Tomb raiding: Trying to become a little painter

Standing to Wu Xie's right, Zhang Qilin was puzzled to see that Wu Xie showed no intention of entering the New Moon Hotel auction. However, when he heard Wu Xie talking to the doorman, his stiff face softened. Zhang Qilin took out a black card from somewhere, held it between his index finger and handed it to Wu Xie.

Here's your card!

With that movement, Zhang Qilin coldly uttered three words to Wu Xie.

"A card? Dude...where did you get this card?!"

Wu Xie's dog looked shocked.

"Picked it up!"

Zhang Qilin thought about Wu Xie's question for a while and answered honestly.

Picked it up?

Are black cards really that easy to find? This guy is incredibly lucky...

Wu Xie's lips twitched when he heard that the card was picked up, and he couldn't help but feel a little envious and give it a thumbs up!

Based on Wu Xie's trust in Zhang Qilin, he uttered three words without hesitation.

"Check this one!"

Wu Xie took the card from Zhang Qilin, raised his hand and handed it to the doorman standing at the door, showing the doorman a standard smile.

drop!

As the card reader clicked, Wu Xie, Wang Pangzi, and Zhang Qilin all stared at the card reader in the doorman's hand. However, the screen was small and facing away from them, so they couldn't see it at all. They could only wait anxiously for the result.

Two minutes later, the doorman's respectful voice rang out.

"The three of you have passed the verification process. You may now enter!"

The doorman politely returned the card to Wu Xie, put away the card reader in his hand, and bowed and raised his hand to guide the three people.

After verifying their documents, the doorman greeted his colleague and called a female server to lead the three of them to the door.

Wu Xie and his two companions followed the waiter into the Crescent Hotel. The hotel's interior was exquisitely decorated, blending modern and classical elements to showcase its opulent grandeur. Upstairs, there were private rooms of varying sizes, clearly indicating that the hierarchy and class were determined by assets. Each private room had a different window facing the large, high-end European-style black and white auction stage on the ground floor. In every corner, by the window, and next to the dining table on every floor of the Crescent Hotel, men and women dressed in matching suits or cheongsams were waiting around.

It's clear that the rules of the Crescent Hotel are very clear to all staff members, regardless of their position, and even the guests who enter the hotel tacitly abide by the unspoken or fixed rules.

The waiter led the three to a table on the first floor that was closer to the inside of the auction stage, indicating that this was the place she had brought them to. Then she found a corner close to the table and waited for them.

"Wow! This Crescent Moon Hotel is really grand! But speaking of which, Fatty, who accompanied you, Little Innocent, here this morning and we haven't even had a meal yet. How about we order some food to fill our stomachs first?"

Fatty Wang casually pulled out a chair at the dining table, plopped down, and then prepared to order food!

After all, what's the point of a restaurant if you don't eat?

"Alright, Fatty! Go find a waiter and get a menu. Order whatever you want. It's on me today!"

"And don't forget the important reason we're here today! Observe who around you wants this style of mine! And what are their motives!"

Wu glanced around, his mind focused on finding the buyer behind Yangshi Lei and probing their motives. He didn't have time to think about what to eat right now, so he let Fatty Wang decide for himself.

Wang Pangzi was also very happy to hear Wu Xie's words. He thought to himself that Wu Xie had finally treated him to a meal, so he had to treat him to a good meal to satisfy his stomach.

After speaking to the waiter, Fatty Wang received a beautifully crafted menu booklet with over a dozen pages, each with pictures and prices.

Wang Pangzi was initially very impressed by the exquisite photos in the menu booklet, but when he glanced at the bottom right corner of the food pictures, he was immediately stunned.

One serving of (Crane Pointing the Way) bean sprouts costs 12,000!

One serving of roasted pigeon ("May we be a pair of lovebirds in heaven") costs 36,600!

After flipping through two pages, Fatty Wang slammed the menu shut with a "bang," then said to the waiter with a stiff smile.

"Could you please bring us a pot of floral tea for our table?"

Although the waiters were standing far away, they were all trained; they nodded in Wang Pangzi's direction and left.

Although he was observing whether there were any buyers of Yangshi Lei around, Wu Xie was very puzzled when he saw that Fatty Wang had only ordered a pot of flower tea. His small eyes were full of surprise as he stared at Fatty Wang.

"Don't look at me like that! You're naive. I'm doing this for your own good!"

Wang Pangzi stiffly pushed the menu booklet in his hand from the table toward Wu Xie, indicating that the other party should look at it himself.

Under Fatty Wang's strange gaze, Wu Xie finished looking at the menu, and his face stiffened just like Fatty Wang's.

"This shop... no... it's not a rip-off, is it...? The food they sell seems to be rigged!"

"A plate of bean sprouts costs twelve thousand! And the herbal tea you ordered, Fatty..."

Wu Xie and Fatty Wang locked eyes, both wanting to know the price of the flower tea the other had ordered so that Wu Xie could give up on Wang Xie.

"Eighteen thousand!"

Fatty Wang raised his chubby little hand and made a gesture of 1,800, then didn't forget to start his吐槽 (tu cao, a Chinese internet slang term for sarcastic or critical comments) mode.

"This shop is definitely a rip-off! With prices this high, their business must be terrible..."

Wang Pangzi started rambling on and on, getting more and more excited as he spoke. But before he could finish, he suddenly felt a weight on his shoulder. When he turned around, he was met with a beautiful face, as lovely as a peach blossom.

"Flower... Flower Master! What brings you here?"

Wang Pangzi was suddenly patted on the shoulder, and asked with a slightly stuttering but happy smile.

"Fatty Wang! You've been using my card, do you think it's fair for me not to come?"

Xie Yuchen smiled somewhat perfunctorily as he stared at Fatty Wang, then glanced at his childhood friend Wu Xie, who had turned into a quail after speaking, and found it a little amusing.

I laugh at my childhood friend's inconsistent courage; sometimes he's very timid, sometimes very bold.

"Hehe... Well... this has nothing to do with me, Fatty. If you want to ask, ask Innocent!"

"Better to die than to die, my brother," Wang Pangzi thought. Since Tianzhen was Hua'erye's childhood friend, he didn't hold back and pinned a huge blame on Wu Xie, hitting him right on the head.

"You fatso, you're such a scoundrel! Little Flower, don't listen to this fatso's nonsense!"

Wu Xie's rebuttal was quick and timely, as he busied himself explaining to his childhood friend.

Through Wu Xie's narration and Wang Pangzi's occasional additions of details, Xie Yuchen understood the purpose of his card and the three people's visit.

"The buyer of Yangshi Lei? They invited you here?"

Xie Yuchen stared at Wu Xie without blinking and asked uncertainly.

"Yes, the address and time left by that buyer's buddy a couple of days ago were here!"

Wu Xie replied to Xie Yuchen with certainty.

After hearing the affirmative answer, Xie Yuchen lowered his head and thought for a while, then understood.

“I know who the buyer is. Come with me! There are too many people and gossips down here; that buyer won't be here!”

Xie Yuchen looked at Wu Xie and spoke earnestly to him.