Wang Tai heard this, and felt a sour, hollow ache in her chest.

But with everyone watching, there was no way to make a scene.

To react would be to show guilt.

In the background, a few people were already enjoying the spectacle — sensing the scent of a battle between Wang Tai and her potential future daughter-in-law.

A daughter-in-law as sharp-tongued as Liang Meng — there weren’t many “mothers-in-law” who could hold their ground against that.

“My, my. What are you all discussing over here? Quite the lively crowd.”

At that moment, Jiang Han arrived with Lin Qing in tow.

Wang Tai, still disgruntled and seizing the opening, wasted no time in using them as her weapon: “Jiang Han, you’ve arrived just in time — the gossip has circled back to you.”

Zhao Tai couldn’t wait: “Liang Xing just said the two of you never got a marriage certificate. Is that true?”

Jiang Han glanced around, raised his glass, and attempted to defuse the awkwardness: “My! The theme of tonight’s gathering is quite a profound one — you’re all debating the form of marriage, are you?”

Wang Tai gave a cold laugh. “This isn’t the theme of the gathering — but your ‘little sister-in-law’ just delivered quite the speech about her values, and those of us who are older are still in the process of digesting it.”

Jiang Han could well guess what Liang Meng had said — she could never stand by and watch Liang Xing be put upon.

So he glossed it over: “Sister-in-law, young people don’t know any better. Zaiwu’s the same — you’ll just have to bear with them. At our age, we’ve long passed the stage of discussing love and romance. When we’re together, we should be talking about health and wellness, investment, inspirational wisdom — and if nothing else works, celebrity gossip!”

“I’m not usually a rigid person.” Wang Tai, out of patience, decided to lay her cards on the table. “But today, this particular topic needs to be talked through properly. After all, Zaiwu and Liang Meng are currently in a relationship. If their fundamental values don’t align, I think it’s better to part sooner rather than later — to spare both families the anguish.”

Wang Tai’s objective today, plainly stated, was to make Liang Xing back down gracefully. By whatever means necessary — the end result was what mattered.

Hearing this, Jiang Han quickly turned to Liang Meng: “Xiao Meng, what have you been saying to upset Aunt Wang? Go and explain yourself properly. You’re nearly thirty — you still can’t gauge the weight of your own words?”

“I simply said that as long as two people have genuine feelings, marriage is just a formality,” Liang Meng replied with a petulant pout, then rounded on Jiang Han: “Isn’t that exactly what you and my sister are? The love was real — and so is the lack of it now. Otherwise why would you sell your Longquan shares, and spend all that money on this gold-digging woman?”

As she finished, Liang Meng directed a hateful glare at Lin Qing.

Liang Meng’s torrent of grievance was something the crowd could understand.

Who would willingly stand by and watch their former “brother-in-law” bring some scheming girl waltzing into the fold — right in front of their own sister — and throw the family business into turmoil?

“Who are you calling a gold-digger?”

Others misunderstanding Lin Qing was one thing — but to have Liang Meng, of all people, whimper these accusations with such wounded resentment and dump that label on her head, on top of a few glasses of wine — even she had her limits!

“Hmph. Those who know will know who I’m talking about. All you did was take advantage of your youth, become my sister’s personal assistant, and somehow end up in my brother-in-law’s bed.”

Wang Zaiwu shot a sideways glance at Liang Meng. How could she say something so ugly? This wasn’t the person he knew.

The wealthy matrons continued watching with great relish.

A few inwardly speculated: just how much had this girl cost Jiang Han? Enough for Liang Meng to lose composure so thoroughly in public.

“President Liang, that is a horrible thing to say,” Lin Qing fired back heatedly. “Jiang Han and I are together — he was free, I was free, and we are completely within the bounds of law and propriety! On what grounds do you call me a gold-digger? Ha — I know most people here look down on me. But did I put a knife to Jiang Han’s throat? Everything he’s spent on me, he’s spent of his own free will! Liang Meng — if you and your sister have it in you, make Jiang Han spend on you!”

No one had ever seen someone in the role of the “other woman” carry herself with such brazen defiance. It was a first for the assembled crowd, and every pair of eyes swung once again to Liang Xing.

The “original partner” who had already stepped aside.

Quite the spectacle.

Liang Xing extinguished everyone’s curiosity with a single mild remark.

“Money earned by someone else is never as satisfying as money you’ve made yourself. Xiao Meng, come — let’s go and look at the brooches up front.”

