Chapter 40 Chapter 40 He is clearly in love
Li Chengan's auction was held in an ancient castle manor. The lights were bright, the fountains were gurgling, and the sound of a long symphony could be heard from the castle.
The black Maybach parked steadily at the entrance. The door opened, and a long leg, wearing shiny leather shoes and well-cut trousers, stepped forward. His tall figure stood tall, his bow tie crisp, and his movements elegant and dignified. Zhao Qingshi reached out to help Ruan Xiangyi out of the car, guiding her to her feet. Then, holding her waist, he pointed with his finger, "Don't be nervous."
As soon as she got off the car, Ruan Xiangyi felt eyes from all directions.
On the second floor, a graceful figure stood by the carved window, watching the two people coming out of the car, and the wine in her hand swayed nonchalantly.
Ruan Fu was also present today, accompanied by Ruan Lingyu.
Ruan Lingyu hadn't seen Ruan Xiangyi for a long time. She didn't expect Ruan Xiangyi to have changed so much, and she was completely different from the country girl a few months ago.
The dress that Ruan Xiangyi chose was especially suitable for her. She had a petite figure, but every part of her was just right. Her hair was tied into a bun, and she wore two pearl headbands. The string of ruby jewelry around her neck was even more eye-catching, making her look like a princess.
Ruan Lingyu was extremely jealous. Then she looked at the man next to her. Originally, the person standing next to him was her.
Why does Ruan Xiangyi do that?
The banquet hall was splendidly decorated, with a huge crystal chandelier in the center, shimmering and dazzling. Zhao Qingshi briefly met Ruan Fu, then took Ruan Xiangyi to deal with Li Chengan.
"How is Mr. Zhao's health these days?" Li Cheng'an pretended to greet him.
"Thanks to Uncle Li, everything is fine." Zhao Qingshi smiled, "Uncle Li, this is Xiangyi, my wife."
Ruan Xiangyi followed Zhao Qingshi and called out "Uncle Li".
Everyone present today is a prominent figure, so even if Li Chengan has any objections to him, he can't just turn his face away.
"Dad." Suddenly, a female voice interrupted. Li Wenyin walked forward, took Li Chengan's arm, and playfully leaned on his shoulder. "Mom was just looking for you. She said Uncle Wang wanted to talk to you about something."
Li Chengan said to them, "I'm going to take care of something."
Li Wenyin said, "Dad, you go. I haven't seen Brother Qingshi for a long time. I have something to talk to him about."
Li Chengan looked at her for two seconds and let her go.
At this time, Shen Tingwan came over. She came here specifically to look for Ruan Xiangyi. Li Wenyin glanced up and down at Ruan Xiangyi's back, and finally fixed her eyes on Zhao Qingshi's face. She smiled sweetly and said, "Brother Qingshi, I haven't wished you a happy wedding yet. You don't mind, do you?"
Zhao Qingchun ignored it.
"Ruan Xiangyi is the girl on the student ID card, right?" Li Wenyin smiled. "We've met before. At my aunt's mahjong table. Did you know each other back then?"
Zhao Qingshi frowned at her pestering him and didn't intend to talk to her. As for Xun Yin asking him to apologize, he had already made amends. Apologize? What apology? Turning to leave, Li Wenyin sneered: "Aren't you ashamed?"
Zhao Qingshi paused, leaving her with a cold face. "Li Wenyin, I remember telling you back then that this is just an arranged marriage, why take it so seriously? If you had any sense, you wouldn't have said such things on an occasion like today. For your father's sake, I'll let you off the hook for now. But if I hear you say that again, you'll have to spit out whatever dividends I gave you."
From childhood to adulthood, no one had ever dared to treat her like this. Looking at Zhao Qingshi's departing back, the hatred in her eyes gradually deepened, and finally all fixed on another person.
Here, Shen Tingwan brought her a glass of orange juice and held up a glass of champagne in one hand: "Zhao Qingshi knew that you would meet Li Wenyin here, so he specially asked me to come and accompany you."
"It's okay. I was prepared to meet her before I came here."
Shen Tingwan: "She has a bad temper. She has been spoiled by her family since she was a child. She has no control over her words. It's better for you not to meet her. I'm afraid you will be wronged."
"After tonight, these ladies will probably remember you."
Ruan Xiangyi was honest: "I didn't even dare to look around, for fear that they would think I was worldly-wise and bring shame to Zhao Qingshi."
Shen Tingwan was shocked: "Xiangyi, take a look at what's going on. Why do you have such an idea?"
Ruan Xiangyi: "I'm just kidding. It's my first time attending such a high-end banquet, and I'm a little nervous. I'm telling a joke to relax."
…
When Ruan Lingyu saw Li Wenyin being humiliated, she felt much better.
"Lingyu, why have you never seen your sister before?" A socialite next to her spoke.
"It's my stepsister," Ruan Lingyu corrected impatiently. "I don't have a sister. She's my cheap stepmother's burden. She moved into my house when she was 15. I hate her to death."
"A few days after Zhao Qingshi and Li Wenyin's wedding was canceled, reporters suddenly broke the news of a marriage between the Zhao and Ruan families. We thought it was you at the time. Didn't you say before that your fiancé was Zhao Qingshi?" the socialite asked. "What's going on? I don't believe you would give up such a great opportunity."
…
…
…
Asking this kind of question, don’t these people just want to laugh at her...
