CHAPTER 134: CHAPTER 20: TWO KINDS OF LOVE (PART 2)

It must be said, Shang Yin was very forward-thinking from both a drinking and business perspective. In the late ’90s, when Lafite was not yet popular, he had already begun purchasing Lafite Wine. Among the wines he invested in for Su Ziceng, one hundred cases were genuine Lafite products, which were of a quality completely unmatched by domestic wines. Anyone who tasted them couldn’t stop singing their praises.

Before the year-end, Su Ziceng and Zhou Dagen used the pretext of New Year’s visits to tour Zone 1 of Mo City, prominently using the Su Family’s name to invite key figures such as the mayor and the party secretary.

Catch the king first when catching thieves, and fool the officials first when fooling others. In just about two weeks, the entire bureaucratic circle of Mo City had made it clear: "This holiday, no wine except for Lafite Wine will be accepted."

The Fei Family and Su Qingzhang thought they were the only ones privy to the insider news, which had already been spread throughout Mo City by "interested parties." "2.5 million," Su Qingzhang quoted a price.

Upon hearing this, Mr. Fei gritted his teeth and spat out a new price, "3 million." Fei Qing also looked surprised, as the relationship between the Su and Fei Families has always been somewhat distant. In public, the Fei Family always yielded three points to the Su Family.

"You’re still not seeing the big picture. If you really wait for the Su and Hang Families to unite, it will be too late," Mr. Fei huffed. On the stage, Yan Wuxu looked surprised, clearly shocked by the bid. She couldn’t believe that the wine Su Ziceng had asked her to handle could sell for such a high price.

"5 million," Su Qingzhang, leaning on his cane, was already walking towards the stage, leaving no room for Mr. Fei to counteroffer. This 5 million thundered down like a muffled thunder, stunning the auctioneer and Chang’s mother and daughter. The guests present were all shocked, and the media present clicked their shutters, capturing Su Qingzhang and a stifled Yan Wuxu.

Yan Wuxu watched Su Qingzhang approaching the stage, Ziceng’s father, a man who could not merely be described as old but was rather a very charming man, with no sagging beer belly or unkempt appearance unlike any middle-aged man she had encountered. Her eyes were veiled with a layer of appreciative mist, adding a blurry beauty to her gaze.

Until Su Qingzhang stood beside her, took over the long-held wine tray from her hands, and whispered, "Leave everything to me." His voice was not as pleasant as Fei Qing’s, nor was it as rough as Boss Han’s, but rather it was like that rich and mellow voice of wine.

Yan Wuxu looked towards the audience, feeling all eyes on her, a sensation of all stars surrounding the moon spontaneously arising. She too could accept everyone’s reverence, while the Su Qingzhang beside her was indeed her king.

Looking at Fei Qing’s ambiguous gaze, a thrilling pleasure surged in her heart. In this dizzying moment, those cases of wine behind had already become an inseparable part of her body, and this man who trampled on her dignity with money, even if he offered ten times, a hundred times more money today, he couldn’t have her.

"5 million." Su Ziceng felt like she was dreaming in broad daylight; this amount equivalent to her total trust fund immediately skyrocketed her to the peak of joy.

Zhou Dagen, however, was puzzled: "You still have the face to say that." After fleecing her own father like this, she still managed to be so cheerful, as Su Qingzhang’s money was bound to be hers eventually.

"It’s not the same, the wool comes from the sheep, that’s true, but someone has already been sharpening their knives at the pigs and sheep," Su Ziceng looked towards Chang’s mother and daughter.

Chang Mei’s expression was quite odd, her soul seemed to have left her as she stared at the auction stage, clutching her chest tightly as if trying to pull out her constantly beating heart. No one knew how she felt at that moment, but from her bulging eyes and twisted face, it was clear she saw the most terrible scene in the world.

The white floor-length dress, the fox fur shawl, Chang Mei felt as though she had returned to over twenty years ago, to the scene of Su Qingzhang and Qiao Chu’s wedding.

The woman who rushed over in a flurry, Ye Taina, the one who had snatched Su Qingzhang’s love as soon as she appeared, Yan Wuxu had eyes very similar to Ye Taina’s, and the image of Yan Wuxu overlapped with that of Ye Taina.

At that moment, Su Qingzhang too was suppressing his wildly racing heart. He had thought that his love had died when Qiao Chu died. In his life, the person who made him feel guilty was Qiao Chu, but the one who made his heart palpitate for life was Ye Taina. Two completely different women, radiant as the sun and moon, had dried out his love.

But today, he surprisingly felt his dead heart gradually coming back to life.

When Yan Wuxu was leaving the stage, her overly long dress hem caught on her heel, and she stumbled; immediately, a pair of hands appeared on her arm. Without looking, she knew to whom the hands belonged. This man was the same one who had pushed her onto the high platform under everyone’s gaze.

Su Qingzhang quickly let go of her hand, but the warmth of his fingers remained on Yan Wuxu’s skin, which she could still feel for many days, giving her a sense of solidity.

The drinks were quickly cleared away, and the next round of the auction was about to start, but no one in the venue cared about the upcoming auction items anymore.

On the auction stage, the appearance of two figures, one red and one white, was like a burst of red plum blossoming in the snow, heating up this winter prematurely.

"I’m feeling a bit unwell, I’ll go back first," Chang Mei said, watching Su Qingzhang leave the event and lost interest in watching any further. After instructing Chang Chi with a word, she hurriedly left.

Fifty million for the wine, even if given away, is considered utmost extravagance. Su Ziceng was very clear that those boxes of wine were definitely not worth that price. What made her curious was that Su Qingzhang would never conduct a losing deal—what had made him mark such a high price on these boxes of wine? Was it merely to please the officials of Mo City?

After Chang Mei hurried away, Su Ziceng immediately stood up, the huge sum of the auction money had not clouded her judgment. She had never seen Chang Mei lose her composure like this before, Su Ziceng had a premonition, a storm was brewing between Chang Mei and Su Qingzhang, and at the eye of this storm, was most likely the unintentional cause - Yan Wuxu.

Different from the stuffy humidity of the auction hall, the entrance of the Subi Auction House was intermittently hit by a cold breeze. When Su Ziceng came out, she saw Chang Mei and Su Qingzhang arguing outside the auction house. (To be continued. If you like this work, feel free to visit Qidian (qidian.com) to cast your recommendation tickets and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation.)