Zhuang Rui was itching to try Peng Fei's actions, but he also knew that if he were to go up there himself, he probably wouldn't be as good as the female rider. He would be lucky to even make it around the horse farm once.
Zhuang Rui and Fatty Jin drank some beverages under the parasol while the female knight rode her chestnut horse slowly to the stable.
"Hey buddy, it's your turn. Do you need this protective gear?"
The horse owner led the horse, and after the female rider dismounted, he held up a mask that looked somewhat like the one worn by fencers and asked Zhuang Rui a question.
"want……"
Zhuang Rui wasn't as skilled as Peng Fei, so he casually took the protective gear. But just as he was about to put it on his head, he suddenly saw the girl who was about to get off remove her mask, and he was dumbfounded.
"Miss Miao... Miss Miao..."
Zhuang Rui glanced around, managing to hold back from calling out "Officer Miao," but his wide-open eyes betrayed his astonishment.
Zhuang Rui never expected to run into Miao Feifei here. Considering Officer Miao's profession and the black market auction that was about to begin, Zhuang Rui didn't think she was just here to ride horses.
If there's one person Zhuang Rui least wanted to see right now, it would definitely be Miss Miao. Putting aside their personal relationship, Miao Feifei is a police officer! "Zhuang Rui..."
Miao Feifei's feelings were complicated when she saw Zhuang Rui. After Zhuang Rui got married, she applied for a transfer to work in another province. Although she was stubborn at the time, she still couldn't bring herself to steal someone else's husband or become a mistress.
For over a year, Miao Feifei thought Zhuang Rui had disappeared from her life, but unexpectedly, she ran into him again on her first case after returning to Beijing.
Actually, Miao Feifei had already recognized Zhuang Rui while they were still on horseback, but she was calming herself down before coming over.
"Brother Jin, why don't you go for a stroll? Miss Miao and I need to discuss some things..."
Zhuang Rui handed the reins to Fatty Jin and, without waiting for his consent, pushed him out.
"Hey bro, why are you still riding a horse? Let's get going..."
Fatty Jin grabbed Zhuang Rui. He knew Miao Feifei's identity. What good could a policewoman do in a place that ran an illegal market?
"It's alright, Brother Jin, you go take a stroll, I need to talk to Miss Miao..."
Zhuang Rui was unwilling to leave. He had gone to great lengths to set up this scheme, and he was essentially the one who started this black market.
If the police ruined things, Zhuang Rui would not only be unwilling, but he would also feel sorry for Li Dali, who would definitely make him the scapegoat.
After hearing Zhuang Rui's words, Fatty Jin remembered that the two were friends. He then led his horse toward the horse farm with some suspicion, wondering whether he would be riding the horse or letting the horse lead the rider.
Upon seeing the sudden change in rider, the horse owner became unhappy and shouted from behind, "Hey, hey, I was saying if you were riding it, it would cost five hundred yuan an hour..."
Chapter 862 Open and Frank
After sitting down under a parasol in a corner with Miao Feifei, Zhuang Rui asked awkwardly, "Officer Miao... how have you been lately?"
Miao Feifei is straightforward and was once a good friend of Zhuang Rui. However, due to changes in their thinking, they have become strangers. They haven't been in contact for over a year, though they are not like strangers.
Although Miao Feifei was a little thinner than a year ago, she was in good spirits. Upon hearing this, she looked up at Zhuang Rui and said, "I'm fine, Zhuang Rui, what are you doing here?"
Zhuang Rui smiled wryly upon hearing this. This young lady was still so blunt. What was he here for? To participate in the black market auction of antiques, of course. Did she come here to ride horses?
However, once the conversation turned to business, Zhuang Rui felt less awkward. He coughed and said, "There's an antique and art exchange here. I've come to take a look and see if there's anything that catches my eye. As you know, my museum's foundation is still weak, and the collection is too small..."
"hehe……"
Zhuang Rui's words made Miao Feifei laugh. It turns out that people who are into culture really know how to talk. What was clearly an illegal black market for antiques was described by Zhuang Rui as an antique and art exchange meeting. Does he really think I'm stupid?
"Zhuang Rui, we're friends, right?"
Miao Feifei stared intently at Zhuang Rui with her beautiful, large eyes.
"Ahem, of course, but I hope you and Xuanbing can become friends too..."
Zhuang Rui's expression was somewhat unnatural. He wasn't a wooden person; of course he could sense Miao Feifei's feelings.
