At this moment, Xia Xiaolan’s feelings were extremely complicated. She had thought Du Zhaohui was mentally unstable but suddenly discovered that Tang Yuanyue was no better. She could only remain silent. The more she responded, the more enthusiastic Tang Yuanyue became.

Fortunately, the auction was about to begin. Xia Xiaolan flipped through the auction catalog. While there weren’t many attendees, the items up for bid were quite diverse.

Tang Yuanyue hadn’t lied about one thing – some items were quite affordable. For instance, a yellow seal had a starting bid of only 10,000 Hong Kong dollars. Looking at the catalog description, Xia Xiaolan noted it was a Tian Huang seal. She remembered the saying “Tian Huang worth its weight in gold,” as it had been regarded as the “King of Seal Stones” since the Ming and Qing dynasties… The auction catalog described it similarly.

Xia Xiaolan wasn’t concerned about it being expensive; rather, she thought it was surprisingly cheap, not matching her impression of Tian Huang’s value. Then she remembered it was 1986 – a Tian Huang seal for 10,000 Hong Kong dollars wasn’t strange at all.

A pure Tian Huang stone carving wouldn’t fetch much money even in mainland China. The starting price of 10,000 Hong Kong dollars was justified by its historical significance – this small seal was a Ming dynasty antique.

“Do you like this small seal?” Tang Yuanyue made conversation unnecessarily, peering at Xia Xiaolan’s catalog despite having his own.

“The material is transparent, with natural grain patterns, and it was used by a high official in the Ming dynasty. The starting price of 10,000 Hong Kong dollars isn’t expensive.” Tang Yuanyue was more knowledgeable about these items than Xia Xiaolan.

Xia Xiaolan remained silent. Bai Zhenzhu, sitting in her chair and looking around, suddenly nudged Xia Xiaolan: “Look over there.”

Following Bai Zhenzhu’s direction, Xia Xiaolan saw several people taking their seats, including Ye Xiaoqiong.

Tonight, Ye Xiaoqiong had shed all traces of rusticity, wearing a long dress and light makeup, looking quite elegant.

“Why is she here…”

Tang Yuanyue glanced over twice, “That’s Zhaohui’s brother, Du Jiaoqi, the Du family’s second young master. You know him?”

Ye Xiaoqiong had a scholarly air about her, but Tang Yuanyue wasn’t interested in that type and didn’t pay attention to who Du Jiaoqi brought as his companion.

Everyone present shared Tang Yuanyue’s mindset – unless someone brought a stunning and noteworthy companion like Xia Xiaolan, their attention would always be on the men. In the arena of power, men were the rulers, and even the most beautiful women were merely accessories!

“I don’t know him.”

So that was Du Jiaoqi.

He must be Du Zhaohui’s greatest threat, the most powerful contender for the Du family inheritance.

Du Jiaoqi’s sudden emergence had even suppressed the Fourth Madame’s faction. Xia Xiaolan hadn’t heard anything about Liu Tianquan for a long time – was that fat man still managing the Du family’s smuggling business?

With Xia Xiaolan sitting there in plain sight, Ye Xiaoqiong spotted her as soon as she turned her head.

Ye Xiaoqiong was delighted.

This was their second chance encounter in a short time.

If the auction hadn’t already been announced to begin, Ye Xiaoqiong would certainly have come over to speak with Xia Xiaolan. Even so, she kept glancing over, catching Du Jiaoqi’s attention.

“Did you see someone you know?”

It was strange for a poor secretary to have acquaintances in such a setting, and Du Jiaoqi couldn’t help but look over.

Tang Yuanyue nodded in acknowledgment.

Du Jiaoqi was surprised.

Tang Yuanyue was close to his elder brother, both doing business in Pengcheng and the past year they’d become as thick as thieves. How could Ye Xiaoqiong possibly know Tang Yuanyue?

While Du Jiaoqi harbored doubts, Ye Xiaoqiong was unaware of the crisis of trust she faced. “She’s a friend I met on the mainland who helped me and showed me kindness. I unexpectedly ran into her again in Hong Kong a few days ago. Second Young Master, after the auction ends, may I go greet my friend?”

Du Jiaoqi responded calmly: “You may.”

Why not just switch jobs to work at Tang Yuanyue’s company while you’re at it?

Du Jiaoqi’s suspicions were dispelled.

