Chapter 468: Chapter 470: The Hot-Tempered Old Man (Part 1)
Dongfang Yu and his wife listened and pondered thoughtfully; the demand from the Underworld Market wasn’t too excessive, just selling a portion of the stock.
In fact, the Crown Prince Mansion had not been very well-off these days, especially after the ordeal with a contestant dying suddenly, which led his family to make a fuss at the Crown Prince Mansion. The Crown Prince had no choice but to use a large sum of money to settle the matter.
Moreover, managing Chuyue Tower had led to financial losses for Nalan Yan’er, and the daily life of the Crown Prince Mansion was tight. Not to mention, preparations had to be made for the upcoming Competition Among Ten Countries, including purchasing a batch of goods at the auction.
Dongfang Yu and Nalan Yan’er exchanged glances.
Nalan Yan’er mulled over the fact that while the Monkey Wine seemed exceedingly precious, the Dacang Monkeys in the Dacang Mountain would continue to brew it. As long as Hua Wushang could control those Dacang Monkeys, it meant that the Crown Prince Mansion could obtain a batch of the wine every year. Keeping part for their own use and selling a portion to the Underworld Market could earn the Crown Prince Mansion quite a bit of silver and benefits. It wouldn’t be a bad method to kill two birds with one stone.
With this thought in mind, Nalan Yan’er said with a smile,
"The fact that the Underworld Market is willing to sell my wine is an honor for me. However, I can provide the wine, but I do have one condition: the wine must never be sold to Dugu Wu’s side."
Nalan Yan’er’s feelings were complex when mentioning Dugu Wu. On one hand, she was still deeply in love with Dugu Wu, but on the other hand, she did not wish for Dugu Wu to achieve good results in the Competition Among Ten Countries. Nowadays, Dugu Wu’s attention was no longer on her.
Elder Liu laughed loudly,
"Crown Princess Consort, rest assured. I cannot guarantee this for the auction, but your wine will not be sold in Great Chu in the future. As for Prince Wu, we will certainly abstain from selling during this auction. However, before purchasing this batch of wine, I hope to have the chance to taste it to see if it truly lives up to its name." Nalan Yan’er was prepared; she sent someone back to the Crown Prince Mansion, and not long after, a pot of wine was delivered.
"This pot of wine is a gift to Elder Liu. Elder Liu has come a long way to Chu City to conduct the auction, and my husband and I should act as proper hosts."
Elder Liu felt light on his feet from Nalan Yan’er’s flattery. Nalan Yan’er was naturally beautiful, and with the recent improvement in her Blessing Technique, she all but captivated Elder Liu. Taking the cup of wine from Nalan Yan’er, Elder Liu took a sip and felt the fragrance of the wine overwhelm him, and a warm sensation spread through his body.
He brightened up, realizing that the wine truly did live up to its reputation.
"There’s another matter for which I’d like to ask the Crown Prince for assistance. It’s regarding your country’s Phoenix Chamber of Commerce..."
The two parties had a good chat and reached a cooperative agreement in secret.
Meanwhile, Feng Bailing had discussed the matter of the "Dragon Seed" with Zhang Dafa and Zhang Erfa, and the brothers also relayed something to Feng Bailing.
This morning, Ouyang Chenchen arrived at the Phoenix Chamber of Commerce in a hurry, instructing the brothers to definitely deliver a batch of wine to the Zuixian Inn today. Due to the large amount, the brothers needed to inform Feng Bailing.
After inquiring, Feng Bailing found out that Daye’s delegation had also arrived in the city early this morning. With all the inns in the city full, Ouyang Chenchen could only arrange for them to stay in the Zuixian Inn.
Although Feng Bailing already knew that Ouyang Chenchen was of no ordinary status, the fact that Daye’s delegation had personally come, and as Ouyang Chenchen suggested, one of their leaders was her mentor from Daye.
Feng Bailing thought it proper, as a younger generation, to pay a visit, and thus had several carts of wine prepared and sent to Zuixian Inn; she herself rushed ahead to Zuixian Inn.
Having just arrived outside Zuixian Inn, Feng Bailing heard a drunken voice berating someone.
"You useless thing, I sent you to find the Holy Seal in Great Chu, but not only did you fail to find it, you also joined some Yuxiu Academy. Even that could have been overlooked, but a princess, no less, stooping to open a tavern..."
The man hiccupped as he spoke, and Feng Bailing saw a fiery-bearded old man sitting in the hall. His table was covered with liquor bottles and jars of various sizes.
With a face flushed from drinking, the old man did not care about the other patrons in the Zuixian Inn and scolded Ouyang Chenchen mercilessly.
Ouyang Chenchen sat with a bitter expression, quiet and submissive like a daughter-in-law, not daring to utter a word.
The innkeeper and the clerks, too, were trembling and didn’t dare to make a sound. Upon seeing Feng Bailing, the innkeeper, relieved, hurried forward to speak.
"Princess Consort Wu, have you arrived yet? Please think of something quickly; this guest has drunk all the wine in the Drunken Immortal Inn, and the other patrons are unable to buy any wine. They are grumbling over there."
Feng Bailing couldn’t help but glance sideways, it appeared that the elder with the red hair and beard was her mentor mentioned by Ouyang Chenchen during her time in Daye.
Ouyang Chenchen was a princess of Daye, which Feng Bailing had long been aware of.
She had a mentor while in Daye, and Feng Bailing had heard her mention this when she enrolled in school, but she hadn’t expected it to be such an elder. With a clang, the elder smashed a jar of wine on the ground, mumbling to himself.
"What rubbish is this? It tastes bland and uninteresting, not satisfying at all."
The elder was disdainful of the beer, which was naturally mild in flavor. The Drunken Immortal Inn did have other types of wine, but the elder was not accustomed to drinking them.
"Why don’t you try the wine I’ve brought with me, elder?"
Feng Bailing said quietly as she took out a bottle of Monkey Wine she had just brought back from Dacang Mountain from her first aid kit.
She gestured to the shopkeeper and server to ask the other patrons to leave. This elder was straightforward and deeply loved his wine; in a moment of carelessness, it was hard to tell what he might say.
The Competition Among Ten Countries was about to begin, and the Drunken Immortal Inn inevitably had spies from other countries mixed in.
Seeing Feng Bailing arrive, Ouyang Chenchen almost teared up. With a whoosh, she ducked behind Feng Bailing, wishing she could completely hide her plump figure.
The elder only lifted his gaze upon hearing that there was wine.
He snorted coldly through his nose and said,
"So you’re that useless disciple from Nan Xiu?"
In his words, there was some disdain for Feng Bailing.
Ouyang Chenchen hurriedly whispered in Feng Bailing’s ear.
"My mentor and the academy director are fellow disciples."
It was all clear to Feng Bailing now; this elder in front of her must be the director’s senior, but he looked much older than both the director and Lady Nan Feng.
Moreover, Feng Bailing noticed something off about his ruddy complexion, as if he was drunken.
No wonder, having had so much to drink and still not being drunk, the elder was indeed extraordinarily gifted.
Feng Bailing gave Ouyang Chenchen a look, telling her to calm down.
She stepped forward and respectfully bowed her hands.
"I pay my respects to you, Senior. Indeed, I am merely a nominal disciple of Director Nan Xiu."
"Not up to par, not up to par; even if you two were to combine your efforts, you would be no match for Lady Nan Feng’s disciple."
Thinking of Lady Nan Feng’s secretly pleased expression, the elder’s face turned to a frown of worry.