57. Wild

Did I tell you to interrupt?

The trip to Hong Kong will take about a month. Attorney Xue will spend half a month finalizing the merger and acquisition case, and then they plan to spend the next half month enjoying Hong Kong.

Attorney Xue's project wasn't going smoothly. In his own words, the biggest challenge was that the other company's CEO's Mandarin was really bad, and his English was also quite poor. Communication was already difficult, and the other party was also very stubborn. Some details that could have been flexibly adjusted were escalated into matters of principle, which greatly annoyed Attorney Xue.

Whenever he was about to lose his temper, Chen An would remind him in his ear, "This guy is sixty years old this year."

Xue Lu would silently repeat "I can't scold the elderly" to force himself to calm down.

Song Qing felt much more relaxed; this was her first long, completely relaxing vacation since starting university.

When choosing a hotel, she and Xue Lu did not opt ​​for the bustling and modern Central and Sheung Wan or Tsim Sha Tsui, but instead chose Sai Ying Pun, an old neighborhood closer to the city center but with a more down-to-earth atmosphere.

Sai Ying Pun is a hilly area, and Song Qinggui climbs up and down it every day. He buys a book whenever he passes a bookstore, and goes into a coffee shop with a pleasing decor, where he can sit for an entire afternoon. After Xue Lu finishes work, they have dinner together and then go to a bar for drinks.

By the time the merger was finally completed, Song Qinggui had become very familiar with many places in Hong Kong.

After the honeymoon officially began, she naturally became Xue Lu's guide.

They went to Repulse Bay.

There's a sculpture exhibition on the Southern District Literary Trail there, showing traces of Eileen Chang and Xiao Hong's lives in Hong Kong. I also visited Repulse Bay Hotel, the place where Bai Liusu and Fan Liuyuan met in Eileen Chang's famous novel, *Love in a Fallen City*.

Song Qinggui always felt that he was somewhat like Bai Liusu, pitiful in his isolation and helplessness, but also greedy for material things and emotions.

But Xue Lu was not Fan Liuyuan; he was much more pure. Xue Lu believed in love and maintained his integrity, which was rare among men, let alone men of his class.

Xue Lu seems to prefer the old city.

After leaving Repulse Bay, they went to To Kwa Wan and ate a bowl of beef noodles with braised pork belly in an old-fashioned wet market. The market had a very interesting elevator, an old-fashioned hand-operated door, which Song Qinggui had only seen in Jackie Chan's early martial arts films.

They also went to Sham Shui Po, where there are many vinyl record stores and vintage clothing stores. Xue Lu bought Song Qinggui a record of The Cranberries, which she likes, and Song Qinggui also picked out a vintage haute couture suit for Xue Lu.

Of course, as Song Qinggui wished, they also visited many filming locations of Hong Kong movies.

Wing Lee Street, Yau Ma Tei Police Station, Central Market, Mid-Levels Escalator...

Unfortunately, the Golden Sparrow Restaurant that Song Qinggui really wanted to try in "In the Mood for Love" was closed, and they didn't get to eat there.

Xue Lu: "You like Wong Kar-wai?"

"I don't think so. I've just seen a lot of his movies," Song Qinggui said. "Sometimes his works are quite detached from real life."

"How so?" Xue Lu asked with great interest.

Song Qinggui replied seriously: "In his movies, Tony Leung is unloved, and Takeshi Kaneshiro is someone's lapdog. Is that reasonable?"

"What's unreasonable about this?" Xue Lu chuckled. "Didn't I also let you cause trouble for over ten years?"

Song Qinggui was at a loss with Lawyer Xue: "President Xue, you're quite confident, aren't you? Are you comparing yourself to Tony Leung and Takeshi Kaneshiro?"

"Is that not allowed?" Xue Lu smiled, but the look in his eyes was arrogant, confident, and haughty.

Song Qinggui nodded: "Okay, why not? But you won't be at a disadvantage, after all, I am also the Maggie Cheung of Cangcheng."

