Chapter 330: Pawn Shop
Xiao Chen thought for a while before muttering, “It looks like I can only leave it at a more reputable Pawn Shop. I remember the merchant association from Feng Feixue’s clan runs one. How about I leave it there?”
“Hu chi!”
With a though, the scarlet throne came out with a red cloud. This place was still within the Dongming Province. The silver warship was quite eye-catching. Xiao Chen was afraid someone might recognize it. So, he could only use the scarlet throne.
The silver-armored warriors carried the Dragon Phoenix Cauldron and slowly walked to the red cloud. The red cloud was incredibly soft, yet, very solid. There was no need to worry about falling.
As Xiao Chen took his seat on the throne, he controlled the throne to fly into the sky with full force, heading to Dongming Province’s capital city.
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Two days later, Xiao Chen quietly landed outside Dongming City late at night. He went into the city first to obtain a large box. After he stored the Dragon Phoenix Cauldron in it, he returned to the city.
Bringing a huge box into the city late at night would definitely attract the attention of the city guards.
However, it was impossible for ordinary people to see anything special about the Dragon Phoenix Cauldron. Hence, there was no need to worry that the guard would discover anything.
Xiao Chen calmly opened the box and showed it to the guards before successfully entering the city.
Xiao Chen was not in a hurry to go the the pawn shop. First, he went to an inn and checked in to a good room before taking a shower.
Xiao Chen completely washed off the fatigue of the past month before sleeping.
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The next day, Xiao Chen learned of the location of the Feng Clan’s pawn shop from the waiter. Then, he quietly rushed out with a huge box in the middle of the night.
The pawn shop’s name was Victorious Chief. As it was late at night, it was already closed. Green steps extended out from the door.
There was a pair of Fire Phoenixes swirling around each other carved on the doors. This was the mark of the Feng Clan merchant association. Any place with this mark in the Tianwu Continent was the property of the Feng Clan.
Xiao Chen slowly walked up the steps and immediately felt several strong auras locking onto him, scanning his entire body, intending to see through everything about him.
Dongming City was one of the four greatest city. The Feng Clan’s pawn shop definitely enjoyed a large amount of business.
“Dang! Dang! Dang!”
Xiao Chen calmly walked the the doors and gently rapped the door knocker while holding the wooden box.
“Who is it? It is late at night. Why are you not letting us sleep and trying to pawn something?” a shop assistant opened the doors and inquired with sleepy eyes, “The Victorious Chief Pawn Shop does not do business at night. If you want to pawn something or store something, please come back tomorrow.”
[TL note: It seems to appear that pawn stores also store things like safe deposit boxes in this world.]
When he finished speaking, he tried to close the door. Xiao Chen carried the box with one hand and stopped the door from closing with the other. He smiled gently and said, “Not even for big business?”
That shop assistant said, “Big business? How big?”
Xiao Chen smiled without saying anything. He used some strength and forced the doors open. That shop assistant could not withstand the force and was quickly pushed back; he was clearly angered.
Xiao Chen let go and the wooden box crashed to the floor.
The huge weight of the Dragon Phoenix Cauldron caused the ground to tremble, startling the shop assistant. He was extremely astonished; he did not expect it to be so heavy.
This youth lifted such a heavy object with only one hand. The shop assistant, who was about to chase Xiao Chen away, immediately put on a serious expression. His sleepiness vanished and he said, “Young hero, are you here to pawn something or store something.”
“Store,” Xiao Chen simply said. “As well as buy some things.”
That shop assistant smiled bitterly, “Unfortunately, our appraiser is already asleep. It is not convenient to wake him up at this time.
Xiao Chen casually checked out the hall then sat in the chair leaning against the wall. He took out a Medial Grade Spirit Stone and smiled faintly, “Is it possible now?”
When that shop assistant saw the Medial Grade Spirit Stone on the table, a greedy look flashed in his eyes. Within the Feng Clan’s pawn shop, even a shop assistant would have a valuable discerning eye.
