My face suddenly darkened, and Mei Wu quickly shut her mouth.
I bit my lip hard, and after a long while, I finally couldn't hold back anymore. I slammed my hand on the table and said angrily, "It's all that bastard's fault!"
"What the young lady is saying is..."
"Who else?" I curled my lip and cursed in a clear, crisp, and unrestrained voice, "It's that biggest spendthrift in the world, Xiao Zuo... a scoundrel, a hooligan, a rogue!"
Mei Wu was taken aback, and after a long while, she stammered in a low voice, "Miss, this is the first time I've seen you react so strongly to... to a man."
Huh? I was stunned. Really? This is the first time I've reacted so strongly to a man? It seems... it really is...
"Pah!" I suddenly jumped up, turned to face the maid, and shouted, "Let me tell you, Meiwu, I have absolutely no reaction to him! I just hate him—I have never, ever hated anyone like I hate him! Do you understand?"
Mei Wu blinked and nodded obediently: "Understood, Miss."
Just then, Feng Qiansu's voice rang out from outside the door: "Young Miss, the opening ceremony is about to begin."
"Yes, I'm here!" I turned around and looked in the mirror again, feeling very satisfied once more, before gracefully stepping out the door.
Outside the door, night was just beginning to fall, and the lanterns were already lit. The lanterns hanging on the long covered walkway looked like two red lines in the evening breeze. I held onto Feng Qiansu's arm and slowly walked through them, arriving at the exhibition hall where this precious exhibition was being held, and we stood still.
Feng Qiansu pushed open the exhibition hall door, and the ten distinguished guests sitting inside all turned their heads. Upon seeing me, their eyes all revealed a look of amazement.
I smiled softly, and as I turned my gaze casually, I looked into someone's eyes.
Those eyes, so dark and bright, like an ancient well with no bottom, deep and mysterious... It was him! Xiao Zuo, whom I couldn't stand no matter how I looked at him.
Heaven knows how he could sit so leisurely among those richly dressed guests, looking like a penniless wretch!
If it were me, I would have been so ashamed that I wouldn't have dared to lift my head... I scoffed lightly, quickly turned my gaze away, and walked in with my head held high.
Volume 1, Chapter 2: The Changes in the Exhibition (1)
Section 1 The Old Drunkard's Intention
I didn't follow Gong Feicui into the center of the hall until she reached the back, where I settled into a corner and stopped moving.
Never stealing the spotlight from the host is my consistent principle, but one gaze still pierced through the crowd and landed on me.
I looked up and saw Baili Chenfeng.
I nodded slightly to him, his eyes flickered for a moment, then he turned away.
Gong Feicui had already stepped onto the platform, looking around at everyone with a smile, and said, "Thank you all for coming from afar to attend this annual treasure exhibition. My family has been in the jewelry business since my great-great-grandfather's time, and it has been passed down to me for four generations. We have always adhered to the rules of the trade, making exquisite craftsmanship without the slightest slackening. Although my father has passed away, the Gong family's reputation still stands. This time we will only be exhibiting seven treasures, but I believe that after seeing them, you will all feel that the trip was worthwhile."
After saying that, he clapped his hands, and the lights in the hall went out immediately, leaving only two dim lights in the corner, faintly illuminating the black curtain in front of him.
Gong Feicui stepped forward and slowly drew back the curtain, causing the breathing in the hall to quicken.
In the circular stands, a woman sat with her back to the crowd.
A beam of light shone precisely on her back—her smooth, naked skin, radiating an ivory luster.
A long beaded chain hung down her back, rising and falling gently with her breath, reflecting a watery sheen. The end of the chain was between the woman's lips, her head tilted to the side, allowing a glimpse of her long, curled eyelashes and full, red lips.
She was a natural beauty, which was already enough to be captivating, not to mention that the string of pearls was absolutely perfect and round, with no less than three hundred pearls in a long string, each one the same size!
I watched intently. Gong Feicui was indeed clever; she had come up with such a brilliant way to display the pearls. Under the limited light, it was hard to tell whether the beauty accentuated the pearls, or the pearls adorned the beauty.
“South China Sea Sandalwood Beads,” said Gong Feicui. “There are 365 beads in total, representing the 365 days of the year, symbolizing perfection every day.”
She explained it simply because everyone present was an expert; they knew without her saying it that finding so many pearls of the same size was no easy feat, and as far as she could see, there was only one such string in the world.
The curtain fell, concealing the beauty and the pearls.
I saw a sense of loss on the faces of the guests, even Xiao Zuo, who was always smiling, had his head down and looked rather strange.
So, was he also amazed by the exquisite design of the jadeite? Very good, it seems the first piece of jewelry has piqued everyone's interest, a great start indeed.
My gaze met Gong Feicui's in mid-air, and we smiled at each other.
The curtain was drawn back a second time, and this time, the guests' breathing became softer. After a long while, gasps of amazement finally arose, showing that everyone was extremely impressed by what they had seen.
A woman dressed in a black robe sat on a black Persian carpet, her head buried in her knees, her long hair hanging loosely. Only one hand, white as jade, was tucked into her hair. On her wrist was a fiery red bracelet; that single touch of red illuminated the entire hall.
However, that was just a backdrop, nothing more.
The real focus is a black jade vase that is the same height as the woman standing next to her.
The vase was carved from a single piece of black jade. The jade was not pure in color, with some white parts, but the carver was extremely skilled. He carved the black parts into tree trunks and the white parts into plum blossoms. In this way, the contrast between the black branches and the white plum blossoms was striking, which was truly amazing!
I completely understand why everyone was so shocked when they saw that vase, because when I first saw it, I was also truly astonished. There are only four words to describe it—exquisite craftsmanship.
Gong Feicui, however, clearly knew better how to highlight its exquisite beauty. She somehow managed to obtain several sprigs of red plum blossoms and arranged them in a vase. The vibrant color, like a red bracelet on a woman's wrist, adorned the black and white, yet also accentuated them, ultimately losing out to the black and white themselves.
"This vase is called 'Subtle Fragrance'."
Sparse shadows slant across the clear, shallow water; a faint fragrance drifts in the twilight. How could she have come up with such a name! I thought to myself, this woman's business acumen is probably even greater than her father's.