242: Chapter 242 Husband

Han Jingyang chose the last form of address without a second thought.

Shi Xiaoya smiled radiantly, hugged Han Jingyang's arm, and called out "Husband" in a sugary voice.

The voice was as sweet and cloying as could be.

Instantly, it drew a lot of strange looks, mostly filled with envy and jealousy.

Han Jingyang didn't care about the gazes of the passersby because his entire body had gone weak.

Having dated Sun Xiaoqian for so long, let alone a term like "Husband," there hadn't even been any other intimate nicknames; her attitude toward him had always been bossy, as if ordering around a servant, and she only occasionally called him that in bed.

But in public?

Even the number of times she held his arm was few, let alone hugging his arm under the watchful eyes of the crowd and calling him "Husband" like Shi Xiaoya.

So, the feeling was similar to having consumed an immortal pill; his whole being was floating, almost as if he were ascending to heaven.

So, this was what it felt like to be called husband.

It was quite nice.

This form of address could be kept.

Thinking this, he pulled Shi Xiaoya's slender waist and kissed her, engaging in a long three-minute passionate kiss in front of everyone.

"Ugh~"

The surrounding crowd collectively let out a sound that was half-disgust and half-envy.

Shi Xiaoya panted slightly but raised her head with a face full of pride, like a general returning in victory.

Instead, Han Jingyang felt a bit embarrassed; he cupped his hands to the surroundings, pulled Shi Xiaoya to quickly change locations, and then dove back into his efficient shopping work.

Soon, several more antiques were in Shi Xiaoya's hands.

When Liu Jing returned, Han Jingyang was holding a dragon plaque carved from Hetian jade, haggling with a stall owner.

The stall owner wanted thirty-eight thousand and wouldn't budge.

Han Jingyang offered six thousand at most.

The gap was quite large.

But neither gave up; clearly, there was still room for negotiation, they were just in the tug-of-war stage.

At this moment, a voice rang out from the side: "I'll give twenty-eight thousand. I want this plaque."

Hearing this, the stall owner's face instantly lit up with joy; he reached out, snatched the Five-clawed dragon plaque carved from Hetian jade from Han Jingyang's hand, and handed it to the person who bid twenty-eight thousand: "Twenty-eight thousand, it's a deal."

Han Jingyang narrowed his eyes, looked at the stall owner, then at the middle-aged man with graying hair beside him, and cupped his hands: "Friend, this isn't according to the rules, is it?"

Hua Baitou said without even looking up: "What rules? I only know that the highest bidder gets it."

Han Jingyang sighed: "Friend, there's really no need to ruin the harmony over such a small item."

"Who the hell do you think you are to talk about harmony with me?"

"Friend, what grudge is there between us?"

"Humph," Hua Baitou snorted coldly, transferred the money directly to the stall owner, took the plaque, turned around, and left.

Seeing this, Liu Jing was furious and reached out to grab Hua Baitou's shoulder.

Han Jingyang stopped Liu Jing, shook his head, but slowly followed Hua Baitou.

A gentleman's revenge doesn't wait overnight.

Snatching my things to my face?

Can this be endured?

I'm not some damn Ninja Turtle!

Besides, this Hua Baitou... is no ordinary person.

This is aimed at me.

If I don't respond, won't I be laughed at?

A trap?

Han Jingyang sneered; seeing Hua Baitou getting faster and faster, he also increased his speed.

I want to see what kind of monsters and demons have popped up this time.

Hua Baitou twisted and turned through the crowd but didn't leave the antique market; instead, he circled around and slipped into an antique shop after a moment.

The three of them followed to the shop entrance and looked up at the sign.

Boya Pavilion.

Liu Jing stared fixedly at Hua Baitou inside the shop.

Shi Xiaoya whispered: "I've met the owner of Boya Pavilion before when I was with He Dingkun. The owner's name is Liu Dacheng. He's a somewhat famous collector and has other businesses. He even has some business dealings with Dingshen Group, but as far as I know, this person's reputation has always been quite good."

