Chapter 548 — The Same Fine Edition

"This is the first time I've ever been touched, too." Feng Xiaoxiao's smile turned bashful.

Wei Zhao sighed. Surely she was not about to bring up the matter of taking responsibility? The thought made him a little uncomfortable.

"It's fine, I did it of my own free will..." Feng Xiaoxiao had mustered all her courage, meaning to use this to hold something over Wei Zhao, but the words would not come out; by the time they reached her lips they had turned into this soft, foolish little remark.

"Huh?" Wei Zhao had not expected Feng Xiaoxiao to say that either, and for a moment he stared at her in disbelief.

"I really am sleepy. I'm going to nap for a while." With that, Feng Xiaoxiao closed her eyes and leaned back against the seat, and this time she did not lean on Wei Zhao.

Wei Zhao found Feng Xiaoxiao's attitude utterly baffling. Was this really the Feng Xiaoxiao he knew? What on earth was she trying to do? Scene after scene like this had left his understanding of her somewhat blurred.

Inexplicably, all her vitality had drained away in an instant, and just as inexplicably, her attitude had changed completely. What was going on with Feng Xiaoxiao?

Seeing that she seemed to have no wish to talk to him further, Wei Zhao closed his eyes in resignation. That she had glossed over the matter so easily struck him as most peculiar, and he was in no mood to sleep now.

The auction proceeded step by step, and many of the lots fetched very high prices. Although Divine Doctor Kang's family bought nothing, they were quite happy sitting there, for Divine Doctor Kang felt that he was about to become the head of a great family himself, with an extraordinary social standing just like these people.

Once he had the name of a great family, his paths would broaden as well. Whether in the purchasing of raw materials or in sales, he would break through the present bottleneck and usher the Kang family into an entirely new era.

Today the members of several great families had clearly been far warmer toward Divine Doctor Kang, and that was precisely why he felt so confident. Only the Yu family's attitude was somewhat ambiguous; Yu Haitian had merely given him the same bland nod as ever, without a single extra word.

But Divine Doctor Kang reckoned the Yu family was merely avoiding suspicion. They were the organizers of the Great Families' Annual Conference, and if they walked too closely with the Kang family, what would others think?

"The third auction really does have fine things!" Kang Guifeng looked enviously at those who had won their bids, taking one rare treasure after another into their possession.

"Heh heh, next year our Kang family will come home fully loaded as well. This year is a year of development, and our funds must be put to the right use!" Divine Doctor Kang was envious too, but at the thought of the bright future, confidence filled him.

Watching the last lot fall to a scion of one of the great families, Divine Doctor Kang closed the auction catalog in his hands and was about to rise and leave, when the auctioneer continued, "As with yesterday, this session will add one final lot to close the sale! This lot is provided by Doctor Guan Medical Company—the Trauma Edition!"

"The Trauma Edition?"

"Doctor Guan Medical Company makes fine editions of wound medicine too?"

"Theirs is called Trauma, not wound medicine."

"Isn't the effect the same either way? Could there be some difference?"

An uproar and a buzz of discussion immediately rose from the floor. The crowd still paid close attention to Doctor Guan Medical Company; at the first auction, the three Life-Extending Detox Pills it had provided had all sold at astronomical prices, so the lot suddenly added to this third session set everyone talking as well.

Most people, however, upon hearing the name, assumed it was probably much the same sort of thing as the fine wound-medicine edition provided by Divine Doctor Kang's Medical Group at yesterday's auction.

"Dad, how did Guan Xuewen also come up with something like our wound medicine? Could he have the formula for it too?" Kang Guifeng frowned as soon as he heard the name "Trauma Edition."

"They call it trauma, so it should be different from our wound medicine, and whether it even works is hard to say!" Divine Doctor Kang was not especially nervous. His family's wound-medicine formula was a closely guarded secret; no one could possibly analyze it. And even if someone did, many of the raw materials were scarce and could not be mass-produced—the Kang family had a monopoly on most of the suppliers of those few materials nationwide.

"They're definitely copying us!" Kang Guifeng cursed in annoyance. "Shameless! And it's still called Doctor Guan? They've imitated it quite closely!"

"Imitation is imitation in the end, and it will never amount to much!" Divine Doctor Kang shook his head and laughed carelessly. "Putting out a Trauma Edition for auction at this particular moment, all mysterious like this—he has truly picked the wrong time!"

"Exactly," Kang Guifeng said with a nod. "We did auction the deluxe edition of Gold Wound yesterday, and it pretty much satisfied the demand for the whole auction. Who are they going to sell to at this point? And they call it the grand finale. I expect when nobody bids in a moment, they'll lose face badly."

"Let's watch the show," Divine Doctor Kang said with a smile. "Seems we were right not to leave early. This way we still get to see a fine piece of theater."

"Grandfather, I can't help feeling that Fatty Lai isn't that reckless," Kang Jinglong said, somewhat puzzled. "If they're putting out the same kind of product, they should have thought of this too. Aren't they afraid of the humiliation?"

"Hmph, not that reckless? If he weren't reckless, why would he have spent twenty million on a worthless box yesterday?" Divine Doctor Kang was dismissive. "Has he never heard the tale of buying the casket and returning the pearl? And yet he bought it anyway! That proves the man's intelligence is truly lacking!"

"Yesterday he was forced by circumstance and had no way out, so of course he had to pay up. But my impression is that Fatty Lai isn't that kind of fool." Kang Jinglong shook his head. Seeing that his grandfather would not be swayed, he said no more.

The auctioneer was well pleased with the reaction from the crowd. He had intended to introduce the effects of this trauma edition himself, but on second thought, it would be better to let Lai Changshan do it in person. So once the murmuring had more or less died down, the host said, "I imagine everyone is eager to know what curative effects this deluxe trauma edition has. Then let us invite Mr. Lai Changshan, chief executive officer of the Guan Clan Medical Group, to the stage, to introduce their company's new product, Trauma, and explain the effects of this deluxe edition."

Though everyone guessed that Trauma and the deluxe trauma edition were probably much the same as Divine Doctor Kang's Gold Wound and its deluxe edition, their concern over Guan Xuewen kept them quiet now, waiting for Fatty Lai to take the stage.