"You drive." Ning Yuan was full of energy after a good night's sleep, and her tone was much lighter.
Ah Heng put down the magazine, stood up, stretched, and looked nonchalant.
"Hey Xiaoning, what are you trying to achieve by running to your fourth uncle's shabby shop every day? That old man is cunning; do you think you can squeeze gold out of him?"
Ning Yuan laughed and poked her forehead: "If you don't go and get gold from other people, you'll just stay at home and get moldy."
Upon hearing this, Ah Heng quickly got up.
We finally managed to cheer Xiaoning up a bit, so we'll just go along with whatever she wants to do!
After leaving the Ning family's villa in Repulse Bay, Aheng started the car and drove towards his fourth uncle's antique shop.
Uncle Si's shop is still the same as before, with several terracotta warriors missing arms and legs displayed at the entrance, and a musty smell inside.
The incense offering to Guan Yu had just been lit, and the old house was filled with the scent of sandalwood smoke.
The old man was reclining in a grand chair, twirling two walnuts in his hands.
Seeing Ning Yuan enter, the old man didn't even lift his eyelids, only letting out a cold snort—
"Baiyanxing, what brings you here again? You've practically worn the doorstep of my little shop down with your footsteps, but I haven't seen you buy anything of value."
Ning Yuan wasn't annoyed and went straight to sit down opposite her fourth uncle.
She poured herself a cup of tea and slowly took a sip: "Fourth Uncle, what are you saying? I just missed you, didn't I? And you wanted to ship the goods, didn't you?"
Uncle Si then perked up, sat up straight, and a glint of shrewdness flashed in his eyes: "Oh? You have connections? You can take any kind of bribe?"
"What kind of goods are you talking about? Tell me about them." Ning Yuan raised an eyebrow, looking eager to hear the details.
Fourth Uncle stared at her for a long time, then suddenly smiled mysteriously, as if he had thought of a good idea. He pushed the newspaper in his hand in front of Ning Yuan, "Here, take a look for yourself."
The newspaper headline read, “Famous French museum robbed, suffering heavy losses, including several Chinese artifacts.”
Ning Yuan glanced at it without showing any emotion, but her heart was in turmoil.
The newspaper photos featured a collection of Chinese cultural relics, including several Dunhuang murals.
Good heavens, this old fox, could it be... that he's the one who got this batch of smuggled goods?
"So? Do you dare to take this route?" Fourth Uncle squinted, his tone laced with provocation.
Ning Yuan put down her newspaper and looked at her fourth uncle with a half-smile: "Fourth Uncle, you certainly have quite the appetite. What, are you thinking of becoming a philanthropist and bringing these treasures back to the mainland?"
Uncle Si frowned, his white eyebrows furrowing, and muttered, "The mainland is dirt poor. What can they buy? There's not even enough food to eat! If it's in the hands of the Chinese, there's still hope. But if it falls into the hands of foreign devils, who knows when they'll destroy it."
Ning Yuan thought to herself, since her fourth uncle wanted to help, it certainly wasn't to donate.
She asked tentatively, "Fourth Uncle, don't you want to go to the auction?"
Uncle Si was taken aback for a moment, then burst into laughter as if he had heard the biggest joke in the world: "Auctions? I've been to plenty of them, do you really think I'm a country bumpkin?"
Ning Yuan interrupted him before he could finish laughing: "I'm not talking about an underground auction, but the Morning Light Socialite Spring Charity Auction after the Lunar New Year, which is aimed at Hong Kong's wealthy families."
Fourth Uncle's laughter stopped abruptly. He narrowed his eyes, looking Ning Yuan up and down, his tone tinged with inquiry: "Little girl, you've got some nerve. Who gave you this idea?"
Ning Yuan said calmly, "Fourth Uncle, my mother is the president of the Chenguang Elite Club."
She doesn't rely on the Ning family patriarch, nor does she say she won't take advantage of her mother. It's a fool not to use resources!
