"Why do you think I'm a swindler?" Li Yang turned back to see Xue Ying speaking to Uncle Xue with a serious expression, a stark contrast to her earlier disdain. He felt curious.
"You still say you're not a swindler? You specifically picked out the most valuable items among my dad's collection, calling them evil spirits. I think you have bad intentions, trying to take advantage and snatch my dad's treasures." Xue Ying stated with absolute certainty.
Li Yang felt a mix of amusement and exasperation. So, this girl wasn't indifferent to everything; when it came to the Xue family's interests, she was more defensive than anyone.
"Xiao Ying, don't talk nonsense!"
Xue Xigui sternly stopped Xue Ying and then said, "Mr. Li is a distinguished guest I invited, and he has been kind to our Xue family. If he wanted to cheat us out of our treasures, he wouldn't have asked me for 150 million for that painting just now."
"Dad, you know he didn't make money off you? Maybe that painting cost him nothing, and he just pocketed 150 million from you."
Xue Ying retorted, her lips curling in defiance, and continued to look at Li Yang with distrust, "You said the antiques my dad collected are evil spirits. Do you have any proof?"
"Let me tell you, if you can't provide proof today, I'll have the police arrest you."
"I don't need to provide proof; these antiques will speak for themselves."
Li Yang offered this explanation and then walked over to a jade statue. He gently tapped it with his hand, and the statue actually trembled in place.
Simultaneously, a wisp of black energy slowly emanated from it, astonishing Xue Xigui.
"Mr. Li, what is this? How can it move on its own?" Xue Xigui asked, both surprised and worried.
"This is the evil energy I mentioned. It survives by absorbing human vitality and is constantly growing stronger."
"What I tapped just now was the entry point for this antique's evil energy. When it senses external threats, it gets startled and releases evil energy to attack humans," Li Yang explained calmly.
"Nonsense. I think this is clearly a trick you've conjured yourself. That external force was just you meddling," Xue Ying immediately interjected, questioning Li Yang.
Li Yang smiled faintly and turned to look at her. "Miss Xue, since you don't believe me so much, I'll have to prove it in another way. I see a slight dark aura on your forehead and dark circles under your eyes. Have you been staying up late often recently?"
"Heh, even an idiot can see that. How can you prove it's an evil spirit? You're not going to say I'm possessed, are you?" Xue Ying anticipated his next move to trick her and rolled her eyes disdainfully.
"Whether you are possessed or not doesn't require me to say it; your body will speak for itself. Your preference for staying up late isn't a conscious choice, but rather because every night before midnight, your mind starts to wander uncontrollably."
"Either you can't fall asleep, or even if you do, you'll dream of strange things and wake up startled by nightmares," Li Yang continued calmly.
"This..."
Xue Ying's expression instantly changed. She turned to look at Li Yang incredulously, muttering to herself, *Could this guy really have some skills?*
*I've never told anyone about my nightmares, how could he know?*
"Xiao Ying, is what Mr. Li is saying true? Do you wake up from nightmares every night?"
Xue Xigui suddenly asked Xue Ying with concern.
He had frequent contact with antiques and had heard many appraisers say that collectibles could indeed carry risks. Some items taken from tombs, after various transactions, might have absorbed malevolent or even resentful energies.
Once exposed to these negative influences, the initial symptom would be plagued by nightmares.
If these antiques weren't dealt with promptly, calamities would follow, becoming increasingly severe.
He hadn't experienced these symptoms before, so he hadn't paid much attention. But upon hearing Xue Ying nod in confirmation, he realized the situation had become serious.
"Dad, this might just be his bluff. Don't believe his superstitious talk," Xue Ying still didn't believe Li Yang and turned to persuade Xue Xigui.
"Silence!"
Xue Xigui sternly rebuked her, then turned to Li Yang and said, "Mr. Li, regarding my daughter's symptoms, is there a way to resolve them?"
"Don't worry, it's only in the early stages, and there's no danger to her life. Once the evil energy in these antiques is dealt with, she will recover on her own."
Li Yang reassured Xue Xigui, who then visibly relaxed.
He then asked, "How will you remove the evil energy from these antiques, Mr. Li? Do I need to prepare anything?"
"I'll need a piece of yellow paper and some cinnabar. These evil energies are most afraid of cinnabar talismans. As long as I seal them with talismans, they will never cause trouble again," Li Yang explained patiently.
Xue Xigui nodded and quickly said, "Alright, I'll go prepare them for Mr. Li."
With that, he left the room to fetch the cinnabar, which he happened to have stored at home for such emergencies.
Xue Ying stood rooted to the spot, looking at Li Yang with some confusion, murmuring to herself, "Strange, he didn't ask to take the antiques away. Is he not trying to swindle them?"
"Miss Xue, even if I'm very handsome, you don't need to stare at me like that, do you? I'm not that interested in you. Even if you wanted to be my girlfriend, I wouldn't agree," Li Yang noticed Xue Ying's gaze and turned back with a smile.
"Dream on!"
Xue Ying was furious. She glanced at him sideways and said, "You want me to be your girlfriend? You're a toad wanting to eat swan meat. If I were to fancy a dog, I wouldn't fancy you!"
"That would be for the best. If you really fancied me, it would be troublesome; I'd have to find a way to shake you off," Li Yang said with a light smile.
"You..."
Xue Ying was incensed. Although Li Yang's words were not wrong, and logically she should have been happy, she felt even angrier after hearing them.
This was because she had never encountered a man who could resist her beauty!
Normally, men she met would actively praise her beauty, buy her milk tea and coffee, ask her out for movies, and pursue her. But Li Yang showed outright disdain for her, which made her feel a sense of loss.
"What do you mean 'you'? If it weren't for the fact that you're Uncle Xue's daughter, I'd definitely teach you a lesson!" Li Yang continued to taunt her.
"You're lucky. If I speak to you again, I'll be a dog!"
Xue Ying, seething with anger, turned her head away and ignored Li Yang.
Li Yang shrugged, a slight smile playing on his lips, thinking, *Little brat, can't I still deal with you?*
"Mr. Li, I've found the cinnabar."
A moment later, Xue Xigui walked back in with a small box of cinnabar, smiling as he handed it to Li Yang.
Li Yang took the cinnabar and said with a smile, "Uncle Xue, for the talisman to be effective, it's best to use a virgin's blood. You see..."