Ms. Diviner: The Prodigal Daughter's Return

After purchasing the items Yi Qinglian wanted, Mu Hanyan finally got her onto her family’s carriage, instructing her to go home nicely and promising to come find her tomorrow for more fun. After seeing off Yi Qinglian, Mu Hanyan took Han Jinglun to the Nanyan Chamber of Commerce. At this time, Mu Nan was likely still at the Chamber of Commerce, but Mu Hanyan wasn’t in any rush to see him, instead choosing to stroll first through the marketplace.

Mu Nan had already purchased several adjoining estates and, after expansion, the Nanyan Chamber of Commerce had grown in scale, more than tripling its original size.

The marketplace set up on the open ground was even livelier, with the number of traders and customers from all directions having increased several-fold. The quality of goods had also improved significantly, some of which even tempted Mu Hanyan.

So, Mu Hanyan wanted to take a good look around to see if she could find a suitable sword to wear.

”Young Master Mu, are you looking to select a sword?” Han Jinglun guessed as he saw Mu Hanyan linger mostly at the stalls selling weapons.

”Indeed, but they all fall a little short,” Mu Hanyan said, somewhat disappointed.

Throughout her search, she had seen many longswords of decent quality, but compared to the Cold Sky Sword, they all seemed lacking and failed to catch her eye.

”How about this one?” Han Jinglun picked up a longsword and said to Mu Hanyan.

”This one?” Mu Hanyan couldn’t help but laugh and cry simultaneously.

Other longswords at least had a sheath made of beast skin, but this one didn’t even have a sheath. Its design was austere and imposing, broader and slightly longer than the average longsword, and it possessed a certain ancient charm. However, the blade was dull and covered in rust, looking as if it had never been sharpened.

What was the use of such a sword? To serve as an antique for a collection?

Only someone with as little cultivation as Han Jinglun would take an interest in such a longsword.

”Good sir, you have quite the eye! I put a lot of effort into this sword – excavated it from a ruin on an Ancient Battlefield. Look at the blade and sword guard; you can tell it was a Divine Weapon for self-protection used by a powerful figure of ancient times. Sadly, with my limited Eye Power, I really can’t discern whose hand crafted this sword. Therefore, it’s priced at ten thousand taels of patterned silver,” the vendor immediately began to boast upon seeing a potential customer approaching.

Many vendors in the marketplace were new and had only heard of Mu Hanyan’s reputation without ever having seen her in person. If they knew that the person in front of them was the fabled number one playboy of Heishi City, they probably wouldn’t dare to boast like this.

”Ten thousand taels of patterned silver, that’s expensive,” Mu Hanyan gasped. Although she wouldn’t care about ten thousand taels of silver given her current wealth, the idea of this rusty, broken sword being sold for ten thousand taels made her wonder if he genuinely considered it an antique.

”Ten thousand taels is indeed a bit much,” Han Jinglun commented as he put the longsword back down.

”How about eight thousand taels, then? Eight thousand is a fair price,” the vendor, sensing that Han Jinglun still seemed interested, immediately perked up and voluntarily dropped the price by two thousand.

”Too expensive,” Mu Hanyan said. Not to mention eight thousand taels, even one thousand taels would feel overpriced to her. She sighed and walked off uninterestedly towards another stall.

If Han Jinglun also turned to leave now, the vendor probably wouldn’t say any more. Though his claims were somewhat exaggerated, the sword was indeed obtained from the ruins on an Ancient Battlefield. However, it hadn’t been excavated; he had found it on the periphery of the ruins. Yet, he had taken significant risks to enter those ruins, so he really wouldn’t want to sell it for too little.

But Han Jinglun hesitated, seemingly unable to part with it. It was evident that he was tempted.

”Fine, five thousand taels, I can’t go any lower,” the vendor gritted his teeth, slashing another three thousand taels off the price in a desperate bid to sell.

