Chapter 72

“Cough cough cough…”

The grape that slid down her throat choked Zhou Qingyu and she started coughing violently. Yan Xi quickly patted her back to help her calm down.

"Why are you eating so fast? No one is competing with you for it."

Zhou Qingyu was so angry that she laughed, "Can you please listen to what you just said first!"

She reached out and touched Yan Xi's forehead, then touched her own, "You don't have a fever! Why are you talking nonsense?"

Yan Xi didn't know whether to laugh or cry, "I'm serious!"

Zhou Qingyu was helpless, "I am serious too! What do you think Meng's is? A small company like Xingyao? They are a high-end luxury brand! Even though they have fallen into decline in recent years and have become the last in the luxury industry, they still have a solid foundation! If you want to acquire Tianhui, I can still consider it!"

If Meng's was just a small company, would Meng Yingrong have the opportunity to form a business alliance with Zhou's father? Although Zhou Qingyu knew nothing about business, she did have this common sense.

"If you want to acquire Meng's, you need a group at least as big as Zhou's to do it!"

Yan Xi blinked her eyes, "Yes, let Zhou acquire it! Oh, acquisition may be too troublesome, but we can control Meng's company! Become the largest shareholder! I have some dirt on Meng's company. If this news is exposed, Meng's stock price will drop by at least half. You can discuss it with your father. I think your father will be tempted. This is a project that is not inferior to Zijin Garden!"

Zhou Qingyu was stunned for two seconds. Yan Xi was now the VP of Xingyao. She presumed that Yan Xi said this from the perspective of Xingyao, which was impossible. But if it was from the perspective of Zhou's company... With the size of Zhou's company, it would be no problem to acquire Meng's company, let alone just taking control.

Zhou Qingyu lowered her head suspiciously and looked through the information Yan Xi gave her. The more she read, the more shocked she became. She felt that she was already a spendthrift. In comparison, Meng Xuanyu was simply her ancestor!

"Is Meng Xuanyu crazy?" Zhou Qingyu lowered her voice unconsciously.

This matter is too big, there are other people in the old house, and she is afraid that others will find out.

"That's right!"

Considering Meng's fate in the later part of the novel, Yan Xi felt that the information Lin Zhi had found was 90% true.

Zhou Qingyu was eager to make a move. You know, once the scandal was exposed, Meng's stock price would definitely plummet. If she took the opportunity to buy shares, she would make a huge profit!

Yan Xi patiently coaxed him, "Think about it, this time the acquisition, Zhou eats meat, and we drink soup. With the funds you have, it's okay to buy some shares of Meng's, right? As long as Meng's survives this crisis, the stock price will definitely rise!"

"You were the one who proposed the acquisition project. Your father will definitely hand over the management of Meng Corporation to you in the future!"

"My dad won't agree!" Zhou Qingyu frowned, "After all, he is my former relative, he must be afraid of being criticized!"

Seeing that Zhou Qingyu was already interested, Yan Xi took out the DNA test report of Meng Xuanyu and Meng Yingrong and said, "Show this to your father. He will definitely agree."

Zhou Qingyu opened the report suspiciously and saw the final report results.

She gasped, "I was wondering why she was so nice to Meng Xuanyu, it turns out he's her biological son! This is too disgusting, right? Isn't a child from a business marriage still a child?"

Zhou Qingyu threw the documents on the table and said, "Unlucky Zhou Yanci, how could he end up with such a mother!"

The Meng family nominally has three children, Meng Xuanhao, Meng Yingrong, and Meng Xuanyu.

Meng Xuanhao is the child of Meng Huaigu's first wife, and Meng Yingrong is the child of Meng Huaigu and his second wife. Zhou Qingyu has always thought that Meng Yingrong and Meng Xuanhao have the same father but different mothers, so they don't treat each other well.

Now it seems that the reason for not making amends is just to support his son to take the throne!

"If my uncle knew about this, there's no way he wouldn't stand on our side," Yan Xi said seriously.

Zhou Qingyu tapped the table with her fingers and thought for a moment.

Even if she and Zhou Yanci are at odds, the Zhou family controls the Meng family, and when her father dies, the inheritance will be divided equally, and Zhou Yanci can get half. From this perspective, it is a good thing for Zhou Yanci, and her father will definitely not refuse.

