Chapter 123: You didn’t rob the giant dragon, did you?
After leaving the cemetery of death, Han Shuo and Emily went separate ways. Emily still had to accomplish her mission from her superiors and couldn’t stay by Han Shuo’s side.
He hadn’t returned to the Babylon Academy in a while and he was rather missing Fanny. Except, the whole incident with Emily had happened, and this made Han Shuo a bit uncertain of how to face Fanny. He hesitated and didn’t directly return to the Academy, rather walking to the Boozt Merchant Guild first.
Han Shuo had asked Phoebe to help look for items to refine an earth elite zombie. So much time had passed, it was time to ask if she was ready. There were also treasures that had come from the forest trolls’ sacred land within his space ring that needed to be disposed of via Phoebe. Add to that the fact that he needed to prepare rations for the forest trolls and the dwarves, so he rather needed to make a trip to the Boozt Merchant Guild.
After experiencing the Grover incident, Phoebe had already grasped the reins of power at the Guild. After making a couple visits, those within the Guild were all familiar with Han Shuo.
When Han Shuo presented himself at the door this time, the guards sent him in directly. When he walked towards the living room, Han Shuo suddenly heard the sounds of Fabian lecturing someone in a room, “Your father spent gold coins to help you enter the Guild, so you must work hard! Otherwise, with my position in the Guild, I won’t be able to protect you.”
“Understood, uncle.” Another voice that Han Shuo was familiar with responded honestly.
When this voice sounded, Han Shuo’s body sped up in surprise. When he arrived at the door to the room, he pushed the door open without knocking because he was so agitated, giving Fabian a shock. He immediately cried out, “Who dares to trepass in my territory!”
“It’s me, Mister Fabian.” Han Shuo laughed lightly and walked in with great strides.
When he heard Han Shuo’s voice, Fabian heaved a sigh of relief and walked out chuckling from the room. He said, “So you’ve come, heh heh, are you here to come see our Miss Phoebe again?”
Another fat and chubby body quickly dashed out of the house. When he saw Han Shuo, he cried out with unexpected surprise. “Bryan, how come it’s you! How come you’re in the Boozt Merchant Guild as well? Heh heh, are you a member of the Guild as well? We can be colleagues again?”
Little fatty Jack’s body had grown a bit taller, but his weight seemed to have increased even faster. When he rushed out of the house with large strides, the ground sounded with thumps.
“Long time no see Jack! How come you’re with the Guild?” Han Shuo was also quite happy to see Jack again. Little fatty Jack was the closest friend that Han Shuo had met after arriving at the Academy. When Han Shuo gave him a sum of money last time, he thought he’d never see Jack again. Who would’ve thought that the two would see each other again after not too long had past.
“You two know each other?” Fabian was a bit taken aback as he looked at Jack and then at Han Shuo.
Nodding, Han Shuo smiled as he explained, “When I was in the Academy, I was an errand boy with Jack. Heh heh, not only do we know each other, but our relationship is quite good.”
“Yes uncle, Bryan is quite amazing. Who would’ve thought that I’d run into him here?” Jack said, delighted.
“Mister Fabian, I’d like to catch up with your nephew. I’ll go meet Miss Phoebe later! Please pass that along for me!” Han Shuo said to Fabian with a smile.
Han Shuo had saved Fabian and Phoebe’s lives, and had brought a great deal of business with him the last couple of times. This made Fabian long since view Han Shuo as a person of great fortune. When he heard Han Shuo speak thus, he immediately agreed and winked at Jack, as if hinting something to Jack.
It was a pity that the excited Jack didn’t discover his uncle’s hints, but rather, the more mature and experienced Han Shuo saw it all clearly and laughed ceaselessly in his heart.
When Fabian left, Han Shuo immediately asked, “Jack, how did you come to the Boozt Merchant Guild?”
“When you gave me the gold coins. I left the Academy. When I returned home, I didn’t know what to do and helped my father butcher cows and sheep. I saw that things were difficult at home, so I secretly exchanged the gold coins you gave me into bits and pieces and gave them to my father, but he discovered my secret in the end, so I told him I found a bag of gold coins on the streets.”
“My father felt that I couldn’t always be a butcher, and so he took half of the gold coins to find my uncle Fabian to ask him to let me help in the Guild. I’m learning bookkeeping from someone, and that’s how things are. Right, why are you in the Guild? I see that my uncle seems to have a lot of respect for you, what’s going on here?” Jack looked at Han Shuo with surprise and asked in confusion.
Han Shuo said something random and fobbed Jack off with them. Han Shuo and Jack chatted for a while. From Jack’s expression and words, Han Shuo felt that he was actually quite happy to work for the Guild. So he decided to help Jack a bit and was prepared to say something to Phoebe. He felt that Phoebe would at least give him this face.
