Chapter 677: Is 677 here to slap the face or to save face?
"Young Master Ye, don’t get angry. I think they are simply bluffing," said one of the Chamber of Commerce presidents with a sneer as he noticed Ye Fengyun’s displeased expression.
"It’s more than just bluffing. In my opinion, they are completely throwing in the towel," another person said disdainfully.
Hearing their words, Ye Fengyun felt a bit relieved in his heart. Whether it was Mu Hanyan, Mu Nan, or Qu Shanling, all of them had some status and background; they had to maintain face, and even if they couldn’t identify those herbs, they certainly couldn’t show a crestfallen and helpless front to others.
One still had to put on the act; losing was acceptable, but losing face was absolutely not. Convinced of this, Ye Fengyun now firmly believed that Qu Shanling, Mu Hanyan, and the others were putting on airs, and he sneered inwardly: Face isn’t something you can fake. You need real ability. Not being able to distinguish these herbs, no amount of pretense would be useful.
"How is the task I entrusted to the Nanyan Chamber of Commerce coming along?" Ye Fengyun asked coldly.
"What else could it be? They probably haven’t even heard of the names of those herbs, and have just decided to give up altogether and binge eat and drink to their heart’s content," said one of the Chamber of Commerce presidents with a feigned smile.
"Drink today’s wine for today’s joy. The people from the Nanyan Chamber of Commerce sure know how to let go," another person also interjected with sarcasm.
"If I were to lose face to such an extent, I might as well just dig a hole and bury myself. Yet, they still have the nerve to eat and drink," someone else said with an apparently virtuous tone.
Hearing their conversation, the merchants gathered outside the door to watch the excitement exchanged glances quietly. Without guessing, they knew that the Medicinal Herbs Ye Fengyun mentioned must be rare and extraordinary treasures, otherwise, they would not have such confidence.
It seemed that this time, Ye Fengyun and the various major merchant guilds were determined to disgrace the Nanyan Chamber of Commerce.
"I’m sorry to disappoint you," said Mu Hanyan with a faint smile and gestured to Che Xiang.
"Young Master Ye, here is the Dragon Armor Three Spirit Grass Senior Wenren wanted, this is the Purple Perilla Dark Fragrance Flower, and this is the Cold Dew Earth Emperor Ginseng... Do they look correct to you?" Che Xiang placed the identified herbs one by one on the table and said to Ye Fengyun.
"I say, you couldn’t possibly be making wild guesses, could you?" the Chamber of Commerce president standing next to Ye Fengyun said with a laugh that turned into a scoff.
What a joke, even they couldn’t recognize these herbs, and in the end, they had to ask various old Tributors who had retired many years ago to come forward; they gathered together and spent many days to finally identify these herbs. How could the people from the Nanyan Chamber of Commerce possibly identify them in just over four hours? And they even had a hearty meal in those four hours.
Bluffing wasn’t done this way.
However, as he laughed, his smile froze on his face.
The expressions of Ye Fengyun and the people next to him were exactly the same.
Impossible, impossible. With each name of medicinal herbs Che Xiang recited, he took out a corresponding herb without a single error.
All the ridicule and mockery got stuck in their throats, not a word could be uttered, leaving only a belly full of shock.
"How’s that, Young Master Ye, ladies and gentlemen of the Chamber of Commerce, these medicinal herbs should have been identified correctly, right? Quite a simple task, I must say. Why did it sound like such a difficult endeavor earlier? Could it be that you yourselves were unable to recognize these herbs and assumed that our Nanyan Chamber of Commerce lacked the ability as well?" Mu Hanyan said with a smile. Her voice was calm, yet it hit like a slap across the faces of Ye Fengyun and the others.
A group of people felt the sting of the barb, their faces flushed with a spectrum from red to white to ashen, speechless in response.
"Oh right, that president who said earlier they wanted to dig a hole to bury themselves, do you need me to lend you a hoe?" Mu Hanyan asked the president who had appeared so dignified before.
That person was even more mortified, really wishing there was a hole in the ground to crawl into.
"Young Master Ye, our Nanyan Chamber of Commerce might not have been established for long, but that doesn’t mean we can be bullied at will. Bringing shame upon oneself once should be enough. Do it too often, and one might end up ruining their reputation completely one day," Mu Hanyan said coldly to Ye Fengyun, sounding like a reminder, but even more so like a threat.
Ye Fengyun had repeatedly caused difficulties for the Nanyan Chamber of Commerce, and this time, he’d even led the heads of several major chambers to provoke trouble for Nanyan. Anyone could guess his intentions. Hence, she didn’t need to be polite with him anymore. With their relationship torn apart to this extent, what was the point of politeness?
"We’re leaving." Ye Fengyun could have never envisioned such an outcome, recalling his earlier sarcasm and mockery made him feel utterly humiliated. Hearing Mu Hanyan’s threat, he didn’t even have the will to retort and, with an ashen face, he began to gather the various herbs and prepared to depart.
"Wait, this Ice Mist Flame Heart Flower isn’t right," Ye Fengyun suddenly said, brightening up as he picked up the last herb with a look of joy on his face.
It seemed that the Nanyan Chamber of Commerce had ultimately made a mistake. This Ice Mist Flame Flower was not the one that had been selected after discussion by the tributors of the various chambers.
Although this single error wasn’t enough to tarnish Nanyan Chamber of Commerce’s reputation, it did allow him to salvage some face, preventing a total defeat.
"What’s wrong with it?" asked Mu Hanyan.
"This Ice Mist Flame Heart Flower, the color of its stamen doesn’t match. This one here is the real Ice Mist Flame Heart Flower," said Ye Fengyun as he held up another herb that looked nearly identical but with a slightly different shade in the mist around it.
"Didn’t you realize that the color of the mist of that one is not quite right either?" said Mu Hanyan. Han Jinglun had also been conflicted between these two herbs previously until the auspicious beast had made the selection.
"While it’s true that it doesn’t quite match, the old tributors from all the major chambers, after withdrawing from the world for many years, discussed this for days and finally confirmed that this one is the real Ice Mist Flame Heart Flower, there’s no mistake. If you don’t believe me, you can ask them," said Ye Fengyun, desperate to reclaim the last shred of dignity, speaking without much thought and looking around at those beside him with smugness.
However, he was met only with the helpless, wry smiles of his colleagues: My dear predecessor, why did you have to say all that? Aren’t you just handing them something to use against us?
"Hahaha, no wonder you were so sure that our Nanyan Chamber of Commerce couldn’t identify these herbs. It turns out you truly lack eye power, having to summon all the old folks from the chambers after retiring for so many years," Mu Nan first paused, then burst into loud laughter.
"What were you all saying before? The most important thing about running a chamber is eye power. If you can’t even identify a few medicinal herbs, how can you show your face in public? If you can’t see properly when making large purchases and sales, who knows how many lives you might endanger, tsk tsk, fancy you having the nerve to say such things. If I were you, I’d rather drown myself with my own saliva," retorted the disciples of Shan Ling, whose sharp tongues had found the opportunity to return the insults.