Ruan Lingyu took a sip of wine, and unable to withstand their constant questioning, she made up a story.
"Is Zhao Qingshi a good man? Besides being a wealthy, handsome man, does he have any other advantages?" Ruan Lingyu was sincere about the first part, but she remained calm and collected as she continued, "I don't like him. I'm after true love. I was terrified when I heard my father wanted to marry me to him. If I hadn't withdrawn, what do you think Ruan Xiangyi would have become?"
"You don't know, my stepsister calls home every few days, saying that Zhao Qingshi married her and just treated her like a vase, that she was often not home, and that he always treated her coldly and violently." Ruan Lingyu almost believed it as she spoke. "It's a good thing I didn't marry him. I couldn't stand this kind of grievance."
After hearing Ruan Lingyu's words, several socialites naively believed it.
"No wonder I felt their relationship wasn't good just now. Turns out there were some clues."
"Exactly. Didn't you just see Zhao Qingshi leave her aside and talk to Li Wenyin alone?"
"So, I have another chance."
“…”
For the first time, Ruan Lingyu actually felt guilty.
But it was not a lie at all. She didn't believe that Zhao Qingshi would like Ruan Xiangyi, a country bumpkin.
The auction started soon. Ruan Xiangyi sat next to Zhao Qingshi, who covered her legs with a blanket. "The next part might be a bit boring. If you feel tired, just lean on my shoulder."
Ruan Xiangyi was really a little tired and her feet were a little sore, so she chose a pair of high heels to match her skirt. Before going out, Zhao Qingshi was worried and suggested that she choose flat shoes. She also had a sense of beauty, so she wore this pair of five-centimeter shoes.
The auction has begun, and Ruan Xiangyi's attention is drawn to the items on the stage.
From antique calligraphy and paintings to rare original works, from historical relics to rare treasures, every item auctioned is extremely expensive, and the bidding price of an ordinary calligraphy and painting has risen to three million.
Zhao Qingshi saw that she was interested and asked, "Do you like it?"
Ruan Xiangyi whispered, "Who is the author of this calligraphy and painting?"
Zhao Qingshi: "An authentic work by Wu Daozi."
Ruan Xiangyi: "I don't know him."
"I'll take a picture and you can take a closer look?"
"Don't." Ruan Xiangyi stopped his hand, "I don't have artistic talent, so don't spend money recklessly."
Zhao Qingshi chuckled: "The last item up for auction today is a pink diamond. I think it suits you very well."
Soon, the last item came up for auction. It was a 20-carat pink diamond, pure as ice. Light passed through it, revealing a mysterious beauty from the inside out.
Ruan Xiangyi heard the auctioneer say that there is no other pink diamond like this in the world.
The auctioneer reported the starting price: 30 million.
Before anyone raised their hand, Zhao Qingshi raised his hand and made a bid: "Fifty million."
In the previous rounds, Zhao Qingshi did not participate much, and occasionally came out to raise the price. This time, he took the initiative and seemed determined to win. Everyone likes good things. In a short while, the price of 50 million was raised to 60 million.
Zhao Qingshi directly raised it to 70 million.
A sigh.
Ruan Xiangyi felt the gazes coming from all directions.
When the bid for a pink diamond reached 70 million, most people had put away their signs and were watching from the sidelines, while some were still bidding upwards by tens of thousands. Zhao Qingshi would usually just raise the price to 90 million.
The sound gradually became smaller.
Before the auctioneer dropped the final hammer, Li Chengan, who had remained silent the entire time, raised his paddle: "Ninety-five million."
Zhao Qingshi raised his hand lazily: "One hundred million."
Although pink diamonds are rare, there are only a few in the world that can be auctioned for 100 million yuan, and many businessmen can't help but marvel at it.
Li Chengan deliberately raised the price for him. When it reached 100 million, he hesitated, thinking that after decades of experience in the business world, he could be intimidated by a young man. He raised his hand and bid, "105 million."
Everyone turned their eyes to Zhao Qingshi. Zhao Qingshi slowly squeezed Ruan Xiangyi's hand and showed no intention of continuing to raise the sign. Li Chengan's heart became increasingly uneasy as the hammer fell.
At the last moment, Zhao Qingshi slowly raised his card and announced a staggering figure: "120 million."
It was this kind of stair-step bidding again. How many people present could compete with him in bidding? Li Chengan wiped his cold sweat and didn't dare to challenge him anymore. In the end, Zhao Qingshi won the pink diamond for 120 million.
"Xiangyi, do you like it?" he asked.
Ruan Xiangyi was almost stunned by this number and couldn't help but like it.
Shen Tingwan sat in the back and took out his phone to send a message to Gu Suyan: "Your brother is crazy. He spent 120 million to make a beautiful woman smile."
Gu Suyan: "Is there ever a day when he doesn't go crazy?"
Ruan Lingyu could no longer describe her feelings as jealous. After a long period of despair, she asked Ruan Fu: "If I had married him, would he have treated me the same way?"
Ruan Fu remained silent.
The answer is obvious.
Won't.
Those socialites who were completely fooled by Ruan Lingyu's lies were completely heartbroken.
"Isn't it a vase? Who would spend 120 million to support a vase?"
"Who said Zhao Qingshi doesn't like Ruan Xiangyi? I think he's clearly madly in love with her."
“…”
“…”
At this moment, Li Wenyin, who was sitting in the corner, felt her hatred and jealousy reach the breaking point.
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