No wonder he was happy to stay here. When he was an errand boy in the Academy before, not only did Jack have to work day and night, but he was often bullied by other students and errand boys. His days weren’t too comfortable. Now that he was in the Guild, he had the protection of someone like Fabian, who worked at Phoebe’s side. At least no one dared do anything to him. Compared to the backbreaking work of an errand boy, the material he was now learning was much more interesting. No wonder Jack liked it here.
They talked for quite a while until Fabian came to rush Han Shuo, telling him that Miss Phoebe was waiting for him. Han Shuo then patted Jack’s shoulder, saying with a smile, “Then I’ll be going. Since you’re within the Guild, we’ll have plenty of chances to meet in the future.”
“Alright, you go about your business. Come see me whenever you have the chance! Although I’m doing well here, I don’t have that many friends.”
“Mm, I know.”
After leaving Fabian’s room, Han Shuo’s sensitive ears immediately heard Fabian and Jack’s conversation. Fabian was telling Jack to build a good relationship with Han Shuo, saying that Han Shuo was a person of great fortune, etc.
Phoebe was still stunning as usual. A well-tailored, form fitting green robe even more fully offset her tall, slender, and uncommon demeanor. Faint blush powdered onto her cheeks displayed their clean smoothness, with a hint of red blush hidden within them. Her bright eyes were embedded into a face that seemed a work of art, appearing completely perfect and flawless.
“You’ve disappeared for almost a month, what do you plan on talking about this time?” The surrounding maids had long since left as Phoebe sat within the hall, holding a cup of tea within her hands and leisurely sipping it. She flicked a noncommittal glance at Han Shuo and delivered her words faintly.
“I’ve only been gone for a month, but why does Miss Phoebe look even more beautiful?” Han Shuo spoke truly. When he’d seen Phoebe before, she’d never purposefully dressed up, but this, time, she’d noticeably put on some makeup, and her beauty truly had been enhanced a bit in Han Shuo’s eyes.
When these words were spoken, Phoebe’s eyes lit up as the faint red on her cheeks slowly spread out. A happy curve traced her lips as she said in a soft, gentle voice, “You’ve grown more glib in the month that I haven’t seen you.”
Laughing heartily, Han Shuo walked in front of Phoebe and took the teapot and cup from in front of Phoebe, pouring himself a cup and taking a sip before saying, “Before we chat about serious matters, I hope you can do me a favor. Help my friend advance a bit.”
Phoebe wasn’t surprised to hear that, and her translucent chin nodded lightly twice. She said in a quiet and beautiful voice,” I heard from Fabian just now. Who would’ve thought that you’d be friends with the fatty? Heh heh, he’s such an honest person and has you as a friend?”
Breaking out into laughter, Han Shuo scratched his head, “With your words, am I not honest enough?”
“Humph! If you counted as honest, then there’d be no people who don’t abide by the rules in this world. I remember all the bad things you’ve done to me, how dare you say that you’re honest?” Phoebe rolled her eyes in a pretty way as she bit off her words while glaring at Han Shuo.
Abruptly taking in a sip of tea to hide his awkwardness, Han Shuo said awkwardly, “Don’t mention what’s in the past! You still haven’t agreed to help me take care of Jack!”
“No problem, I’ll take good care of him for you. It’s easy to help you with a small matter like this, but the other matter is a bit trickier.” Phoebe said a bit thoughtfully.
Starting, Han Shuo looked askance at Phoebe, asking, “What’s tricky?”
“About the materials you asked me to buy for you,” Phoebe thought for a moment and opened her mouth to speak.
The refinement of the earth elite zombie was something that Han Shuo felt imperative he wanted to complete. When he heard Phoebe said that she’d run into some trouble, Han Shuo immediately felt a bit worried. He hastily asked, “What trouble? Is it that your Guild can’t find those materials?”
Shaking her head, Phoebe’s painted eyebrow creased slightly as she sighed lowly, “With our Guild’s abilities, if these items exist in the world, then we’ll be able to get our hands on it as long as someone can afford the price. I had thought that the items wouldn’t be that expensive, but who would’ve thought that after careful inquiry, I’d discover that all those unknown items would all be at an exorbitant price.”
“According to my calculations, all these materials added together would need at least thirty thousand gold coins. Although I hold the power within the Guild, but I’ve just become the head and don’t have the authority to completely mask such a large transaction for you, because each transaction will leave behind a record.”
Han Shuo had been a bit worried when he heard her say she’d run into troubles, but now that he saw that it was due to the price, he rather breathed a sigh of relief. The current Han Shuo could be short on other things, but he had so many gold coins that he couldn’t take them all with him at any given time. When he heard Phoebe say that the problems resulted from pricing, he immediately smiled.
“What are you smiling about? I know you’ve got some savings in your hands, but thirty thousand gold coins isn’t a small amount. I can privately put together ten thousand for you, but I can’t access my father’s savings before I’m 25, so I can only take out so much. Why are you still laughing? I’m talking about serious matters!” Phoebe was frowning and trying to think of a plan for Han Shuo, but he was smiling and laughing as if nothing was the matter. This made Phoebe feel a bit irate.