Xue Lu's smile widened: "You're prettier than Maggie Cheung."

Song Qinggui's pupils dilated in shock: "Maggie Cheung's fans are old, not dead. Show some respect to Goddess Maggie."

...

Song Qinggui was so happy living in Hong Kong that he almost forgot about home.

“If you like, we can settle in Hong Kong,” Xue suggested.

Song Qinggui firmly refused: "You can buy three houses in Lancheng if you buy one in Hong Kong. Don't be crazy. Just come with me to play during your holidays in the future."

Xue Lu smiled and said, "Okay."

As the holiday was drawing to a close, Xue Lu received an invitation.

"It's Zhu Tianming, the investment bank manager who facilitated this merger. He said there's a pretty good auction in the next few days and invited us to attend. Should we go?"

Song Qinggui initially wanted to refuse; she had never been particularly interested in shopping, let alone this kind of competition where the highest bidder outbid everyone. But glancing at the chat window between Xue Lu and Zhu Tianming, she saw a picture of cufflinks. She guessed that Zhu Tianming was trying to appeal to her taste, and the cufflinks were indeed beautiful and suited Xue Lu well, so she nodded.

“Great! I’ve never been to an auction before, so it’ll be good for me to go and have some fun.”

...

The auction was held in the renowned Sotheby's showroom, with the theme "Purity" and items from all over the world.

The auction will last for two days. The first day will mainly feature handicrafts, and the second day will feature paintings.

Before the formal auction, Zhu Tianming invited Xue Lu and Song Qinggui to view the preview of the auction items.

Song Qinggui was stunningly beautiful, and Xue Lu was dashing and debonair. As soon as they entered the exhibition hall, they attracted everyone's attention. Zhu Tianming and his wife naturally benefited from their presence, drinking and socializing with many old and new money, thus establishing initial connections.

"Miss Song, do you have any items you like for the auction?" Zhu Tianming seized the opportunity and hinted to Song Qinggui that she could choose one, and he would bid on it and give it to her as a thank you for "riding on her coattails".

Knowing the other party's intention, Song Qinggui deftly deflected the question: "I've taken a fancy to something and want to give it to my husband. It seems I'll have to work hard tomorrow."

Zhu Tianming glanced at Song Qinggui with appreciation. She was indeed a very intelligent and sensible woman. He had worked in investment banking for many years and had seen many wealthy people's partners. Whether it was the woman in front of the male boss or the man in front of the female boss, they all looked the same, steeped in greed for too long. Their eyes and mouths revealed a beastly nature, both pitiful and terrifying.

Song Qinggui gave off a different vibe; she was too composed, which made Zhu Tianming feel that she was the one in control in her marriage with Xue Lu.

Zhu Tianming was still pondering Song Qinggui when he was interrupted by a series of greetings from the crowd: "Hey, Boss Jin is here!"

Song Qinggui and Xue Lu also turned around and looked towards the entrance of the exhibition hall. At first glance, Song Qinggui was taken aback.

This glance wasn't because of Boss Jin, but because of the woman beside Boss Jin, who was an acquaintance of hers and Lawyer Xue—Chen Fangqi, who had already died socially in Lancheng.

Song Qinggui quickly frowned – because of Chen Fangqi's attire.

It's already December, and Hong Kong has entered winter. The average temperature these days is below 20 degrees Celsius, and there is a large temperature difference between day and night.

When Song Qinggui went out, he wore a trench coat and also draped a silk scarf around his neck to ward off the cold.

But Chen Fangqi was now wearing a dark green silk halter-neck dress, the deep V-neck revealing her cleavage, and the high slit in the skirt even allowed a glimpse of her hips...

Chen Fangqi has a curvaceous figure and liked sexy clothes when she was in Lancheng, but her sexiness back then was beautiful, while now it only made Song Qinggui feel reluctant.

Many of the wealthy businessmen in the exhibition stared intently at her, their eyes gleaming with an unusual light that clearly showed neither admiration nor respect.

Chen Fangqi, however, was proud of her "eye-catching" appearance.

