Chapter 608 - Heavenly Strange Auction
Chapter 608 Heavenly Strange Auction
“You underestimate Shang Jing City too much,” Qiao Fei sneered. “They were merely some disciples from the Wind Snow School. The city will remain peaceful even if their protectors and Elders come.”
Qiao Fei thought about it for a moment and said, “Lots of people are involved in this. We shouldn’t talk too much about it. Those people are at the top of the martial arts world, and we should avoid getting ourselves in trouble because of what we say.”
The man’s expression froze when he heard this. He hastily explained, “Understood. I was just curious. After all, they are from the Wind Snow School.”
“Hah-hah! Do you really think everyone in the Wind Snow School is powerful? Of course not!” Qiao Zhan shook his head and said, “Let’s put it in this way. When Emperor Qing went to the Wind Snow School, he was one of the most talented disciples. Those people who came to Shang Jing this time were just ordinary disciples. They were not as powerful as Shi Fenghou. They probably will go to meet with him first, or I don’t think they can cause any stir in Shang Jing City.”
“What are they going to do in Shang Jing?” Several people asked curiously.
They knew little about the upper class of the martial arts world. Qiao Zhan was different from them because he could contact with Emperor Qing. Therefore, Qiao Zhan knew more things than usual people did.
However, though he knew many things, he wouldn’t let them out at this moment.
Qiao Zhan smiled peacefully.
He picked up his wine glass and said, “This piece of news was based on some speculation, and no one had drawn any conclusion on it. The only thing I can tell you is that those disciples from the Wind Snow School had been to England with Supervisor Wang. They’ve offended a local prince. The supervisor paid that price with his life and other people had to work as salves there for six years. They were back from the sufferings now, but I’m not sure what they are coming for. And even if I know their aim, I won’t be allowed to tell that to you.”
“Understood, Brother Zhan.”
Other martial artists nodded at each other and couldn’t help but look at those people who were not cultivators.
By saying “we shouldn’t talk too much about it”, Qiao Zhan obviously was telling those ordinary people to talk less.
However, what those martial artists didn’t know was that Qiao Zhan was merely at the Grand Master Early-stage, and it was common that there were lots of things he didn’t know.
“By the way, I heard that Chen is going to take charge of the family’s Lingcun Trading?” asked a man sitting next to Qiao Zhan.
Zhang Chen smiled and answered, “Thank you for asking. I’ll soon be the president of the Lingcun Trading. If you need any help by then, please tell me.”
Lin Jie’s gaze stopped for a few more seconds on this young man.
Lingcun Trading was a high-end enterprise! In the past, only the core member of Zhang Clan could take charge of it. It seemed that this Zhang Chen was indeed talented.
“Congratulations, Brother Zhang Chen.”
“Congratulations, Chen.”
“…”
The people around him all congratulated him, and even Lin Jie greeted him with a smile because everyone knew what the position meant.
…
Qiao Zhan looked at Zhang Chen with a different look and said, “Chen, you’re now the president of the Lingcun Trading. I guess it will take you less than two years to be a core member of your family.”
“I’ll keep my fingers crossed,” Zhang Chen smiled and said.
“Well, Zhang Chen is talented, indeed. Lin Jie is also doing fine now.”
Qiao Fei replied. “I heard that Lin Jie is going to take over an enterprise from his family. It must be a promising one, isn’t it?”
“It’s not like that. It’s just…”
Lin Jie started his acting.
He humbly told other people his recent performance. Then he looked at Qiao Zhan and said, “The annual auction of the Heavenly Strange Auction will be started in two days. Brother Zhan, why don’t you go there with me? You have to give me an opportunity to prove myself.”
This was already an obvious compliment, and Lin Jie was trying his best. If Qiao Zhan bought that compliment, their relationship would soon be much closer. If he failed, other people would think that he was just trying to be polite.
“I will go to the Heavenly Strange Auction, but I’ll go there with my family. Thank you for asking,” Qiao Zhan answered casually.
After they greeted each other, they started to chat again.
Most of them were talking about the auction.
The headquarters of the Heavenly Strange Auction was in Shang Jing City. Their business covered more than just antiques, but also all kinds of strange treasures. If they had a mysterious stone, they would price it like a gemstone. Sometimes, it could be natural precious material, and sometimes, it was just ordinary stones. They ran the auction like a gambling house. It was just that their business was 100% legal.
Most frequenters were rich people who liked to collect antiques. The annual event would involve all the treasures the auction house had collected during the year, which made the auction quite appealing. The last auction at the end of last year broke many records with a five billion sales value. Therefore, many people couldn’t wait to see what was going to happen this year.
The event was only attractive to those who were really interested in it.
Zhang Han, who had dedicated himself to Mengmeng and Zi Yan, had never paid attention to these things.
But this time, he seemed to have run out of options.
At noon the next day…
Tang Jiayi and Fu Hongshan came to visit Zhang Han. They were leaving Hong Kong tomorrow for a vacation in Nepal.
“This castle is really the most luxurious building I’ve ever seen. It’s grand and elegant. I feel comfortable just by watching it. I envy you so much for living here,” Hong Qitao exclaimed when they ate hotpot in the restaurant on the fifth floor.
