Qi Huaiyu gritted his teeth and asked Xin Jiuwei in a low voice, "What exactly do you want?"
Xin Jiuwei didn't even glance at Qi Huaiyu. She stepped forward, opened the box, and exclaimed, "Oh my! Brother, isn't this your Golden Wind and Jade Dew Cup?"
Everyone looked at each other in bewilderment.
Young Master Lin stepped forward and examined it closely: "It is indeed the Golden Wind and Jade Dew Cup. Did Brother Qi bring it?"
Qi Huaiyu said to Xin Jiuwei, "Even if I brought the Golden Wind and Jade Dew Cup, what makes you think I switched it?"
"yes."
A cold female voice rang out, and Xue Yingxue, who had been silent until now, suddenly spoke up: "You can't make Huaiyu a scapegoat just because your brother did something stupid."
Qi Huaiyu sighed, "Jiuwei is just like that, childish. She had a little argument with me a few days ago, which is why she's acting this way. Please don't be offended."
Xin Jiuwei anticipated that he would not admit it, "In that case, let's hear what the original owner of the Golden Wind and Jade Dew Cup has to say."
As soon as he finished speaking, Mianfeng led a middle-aged man dressed in brocade robes in.
"Manager Wang," Xin Jiuwei said with a smile, "tell me, who bought this cup from you a few days ago?"
The visitor was Manager Wang, the owner of a brocade shop in the city, one of the wealthiest merchants in Yingzhou.
He looked around and pointed at Ah Yong, saying, "It's this young man."
Ah Yong quickly replied, "Yes, it was the young master who asked me to get it from Manager Wang."
Young Master Lin said, "In that case, this thing should indeed have originally belonged to Brother Xin!"
"This was given to me by Brother Xin," Qi Huaiyu said immediately. "Is there a problem?"
Xie Sanshao said, "Indeed, this doesn't prove that Brother Qi switched the goods."
“I didn’t give it to him!” Xin Yunzhou suddenly spoke up. “The Golden Wind and Jade Dew Cup has always been locked in my study. He must have stolen it from me!”
Qi Huaiyu's expression changed. "Brother Xin, you can't just say things like that."
Xin Jiuwei raised her voice: "It seems that Qi Huaiyu stole my brother's things and switched them with this harmful jade artifact. Qi Huaiyu, you..."
She spoke quickly and succinctly, intending to pin the blame on Qi Huaiyu when no one was looking.
As she spoke, her tone changed, and she showed shock and bewilderment on her face, with tears welling up in her eyes.
"Huaiyu, the Xin family has treated you well, how could you harm my brother..."
Qi Huaiyu's expression darkened further. "Shut up, I didn't!"
Xin Jiuwei seemed startled, tears immediately falling as she swayed and leaned against Xin Yunzhou.
"Huaiyu, I was just too heartbroken, why are you yelling at me?"
Despite her reputation for being foolish, Xin Jiuwei possessed a beautiful face inherited from her mother. Her obedient and gentle demeanor immediately aroused the pity and tenderness of those around her.
"Brother Qi, even if there's a misunderstanding, you shouldn't yell at people."
"Yes, that's really ungentlemanly."
Qi Huaiyu clenched his fist. "The claim of switching is completely fabricated. This Golden Wind and Jade Dew Cup was given to me by Xin Yunzhou because he got the jade artifacts and didn't like the original ones!"
Xin Jiuwei wiped away her tears. "Oh, so you mean you knew all along that my brother had obtained this jade artifact?"
Qi Huaiyu suddenly paused.
He let it slip.
He quickly added, "I knew about it beforehand, but I don't recognize where this jade artifact came from. Are you going to make baseless accusations against me just because of that?"
Xin Jiuwei smiled and looked at everyone.
“As far as I know,” she said slowly, “at the spring banquet early last year, Qi Huaiyu wrote a policy essay that everyone eagerly read.”
Besides the spoiled young masters from wealthy families, many well-read scholars also attended the appraisal event today, and upon hearing this, they all remembered.
Someone said, "That's true. Brother Qi clearly mentioned the 'Illustrated Catalogue of Imperial Princes' in his policy essay."
"Yes, yes, I remember that too. At the time, I thought Brother Qi was very insightful and had unique perspectives. He was truly someone we should learn from!"
"Brother Qi has clearly seen that painting; he should recognize this jade artifact!"
Young Master Lin shouted, "Since you recognize this jade, why did you agree to exchange it with Young Master Xin? That's incredibly unfair!"
The way everyone looked at Qi Huaiyu changed.
Compared to Xin Yunzhou's foolish act of presenting sensitive information to everyone, Qi Huaiyu's behavior is even more despicable.
Qi Huaiyu forced a smile and said, "I don't recognize them all either; I can't remember them right now."
Xin Yunzhou said, "You did this on purpose! And you said you wanted to borrow a treasure from me, but I told you to fetch another one, and you stole my Golden Wind Jade Dew Cup instead!"
Qi Huaiyu said in a deep voice, "You clearly said that I could choose whatever I wanted. I came to the treasure appraisal event, so naturally I had to bring the best. Otherwise, wouldn't that be disrespectful?"
Xin Yunzhou was so angry at his shamelessness that his nose twisted in disbelief. "The Golden Wind and Jade Dew Cup is not among the things you were asked to choose!"
Seeing that Xin Yunzhou was about to get into a fight, everyone rushed to smooth things over.
"Enough, enough, it's all a misunderstanding, Brother Xin, please accept my words."
"Yes, it was a blunder, all a blunder!"
"Please sit down, lest you ruin our treasure appraisal event."
"Both treasures are from the Xin family. Brother Qi has always been trusted by Uncle Xin, so this Golden Wind and Jade Dew Cup is very suitable for you!"
These words struck a chord with Qi Huaiyu, who couldn't help but reveal a humble yet undeniably proud smile.
“That’s true,” said Xie Sanshao. “Everyone knows that the Xin family has to rely on Brother Qi to handle many matters, big and small. Brother Qi is a talented young man and is most worthy of this cup.”
Someone chimed in, "That's right. If everyone were as stupid as that, what would become of the Xin family?"
His inexplicable pause annoyed Xin Yunzhou, who abruptly stood up again: "What did you say!"
Xin Jiuwei glanced coldly at the man, then suddenly smiled and said in a somewhat naive tone, "Since the Golden Wind and Jade Dew Cup is most suited to Qi Huaiyu, then he should win the prize today, right?"
Qi Huaiyu's eyes flashed as he looked at Xin Jiuwei warily.
Xie Sanshao said, "Of course."
Xin Yunzhou retorted, "Little sister, you're siding with him again!"
He thought his sister had changed her personality!
Xin Jiuwei said with a smile, "That's great! I knew Huaiyu could do anything well."
She pulled Xin Yunzhou up from the stool. "Today was all a misunderstanding. I hope it didn't upset you all. I've heard that the food here is the most delicious. Since Huaiyu won first place, I'll pay the bill for today. How about that to make you all happy?"
Upon hearing this, everyone agreed.
Young Master Lin said, "It was originally the leader who was treating us, so Brother Qi will have to pay for it this time!"
Qi Huaiyu was initially startled, but seeing Xin Jiuwei looking at him with a smile, he felt relieved.
In the past, when Xin Jiuwei attended gatherings, she would pay the bill in his name. It seems that Xin Jiuwei had thrown enough of a tantrum and was now trying to please him.
Qi Huaiyu couldn't help but feel smug again, and looked at everyone with an elegant air, "Since it's the rule, then Huaiyu will certainly not go back on his word."
Xin Jiuwei felt a surge of joy and almost burst out laughing.
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