If something was going on, she wouldn’t have mentioned it so openly.

Du Jiaoqi was also somewhat on edge. Du Chengrong’s sudden proposal of a “20 million to determine the winner” competition made it difficult to maintain even a facade of brotherly affection with his elder brother.

Du Zhaohui saw him as a thorn in his side.

He couldn’t just surrender.

Du Jiaoqi wasn’t foolish. If Du Zhaohui took control of the group, given his tyrannical and ruthless nature, no one else in the Du family would have a chance of survival.

This competition, where the winner would receive 5% of the shares, meant far more than just those shares.

Lost in thought, Du Jiaoqi failed to notice Ye Xiaoqiong beside him showing an excited expression while looking at the auction catalog.

“The second one…”

Sure enough, those items were already circulating in Hong Kong.

This was the second one she had discovered!

“Second Young Master, were these two auctions organized by the same owner?”

Du Jiaoqi came back to his senses, “Why do you ask?”

Ye Xiaoqiong tried hard not to show any unusual reaction, pointing at the items in the promotional catalog: “I noticed the antiques are similar in style to the first auction, all being precious items from the Ming and Qing dynasties, so I thought they might be from the same collection.”

Du Jiaoqi was in a good mood. The antique painting that Ye Xiaoqiong had advised him to bid on last time, though expensive at 400,000 Hong Kong dollars, proved to be an authentic work by the Ming dynasty master Qiu Ying.

400,000 Hong Kong dollars wasn’t expensive at all – people had already inquired whether Du Jiaoqi would be willing to sell it for a higher price.

He wasn’t concerned about making a profit from buying and selling; Du Jiaoqi didn’t care about such small amounts of money.

Rather, owning an authentic piece brought prestige, and even that difficult client was now willing to continue business discussions with Du Jiaoqi.

Though he paid for the painting, it was Ye Xiaoqiong who suggested it.

Ye Xiaoqiong had doubts about today’s auction, and Du Jiaoqi didn’t find her annoying – this was precisely why he brought her!

“I don’t know if it’s the same owner selling, but the auction organizer is the same person. Everyone calls him Master Qiu.”

Ye Xiaoqiong silently memorized this name.

Since the second item had appeared, the remaining pieces might all be in Master Qiu’s possession.

Ye Xiaoqiong became alert, “Second Young Master, look at this Tian Huang seal…”

…

“First auction item, Ming dynasty Tian Huang seal, carved with five bats and auspicious clouds, bearing the characters ‘Receive Heaven’s Hundred Blessings,’ a Taoist treasure seal of the Heavenly Official’s blessings… Starting bid, 10,000 Hong Kong dollars, each bid increases by 5,000 dollars.”

A Taoist treasure seal would be quite suitable as a gift for a feng shui master.

Xia Xiaolan didn’t have a bidding paddle, but as soon as the auctioneer finished speaking, Tang Yuanyue bid for her.

“15,000 once! Young Master Tang likes this Tian Huang seal… 20,000 once, Young Master Du…”

Du Jiaoqi and Tang Yuanyue’s gazes met briefly before parting.

“25,000, Young Master Tang bids again!”

“30,000, 30,000 first time…”

“35,000—”

The auctioneer’s voice notably became excited.

The auction had barely begun, and already two wealthy young masters were competing. This was exactly what auctions loved – after several rounds of bidding, items would be driven up to prices higher than expected.

Du Jiaoqi raised his paddle again, “50,000, please give way, Mr. Tang!”

Tang Yuanyue frowned. This must be interference – if he gave way to Du Jiaoqi, who would give way to him? He was bidding for Xia Xiaolan!

Weren’t the Du brothers on bad terms? Tang Yuanyue felt that although Du Zhaohui wasn’t present, he had sent his brother to cause trouble.

Xia Xiaolan hadn’t expected the Tian Huang seal’s price to rise to 50,000 in such a short time. If the bidding continued, it would be too overpriced – she might as well give Wu Daonan something else.

However, she felt quite drawn to this seal. What a pity.

“Mr. Tang, don’t bid anymore—”

“…50,000 second time, 50,000 third—”

Tang Yuanyue raised his paddle, “80,000!”

After bidding, he said quietly to Xia Xiaolan, “This seal isn’t just about your gift anymore – it’s now a matter of face between me and Du Jiaoqi. Who does he think he is, telling me to give way?”