Han Jingyang raised an eyebrow.

Such a coincidence?

No, it's not a coincidence.

This is intentional, intentionally luring me here.

I just don't know what his intentions are.

Thinking this, he walked straight in.

Liu Jing took the lead and pushed the door open; after entering and confirming there was no ambush, she nodded to Han Jingyang: "Boss, it's fine."

Shi Xiaoya hugged Han Jingyang's arm and said delicately: "Husband, let's have a good meeting with this old acquaintance."

When Liu Jing heard Shi Xiaoya's address for Han Jingyang, her eyes instantly went blank, and then she glared fiercely at Shi Xiaoya.

Han Jingyang ignored the small movements between the two women and instead stared at Hua Baitou and the old man sitting upright on the sofa.

The old man looked to be in his sixties, chubby, with a round face, a bald head, a round belly, and three layers of fat on his neck; his arms filled out the sleeves of his T-shirt completely. Sitting on the sofa, he took up the space of two people, a literal mountain of flesh.

Shi Xiaoya nodded slightly: "Husband, this is the owner of Boya Pavilion, Mr. Liu Dacheng."

Han Jingyang cupped his hands: "Mr. Liu, I've heard of your great name for a long time. I didn't expect our first meeting to be in this situation."

Liu Dacheng lifted his eyelids: "You're Han Jingyang, right? Your fame is much greater than mine."

"I wouldn't dare," Han Jingyang narrowed his eyes: "I wonder what instructions Mr. Liu has, having gone to such lengths to lure me here."

"There really is a small matter I want to discuss with you."

"Please speak, Mr. Liu."

"Hand over Huang Jianyong's treasure."

Han Jingyang stared at Liu Dacheng's maitreya buddha-like body and cupped his hands again: "Mr. Liu, let's not even mention whether Huang Jianyong's treasure is in my hands. Even if it were, there's no such logic. You tell me to hand it over, and I just hand it over?"

Liu Dacheng chuckled: "I'm not discussing it with you; it's an order, understand? Don't play dumb with me, and don't think about stalling for time. I'm just asking you one thing: are you handing it over or not?"

Han Jingyang's expression gradually turned cold.

But he became alert internally.

What exactly does this Liu Dacheng mean?

Open robbery?

No, that's not logical.

These days, no matter how overbearing a person is, they would use some strategy when seizing others' belongings; there's absolutely no logic in demanding it forcibly upon meeting.

Besides, I'm no nobody; I'm not a soft persimmon that can be squeezed at will.

On the contrary, I'm quite famous with brilliant battle records and have connections with people like Shen Yuhai and Zhang Zhiyang. No matter how you look at it, I'm not someone to be trifled with.

Where does this Liu Dacheng get the confidence to snatch things from my hands?

Strength?

Han Jingyang scrutinized Liu Dacheng inconspicuously.

He nodded inwardly.

This Liu Dacheng's strength was indeed not weak; his appearance was like a maitreya buddha, and there really was a maitreya buddha inside his body, a maitreya buddha condensed from golden energy. It was similar to the beast inside Tian Chunming's body but much weaker than Tian Chunming.

Moreover, Tian Chunming practiced Dual Cultivation of Dao and Martial Arts, while Liu Dacheng only practiced Dao; his physical fitness... was very poor.

Fat as he was, his physical fitness couldn't be good even if he wanted it to be.

With just this strength, plus Hua Baitou standing nearby, they were definitely no match for me, Shi Xiaoya, and Liu Jing.

So here's the question: what is Liu Dacheng's reliance?

Or is Liu Dacheng just a frog in a well who has no idea how powerful the three of us are?

Han Jingyang's thoughts whirled, and he suddenly smiled: "Mr. Liu, I can choose not to argue with you about other things, but you worked so hard to lure us here yet can't even spare a seat. This is a bit lacking in hospitality, isn't it?"