Supreme Emptiness

Huh?

The Xu family members looked at each other in confusion.

Lu Zheng couldn’t help but retort sarcastically, "Just? Jiang Fan, have you forgotten that you are still living under someone’s roof?"

Wang Yingfeng sneered even more directly, "If your ears are bad, I can repeat it again."

"This is a betrothal gift worth 500,000 taels! 500,000!"

"Not five taels!"

"A man who doesn’t even have five coppers dares to boast here?"

Zhu Jianshen opened his folding fan and shook it gently, smiling, "Aunt Wang, Brother Lu, please be more understanding towards Jiang Fan."

"After all, it’s normal to say extreme things when one’s fiancée is taken away, feeling upset."

Then he changed his tone to a mocking one, "However, Jiang Fan, let me tell you this."

"One should have self-awareness. Look at yourself in the mirror and ask if you deserve Xu Youran?"

"A man who can’t even afford a betrothal gift, still dreaming of marrying her?"

The room burst into laughter.

Xu Youran clenched her fists, wanting to say something, but Xu Yining beside her sighed softly, "Sister, stop being naive."

"A thousand words of defense from a woman are no match for a man’s backbone."

"Jiang Fan really doesn’t deserve you!"

Zhu Jianshen shook his fan more proudly, laughed disdainfully, and then turned to Wang Yingfeng and Xu Zhengyan, "Uncle, Aunt, what do you think?" @@novelbin@@

"If you agree, please accept these betrothal gifts, and let’s set the wedding date."

Wang Yingfeng readily agreed.

But Xu Zhengyan kept frowning.

After all, Zhu Jianshen almost defiled Xu Youran back in the day.

His character was evidently poor.

Could his daughter be happy marrying him?

She might as well marry Jiang Fan. At least Jiang Fan’s character had been observed over ten years and was found to be upright, a gentleman.

"Say something!" Wang Yingfeng urged impatiently.

Xu Zhengyan sighed silently. This was where his hesitation lay.

The Xu family still had to depend on Wang Yingfeng’s family for support. Some matters required respecting her opinion.

So he pondered for a long time but couldn’t make a decision.

Jiang Fan, however, slowly took out a thick stack of silver notes and slapped them on Zhu Jianshen’s table.

Everyone, including Xu Youran, looked on in shock.

"Silver notes?"

Xu Zhengyan stepped forward in astonishment and counted the notes before Zhu Jianshen’s face, exclaiming, "510,000 taels!"

What?

Wang Yingfeng seized them in disbelief, "Could they be fake?"

510,000, the Xu family’s income for three years combined wouldn’t be this much!

Where did Jiang Fan, a person living under someone else’s roof, get so many silver notes?

But upon careful inspection, she found they were genuine notes from the largest bank in Lonely Boat City.

Beside her, Xu Yining looked at the 510,000 taels silver notes in disbelief, muttering, "He actually got this many silver notes!"

Under the gaze of astonished eyes, Jiang Fan calmly wrote a note and slapped it in front of Zhu Jianshen.

"Mingling in Green Cloud Sect for five years, yet you can’t even compare to me?"

One had 510,000 taels.

The other had 500,000 taels.

The difference was clear.

Such a humiliating slap in the face made Zhu Jianshen’s face turn green. He slammed the table and roared, "Jiang Fan! What do you mean?"

Jiang Fan smirked and wrote quickly, "Isn’t my meaning clear?"

"Do you have the right to compete with me for Youran?"

These words.

Xu Youran, who felt downcast, blushed slightly and looked at Jiang Fan with sparkling eyes.

Xu Yining suddenly felt a bit envious.

Having 510,000 taels and being willing to spend it on a betrothal gift were two different things.

Being willing to give all his wealth for Xu Youran showed how important she was to Jiang Fan.

It seemed Xu Youran had found a man who truly cared for her.

Xu Zhengyan showed a happy expression. Although he didn’t know where Jiang Fan got the money, he could rightfully marry off his daughter.

Wang Yingfeng checked the silver notes one by one, confirming they were not fake.

Her face visibly darkened. Finally, in anger, she scattered the silver notes, glaring at Jiang Fan, "510,000 taels of silver is still not enough!"

