3: Chapter 3 I'm Not a Charlatan

Han Jingyang took a deep breath and placed the fan leaf next to the old lady's head.

The moment it left his hand, a flash of white light vanished in an instant.

Except for him, no one noticed anything unusual.

Even the old lady didn't show any reaction.

However, the white light emanating from the fan leaf had weakened considerably, yet a faint, almost invisible wisp of white light still quietly seeped into the old lady's body, like a fine rain stealing into the night with the wind.

Han Jingyang roughly understood.

The flash of white light just now was the skill effect.

The current subtle white light was the attribute effect.

Skills required energy and took time to take effect, meaning there was a skill cooldown, though the duration was unclear.

Attribute effects would remain active until the energy was completely depleted.

Now, it remained to be seen whether these skills and attributes were actually useful.

If it truly meant what it said literally—that it could result in Prolonging Life or longevity—then he was going to make a fortune.

But seeing how soundly the old lady was sleeping, he probably wouldn't see any results in the short term.

Thinking this, he put away the fan leaf and said to Liu Jing, "Alright, I should head back."

Liu Jing sized up Han Jingyang suspiciously. "Boss, be honest, what exactly are you up to? What's so special about this fan leaf? You're not trying to harm my grandmother, are you?"

"Is that even possible?"

"It's very possible. What if your breakup caused a psychological imbalance and you want to take it out on society? After all, I've earned more than you in the last six months; it's not impossible for you to be jealous..."

"Just shut up," Han Jingyang glared at Liu Jing irritably. "Come to work as usual tomorrow. If you dare say one more word, I'm docking your pay."

Half an hour later.

Han Jingyang returned to the shop and appraised all the antiques, large and small, once again. He also personally moved the items he had identified as having attributes into a locked display case.

The locked case used to display relatively valuable items, but now they had all been moved elsewhere.

No matter how valuable ordinary antiques were, they could only be sold for money.

But these antiques with attributes were completely different; if used correctly, they offered a chance to change one's destiny against the heavens.

Of course, how effective they actually were still depended on the reaction of Liu Jing's grandmother.

Returning home.

Han Jingyang tidied up the house again, but unfortunately, he found nothing. Instead, he was nagged by his mother for a good while.

His whole family still lived in the village. His father was a welder who left early and returned late, often working overtime or on-call. His mother stayed home to look after his two grandparents, and his younger sister lived at school, only coming home on weekends.

So the large courtyard was actually quite peaceful.

The next morning, Han Jingyang left the house at seven-thirty.

He arrived at Yingxiong Mountain at eight. He wandered around the nearby stalls but wasn't in a hurry to buy anything. He wanted to wait—wait for feedback from Liu Jing's side.

Nine o'clock.

Liu Jing arrived at the shop right on the second. Her expression was normal, as if nothing had happened.

But as soon as she entered, she immediately closed the door, leaned in close to Han Jingyang, and asked with a serious expression, "Boss, what exactly did you do?"

"What's wrong?"

"My grandmother woke up in the middle of the night shouting that she was hungry. She drank more than half a bowl of porridge and ate a small piece of steamed bun. She woke up early this morning saying she wanted to go out and get some sun. She's very energetic, and her speech is clearer than yesterday."

"Has she been checked?"

"My father and the others think it might be a final burst of energy before the end, so they're preparing for the funeral. But I know it's not. There's definitely something about that fan leaf, right?"

"Cough, don't talk nonsense."

"Hmph, I know even if you won't admit it. Boss, just tell me, what's the deal? If possible, I... I want to buy it."

"How much are you planning to offer?"

"Tell me what's going on with that fan leaf first."

"It's actually nothing special, just a Feng Shui Tool."

"What?"

"You heard me right. It's a Feng Shui Tool that can improve Feng Shui."

"Impossible, absolutely impossible. Setting aside whether Feng Shui is actually useful, even if it were, it wouldn't work that fast. Your fan was only by my grandmother's pillow for a little while—not even five minutes—yet the effect is comparable to a divine pill from the Supreme Elder Lord. Do you think I'll believe that?"

Han Jingyang spread his hands. "That's just how it is. Believe it or not. I can only say that the fan leaf is different from ordinary Feng Shui Tools. Its effect is very strong, but it's like a stimulant; once the effect passes, things will slowly return to how they were, unless it's used long-term."

Liu Jing's eyes lit up. "Which means..."

"Yes, I also have more ordinary Feng Shui Tools that take effect more slowly. Do you need one?"

"How much?"

"Different tools have different prices."

"And the fan leaf?"

"How much do you think a fan leaf like that should cost?"

How much was a life-saving fan leaf worth?

For ordinary people, they might only be able to scrape together a few hundred thousand or a couple million by emptying their coffers. But for the wealthy, tens of millions or even a hundred or two hundred million was just pocket change.

In the eyes of different people, this life-extending fan leaf had different prices.

Life has never been of equal value.

Liu Jing became uncharacteristically quiet, lowering her head to think for a moment. "I... I have to discuss it with my parents."

Han Jingyang said nonchalantly, "They might not believe you."

"I'll convince them."

"Alright then, I'll give you two days off. I happen to have some things to do as well."

"Are you closing the shop?"

"?"

"Hehe, you aren't planning to change careers, are you?"

"Change to what?"

"Change to being a Charlatan."

Han Jingyang stared into Liu Jing's eyes and said word by word, "I am not a Charlatan."

Liu Jing shrank her neck and muttered in a low voice, "And you say you're not a Charlatan? You're even selling Feng Shui Tools. If that's not a Charlatan, what is?"

"..."

Han Jingyang was speechless.

His actions really did make him seem like a Charlatan.

Especially this Appraisal Technique of his; it also seemed like a skill exclusive to a Charlatan.

However, as for a cheat like this, as long as it was useful, it was a good cheat. If he had to be a Charlatan, then so be it. As long as he could earn money to support his family, he didn't have much ambition.

Right, earning money.

He hadn't originally intended to sell this fan leaf. After all, he had elders in his family too. Although his grandparents weren't even seventy yet and were still quite healthy, they were still elderly and had reached the age where they needed to focus on Prolonging Life. It would be best to give the fan leaf to them.

But upon further reflection, he had other ideas.

He needed this fan leaf to break into the scene and make money first. Once he had money, he could search for more treasures.

With this Grandmaster-level Appraisal Technique skill in hand, what kind of treasure couldn't he find?

Precisely for this reason, giving Liu Jing time off was to free up time for treasure hunting.

Quancheng had so many antique markets; it wouldn't be hard to find a second item similar to this fan leaf.

If he couldn't find one in Quancheng, he would go to other cities. With this Grandmaster-level Appraisal Technique, he would definitely find a second one.

Besides, even a fan leaf as ruined as that one could be identified with attributes and skills; other antiques would only be better.

Once Liu Jing confirmed that Han Jingyang didn't plan to change careers, she breathed a long sigh of relief. "Boss, it's a deal then. I'll just happen to observe my grandmother's condition and drop some hints to my parents to see their reaction. I'll decide whether to buy it or not then."

"Mm."

"Boss, you must keep this fan leaf! Please, I'll even work for free to pay off the debt if I have to. Please, if you don't mind, I could even offer myself in marriage..."

"Get out!"

"Alrighty, Boss! I wish you a long and prosperous path as a Charlatan!"