He had possessed the sword for some time now, hoping that the allure of stemming from an ancient battlefield would fetch a handsome price, yet no one showed interest until now. Selling it for dirt cheap was beyond his comprehension, but five thousand taels seemed somewhat reasonable.

Yet he’s still asking for five thousand taels? Mu Hanyan frowned, not even wanting to give the vendor the time of day, but Han Jinglun seemed genuinely interested.

”Really selling it for five thousand taels?” Han Jinglun asked softly, caressing the longsword.

”If you’re really buying, five thousand taels for this sword is hardly cheap,” Mu Hanyan couldn’t help but warn Han Jinglun, worried that he was getting swindled.

”This is a Divine Weapon left by an ancient powerhouse! What are five thousand taels? You can’t suffer a loss or be cheated with this deal. If you want it for five thousand taels, take it, or you’ll miss your chance once you leave this village,” the vendor said anxiously, almost ready to shove the sword into Han Jinglun’s arms and snatch the money right out of his pocket.

Upon hearing this, not only Mu Hanyan but also the nearby vendors burst into laughter.

”Can’t suffer a loss, can’t be cheated? Old Yuan, how long has that Broken Sword of yours been up for sale and not sold?” a vendor chimed in teasingly.

”Yeah, it’s not every day we see someone who knows their stuff,” another added with an unmistakably mocking tone on ”knows their stuff.”

”Indeed, indeed, this guest here has some serious Eye Power,” Old Yuan said, a touch embarrassed and blushing amidst the teasing from the others.

But Han Jinglun, as if he hadn’t heard their mockery, pulled out a silver note for five thousand taels and handed it over. Old Yuan, scared that Jinglun might change his mind after hearing the jokes from the crowd, quickly snatched it.

Seeing Han Jinglun’s action made Mu Hanyan somewhat curious.

Logically speaking, having run an inn for decades and seen much of the world, even if he wasn’t an expert in identifying goods, he surely couldn’t fail to detect the sarcasm in these people’s words, could he? Yet he still acted without hesitation, even with an air of eagerness.

Thinking of Han Jinglun’s likely extraordinary background, Mu Hanyan’s thoughts stirred, and she looked closely at the longsword. Though its blade was dull and rusted, on closer inspection, one would notice that the sword guard was crafted with incredible precision, and the materials were much more valuable than those of the blade.

Mu Hanyan took the longsword again and concentrated her Divine Sense to probe inside, only to be surprised to find that it seemed to be under some kind of Prohibition—so much so that even her Divine Sense couldn’t penetrate it, which explained why she hadn’t noticed anything odd at first glance.

How strange! Though she didn’t know what secret the sword concealed, Mu Hanyan realized that Han Jinglun’s decision to purchase it wasn’t because his judgment was poor. On the contrary, he must have discerned something peculiar about it.

Even his previous hesitation probably had been feigned to avoid giving away too readily that he had noticed something out of the ordinary to the vendor, but also not to show disinterest that would discourage haggling. Could it be he had found a hidden treasure, and a significant one at that?

After several more attempts, Mu Hanyan was still unable to penetrate the sword with her Divine Sense and realized the Prohibition was much stronger than she had imagined. Filled with doubts, she handed the longsword back to Han Jinglun.

”No need, this sword was bought as a gift for Young Master Mu, please take it,” Han Jinglun said with a wave of his hand, smiling.

(The Thanksgiving event has concluded, and we’re waiting for the admins to tally the results. Next up comes Christmas and New Year’s. So, we’re preparing a Double Festival event, just a heads-up. Great prizes are coming, with first prize being five adorable pillows, second prize being eight snack packages weighing 1300 grams, and third prize cash envelopes. I’ll try to post pictures of the prizes in the book review section if possible. Check the review section next week, and I’ll notify you in the text when the event starts, as well as in the groups. Ah, I almost forgot to howl for your votes, seeking monthly tickets and recommendation tickets.)