The auction hall smelled of sweat, cheap perfume, and roasted meat. The air itself felt dirty, filled with the noise of men shouting, laughing, and clinking gold coins together like it was a game. The sound rose and fell like barking dogs.
At the front, the representative of the Bai clan grinned wide, waving his hand. His rings sparkled under the lantern light. Behind him, thick curtains shivered.
"Gentlemen!" he shouted, his voice cutting through the mess of noise. "The debut you've all been waiting for. The Jade Fairy's daughter—pure, untouched, a beauty gifted by the heavens themselves!"
The curtains pulled back.
A girl stepped forward.
She was young, maybe sixteen or seventeen, her white hair falling down her shoulders like strands of moonlight. Her eyes were stormy seas, too deep for someone her age, and her skin pale as fresh snow. Red silk clung to her thin frame. A mask covered her mouth, but the shape of soft lips showed beneath.
The crowd exploded.
"Virgin?"
"Of course! Look at her legs—thin, delicate. Haven't been touched."
"Her mother was famous, but this one… hah, heavens, this one is something else!"
Old men rubbed their beards, their tongues wetting cracked lips. Young masters in silk whispered filth between their teeth, giggling like rats. Fat merchants slapped down gold bars, shouting bids before the auction even started.
Bai Chen sat far in the back, chewing lazily on a chicken leg. His jug of lemon juice sweated beside him, the ice already melted. He raised his hand, waved a servant over, and ordered another without even glancing at the stage.
The system in his head was quiet. Silent. For once, it let him be.
But the girl—her tears slid down silently. Her chest rose and fell too fast, her hands clenching the fabric of her dress until her knuckles went white. She heard them. She saw their eyes. Greedy. Hungry. Like insects crawling over her skin.
Her knees shook, but she stood. She had to.
Inside, her heart cried for her mother—the woman who died birthing her, the woman who once sang soft lullabies in the night. Mother… save me. Please…
Her lips moved under the mask, but no sound came.
Then her gaze shifted.
And she saw him.
For a heartbeat she thought it was a trick. An illusion made by despair. But there he was—a man with silver-white hair, sitting with chicken bones piled on his plate, sipping juice like the filth of the hall didn't matter.
Her breath caught.
The word slipped out of her mouth without thought.
"Father…"
And then she ran.
The representative was shouting prices, guards moving to grab her, but she slipped through like water, her tears flying as she stumbled forward.
Through the stink of sweat, through the crowd of greedy eyes—straight into his shadow.
Straight to Bai Chen.
Her voice cracked the hall open like thunder.
"FATHER! SAVE ME!"
The whole place froze.
Cups stopped midair. Coins clattered to the floor. Even the lantern flames seemed to hold their breath.
Bai Chen froze with a chicken bone still in his hand. He looked down. The girl clung to his leg, her whole body shaking like a leaf, tears soaking his robe.
Her voice broke again.
"Please… save me… I don't want this… father!"
The crowd erupted.
"Father?!"
"Impossible—he's too young!"
"No, maybe… maybe she really is a bastard child of the Chen clan…"
"If so, then this just got good. Hah!"
The representative's smile cracked. His face stiffened, but he forced a bow.
"Esteemed guest, please don't misunderstand. The girl is merely—"
Crack.
Bai Chen flicked the chicken bone.
It sliced across the man's cheek, leaving a thin line of blood.
The hall went silent again.
Bai Chen pushed his chair back, standing slowly. His aura rolled out heavy and suffocating. The bodyguards near him dropped to their knees, gasping for air they couldn't pull in.
His silver eyes lowered to the girl. She looked back, her storm-blue eyes begging through tears.
"Father… please…"
For the first time that night, his face changed. A frown. A shadow of something deep.
He remembered the rumors—the whispers of illegitimacy, the gossip of Chen and Bai blood mixing in the dark. He remembered faces from Earth, flashing screens, streamers laughing into cameras. And in her trembling features… he saw it. A shadow of something he once lost.
He turned to the hall.
The men who once shouted bids now sat in silence, their lust smothered by fear.
Bai Chen spoke, calm, soft, yet sharper than any blade.
"Mine."
The word shook the hall.
The representative stumbled back, forehead almost slamming the floor.
"Y-Yes, honored sir! Of course!"
No one laughed. No one dared.
Bai Chen crouched, resting a hand on the girl's head. She flinched, then stilled, her tears flowing harder as she pressed into him.
Inside his mind, the system flickered.
Ding! Quest complete: "Star of the Auction."
Reward: Reputation across three cities.
Title unlocked: Father of Jade.
Bai Chen exhaled softly. He didn't need the system to tell him what he already knew.
He lifted the girl into his arms. She was light. Too light. Her body shook against him.
He looked once at the hall.
"The auction is over."
No one argued.
And Bai Chen walked out under the moonlight, carrying the girl who called him father.
Bai Chen stepped out of the brothel with the girl holding his arms. The night air was heavy, lanterns still glowing faint in the distance, but when he searched the road, there was nothing—no caravan, no carriage, no horses waiting. Just an empty path.
"Tchhh," he muttered, shifting his eyes towards her saying. "Looks like we walk."
The girl didn't speak, just clung to his robe, her body trembling. Her bare feet touched the ground after a while, and they walked side by side. The dirt road stained her white ankles, dust clinging to her skin. Bai Chen glanced down, frowned.
"Your feet…" he said.
She lowered her head, ashamed. "It's fine…"
"Idiot," he muttered, crouching. "Climb on."
Her storm-blue eyes widened. "W-what?"
"On my back. I won't say it twice."
Hesitant, she climbed on. Her arms wrapped around his neck, light as a feather.
They hadn't gone far before the sky cracked open. Rain poured heavy, drenching the road. Bai Chen cursed under his breath, pulled her off his back, and cradled her in his arms instead. He darted beneath an old tree, leaves wide enough to shield them.
She whispered softly against his chest, "My name… it's Hanyue."
Bai Chen nodded. "Hanyue, huh. Stay close. The night's only just begun."