Chapter 415: Appraisal
After Xu Meijing's explanation, Yang Haoran gained a better understanding of this Yin Yang General Store and became more curious.
"The store sells items from both the Yin and Yang realms, it's quite a good grocery store," Yang Haoran said with a smile.
"Of course, the place I brought you to wouldn't disappoint, would it?" Xu Meijing said proudly.
The entrance of the Yin Yang General Store didn't have any welcoming staff, and the decoration wasn't too luxurious, but judging from Xu Meijing's reaction, she had a high opinion of this grocery store.
"How did you find this place?" Yang Haoran asked curiously.
This street was quite secluded, and during their previous visit to the underworld, they had explored many streets but didn't come to this one, precisely because it was too secluded, which made Yang Haoran curious about how Xu Meijing had found the Yin Yang General Store.
"The store's boss, surnamed Huo, is the Burial Master of New Yang City. When I took over Ancheng, he was the one temporarily in charge, so I know him and learned about this Yin Yang General Store from him," Xu Meijing explained.
Yang Haoran was familiar with New Yang City, as it was a neighboring city of Ancheng, but he was surprised to learn that this Yin Yang General Store was owned by a Burial Master from the Yang realm.
Previously, Xu Meijing had mentioned that not all the stores in the underworld were run by ghost attendants, and some were operated by Underworld Envoys from the Yang realm, but he didn't expect to come across a store owned by a Burial Master so soon.
Although he was a bit surprised, Yang Haoran didn't show it on his face and simply nodded, expressing that he understood."No wonder you knew about this place."
Following Xu Meijing's lead, the two entered the Yin Yang General Store.
The space inside the grocery store was a bit larger than Yang Haoran had imagined, but due to the numerous shelves and the various goods displayed on them, the store seemed quite cramped and narrow.
"Welcome, Lord Xu," a Female Shopkeeper greeted them as soon as they entered, bowing to Xu Meijing.
The Female Shopkeeper seemed to recognize Xu Meijing, otherwise, she wouldn't have known Xu Meijing's surname.
"Greetings, Underworld Envoy," she then quickly bowed to Yang Haoran as well, showing great respect.
In the underworld, these ghosts were among the lowest in the social hierarchy, so they would respectfully address both the underworld's ghost attendants and the Underworld Envoys from the Yang realm as "Lord".
During their previous visit to the underworld, Yang Haoran and Xu Meijing had been to many stores, and most of the staff could discern their identities as Underworld Envoys, addressing them accordingly.
At first, Yang Haoran found it a bit strange to be called "Lord", as it was not a common form of address in the Yang realm, but after hearing it repeatedly, he had become accustomed to it.
"We've come to exchange some hell coins," Xu Meijing stated directly, without any beating around the bush.
"Of course, please have a seat, my lords, and we'll discuss the details," the Female Shopkeeper said with a smile, leading them to the sofa.
"There's no need to waste time, let's get down to business," Xu Meijing interrupted before the Female Shopkeeper could bring them tea.
The shopkeeper nodded with a smile, not sitting down but standing respectfully in front of them, waiting for Xu Meijing and Yang Haoran to present the items they wanted to exchange for hell coins.
Seeing that Yang Haoran didn't immediately take out the items, Xu Meijing gently waved her hand, and three items appeared on the coffee table in front of them: a palm-sized Ba Gua bronze mirror, a peach wood sword, and a jade pendant - all mystical artifacts used by exorcists.
"Take a look at these and let us know how many hell coins they can be exchanged for," Xu Meijing said calmly.
"Certainly, my lord. Please give me a moment," the Female Shopkeeper replied respectfully.
The Female Shopkeeper respectfully responded and began carefully examining the three mystical artifacts used by exorcists that Xu Meijing had brought out.
Xu Meijing did not interrupt the Female Shopkeeper, but instead sat cross-legged with an expressionless face, waiting for the results.
In front of others, Xu Meijing's face showed no smile - she was aloof, haughty, and indifferent, giving off an unapproachable aura. This was not something she deliberately put on, but her usual demeanor. When Yang Haoran first met her, she was the same way, but their relationship had changed over time, leading to a different attitude towards him.
Appraising items was a technical skill that not everyone could do, especially in a grocery store like this one that sold and bought all kinds of goods, which greatly increased the difficulty of appraisal.
In this Yin Yang General Store, there was only one staff member - the woman in front of them. Although she was not outstanding in appearance and her figure was only average, she was definitely a person with real abilities.
The reason was simple - it's not difficult to be a good store attendant, but to be a good appraiser, one must have a keen eye and rich appraisal experience. Otherwise, they would be unable to accurately judge the authenticity of items, leading to haphazard pricing, angering customers, and causing the boss to lose money.
This Yin Yang General Store dealt in all kinds of goods, so this Female Shopkeeper must be knowledgeable about everything in order to fulfill her appraisal duties. The fact that the store's boss entrusted this shop to her showed that her abilities in this area were recognized.
After a moment, the Female Shopkeeper finished appraising the mystical artifacts and smiled at Xu Meijing.
"Lord Xu, I have appraised these mystical artifacts, and they are all quite good. However, you know our store's policy - the purchase price is lower than the selling price, as we rely on this price difference to make a living. So..."
Xu Meijing understood her meaning without her needing to continue.
"I'm aware of the policy, no need to explain. Just tell me how many hell coins you can exchange these for."
The Female Shopkeeper hesitated for a moment before speaking, "Since you are the boss's friend, I'll give you the highest price. The three mystical artifacts together are worth 50,000 hell coins. How's that?"
Xu Meijing furrowed her brow slightly but did not immediately respond, neither accepting nor rejecting the offer.
The Female Shopkeeper quickly explained, "The Ba Gua mirror is in perfect condition, so it has the highest value among the three. As for the peach wood sword, if it was not damaged, its value would exceed the mirror. Unfortunately, it has cracks on the blade, so in its current state, its value is not as high. As for the jade pendant..."
Before she could finish, Xu Meijing waved her hand to interrupt.
"No need to explain further. 50,000 is fine. These mystical artifacts used by exorcists won't be of much use to me anyway."
The Female Shopkeeper smiled and nodded, "Thank you for your understanding, Lord Xu. I'll take these three mystical artifacts then."
After Xu Meijing's nod, the Female Shopkeeper collected the items and took out a stack of 1,000-hell-coin bills, respectfully handing them to Xu Meijing with both hands.
Xu Meijing did not bother to count the exact amount, simply glancing at it before taking the hell coins and storing them in her spatial storage.
With the hell coins taken care of, Xu Meijing turned her gaze back to Yang Haoran, and the Female Shopkeeper's eyes also landed on him.