Destiny in Cinders

"Oh?" The moustached manager looked down and smiled with a thoughtful look. "Young Master Xuan, are you saying..."

"I don't have silver on me, but I'm not broke! I have quite a bit more on me that's worth something," An Jing said, eyes wide and fully immersed in his performance of a naive but well-meaning young scion. "I'll pawn something off for cash now and come back with silver a few days later to pawn it back!"

As he spoke, he took out the bejeweled mirror and showed it to the manager. "I will make sure to pay for the meal! I, Jing Xuan, will never be in anyone's debt!"

"What an immaculate treasure!" Manager Li's attention was instantly drawn by the mirror. As its surface was obscured by a protective wooden cover, the quality of the mirror surface itself was hard to discern. However, the main selling point of the mirror were the twelve jewels set into the frame. They were obviously of incredibly high grade and cut incredibly well from the extent of their shine.

Whoa! Even a single jewel on that thing is enough to pay for tens of meals here! Manager Li drew a cold breath based on his vast knowledge and experience. He shook his head to snap himself out of it and calmed down. "It seems like a precious family heirloom, Master Xuan... Wouldn't you be chewed out by your elders back home if you pawn it? Master Xuan, please don't go through with this. We can't possibly put you in a sticky situation like that over a meal. Please allow us to treat you this time."

As a denizen of Keensight, Manager Li knew that many tribes of Dustdawn considered mirrors to be sacred objects due to the Brightmirror Sect of Voidsight Mountain, with most of them having a prized mirror of their own. The richer tribes would craft precious mirrors for important members as blessed charms. The mirror that "Jing Xuan" showed him was no doubt one of those. That could only mean that Jing Xuan's tribe was an important and rich one. He might well be the direct successor of the tribe's main line!

Manager Li recalled An Jing's behavior and demeanor and it all made sense. That's right! Only a large tribe of Voidsight Mountain could raise such a young and powerful martialist. Jing Xuan spends like a spoiled rich kid, but his personality speaks of a really good family upbringing.

Manager Li knew that the owner of the establishment would no doubt forget the bill for the meal and try to establish good relations with Jing Xuan and his tribe. However, the youth would simply not accept it. "If I say it's fine, it's fine! Take me to the pawn shop!"

"Very well." Manager Li knew that there was nothing he could say to change his mind and signalled a waiter nearby. "I will take you to a reliable and trusted pawn shop. Rest assured. They have been established for quite a long time and are definitely trustworthy."

***

The shopkeeper of Fullyield Pawn Shop laid against his rocking chair near the sunlit window, drinking tea as he read. The walls of the room had many shelves, upon which many peculiar items were displayed. All of a sudden, his partner entered and interrupted his afternoon break. He was about to flip out in anger only for his expression to change at hearing what his partner had to say. Wasting no time at all, he left the inner room.

"Manager Li! Why did you come? Oh, this young man looks dashing and handsome indeed." The shopkeeper was acquainted with Manager Li and could immediately tell that An Jing was no normal customer. "Is there anything I can help you with?"

"Well, my hands are a bit tight," An Jing said before Manager Li opened his mouth. "I heard from Manager Li that Fullyield is a respected and trustworthy establishment. So, I've decided to let you appraise my precious mirror."

He took the mirror out of its intricate box and placed it on the desk.

"This young gentleman here is from Dustdawn. I trust that you will handle this matter well." Manager Li had wanted to get a private word with the shopkeeper to give him some prior hints in advance about the likelihood that Jing Xuan came from a big tribe, but the youth's straightforwardness stumped him. As expected of a Dustdawner.

"A gentleman from Voidsight Mountain, I see. Since you were brought here by Manager Li, you are no doubt a person of great stature." The shopkeeper had seen all sorts of people come and go during his tenure. It took no more than a brief exchange for him to have a rough estimate of what kind of situation An Jing was in.

Black outerwear and white innerwear... He speaks with a sharp wit. Though a bit rough around the edges from martial training, you can tell that he's had a good upbringing. No doubt, he's from a noble line. This isn't the kind of thing that can be faked.

He smiled and greeted An Jing warmly and had his partner serve up some warm water and bring him a pair of gloves. After washing his hands and putting on the silk gloves and his special looking glass, he opened the jewel box.

Before he even removed the wooden cover on the mirror, he was utterly stunned by the row of gemstones, breathless and wide eyed. "Twelve lapis lazuli gemstones? The cutting and setting... This is a treasure! An absolute treasure!"

He had handled his fair share of treasures, but this was one of a kind. No matter how much he looked at it, he didn't get sick of it at all. The gemstones on the mirror were practically identical, all twelve of them! How could they be discovered in such consistent clarities and cut so precisely?! The fact that they came as a set made them worth far more than their sum.

The shopkeeper exhaled deeply as he calmed down. "This is far too rare. Twelve gemstones of practically identical size, clarity and cut. One of these is worth forty liang of silver alone! And twelve... This price..."

"Nightlight?!" Manager Li seemed quite shocked. He was far from an expert in such fine goods, so he only had a passing feeling that it was a precious mirror, nothing more.

The shopkeeper asked his partner to pull the curtains close and dim the lights. Then, the twelve gemstones let out a faint glow, bright enough to illuminate the face. He then removed the wooden cover to reveal a flawless mirror service with no scratches, dents or other flaws! The azure glow from the gemstones seemed to ripple across the dark room in caustic fashion.

"This is perfect! It's a flawless masterpiece!" He immediately put the cover back on and stored the mirror carefully into the protective box, not knowing what else he could say about it. An object of such perfection could be ruined with the slightest nick. If something happened to it, the shopkeeper probably wouldn't be able to make up for it even if he sold off all his assets. He would even earn the ire of a major Dustdawn tribe! 𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖

He still had doubts of Jing Xuan's background, naturally. Even though Manager Li had always brought him reliable customers and An Jing's performance itself was flawless, and the fact that he was able to produce such a mirror proved the extent of wealth and power his tribe held, there was still a risk that he was a rebellious young scion who stole the mirror and came to the city to mess around. That didn't seem that likely considering An Jing's behavior and demeanor, however.

The shopkeeper collected his thoughts and said, "My young friend... This mirror of yours is far too precious. I believe you definitely want to pawn it back in the future. Since you need money urgently, it can't be that large of an amount. Would three hundred liang of silver be enough to cover what you need? I understand that this amount is far from what your mirror is truly worth. However, this would also minimize the interest at the point of redemption. I am able to offer you a loan for your collateral at the lowest interest rate which is guaranteed by a blood contract!"