Chapter 24

Pang Da took a kick, but he didn’t seem to mind at all. With a grin, he said, "Boss, you won. I made a small fortune, hehe." After saying that, he turned to face the group of people who had bet against him and loudly declared, "I bet and I won, don’t say I bullied you. This money is mine now."

Then he scooped up the gambling money and put it into his own pocket. His side bet had been well-placed, and the house had taken everything.

The spectators who had lost their bets watched as Pang Da pocketed the money, their eyes almost bleeding with frustration, but they had no recourse. They had lost the bet, and who could blame them for underestimating Song Li?

Pang Da collected his winnings, and Song Li didn’t idle either. He stared at Song Moran and said with a faint smile, "Can you still stand up? If you can’t, then you’ve lost. According to our agreement, the 'Purple Heart Crystal Fire' will be mine. Hand it over."

Song Moran’s face turned green with anger. What a humiliation! Breaking his bones and then asking if he could stand up? If I could stand up, I would have already pounced on you and fought to the death! He gritted his teeth and tried to stand, but even the slightest movement sent pain through his bones. Despite his toughness, Song Moran couldn’t help but groan in pain and gave up his efforts.

"Looks like you really can’t stand up. Sorry, I might have hit you a bit too hard," Song Li said with a smile. "Since that’s the case, the 'Purple Heart Crystal Fire' is mine. Hand it over."

During their fight, the 'Purple Heart Crystal Fire' had been kept by one of Song Moran’s trusted subordinates. Now, seeing Song Li’s gaze turn to him, the subordinate instinctively took a few steps back and clutched the black soil container tightly.

Song Moran’s eyes were about to pop out of his head. His heart was bleeding! Although he was a young prince with a retinue, in the Jing王府, his status as a secondary son was far below that of the legitimate prince. This time, he had luckily obtained a 'fire seed,' a rare treasure, even though it was a relatively weak one. If he had presented it to his father, he would have gained some favor. But he had underestimated Song Li’s strength and lost the treasure. It was a classic case of losing both the wife and the soldiers, and he really wanted to slap himself.

"What’s the matter? Don’t want to give it up? In the capital, the rule is to honor the bet. If you go back on your word, the reputation of the Jing王府 will be ruined," Song Li said, seeing the subordinate’s reluctance. He thought to himself, if you don’t give it to me, I’ll just fight you until you do.

"Song Fu, give the fire seed... to him!" Song Moran gritted his teeth. In front of so many people, he had to maintain the dignity and reputation of the Jing王府, as well as his own pride.

Song Fu, the subordinate, hesitated but eventually walked over and handed the black soil container to Song Li.

Song Li opened the lid and saw the purple flame standing quietly, which was indeed the 'Purple Heart Crystal Fire' he had created.

"Pang Da, take this fire seed to the auction house and sell it. I’m a bit short on pocket money lately, so it’s not bad to make some extra cash!" Song Li said with a smile.

His words made Song Moran’s chest heave, and a trickle of blood flowed from the corner of his mouth. Damn, pocket money, that’s over two million from the auction!

What was even more infuriating was that Song Moran had been thinking of ways to get the fire seed back from Song Li, but he hadn’t expected Song Li to auction it off immediately. This made him want to burst with anger. It’s over, the loss is too great this time.

"Alright!" Pang Da didn’t care if Song Moran was about to explode with anger. He eagerly came over and took the black soil container. He was overjoyed inside. Boss is awesome, selling the fire seed and then winning it back to sell again, what a business genius! Following such a boss, he would have a lifetime of good food and drink, and never suffer a loss.

The two of them turned and walked towards the auction house, laughing and talking, without a second glance at Song Moran and his group.

"Spit..." Song Moran felt dizzy and his head spun. Finally, he couldn’t control himself, and a jet of blood spurted from his mouth. Then he fell straight to the ground, fainting from anger!

Among the onlookers were many guests of Mandala. Hearing that the fire seed was going to be auctioned again, they followed Song Li and Pang Da into the auction house, excited like they had been injected with adrenaline.

Song Moran’s subordinates, seeing the young prince bleeding and unconscious, hurriedly carried him back to the Jing王府.

The Jing王府 covered over a hundred acres, with a grand scale, second only to the imperial palace and the Zhong王府 in the capital. It had winding corridors, pavilions, and terraces, divided into the outer courtyard, inner courtyard, and inner chambers. Song Moran and his mother lived in the inner courtyard.

"Bad, bad, the young prince has been injured!" The subordinates shouted as they carried Song Moran into the inner courtyard. They encountered three young men dressed in luxurious attire. The one on the left, seeing them shouting, became furious and kicked the leading subordinate to the ground, scolding, "You ignorant slaves, what are you yelling about? Can’t you see I have important guests?"

