Chapter 138: The Ultimate Treasure, Women and Insects

  "Haha. I didn't expect you, Zhou, to be a master of playing with insects too, and you even brought some?"

  Liu Ke was overjoyed. Good insects are like good dogs, the more they bark, the faster they die; most of the good insects that can survive the winter don't make a sound, and if they don't make a peep, they're the king of insects. But on this whole journey, I haven't heard any insects chirping from Zhou Yi's body, could it be that he really brought an insect king?

  It's no longer important whether they can enter the ancient garden or not, Liu Ke and Zhang Zuo's curiosity has shifted to Zhou Yi, this mysterious insect.

  "Zhou younger brother, this calabaza is not very good"

  What Zhou Yi took out was not a famous product like 'Shahe Liu', nor was it a product from Baoding Prefecture, but rather a dull and unremarkable calabaza with no painted designs on the outside. Liu Ke's brow furrowed instantly, and his expectations also decreased accordingly.

  He had no idea that this calabaza was bought for 2 million soft sister coins, and its value is not much lower than that of 'Shahe Liu', and it also has unimaginable magical effects.

  "Another rare species, and it's so big!"

  The Easy lightly patted the bottom of the gourd, and this golden red beetle slowly crawled out and fell into the scoop. The younger sister in charge of weighing the beetles was not calm, and she couldn't help but exclaim: "Eight cents eight! This one might be a Bug Emperor? Sir, your beetle is probably top-notch, please wait a moment."

  After finishing, the girl nodded to another girl next to her, and that girl immediately ran quickly to the front door and said a few words to several people who seemed to be in charge of security work. One of the security guards picked up the walkie-talkie.

  "My goodness! Zhou, you're really something else. Are you a real person or not? Eight out of eight! If this were any bigger, it would be the legendary Nine Supreme, the number one under heaven! Ah, my stinky mouth, I've offended Treasure Number Two, haven't I?"

  Liu Ke was so excited that he forgot his identity as a Confucian merchant and even swore.

  "Beautiful girl, can I take it away now?" Zhou Yi glanced at the security guard holding the walkie-talkie and said to his sister.

  "Sir, please wait a moment, okay? We'll go call 'Dr. Bug'. Once he confirms that this is an extreme cricket, the three of you can enter the top floor of the Tianzi Building to live, and wait for the insect meeting to start. You can also sit with Master Bao Er."

  Little sister is a bit excited: "Don't worry, our frog leg stir-fry is top-notch and won't freeze your baby"

  "Baby?" Zhou Yi was taken aback. Only then did he realize that she was referring to his own Golden Dragonfly. But why did this phrase sound so ambiguous coming from his sister?

  "What? Can sit with Bao Er Ye together? Alright alright, Zhou younger brother, let's wait and see"

  Liu Ke was excited on the spot and enthusiastically helped his sister persuade Zhou Yi.

  "Never mind, just wait then."

  Can't sit with that mysterious Bao Er Ye, Zhou Yi is nothing. However, he has great confidence in this insect. 'Jia Si Dao's Cricket Gourd' is not just talk, it can really increase the vitality of the cricket. Not to mention being placed in a warm grass-woven basket, even if thrown on snowy ground overnight, this golden red cricket can still practice its skills and then take a nap. What's a little wind and cold?

  The insect doctor didn't come, but instead attracted many onlookers; these were the proud young men and women waiting to enter the garden, who now gathered around like a group of idle rascals.

  "What! The insect king has emerged, and you still want to disturb Insect Doctor? This is so formidable, isn't it a step towards reaching the sky? If Insect Doctor praises him a couple more times, he'll be able to sit together with Treasure Number Two. What a great opportunity!"

  "Yes, it's really enviable. Zhang Gongzi, you can't even do that, and yet you said you ran all over the land of China and only found a mediocre insect, haha"

  Actually, apart from the one who was busy attending to Zhou Yi and his friends, the other five sisters were all capable of weighing insects and arranging accommodations for guests. But at this moment, everyone had gathered around to admire Zhou Yi's Golden Red Line Bug. Some people held their own prized insects in their hands, their faces filled with envy, refusing to leave; others even tried to flatter Zhou Yi: "Brother, you're not from around here, are you? You really have a good eye for this! Say, would you be willing to sell this bug? I'll give you a high price, okay?"

  It's not like these "rich second generation" and "official second generation" are all quite well-educated, and they don't seem as unreasonable and brainless as some people say. They all speak politely, and after being rejected by Zhou Yi, they just smiled it off, no one came to slap him in the face, but instead made Zhou Xian feel a bit disappointed.

  Just as things were getting chaotic, someone whispered that Yuling had arrived.

  The crowd suddenly dispersed, and everyone's eyes were fixed on a woman. Zhou Yi was also curious and looked up to see the woman, and after seeing her, he couldn't help but be stunned: "How can there still be such a woman in modern society?"

  This woman is over twenty years old, at first glance she seems to be dressed very simply, but upon closer inspection, the more you look at her, the more you feel that not only is she finely dressed, but also finely made.

  A white flower-patterned jacket that reached her knees, a pair of white pointed boots with a half-slanted fur hat on her head, and a clean face without any makeup, with skin that wasn't particularly pale but had a radiant glow like fine jade; she walked in the cold wind, alone and unaccompanied, as if a strong gust could blow her away at any moment.

