Chapter 13: The Purple Jade Vase of the Northern Sea

Chapter 13: The Purple Jade Vase of the Northern Sea

After a day's hustle for nothing but a shout, the path to entrepreneurship hasn't even been stepped on. Xiong Zhaozhao didn't feel like making dinner either; at this moment, all that suited her was a drink... Wait, wine?

"Yaoguang, can I drink the wine I made now?" She turned and entered the space.

In Yu Jing, she learned to brew three barrels of wine using the grapes from the space, specifically buying oak barrels to store them in, placing them under the cool pavilion by the mountain wall.

"According to Google, theoretically, it should be drinkable," Yaoguang said uncertainly.

"What do you mean theoretically? I followed the steps, taking the best from everyone, it will only succeed! We'll know once we open it."

"Wow~" She sniffed hard.

The aroma instantly overflowed as the wooden barrel was opened. Twisting the barrel, the fruit aroma was rich, the wine clear and transparent—it was a success!

Xiong Zhaozhao: "I'm obviously a genius, right! Yaoguang, your fate is truly good, you're so good at choosing a master!"

Yaoguang: ...

"The problem is, there seem to be no wine glasses at home. How am I supposed to pour such beautiful wine? Grape wine in a night-light cup, forget about the night-light cup, but now, am I supposed to drink with a porcelain bowl used for eating?"

It wasn't pretty.

Yaoguang thought for a moment, "What is a night-light cup? There are drinking utensils for wine."

It dove into the cave mansion and came out after a while, carrying a tray with spiritual energy.

Xiong Zhaozhao's first reaction was that this purple didn't quite match the wine, it was too uniform! A night-light cup or a glass would have been better. It took her half a beat to realize, something taken out of the cave mansion—an antique? Riches, riches!

She carefully took the tray and placed it on the oak barrel. A tripod pot over twenty centimeters tall, paired with two tripod wine cups, sat on a matching round plate, roughly a foot in diameter. If she wasn't mistaken, it seemed to be made of purple jade?

"Yaoguang, this isn't some spirit tool, is it?" Xiong Zhaozhao confirmed, touching the exquisite relief on the wine cup.

Yaoguang was surprised by her lack of knowledge, "...Even today, you still can't tell if it's a spirit tool? Can't you sense it?" It was about to be driven mad by its uneducated master!

Xiong Zhaozhao: "I sensed no fluctuations of spirit energy, wasn't I just confirming it? A pie falling from the sky, who would dare believe it at once?"

Yaoguang said disdainfully, "This is just a set of ordinary wine utensils, something the previous owner bought casually from the mortal realm."

Xiong Zhaozhao: "Yaoguang, can we sell it to buy a boat? This isn't an ordinary trinket, it's an antique purple jade wine set worth a fortune in the real world!"

"Of course, everything here belongs to you. You people nowadays really haven't seen the world," Yaoguang said condescendingly.

Xiong Zhaozhao didn't care. She carefully examined the patterns on the tripod pot, not understanding them...

"Yaoguang, what is this carved with? I need to learn more about it. This big one is a monster, with a human head and wings! In front of it stands a bunch of beasts? And birds and fish, how did they mix land and water together? Ah? Yaoguang, what does this mean? I understand the pattern around the top, is it waves?"

Yaoguang: "How do they say it outside? Ignorance is truly scary. This large part is the sea god Yu Jing, with a human head and bird body, the god of the Northern Sea. The beasts in front are all paying homage to Him. The main images on the wine cups are a bird and a fish, two incarnations of the god of the Northern Sea. They are a set. The base pattern is the coast of the Northern Sea."

A complete set was good, valuable!

"Yaoguang, we have our boat! Even if we can't determine the exact age, purple jade is a treasure itself! I thought it'd take some time to save up for a down payment." Xiong Zhaozhao hugged Yaoguang tightly.

Yaoguang's eyes flickered as it listened, struggling out of her grasp. Tempting her, "There's more inside. You can take them all out if you can enter, enough to buy that thing that runs fast called a yacht."

Xiong Zhaozhao remained unmoved, "That won't do. Selling one is enough, how could we sell everything we have?"

She carefully cleaned them with water control, "I've never used such expensive wine glasses before, let me experience them first." She said happily.

"Prosperity!" Yaoguang rolled its eyes.

Whether it was due to her good mood enhancing the taste or something else, the clear ruby red wine became more and more delicious the more she drank. The flavor was rich, with low acidity. The bird and the girl drank half a barrel before returning to sleep dazedly. The next day, they slept until noon, only to be awoken by Big Linzi frantically pounding on the door.