However, thinking of his children, Zhuang Rui dared not make a mistake. Besides, Miss Miao was always known for her fierceness and would definitely not be interested in a married man like him anymore.
"Would you die if you didn't mention your wife?"
Miao Feifei rolled her eyes at Zhuang Rui and said, "Since we're friends, can I ask you for a favor? I've recently become very interested in antiques and would like to attend this antique and art exchange meeting. With your reputation, Professor Zhuang, bringing someone along shouldn't be a problem, right?"
After returning to Beijing, Miao Feifei was idle for a while. Recently, it was rumored that someone was preparing to auction Cizhou official kiln porcelain at the junction of Beijing and Tianjin. Since most of the buyers were from Beijing, the two places decided to jointly investigate the case.
However, the branch office where Miao Feifei works has a lot of cases lately and can't spare any manpower. Also, Miao Feifei has handled cases related to antiques before, so they asked her to take charge of the work in Beijing.
During the previous investigation, the police discovered that a number of ceramic fragments were indeed unearthed in a field in Handan, Hebei Province. After expert identification, it was confirmed that this was very likely an ancient kiln site from the Song Dynasty.
However, this kiln site had already been visited, and after a rescue excavation, nothing of value could be found except for some scattered porcelain shards.
As for whether Southern Song Dynasty official kiln porcelain will be unearthed inside, even experts dare not be certain or deny it, and can only say that it is "possible". However, it was precisely because of the word "possible" that the police became nervous and, after nearly a month of investigation, set up a surveillance operation against Li Dali's black market antique auction gang.
Even Zhuang Rui didn't know that Li Dali had put in a lot of effort to set up this scheme. Not only did he spread the news of the excavation of Cizhou official kiln porcelain, but he also tampered with an ancient kiln site that had already been looted, making it appear as if it had just been excavated.
It can be said that Li Dali's efforts far exceeded Zhuang Rui's expectations. This scheme not only involved numerous collectors from home and abroad, but also kept the police in the dark.
The purpose of this setup is to be nine parts real and one part fake, with everything conforming to logic. Just like that guy who used to rent houses in Beijing courtyards, the bait he used was all genuine Ming and Qing dynasty rosewood furniture.
However, every advantage has its disadvantages. Li Dali also knew that this commotion had caused quite a stir and had attracted the attention of relevant departments. Some people had even given him a heads-up, asking him to lay low for a while.
However, after weighing the pros and cons, Mr. Li realized that even if he were caught by the police, these fake items wouldn't be enough to convict him, but breaking his promise to Zhuang Rui was something he didn't want.
Between two evils, he chose the lesser one. Boss Li decided to proceed with the antique auction. Even if the police disrupted the transaction in the end, he could still explain himself to Zhuang Rui.
Li Dali maintained a relaxed exterior but strict interior approach to the auction, forbidding anyone from bringing anyone other than those he had invited, thus eliminating the possibility of the police sending infiltrators to the venue.
Jin Pangzi was aware of this matter as well. In order to bring Zhuang Rui to the auction, he made a special application to the organizers, which is why Zhuang Rui was able to come.
However, Fatty Jin didn't know that Zhuang Rui was already on Li Dali's invitation list, but he hadn't planned to participate at first.
Li Dali's move put the police in a difficult position. Both the Beijing and Tianjin police had managed to find out the auction location, but they couldn't get into the auction venue and take control of the case immediately.
It's important to understand that police investigations also require evidence. Furthermore, the collectors who come to auction antiques are often people of status. If there are no contraband items on the black market, it would not only alert the perpetrators but also raise questions about the police's competence.
Upon hearing Miao Feifei say that she had developed a passion for collecting, Zhuang Rui shook his head with a wry smile and said, "Officer Miao, I know you're here for the so-called Cizhou official kiln porcelain. I can tell you right now, those porcelains are fakes, modern imitations, and not worth all this fuss..."
Zhuang Rui was weighing his options. He couldn't let the police ruin the matter, so after thinking for a while, he revealed that the porcelain was a fake.
"How...how did you know? Have you seen those two pieces of porcelain?"
Miao Feifei had a lot of faith in Zhuang Rui's expertise, but she didn't understand why Zhuang Rui would participate in the auction if he knew the porcelain was fake.
It seemed that he couldn't dispel Officer Miao's doubts without making things clear. Zhuang Rui glanced around and lowered his voice, saying, "Those two pieces of porcelain were originally mine. Do you think I've seen them before or not?"