  She looks thin, but she doesn't look frail. She's not bony, and the parts that should be straight are straight, and the parts that should be round are round, as if they were carefully measured by heaven itself. No matter how you look at her, she looks perfect.

  "Zhou, little brother, are you stunned?"

  Liu Ke leaned in close to Zhou Yi's ear and whispered, "To be honest with you, when I first saw this woman, I was also stunned. This is the famous Kunqu opera singer Yu Linglong from Nanjing, isn't she lovely? Not only does she look good, but she's also very cultured, and it's said that she has a Ph.D. When she starts singing, I'm afraid I don't understand the lyrics."

  "Haha, can't understand you and yet you're still playing Kunqu?"

  Zhou Yi secretly laughed in his heart. Kunqu is all about being 'elegant and refined'. Sometimes a single line of lyrics can contain three or four allusions, and they're not even the kind that every Chinese person knows, like the story of Zhang Fei riding alone to rescue his lord at Changban Slope. Many are obscure allusions from the Book of Songs, Analects, Nine Songs, and Nine Questions - without some cultural knowledge, you'd be completely lost.

  For someone like Liu Ke, the most they can be is a half-understanding Xiao Qingwen or Hua Xiren, yet they really think they are Xue Baochai?

  "Which Kunqu opera actress is from Nanjing?"

  "She's the one Bao Er Ye has been raving about? No wonder, with this figure, she hasn't even dressed up yet. If she did, wouldn't she hook out the souls of all the masters?"

  "That's it. This Kunqu, a refined and elegant thing like Yang Chun Bai Xue, you think anyone can understand? She's so popular, isn't it just because there are many men who fawn over her but not the art itself? Everyone says so. This girl is just a modern-day Zhao Feiyan, able to drive men crazy with desire with just one glance at her body."

  Adhering to the ancient saying 'true scholars are elegant', Liu Ke was not afraid to show his anxious appearance. His eyes and eyebrows were all scrunched up, just like an old woman, as he whispered to Zhou Yi: "I'm telling you, have you seen her little white boots? They're custom-made, only 32 cm! And yet she says they're still too loose for her. Those small white feet of hers can stand directly on the palm of a man's hand, even more so than Zhao Feiyan - this is what makes her body so captivating!"

  "Really? I said why everyone is staring at other people's feet?"

  Zhou Yi let out a slight snort and inappropriately said: "Aren't you afraid of having athlete's foot?"

  "Zhou, you're really ruining the atmosphere. I've long heard that Yulingong has a habit of getting foot massages whenever she's free, and her family even keeps a specialized foot massage therapist on hand. Her feet are massaged to be white, tender, and delicate. I think her name 'Yulingong' probably comes from these beautiful feet."

  Liu Ke Yue spoke more and more enthusiastically, with saliva almost dripping from his mouth; Zhang Zuo on the side couldn't listen anymore: "Is that all? I think you have a strong tendency of being infatuated with objects."

  "You know what, since ancient times, literati have been infatuated with women's three-inch embroidered shoes. If that thing were used to hold wine... Tsk tsk"

  "Alright Liu Ge, if you keep talking I'll puke."

  At this moment, Yuling had already entered the main gate with a gentle swaying motion, and someone inside had already received her. Without even looking at these young nobles at the door, they naturally didn't know that in just this short while, her delicate feet had been ogled countless times.

  "Perfect! Perfect!"

  Yu Linglong went in for a while, and a middle-aged man with a pointed head, rolling eyes, looking like an insect, walked to Zhou Yi's face. He only looked at the golden line of Dou Xian for one eye, and exclaimed: "Good pure gold line! From the beginning to the end, it is straight and has no deviation. Good bug! Is this bug yours, sir?"

  Zhou Yi knew this must be Bao Er Ye's idle 'Bug Doctor', and smiled in response: "Mm, it's mine."

  "Hehe, this insect can still stand upright in such cold wind, yet it doesn't feel the slightest bit of chill. Even with the warming effect of the ladle, that's quite rare! Sir, if I'm not mistaken, this insect must have grown up in a place connected to a geothermal energy source, right?"

  "You're indeed worthy of being called a doctor, you have vision."

  Zhou Yi smiled and nodded, putting away the golden red Dou line. He looked at Bug Doctor and that girl and said, "Can we go in now?"

  "Of course, this is the visiting card of the three gentlemen, with detailed instructions on it. Following the instructions will lead you to your rooms."

  The girl handed over three cards and said, "This card is given by Mr. Bao to each of you as a souvenir, you don't need to return it after the meeting is over, please take it, gentlemen."

  As soon as they received the cards, they found that they were made of gold and had embossed characters on them - "Tianzi Building Top Floor" with room numbers behind. The three of them were numbered 1, 2, and 3 respectively. Just by looking at the numbering, it was clear that the three of them were considered to be the most honored guests in the ancient garden.

  "This Second Master Bao is still quite good."

  The master of the Zhouyi slightly nodded. This gentleman has truly achieved recognizing insects but not people, if the insect is good there will be a good house to live in, even if you are from out of town; if the insect is bad, even if your power in the capital is great he won't give you any face.

  Although it is unknown whether this old man was also fair in other matters, at least in this insect meeting he truly achieved 'fairness, justice and openness', making it impossible for people to find fault.

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