Chapter 20: Can’t Be Seen In Public
Auction day.
Pei Yuzhou arranged for the driver to pick up Meng Shuyou at the school gate.
At six-thirty in the afternoon, they arrived at the port.
This auction was held on a cruise ship with seven decks, fully equipped with a shopping mall, restaurant, bar, show venue, and dozens of guest rooms.
At the entrance, more than a dozen police officers patrolled with guns, while staff verified guests’ identities; only after security checks could they board.
The security was tight, with a huge lineup.
The ship held priceless treasures, so caution was naturally required.
Meng Shuyou sat in the car, watching people board one after another in the distance.
The sky gradually darkened, with sunset glow spreading across the sea surface and waves surging endlessly.
Approaching seven o’clock, the guests had basically all boarded.
Meng Shuyou leaned by the window, waiting boredly. “Has Mister Pei not arrived yet?”
A rumbling sound came from overhead, with rotors spinning at high speed.
The driver stuck his head out and looked up. “Mister’s helicopter has arrived.”
Meng Shuyou immediately pushed the door open and got out.
The helicopter steadily landed on the helipad.
The cabin door opened.
A familiar figure emerged from inside, dressed in a black shirt and trousers, elegant and crisp, his right hand casually tucked in his pocket, long legs striding forward with a commanding temperament.
Mark followed closely behind him, holding a folder.
Meng Shuyou walked toward Pei Yuzhou. “Mister Pei.”
The man approached. “Mm.”
Meng Shuyou naturally fell into step beside him.
She wore a white formal dress today, with a halter neck tie, fitted waistline, and skirt hem short in front and long in back, accentuating her slender legs.
Her low heels clicked lightly on the ground, harmonizing perfectly with the sound of leather shoes on the pavement.
The two figures overlapped and stretched long under the streetlights.
At the gangway, Mark handed over a golden invitation letter.
The staff immediately let them pass. “Please, Mister.”
They boarded without even going through security.
Meng Shuyou noticed that others seemed to have silver invitation letters, while only Mister Pei had a golden one.
No wonder he received special treatment.
Perhaps his name was a passport anywhere.
On the first floor, they entered the elevator. Pei Yuzhou pressed the floor button and said casually, “If you haven’t eaten dinner, you can go to the restaurant first.”
Meng Shuyou looked up at him. “What about you?”
“Handling some work,” he said.
“Alright.”
The elevator stopped on the third floor, and Meng Shuyou went to eat first on her own.
A staff member led the way and introduced the restaurant’s specialties to her.
By some stroke of luck, just as Meng Shuyou reached the doorway, she saw Meng Yan and her boyfriend dining inside.
She hurriedly backed out and turned away to avoid them.
Fortunately, Meng Yan was facing away from the doorway and didn’t see her.
“Miss, what’s wrong?” The staff member asked, puzzled.
Meng Shuyou shook her head. “Nothing, I’m not hungry right now. No need for a meal, thank you.”
Inside the restaurant, Zhao Yunrui stared toward the doorway.
“What are you looking at?” Meng Yan turned her head following his gaze.
Zhao Yunrui said, “Someone just now looked a lot like your younger sister.”
“Meng Shuyou?” Meng Yan denied it without thinking. “Impossible. She doesn’t have an invitation letter, so how could she be here? You must have seen wrong.”
Zhao Yunrui didn’t dwell on it. “Then I must have seen wrong.”
Meng Yan picked up a piece of foie gras for him. “You have to win that pink diamond for me today. I can’t lose face in our social circle.”
Zhao Yunrui discussed with her, “If the price gets too high, isn’t it unnecessary? We can buy one outside too.”
“No.” Meng Yan was firm. “If I leave empty-handed today and those gossips find out, who knows how they’ll mock me behind my back.”
Zhao Yunrui knew her temperament—strong-willed and vain. Once she decided something, no one else’s words mattered.
If not for the family insisting on the marriage alliance, he wouldn’t marry a woman like this.
–
Meng Shuyou wandered around other floors.
The auction started at eight. At seven-fifty, she met up with Pei Yuzhou.
Before entering the auction hall, Meng Shuyou took a mask from her bag and put it on, covering the lower half of her face completely.
Pei Yuzhou glanced at her. “Afraid to be seen?”
Meng Shuyou made a random explanation. “If someone sees you with a woman by your side, it might not look good, right?”
“With a mask on, others won’t know you’re female?”
“…At least they won’t know who I am.”
Guests were already seated inside the hall.
Red velvet chairs were neatly arranged, with dazzling crystal chandeliers overhead.
The prime seat in the center of the first row below the display platform offered a clear view of all auction items.
Thanks to Mister Pei, it was Meng Shuyou’s first time seeing the bidding items up close.
The auction catalog listed information on all items up for auction today.
She guessed Meng Yan was here for the pink diamond.
The auction officially began.
The first item was a set of 19th-century French Sèvres royal porcelain, once a symbol of imperial power during Napoleon’s era, with a starting bid of one million.
Bidding below grew intense, with paddles raised constantly, ultimately selling for 5.5 million.
For tycoons like them, money was just a string of numbers.
5.5 million US dollars for a tea set—indeed impressive strength.
Yet, an even more powerful person sat beside her.
That Pearl Royale chess set—Mister Pei bid six million right away. Someone raised twice during it, and he directly had Mark bid ten million, after which no one dared raise further.
The auctioneer hammered down.
It was said that this chess set was made of 18k white gold, flawless diamonds, Ceylon sapphires, and South Sea pearls, a work completed over many years by an Australian artist.
Meng Shuyou leaned toward her right side and asked softly, “Mister Pei, do you usually like playing chess?”
Pei Yuzhou rested his elbow on the armrest, utterly relaxed. “A gift.”
“Mister, there’s a telephone call.” Mark reminded from the side.
Pei Yuzhou took the mobile phone and left early via the right aisle.
The next item was a pear-shaped pink diamond, high in color and clarity but not large in carats, so the starting bid wasn’t expensive.
As expected, Meng Yan joined the bidding.
“Number 38 madam bids 3.5 million. Any higher?” the auctioneer shouted at the top of his throat.
Meng Shuyou turned her head. “Mark, can I borrow your paddle?”
“You want to bid?” Mark handed her the bidding paddle.
Meng Shuyou curved her lips in a light smile.
She was going to raise the price.
The auctioneer hammered. “3.5 million once, 3.5 million twice…”
Before the third hammer, Meng Shuyou slowly raised her paddle.
The auctioneer announced loudly, “Number 2 madam has raised it to 4 million now. Any higher?”
The smile froze on Meng Yan’s face as she looked ahead, seeing only a white-clad back.
No choice but to keep raising.
Meng Shuyou raised her paddle again.
Back and forth, the price reached 6 million—an 8.2-carat pink diamond wasn’t worth that much.
Meng Yan gritted her teeth and jumped straight to 7 million.
Zhao Yunrui grabbed her arm, annoyed. “7 million US dollars—you’re crazy!”
Equivalent to 50 million RMB—they didn’t have that much budget.
Meng Yan hadn’t thought that far earlier. “I…”
“I’m telling you, you’ll pay for this yourself. Don’t come to me.” Zhao Yunrui dropped those words and walked out.
Meng Yan panicked; she didn’t have that much available funds on hand.
Calming down, she thought: they were about to get married soon—no need for conflict over this.
If the other side raised again, she’d let it go.
7 million US dollars could buy a bigger diamond.
Who would have thought the other side wouldn’t raise further.
PS: Illustration sourced from the internet; delete if infringing.
