After the system set its sights on the dragon throne, the princess started courting death every day.

The madam was already satisfied. She bought a fake vase for one tael of silver and resold it for five hundred thousand taels of silver. She made a fortune.

All the back and forth was just to prevent her from selling him easily; the madam knew all too well that the harder something was to obtain, the more valuable it was. Then, she made it clear upfront that the vase wasn't worth much, that he was the one who wanted it now, and whether it was real or fake later was none of her business.

She can't guarantee its authenticity.

If she weren't afraid that the young master in front of her would turn around and smash her shop, she would have liked to raise the price.

"Young master, are you really going to buy it?"

"really."

"It has to be this?"

"It's indispensable."

The madam had no choice but to say, "Fine, five hundred thousand taels it is, but there are some things that everyone here needs to witness." She stepped onto the table and stood high up.

The male patrons drinking and carousing nearby had already noticed the madam struggling with a group of people. If they hadn't seen that the group was just talking and there was nothing else going on, the men would have gathered over to watch the spectacle.

Seeing her standing on the table, towering above everyone else, the curious crowd immediately put down their chopsticks, put down their wine glasses, and released the beauty from their arms to watch the spectacle.

The madam looked around and said loudly, "Ladies and gentlemen, today I have an ordinary vase, but this young master insists on buying it for 500,000 taels of silver. I have tried to dissuade him many times, but he still insists on buying it."

"I am a businesswoman; there's no reason not to take advantage of money presented to me. Therefore, I would like everyone present to witness that I did not intentionally deceive this young master by selling him an ordinary item. Once the transaction is completed, the 500,000 taels of silver must be paid in full on the spot, with no refunds or exchanges afterward, and no room for reneging. So, young master, do you still wish to buy it?"

After he finished speaking, the crowd began to murmur among themselves.

"Wow? It's so valuable? What kind of vase is it?"

"I heard that Ping Le Kang recently had a vase painted by Li Qin Hu herself. Could this be it?"

"Li Qinhu's vases, they are indeed worth an astronomical price."

"..."

The young master holding the fan stood there dumbfounded. He hadn't expected the madam to loudly proclaim that he and his brothers didn't really want to buy it; they were deliberately offering a high price to create a time gap and take the opportunity to find out if the vase was real or fake.

Because ordinary people don't carry tens of thousands of taels of silver on them for no reason, he naturally didn't either, and the reason he kept raising the price without blinking was the same.

If an agreement is reached, he will immediately propose to pay one hundred taels of silver as a deposit, and then send the silver back later or have a servant go back to the mansion to get it. During this waiting time, he can take the opportunity to ask someone to authenticate the vase.

If the vase is fake, the deal falls through on the spot. Since there's no signed note and no witnesses, he can easily smear the madam, accusing her of making money through dishonest means.

If it's true, then he'll buy it. What his family lacks isn't money, but connections. The valuable thing isn't the vase itself, but the painting Li Qinhu painted on it, and the promising future it can bring.

But now that the madam has made the announcement, his wishful thinking has been shattered. Under the watchful eyes of everyone, he only has one option—to buy the vase without knowing whether it's true or not, without understanding the situation.

Otherwise, where would he put his face?

"Buy it! I'll buy it!" The young master, holding a fan, gritted his teeth. "But I was in a rush to leave today, and I'm..."

"Alright, someone come here! Bring me pen, ink, paper, and inkstone! Write this note!" the madam called to the servant at the door.

"Mr. Li Qinhu's vase, worth a fortune, was just sold off so casually? Mom, you're being far too hasty." A clear, sweet voice flowed down from upstairs, but it was like cold water being poured into a hot oil pan, bursting and exploding in the middle of the crowd.

The madam's eyes widened in fury: "Huo Xin, what nonsense are you spouting?!"

Huo Xin tilted her head, her face full of innocence: "Mother, did I say anything wrong? Even His Majesty the current emperor likes Li Qinhu's paintings, which are worth a thousand gold pieces. It would be too much of a loss for you to sell them for only 500,000 taels of silver."

"This is not Li Qinhu's vase!" the madam said sternly. "Ping Le Kang is a brothel, a lowly place. It is impossible for it to contain Mr. Li's elegant works."

"Is that so?" Huo Xin looked disappointed. "It seems I was wrong. Mr. Li's vase is really not in Ping Le Kang, but was already sent to Lord Wei Wenrun's residence by you."

A male customer asked curiously, "Lord Wei? What do you mean by that?"

Huo Xin kindly explained, "Yesterday, my mother told me personally that Mr. Li's real vase had already been given to Lord Wei, so she deliberately spread some rumors to cover up this news."

The madam instinctively retorted, "You're talking nonsense! I didn't give Lord Wei any vase from Li Qinhu." Looking at the sweet and charming Huo Xin in front of her, the madam felt a sense of unease.

Huo Xin twisted her handkerchief with her fingers, took a step back with a wronged expression, and said, "Mother's word is law. I will not say anything."

The onlookers couldn't hold back any longer—

"Whether you gave it to us or not, now show us the vase you have in your hand."

"That's right, that's right! It's worth 500,000 taels of silver. It won't cost us a penny to even look at it. If what you have in your hand is Li Qinhu's vase, I'm willing to go bankrupt to compete with this young master!"

"Li Qinhu didn't paint many paintings during his lifetime. I heard that the ones that can be found now have all entered His Majesty's treasury. No one has ever really seen Li Qinhu's masterpieces. I never thought we would be so lucky today to be able to see the splendor of his paintings."

"Although I've never heard of any painter painting on vases, Li Qinhu was poor during his lifetime. Perhaps he was making a living in a porcelain kiln, so it's understandable that he would paint on vases."

The crowd surrounded the madam, each offering their own explanation. No matter how she tried to explain, no one listened. Fearing the secret of the vase would be revealed, the madam clung tightly to it, refusing to let go.

In the fragrant pavilion, the aroma of tea filled the room. A fair hand lifted the teapot on the table, smoothly poured out two cups of tea, and pushed one of them to the opposite side with the palm of the hand.

Huo Xin revealed two sweet dimples on her face, "I wonder if the First Prince is satisfied with the current situation?"

Xiang Xin raised one hand and pushed the teacup in front of her away with the back of her hand, lazily sprawled on the chair, and played with a pair of walnuts in her palm with her other hand resting on her knee. "Are you satisfied?"

Huo Xin paused in her tea-serving hand, her delicate eyebrows furrowing slightly as she feigned grievance: "Where did I go wrong? I clearly did everything according to the Crown Prince's instructions, so how could I be wrong?"

The sloshing sound of the walnuts stopped abruptly. Xiang Xin, who had been lazily lowering his eyelids, lifted his eyelids slightly, his gaze turning cold: "If you dare to speak to this prince in that tone again, your throat will be useless."

From time to time, you can hear the voices of guests outside the door, the footsteps of people passing by the door, and the clinking of glasses of three or five friends drinking next door.

Amidst the clamor, the Lan-branded annex was unusually quiet.

a long time.

Huo Xin picked up her teacup, took a sip of tea, and then put it down. Her eyebrows relaxed, and she said seriously, "Your Highness, where did I do wrong?"

Xiang Xin's eyelids drooped slightly, and the sound of walnuts being cracked open rang out again: "Why didn't you wait until the madam gave the vase to Wei Wenrun before making things clear?"

Huo Xin smiled slightly: "Because I can't wait any longer. Anyway, it will have to be made clear sooner or later, so I don't care. But I can't wait a moment longer to do business with the Crown Prince."

boom--

The teacup, filled with tea, slammed heavily onto Huo Xin's forehead.