The reception room behind the Mi Te Er Auction House.
On the clean tabletop lay a small jade box, inside which a pale blue, longan-sized medicinal pill rested quietly. The pill's surface was smooth and lustrous, and a rich, peculiar fragrance wafted from it, refreshing the mind.
Looking at the medicinal pill in the jade box, the auction house manager and Ya Fei could barely conceal the joy on their faces.
The two glanced with a somewhat lost look, as if trying to penetrate the black robe. Xiao Yan secretly shook his head, humorously thinking to himself, "What kind of expression would they have if they knew this Qi Gathering Powder was merely concocted by Yao Lao with secretly reduced ingredients?"
The Qi Gathering Powder Xiao Yan took out was clearly a grade lower in quality than the one he had used before. However, even so, this Qi Gathering Powder, casually refined by Yao Lao, brought Ya Fei no small amount of joy.
"The refining technique of the old master truly inspires admiration. I'm afraid only a few fifth-grade alchemists could compare," Gu Ni sighed, looking at the jade-green medicinal pill once more.
A calm laugh came from within the black robe. "The two of you should accept this medicinal pill. You've gone to great lengths to help me with so many busy matters. If I don't offer some thanks, I feel a little uneasy."
"Ah, ah, old master, you are truly too polite. You are our guest; this is merely our duty," Ya Fei said with a gentle smile, her bright eyes shimmering as she carefully picked up the jade box with her delicate hand.
It was undeniable that her smiling words, not to mention Yao Lao, even made Xiao Yan chuckle inwardly. If they truly handled matters as carefully as she claimed, the Mi Te Er Auction House would have closed long ago.
Taking a piece of paper from inside, Xiao Yan handed it to Ya Fei, his aged voice chuckling, "Please help me purchase some of the medicinal ingredients listed here."
Enthusiastically accepting the paper, Ya Fei quickly scanned it a few times, then giggled and agreed. After the previous lesson, she no longer dared to hesitate in the slightest.
She beckoned a maid, handed her the paper, and then quickly instructed her to prepare.
Picking up a hot cup of tea, Xiao Yan took a small sip. His heart suddenly stirred, and after a moment of contemplation, his aged voice slowly emerged. "Miss Ya Fei, I have something I wish to ask."
Hearing Yao Lao speak, Ya Fei smiled gently and said, "Old master, please speak."
"The Jia Lie Clan bought quite a few medicinal ingredients here, didn't they?" Yao Lao asked indifferently.
Hearing this, Ya Fei's heart tensed, her charming smile subtly faltered, and she secretly exchanged a glance with Gu Ni. After a long silence, she hesitantly said, "Last time, the Jia Lie Clan indeed spent nearly 100,000 gold coins to purchase medicinal ingredients from the auction house... There were also some wound-healing and blood-stopping medicines."
Nodding slightly, the aged voice suddenly fell silent.
Seeing the masked black-robed figure in such a state, Ya Fei's heart immediately felt a little uneasy. She had long known that this person intended to help the Xiao Clan, and now the auction house had just sold such a large quantity of medicinal ingredients to the Jia Lie Clan. It was hard to know if this old master's temperament might harbor some resentment towards the auction house.
The atmosphere in the hall slowly grew heavy. Seeing the black-robed figure remain silent, Ya Fei felt somewhat restless. If Gu Ni hadn't continuously given her warning glances from the side, she would have long since opened her mouth to ask.
"You must all know what I'm really buying so many medicinal ingredients for, right?" After a moment, the aged voice finally broke the silence.
Biting her red lips lightly, Ya Fei gently nodded and whispered, "Is the old gentleman planning to refine these medicinal ingredients into healing medicine to assist the Xiao family?"
"I just finished refining healing medicine for the Xiao family." Nodding slightly, Yao Lao said in a deep voice, "Perhaps in two more days, the Xiao family and the Jia Lie family will compete for popularity in Wu Tan City's market with healing medicine."
Ya Fei didn't know how to respond to such a topic, so she simply remained silent.
"Refining healing medicine requires a large quantity of low-grade medicinal ingredients. Apart from the Mi Te Er Auction House in Wu Tan City, no other place has the ability to supply this kind of ingredient." Seeing that Ya Fei said nothing, Yao Lao continued.
"Behind the competition in the quality of healing medicine between the two great families, having sufficient refining materials is also a crucial key. Therefore, I hope the Mi Te Er Auction House can refuse to supply medicinal ingredients to the Jia Lie family from now on!"
As soon as Yao Lao finished speaking, Xiao Yan's gaze immediately pierced through the black curtain, staring intently at this alluring, mature beauty who resembled a fox spirit. He only had two months left in Wu Tan City, so within these two months, he had to help his main body overthrow the Jia Lie family. Only then could he leave with Yao Lao to cultivate abroad with peace of mind.
Hearing Yao Lao's words, Ya Fei's smiling face changed slightly, and she said with difficulty, "Old gentleman, our Mi Te Er Auction House has a rule that we cannot participate in any family's conflict. If we agree to your request to help the Xiao family, it would not be in line with our rules..."
"I can refine two Qi Gathering Pills for you for free." Yao Lao said calmly.
"Old gentleman, it's not a matter of elixirs, it's really..." The allure of the two Qi Gathering Pills made Ya Fei's jade hands tremble uncontrollably, but she still tried to restrain herself.
"Three pills..."
"Old gentleman..." Ya Fei smiled bitterly. Gu Ni, beside her, also twitched wildly. Three Qi Gathering Pills? Such an item would be worth at least five hundred thousand gold coins!
"Five pills!" The aged voice came out indifferently, without any mercy, cruelly striking Ya Fei's mental defenses.
"Hiss..." Her beautiful eyes slowly closed, Ya Fei took a soft breath of cold air. After a long half-day, she recovered and suddenly said with a bitter smile, "Old gentleman, you win. From now on, the Mi Te Er Auction House will not supply a single medicinal ingredient to the Jia Lie family!"
"Miss Ya Fei's willpower truly surprises me a little. I will bring that item here in one month. Of course, the prerequisite is that the Mi Te Er Auction House does not disappoint me." Yao Lao said with a faint smile.
"Old gentleman, please rest assured. Ya Fei knows very well what is important and what is not."
Having been seasoned in the auction house for several years, Ya Fei quickly regained her composure. The value of the Jia Lie family was almost incomparable to the value of a alchemist above the fourth rank. This choice was not actually very difficult. The biggest difficulty was when to choose whom to maximize profits, and Ya Fei was very satisfied with the current profit.