And with that, Liang Xing calmly withdrew from the battlefield, taking Liang Meng and Wang Zaiwu with her.

Wang Tai and the other wealthy matrons cast Lin Qing one last withering glance before also drifting away.

Allowing themselves to be lectured at by such a lowly young girl was frankly beneath their dignity.

Having moved to another corner, Zhao Tai said to Wang Tai: “What kind of family is that! The whole lot of them are a tangled mess. I’m telling you, you really need to find a way to make Zaiwu cut ties with them for good.”

Wang Tai rubbed her temples: “You think I don’t want to? I’ve never had a good feeling about that Liang Xing. And you heard Liang Meng just now — sharp-tongued with me right to my face. And nothing has even really happened yet. What’s she going to be like when she’s got Zaiwu eating out of her hand?”

“Exactly. Jiang Han’s love life is a complete mess too — though what man isn’t a bit of a wanderer? And Liang Xing and Liang Meng aren’t blood sisters. With all three of them living together in that villa before, who knows what the real story was there.”

“Enough, enough — let’s not speak of Jiang Han.” Wang Tai still simmered with residual anger, and waved her hand in irritation. “Look at the sort of woman he’s turned up with tonight! And I have no idea what our Wang ever saw in him to think so highly of him. I’ve heard that since Jiang Han acquired Ling Xue, he hasn’t been managing it well, and right now the entire Sansheng company is… let’s just say the future looks uncertain.”

“That’s what I hear too,” another matron chimed in. “My husband came home saying the same. Sansheng is such a large enterprise, and lately it’s been tilting in a worrying direction. He and a few other longtime stakeholders have already withdrawn what they could, recovered what they could, and offloaded all the shares they held.”

“A boss who keeps his mind on women will eventually come undone. Jiang Han just happened to ride the wave of the times — and I’ve heard he only has a middle school education.”

These long-tongued women seemed to take delight in excavating other people’s shortcomings to bolster their own sense of superiority. Without any real connection to the matter, they had drifted all the way to disparaging Jiang Han’s academic background.

“Hey — so do you all think Jiang Han and Liang Xing are truly finished? Just now, face to face, the two of them seemed remarkably composed — you couldn’t tell if anything had fractured between them at all,” someone said curiously.

“Oh, that’s not hard to work out at all.” Zhao Tai stepped forward with confident authority to provide the answer: “There’s a jewellery auction later, isn’t there? Just watch the two of them — whether they compete or not. What woman could bear to sit and watch the man she loves buy jewellery for someone else right in front of her? If it were you, could you stand it?”

“If it were me, I’d go head to head with him — push the price up, make him bleed a little more!”

Wang Tai, listening to the chatter, hatched a new idea. She beckoned Liang Meng over, adopting the airs of a prospective mother-in-law: “Xiao Meng, there’s a necklace I’ll be bidding on shortly that I intend to give you — I wanted to let you know in advance. When the moment comes, accept it graciously.”

Liang Meng made a show of declining: “Aunt Wang, that really isn’t necessary. It’s far too generous.”

Wang Tai gave a cold laugh: “This is nothing to our family.”

“Then I’ll look to see if there’s a small piece I can bid on in return, as a token of my regard,” Liang Meng replied astutely. “Just a little something — a reciprocal gesture.”

If she accepted Wang Tai’s jewellery tonight, she would find herself at a disadvantage in any future dealings with Wang Xiancheng.

Liang Meng was not going to take this small advantage.

And besides — Wang Tai had said it was “nothing.” Then the Liang family would naturally treat it as nothing too.

Before long, a few deputy directors from the museum and a master jewellery appraiser had finished speaking, and the auction officially commenced.

Lin Qing and Jiang Han sat in their seats toward the back. Jiang Han handed her the bidding paddle.

Lin Qing still had a ball of fire smouldering in her chest, and found herself unable to stand the sight of most of the people in the room. She was in no mood whatsoever to look at jewellery.

“I have to get some payback tonight. Who does that Wang Tai think she is? Her husband has a bit of money and she acts like the queen of the world? After being pushed around by her tonight, I even find myself unable to stand the sight of Wang Zaiwu anymore!”

“That’s simple enough.” Jiang Han draped his arm casually across the back of Lin Qing’s seat. “Every single time she raises her paddle — you raise yours for one increment more! Just one increment, and make sure you win!”

Lin Qing stole a guilty glance at him, thinking: a person like Wang Tai — you could just quietly curse her to eat instant noodles with no seasoning packet, and that would be sufficient. There’s no need to actually go toe-to-toe in real money — that’s just making a fool of oneself.

