"That's right, I'm here to attend the auction." Pei Buwan nodded slowly.
So he really was! Yang Kai's heart lifted. He cupped his fists. "In that case, Shopkeeper Pei, I'd like to ask a favor."
Pei Buwan chuckled. "Go ahead and ask."
"Please take my brother and me into the auction house!"
Pei Buwan burst out laughing. "This auction house isn't some restricted area. If you want to go in, just walk through. There are two entrances over there — one is for people with invitations, all prominent figures in the Star City, and the other is for people without invitations. You just need to demonstrate your financial strength and the auction house will let you in. Didn't you make a killing last time? You're perfectly qualified to enter."
Yang Kai had noticed this earlier — the auction house did indeed have two entrances, one for invitees and one for those without. But it made no difference for him and Old Bai. If they strode up openly, they'd be turned away on the spot. Following Pei Buwan, though, there was at least a chance they could slip in.
Pei Buwan caught on too. His brow furrowed into a crease as he eyed Yang Kai suspiciously. "Did you get yourself into some kind of trouble?"
Yang Kai put on an expression of pure innocence. "My brother and me — honest, hardworking men. How could we possibly have gotten into trouble? Shopkeeper Pei, you worry too much." So much for that vow of his — just moments ago he'd sworn he'd help with anything, and now he wasn't exactly jumping at the chance.
Pei Buwan looked thoroughly unconvinced.
Yang Kai had no choice but to try a different angle. "Tell you what, Shopkeeper Pei — haven't you been pestering me to fight in the Shura Arena again? If you can help me with this, I'll go back with you for another round!"
Mentioning the Shura Arena was the wrong move — or rather, the right one, because Pei Buwan's expression shifted immediately. He waved his hands frantically. "No more fights! No more!"
"...?" What was going on? Yang Kai stared at him in bewilderment. Hadn't this guy come looking for him multiple times before, practically dragging him to the Shura Arena? Now that Yang Kai was offering, he was acting like it was the plague.
Yang Kai assumed he'd suffered another devastating loss at the arena, never realizing that the proprietress had already warned Pei Buwan off.
The man had visited the inn several times looking for Yang Kai, and the proprietress had naturally noticed. She'd found an opportunity to have a word with Pei Buwan and learned that he'd taken Yang Kai to the Shura Arena. She'd been furious — nearly twisted his arm off — and had delivered a pointed warning: if she ever found out Yang Kai had been taken to the Shura Arena again, she would raze Hundred Refinements Hall to the ground.
Without that threat, Pei Buwan would never have let this golden opportunity slip. And he wouldn't have stayed away from Yang Kai all this time.
Pei Buwan frowned, then pointed to two of his workers. "You two — hand over your clothes." He didn't know why Yang Kai needed to sneak into the auction house, but it clearly wasn't for anything good. After issuing the order, he turned to Yang Kai. "You two can follow me in, but once we're inside, we go our separate ways."
"No problem. Thank you, Shopkeeper Pei." Yang Kai exchanged a glance with Bai Qi, and both of them broke into grins.
Before long, the two had changed into the workers' clothes and mingled with the crowd, trailing casually behind Pei Buwan toward the auction house.
At the entrance, there was no sign of Yun Zhenhua — presumably he was busy with other matters now that the auction was about to start. That came as a relief to Yang Kai and Bai Qi. If Yun Zhenhua had still been greeting guests, they wouldn't have stood a chance of getting in. Without him, there was at least a sliver of hope.
They reached the door. Pei Buwan presented his invitation, and the greeter immediately gestured him inside. Pei Buwan strode in with a commanding presence, while Yang Kai and Bai Qi kept their heads down, shuffling along with the crowd.
Once inside, Yang Kai murmured his thanks and then veered off in a different direction with Bai Qi.
The two quickly arrived at the main hall. Looking around, they saw a vast space filled with people, rows upon rows of seats arranged in a tiered layout. The auction hall could easily seat three to four hundred with room to spare.
Along the second floor surrounding the hall, there were private boxes partitioned off one after another.
The seats on the main floor were for general attendees, while the boxes were clearly reserved for people with some status and standing in the Star City — people like Pei Buwan.
At this point, more than half the seats in the hall were already occupied. Yang Kai and Old Bai observed quietly for a while and noticed that the general attendees simply sat wherever they pleased, with no particular protocol. Feeling reassured, they found a pair of adjacent seats toward the back and settled in.
More guests continued to stream in. The auction hadn't started yet. Old Bai fidgeted uneasily. "Yang Kai, maybe we should call it off. Let's just watch the excitement and not stir up trouble."
Yang Kai gave him a sidelong glance. "Are you really going to make me summon the proprietress?"
Old Bai sighed. "I mean, what else can we do? If we actually cause trouble in here, it won't end well for us."
Yang Kai chuckled. "They'll have to be brave enough to do something about it first."
Old Bai still had reservations. After thinking it over, he said, "There's another problem with your plan."
"What?"
"What if they require payment on the spot?"
Yang Kai's brow furrowed. That was indeed a problem — if the auction house demanded immediate settlement, his plan would fall apart. But then again, maybe they wouldn't. He pondered for a moment. "We'll play it by ear when the time comes. If there's an opportunity, we'll cause a scene. If there isn't, we'll just sit back and enjoy the show. Whatever happens, happens!"