or see their prices.
Some people formed groups, and cheers could be heard from time to time, pushing the atmosphere to a climax.
"What are they doing? It looks very lively." Yu Xian asked.
Lan Xiaohe glanced at them and explained, "They're gambling on stones. Stone gambling is when raw jade ore is used as a stake, with people bidding on the spot to open the stones. If a good piece of jade is revealed, the price will skyrocket, but if there is no jade, the gambler would be penniless.
So, stone gambling also has a reputation of having one slice leading to heaven or hell."
Gambling on stones? Wasn't this the protagonist's choice for getting rich in an ancient city superpower novel?
Yu Xian became interested, his spiritual sense should be able to see through the stones.
But for now, his magic artifact was more important.
Soon, Lan Xiaohe led Yu Xian to a jade display booth.
"Sir, is this piece of solid jade suitable for your needs?"
Lan Xiaohe pointed to a gigantic irregular-shaped light green jadeite stone placed in the center of the booth, roughly three feet square, which was about one meter long, wide, and high.
There were many cotton-wool-like impurities, but such a large piece was rare.
Yu Xian didn't know much about jade, but he thought that such a big piece should be enough for him to refine an artifact embryo.
So he asked, "What's the price for this jade?"
The booth owner was a burly bearded man who stepped forward and extended his wide cuffs, indicating to negotiate the price.
Yu Xian waved his hand, saying, "I don't even know how to do this; you can just quote the price directly."
The bearded man hesitated for a moment and then looked towards Lan Xiaohe.
If this person wasn't brought by someone from Treasure Tower, he would have started driving him away already.
Lan Xiaohe stepped forward: "Sir, this is the custom in this line of work. They don't want others to hear their reserve prices, as it would cause them losses. Why don't I help you translate?"
"Fine." Yu Xian said indifferently.
So, Lan Xiaohe took the initiative to put her hand into the bearded man's sleeve, and the two of them began to bargain.
In a short while, Lan Xiaohe withdrew her hand and whispered in Yu Xian's ear:
"Sir, he says that the lowest price for this jadeite is 98,888 taels of silver, to bring a good luck."
Yu Xian shuddered and turned pale on the spot.
"What a robbery!"
In the half a year he had been in the Mortal World, he spent less than three thousand taels of silver. One hundred thousand taels would be enough for him to risk himself.
With that in mind, he showed a hint of viciousness in his eyes.
What a robbery!
"Sir, this is Treasure Tower!"
Lan Xiaohe panicked as if she sensed Yu Xian's intention.
"Forget it, I'll give you a face."
Yu Xian waved his hand, just thinking about it. He still wanted to sleep with the Princess Consort.
Overall, he was a law-abiding good child. He usually took small bribes and stopped there. He couldn't harbor evil thoughts of killing and stealing treasure.
Walking too many risky paths could lead to disaster.
When one saw a good item and wanted to grab it, adopting such a rough and bad habit could lead to disaster. Most owners of treasures possessed extraordinary strength, except for a few lucky ones.
Now, he had a high position and a path to heaven through cultivation, so taking any risk would be disrespectful to his cheats.
Yu Xian was about to ask if Treasure Tower had any loan services. They all worked under Prince Wang's Estate and were considered colleagues; the interest rate should be cheaper.
"Pah! Pretentious, wasting uncle's time!"
The bearded man was already unhappy with Yu Xian, who didn't understand the rules and put on a show.
Now, seeing Yu Xian flinch at a hundred thousand taels, he thought Yu Xian was a worthless young master, spat a mouthful of saliva, and returned to his position.
"He spat at me?"
Yu Xian looked dumbfounded, with an expression that said "Doesn't he know I can get angry?".
Seeing this, Lan Xiaohe almost failed to catch her breath, knowing that something was wrong, and was about to cry.
"Sir, please don't be impulsive, or Butler Liu won't let me go. I apologize on his behalf.
Besides this piece, there are others. I'll take you to see more."
"Why should you apologize for him?"
Yu Xian stared at the bearded man and shouted, "Hey, bearded guy, do you sell the stones next to you?"