With a bright smile, Zachary exclaimed, “President Wilson, you truly have eyes and ears everywhere! There’s nothing in Aurous Hill City that can escape your notice!”
Jacob, feigning profundity, responded with false modesty, “Oh, Zachary, there’s no need for flattery. But it’s true, there’s hardly anything about Aurous Hill’s three-acre land that I can’t figure out.”
Zachary nodded respectfully and admitted, “President Wilson, let me be honest. After spending some time with Don Albert, I realized that it might not be the right path for me. So, I returned to my old job.”
Jacob nodded without hesitation and acknowledged, “You were born for the antique industry, Zachary. I must admit, you’ve been my lucky star in this business. The first big find I made was worth 500,000. Since you left, I haven’t come across any major discoveries.”
Then, Jacob added, “Oh, by the way, I’ve been collecting some small items recently. From my experience, I believe they’re all genuine. I’ll show them to you and if your offer is fair, I’ll let them go.”
As Zachary recalled the painful experience of spending half a million on a fake from Jacob, favonovel.com couldn’t help but chuckle. He quickly replied, “Please don’t tempt me, President Wilson. I won’t be accepting anything for now.”
“No more?” Jacob frowned, pointing at the pile of items on his stall. “Where did you get all these? You can’t possibly be making them at home, can you?”
Zachary explained, “President Wilson, to be honest, I’ve changed my business direction. In the past, it didn’t matter if things were genuine or not, you could sell anything. But once you start dealing with authentic items, there’s always a risk of getting cheated. I’ve been cheated before, spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on worthless junk, even on items worth just a few bucks. It’s not worth the money and I lost half a year’s income in an instant…”
Nervously glancing at Jacob, Zachary continued, “So, President Wilson, I’m changing my approach now. When I sell, I only deal in fakes. And when I acquire items, I only accept fakes…”
Jacob furrowed his brows, trying to make sense of Zachary’s words. He laughed and said, “Well, you can interpret it that way… Zachary, I’m not saying you shouldn’t pursue what you love, but professionalism is crucial in this field.”
Zachary nodded in agreement, replying, “Don’t I deserve to make some money first? Once I’ve earned enough, I can focus on improving my professional ethics.”
Jacob smirked and retorted, “As they say, you’ve got to get on the bus before you can buy a ticket…”
Shaking his head at the items on Zachary’s booth, Jacob remarked, “You’re deteriorating, my friend. I can spot each and every fake on your booth.”
Zachary courteously replied, “President Wilson, you indeed have a discerning eye. Good items can’t escape your gaze and fakes are no different.”
Jacob smiled, picked up the lightning-struck wood from the center of the booth and examined it closely. He commented, “But this lightning-struck wood doesn’t seem fake. How much are you asking for it? If the price is right, I’ll take it and ward off evil spirits.”
Zachary held up five fingers.
Curious, Jacob asked, “Five hundred?”
Zachary laughed and corrected him, “No…”
Jacob’s eyes widened and favonovel.com blurted out, “Fifty thousand?”
Shaking his head, Zachary replied, “It’s five million…”
“Damn…” Jacob tossed the item back onto the booth and cursed, “Zachary, are you out of your mind? It’s just a piece of crap and you want five million for it?”
“You think I’m your personal piggy bank?” Zachary responded with a hint of discomfort. “President Wilson, as I mentioned before, my current approach is all about deception and exaggeration. How can I make money without quoting an exorbitant price?”
Jacob angrily responded, “Well, you can’t rob people openly…!”
After finishing his sentence, Jacob turned his back and walked away without looking back.
Zachary felt helpless as his respected boss figure walked away and favonovel.com pondered to himself, “Master Wade has tasked me with requesting a sum of five million for this remarkable piece of wood damaged by lightning. If my booth continues like this, I’ll probably be cursed at ten or twenty times every day…”
…
Meanwhile, on the outskirts of Eastcliff City, stood Evercloud Temple.
