Qin Feng tried to move the thick plaque, only to find he couldn't budge it!
"System, what kind of wood is this? It's so heavy, and it even has a fragrance!"
"Host, the plaque is made of small-leaf sandalwood. Sandalwood grows slowly, taking five years to form a single growth ring, requiring over eight hundred years to mature. Its hardness is unparalleled among woods, earning it the title of 'Emperor Wood,' incomparable to ordinary woods. This plaque is made from the finest grade of ten-thousand-year-old sandalwood, with a pleasant and refreshing fragrance. Spending a long time surrounded by its aroma will surely soothe the mind and spirit!"
Qin Feng didn't hear anything else; all he heard was that this was a ten-thousand-year-old sandalwood!
There's a saying that a thousand-year-old treasure is a ten-thousand-year-old sandalwood, and sandalwood over ten thousand years old is just as precious as a thousand-year-old treasure!
This was the finest sandalwood! Most importantly, Qin Feng had never heard of such a large piece of ten-thousand-year-old sandalwood before!
In his understanding, sandalwood consisted of small beads or at most small ornaments; he had never seen such a large piece!
"A reminder to the host: quest items cannot be sold!" The system's voice rang out again at an inopportune moment.
"I know, I know, I'm just a little heartbroken..."
Qin Feng had originally planned to go out and find a craftsman to carve it, but considering the weight of this huge plaque, he decided against it and would just call the craftsman to his shop, saving himself the trouble of bringing it back.
He took out his knock-off phone and dialed a number.
"Lingyun..."
"Call me Xue Lingyun! What Lingyun? Are we that close?"
Hearing the elegant female voice coming from the phone, Qin Feng gave a bitter smile again.
"Oh, Lingyun, I need to talk to you."
"Hmph, you only contact me when you need something. Don't you ever contact me when you don't need anything? Huh?"
A barrage of questions bombarded Qin Feng's face...
Good thing, good thing, Qin Feng reassured himself, at least he could call her Lingyun now.
Perhaps seeing that Qin Feng hadn't spoken for a while, the female voice came from the phone again: "Hey, what's up?"
"Well, I'm planning to reopen my family's tavern, and I was just thinking about getting a signboard, so I was wondering if you knew any master sculptors who could help me get an introduction." Qin Feng said shamelessly.
"Your family's tavern has been closed for a few years, why are you thinking of reopening it? I happen to have an elder who is a sculptor, but you have to be careful, this elder has a bit of a temper." The female voice on the other end sounded a little hesitant.
"It's okay, then I'll trouble you, Lingyun, hehe."
"Look at you, so cheeky. Okay, I'll hang up now. We should be able to go over this afternoon." The girl said coquettishly.
"Okay, bye-bye."
Xue Lingyun, Qin Feng's college classmate, appeared gentle and weak, but was incredibly strong inside. For some reason, she had become friends with Qin Feng.
For four years of university, Qin Feng had no idea what his good friend's family situation was like, while his friend had completely exposed his home...
After hanging up the phone, Qin Feng started cleaning. Back when his parents lived there, they would always clean the entire tavern spotlessly, ensuring the wood grain of the six solid wood tables was clearly visible—a tradition supposedly passed down from their ancestors.
Qin Feng planned to do the same; the tavern was opening, essentially him inheriting the business, so these traditions should be continued.
Following his parents' methods, Qin Feng meticulously cleaned the entire tavern.
The morning passed quickly. At noon, Qin Feng casually bought some food to fill his stomach. He wasn't exactly enjoying himself, having been unemployed for almost a month and unable to live off his savings for long.
Back at the tavern, Qin Feng found himself with nothing to do again.
"System, can you tell me where the wine comes from? I've never brewed wine before."
The system remained silent.
"System, can you tell me what the first type of wine is?"
The system still didn't respond.
"System, are you fucking dead?!"
This time, the system actually answered: "Host, the system is bound to your soul. When the system dies, the host will die too."
Qin Feng was speechless...
An awkward silence fell over the small tavern.
Fortunately, the awkwardness didn't last long; a knock on the door dispelled it.
Qin Feng quickly got up and opened the door, immediately seeing a girl in a pure white dress.
A small, delicate face, exquisite features, and a height of 1.68 meters, yet with a gentle demeanor, she possessed the lively and graceful air of a girl from the Jiangnan water towns. It was none other than his good friend, Xue Lingyun.
Beside Xue Lingyun stood an old man with a wrinkled face; although his hair was completely white, his back was ramrod straight.
"Lingyun, you've arrived," Qin Feng greeted naturally.
Upon hearing this, the old man looked at Qin Feng strangely, then at Xue Lingyun.
"Call me Xue Lingyun!" Xue Lingyun blushed slightly, but immediately glared at him with her almond-shaped eyes.
"Ah, okay, no problem." Qin Feng quickly agreed, remembering that he had been told to call her that when he called her earlier.
"This is my elder, a very famous sculptor. Um, you can call him Uncle Wang too."
Qin Feng quickly stepped forward and called out, "Uncle Wang!"
The old sculptor, Uncle Wang, glanced at Qin Feng and said, "If it weren't for Lingyun, I wouldn't have helped you. Alright, where are the materials?"
Xue Lingyun quickly glanced at Qin Feng upon hearing this. This guy had always had a bad temper and was prone to exploding in situations like this.
"Yes, everything is ready. It's inside. Please come in with me, sir." Qin Feng said with a smile.
Now it was Xue Lingyun's turn to be puzzled, but it was best that the two hadn't started arguing.
Qin Feng led the two into the tavern. The huge ancient sandalwood plaque and the long scroll by Wang Xizhi were already placed on two tables.
As soon as they entered the tavern, Old Man Wang twitched his nose, as if he had smelled something.
The next second, the old man with white hair started sniffing the air, muttering to himself, "This smell is so familiar."
Sculptors, especially those who use wood as their main material, usually have an extremely deep understanding of these types of wood. Old Wang was a prime example of this, and therefore, he was very familiar with the unique smell of these woods.
It had been a long time since they'd seen a piece of ancient sandalwood, and given the dilapidated state of the tavern, Old Wang hadn't immediately thought of it.
Behind him, Qin Feng and Xue Lingyun stared in disbelief as the white-haired old man, well past seventy, sniffed and followed the scent towards a few tables…
"Lingyun, your elder here really has a strange temper."
"Yeah, wait, no, his temper isn't strange like that, wait, I can't tell you!"
Qin Feng was secretly pleased that he could call her Lingyun again.
Just then, Old Wang suddenly let out a piercing scream.
"What happened? What happened? Did he fall?"
Qin Feng and Xue Lingyun rushed over to check, after all, this was an elder they'd come to help, and they didn't want him to get hurt.
When they got closer, they saw that Old Wang was holding the enormous piece of sandalwood like it was his own child.
"You kid actually have such a huge piece of ancient sandalwood, and it's top-grade sandalwood at that?"