Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
“Damn, stop ogling! Be careful of what you are doing. You look all wound up. You will end up in a bad way if you go on like this, do you know that?” Zhong Dapao gave Liu Zi a kick.
Liu Zi reluctantly averted his eyes and complained, “Master Pao, what are you doing? Why do you want to stop me from looking? There’s no harm in that!”
Zhong Dapao raised his hand and meant to punch him. “Donʼt do any damn stupid stuff, control yourself! We’re at the auction now and it’s very messy here, so don’t cause any trouble.”
Liu Zi avoided the punch, pointed to a cage on the ground next to one of the stalls and said, “Hey, boss, kill a snake! Master Liu wants to eat the snake’s gallbladder and drink snake blood to reenergize himself. Hehe, Master Liu has been busy working these two days.”
There were many stalls on the street. It was really like a market, selling all sorts of things, among them snakes. Iron cages were placed in a long line, and coiling in them were colorful snakes, mainly vipers.
Li Du said in shock, “Damn, why are there so many snakes?”
Zhong Dapao laughed and said, “Because of the event. What do big bosses like? Snakes! Bold and strong in appearance, it is considered a sign of masculinity to consume them. Come, boss, kill two for my young master Gold Bungarus and Silver Bungarus, one each!”
The stall owner conveniently grabbed a poisonous snake from the cage and slaughtered it.
The scene was bloody. The tongue of the snake was first held with pliers, making its mouth unable to close. Then it was cut open from the abdomen and the gallbladder of the snake was taken out. The gallbladder was drenched with blood. Then the snakeskin was torn down along the cut, and the snake flesh was revealed.
The snake was not dead, but still writhing. The procedure looked extremely cruel.
The boss put the snake’s head and skin into a jar which contained medicine mixed with rice wine. The snake’s body was cut into pieces and would be eaten raw after it was washed.
Li Du was shocked. “Damn it, this is too crazy!”
Liu Zi conveniently took a piece of snake meat, put it into his mouth and chewed. He spat out the bone and said, “Well, Gold Bungarus tastes better, its meat is chewy.”
Zhong Dapao picked up the plate and offered it to Li Du and Da Mao. “Come, Master Li, Brother Mao, have a bite.”
Both of them shook their heads repeatedly. “We can’t eat it, we can’t.”
Zhong Dapao said, “This is Gold Bungarus, a good snake, and it’s a good omen when you eat it. Don’t you think its flesh looks like a glass species stone? If you eat it, you would gain a piece of glass jade!”
Beside them was a man who brought a fashionable-looking, beautiful woman to look at the snakes. The woman was scared and pale, and yelped with fear again and again, while the man beside her laughed proudly.
Liu Zi looked at the woman with an infatuated expression. “Hey, lady, do you want a piece? This is Gold Bungarus and Silver Bungarus. Eating them amps things up when you get in bed, haha!”
The woman rolled her eyes and wiggled her bottom as she walked and hid behind the man, who coldly looked at Liu Zi and said, “Hey, watch your mouth.”
Liu Zi’s temper was trouble, and he would explode if someone so much as stared at him. “Damn you, I…”
“Okay, okay, keep a low profile,” Li Du frowned. “Are you here to pick up girls or to fight? I don’t know about you, but I’m here to buy stones.”
Liu Zi angrily spat out a piece of snake bone and said to the man, “If it weren’t for our Young Master Li’s words, I would have torn your mouth.”
The man was also a tough character. He stepped forward and said, “Come, try to touch me!”
Zhong Dapao grabbed onto Liu Zi’s arm, and Liu Zi yelled as he was pulled away, “Don’t damn let me run into you again, I’ll beat you up nicely if I do!”
Li Du said helplessly, “Master Liu, you would not be able to live for more than twenty seconds if you did not have friends to check you. It’s a miracle that you have been able to survive in Hpakant for so many years.”
Liu Zi said, “My temper was developed in Hpakant. If you want to live well here, you have to be fierce, the fiercer the better, so no one would dare to provoke you. A man with a temper like yours or Da Mao’s would be bullied!”
Da Mao raised his middle finger and said, “Who do you think I am? Would I be afraid? This is no lawless country!”
Liu Zi looked at him in derision. “You are naive!”
In addition to snakes, there were stalls selling flashlights, rulers and some other stuff related to measuring, weighing, and checking out ore.
Li Du met the little girl selling popsicles again. Her business has grown, and an old lady was together with her. While she sold popsicles, the old lady, who was obviously her grandmother, sold sugar cane and sugar cane juice.
Seeing Li Du and the others, the little girl cheered, took a few popsicles and handed them to him.
Brother Wolf wanted to pay, but the girl shook her head and pointed to the juice extractor behind. She ran back and said a few words to the old lady, who used a mineral water bottle to pour some sugar cane juice into and handed it to Li Du with a smile on her face.
The grandma and granddaughter did not want to take their money, but Brother Wolf insisted on leaving a hundred dollar bill as a tip.
Through the stalls on either side of the road, they reached the main entrance of the auction house.
Two rows of soldiers were there to check those who came in, because the auction was usually for the rich. Because the stakes were high, the security check was particularly strict. Other than clothes, shoes, socks, glasses and so on, people were not allowed to take anything onto the premises, to prevent a possibly violent person from hurting other people with objects that could be used as weapons.
Mobile phones and wallets were not allowed. The officials would keep them, and the bidders could get them back when they exited with their tickets.
Li Du queued up through the security gate inspection and someone came up to search him. His certificate was double-checked, and the procedure was very strict indeed.
Finally, a staff member reminded him, “Watch your VIP card.”
The VIP card was an admission ticket that had no identification. Whoever carried it could enter the VIP room. It was issued strictly. Only one card was allowed per person, it would not be replaced if lost.
Each visitor received a gift bag when they entered the administration building. The bag contained a book, a pen, and a small flashlight.
Zhong Dapao took the gift bag and said with a smile, “Brother, give me another pen.”
“No, one pen for each of you,” grimaced the gift giver.
Zhong Dapao continued to laugh and said, “Give me another one. I am Zhong Dapao from the Chinese village. Brother, you look quite fresh and not familiar.”
The staff member said impatiently, “Next, please! Don’t get in the way.”
Laughter rang out from behind. “Yo, Zhong Dapao from the Chinese Village, what kind of name is this? Majestic? Very domineering! But people don’t seem to think so, haha!”
Li Du looked back and saw several thin middle-aged men laughing.
Zhong Dapao looked at them and said, “Oh, why did anyone bring dogs in? Are dogs allowed at the auction?”
Liu Zi said, “Of course, army dogs and police dogs are, but stray dogs are not allowed. Hey, when did you allow a stray dog to become a police dog?”
Listening to his taunt, the leading man was not angry but continued to laugh. “Yo, Master Liu is also here? I did not see you just now, sorry. Did I hear that a few days ago Master Liu sneak attacked the King of Hpakant and was shot back? But Master Liu is still the winner. You killed the King of Hpakant eventually.”
Zhong Dapao’s face was sullen. “Hey, Xie Laohou, don’t spill the dirty water on us!’
The security guard frowned. “Hey, what are you doing here blocking the way? Move quickly, move!”
Xie Laohou waved his hand and said, “Right, why are you blocking the way? Get going!”
Liu Zi was angry, while the man behind Xie Laohou laughed and said, “Master Liu seems upset? Don’t be so quick to get angry. You two idiots, do you still dare to come to the auction? Haha, wait until you get the stones and then get angry, there will be many chances for you to do so.”
