After Fu Ying left, Li Li poured Zhou Xuan a glass of water. Zhou Xuan took a small sip to moisten his mouth and then asked, "Li, are you settling in well at work here?"
Li Li blushed, but nodded repeatedly. "Boss Zhou, I'm fine, I'm used to it!"
During her time at the shop, Li Li, with her solid financial skills, meticulously organized the antique shop's accounts, which pleased Lao Wu greatly. Furthermore, the antique shop's business seemed to be improving day by day, something she had never imagined before. Sometimes, a small item could be worth hundreds of thousands or even millions, and the profits were astonishingly high. The concerns she had about the business failing or not being able to pay wages were completely unfounded.
Furthermore, Li Li came here mainly to express her gratitude, intending to repay her benefactor even if she earned less. However, the outcome was beyond her expectations.
Now, Li Li has gradually come to like this business. When goods come in, she follows Lao Wu around to take a look. Lao Wu doesn't hide anything from her when she asks questions, and he answers them all.
Recently, Zhou Tao has been coming home every day. Over time, Li Li has come to understand what Zhou Tao meant. Although he didn't say it, she understood. However, she felt burdened because he and his brother were her father's saviors, and their wealth was obviously beyond what her social class could compare to. So she wondered if it was inappropriate, and whether Zhou Tao's family would object.
The problem actually lies with Zhou Tao himself. Because of his shyness and concerns, and his worry that Li Li would look down on him, the two of them gazed at each other affectionately every day, but neither of them dared to confess their feelings.
"It'll be good if you get used to it. Also, don't keep calling me Boss Zhou, just call me Brother Zhou!"
Li Li hesitated for a moment, but then readily agreed, "Okay, I'll call you Brother Zhou from now on!"
Zhou Xuan was secretly delighted. Judging from Li Li's expression, she probably had feelings for his younger brother. This should make things easier. If it really worked out, he would tell his mother and make his parents happy.
It's a pity my younger brother isn't here right now. Zhou Xuan was thinking about whether to transfer Zhou Tao back. The stone-cutting factory is basically stable now. After signing the contract with Xu Juncheng and completing the formalities tomorrow, it'll be enough to leave Zhao Lao Er there to manage things. Once things are officially settled, everything will be easier. However, if Lao Wu leaves the shop, it will basically only be able to sell and not buy. But it's already past 3 PM, so Zhou Xuan simply said, "Let's leave two hours early today!"
Of course, no one would object to what Zhou Xuan said. Besides, since Lao Wu had left, there was no one to look after the shop, so it was practically the same as not being open. Anyway, it was only two hours, so it didn't matter.
When going to the underground auction, Zhou** deliberately drove his own Hyundai, a cheap car that wouldn't attract attention.
The place was far away, not in the city center. Zhou Xuan had a feeling similar to the first time he went to Wei Haihong's villa with Chen Sanyan. He couldn't help but sigh. It hadn't been that long, but then it felt like such a distant memory. He couldn't have imagined things would turn out this way. (To find out what happens next, please log in to [website name] for more chapters. Support the author and read the original version!)
Volume 1, Chapter 223: The Underground Auction House
Erhaobu and Lao Mo introduced Zhou Fu and ** to various underground auction sites in Huhuzhou.
Although it is nominally an underground auction house, it is basically prepared specifically for wealthy people who like to collect. It can be said to be tailor-made for them. Credit is guaranteed. For the super-rich, credit is especially important.
Of course, this doesn't mean that these people are particularly honest or that they're all wealthy businessmen. There's an old saying: "No merchant is honest, and no businessman is honest."
This statement means that no businessman is without cunning; hence the term "cunning merchant." However, one thing is certain: while the super-rich may be cunning, they always keep their word.
Old Wu frequently deals with these people. Because of his profound expertise in appraisal, he's often invited to provide authentication services. Most wealthy people who actually buy antiques are not knowledgeable about them. The reason they spend exorbitant prices is simply to use these priceless antiques to display their status and wealth. His fees are also extremely high.
On the top floor of a building in the nearby suburbs, the floor was divided into several large rooms. The auction room was on the left, about 200 square meters, much smaller than a regular auction room, and of course, there were far fewer people.
Usually, the people who come are the wealthy individuals themselves. In formal auction houses, it's usually their agents. Although the agents are obedient, it's not the same as personally fighting to the death with their rivals in the business world. They're rummaging through antiques, and perhaps they've suffered a lot of frustration in the business world. They're taking it out on their rivals here, which is naturally very satisfying.
Of course, the happiest people are the organizers. They make money and get to associate with these super-rich people.
There were only a handful of sixteen or seventeen people in the seats. Zhou Xuan glanced around and spotted a familiar face. The person stared at him with a mixture of joy and surprise in their eyes.
This person is actually Shangguan Mingyue!
Shangguan Mingyue clearly hadn't expected to run into Zhou Xuan here, because she knew that anyone who could get to this floor was a billionaire with a net worth of at least a billion RMB. No matter how she estimated it, she never imagined Zhou Xuan would have that kind of wealth.
Shangguan Mingyue certainly didn't expect that Zhou Xuan's presence here wasn't because his net worth exceeded one billion. Rather, it was because Zhou Xuan and ** were invited as the owners of Zhou Zhang Antique Shop, and they were specially invited because they had two valuable items for auction.
Of course, Zhou Xuan's actual net worth exceeds one billion, but his identity and wealth are unknown to outsiders. Very few people know about his personal assets; even Wei Haihong only knows a small portion, with much more intangible wealth behind it. For example, the raw jade stones he gambled on in Yunnan—that's worth hundreds of millions.
