Imperial Treasure

Chapter 632 - 411: Picking Faults

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Mount Mover was somewhat surprised that Duke Zheng had so quickly and accurately discerned Sui Yi’s identity. However, regarding Sui Tang Square, he truly had no knowledge, merely recognizing the name, and of course, he could not let the elderly man before him know this. Therefore, he chuckled, "Oh, it seems you have had contact with her?"

"It was the young man from the Li Family who had contact... quite an impressive encounter," Duke Zheng’s expression was somewhat profound. In fact, even if Mount Mover hadn’t mentioned it, he would have had someone investigate Sui Yi’s background after this event.

But now, it seemed that the moment had come sooner than expected.

"She’s no ordinary person. Well, you probably know that already, so since she could make such a request, she’s not afraid of you refusing."

"Are you not afraid I could take it by force?"

"Would you?" Mount Mover took a sip of tea, his eyes narrowing to slits, "You wouldn’t worry me even if you would. First, your men are no match for her. Second, her terms are very lenient. With your cautious nature, you definitely wouldn’t risk it..."

Duke Zheng was non-committal, setting down his cup. "Then it’s necessary for me to meet her now."

"There’s no need. Too many eyes around, it’s not the time for a meeting yet," Mount Mover stood up. "I’ll just go and bring the thing to you..."

Mount Mover thought for a moment, then turned back and asked, "About that thing you mentioned earlier that would replace Misty the Pearl in the auction..."

He was still eager to see what new items there were, especially since Duke Zheng was confident in replacing Misty the Pearl; thus, the value of this item might even surpass that of Misty the Pearl.

He definitely didn’t want to miss such an opportunity.

"It will still be auctioned," Duke Zheng replied, sipping his tea.

"Eh?" Mount Mover’s eyes flashed, but he didn’t ask further and turned to leave.

But he did not see the odd, fluctuating look in Zheng Gong’s eyes as he lowered his gaze.

Sometimes, such events were perhaps destined by fate...

Soft sighs could be heard in the room...

Mount Mover soon met Sui Yi.

But by then, a jovial man had already made his presence known in the partition, and the people there weren’t strangers anymore. At their meeting, Miss Gong Jiu smiled, "Grandpa Mount Mover, long time no see~"

That tone was somewhat creepy~

Mount Mover looked around the partition, sighing to himself that birds of a feather flock together, all of them beautiful girls... But why did he have to be stuck with this fat man!

"It has been a long time indeed. Miss Gong has grown even more beautiful," he remarked.

Ah, Miss Gong Jiu was immediately won over, her teasing tone clear as she laughed, "Old man, it’s not our first meeting, and you know I, Gong Jiu, am not one to dilly-dally. You are quite something. Why not enlighten us all, and let the sisters know exactly who you are?"

Indeed direct, but Sui Yi and the others have always disliked beating around the bush.

They needn’t be as blunt as Miss Gong Jiu. It was others’ prerogative to speak or remain silent...

Hearing this, Mount Mover laughed, "Who am I? Just an old fogey~ But speaking of my name, it might really be necessary to be honest—I’m called Pang Shang."

At this revelation, Miss Gong Jiu’s shock aside, Xu Zhengmao was the first to react.

"Pang Shang? From the Glazed Factory?"

"Oh, young man, you know me?" Mount Mover looked at Xu Zhengmao.

"Not to say that I know you, just that I’ve long heard of your great reputation," Xu Zhengmao smiled, holding back a bit as he introduced to Sui Yi and the others, "Old Mr. Pang is a major landowner in both the Glazed Factory and Pan Family Garden. He owns three to four tenths of the properties there, including many storefronts. Saying that Old Mr. Pang is a landlord of the Capital City’s antique market is no exaggeration."

More than just a landlord, he was also a top player.

Realization dawned on Miss Gong Jiu and the others; only someone like him could be on equal terms with Duke Zheng.

Clearly a significant figure, Miss Gong Jiu immediately grinned, "Wow, that’s quite the background, better hurry up and ask for an autograph~~"

"You little girl, get lost!" Pang Shang spat at Miss Gong Jiu, then turning to Sui Yi, "Miss Sui, my identity is just a title, pretty empty... Nothing much before you... Oh right, about Misty the Pearl..."

Sui Yi was unimpressed with his earlier modesty, and regarding the latter part...

She reached out her hand, placing Misty the Pearl on the table.

"Much obliged."

"Not at all."

Pang Shang took Misty the Pearl and knowing it was genuine, played with it for a while before taking his leave...

By the time of Pang Shang’s departure, the auction had already reached its middle to later stages. Sui Yi witnessed what it meant to spend lavishly, including the actions of the Cao siblings, all very befitting of Capital City’s upper echelons’ generosity and composure.

"Jie Jie, over thirty million and not even a blink before spending, that son of the Cao Family is called Cao Yu, right?"

"Seems so... the Cao Family... really something."

Sui Yi listened as Miss Gong Jiu and the others mentioned that the Cao family was among the most outstanding first-rate families in the Capital City, firmly rooted in the business world but with strong influence in both military and political spheres, solely because the head of the Cao Family had branched out from a certain political family... In any case, their background was extraordinary, and even the Li Family had to bow their heads in front of the Cao Family.