"I said it must be a betrothal gift that satisfies me!"

"And now, I am not satisfied! Understand?"

The Xu family members saw the truth clearly.

It was not that she was dissatisfied with the betrothal gift, she was dissatisfied with Jiang Fan.

The same betrothal gift of 500,000 taels made her very satisfied with Zhu Jianshen but had a different attitude towards Jiang Fan.

Jiang Fan remained unfazed, instead writing another note, "That’s right! I’m not satisfied either!"

"Offering this 500,000 silver note is just to tell you that these things are not worthy of marrying the best woman in the world!"

"I hope you, the head wife, can widen your perspective a bit and not get lost over mere tens of thousands of taels!"

Gasp!

He actually dared to mock Wang Yingfeng right to her face!

This was even more insulting than a slap!

"Jiang Fan!!" Wang Yingfeng’s eyes widened in rage as she screamed, "Who are you saying hasn’t seen money?"

Jiang Fan smirked, writing, "Of course, it’s the money-hungry you. It couldn’t possibly be the one with 510,000 taels, could it?"

Wang Yingfeng, furious, raised her hand to slap Jiang Fan.

But Xu Zhengyan intercepted her, yelling sternly, "Do you have no sense of shame left?"

How could the head wife of a prestigious family act like a shrew and hit someone in public?

Wang Yingfeng, unwilling to give up, shouted angrily, "Jiang Fan! You have two more days! If you don’t come up with a betrothal gift that satisfies me, you can forget about marrying Xu Youran! Forget it!!"

Jiang Fan wrote calmly, "Don’t worry, if my betrothal gift can’t satisfy you, then no one in Lonely Boat City can marry Youran."

These words made Zhu Jianshen, who was standing beside, unable to ignore them.

"Look at you boasting!"

Zhu Jianshen snorted coldly, "I, the young master of the third largest family in Lonely Boat City, a disciple of Green Cloud Sect, am still inferior to you, a loser?"

"In two days, I’ll come back to propose again. Just watch Xu Youran become my woman!"

"Let’s go!"

The Zhu family’s servants awkwardly carried back the boxes of gold and silver jewelry.

Back at the Zhu family residence.

"Shen, why did you bring all the betrothal gifts back?" his mother Zhang Yuxiu asked in surprise.

Zhu Jianshen, with a grim face, explained everything that had happened.

Zhang Yuxiu immediately felt indignant for her son, "Unbelievable! How can a man living under someone else’s roof compete with my outstanding son?"

"Shen, don’t worry! Isn’t it just a betrothal gift? Mother will arrange everything for you herself!"

"With the Zhu family’s wealth and connections, how could an orphan compete with us?"

Immediately she ordered, "Butler, prepare some gifts for me. Tomorrow I will visit the Chen family."

"Their top-grade Qi Cultivation Liquid is hard to come by! Fortunately, I am an old friend of the Chen family’s mistress. How difficult could it be to buy a few bottles?"

"Shen, come with me to the Chen family tomorrow."

Zhu Jianshen suddenly looked up in astonishment, "What? Our Lonely Boat City has top-grade Qi Cultivation Liquid?"

In Green Cloud Sect, only outstanding disciples were allowed to consume this!

Zhang Yuxiu nodded, "Yes, it started selling the day before yesterday, but only fifty bottles are sold daily. Without strong connections, you can’t buy it."

"Taking this as a betrothal gift, that Jiang boy will be left speechless!"

Zhu Jianshen’s brows furrowed, "But Mother, top-grade Qi Cultivation Liquid can only be refined by a two-star Soul Master."

"Could it be that our little Lonely Boat City has produced a two-star Soul Master?"

"It’s no joking matter!"

"In my opinion, you’ve all been deceived."

What does a two-star Soul Master represent?

Even the Green Cloud Sect Master would travel miles to personally visit such a being!

How could one possibly be in this small Lonely Boat City?

His words made Zhang Yuxiu uncertain.

Since Green Cloud Sect had a two-star Soul Master, her son had more authority on this matter.

Zhu Jianshen sneered, "We’ll see the truth tomorrow."