The Almighty Ring

They were all talking about many things but their root topic was focused on and about Braveheart. Nobody knew who Jiang Fei was yet but they were all talking about him, not directly, but in some form. It was the kind of hot topic that crowds would pay attention to.

These folks… they were all born with silver spoons sticking out of their butts when they were born. They had absolutely nothing to be worried about, except finding out means to earn more, spend more. If they were being honest, they had nothing to live for, nothing to expect of tomorrow. Luxury in terms of the materialistic aspect had been conquered; that was what they could control. The only thing that they sought out more was to own the grand and the rare, to own such things in order to make themselves stand out. A thing that was so special yet fails to be useful in any other way than to make one’s presence known to all. Such an item would be Braveheart, a ship that was created 10,000 years ago by a civilization that was now extinct.

When Braveheart first entered the planet, many had set eyes on it. People like Wagner had even traveled from a distant galaxy just to feast their eyes on such a rare physical ship from the past.

“I’ve waited long enough. Lucius, where is the buyer?”

“Are you clowning us as payback for not inviting you along on the previous trip?”

“Don’t think that you’re invincible now that you have befriended someone better. We can still do things that will scar you for life!”

“Befriended someone? Like who?”

“You didn’t know? Lucius and Rais had befriended a new member of the federation. I have no idea how he does it really…”

“New member? There are too many to count. Who is it?”

“I don’t blame you for not knowing what’s going on out there. You have been spending too much time in the Red Mansion, squeezing yourself in between Ronaby girls.”

“Mhm. Just so you know, Ronaby girls are just the best. Their long ears and legs are kinda my fetish!”

When Jiang Fei came in, everyone was still pestering Lucius to reveal the identity of the seller. However, as expected of the lecherous folks, the topic of conversation shifted from the ship, to Lucius, and then, to adulterous recreational play.

“It’s Fourth Brother.”

“Fourth Brother, come, come! Join the fray! We are pestering this bastard to reveal the seller’s name!”

Everyone in the mansion stood up when Wagner came in after Jiang Fei. One could quickly tell that Wagner must be someone prominent enough to have such a reaction from the mass.

“Heh. Do you still want to know who the seller is? Or should I just…” Wagner teased. He scanned the room for an empty seat and waltzed over nonchalantly.

“Huh? What is he saying?”

“Fourth Brother, do you know who the seller is?”

“Let me cut to the chase. Not only did I meet with the seller, but we have also already come to an agreement about the price,” Wagner said after he took a sip of a glowing liquid from an odd-looking cup.

Jiang Fei sighed awkwardly as he understood that his cover was blown.

“Har? How did you buy the ship when none of us has ever seen even the shadow of the seller?”

“I haven’t bought the ship yet. Nevertheless, I’ve offered up a price so high that none of you can outbid me,” Wagner said confidently.

“Who is the seller then?”

“Yeah! We want to know!”

“Oh! I guess you do not know him yet. Come, Brother Jiang Fei, please let yourself be known,” Wagner raised his glass and gestured toward Jiang Fei who was standing nearby.

“What gave me away?” Jiang Fei said softly as he tried to hide his embarrassment. He was not used to this sort of fancy gathering. He would be fine if he was in the center of a battlefield, surrounded by warriors cheering for him, but not this. Everything about it felt… pretentious.

“Jiang Fei… Where have I heard this name…”

“OH HO! He’s the new member that we were talking about! The new recruit that joined the federation military ranks!”

“Now that you mentioned, that does ring a bell!”

Everyone started exchanging information they knew. However, it was not the genuine kind of spreading the word, but was more of a competition on how much information they had.

“Brother Jiang Fei. To be frank, I do not remember people by their names. Even when you revealed your name, I wouldn’t have known that you were the famous new recruit in the military force. I had to piece many things together before I knew who you are. Lucius is not someone special that could get in touch with anyone from the military. Well… not someone from the high ranks at least. That, and the fact that he is not the kind that would simply use the term “boss” on anyone. That was what gave you away,” Wagner explained.

He had suspicions about Jiang Fei’s identity and only managed to get the first clue when Lucius came in and yelled “boss”. Lucius knew that something was off when Lucius and Jiang Fei had a moment of silence back in the garden. That was when Wagner recalled about the famous new recruit. Besides, Lucius had been rather active lately and that was only after he had befriended the new recruit. Thus, Wagner concluded that Jiang Fei was attending this gathering, not as a buyer, but as the seller.

“That’s a train of thought.”

“It’s something all traders have. A trait, you might say.”

“Well then, since we are now standing before the bridge, shall we officially start discussing the ship?” Jiang Fei asked straightforwardly. There was no need to beat around the bush anymore.

“Not a discussion for a settlement. I’ve stated my offer and if you still think it’s inadequate, I can add on a few barrels of high-quality Vespane gas,” Wagner said with a certain gravitas. He was making an offer that, in his opinion, no one could deny. He will have the ship!

“Fourth Brother, how much are you bidding for it?” a well-dressed gentleman came and asked. It was clear that his intention was not of wanting to compete with him, but merely of wanting to know the numbers.

“This many,” Wagner said as he raised three fingers.

The gentleman’s jaw dropped and he left, stupefied by the number that Wagner revealed.

Jiang Fei’s eyes followed the dejected gentleman and realized that the other attendees were quiet. All of them had been paying attention to Jiang Fei and Wagner and they had heard the revelation. Three billion was not a small number. That number was probably all they had, including their own family assets. It was clear that Wagner’s true wealth was more than what he was putting on the table then.

“Do we have an agreement?” Wagner nudged Jiang Fei’s arm and asked.

Jiang Fei turned back and looked into his eyes, saying, “I believe we do.”

No one else was even attempting to step forward and Jiang Fei wouldn’t want to waste time waiting for the inevitable.

“Here’s to working with you,” Wagner smiled as wide as he could as he raised his glass.

“And to a brighter future!” Jiang Fei replied, clinking his glass with Wagner’s.

“Argh… If I knew that Fourth Brother was coming, I wouldn’t have wasted my time in traveling so far!”

“Cheer up. The ship is as good as his now. But the party is still not over!”

“Drink! Eat! And PARTY!”

“Hold that thought!” Lucius bellowed before the music could go any louder.

When everyone had turned toward him, he said, “The ship in the dock is not the only ship my boss is going to sell!”

This is where Lucius shone best. As Jiang Fei’s “underling”, Lucius was asked to promote Jiang Fei’s products. What better time than now when others had lost hope in procuring the first ship! That, and the fact that Lucius was promised a special ship by Jiang Fei!

When everyone else was cheering, Wagner arched an eyebrow. If the ship in the dock was not the only ship, it would not be that valuable.

“Let me be clear,” Jiang Fei interjected.

“The ship in the dock is the largest one that I’ve found amongst others. There is no second ship that could come close to that size. There are other ships as large as only a few hundred kilometers. Tiny, when compared to Braveheart. Nevertheless, there are no two identical units. All ships that I have are unique and you can never find a second one in the entire universe!” Jiang Fei revealed when he noticed his primary client was starting to regret his decision.