The Lost Tomb Vol. 7

Chapter 5: Auction

I couldn't help but wonder at the embarrassed looks on their faces, so I asked what they meant.

The old man knocked a few times on the table, and then the two men revealed something interesting. It turned out that the client behind this business had a very strange status. They only knew that she was a woman surnamed Huo, and others in the circle called her Granny Huo. Other than that, they didn't know any more details. Although this woman was mysterious, she was very famous. She was even nicknamed "Huo Xiangu" [1], which meant that everyone knew she existed, but no one had ever seen her.

The old man had obviously heard of her and took a deep breath: "Oh, a big shot. In the Changsha Mystic Nine, Granny Huo from Baishajing was the only woman. She had a son who went to Taiwan with Chiang Kai-shek, but during the Cultural Revolution their old background was revealed and the Huo family disappeared. I met this Huo Xiangu once. She's the Huo's third daughter. It was really a chance meeting." As he spoke, he took out a business card from his pocket. "Gentlemen, this is my card. Please let them know that Zheng Zhong from Xishan would like to meet and talk. I won't take up too much of their time."

The two men nodded: "If there's a connection, you can try it. We'll let the two of you know if there's any good news." With that said, they didn't want to stay any longer and took their leave.

I found the old man's old-fashioned approach amusing. Is all this necessary? And passing over a card, do you think you're a gangster?

The old man immediately explained, "That's the Mystic Nine for you. People will bend over backwards for them in order to jump-start their careers. Anything to keep food on the table. This Huo Xiangu Granny Huo, is probably over eighty, and her husband is extremely arrogant. She usually lives in seclusion and only deals with antiques. If she doesn't like you, I'm afraid she won't talk to you at all. Besides, I have to remind you that your grandfather Old Dog Wu was said to have a lot of dealings with her. I don't know whether they were good or bad, but to be on the safe side, you'd better not talk too much."

When I learned this, I didn't take it to heart. I merely thought the plot of this martial arts novel was ridiculous. It wasn't like we were filming a drama or something.

After that, I went back to Changsha. The old man said it was inconvenient for him to accompany me, but I was a descendant of Old Dog Wu. I was going as a representative of the Wu family, so I couldn't show my weakness in front of others, and needed to take a few people with me to show some style. If I were to go in front of Huo Xiangu alone, it would be embarrassing and I would certainly make a fool of myself with my ability. At that time, it would have a big impact on my reputation.

What the old man said really made sense. Although I had rich experience in the field, the "human heart was far more sinister than ghosts and gods." I didn't know the rules of these underworld events, and really couldn't handle it alone.

But to tell you the truth, there weren't many people I could bring from Uncle Three's group, so there wasn't any need to think about it. I only had Wang Meng, but he was worse than me, and would only cause trouble. He also wasn't an insider, so it wasn't fair to drag him into the water. Lao Hai [2]? No, that old boy was a wily old fox and definitely wouldn't do things that weren't good for him and had a high risk. Pan Zi was the most suitable candidate, but he had decided to retire. After so many years of life and death, it wasn't easy to have a good end, so I decided not to spoil it for him.

Of course, there was one person who was the most suitable, but he was so unreliable that he was bound to bring me trouble. I really didn't want to think of it, but I didn't seem to have any other choice.

After discussing it with the old man, he said, "The man you mentioned is a minor celebrity in Beijing so I don't think it will be a bad thing. Moreover, everyone knows his temper. If something goes wrong, it's totally normal and we'll have an excuse. I think he's a suitable candidate. But are you sure you can get him to come?"

My heart said that Fatty had nothing else to do, so I immediately called him for help. Fatty was in a panic when he was idle, and promised that he was an expert in negotiation and that I should leave it all to him. When the time came, I would have the face to stand in front of Granny Huo. He then asked when I would come, and invited me out to drink first.

As soon as Fatty said this, I immediately regretted my decision. His words were only half believable, and based on his past behavior, I suddenly felt that things might get worse.

But I couldn't go back on my word after I called him, and there was no other way. I had to leave it to fate.

To make a long story short, three days passed quickly. Fatty and I met in Wangfujing, Beijing and I was surprised to see Poker-Face following him. The two of them wearing suits— one fat and one thin, one tall and one short— were quite eye-catching.

Accustomed to seeing them in casual attire, I suddenly felt very uncomfortable. Poker-Face had a well-proportioned figure and no facial expression, but he looked very smart in his suit and was extremely eye-catching. Fatty's suit, on the other hand, didn't fit very well. The tie looked like fried dough sticks and the suit was obviously one size too small. I don't even want to mention how poor it was.

"Is this a joke?" I said helplessly, "Which shop made this suit for you? I'll burn it down."

"It's not the tailor's fault. I've been eating well recently. This suit was just right a year ago." Fatty was also uncomfortable in it. "I have a right to wear whatever size suit I want. That old woman has to let me in, even if I want to wear children's clothes."

"Well, if you're so sure, then you go on ahead." I didn't have any plans to keep talking nonsense with him, and felt more and more that the Wu family's reputation may be destroyed by my hands today.

The place we agreed to meet with Huo Xiangu was called Crescent Hotel, which was an old hotel left over from old Beijing. I thought it was just a common place, but Fatty told me that people who dealt in antiques in Beijing all knew that Crescent Hotel was the place where real connoisseurs stayed. Compared with here, Liulichang and Panjiayuan were mere stalls. All these transactions were conducted in the hotel's third-floor theater. In the past, this was the place where eunuchs traded with foreigners, and the entrance and exit all required formal attire. Therefore, in sticking with this tradition, no matter how rich you were, you could never get in wearing only a pair of underwear.

This was the first time that I had ever been here, and I was a little nervous. From the lobby, to the elevator, and up to the third floor, my eyes were full of Chinese-style interior screens with carved windows and doors. Fatty had been here before and was very familiar with it. He called a man over and introduced me to him: "This is the little master of the Wu family from Changsha."

The man was wearing glasses and was over sixty years old. He looked at me and didn't show any expression: "Would you like to sit in a private room or the lobby?"

Fatty asked me what time the appointment was. I looked at my watch and saw we still had half an hour. Just as I was about to speak, the man saw Poker-face behind me and his face instantly changed.

I thought he knew Poker-Face, but when I was about to start asking questions, I saw a man come out from behind Poker-Face. He must have followed us in. The man was dressed in a black suit with a pink shirt underneath and no tie. He was very relaxed. The man went up immediately and asked, "Young Master, the usual?"

The man didn't speak, but looked at me and stopped. I suddenly felt that he was a little familiar.

********************************

Notes:

[1] Immortal Huo or Sorceress Huo.

[2] Lao Hai is that antique dealer Wu Xie sold the jade shroud to from the Cavern of Zombies.