And he also has another special identity: heir to the wealthy Fu family of New York. That's 80% of the Fu family's wealth, a staggering 15 billion US dollars. In that sense, no other super-rich person in the country can rival Zhou Xuan!
The auction house owner, of course, didn't know Zhou Xuan's identity. He was simply stunned by the luminous pearl and the dozen or so emeralds that Zhou Xuan's shop had brought for auction. If someone were to buy them, it would be more convenient for them to be present, rather than having to find someone else at the last minute.
Shangguan Mingyue assumed Zhou Xuan had been invited because of his wealth, and the two exchanged a glance. Zhou Xuan smiled faintly and nodded slightly, remaining silent as he didn't want outsiders to know about their unnecessary relationship.
Shangguan Mingyue was quite eye-catching. After all, most of the wealthy people present were men in their sixties or seventies, and even the slightly younger ones were in their forties or fifties. She was the only girl, and more importantly, she was too beautiful. Shangguan Mingyue noticed that Zhou Xuan didn't speak to her, only smiled faintly, and then sat down. A small man next to him chuckled and spoke to her: "Miss Shangguan, what a coincidence! It's a pleasure to meet you here!"
It was Li Wei who spoke. This guy was fearless. These super-rich people were impressive to ordinary people, but in Li Wei's eyes, they were nothing. In his mind, apart from his grandfather and his father Li Lei, no one else mattered, because he wasn't afraid of them. Frankly, Li Wei was most afraid of his father. Li Lei was the kind of guy who would beat him up at the slightest provocation, and he really would. There was no escaping him. Although his grandfather also frightened him, he was still better than his father Li Lei, at least not as brutally. But being locked up for ten days or half a month was still uncomfortable. He remembered once, after getting into an accident, his grandfather, in a fit of anger, sent him to the Mongolian grasslands to herd cattle for a friend for three whole months.
Li Wei remembers this incident vividly, but now that he's older, he understands that his grandfather wasn't really punishing him. Instead, he was sending the child, whom his father Li Lei had beaten, far away so his father couldn't reach him.
So Li Wei understood that although his grandfather was strict, he really loved him, unlike his father, who was truly ruthless!
Li Wei's loud voice drew everyone's attention, their faces showing surprise. But Li Wei still said nonchalantly, "Miss Shangguan, why don't you come over here and we can sit down and discuss this together!"
Based on everyone's understanding of Shangguan Mingyue, they could all guess that Shangguan Mingyue's reaction to Li Wei would be either to treat him coldly and ignore him completely, or to make sarcastic and mocking remarks.
But Shangguan Mingyue's actions surprised everyone present even more.
Shangguan Mingyue hesitated for a moment, then stood up with a smile and walked over. Li Wei quickly stood up and made room for her.
Li Wei was straightforward and not afraid of anything, but he vividly remembered his previous meetings with Shangguan Mingyue. Shangguan Mingyue had never given him a kind look, and he figured she definitely wouldn't come. She would probably just give him a cold shoulder again, but he was used to it. Anyway, he hadn't really interacted with the people present, so he didn't need to give them any face.
These people were all prominent and wealthy figures in Beijing. He knew that having lived in Beijing for five or six years, he naturally recognized them; they were all big shots in the Beijing business world. However, only he knew them; they didn't know him. But suddenly seeing so many people he so envious of in one place filled him with indescribable excitement.
But Zhou Xuan was completely bewildered. He didn't recognize her either. He sat quietly on the table.
Shangguan Mingyue sat between him and Li Wei, but secretly glanced at him out of the corner of her eye. Seeing that Zhou Xuan wasn't looking at her, she felt a little relieved. But at the same time, there was also a trace of disappointment. What exactly was she disappointed about? She didn't think about it too much at the moment.
Five experts sat in the front row, as there weren't many people. Everyone was seated near the front, just facing different directions. The auction stage was in the center of the hall, so there were seats on all four sides, but to facilitate facing one direction, only half of the stage was occupied.
The auction house owner's surname was Yang, and his given name was Shi Yuan. Zhou Xuan and the others didn't recognize him, but they were very familiar with Lao Wu. Who was this Yang Shi Yuan? A wealthy man. Outsiders might not know, but those in the industry estimated his net worth to be no less than a billion.
Yang Shiyuan brought two assistants to the stage, both of whom were young women in their late twenties. Their low-cut dresses and short skirts were very alluring, and their faces were equally attractive.
If Shangguan Mingyue hadn't been there today, the two assistants' allure wouldn't have been so strong. Their already delicate and pitiful looks, coupled with their subtly revealing clothing, made them undeniably charming. But with Shangguan Mingyue present, even in casual attire, beauty is beauty, and being together creates a comparison. The difference in their appearance immediately becomes apparent. The two assistants' allure diminished.
After Yang Shiyuan and her two beautiful assistants came out, a waiter served each of them a steaming cup of coffee. The service was really good.
Standing on the central circular platform, Yang Shiyuan said with a beaming smile, "Most of the bosses are here, so I won't waste any time. Let's begin!"
Yang Shiyuan was about seven or eight meters away from Zhou Xuan on the stage, but her voice sounded as if she were right next to his ear. Zhou Xuan probed with his icy aura and knew that there was a hidden sound system in the decorated wall. The sound system was of good quality, with no microphone popping sound at all, and it sounded very natural, just like someone speaking naturally next to his ear.