"What?"
Miao Feifei's mouth dropped open in surprise; she never expected to get such an answer from Zhuang Rui.
"You...you're committing fraud, aren't you?"
Miao Feifei immediately realized that the so-called ancient kiln site was probably a setup by Zhuang Rui.
"Scam? Who did I scam?"
The matter has been made clear, and Zhuang Rui has let go of his inhibitions.
"First you hyped up the discovery of Cizhou ware at an ancient kiln site, then you used a ladder to release porcelain. These methods can all be considered fraud..."
Miao Feifei has been a police officer for years, and after several experiences, her knowledge and experience far surpass that of the junior traffic cop in Zhonghai.
"What fraud? These two pieces of porcelain cost me over ten million to make, and I might not even be able to sell them for that much. Who do you think I'm trying to scam?"
Zhuang Rui was very dissatisfied with Miao Feifei's words. He wasn't trying to get something for nothing. These two pieces of porcelain actually cost more than ten million RMB to make. Are there really any fraudsters in this world who would spend so much money and be so stupid?
"Two pieces of porcelain cost ten million?"
Miao Feifei was also confused by Zhuang Rui's words.
"Alright, I'll explain later when I have time. These two pieces of porcelain won't end up in the hands of Chinese people. If it doesn't work out, I'll just buy them back myself. Please, police officers, don't cause me any trouble..."
Zhuang Rui noticed that some people had already started entering the small building. He glanced at his watch; the hour hand was almost pointing to 11 o'clock. He stood up, ready to end the conversation.
"What are you saying? If you're engaging in illegal or criminal activities, I have the right to stop you. No way, I'm going into the auction house with you..."
Zhuang Rui's words were not to be liked by Officer Miao, who was upright and righteous.
"Alright, alright, I'll go, I'll take you, okay?"
When Zhuang Rui saw that Fatty Jin and Peng Fei had already returned with their horses, he quickly agreed. If he angered this little miss, she could really ruin the scheme that he and Li Dali had painstakingly planned.
"That's more like it..."
When Officer Miao saw that Zhuang Rui had given in, he smugly took out his phone and ordered the police officers who were ready to rush into the venue to withdraw.
Officer Miao largely believed Zhuang Rui's words. After all, a billionaire with assets exceeding one billion wouldn't stoop so low as to take such a huge risk to defraud someone of tens of millions.
Upon seeing that Miao Feifei was going to the auction with them, Fatty Jin took a step back, grabbed Zhuang Rui, and said with wide eyes, "Brother Zhuang, you... why did you bring her along again? If this gets out, it won't look good for you..."
Zhuang Rui laughed and said, "Brother Jin, it's nothing. She's just an antique enthusiast who came to broaden her horizons..."
"If you don't want to bring it, then you can forget about running this black market..."
Zhuang Rui muttered something to himself.
Seeing Zhuang Rui's nonchalant attitude, Fatty Jin reminded him, "Brother, I don't have the ability to bring her in. Even if I brought you here, I still gave you advance notice."
"I'll handle this. That old lady is someone I can't afford to offend..."
Zhuang Rui gave a wry smile, took out his phone from his pocket, found Li Dali's number, and dialed it.
He didn't dare say he was bringing the police, but only that he was bringing a friend. Li Dali naturally had no objection and immediately notified the people at the door via walkie-talkie.
Seeing Zhuang Rui bring Miao Feifei and Peng Fei inside, Fatty Jin's eyes widened even more.
It should be noted that outside the small building, many bodyguards were stopped from entering, but Zhuang Rui brought two people in with just one phone call. This made Fatty Jin wonder if Zhuang Rui knew the mysterious Boss Li.
Zhuang Rui was delayed for a while by Fatty Jin. After entering the small building, he found that the huge hall was already full of people.
Chapter 863 Foolish and Rich (Part 1)
The huge living room of the horse racing club, which was originally used for a patio for some so-called upper-class elites, is now being used as an auction table by the bar counter, and the original dance floor is now filled with chairs.
The auction caused quite a stir. Almost all the chairs, which were supposed to seat 10 people per row, were full. Even Zhuang Rui was a little apprehensive. Li Dali was probably the only one in the country to run such a blatant black market for antiques.
"Brother Jin, let's sit in the back..."
The front row seats were already full, and Zhuang Rui was just there for show, not intending to make a scene. He figured the shameless Japanese were determined to win back the two pieces of porcelain.
"Teacher Jin, you're here too!"