Wang Zaiwu and Liang Meng sat together in the rows ahead. Liang Meng held a bidding paddle in her hand.

Wang Zaiwu asked quietly: “Hey Liang Meng, do you have any money?”

Liang Meng barely deigned to look at him: “No. Do you?”

Wang Zaiwu raised an eyebrow: “Over the years, I’ve saved up a bit from my pocket money. Want me to bid on something for you as a gift?”

Liang Meng slanted a glance at him: “A bit of money and look how smug you get! Money has to be spent where it counts.”

“And you’re where it counts.”

“Right now you’re counting down to getting stabbed by me!”

The auction began.

Even the auctioneer had been brought in from Hong Kong — a Madam Lu Liang.

The auction proceeded in ascending order of value, starting with the less expensive pieces.

Right from the start, everyone raised their paddles casually and without much fuss.

Lin Qing, however, was wildly enthusiastic — as though she had never been near fine things in her life — and raised her paddle with gleeful excitement at every turn!

Wang Tai glanced back at her with contempt. “Tasteless.”

And so it went, until Lin Qing had snagged a yellow diamond necklace, a tourmaline bracelet, and a vintage brooch.

In half an hour she had burned through twenty million of Jiang Han’s money.

Lin Qing bowed her head and reflected: ever since she’d met Jiang Han, she seemed to have a personal feud with the number twenty million.

Even when placing futures orders, it was always twenty million at a time.

Just as Jiang Han had said — once you mentally removed the word “million” and treated it as just another number, the money truly lost all its weight.

“Next, we present for your consideration a vintage jadeite brooch in the shape of a butterfly — no reserve price, estimated value between eighteen and twenty million. Is anyone willing to bid above that?”

And right on cue, they had arrived at the twenty million threshold.

Lin Qing’s courage faltered. Even Jiang Han had money, but it couldn’t be burned through at this rate.

She felt like a walking cash-shredder, and Jiang Han was the power source.

To stop the cash-shredder from running, she’d have to cut Jiang Han’s power.

So Lin Qing quietly pulled the invitation from beneath her seat cushion and made her case to Jiang Han: “Look — it says right here, this is the Mengchuan Elegant Gathering, cordially inviting you to a jewellery appreciation. Sir, I feel that we should appreciate with our eyes… throwing actual money at it is a bit too vulgar.”

“Enough talk. Bid. Twenty-five million.” Jiang Han was unmoved.

“Sir, with that single bid you just consumed the rest of my life.”

Lin Qing did the calculation: working from now until fifty-five, roughly thirty years of working life. With an annual salary of three hundred thousand, minus mortgage, car payments, food and expenses — half gone — the most she could save toward retirement would be five million. And that was on the condition of no marriage, no children, no catastrophic illness for her mother, no impulse shopping, and a lifetime of extreme frugality.

“Bid.” Jiang Han commanded in his coldest tone.

With no choice, Lin Qing raised the paddle for the first time: “Twenty-five million!”

“Twenty-six million!” Liang Meng raised.

“Twenty-eight million!” Zhao Tai raised.

“Thirty million!” Wang Tai raised.

Jiang Han prodded Lin Qing again: “Bid. Thirty-one.”

Struggling against her better judgment, Lin Qing called out the number as though bleeding from the heart: “Thirty-one million!”

“Thirty-two million.” Liang Meng continued.

When the price reached thirty-five million, there was a small lull.

Jiang Han urged Lin Qing to keep bidding, but the poor girl had already completely lost her composure.

She desperately wished Jiang Han would just not bid.

These numbers being shouted were all actual money!

At this price, honestly — the largest-denomination paper money her family burned in the crematorium furnace for her late father at the Qingming festival was only this size.

“Thirty-eight million.”

Then, from a quiet corner, a calm voice carried over.

It was Liang Xing.

“Is thirty-eight perhaps a touch high?”

Zhao Tai and Wang Tai conferred in whispers and decided to stop.

Wang Tai cast Liang Xing a dismissive glance and said disdainfully: “And she claims she’s not heartbroken. This woman has gone out of her mind at that price.”

“Thirty-eight million — once! Thirty-eight million — twice! Any further bids? Thirty-eight million — three times! Sold!”

As auctioneer Lu Liang’s small hammer fell, Liang Xing became the evening’s first high-net-worth client to truly “appreciate” with her wallet.