Naturally, the shop assistant recognized what it was. It was a Medial Grade Spirit Stone. If exchanged for gold, it would buy him a luxurious life for the rest of his days.
The shop assistant held the Medial Grade Spirit Stone and smiled, “Definitely! Definitely! It is not a problem at all. I will call appraiser over now.”
The moment he made his move, he took out a Medial Grade Spirit Stone. It looks like this will truly be a profitable transaction. If I wake the appraiser up, I won’t have to worry about receiving a scolding.
As Xiao Chen watched the shop assistant leave, he felt his heart ache. He could only take a loss here. There were too many people watching during the day. He was worried that news would spread. Spending Medial Grade Spirit Stones like that was worth it.
In the time to brew a pot of tea, footsteps came from the corridor behind the hall.
The shop assistant from before led an old man, quickly rushing in. The old man wore grey robes; his gait was steady, and his gaze was bright. His Qi and blood flourished; he did not feel old at all.
The old man arrived before Xiao Chen and cupped is hands. He smiled and said, “My humble surname is Huang. I am the chief appraiser of the Victorious Chief. I have not enquired this young hero’s distinguished name yet.”
People who could take out a Medial Grade Spirit Stone were rare. While the old man spoke, he carefully measured up Xiao Chen. He is a Medial Grade Martial Saint at such a young age. However, this is not considered strange or rare.
Such a young man could be considered an outstanding talent, but there were plenty of such people everywhere. However, this old man could feel a dangerous aura coming from this person.
This old man had become a peak Inferior Grade Martial King long ago. However, he had spent all of his time focused on the appraisal of antiques and had delayed his cultivation.
This young man is very complicated. The old man made secretly made this evaluation in his heart.
Xiao Chen cupped his hands and smiled, “I don’t dare claim to have a distinguished name; just call me Ye Chen. I’m sorry to bother Master Huang, but would you take a look at this item of mine; I would like to store it for some time.”
[TL note: The address Master does not really mean much here; it just shows that this person has ownership of certain skills. In China, people from various occupations are addressed as Master. Some examples are plumbers, taxi drivers, and mechanics.]
The principle pawn shops followed for storing items was to charge based on the value of the item. As for how to determine the value of the item, it depended on the judgement and knowledge of the appraiser.
Actually, by bringing the Dragon Phoenix Cauldron, Xiao Chen also wanted to see if he could obtain any useful information from the appraiser.
Master Huang nodded slightly. Xiao Chen flicked his hand and fired out four waves of energy. The wooden box immediately opened on all four sides, revealing the Dragon Phoenix Cauldron.
The dragon and phoenix carved on the cauldron were very vivid. They chased each other eagerly. The cauldron emitted a simple and heavy aura.
When the Dragon Phoenix Cauldron appeared before Master Huang, he was immediately stunned. His expression became very grave; his mouth fell ajar. He was so stunned that he stammered, “Dragon…Phoenix Cauldron, it really is one of the three fake Dragon Phoenix Cauldrons. How…how…could it be with you?”
When Xiao Chen saw the old man’s expression change, he thought to himself, It seems like this will be a good show to watch.
Xiao Chen got up and asked, “Old Sir recognizes this cauldron?”
Master Huang recovered his wits; he knew he had forgotten his manners. He smiled apologetically and said, “The original Dragon Phoenix Cauldron vanished long ago; there are only three fakes left in this word. The Feng Clan has been searching for this cauldron for thousands of years. I did not expect it to end up in this little brother’s hands.”
A sudden thought appeared in Xiao Chen’s heart, Could the Feng Clan have already grasped the method for refining Secret Treasures? Do they have everything except this cauldron?
“Hero Ye Chen, I shall be presumptuous enough to ask; will you sell this cauldron? If you sell it, the Feng Clan will pay any price you ask,” Master Huang turned and asked gently.
