The long table was large, filled with dozens of dishes, quite a feast. Dongbo Xueying sat at the head of the table, with Zong Ling and Tong San on either side. Opposite them sat his younger brother Qing Shi and his young girlfriend. Kong Youyue sat next to the young girlfriend.
"Brother, this is Jirong, also a disciple of the teacher. She lives in Yishui City," Qing Shi said, his face slightly red but still straightforward.
"Jirong? Haha..." Dongbo Xueying laughed, "You can call me Big Brother just like Qing Shi."
"Jirong greets Big Brother Xueying," Jirong said brightly, her voice pleasant.
This girl, Jirong, looked a bit young, probably around the same age as his younger brother. She wasn't very tall, quite petite and delicate, with beautiful eyes, making her a little beauty. She was a good match for his brother. Unconsciously, his brother had grown from a chubby little kid to someone with a girlfriend.
Speaking of which, he himself hadn't really had a girlfriend yet! Although he was close to Youyue, the matter of saving his parents weighed heavily on his mind, so he had never clarified their relationship.
"It's our first meeting, so I prepared a gift. Don't be offended," Dongbo Xueying said, flipping his hand to reveal a white crystal jade box.
"Go on, quickly," Qing Shi urged his girlfriend.
Jirong also stood up and walked over, taking the box from Dongbo Xueying, "Thank you, Big Brother Xueying."
"Haha..." Dongbo Xueying laughed, a bit embarrassed. He had bought some important treasures for his brother, Youyue, Uncle Zong, and Uncle Tong, but he hadn't thought about his brother's girlfriend, as he had never met her before. He had overlooked her! When he learned that his brother had brought his girlfriend to dinner, Dongbo Xueying quickly searched for something.
Fortunately, his recent trip had been very fruitful. In the corner of the divine envoy's storage ring, there was a box of jewels, likely obtained by the divine envoy at some point. The entire box of jewels was worth over 100,000 gold coins. Dongbo Xueying immediately picked out a particularly beautiful piece and placed it in a high-quality crystal jade box, estimating its value to be around 1,000 gold coins.
After all, this was just his brother's girlfriend, not a wife he was bringing into the family. 1,000 gold coins was quite valuable! Some fiefs earned only about 1,000 gold coins a year.
"Brother, you came back pretty quickly this time. I thought it would take another half month," Qing Shi said.
"This time I went to the county city and brought back some gifts for you and Youyue," Dongbo Xueying smiled, "Youyue, this is for you."
As he spoke, Dongbo Xueying flipped his hand and produced a staff and a set of purple robes.
"Big Brother Xueying, are these for me?" Kong Youyue hesitated, the staff looked very expensive, and the robes were clearly of high quality, "This staff is made from Wind Chant Wood, very valuable, I..."
"Just take it," Dongbo Xueying smiled and shook his head. The staff cost 2,000 gold coins, and the robes were a full 18,000 gold coins! The robes were a Heaven-tier mage's protective gear.
"If this little girl knew the robes were Heaven-tier mage's gear, she probably wouldn't accept them," Dongbo Xueying chuckled to himself.
"Um," Kong Youyue finally accepted them.
Jirong, sitting next to Kong Youyue, looked at the staff and then the robes, her expression suddenly changing.
"Brother, what about me? What about my gift? Didn't you say you brought one for me?" Qing Shi couldn't help but ask.
"Don't be so impatient," Dongbo Xueying glanced at him, "Look at you, so eager. I'll give it to you after dinner."
"You did that on purpose," Qing Shi said helplessly.
"I did it on purpose, to temper your impatience. As a mage, you need more patience," Dongbo Xueying shook his head lightly.
"Okay," Qing Shi could only hang his head obediently.
...
After dinner, Youyue stayed in the castle. Snowstone Castle had always prepared a small courtyard for her.
Qing Shi, on the other hand, escorted his girlfriend back to the mage tower.
"Jirong, let me see, what did my brother give you as a gift?" Qing Shi walked alongside Jirong.
