“Appraiser Lin, we’re here to thank you.”
“If it hadn’t been for Appraiser Lin, my pet beast would have died yesterday. We were impressed by how remarkably skilled and benevolent you were! You’re a model for all the appraisers out there.”
“To show our gratitude, we had specially made this plaque for you, Appraiser Lin.”
These folks were none other than the iron crab’s owner and the shipwrights from yesterday.
All of them had straightforward personalities and held firm to their faith in Lin Jin. The decision to present the plaque to Lin Jin was made yesterday, and today, they were here to present their token of appreciation. Upon seeing this, Lin Jin was naturally overjoyed. He personally invited the group inside as this was the first time someone had gifted him with a plaque.
“Appraiser Lin, we’re illiterate and barely received any formal education. Please accept this as an expression of our gratitude,” one of the shipwrights said.
Lin Jin simply accepted their gift without trying to shy away from the gift.
Other people might have protested to feign courtesy, but Lin Jin wasn’t going to put up an act. Since it was a sign of someone else’s goodwill toward him, why should he pretend to resist it? Not only did he not reject this gift, but Lin Jin had decided that from now on, as long as the gift was a plaque like this one, he would accept them all.
The words on the plaque read: Model Appraiser.
These words were a little too grand. An average person wouldn’t have had the courage to accept such a gift. After all, even Wang Ji wouldn’t claim himself to be a model appraiser. This hat was too big for regular people to even dare to put it on.
However, Lin Jin didn’t felt pressured at all. He accepted it happily and even had someone put it up on his wall at once. He decided to have it hung behind his consultation desk. That way, when he sat there, this plaque would be right behind him. How magnificent! How domineering!
Perhaps it was due to joy that Lin Jin took another look at the iron crab’s condition. He even gave them some pointers and told them if the iron crab showed signs of evolution, they could bring it back here for him to take a look at it.
If it was on the verge of evolution, Lin Jin could help it go through the process successfully. Hearing Lin Jin’s generous offer made the shipwrights jump with joy.
As average folk, people like them barely had an opportunity to promote their pet beasts to Rank 2, one reason being the fact that they could hardly own a pet beast with potential. Secondly, they couldn’t afford spirit stones and other supplements to help strengthen their pet beasts. Even for Lin Jin’s who had the Museum of Deadly Beasts which provided him with the most effective evolution method for his pet beast, the six sun beast soul pill required for Xiao Huo’s evolution had cost him about two hundred taels. That amount didn’t include the fire spirit crystal and the level one prime fire beast soul. Adding these two items into the equation would drive the total cost up to at least one thousand taels.
How could regular folks afford such a hefty sum?
Hence, the shipwrights were grateful for Lin Jin’s promise. The plaque didn’t cost that much but it meant that they became acquainted with a decent beast appraiser.
Meanwhile, Lin Jin had been seeking satisfied customers to refute those undesirable rumors about him. This plaque was the perfect tool for achieving that goal. It was also the symbol that he had officially begun to ring the bells that signified the commencement of his counterattack.
This commotion easily attracted many onlookers. And since a few days ago, word on the streets had begun to change slowly. At least there were now people who started to doubt the slanderous rumors that were spreading around about Lin Jin.
“They say that Appraiser Lin is unskilled. But if he was truly incompetent, why would someone give him a plaque to praise him?
“That’s true. Hey, maybe this is an act directed and played by Lin Jin. He might just be tooting his own horn.”
“Perhaps. Fortunately, it’s pretty easy to obtain Lin Jin’s consultation token. Chief Wang and Appraiser Gao’s tokens have long been sold out. God, sometimes I have to cough up a hefty sum just to buy them from those darn scalpers. Wouldn’t it be better to try taking Appraiser Lin’s token instead?”
“Makes sense.”
In an instant, people started requesting Lin Jin’s consultation tokens. With this, another hectic day for Lin Jin began.
***
Wang Ji arrived at the association slightly later than usual today because last night, he had had a little too much to drink at the City Lord Manor’s banquet.
He had reaped abundant profits from last night’s feast.
As the task of evaluating the mutant eggs was nicely done, not only did he gain the city lord’s praise, but he also got acquainted with a Rank 3 beast appraiser that the city lord invited over as a guest.
That Rank 3 beast appraiser from headquarters was no regular Joe. In the Beast Appraisal Association Headquarters at the Jade Dragon Kingdom, this man was a well-respected individual with top-of-the-line qualifications. Many of the certified beast appraisers in the association were his students so you could say that he had disciples everywhere. Prior to this, Wang Ji didn’t have a chance to be acquainted with this beast appraiser. But at last night’s feast, this Rank 3 beast appraiser approached him and they even struck up a conversation. He even cheered him on while they were chatting.
It was like getting a taste of honey. Wang Ji felt blissful and the vigor to strive harder.
That Rank 3 beast appraiser had even said he would stay for several more days in Maple City, that he would most definitely pay Maple City’s Beast Appraisal Association a visit to seek Wang Ji’s guidance.
If he could help, Wang Ji’s chances of getting a promotion would surely increase.
Once he arrived at the Beast Appraisal Association, with one hand behind his back, Wang Ji patrolled the association grounds as usual. However, when he got near to Lin Jin’s consultation hall, a frown appeared on his face immediately.
This usually deserted place was surprisingly packed with people today.
With furrowed eyebrows, he grabbed a nearby apprentice and asked, “What’s going on here?”
Upon realizing it was the chief, this apprentice quickly answered respectfully, “These people have all taken Appraiser Lin’s consultation token and are here to seek his services in beast evaluation and treatment.”
“To seek his service in beast appraisals?” Wang Ji looked incredulous.
He knew of Lin Jin’s predicament better than anyone else. The lad was practically standing at the edge of a cliff, and a slight breeze could topple him over.
Several days ago, he purposefully assigned Lin Jin to Everlasting Town, planning to trap him in a difficult situation. But to his surprise, for some reason, Lin Jin managed to successfully complete this mission. The general affairs department had reviewed the evaluation records Lin Jin submitted to them and found no errors. However, Wang Ji refused to believe it so he sent a trusted aide to Everlasting Town to investigate the matter, hopefully, they could find some flaws in Lin Jin’s performance.
As chief of Maple City’s Beast Appraisal Association, Wang Ji didn’t have absolute authority. After all, there were still three elders who assisted in running the association’s internal affairs. These elders at times commanded more authority than Wang Ji.
Nonetheless, it wasn’t hard for Wang Ji to deal with Lin Jin. The association’s higher-ups would never bother with trivial matters like this. Though, some of them would support his decisions.
Wang Ji had tried his best to lower Lin Jin’s scores in the monthly assessments. In the meantime, Lin Jin showed no signs of improvement and even made a severe mistake in one appraisal. Headquarters had arranged for inspectors to verify this incident. If they managed to confirm it, Lin Jin’s certification as an official beast appraiser would be revoked on the spot. When that time comes, Wang Ji could just ride the waves and kick Lin Jin out.
In the period leading up to this crucial moment, Wang Ji didn’t want to see any irregularities in his plans.
He went over and peeked inside through the slit in the door.
Inside, Lin Jin wore a stern expression as he treated a pet beast.
And on the wall of his consultation hall, there was a brand new plaque hanging there.
‘Model Appraiser?’
Wang Ji felt his anger boil over inside.
‘This Lin Jin is too preposterous. Where did he get the nerve to accept a plaque like this? A model appraiser? With the likes of him?’
Even Wang Ji wouldn’t dare to hang such an exaggerated and extravagant plaque. Who did Lin Jin think he was? If Lin Jin was a model appraiser, what about Wang Ji?