The kicked subordinate was Song Fu. He quickly got up, bowed his head, and said respectfully, "I know I was wrong, please forgive me, Young Master!"

The other subordinates were so frightened that they remained silent, their heads bowed, not daring to move. The young man who had become angry was none other than the heir of the Jing王府, Song Mo Fei, known for his violent temper and domineering attitude. Even the slightest provocation could lead to beatings and scoldings, and no servant in the mansion dared to defy him.

All three young men were dressed in light yellow robes with gold thread embroidery, exuding a noble and luxurious aura. The one in the middle was about seventeen or eighteen years old, wearing a golden crown with a pearl the size of a dragon’s eye at the top, which shimmered with a beautiful and regal light. His skin was fair and smooth, like freshly peeled lychees, and his phoenix eyes were captivating, with a mischievous glint. He had an oval face, a small and elegant nose, and naturally red lips, which, against his white skin, made him look even more charming and alluring.

This young man was so handsome that it was almost unbelievable. Even though he was dressed as a man, his presence made all the flowers in the courtyard lose their color! Even the birds on the branches seemed to be stunned by his beauty and stopped chirping.

He wasn’t particularly tall, at least not as tall as the two young men beside him. But the regal and cold aura he exuded made him seem high above everyone else. Even the two tall, elegantly dressed young men beside him couldn’t overshadow his brilliance. Song Mo Fei was tall and muscular, with a dark complexion, fierce eyes, and a rough appearance. The young man on the right was slender, with narrow eyes and a perpetually sinister expression, making him seem hard to provoke.

Individually, these two were also impressive young talents, but compared to the handsome young man in the middle, they seemed like mere attendants.

The subordinates naturally recognized the young man on the right. He was the heir of the Kang王府, Song Qing Shan, who was always close friends with Song Mo Fei. However, they had never seen the handsome young man in the middle. From his attire, he was at least the heir of a prince, or possibly even a prince himself.

This young man’s appearance was so extraordinary that the subordinates, who had never seen such a "beautiful" man, temporarily forgot their manners and stared at him with wide eyes.

Song Mo Fei, seeing that his own servants had no sense of propriety and were staring at the "noble guest," was almost driven to fury! Even he was nervous in the presence of this "young man," afraid of any disrespectful words or actions. The young princess of the Zhong王府, how could these lowly servants dare to look at her directly? Although she was a young woman, she preferred to dress as a man, which was why the subordinates were so stunned. How could there be such a "beautiful" man in the world?

The background of this young princess was shrouded in mystery, and even Song Mo Fei wasn’t entirely clear. He only knew her name was Long Zi Yan, and she wasn’t the biological daughter of the Zhong亲王. Ten years ago, she suddenly appeared in the Zhong王府, and at the same time, the heir of the Zhong王府, Song Qiu Han, mysteriously disappeared. No one knew what had happened, but from then on, the Zhong王府 had only a princess, not an heir. According to his father, the Zhong亲王 valued this princess more than his own son. The title of "princess" was personally requested from the previous emperor by the Zhong亲王. At that time, the current emperor had not yet ascended the throne, and the Zhong亲王 was in favor with the previous emperor. Even so, obtaining the title of "princess" was a difficult task. In the world, only the daughters of the emperor could be called "princesses," while the daughters of princes were only "ladies." The Zhong亲王’s actions were risky and could have been used as a target by his rivals. A prince’s daughter, not even his biological one, wanting to be a "princess" was almost sinister! Given the cautious nature of the Zhong亲王, the fact that he took such a risk to obtain the title for this girl showed how much he valued her, and he wouldn’t let her suffer even a bit of injustice!

This young girl herself was probably not scary. Song Mo Fei guessed that the power behind her must be terrifying, even the prince of the Holy Lion Empire dared not offend her.

The Jing亲王 had also warned him, "It’s better to offend the Zhong亲王 than to offend the young princess of the Zhong王府!"

Good grief, more difficult to provoke than the Zhong亲王, how powerful must she be? Song Mo Fei remembered his father’s warning and never dared to be disrespectful to the young princess. Song Qing Shan had also received similar instructions from his father, so his attitude was similar to Song Mo Fei’s.

"Damn it! Where are your eyes looking? Do you want me to gouge them out and feed them to the dogs?" Song Mo Fei, fearing that the young princess would be upset, harshly reprimanded the subordinates, taking the initiative to scold them.

The young princess rarely went out, and it was a rare occasion that she had agreed to their invitation today. If these dog slaves ruined her mood, it would be almost impossible to invite her again!

The subordinates, reprimanded by the young master, suddenly came to their senses, terrified, and quickly lowered their heads, not daring to make a sound.

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