“Right, how old are you now?” Han Shuo halted and asked Phoebe.
Her face reddening, Phoebe appeared a bit shy. She hesitated, and then snuck a glance at Han Shuo with a bashful expression, “23, you?”
“17!” Han Shuo said.
Phoebe’s face whitened and she appeared a bit panicked. She hastily cried out, “Who are you kidding? Do you talk and look like a seventeen year old?”
Han Shuo only remembered that he’d already been 24 when he’d possessed Bryan’s body. Bryan had originally been thin and small, but now looked completely like an adult after the reforging from the magical yuan. Add to that his original way of speech and experiences, he didn’t look like a seventeen year old no matter how one cut it.
Thinking for a while, Han Shuo finally chuckled, “I’m kidding, I’m 24.”
Phoebe noticeably heaved a sigh of relief when she heard these words and then laughed wryly at Han Shuo, “Don’t think of using me to make a plan. There’s still two more years until I’m 25. I don’t think you can wait two more years. Let’s think of another plan.”
A smile still hanging on his lips, Han Shuo blew a breath of air at the space ring and rubbed it with his fingers. Blocks of gold and all sorts of jewels, jade, and precious gems appeared one after another within the hall. In that instant, the hall was filled with the luster from the jewels as all sorts of dazzling, opulent splendor made the hall extremely luxurious and extravagant.
“Is this enough?” Han Shuo looked at Phoebe, who’d sunk into a dumbfounded state, and asked merrily.
The riches within the hall had come from many years of forest troll looting. When he took them all from the space ring and piled them in front of Phoebe, it did indeed cause a huge shock to her.
“Heart of the Blue Ocean, Sierra Leone Jade, the Mudanee Necklace, King Finley’s Crown…” Phoebe’s stunning face was full of shock as her slender fingers rifled through the jewels that had appeared. She murmured these amazing names in a low voice.
After a while, Phoebe took in a few breaths in a row, finally looking deeply at Han Shuo and asking, “A lot of missing treasures are here. You didn’t rob a giant dragon, did you?”
Shaking his head with a low laugh, Han Shuo said, “Don’t ask how I obtained these items, just tell me if they’re enough for me to exchange for the materials I requested?”
“Eh… I temporarily can’t estimate the value of these goods, but I think their value will definitely exceed thirty thousand gold coins.” Phoebe’s clear eyes still stared firmly at Han Shuo as she slowly responded.
Nodding, Han Shuo said straightforwardly, “Good, these items are showy but not substantial, they don’t have much value for me. Collect them all and dispose of them for me at a reasonable price. I need the materials that I mentioned earlier. In addition, please purchase another space ring for me, I’d like to take the rations from last time with me.”
“With so many treasures, aren’t you afraid that I’ll list some random price that disadvantages you?” Phoebe looked at Han Shuo and stared for a bit, a trace of a faint smile blossoming on her lips as she asked him.
“I believe that you won’t!” Han Shuo smiled. “I’ll visit again in a few days, I hope the items I need will be ready then.”
“Stay for lunch.” Phoebe nodded and hesitated, suddenly saying lightly when she saw that Han Shuo was about to leave after leaving the treasures behind.
Han Shuo felt a bit strange when he heard these words, but Phoebe truly could help him with a great deal of things right now. Although he had a lot of things to handle at the moment, the time it took to eat a meal wasn’t that long either. Therefore, he decisively nodded and agreed to it.
The location of lunch was near the artificial mountains where Phoebe and Han Shuo had once crushed themselves into. This place had been redecorated now and all sorts of expensive flowers and grass had been planted in the surroundings. The branches and leaves of some green and luxuriant, soft plants were entwined around the stone pillars of the little pavilion. It looked quite charming.
Han Shuo continuously felt a bit uncomfortable as he sat at the table within the little pavilion, after the maids had filled it with food and wine. His eyes kept drifting to the crack in the artificial mountain that he’d squeezed into with Phoebe as he kept recalling what had happened here.
Phoebe rather looked quite comfortable, and she didn’t seem to pay any attention to that area at all. She waved her hand and dismissed all the maids and guards, hospitably encouraging Han Shuo to drink wine and tea. This change in attitude made Han Shuo feel uncomfortable.
After eating and drinking, although Han Shuo wouldn’t get drunk thanks to the magical yuan, now that he’d tasted the wonders of women, he kept recalling the time that he’d taken advantage of Phoebe, for some reason. His serious and professional glances at Phoebe were suffused with another meaning at some unknown point.
Phoebe observed Han Shuo’s changes, and whether it was because of the sweet wine, her cheeks became even more reddened and beautiful. As her chilly facade retreated, Phoebe’s charms continued to increase rapidly, making Han Shuo across the table from her panic inwardly and think random thoughts.