Xiao Chen had spent a lot of effort to obtain this Dragon Phoenix Cauldron. Naturally, he did not intend to sell it. He shook his head and asked, “I’m sorry; I am only storing it, not selling. What does Old Sir knows about this? Will you tell this Junior more?”
A strange look appeared in Master Huang’s eyes. He smiled gently and said, “I only recognized his cauldron. How could I know any of its secrets? Young Hero Ye thinks too highly of me.”
Xiao Chen’s eyes were very sharp; he could see all of the old man’s expressions and knew that the old man refused to tell him on purpose. So, he could not be bothered with it. He said, “In that case, never mind, since Old Sir is not willing to tell me. Give me a price; I intend to store this cauldron here for a year.”
Master Huang thought for a while before saying, “Fifty thousand Inferior Grade Spirit Stones, what do you think? If not, there are other methods as well. You can lend this cauldron to our Feng Clan to use, and you may retrieve it at any time.
“In that case, not only would we not charge you any Spirit Stones, but we will also pay you one hundred thousand Inferior Grade Spirit Stones per year.”
Xiao Chen thought for a long moment. After a while, he made a decision. He said, “We can do that, but I want to discuss this matter with your Young Mistress first.”
Xiao Chen had certain considerations in his heart. Although he had the Dragon Phoenix Cauldron and the Lunar True Fire, he did not know how to refine Secret Treasures. He might have to keep it for a long time before he could discover any clues.
He might as well hand it over to Feng Feixue and trade her for the refining method of Secret Treasures. After that, he could let them use the Dragon Phoenix Cauldron for a period without charging them.
This could be considered as paying back a favor to Feng Feixue. There was another important thing. Actually, Xiao Chen really wanted to meet her.
Xiao Chen had the feeling that, after he returned to the Heavenly Saber Pavilion, he would leave the Great Qin Nation soon.
Xiao Chen agreed to Feng Feixue’s arrangement, but he did not see her coming to look for him. Instead, she had once sent Princess Ying Yue. Even so, he did not managed to clarify things.
Xiao Chen did not know when would he return after leaving the Great Qin Nation. He should take advantage of this opportunity to talk properly with Feng Feixue.
When Master Huang heard Xiao Chen, he was slightly stunned. He felt like he was in a somewhat difficult position and said, “About this, Young Hero Ye…the Feng Clan runs a huge business. The Victorious Chief is merely a small portion of it. It would be rude of me to presumptuously invite Miss Feng over. Furthermore, this old me can make the decisions regarding this cauldron.
Indeed, the Feng Clan’s shops were scattered all over the continent. Although the Dragon Phoenix Cauldron was important, there was no need to invite Feng Feixue for this. Furthermore, Feng Feixue moved all over the continent to deal with the Feng Clan’s businesses.
Aside from some specific dates, it would be hard to say where would she be. Given Master Huang’s identity, it would be rather difficult for him to invite her over.
Master Huang clearly explained all the difficulties involved to Xiao Chen. Xiao Chen thought about it and said, “In that case, never mind. I will just deposit this Dragon Phoenix Cauldron here. If you can make arrangements with Feng Feixue, then I will discuss the matter of lending the cauldron to the Feng Clan.”
When Master Huang heard this, his expressions changed; he felt it was incredibly unfortunate.
Just as Master Huang was about to say something to persuade him, he suddenly remembered something. A smile filled his face again as he asked in anticipation, “Young Hero Ye, might I ask, are you the Ye Chen from the Heavenly Saber Pavilion’s Qingyun Peak?”
Xiao Chen felt it was somewhat strange. He nodded and took out his identity token, proving his identity. He asked, “What’s wrong? Does Master Huang recognize me?”
Master Huang smiled and said, “Young Master Ye, don’t to ask me about that. If you trust my humble self, you can leave the Dragon Phoenix Cauldron here first. If you come here around midnight tomorrow, you should be able to see Miss Feng.”