Top Soldier Pursued by a Beauty

"Get out! If you're looking for a bargain, go somewhere else. My shop isn't for poor bastards like you!"

Qing Yu was so angry she gnashed her teeth. Just as she could hardly bear it anymore, Zhao Dong stepped forward and snorted coldly. "I was going to let you keep some dignity, but it seems you really don't want it."

"You ask why I won't buy these herbs? It's because they're fake!"

As soon as he spoke, the crowd that had gathered due to the saleswoman's jeering burst into laughter.

"Hahaha... What nonsense is this kid spouting? The Ten Thousand Treasure Pavilion has been operating in the Provincial City for decades. We all know its reputation. To say the Ten Thousand Treasure Pavilion sells fakes, this kid must be out of his mind!"

"Kid, if you don't have money, just admit it. We don't know you, so we'll just laugh it off. But you have to take responsibility for making baseless accusations like this!"

"The items at the Ten Thousand Treasure Pavilion are a bit pricier than other places, but I've bought so many things here and have never once received a fake!"

"Young people these days are so arrogant and clueless!"

The crowd jeered, but they failed to notice that when the saleswoman heard the word "fake," she was so panic-stricken from her guilty conscience that she was momentarily unable to retort.

Zhao Dong completely ignored the crowd's ridicule, his cold eyes locked on the saleswoman.

Though guilty as a thief, the saleswoman still insisted stubbornly, "What a joke! My Ten Thousand Treasure Pavilion has been open in the Provincial City for decades and has sold thousands upon thousands of items! The integrity of the Ten Thousand Treasure Pavilion is famous throughout the Provincial City!"

At her words, the surrounding crowd once again voiced their agreement. Seeing the growing number of people supporting her, the saleswoman's guilt vanished completely.

She retorted haughtily, "Kid, did you hear how the longtime customers of the Ten Thousand Treasure Pavilion speak of it? How dare you deliberately slander the Ten Thousand Treasure Pavilion? You're utterly clueless!"

As she spoke, the saleswoman stepped forward, pointed at the shop's sign, and shouted, "Kneel and apologize to the Ten Thousand Treasure Pavilion's signboard right now!"

Zhao Dong laughed. "I'm telling the truth. Why should I apologize?"

"Kid! You want to play tough with me?" the saleswoman sneered. "The Ten Thousand Treasure Pavilion has been in business for many years; it's not like we haven't dealt with troublemakers before. Do you really think I'm here alone?"

As soon as she finished speaking, a flurry of footsteps echoed from the back of the shop. The next moment, a dozen imposing cultivators rushed out from inside. They wielded clubs, exuding a palpable murderous intent. The man in the lead had the aura of an eighth-level Great Grandmaster, and the rest were all in the Great Grandmaster realm as well.

Such a lineup was incredibly powerful. Even Zhao Dong felt a hint of pressure.

Seeing this, the onlookers fearfully retreated several steps. Only Qing Yu stepped forward to stand firmly behind Zhao Dong, her cold eyes blazing with fighting spirit. She wasn't certain if Zhao Dong was right, but she would never stand by and watch if these people dared to attack him.

Zhao Dong was moved by her action.

The saleswoman said ominously, "According to the rules of the Ten Thousand Treasure Pavilion, anyone who dares to make malicious slander shall have their legs broken and be beaten fifty times with a staff!"

With her command, the group of cultivators was about to charge. Zhao Dong frowned. His Spiritual Energy instantly gathered in his right hand, a battle about to erupt.

"Stop!"

Suddenly, an icy rebuke rang out from the crowd. Everyone quickly turned toward the voice. From within the crowd, a woman with large, wavy hair and wearing a fiery red dress strode forward.

Her features were divinely exquisite, with almond-shaped, peach-blossom eyes so alluring that a single glance could steal the souls of countless men. She was tall and voluptuous, her slender, manga-like legs spotlessly white. Her small, jade-like feet rested in open-toed white high heels, an image that stirred an unbearable urge in men to cradle them. Her eyes were especially captivating. Even with his firm resolve, Zhao Dong felt an inexplicable fire of desire ignite within him the moment their gazes met.

A succubus! This woman is an absolute enchantress!

While Zhao Dong held his ground, the other men around were already drooling over her immaculate legs, their eyes brimming with lust.

"What's going on here?" the woman asked, her gaze sweeping over Zhao Dong and Qing Yu before landing on the saleswoman.

The moment she met the woman's eyes, the saleswoman guiltily lowered her head. Only she knew the truth. Zhao Dong was right. The Red Training Grass was indeed a fake. She had already swapped the real one and sold it privately to someone else.

Taking a deep breath, she suppressed her guilt and said calmly, "Boss, someone was causing trouble, so I called for the in-store security..."

"Oh? Who would be so bold as to cause trouble in my—Huo Hongyan's—shop?" Huo Hongyan looked displeased, her charming eyes narrowing to a slit.

The saleswoman immediately pointed at Zhao Dong and Qing Yu. "It was them!"

Seeing that Huo Hongyan didn't suspect a thing, the saleswoman's guilt vanished. She raised her head and pointed at Zhao Dong and Qing Yu, her voice dripping with malice. "Boss, you have no idea how shameless these two are!

"The moment they came in, they set their eyes on the Red Training Grass. Following your instructions, I received them with the utmost respect.

"But not only did they treat me like I was nothing, constantly scoffing, 'Is this all you've got?', they even claimed that everything in the Hundred Treasure Pavilion was trash!

"As you instructed, I tried to avoid conflict with customers, so I just kept smiling. But then they started complaining that alchemizing the Red Training Grass was too difficult and made all sorts of other excuses to demand a discount!

"I still followed your wishes and gave them a twenty percent discount! But they weren't satisfied and outrageously demanded I sell it for half price. Isn't that just robbery?

"Naturally, I refused to sell it at half price. But then they threatened to go out and slander the Ten Thousand Treasure Pavilion!

"I know you value the Pavilion's reputation above all else, so I had no choice but to reluctantly agree to sell it to them for half price!

"I thought that would be the end of it, but guess what happened next?"

"What?" Huo Hongyan's eyes were now boiling with rage.

Qing Yu was dumbfounded. She was the one who offered the one-and-a-half-million price! How did that become our demand?

But the saleswoman's shamelessness was far from over.

"When I had it all packed up, they suddenly said they didn't want it!" she continued in a pitiful tone.

"I asked them why, and they had the nerve to say our herbs were fake!

"I had already been incredibly tolerant, but for them to be so shameless... Isn't that like shitting on our heads? If I hadn't taken a stand, the reputation of our Ten Thousand Treasure Pavilion would have been completely destroyed by these two lowlifes!"

If the saleswoman weren't a shop assistant, she could have been an award-winning actress. She delivered her lines with such passion that as she grew more agitated, tears even began to shimmer in her eyes.

Having said her piece, the saleswoman looked at Zhao Dong and Qing Yu with extreme smugness, her defiant face filled with endless mockery.