Fourth Uncle gave her a cold look, then suddenly smiled strangely, a cigarette dangling from his lips, as if looking at a clown. He exhaled a smoke ring and mocked—
"Oh, showing off to me? That's how it is when a poor person suddenly becomes rich—petty and stingy."
His old face was like an old tree root soaked in muddy water, deeply furrowed and exuding a meanness.
Upon hearing this, Ah Heng's temper flared up instantly, and he rolled up his sleeves and started cursing.
"You old codger, why is your mouth so foul! Xiao Ning was kind enough to help you sell your goods, and you're acting all sour, you old coffin stuffer..."
As soon as he finished speaking, Fourth Uncle made a move to smash the walnut in his hand toward Ah Heng's head.
This old man may not have any other skills, but he's incredibly accurate at hitting people on the head.
Ning Yuan reacted quickly, grabbing Aheng's arm and pulling her back.
She looked at her fourth uncle with a cool gaze, her tone calm and composed—
"Fourth Uncle, Ah Heng is right this time. Although I don't know why you are so hostile to all rich people, when it comes to business, it's all about business. Why make things so complicated?"
Uncle Si snorted heavily, slammed the walnuts onto the table, making the teacup shake.
"The rich are the worst! How can you accumulate wealth if you're not wicked? Didn't your Ning family become wealthy today by seizing the Sheng family's assets?!"
Looking at her fourth uncle's indignant expression, Ning Yuan's eyes flashed with a strange light. She tentatively asked, "Fourth Uncle, are you... a descendant of the Sheng family?"
Uncle Si froze abruptly, his face instantly turning grim, his eyes flickering uncertainly. After a long pause, he finally managed to squeeze out two words through gritted teeth: "No!"
Ning Yuan was filled with doubts; her fourth uncle's reaction was far too intense.
If it's just simple resentment towards the rich, why get so agitated? Or is your anger specifically directed at the Ning family?
She smiled subtly—
"Fourth Uncle, please don't get agitated. I was just asking casually. Since you don't want to go through the auction route, how do you plan to sell it? You can't just keep holding onto this hot potato forever; it'll cause trouble if you keep it too long."
Uncle Si gave her a wary look: "My goods are mine to do with as I please, it's none of your business!"
Ning Yuan said calmly, "Fourth Uncle, if you were to sell this batch of goods through an underground auction, a reliable buyer would definitely try to drive the price down to the point where you'd lose all your teeth."
“Unreliable buyers might just turn around and sell it to foreigners. In that case, you’ll have made a lot of trouble, but you won’t have made much money and you’ll have gotten yourself into a mess.”
Fourth Uncle sneered, exhaling a smoke ring. The swirling smoke made his old face appear even more somber.
"You think underground auctions don't have any easy targets? I know plenty of rich people! Besides, if this batch of goods goes to an open auction, what if those foreign bastards target it? Wouldn't I be walking right into their trap?"
Ning Yuan said coolly, "You don't need to worry about that, Fourth Uncle. I'll take care of things as your middleman. You just need to make sure the goods are okay."
Fourth Uncle narrowed his eyes, scrutinizing Ning Yuan like an old fox.
He puffed on his cigarette for a long while before finally speaking—
"Fine, I'll trust you this once. But if anything goes wrong, hmph..." He didn't finish his sentence, but the threat was obvious.
Ning Yuan smiled and said, "Fourth Uncle, don't worry. Don't you trust me to handle things? But my commission must be paid at the normal rate. I won't take a penny more than you, but I also won't take a penny less."
Fourth Uncle rolled his eyes and muttered, "Don't give me that crap. Once the job is done, you'll get paid."
He looked Ning Yuan up and down again, then suddenly smiled sinisterly—
"Little girl, you've got some nerve, daring to wander around alone like this. Aren't you afraid of being kidnapped? Even your eldest brother Ning Bingyu and your third brother have been kidnapped before. You're just a girl, tsk tsk..."
Ning Yuan remained calm and said indifferently, "Kidnapping? That depends on whether they have the ability."
Although her tone was calm, a fierce glint appeared in her eyes, which made Uncle Si feel a chill run down his spine.
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