Madmen don't keep diaries

Chapter 388 387 The Intestineless Bidding Facility

"Perhaps we just missed it."

The shopkeeper, unsuspecting, smiled and brushed the topic aside.

Since it was morning, a storyteller was sitting in the teahouse. When Feng Xiuhu came in, he only heard a part of the story, which was about a girl named Teng Niang borrowing eyes.

"And let me tell you, thousands of years ago, after the island was divided, strange things kept happening."

"Speaking of Shujin Island, there was a man named Zhou Da who sold lamp oil. That night, Zhou Da rowed his boat through the culvert..."

The storyteller spoke in a deep, mysterious voice. Just as Shunzi was engrossed in listening, the storyteller suddenly slapped his fan, startling the table.

Snapped!
Suddenly, blue vines began to wriggle on the cave wall! A hundred fish eyes opened among the vines, startling Zhou Da so much that he overturned his oil basket. But then he heard a woman's voice crying from the vines: "When the islands were divided, I was crushed and turned into a vine demon! I borrow your oil lamp to light the way and send my fish soul back to the sea..."

The storyteller sighed, "It was because of Zhou Da's kind heart that he hung lanterns in the culvert every night. Three years later, when the lanterns went out and people went to investigate, the vines on the culvert walls were found to be glowing on their own—to this day, no boats need to light lanterns when sailing!"

The audience sighed.

The storyteller flicked his sleeve and answered himself, "You ask how this old man knows? Heh! Zhou Dazheng is my ancestor!"

The tea drinkers cheered, and the storyteller winked at the servant, who quickly picked up the tray and walked around the hall, the sound of copper beads falling onto the tray filling the air.

Shunzi also gave two copper beads as a reward. Still in high spirits, he asked the shopkeeper curiously, "That vine thing, is it really a monster in disguise?"

The shopkeeper waved his hand and lowered his voice: "These are all just supernatural tales, not to be taken seriously. What monsters are there? That vine is called the Firefly Vine, which naturally glows when it matures. Zhou Da in the story just happened to stumble upon the Firefly Vine when it was just beginning to sprout, and was startled by its wriggling growth; as for the so-called 'hundreds of fish eyes, requiring a lamp to light the way,' that's utter nonsense—just a trick to inflate oil prices."

Shunzi was disappointed: "I see..."

Feng Xiuhu interjected, "I've heard that the Firefly Vine is very resilient. If it grows this fast, wouldn't it easily get tangled and clog the culvert?"

The shopkeeper smiled and nodded: "Second Master is right, but you don't know this. The Firefly Vine is not only very resilient, but also extremely tough—in the old days, it could even be used to tow boats on the mudflats!"

"But it is precisely because of its toughness that ordinary knives need to be sharpened for half a day to cut it. So the daily maintenance is the responsibility of the monks of the Samsara Temple. I can't say exactly what methods they use, but I know that when the monks row through the culvert in small boats, the overgrown vines along the way wither and fall off."

The conversation finally veered off to the main topic.

Feng Xiuhu followed up, "You say ordinary knives can't do anything with it, but what about unusual knives?"

The shopkeeper blinked and asked tentatively, "What would be considered unusual?"

Feng Xiuhu laughed and said, "I think what the cultivators are using is rather unusual."

The shopkeeper understood the situation and gently stroked the silver plate with his fingers tucked into his sleeves.

He pondered for a moment before speaking: "If it is so unusual, then ordinary people would hardly ever see it."

Feng Xiuhu nodded: "Because it's rare to see, that's why I want to broaden my horizons."

The shopkeeper looked around and gestured for Feng Xiuhu to come closer: "It's not difficult to broaden your horizons. The auction house's collection comes from all over the country, so it shouldn't disappoint you, Second Master. But the auction house also has ordinary and extraordinary items. If you want to see extraordinary items, Second Master, you can only go to the auction house's night session."

"But the rules of nightclubs are different from ordinary ones, Second Master, please keep them in mind..."

After a whispered conversation, Feng Xiuhu nodded in understanding.

The shopkeeper pointed south: "The bidding agency is located on Shujin Island. As the name suggests, Shujin Island is the closest island to the water inlet. At the southernmost point of the island is Fish King Wharf, which is directly opposite the water inlet—the bidding agency is located right next to Fish King Wharf."

"This move is also to provide convenience for the bidding companies' clients. Many clients come from other places and it is inconvenient for them to show their faces in public. After bidding for the goods, they can immediately board the ship and leave Qianyu City."

Feng Xiuhu smiled and looked at the shopkeeper: "You really know a lot."

The innkeeper smiled shyly and cupped his hands in greeting to Feng Xiuhu: "We run a teahouse, we don't have any great skills, but we're very well-informed. Our customers just keep talking, and all sorts of news and secrets come flooding into our ears, we can't stop them." Feng Xiuhu thanked him and returned the greeting, then told Shunzi to pack up all the food and pastries on the table before getting up and leaving.

……

The two went home first and took all the gold certificates from the money box with them.

Then, following the directions of the teahouse owner, we went to Shujin Island without stopping.

Bidding without intestines.

A huge sign hangs overhead, and people come and go on the street, but there are hardly any people inside the auction house—because the timing is wrong. The auction house's daytime sessions are mostly held in the afternoon, not to mention the night sessions.

Pointing to the signboard above, Feng Xiuhu showed off his newfound knowledge from the teahouse owner to Shunzi: "Qianyu City was built by the water, so it was named after a crab. At the same time, 'Wuchang' is a homophone for 'impermanence,' meant to remind customers that wealth and fortune are predestined, but business is unpredictable."

Shunzi only half understood and mumbled, "But what does 'intestineless' have to do with crabs..."

His voice was too soft for Feng Xiuhu to hear, and he dragged him into the bidding hall.

This is the only auction house in Qianyu City. It looks low-key and old from the outside, but the interior is decorated in an exceptionally grand and luxurious style.

The two walked through the long corridor into the reception hall, where they were immediately greeted by a bright and spacious interior.

Before I could even get a good look at them, a manager in a long gown and mandarin jacket came up from behind the counter to greet me.

The manager in the long gown lingered on the money box in Shunzi's arms for a second before asking, "Are you two here to inquire about prices or to sell goods?"

Ask the price.

Feng Xiuhu waved his hand and took the initiative to say, "Bring the catalog."

The steward raised his eyelids, realizing that Feng Xiuhu was the one in charge, so he quickly presented the catalog with its leather-covered cover with both hands: "These are our auction items for today, please take a look..."

Before he finished speaking, Feng Xiuhu opened the catalog, turned it around, and began to look at it with great seriousness.

The manager's expression changed slightly.

Shunzi whispered a reminder: "Brother, you've got it upside down."

Feng Xiuhu ignored him.

The manager said, "Boss, today's booklet is printed backwards."

Feng Xiuhu chimed in, "There are positive views and negative views. None of the things here are to my liking. Bring me a positive one."

"Please wait a moment."

The manager nodded in agreement, turned around and walked back to the counter, took out another map from the locked cabinet and handed it to him.

This atlas looks exactly the same as the previous one from the cover, but when you open it, there's a blank sheet of paper inside.

The paper contained only a few words: Tonight's seating: twenty dried shrimp.

This is a unique bidding code in Qianyu City. "Dried shrimp" refers to a silver plate, while the corresponding symbol is "crab legs"—golden pillars.

PS: Mr. Feng experienced the night auction in Qianyu City, a experience he hadn't had in Fancheng.

(End of this chapter)