Jirong then opened the crystal jade box.
Inside the box was a necklace with a completely emerald gemstone, which glowed faintly green in the darkness.
"A necklace made of top-quality emerald," Jirong said, "It must be worth nearly 1,000 gold coins." Being a mage, she naturally knew a lot about materials and jewels.
"So expensive," Qing Shi was surprised, then said proudly, "My brother is generous, isn't he?"
"Generous, more than just generous," Jirong put away the jade box, paused for a moment, and then whispered, "Dongbo Qing Shi, do you know how much the gifts your brother gave to Kong Youyue are worth?"
"The staff? Made of Wind Chant Wood? Probably 2,000 gold coins," Qing Shi said casually, "Sister Youyue has been in our Snowstone Castle for a long time and has a good relationship with my brother. It's normal for him to give her a good staff."
"Hmph," Jirong snorted, "I'm not talking about the staff, but the robes! The mage's gear robes!"
"Mage's gear?" Qing Shi's eyes widened, "You didn't see wrong?"
"Kong Youyue was right next to me, I saw it clearly. The robes are mage's gear! There's a mark on them, the mark of the alchemy master 'Master Yanwen.' The gear made by Master Yanwen is at least Earth-tier, and most are Heaven-tier!" Jirong snorted.
"You didn't misidentify it?" Qing Shi couldn't believe it.
"I'm a mage, how could I misidentify it?" Jirong's eyes sparkled, "Even if it's Earth-tier, it's likely top-quality. The robes alone are worth at least 5,000 gold coins, possibly even 10,000 gold coins. Plus the staff! This time, your brother gave Kong Youyue gifts worth nearly 10,000 gold coins. Dongbo Qing Shi, your brother is really generous."
Qing Shi grinned, "My brother and Youyue are very close."
"Don't be so naive," Jirong lowered her voice, "You and your brother are close, and you are the heir to the Snow Eagle Fief! Are you just going to watch your brother give away these treasures?"
Qing Shi was slightly stunned.
"You're sixteen today. You can't always rely on your brother, can you? You need to be independent," Jirong said, "Even close brothers need to be clear about accounts!"
"Why are you saying this?" Qing Shi frowned, a bit annoyed.
"I'm doing this for your own good," Jirong said, "I've seen it before. My father worked hard in business because he trusted my uncle too much! All the money earned was considered the family's. After twenty years of hard work, almost all of it was earned by my father! In the end, my uncle turned his back on my father, leaving him with nothing, not even a place to live. He had to stay at my mother's house."
"I'm telling you this because you need to be cautious, even if you don't have ill intentions."
"I've heard you say before how hard your brother trains and how he soaks in medicinal baths every day to prevent his body from collapsing! Do you know how much those baths cost per year? 5,000 gold coins! From age six to sixteen, ten years, that's 50,000 gold coins. Your parents bought a noble title, a fief, and a large number of Starbreaker Crossbows... They also prepared years of medicinal baths for your brother, along with armor, a castle, and various other expenses. All of this adds up to nearly 200,000 gold coins, which means your parents must have obtained a huge fortune when they took risks!"
"You've always spent money freely, and your brother didn't earn any money before killing the Silver Moon Wolf King."
"You've been spending your parents' money all along!"
Jirong said, "Do you know how much your parents left behind? Do you know?"
Qing Shi was silent.
"You don't know!" Jirong sneered, "Such a huge fortune, your parents might have obtained a Title-level relic or even a Beyond Human's relic when they took risks. Anything is possible! But now, all of this is under your brother's control, and you know nothing about what your parents left behind."
"All of this is with your brother. Now, he casually gives Kong Youyue gifts worth over 10,000 gold coins! 10,000 gold coins, my father worked for twenty years to earn that much, and he just gave it away." Jirong looked at Qing Shi, "Strictly speaking, this isn't your brother's, it's what your parents left behind, and it should be shared between you and your brother!"