But she just agreed to invest in Qu Yan's project... 50 million is not a big number. Qu Yan's vision for projects is not good. Zhou Qingyu originally thought that 50 million would make her aunt happy, but with such a big piece of cake in front of her, she still wants to buy more shares of Meng's! Money should be spent wisely!

Zhou Qingyu put away the documents Yan Xi gave her and said, "After dinner, I will go talk to my father and try to get this project!"

——

After Qu Yan and Zhou Qingyu separated, they went straight to the Victoria Club.

Her sister group has an event here today.

The sisters in the group are all wealthy ladies who are about the same age as Qu Yan. Most of them are married, and there are only a few who are still single like Qu Yan.

The reason we are holding the party today is because one of the girls is getting married tomorrow and tonight is her bachelorette party.

The lights in the private room were bright and the expensive champagne was scattered all over the floor. Qu Yan found an empty seat and sat down. When she looked up, she saw the protagonist of the night, Fang Ruoran, who was at odds with her, proudly showing off her five-carat diamond ring to the other sisters.

"Oh, actually I don't want to buy a ring. You know, I don't like wearing jewelry. It's so inconvenient! But my husband said, if others have it, I must have it too~"

Fang Ruoran's father is from Taicheng. She lived in Taicheng for a few years when she was a child. She always speaks with the coquettish accent of Taicheng. Men feel sweet to the bone when listening to it, but women find it pretentious.

Qu Yan glanced at Fang Ruoran. A five-carat ring? What's so great about showing off?

Besides, Qu Yan had met Fang Ruoran's fiancé, and the two had even been on a blind date. Qu Yan disliked his appearance and did not agree to the marriage. Unexpectedly, the other party chose Fang Ruoran.

In the past two years, Qu's father arranged many blind dates for Qu Yan, but Qu Yan didn't like any of them.

Maybe it's because you met someone you liked when you were young, and it becomes difficult to be attracted to someone again afterwards.

The Qu family is not as powerful as the Meng family, and they were able to marry Zhou Hongsheng because Zhou Hongsheng's father and Qu's father were good friends. Qu's father's business failed, and Zhou Hongsheng happened to divorce Meng Yingrong. Under the guidance of his father, he simply helped the Qu family.

At that time, Qu Ying was 20 years old and Qu Yan was 11 years old.

The marriage fell on Qu Yingtou.

At first, Qu Yan had no idea that her sister was marrying a rich, divorced man, but her sister became very rich and generous, so she often went to Zhou's house to visit her sister.

But the girl's youth was only in those few years. At that time, all the boys around Qu Yan were immature troublemakers, but there was a mature and charming man in front of her.

At that time, Zhou Hongsheng was in his early thirties, with a handsome face and a handsome appearance. Before marrying Qu Ying, he was not the richest man in Haicheng. In recent years, he seized the real estate boom and his career developed by leaps and bounds.

Qu Yan was attracted to her brother-in-law.

Maybe it was because he was young, and he knew that it was impossible for the two of them to be together, so he kept his excitement deep in his heart.

After more than ten years, the excitement gradually faded. Even after Qu Ying passed away, Qu Yan never thought about Zhou Hongsheng again, after all, there was a 20-year age difference between them.

But when Qu Yan was taking care of Zhou Qingyu at Zhou's house, she ran into the seventeen-year-old Zhou Yanci.

The boy was not yet an adult, but he was already over 1.8 meters tall, with broad shoulders and long legs. His white school uniform shirt was tucked into his black trousers along his skinny waist. His legs were straight and slender, and every step he took was filled with a steady strength.

At that time, Qu Yan was only 24 years old.

As for Zhou Yanci, he was polite and courteous since he was young. Although there was a hint of indifference and alienation in his eyes, his attitude also made people feel comfortable.

When he saw Qu Yan, he took the initiative to help her with her luggage.

"Aunt, are you still sleeping in the room next to Whisper? I'll bring her over for you."

Qu Yan didn't react for a moment.

Zhou Yanci called out twice more. His voice was low, with a hint of youthfulness and magnetism that had not yet faded.

Qu Yan woke up from a dream, "Thank you."

Zhou Yanci put Qu Yan's luggage in the guest room, turned to look at Qu Yan, and said earnestly, "Father didn't go to worship mother yesterday, which made Qingyu unhappy. The little girl is thinking too much. Please comfort her more."

Qu Yan just remembered that she had said bad things about him to Zhou Qingyu in front of Zhou Yanci at the cemetery yesterday, but Zhou Yanci didn't get angry and was very polite.

