Chapter 103: Settling Disputes
Harry had an impatient look on his face as he waved his hand like he was swatting away a fly. “You must be tired, Bella. Head back and get some rest! I’ll take care of this!”
“But...”
“No buts!” Harry suddenly turned cold. “Don’t forget that I’m in charge of the defenses of New Washington. That was an order; not a request. Miss Bella, please obey your orders!”
Bella was furious as she was forced to leave, but the atmosphere got much better once that overbearing woman was gone. Hank wiped the sweat off his forehead as he tried to explain the situation, but Harry did not treat him any better, and Hank wisely shut up after a few words.
Harry’s imperious mannerisms put Xiao Lin at a loss. He had a ton of excuses ready, but it seemed like they would be useless. Finally, he touched the jade as he said, uncertain, “Are you willing to pay any price for this jade pendant?”
“I always speak the truth!”
Xiao Lin had a determined look on his face, but before he could say anything, Song Junlang could not take it anymore and interrupted. He might have been standing by the side, but he was always listening, and he finally lost his patience as he stood right in front of Xiao Lin, saying in fluent English, “Quit dreaming! The Lightstream Jade is not for sale!”
From Song Junlang’s simple explanation earlier, Xiao Lin more or less could guess that the Lightstream Jade was something incredibly valuable, especially since it contained draconic power. However, that toy was really too high-ranked for him–to the degree that it would be very hard for him to have any chance to use it. He had felt the draconic power, and thankfully it was in New Washington. He really did not want to use it a second time and cause himself trouble.
The most important part was the thing had limited uses!
Xiao Lin licked his lips with a bit of regret, but Department Head Song was frantically shooting him some looks, so he eventually had to shake his head and force himself to reject Harry’s offer.
Harry had a look of pity on his face. “If that’s so, then we’ll put it on hold for now. However, if you feel like selling the jade, you can look for me at any time while you’re in New Washington! Alright, I need to go maintain order. Ah, you really caused me quite a bit of trouble!”
Xiao Lin felt a bit awkward, but he was quite surprised that Harry did not say anything else. He could not help but ask, “Surely this incident did not incur too much loss for New Washington?”
“You call this not much loss? Do you know how much resource is needed to activate that magic array?” Harry finally showed some anger. “The fees are even paid for by my knight regiment!”
Xiao Lin’s eyes twitched; he felt that the last words were the main reason Harry was angry.
“The city is probably in a state of disarray today; I’ll bring you to Professor Brown tomorrow.” Hank was now being much more courteous to Xiao Lin. “I’ll get someone to take you to the inn.”
“Sorry for the trouble!”
Walking down from the platform, Xiao Lin finally properly stepped into New Washington. The streets were made out of limestone and very wide. The sudden downpour from earlier had washed the city abnormally clean. The teleportation platform was built close to the center of the city. This was the busy area of the city, but there were not many people out and about at the moment, probably scared away by the dragon earlier.
Both sides of the streets were densely packed with shops, and none of them seemed to be closed, even after the chaos earlier. These merchants were all probably very confident in Judge Academy. The shops had all sorts of fruits, items, weapons, armor and daily necessities on display. There was an insane amount of variety. Other than familiar modern goods such as shampoo, there were even some exotic carvings and accessories. No matter the workmanship or the materials, they were all extremely beautiful.
Beautiful accessories had a natural allure; Xiao Lin could not help but stop and browse for a bit. Hank hurriedly ran up to say some words, but once he noticed that Commander Harry’s spirit chain had disappeared, he switched to Mandarin, “These are small elven accessories. They have quite a bit of sentimental value, and most students of Judge Academy will buy some the first time they come here. You can think about getting one yourself.”
“It’s not like I’ve never stepped into New Washington before; these things are only here to trick outsiders!” Song Junlang said without any consideration, “Don’t fall for it, Xiao Lin. They’re all fake goods!”
“Fake goods!”
“Please don’t slander people so lightly!” Hank smiled dryly.
Song Junlang ignored him, and advised Xiao Lin in a low voice, “Let me teach you a useful trick. If you feel like buying elvish things, don’t get it from a shop that the Americans opened themselves; most of it is fake and they charge an insane amount. Conversely, if you feel like buying anything from Earth, like shampoo, don’t get it from any foreign species. Even the quality is drastically different.
It seemed like there were unscrupulous merchants everywhere. Xiao Lin smiled and said, “I wasn’t planning on buying these things; I don’t really have that much money. I want to spend the money on more practical things, like gear and weapons.”
“Then you’re at the right place!” Hank immediately changed the topic. “You will definitely be able to find any equipment that you need in the trade district!”
“I trust Department Head Song’s judgement.” Xiao Lin seemed even more careful now.
No matter what, Xiao Lin was broke at the moment. Thanks to the day’s chaos, their meeting with Professor Brown would be delayed. When Hank asked if they wanted to continue shopping, Xiao Lin rejected it and felt like heading to the inn first.
Even though the city was filled with wonder, the anti-gravity shield Bella cast on him would be gone soon. Once he loses that protection, Xiao Lin would have the pressure of this planet’s gravity once again. That was why he would rather lie in the bed and wait for Hank to deliver the special item he talked about.
New Washington separated into many ring-shaped districts. In the center was the governmental district, which served as the heart of the city, and was where the Judge Academy was centered. The central district was rebuilt from the castle of the old Thunder Kingdom, so from appearances, it looked like an ancient castle. It was majestic and awe-inspiring, and the ancient walls that surrounded it told viewers of its history.
With the castle as the center, it was neatly surrounded by a few large districts. It was separated into the residential district, the trade district, the army district, the entertainment district, and the commoner district.