No matter how much Big Linzi pounded on the door, there was no response, no sound at all inside, including the dog being quiet. The child was terrified, thinking something had happened. Just as he was about to pry the door open, sounds finally emerged.

When Xiong Zhaozhao opened the door, she noticed her brother's dark face was a bit pale, "What's wrong with your complexion?"

"I pounded on the door for a long time, there was no movement at all. How did you sleep until noon? I got a shock, I'll be fine after a rest." The child looked a bit listless.

Xiong Zhaozhao understood. It was Big Linzi who discovered their grandfather collapsed at home, eventually prying the door open and sending him to the hospital. He held on for a few days but passed away...

"Yaoguang and I drank some wine last night. That wine is supposed to beautify and nourish the skin, who knew it had a strong kick when drunk too much, it went overboard..." She shifted the topic slightly nervously, "You're having dinner here tonight. My cooking isn't as good as Mom's, but my steak is pretty good. There are a few tomahawk steaks left at home. You should also try that wine, the taste is amazing!"

"What's a tomahawk?" The simpleton was indeed distracted, "It's the beef from the rib section of a cow. You're free this afternoon, don't forget to come over for dinner."

Big Linzi: "Ah? We're not going fishing this afternoon?"

"No, I booked tickets to go to the Magic Capital tomorrow afternoon."

"The Magic Capital?" Big Linzi was a bit reluctant. It had only been a few days since they returned. "Then how long will you be gone?"

"It's uncertain. Maybe three days, or possibly longer. If things go smoothly, I'll visit the Oceanic Ship Industry again when I return."

"You're buying a boat?" Big Linzi exclaimed excitedly. Indeed, for fishermen, buying a boat was the most exciting thing, even for a small fisherman like him.

For island fishing families, buying a decent boat was far more impressive than houses or luxury cars.

Xiong Zhaozhao held back the excited simpleton, "We'll buy it sooner or later. Small boats aren't safe, we know that better than anyone. I want to take you to see the distant seas too. Tin boats can't even leave the continental shelf for a day. But keep it a secret for now, don't tell anyone else."

Big Linzi nodded vigorously, taking half a day to remember the main issue, "Zhaozhao, do you have the money? Hundreds of thousands won't be enough for a big boat. No one on the entire island has saved up for a decent boat capable of going to the distant seas."

"A down payment is enough, I'll take a loan. When the time comes, you can watch over Gungun for me at home. You're free this afternoon." After getting rid of Big Linzi, she contacted Gu Nan in the Magic Capital.

Gu Nan was one of the two friends she had during her university days, the other staying in Yu Jing, Zhao Jingbian.

As soon as the call connected, she heard the loud exclamations from the other end, "Let me see which dead brat it is? Ah? Finally thinking of me at this time, oh, it's the heartless former schoolmate! Very lively, reminiscent of my sister's youthful vigor. People change, but their essence doesn't. Birds of a feather flock together, it's true."

After chatting about meaningless topics and finishing their mutual personal attacks, they finally became serious.

"Zhaozhao, you've been happier since returning home. What do you need from Senior Sister? It's not that you miss me, right? Senior Sister isn't against visiting you." Gu Nan felt that this girl must have something on her mind.

Xiong Zhaozhao: "I can actually visit you tomorrow, but don't get too cocky, it's just coincidental."

Gu Nan: "...Dead brat! Coincidental is fine too, we haven't seen each other for half a year. I've become much prettier than before~"

Xiong Zhaozhao: "Those words sound very familiar, I've never noticed before~ Hopefully, I can see it this time~"

Before Gu Nan exploded, Xiong Zhaozhao quickly got to the point, "Brother Nan, I have something I want to send to auction. I checked, and there are two major auction houses headquartered in the Magic Capital. Which one do you think is more reliable?"

Gu Nan was considered a third-generation wealthy individual, the young master of the 'Whale Row,' a chain of over ten restaurants, a native of the Magic Capital.

"Spring and Autumn and Jia Deli, both are actually fine. Both have experts sitting in. Dead brat, you struck it rich? Using an auction house, what is it?" Gu Nan asked curiously.

"A set of purple jade wine utensils."

"I'll go!! A set?" Gu Nan's voice nearly cracked.

"It's a set. Why are you, a southerner, speaking more and more like someone from the northeast?"

"That's not important, modern or ancient?"

"Over three thousand years old? That's something the experts will have to determine."

Gu Nan said seriously from the other side, "Listen to me, if you become rich, don't forget your roots! What time is your flight? Sister will rush to the airport to be your leg ornament."