"The Cao Family, and the Li Family, outwardly, there’s not much difference between the two to outsiders, because there are some things they wouldn’t know. But the gap between the heirs of these two families is significant, one is reserved and low-key, the other is... well, you know~" Just as Miss Gong Jiu said this, she suddenly became animated, turning to smile and shout at Sui Yi, "Ah~ Sui Yi, the next ’Green Hills and Ink Rain’ is your favorite one.."

"Only you would know! Qing Wu is already bidding.."

Flower Demon smacked Miss Gong Jiu on the head and when she looked, Yhan Qingwu had just bid five million, which was nearly enough to settle it, with no one else competing with them, but...

"Seven million!"

The sudden mention of seven million made Yhan Qingwu’s brows slightly furrow, her gaze falling on a group of people sitting below,

those young masters...

"Are those the cronies of Li Yu... Are they trying to mess with our faces?" Miss Gong Jiu sneered, "I’ll handle it..."

Before Yhan Qingwu and the others could speak, Miss Gong Jiu was already at the railing, matter-of-factly raising the stakes: "Ten million... If any of you daring young lads below dare to follow, come join us~"

Whoa, the whole scene began to stir.

Speaking of picking fights, Miss Gong Jiu might not be the most straightforward—since Sui Yi was here, they had to maintain a graceful posture.

But when it came to counterattacking, Miss Gong Jiu felt no psychological pressure at all; she could roll up her sleeves, pick up a wine bottle, and take a few rounds with the group of tenderfoot lads below...

The people below didn’t expect Sui Yi’s group to react so violently, having been misled by Yhan Qingwu’s gentle and graceful demeanor. But then Miss Gong Jiu suddenly stepped in, and the disparity became apparent.

"That’s Miss Gong Jiu, that lady isn’t just typically wealthy, shall we continue?"

"Of course we should continue, she’s calling us out specifically, to ignore her is to show fear, we won’t be able to hang out in the days to come... Just because of one woman.."

These young masters were initially just trying to vent for Li Yu, to suppress the newcomers like Sui Yi and his group. They hadn’t anticipated that their rival would be so sharp..

Keeping face is these young masters’ primary trait. Now, they had no choice but to stand up and stick it out, with Wang Feng, hugging Qiao Yu, laughing heartily, "Miss Gong has great spirit, since you’re so proactive, us young masters can’t be polite either... Eleven million!"

"Twenty million, keep going..," Miss Gong Jiu said in an even tone.

Wang Feng’s face fell quickly, and the other young masters behind him were also stunned. Damn, this isn’t fair, jumping straight to twenty million!

The painting itself was worth no more than five million!

Talk about having more money than sense~

Qiao Yu and these famous celebrities collectively gasped, including Lin Junyun, who couldn’t help but breathe heavily. She wasn’t unfamiliar with those who could throw millions around nonchalantly, it’s just that she’d never seen someone so young demonstrate such lavish wealthy... a female tycoon.

One might even say a female nouveau riche.

This shocked everyone present, even Old Master, someone of considerable stature, lifted his eyelids, his mouth twitching slightly, "This girl from the Gong Family has grand ambitions!"

"Indeed, a bold move.."

In the bustling and noisy atmosphere, the auctioneer, somewhat excited, loudly asked if there were any higher bids..

Over my dead body!

Wang Feng turned to look at his buddies.

One of them waved a hand, "Dude, we’re not like Cao Yu, who’s already managing a household; where would we get that kind of money... We could barely scrape together five million, and if my dad finds out...you know~"

Another one looked frustrated, "Same here... We’re not like Li Yu~ Maybe we should ask Li Yu to lend us some?"

Forget about it, initially, they came to please the Li Family by taking revenge; now they had to borrow money on top of that, losing all sense of risk.

"Otherwise, let’s ask Brother Liu..."

"No way, Liu Qian is always crafty. Miss Gong Jiu and her gang are tough; we’re not Li Yu himself, so he won’t bother intervening.."

Hey, this won’t work, that won’t work, could it be that they could only...

Seeing the evasive glances of these people, Wang Feng’s heart sank. Damn, making me lose face!

Though discontent, Wang Feng had no choice but to continue smiling, "Miss Gong has great spirit... Nevertheless, this scroll is worth, at most, five million. I won’t contend with you for it..."

Verbally, he still mocked Miss Gong Jiu for being foolish and wealthy..

Miss Gong Jiu leaned on the railing, her expression nonchalantly provocative, merely twitching her lips, smiling, "Ah~ Perhaps I’m mistaken, isn’t this charity~ Young Master Wang, being so petty doesn’t look good on you... Besides, one cannot put a price on what they cherish, and surely someone likes this painting."

These words immediately left Wang Feng’s face a mix of green and white, being petty, am I being petty?

But Miss Gong Jiu had effectively shut him up with the charity remark; any rebuttal would simply be wrong. Wang Feng already felt the mocking, sneering glances from those more elevated in society..

Wang Feng couldn’t utter another word...

The auctioneer didn’t care about the sharp conflicts below, quickly hammering down the decision: "Congratulations to Miss Gong Jiu for acquiring ’Green Hills and Ink Rain’ for twenty million, and thank you for her generous heart.... Next, we will proceed with the auction of the next item—Misty the Pearl..." (To be continued. If you like this work, you’re welcome to recommend and vote monthly at qidian.com. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please visit m.qidian.com.)