Qu Yan's face suddenly turned red and her heart beat rapidly.

Part of it is shyness, part of it is heart-throb.

It has been ten years. Qu Yan knew that she had hidden it very well. Neither Zhou Qingyu nor Zhou Hongsheng discovered her thoughts. It was estimated that only Zhou Yanci knew about this.

Fortunately, Zhou Yanci is still single.

She still has a chance.

"Qu Yan? Qu Yan?"

Fang Ruoran called Qu Yan, but when she saw that Qu Yan didn't respond, she deliberately sat next to Qu Yan, with her hands folded on her legs, making her folded hands particularly conspicuous.

"Qu Yan, among our group, you are the only one who is still single. You are not young anymore, it's time for you to find a partner!"

Qu Yan came back to her senses and said with a fake smile, "Isn't it good to be single? Little boys can talk as much as they want, and no one cares!"

Fang Ruoran chuckled.

The "little milk dogs" mentioned by Qu Yan refer to those men who are good-looking but poor. As for keeping a mistress, as long as you have money, what kind of man can't you get? And these men are also very obedient.

"So what?" Fang Ruoran smiled and fiddled with her eggs. "You can only play with a puppy. You should find a man who really loves you and is willing to spend money on you!"

Qu Yan took a deep breath and said, "Tsk, isn't it just a pigeon egg? I can afford it myself!"

"Our Yanyan is rich!" A sister next to her echoed, "Ms. Zhou is her niece, Yanyan has everything she wants!"

"If I have a niece like Zhou Qingyu, what kind of man do I need? I can just keep a male celebrity as my mistress!"

"Yeah, some of the artists at Xingyao are pretty good too!"

"Yes! That Shen Xinghe and Si Ye are so handsome, and their physical strength is probably very good too!"

The sisters laughed and gathered together to talk about the following topics: jewelry, bags, and men.

One of the daughters had an auction house at home. When she heard Qu Yan say that she could afford pigeon eggs, her eyes lit up.

"Yan Yan, there is an auction in Haicheng tonight. I have several people who are bidding on behalf of me there. The highlight today is a five-carat yellow diamond. It is estimated that it can be bought within 10 million. Are you interested?"

Qu Yan's eyelids twitched, and before she could think of a way to refuse, the people around her started to make a noise.

"What's 10 million? Didn't you watch Miss Zhou's variety show? She just casually gave her bestie a sailboat worth more than 20 million!"

"That's right. Miss Zhou is so generous. Shouldn't she be better to her aunt?"

"Yan Yan probably wouldn't even look down on 10 million pigeon eggs!"

Qu Yan felt that spending 10 million to buy a piece of jewelry was flashy and useless.

But when her eyes glanced at Fang Ruoran, her smile disappeared, and her face was as colorful as a spilled paint tray. This party should have been her home, but when Zhou Qingyu was mentioned, everyone's eyes were focused on Qu Yan.

Fang Ruoran gritted her teeth, grabbed the hem of her skirt awkwardly, and her eyes were full of resentment.

Qu Yan was delighted. She suddenly felt that spending 10 million to get the pigeon egg was nothing.

Anyway, she will get Zhou Qingyu's 50 million tomorrow!

Qu Yan raised her chin with an arrogant attitude, "Let your people take the photo, I want this yellow diamond!"

As soon as the word was spoken here, the news has already reached the auction house. The professional auctioneer is very helpful. If the boss wants this yellow diamond, then we must get it!

At this time, Huang Zuan had just started bidding, with a reserve price of seven million.

The color, clarity, cut and other qualities of this yellow diamond are very high. Not only Qu Yan is interested in it, but many bidders also came for it.

Within a few minutes, the price of the diamond had reached nine million, and many bidders were discouraged.

Of course Qu Yan did not give up, her bottom price was 10 million.

But when her proxy bidder called out a price of 10 million, another proxy bidder called out a higher price, "11 million."

Qu Yan's face turned pale.

Didn’t you say it can be done within 10 million?

The auctioneer's daughter looked embarrassed, "It seems someone is determined to get this diamond! They've already bid this high!"

Fang Ruoran smiled and said, "Qu Yan, let's forget about it. Ten million is not cheap!"

Qu Yan didn't want to lose face in front of Fang Ruoran. She was the only leftover woman in the sister group. This was already a disgrace to her. How could she survive in the sister group in the future if she couldn't even get a yellow diamond? Fang Ruoran would laugh at her for the rest of her life!