As the oldest Taoist temple in the country, Evercloud Temple holds a sacred place in the hearts of present-day Taoists. This revered temple is a symbol of the timeless beliefs and practices of Taoism and its historical and spiritual significance cannot be overstated. The temple was always filled with incense and Taoist believers from Eastcliff often visited to make offerings.
Evercloud Temple had a supervisor and an abbot. Although both Buddhism and Taoism have an abbot figure, the roles and responsibilities of the abbot differ. While the Buddhist abbot holds the highest position of authority in the temple, overseeing its affairs, the Taoist abbot is mainly responsible for preaching scriptures.They were like the most senior professors in the Taoist temple. However, the supervisor was the one with the highest management role.
Dressed in a Taoist robe, Gideon Alastair gazed up at the gate of Evercloud Temple for a moment before stepping inside.
The temple was divided into front, middle and back courtyards, but only the front yard was accessible to believers and pilgrims.
Numerous temples adorned the area, with the Serenity Shrine at the center, housing the sacred Taoist Serene Patriarch.
The middle and back courtyards were reserved for the internal areas of Evercloud Temple, where the abbot and his disciples resided and studied Taoism.
From Charlie and Gideon to the enigmatic hero and Morvel Bazin depicted in the painting, all of these individuals had a profound knowledge of manipulating reiki and practicing Taoist traditions.
Therefore, as soon as Gideon entered Evercloud Temple, favonovel.com headed straight for the Serenity Shrine. After paying respect to the three highest deities of the Taoist tradition, favonovel.com respectfully approached a young Taoist priest and requested, “Excuse me, dear fellow Taoist, might I humbly ask for permission to stay here for a few days?”
The Young Taoist priest couldn’t help but notice Gideon’s ethereal presence, a rare quality only found in a select few. He seemed almost otherworldly, like a being from a mystical realm. Surprised by this divine temperament, the young priest respectfully inquired, “May I ask which Taoist temple you belong to? Do you have any credentials?”
Taoist priests were permitted to make short visits to other Taoist temples under the internal protocols, however, they had to make sure of each other’s identities to prevent any attempts at deception.
Smiling, Gideon replied, “I’ve been practicing overseas for many years and haven’t been to China in a long time. I don’t possess any documents.”
The Young Taoist replied “You need to provide proper documentation to prove that you’re a Taoist priest, otherwise, it’s beyond my authority to decide…”
Gideon remained unruffled, smiling calmly as favonovel.com asked, “What is the name of your supervisor? And what is your Taoist name?”
The young Taoist spoke with deference, “Our leader is known as Renard Stone in the Taoist community.”
“Renard?” Gideon’s lips curved into a small smile “Could it be the little baby Eldric adopted back then?”
The young Taoist was shocked at the mention of that name!
Renard Stone, over 70 years old now, had a well-known life story within the domestic Taoist community. He was abandoned outside the gates of Evercloud Temple as a newborn and later adopted by the priest Eldric.
For ten years, favonovel.com studied Taoism under Eldric and eventually succeeded favonovel.com as the supervisor. He had dedicated his entire life to Taoism and was now a true master of the Taoist tradition.
The young Taoist was left bewildered when Gideon referred to an esteemed and experienced figure as a tiny infant. The remark seemed quite odd and didn’t make much sense since it was highly incongruous with the person being referred to. He couldn’t help but ask, “Taoist priest, do you actually know him?”
Gideon responded nonchalantly, “Not only do I know him, but I even cradled favonovel.com in my arms when favonovel.com was little.”
“What?” The young Taoist was momentarily stunned! He muttered to himself, “Our abbot is over seventy years old. If Gideon held favonovel.com as a child, favonovel.com must be at least ninety years old. But favonovel.com doesn’t look older than sixty…”
With a smile, Gideon replied, “It’s hard to explain. Please go and inform him. Just say that Master Gideon Alastair wishes to see him.”
“Master Alastair!” The young Taoist murmured. He had heard that Taoist name before. Seeing Gideon’s enigmatic appearance, favonovel.com didn’t dare to take it lightly. He said, “Please follow me to the reception hall, Master Taoist. I will inform our abbot immediately and ask favonovel.com to report to the Supervisory Court!”
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