As soon as she entered the exhibition hall, she recognized Song Qinggui at a glance. She would recognize this woman even if she were ashes, even if she only saw her back.

She suffered endless ridicule in Lancheng and dared not leave her home for several months. In the end, she had no choice but to seek refuge elsewhere, all thanks to this woman, whom she would never forget.

Fortunately, fate was kind to her. After arriving in Hong Kong, she soon met Jin Runyong in a nightclub. He was as tall and handsome as Xue Lu, and perhaps even richer. This was the kind of man Chen Fangqi deserved.

Chen Fangqi unconsciously tightened her grip on Jin Runyong's hand.

However, Kim Yoon-young's gaze fell on Song Cheong-gyu.

Zhu Tianming introduced Kim Yoon-young to Xue Lu: "Kim Yoon-young is a rich kid from South Korea. His family owns a department store and is one of the wealthiest people in South Korea. He spent some time in China when he was young, so he can speak Chinese. He now owns several art galleries in Hong Kong, Macau, and Shenzhen, and he usually travels between South Korea and Hong Kong, Macau, and Shenzhen. He is generous and has good relationships with people here."

Xue Lu was clearly not interested in him. Just as he was about to pull Song Qinggui to another exhibition area, Jin Runyong, dressed in a mink coat, came over instead. He glanced at Song Qinggui and extended his hand to Xue Lu: "Nice to meet you, new face."

Out of politeness, Xue Lu shook hands with him, saying, "Xue Lu."

"Jin Runyong." Jin Runyong's gaze shifted to Xue Lu's side: "Is this Mr. Xue's girlfriend?"

“My wife,” Xue Lu said coldly.

Kim Yoon-yong curled his lip: "Tsk, too bad, looks like I won't have a chance."

He said that, but the look in his eyes when he looked at Song Qinggui was still full of hunting intent.

Chen Fangqi recognized that look, and jealousy flared up in her heart again. She moved closer to Jin Runyong and said in a sweet voice, "Oppa, this is a famous lady in our Lancheng. Countless men have fallen for her."

Jin Runyong became even more interested: "Oh? Is that so? That's such a pity, I didn't get to experience Mrs. Xue's tricks."

The people around them watched the spectacle with interest; it was their favorite kind of show.

The two women were locked in a standoff, yet they were both commodities, subject to the control, teasing, trampling, and humiliation of the men.

However, Kim Yoon-young's smile didn't last long, because what happened next was beyond everyone's expectations.

Xue Lu had one hand in his pocket, a very relaxed posture, but his other hand, holding a wine glass, was raised high.

The glass tipped over, spilling red wine onto Kim Yoon-yong's head, staining his white mink coat.

Jin Runyong was furious. He raised his hand to throw a punch at Xue Lu, but his fist was immediately caught by Xue Lu.

Xue Lu was a bit taller than him, and his posture was composed, so he naturally had a superior air about him.

"Is Mr. Jin more sober now?" Lawyer Xue tilted his head and sneered, "This is Hong Kong, China. You should take your place before you act wildly."

“You…” Jin Runyong gritted his teeth.

Song Qinggui looked at Chen Fangqi and said, "Your taste in men is getting worse and worse. You're willing to go out with this kind of man to meet people?"

Chen Fangqi's face flushed with anger, and Jin Runyong was completely out of his element. What did he mean by saying that this kind of man was willing to come out with him? Chen Fangqi was just one of his girls. The fact that she came out with him was an act of great mercy on his part! It was her good fortune!

"you……"

Jin Runyong pointed at Song Qinggui.

Just as the verbal battle was about to begin, Song Qinggui, without allowing anyone else to react, snatched the red wine from Zhu Tianming's hand and splashed it on Jin Runyong's head.

“I’m talking to your girlfriend, it’s none of your business to interrupt.” Song Qinggui had been putting up with him for a long time.

"Aaaaaaah!"

Kim Yoon-yong's mad outburst became a topic of endless conversation among Hong Kong's wealthy circles for many years to come.