"Gah! I must get this yellow diamond!"

——

In the hall, Zhou Qingyu opened her tablet before dinner and wanted to buy something.

She didn't plan to spend a lot of money and just wanted to buy something small at the auction. As a result, she won the five-carat yellow diamond at first sight.

Who doesn’t like sparkling diamonds?

And the reserve price was only 7 million. Zhou Qingyu estimated that it could be bought for 10 million!

She contacted the auctioneer, whose estimate was similar to Zhou Qingyu's, but just in case, she still asked the highest price Zhou Qingyu could afford.

This question is undoubtedly an insult to the young lady.

How could a young lady have a "highest price she can afford"? If a young lady likes a diamond, she must buy it!

As a result, the price of this diamond, which everyone originally estimated to be worth less than 10 million, began to soar: 110, 120, 150, 170, 20 million...

Qu Yan was confused.

Zhou Qingyu was also confused. Who was it that dared to compete with her?

——

In the box, the smile on Qu Yan's face disappeared and cold sweat broke out on her forehead.

The auction house's daughter asked cautiously, "Yan Yan, the other party has bid 20 million, do you want to increase the price?"

Before Qu Yan could say anything, Fang Ruoran spoke first, "Forget it, Qu Yan, it's only 20 million~"

Qu Yan gritted her teeth and asked, "Is that person really necessary?"

The daughter of the auction house said: "From the looks of it, yes."

Some sellers do not want others to know their identities and participate in the auction anonymously. However, if the cooperation is pleasant, the seller will not easily change the proxy bidder.

The daughter of the auction house had seen this proxy bidder before. She remembered that she bid very aggressively. As long as she raised the sign, she could get whatever she wanted.

Others would feel guilty after hearing this, but Qu Yan felt relieved.

She gave up when the price reached 10 million, which means the lowest price she could afford was 10 million.

He gave up when the price was 20 million, which means that the lowest price he could afford was 20 million.

Since the other party insisted on having it, what was wrong with Qu Yan fighting for her reputation? If she gave up only after 30 million, it would not be easy to say that she was not capable. She could just say "A gentleman does not take away what others like~"

Qu Yan felt relieved instantly, and waved her hand calmly, "More! Don't stop until it's less than 30 million!"

Thirty million!

All the sister groups present gasped. Ten million was no small number. Thirty million, many sister groups couldn't even earn thirty million in a year!

They were originally worried about Qu Yan, but now their eyes turned flattering when they looked at her.

——

"What are you doing?"

Yan Xi was helping Zhou Qingyu play games. When she turned around, she saw her holding a tablet. The screen displayed the auction interface, and the bid had reached 29 million.

Zhou Qingyu was nervous. "No, nothing. Just taking some photos..."

Yan Xi: “…”

"29 million, I'm not blind."

Zhou Qingyu muttered, "I just want to buy a diamond! What's wrong with a girl buying something?"

Yan Xi leaned over to take another look. "A reserve price of seven million to buy a diamond worth twenty-nine million?"

"This diamond is very beautiful!" Zhou Qingyu edited the words, "It can be made into a necklace. I can wear it when I attend Weibo Night in two days!"

"But the M family gave you a necklace, and it's a collector's item. And you spent more than 29 million to buy a diamond. Don't you want the shares of the Meng family?"

Zhou Qing said angrily, "It's only 29 million!"

Yan Xi: "Just think about it, Meng's, a luxurious family. If you control Meng's, you will have countless high-end clothes and endless jewelry... You can wear a dove egg on each finger, changing a set every hour, and you can also inlay diamonds on your nails..."

"Stop, stop!"

Zhou Qingyu imagined what Yan Xi said. Although she was rich, she was not so extravagant. But when she heard Yan Xi say this, it became clear in an instant. She was so happy, "I won't buy it! Okay!"

Yan Xi nodded with satisfaction, "Well, that's about right~"

——

In the Victoria Club box, after the other party called out a price of 29 million, Qu Yan's people immediately raised the price to 30 million.

Then, the other party fell silent.

"Thirty million at a time!"

"Thirty million twice!"

“30 million three times! Congratulations to bidder No. 250 for successfully winning this yellow diamond!”

Qu Yan is bidder number 250.

When she learned that she had won the bid, she was completely stunned.

She grabbed the clothes that were worth thousands of dollars at the auction house and said, "Wouldn't you say that the other party is determined to get it?"