“Aunty Tang, Uncle Hong, if you like it, you can stay here for a few more days,” Zi Yan said with a smile.
“We already feel glad enough to be here, but we can’t stay here long.” Tang Jiayi shook her head with a smile and said, “We don’t want to disturb your sweet time.”
Tang Jiayi gave her a hint as she was speaking.
Those words made Zi Yan blush. She wanted to say something, but she didn’t know where to start.
Fortunately, after Mengmeng took a bite of the shrimp that Zhang Han peeled for her, she muttered, “My family is always sweet, super sweet.”
Her words made the adults laugh out loud.
Just then, Zhang Han’s cell phone rang.
“I have to answer the call.”
After wiping his hands with a towel, Zhang Han turned around and walked out of the dining room. He sat down on the sofa near the window in the corridor and took out his phone. Then he saw a strange number from Shang Jing.
He answered the call and heard a woman’s voice on the phone.
“Zhang Hanyang, do you know who I am?”
“Anything wrong?” Zhang Han asked.
The voice on the phone was from Jiang Yanlan, the captain of the Vermilion Bird team. Her voice was low and soft like the low voice changer on the phone. Other people could easily recognize her.
“There’s something about you that I wonder if you would like to hear?” Jiang Yanlan was teasing him.
“Just tell me.”
“You should say ‘please tell me’, or it sounds like I’m begging you for the opportunity to tell you about it,” Jiang Yanlan snorted softly.
Zhang Han felt it funny because she was actually begging him for the opportunity.
Jiang Yanlan didn’t keep him guessing. She stopped teasing him because it was the Merciless Zhang that she was speaking to.
Jiang Yanlan asked, “I don’t know if you’ve heard of the Heavenly Strange Auction. You’ve been in Shang Jing for so many years, and I think you must’ve heard about it.”
“Yes, I have.”
According to the schedule, the auction would start within days. Zhang Han had joined it several times before, so he knew the agenda clearly.
“This year’s auction will start at two o’clock tomorrow afternoon. The auction will be different this year, or at least it will be different for you, because there will be many more things present, including antiques and some memorable items like photos, diaries, etc.”
Jiang Yanlan sounded serious, and her voice turned even lighter.
She then said slowly and anxiously, “I told you this because that information was sent to me by your father, Zhang Guangyou… Your villa in Zhang Clan is now empty.”
“What?”
Zhang Han hesitated for a second. His expression froze and soon he was outrageous.
Those people robbed everything in his house and sent them to the auction for sale.
Zhang Han felt it so eye-opening that these people could be so heartless.
They emptied the house while his father and mother were still living there. Zhang Han wondered if it was because they were short of money or because they just resented the former patriarch living there.
Zhang Han’s mood was complicated this time. He was really upset, which was natural, and he was also very disappointed.
When Zhang Guangyou assumed the patriarch of the family, the strength of the family had risen several times. How could they do this to him now?
That might be the superficiality of human relationships.
“Uh… Zhang Hanyang, don’t be impulsive. You should be patient. I’m telling you this so that you can get your mind prepared. This happened for a reason, I think it has something to do with those disciples from the Wind Snow School. We’re still trying to figure it out, but at the same time, you should calm down and wait. Shang Jing is no place to mess around. I’ll get you informed as soon as we have new information,” Jiang Yanlan reminded him hastily.
It had been two seconds since she finished talking, but Zhang Han was still silent. Jiang Yanlan was rethinking if it was really a good idea to tell Zhang Han the news.
But if she didn’t tell him now, Zhang Han would be furious once he found it out by himself, which would lead to more severe consequences.
Fortunately, Zhang Han’s voice came out of the phone again soon enough. This time, his voice sounded lower and calmer.
“Thank you for telling me that. I don’t want to hear any of their reasons. I’ll go to the auction by myself.”
Zhang Han then hung up the phone and his facial expression became normal.
Perhaps they did this for some reason, but no matter what the reason was, it was still hardly acceptable for Zhang Han.
After sitting there for ten seconds, Zhang Han stood up and returned to the restaurant.
Back in the dining room, he grinned again, but Zi Yan seemed to have detected the change of his mood.
Soon it was late at night…
Zhang Han was accompanying Mengmeng by the bedside while Zi Yan was half-awake. She felt the other side of the bed empty now.
She sat up and checked, only to find that Zhang Han wasn’t in bed at this moment. She walked to the balcony barefooted and saw Zhang Han sitting on a chair, looking up at the moon in silence.
Seeing Zi Yan coming out, Zhang Han looked at her and smiled warmly.
Zi Yan licked her red lips and walked over.
She then leaned her head on Zhang Han’s shoulder and said softly, “What’s the trouble?”
“It’s nothing to worry about, just some sentiments of mine.”
Zhang Han shook his head slightly and sighed.
“The Zhang family is a place that carries my long-time memories. I love the place and those people, even if they have made mistakes or been cruel to the people I love. I can kill them by flipping my hand, but I’m afraid I won’t be able to do that.
“Maybe I still have an emotional connection with them. Sometimes even I don’t know what’s inside the deepest of myself.
“Human relationships are so complicated.”