Bai Luan's phone vibrated a few times; he picked it up and glanced at the screen.
Stelle: Squeak!
Bai Luan: …
Bai Luan: You really took "make a squeak" literally?
Stelle: Uncle! There's a guy here who refuses to believe I know you! I can't talk any sense into him!
Bai Luan: Skott, right?
Stelle: Yes, yes, yes! That's him! He's just twisting everything!
Bai Luan: All right, got it. Wait where you are; I'll be there in a minute.
With Bai Luan's definite reply, Stelle couldn't stop the corners of her mouth from curving into a supremely confident, almost villainous grin.
She casually rolled her sleeves up a notch, stepped forward, and jumped back into the argument with Skott, her aura instantly magnified eightfold.
It was a guaranteed victory now.
Once Uncle arrives everything will be fine; all she had to do was buy time.
Skott! Just you wait!
By the time Uncle gets here—
I'd love to see what sort of act you'll put on!
Bai Luan pocketed his phone and looked at Lingsha in front of him:
"Miss Lingsha, what are your plans next?"
Lingsha's expression was calm; her gaze turned toward the Artisanship Commission quarter:
"The letter is delivered, so this humble woman should return to her proper duties. I just received word that people from the Interstellar Peace Corporation and Luofu locals are quarrelling over cargo inspection there. Since I'm nearby, I intend to take a look."
"What a coincidence."
Bai Luan smiled.
"I'm heading there myself to deal with a small problem. Seems we can travel together."
Before they even set foot in the workshop district, Bai Luan could already hear Skott's unmistakable voice, shrill with agitation and discontent, echoing from inside:
"I don't care about your rules or your procedures—either way you have no right to inspect this cargo!"
What, just because this is your Xianzhou territory you think you can bully honest foreign traders like us?"
From the sound alone Bai Luan could picture Skott standing with hands on hips, spittle flying—a classic scene.
He recalled Stelle's half-amused, half-annoyed stories about her several 'all-friction, no-fondness' run-ins with this lone-wolf Corp specialist—
Every tale purely resentment, zero camaraderie.
Sure enough, as they approached Skott stood encircled by Sky-Faring Commission clerks, artisans, and Astral Express Crew including Stelle.
Yet his vigor only grew; seeing more people arrive, he cranked his voice another notch:
"Oh-ho! Fetching more reinforcements? Think you can overwhelm me with numbers? I, Skott, have roamed the stars for years—what haven't I seen? You think I'd fear this?!"
He straightened his neck, sweeping his gaze over the two new silhouettes. Back-lit and a little distant, he couldn't make out their faces, but he struck a 'even if the King of Heaven shows up I won't budge' pose, ready to hurl fiercer boasts—
"Today even the King of Heaven himself—"
Halfway through, Bai Luan strolled unhurriedly to Stelle's side.
He casually adjusted his cuffs, then lifted his eyes to Skott's frozen expression and curved his lips in a mild smile that sent a chill down Skott's spine:
"Keep talking—I'm listening."
Skott's eyes bulged, mouth ajar as if someone had suddenly throttled him.
Once he fully registered that familiar face and its half-smiling look, every ounce of bluster deflated like a punctured balloon—poof.
Almost by reflex, his resentful face flipped to an ingratiating, forced smile; his back unconsciously bent a few degrees:
"Aiya! If it isn't Mr. Bai Luan! Pardon my eyes—can't believe I didn't recognize Mount Tai! Never imagined you'd grace Luofu today, let alone visit this little workshop. My respects, my respects!"
While speaking he shot Stelle a quick, falsely reproachful glance—why didn't you tell me earlier?—and switched to an overly familiar tone:
"Miss Stelle, you should've said Mr. Bai was here; we're all family—this is a total misunderstanding!"
Arms folded, chin lifted, Stelle gleefully dismantled his face-changing act:
"I did say so. Just now someone was shouting so loud the heavens shook, insisting…"
She cleared her throat and launched into an uncanny impression.
She mimicked not only his exaggerated gestures and tone but even that mix of disdain, doubt, and forced toughness—down to nearly ninety percent accuracy:
"'You think I scare that easily?! You really believe a Genius Society member is someone you can call on a whim?! I'd sooner believe I'm the Amber Lord!'"
The vivid performance left onlookers stifling laughter; even the usually impassive Lingsha flickered a smile.
Only those present knew how spot-on the imitation was.
Finished, Stelle resumed her normal stance, wearing an undisguised victor's grin as she fixed her blazing gaze on the now-awkward Skott:
"Well, our esteemed 'Amber Lord Skott', have any more pearls of wisdom to share?"
"I never said that! Medicine can be taken by mistake, but words can't be thrown around recklessly!"
Skott waved his hands in frantic denial.