The auctioneer held out his hand, "Yeah, I don't know why she gave up all of a sudden. Maybe she saw that you were determined to win, and she knew she couldn't beat you, so she gave up!"

"Yanyan, congratulations! You took this yellow diamond~"

Qu Yan wanted to cry but had no tears. She spent 30 million to buy a diamond with a reserve price of 7 million. What was there to be happy about?

The auction house is in Haicheng. As long as Qu Yan pays, the auction house will send a special car to deliver the diamond within half an hour.

The sisters all said, “I’m really looking forward to it!”

"I have never seen a yellow diamond in my life~"

"Yanyan will look great in diamonds!"

Everyone urged Qu Yan, "Yan Yan, remit the money! I can't wait to see this yellow diamond!"

Qu Yan was lifted onto the fire rack and couldn't get down.

She comforted herself in her heart, fortunately she got 50 million from Zhou Qingyu today, even if she took the diamond, she would still have 20 million! It was not a loss for her, not a loss!

But she didn't have that much money on her, so she could only contact Zhou Qingyu and ask her to transfer the money to her.

In the corridor of Victoria Club, Qu Yan called Zhou Qingyu.

"Nannan, do you remember the project I told you about this afternoon? They are very urgent. If you want to invest, you need to transfer the money today!"

Zhou Qingyu wanted to acquire Meng's shares, but Huang Zuan didn't buy any. She was still angry and had no interest in Qu Yan's project.

"Aunt, I'm short on money right now, so I won't invest in your project for now. You guys can do it on your own!"

Having said that, she hung up the phone, still feeling sad about the yellow diamond that she didn't get.

Qu Yan was stunned when she heard a busy tone on her phone.

How could Zhou Qingyu go back on her word?

Thirty million worth of diamonds, where does she get so much money? !

Back in the box, the auction house's daughter excitedly urged Qu Yan, and all the sisters in the group were looking forward to seeing her.

Qu Yan was ashamed. "I suddenly felt that this diamond was not that good. It looked like an artificial diamond. I don't want it anymore."

"ah--"

There were cries of regret from the sisterhood.

Only Fang Ruoran smiled and stroked her own dove egg, "Qu Yan, is it because it is not pretty, or is it because I can't afford it? But it's only 30 million, so I can give it away even if it is not pretty!"

Qu Yan looked embarrassed and didn't want to respond to Fang Ruoran at all.

But the others also understood the meaning, and several of them whispered to each other:

"No matter how ugly it is, it's just that I can't afford it."

"With a niece like Zhou Qingyu, can't you afford a yellow diamond?"

"Zhou Qingyu is just her niece, not a sucker! Without Zhou Qingyu, what is she?"

"That's right. The Qu family has been on the decline recently. If it weren't for the Zhou family, they would have fallen out of the ranks of Haicheng's wealthy families long ago!"

"You can't even come up with 30 million, what kind of wealthy family are you?"

The voices of those people were clearly very low, but they were like slaps in the face, mercilessly hitting Qu Yan.

Qu Yan picked up her bag and turned to leave.

The auction house's daughter reminded her, "Yan Yan, are you sure you don't want it? I'll tell the auction house, but it's one thing for you not to want it, but the one million deposit you paid earlier is not refundable!"

Qu Yan gritted her teeth, but could do nothing.

“No!”

——

Zhou's Restaurant

Zhou Qingyu ate her dinner in a hurry, still feeling sad about Huang Zuan whom she didn't take a picture of.

The eldest daughter has never been short of material things since she grew up. In the past, she only suffered the pain of love, but now she has to suffer the pain of not having diamonds!

Actually, 30 million is not a lot. If you grit your teeth, it is not impossible...

Suddenly, the phone rang. It was the photographer calling.

"Ms. Zhou, bidder No. 250 no longer wants the yellow diamond. The yellow diamond is being auctioned for the second time. Do you still want it?"

Zhou Qingyu's eyes lit up, "Yes, yes, yes!"

Even if it costs 50 million this time, she is determined to get Huang Zuan!

Ten minutes later, the agent sent a message, "Eight million, done!"

Eight million?!

Zhou Qingyu was dumbfounded, "So cheap?"

"It was mainly because you and No. 250 bid too aggressively in the first round. Everyone knew you were determined to win, so few people dared to bid in the second round. After seeing me take action, everyone gave up."

"Miss, congratulations~"