Chapter 050: Five-Star Membership Card

“Mr. Zhong,” Ou Feng, now recovered from his astonishment, bowed respectfully to Zhong Yun. He spoke sincerely, “Thank you so much for repairing the Jialan Harp for us. From today on, you are the most honored guest of Mingzhu Tower.”

“You’re too kind,” Zhong Yun replied with a gentle smile. Though he spoke modestly, he accepted the gratitude without protest. The value of a perfectly restored, original Jialan Harp? It simply couldn’t be measured in monetary terms.

Even in the most advanced civilizations, this harp would be a priceless treasure.

Ou Feng understood this well. More importantly, the harp represented the greatest regret of the young lady of the house. Now that regret had been mended, he could already imagine her joy when she learned of it.

Afterward, Ou Feng did not continue showing them the collection. Instead, he led them into a lounge.

“Mr. Zhong, I’d like to speak with you privately,” Ou Feng invited him.

“No problem,” Zhong Yun agreed readily.

Ou Feng summoned a few attendants to keep Chen Wen and the others company, then led Zhong Yun out of the lounge, winding through corridors until they reached a spacious office.

“Mr. Zhong, is there something in particular you wish to purchase from our company?” Ou Feng got straight to the point as he took his seat.

“There are a few items I urgently need. I wonder if you might be able to help me acquire them.” Zhong Yun was a little surprised by this turn. Judging by Ou Feng’s tone, could it be…

Ou Feng smiled faintly. “Our company may not be among the largest, but we do have some means for acquiring rare items.”

Since the other party was so straightforward, Zhong Yun didn’t beat around the bush either. “I need some Firecloud Stone, Groundroot of Mist Pine…” He went on to list more than ten unusual items, things seldom heard of by ordinary people.

The moment Zhong Yun mentioned the first two items, the relaxed expression faded from Ou Feng’s face. With each item, his brow furrowed deeper. By the time Zhong Yun finished, his brow was tightly knit—some of what Zhong Yun wanted, not even he had heard of.

He tapped his fingers on the desk unconsciously. At last, he looked up. “Give me seven days. I’ll do my best to help you. But some of these things will be extremely hard to find…”

“Just get whatever you can,” Zhong Yun replied agreeably.

Most of what he wanted were ingredients for making the ‘Rejuvenation Elixir.’ To be honest, he only hoped for the best—if he couldn’t get them, it didn’t matter; if he could, it would be a happy surprise.

After sitting a while longer, Zhong Yun took his leave—he was still thinking about training.

When Zhong Yun said he wanted to return, Chen Wen and Yang Siqing had no objections. Yinyin, though a bit reluctant, dared not protest.

Just as they were about to enter the elevator, a staff member hurried after them, bowed, and asked, “Excuse me, which of you is Mr. Zhong Yun?”

“I am,” Zhong Yun replied.

The staff member handed him a silver card. “Manager Ou asked me to give you this membership card. Please keep it safe.”

Zhong Yun took it and looked it over. In the upper right corner of the card’s front were five flower-shaped patterns; the back was entirely silver.

“Wow, a five-star membership card!” Chen Wen craned his neck to see and exclaimed, his tone thick with envy at the sight of the five flowers.

“There are different levels of membership cards?” Yinyin couldn’t help leaning over as well. Seeing their interest, Zhong Yun simply handed the card over for them to look at.

“It’s beautiful.” Yinyin stroked the silver card. Whatever material it was made from, it seemed weightless—light as a feather in her palm.

The surface had the tactile roughness of brushed metal, pleasant to the touch. The silver gleamed with intricate, orderly patterns under the light.

The five flowers on the front weren’t simply drawn on, but appeared as a play of reflected light. At different angles, the five flowers displayed different states.

Tilted to the left, one saw five tender buds. Leveled, the buds gradually grew, ready to bloom, then blossomed, and at last, fully opened into five dazzlingly lovely roses.

Yinyin tilted the card this way and that, completely absorbed in the shifting display.

“What are the perks of a five-star membership card?” Zhong Yun was more interested in the practical advantages.

“There are plenty,” Chen Wen explained. “To begin with, a five-star card gives you a twenty percent discount in every store inside Mingzhu Tower.”

“Twenty percent off? Every store?” Before Zhong Yun could react, Yinyin cried out first, her beautiful eyes round and shining with golden light.

If the Central Avenue was Mingzhou’s shopping paradise, Mingzhu Tower was its very heart. Here, you could buy anything from any famous brand in the country; this was always the birthplace of new trends.

For urban professionals like her, most of the monthly salary was spent on fashion, handbags, and cosmetics—Mingzhu Tower was always their preferred shopping destination.

A card that gave twenty percent off in every shop there was an absolutely irresistible temptation.

The four of them entered the elevator. As the doors closed, Chen Wen continued, “That’s not all. On the Nine Hundredth Floor, five-star members also get priority purchase rights. That means whenever new goods arrive, five-star members get first pick. Only after all the five-star members pass on an item does it become available to regular members.”

“Doesn’t that mean all the good stuff gets snatched up by five-star members?” Zhong Yun’s eyes sparkled. Both the discount and the purchasing priority were hard to resist.

He was quite poor at the moment, his account holding only the few tens of thousands freshly transferred in. Among the crowd in the Tower’s exhibition hall, even a stray hair from any one of them would probably outweigh his entire thigh in wealth.

Still, what he possessed could bring him far more than mere riches. Given time, buying Mingzhu Tower outright would be no great challenge.

“That’s precisely why the five-star membership is so precious,” Chen Wen shot him a look, envy seeping through his words. Some things, alas, couldn’t be obtained just by longing for them.

He held up two fingers. “As far as I know, the total number of five-star members in all of Davor is less than ten.”

“That few?” Yinyin was shocked. “You can’t get one even if you have money?”

According to last year’s most reputable wealth magazine, over two hundred people were worth more than one hundred billion—tycoons whose fortunes rivaled nations. Was it possible that half of them couldn’t obtain five-star membership?

“It’s not something money can buy,” Chen Wen said with a small, knowing smile, as if amused by her naivete. “From what I know, there are only two ways to earn five-star privileges in Mingzhu Tower.”

He raised a finger. “First, you must have an extraordinarily distinguished status—for example, a national contribution rating of A or above.”

He raised another finger. “Second, you must have rendered immense service to Mingzhu Tower.”

“Obviously, Ah Yun is in the second category.”

“All I did was open the back of that harp. Hardly a great service,” Zhong Yun feigned nonchalance.

“Keep pretending,” Chen Wen retorted, exposing him with a single sentence.

ps: I suddenly realized I’ve made it onto the weekly recommendation and popularity charts in my category, completely by surprise. Many thanks to the brothers who voted for me.