When they arrived at Lin Ming's shop, Xue Tong, Guo Jin, and the other attendants did not enter. They stood guard outside the entrance, clearly intending to prevent anyone else from coming in to disturb the Young Master.
Lin Ming hurried forward with an obsequious smile. "Brothers, there's no need for you to stand guard here. My people will turn everyone away."
Xue Tong shook his head and said mildly, "Boss Lin, just focus on attending to our Young Master. Don't worry about us."
Xue Tong might have come from a humble place, but a man's presence grew with his master's standing.
Now that the Young Master's status had risen, Xue Tong's own bearing had naturally elevated along with it. That casual remark alone was enough to keep Lin Ming from objecting.
He could only smile apologetically. "Very well then, I won't trouble you any further. Please excuse me for a moment."
Lin Ming could tell that these people might not be exceptionally powerful in cultivation, but they were unquestionably among Young Master Zhen's most trusted. Otherwise, he would never have brought only a handful of personal attendants instead of the Peacock Guard.
These four were not people he could afford to offend either — they were part of the circle he absolutely had to court.
Xue Tong, Guo Jin, and the Qiao brothers — all four of them stood at the doorway like guardian spirits. Their cultivation might not be extraordinary, but the simple act of standing there was enough to deter anyone from barging in.
It was as if these four young men were guarding a restricted zone — to trespass would invite catastrophe.
Lin Ming had clearly made extensive preparations for Jiang Chen's arrival.
The moment Jiang Chen and the girls were ushered in, tea and refreshments were served immediately — all of the highest grade.
Huang'er was easygoing by nature, and Wen Ziqi was shy and reserved, so neither said much. But Gouyu and Ling Hui'er chattered away merrily, full of energy.
Jiang Chen let them be without reining them in.
Though Lin Ming didn't know the exact relationship between these women and Young Master Zhen, he understood one thing: any woman at the Young Master's side had to be pampered. Not a single one could be neglected.
So Lin Ming served with the utmost care, terrified of falling short somewhere.
"Boss Lin, how has business been lately?" Jiang Chen noticed Lin Ming bustling about, treating him with excessive courtesy, and he didn't want to see the man so unnervingly deferential.
What Jiang Chen wanted was not this kind of groveling respect.
"Reporting to the Young Master, business is passable enough, but it's not easy making a living in the Fish and Dragon District. I've only managed to keep things going thanks to the fortune of the Glazed Royal City," Lin Ming said modestly.
Jiang Chen smiled. "You're a smart man. If even a smart man can't make it work, then the Fish and Dragon District would have a real problem."
Seeing a faint sheen of sweat on Lin Ming's forehead, Jiang Chen chuckled. "Come now, sit down. Don't be so stiff — I'm still the same person I was back then. Just treat me like any ordinary customer, Boss Lin."
Lin Ming would have liked to do just that, but the mental barrier wasn't something one could simply dismiss. Who could possibly treat the Young Master of Sacred Peacock Mountain like an ordinary customer?
Jiang Chen raised his teacup. "I'll use tea in place of wine to toast you, Boss Lin. I never did properly thank you for last time."
Lin Ming shot to his feet. "I wouldn't dare — I wouldn't dare! I didn't do anything last time, really. If anything, it is I who should thank the Young Master for saving my life."
Jiang Chen shook his head. "What I saved was merely one life. What I rescued were dozens of lives. So this debt — I remember it."
Lin Ming knew about the incident at the Ten Thousand Puppet Pavilion — the robbery in which thousands of slaves had been seized. The young master of the Sikou Clan had even come personally to investigate the matter.
Fortunately, Lin Ming had kept his lips sealed tight and revealed nothing, so the Sikou Clan's investigation had turned up nothing of consequence.
Lin Ming naturally knew all this, and he had his suspicions about Jiang Chen's origins. But these were matters he kept strictly to himself — he would never breathe a word to anyone.
After all, neither the Sikou Clan nor Young Master Zhen were people he could afford to cross.
Offend either one, and he would die without even a grave to his name. Lin Ming might not have the most powerful backer, but his ability to maintain a foothold in the Fish and Dragon District rested entirely on this brand of sharp-witted survival instinct.
"Young Master... regardless of what you say, this life-saving kindness is something I will never forget. This time, I've prepared a batch of slaves — all of them at the Saint Realm or above. They might barely be worthy of your illustrious standing. If you wouldn't find them lacking, would you care to inspect them in the back?"
Jiang Chen's eyebrows rose slightly as he looked at Lin Ming with genuine surprise. He knew that Saint Realm slaves typically sold for between two million and ten million Holy Spirit Stones.
Lin Ming's shop was not particularly large — it couldn't compare to a place like the Ten Thousand Puppet Pavilion. Yet he had managed to prepare a batch of slaves all at the Saint Realm or above. Lin Ming's capabilities were more impressive than he had given him credit for.
More importantly, the man clearly knew how to handle things. He had anticipated that Jiang Chen would come looking to purchase slaves and had made these preparations well in advance.
Seeing Jiang Chen gaze at him with an amused, knowing look, Lin Ming's heart clenched with nervousness. He stammered an explanation: "Young Master, I've felt guilty about last time ever since. When I heard you had been named Young Master of Sacred Peacock Mountain, I wanted to make amends. These slaves — I truly exhausted every means at my disposal just to prepare them. It is my way of apologizing to you, and also a small gesture of doing my part to ease your burdens."
Lin Ming was a smart man — he was clearly afraid Jiang Chen might misunderstand his motives, so he laid everything out plainly.
At that, Jiang Chen smiled and nodded.
"Come, let's go take a look. Why trouble ourselves with more than one merchant? If we can settle this here, there's no need to go anywhere else."
Jiang Chen didn't particularly approve of the slave trade. But he was at a stage where he needed people, and he genuinely required a batch of such individuals to maintain the daily operations of the Young Master's estate.
Once he had gradually cultivated his own people in the future, he could release these slaves and give them a chance at a new life.
Hearing this, Lin Ming was overjoyed. He knew that the Young Master's words meant he bore no grudge — and was truly willing to give him face.