The title 'Amber Lord Skott' hit like a perfectly aimed arrow, making Skott's cheek muscles twitch; his face alternated between ashen and livid.
He inwardly wailed, regretting his earlier bravado and wondering how on earth Bai Luan had shown up right here, right now, side-by-side with Stelle.
"…Ahem."
Skott coughed twice, struggling to compose himself and dropping his voice several decibels.
"Well... I admit, my voice might have been a teeny bit loud just now, and my tone... a tad too impatient."
Stelle watched his deflated look with delight, feeling great but still refusing to let him off the hook.
"What a shame. A few lessons finally taught you some sense—you're not as reckless as before. I wanted to bet with you just now, but you flat-out refused."
Otherwise, I'd have made you perform a live pig-squeal routine right here and now."
Seeing Stelle's mockery winding down, Bai Luan gave a timely cough and steered the topic back on track.
He looked at Skott and asked in a calm tone,
"So, the situation is: the Xianzhou wants to inspect the cargo, and you people disagree?"
"Mr. Bai Luan, I know you've always stood for justice; surely you won't side with the tigers, right?"
Facing Skott's flattery, Bai Luan's lips curved slightly. He suddenly asked out of nowhere,
"Do you usually read comics?"
Comics?
Why bring that up all of a sudden?
A trace of puzzlement flashed in Skott's eyes, but he answered honestly,
"Not really."
Hearing that, Bai Luan's smile widened as he produced a cute little gadget.
『Curio: Standee of the fool
While the wearer is on a vehicle, the chance of an accident rises sharply』
"You know I'm on Stelle's side, but I won't bully you.
This item in my hand can boost your luck. Open the cargo for us to inspect and it's yours. How about it?"
Stelle glanced at the thing in Bai Luan's hand; one look and she almost burst out laughing.
She knew exactly what her uncle was up to.
Bai Luan would never give someone like Skott a benefit, so whatever he held must have a negative effect.
The curio drawback is basically its owner's "vehicle-killer" attribute. Coupled with the earlier question about reading comics... it all clicked.
Realizing Bai Luan's plan, Stelle instantly switched attitudes and started acting along:
"Uncle, whose side are you on? Why are you giving this guy a benefit?"
"Hey, there's a saying: 'Be merciful where possible.' If my action can reduce friction between the Luofu and the Company, wouldn't that be a kind of merit?"
Skott stared at the item in Bai Luan's hand, growing covetous.
Normally he'd scoff at claims of good luck, but this time it was Bai Luan speaking.
This was different—he had to believe it.
Surely a charm that brought others fortune wouldn't bring him misfortune, right?
He swiftly weighed the pros and cons:
Letting Luofu inspect the cargo might draw some complaints, but it wasn't insurmountable—smiles and gifts could smooth things over afterward.
But if he kept resisting, with Bai Luan involved, he wouldn't gain anything and would probably lose the cargo anyway.
Persisting to protect the company's interests might be illusory, whereas the gift from Benefactor Bai would be tangible reality.
Besides, with a Genius Society member stepping in, he could cite force majeure and respect for authority when explaining back at HQ.
After a fierce inner struggle between corporate and personal interests (actually none—he agreed quickly), Skott consented to Luofu's inspection.
"Alright! Since Mr. Bai Luan has spoken, I'm not so ungrateful!"
He puffed out his chest, trying to reclaim some dignity.
"But let me be clear: you must handle the cargo gently! If anything chips or breaks and causes loss, I will formally lodge solemn representations and claims on behalf of the Interstellar Peace Corporation against Xianzhou Luofu!"
"No problem; that's only proper."
Bai Luan cheerfully handed over the standee as if it were merely a trifling gift.
"Here, it's yours. Good luck."
Bai Luan casually passed the standee to Skott. The curio was negative; storing it without triggering its effect was tricky.
Using it to spice up a lone wolf's life couldn't be better.
From that day on, for a long while, Skott found his business trips unusually eventful.
The star-skiffs he rode always developed minor glitches—power fluctuations, nav drift, hatch jams.
The interstellar flights he took encountered meteor storms, engine delays, even scrapes with unidentified space debris far above average.
Even ground transport on planets suffered blowouts, breakdowns, traffic control—one mishap after another.
Oddly, though incidents were frequent, none ever endangered his life; they only lengthened and roughened his journeys.
Unaware of the lucky standee's true effect, and hearing company legends of mysterious blessings from the Noble Bai, Skott firmly believed that surviving each scrape unscathed was thanks to Bai Luan's gift.
After every harrowing yet safe trip, a dusty but intact Skott would carefully take out the fool's standee, polish it with his sleeve, tuck it away next to his skin, gaze at the stars and sincerely exclaim,
"To come through all that... I'm so lucky."