Chapter 50: The True Heart of Art

Chen Ye tried to visualize the scene described by the other person in his mind...
It was hard to understand how such a thing could become a cutting-edge trend culture in this city.
Those who do art really are a bunch of lunatics... Chen Ye thought to himself, but on the surface, he put on a very appreciative expression and gave a thumbs up:
"I think what you said is so right. Thumbs up for you!"
Before the artist could speak, he looked down at the "fruit seed" at his feet and asked about the price: "How much is one of these things?"
The artist seemed very satisfied with Chen Ye's recognition, in high spirits, and casually quoted a price.
"I can give you a discount, it only costs eighty copper coins. Heh, this is a kindred spirit price. If you meet anyone else, it would cost at least over three hundred copper coins!"
Eighty copper coins... Chen Ye was somewhat surprised by this. He had originally thought that things in the silver coin market would be very expensive, but he hadn't expected the cost to be much lower than anticipated.
However, after purchasing the pushcart, kitchenware, condiments, and other items, Chen Ye only had about fifty copper coins left.
He tried to extract a bit more information from the other person:
"These seeds shouldn't have appeared before, right? The price should be quite high. How did it suddenly become so cheap?"
The artist assumed Chen Ye was very interested in this, which was why he was asking more questions, and answered with rising enthusiasm:
"Simple, because market demand is higher, so naturally the export volume is increased."
"I heard that another large batch of supply will enter the market soon..."
"Originally, it took thousands of copper coins to buy a single fruit, but now it only costs about three hundred copper coins."
"It is predicted that in the coming week, the price of this fruit will drop to about eighty copper coins, but due to supply and demand equilibrium, it will remain stable at this price."
Chen Ye had a sudden flash of insight, and finally understood why the artist was willing to lower the price to eighty copper coins.
Turns out the future market price was going to keep dropping.
Therefore, customers wanting to buy this product would naturally wait and observe for a while.
Then make their move.
Yet Chen Ye felt somewhat puzzled by this...
For such a trendy item, shouldn't controlling the price and limiting export volume be most beneficial to the seller? Why instead choose to slash prices right at the peak of the trend?
Hoarding goods and driving up quotes should be the standard tactics for businessmen, but here they were doing the exact opposite.
Chen Ye shook his head. Since this was a bizarre world, conventional logic did not apply here, and he couldn't be bothered to waste human brain cells trying to figure out ghost psychology.
He patted his pocket, trying to drive the price down further.
"Heh, I am also an artist, and this beautiful artwork has triggered deep inspiration within me."
"But you should know that art often cannot be measured by value alone!"
"In pursuit of the beauty of art, I often don't have much income..."
"If you are willing to sell this fruit at the price of fifty copper coins, then in the future, when I have better works, I can share them with you."
Having said this, the artist remained stunned for a long time, as if petrified.
Chen Ye waited in place for five minutes, wondering if he had said something wrong and whether he should run away quickly...
Suddenly, the other person embraced him like a long-lost brother, tears streaming down his face!
"A kindred spirit! A kindred spirit indeed!"
Spittle flying from his mouth, the artist spent a full ten minutes talking without pause, expressing how Chen Ye's views coincided with his own, while recounting past memories of poverty and drifting from one topic to another...
Chen Ye wore a smile, keeping his composure until the other person finally reached the main point:
"Since you are a kindred spirit of mine, you get the absolute lowest price—thirty-eight copper coins, and this fruit is yours!"
"Whenever you come to my shop in the future, I'll give you a discount on everything!"
"Brother, I look forward to your new works in the field of art."
Chen Ye smiled slightly. As expected, the light blue existence would bring him good luck.
See?
He didn't even have to spend much effort bluffing.
Transaction successful!
Chen Ye patted his pocket. After deducting the expense for purchasing the fruit seed, only twenty copper coins remained.
Meanwhile...
On the pushcart, there was now an object with the silhouette of a human head.
This fruit seed was related to the growing purple aura within his fortune halo, and purchasing it at a low price was acceptable.
Perhaps it would bring him an unexpected surprise!
The artist opened his mouth, seeming to want to say a bit more...
Chen Ye directly used the excuse of creating new artwork to find a chance to slip away.
"Phew, truly a person with a true artistic heart, racing against time for their works. This is the role model I should learn from!"
As he left, the artist's voice of admiration echoed faintly from behind.
...
He returned along the path he came.
Chen Ye tried to see if he could rely on his memory to find the way back.
He placed the pushcart on his left side, occasionally reaching out to touch the kitchenware and condiments placed upon it, and then touching the human-head fruit with its seaweed-like hair...
"Today's harvest is really not bad."
The corners of Chen Ye's mouth curved slightly. Aside from the kitchenware, he had also bought trendy merchandise at a massive discount.
Leaving everything else aside, the current market value of this fruit was still around three hundred copper coins.
Even if he took it out to sell, he could recoup a lot of his capital.
Furthermore...
Activating the Eye of Fortune, Chen Ye saw that the purple radiance within his halo was shining like stars.
It was even brighter than before!
The purple starlight faintly split into lines, connecting with the fruit seed on the pushcart.
At this point, Chen Ye already knew where the source of this purple radiance came from.
"Back in the Old Street, I encountered the Faceless Man and learned about gift-giving from the old grandma selling chestnuts."
"However, the market price for such trendy items is still very expensive, and I had to go to the silver coin market to buy them."
"When entering, the Beastmaster I met almost caused me harm, but gave me a silver coin note as an apology, granting me the qualification to enter the silver coin market."
"And because I went to Xining Alley and learned the suona, possessing an artistic aura as well, I was able to buy this fruit seed from that artist at a low price..."
"Of course, I must also thank that condiment merchant for not offering a discount, otherwise I might have chosen to spend the remaining fifty-odd copper coins on another catty of soy sauce!"
"Just right, the remaining money was precisely enough to buy the discounted fruit seed."
"I only need to go to the Faceless Man's family to deliver the gift, and the significance brought by the purple starlight will be completely fulfilled!"
A sudden thrill of solving a puzzle welled up in Chen Ye's heart, and the corners of his mouth curved upward.
Through this experience, he felt he could increasingly perceive the specific message the Eye of Fortune intended to convey.
Following these clues would bring him extraordinary gains!
Just at that moment, Chen Ye suddenly recalled something—
The bizarre native residents of this city generally did not call this place Linjiang City, but instead referred to it as the City of Destiny!
...
PS: Brothers, the book is about to enter a very critical moment, concerning life and death. The performance during this period is extremely important! There will be extra chapters in the next few days, with a major burst of updates coming soon. Friends who have time, please try to keep up with the latest chapters. If you have extra recommendation votes and monthly votes, feel free to cast them. Thank you all for your great support!