Page 48

Two simple words, yet they made Zhou Mu's expression change abruptly. Clearly, he had heard Shen Heng's name and knew the weight those two words carried.

"So you're President Shen of Dongyi Group. No wonder. The moment I saw you, I thought you had an extraordinary bearing and an imposing presence—"

"Shh!" Shen Heng cut off Zhou Mu's pleasantries. His gaze remained on Gu Jiuque's face as he said with a smile, "Keep it down. Our fellow countryman here doesn't like noise."

Zhou Mu fell silent at once. But the way he looked at Gu Jiuque changed suddenly.

Gu Jiuque had a headache too. He did not know whether Shen Heng's unexpected appearance would affect Zhou Mu's plans.

Gu Jiuque could only secretly pray that nothing would change next. Otherwise, he would have come here for nothing.

Lost in thought, Gu Jiuque was somewhat absent-minded for the rest of the journey.

According to Zhou Mu's arrangements, their afternoon itinerary was fairly packed. To stimulate Gu Jiuque's senses, Zhou Mu had carefully selected several entertaining places to visit.

Shen Heng noticed that several of the places they visited were famous pleasure dens in Fog City.

In Zhou Mu's eyes, this was Gu Jiuque's first time abroad. At his age, no matter how calm and reserved he appeared, he surely enjoyed having fun deep down. So, taking him out to enjoy himself after work would definitely win this beauty's favor.

Once the beauty was having fun, Zhou Mu might even be able to take a little advantage of him.

Zhou Mu had planned things well, but unfortunately, an uninvited obstacle had appeared along the way. And this obstacle carried enough weight that even Zhou Mu did not dare provoke him lightly.

How exactly had Gu Jiuque gotten to know this financial tycoon? The two of them clearly had nothing in common!

Looking at Gu Jiuque's excessively striking, handsome face, Zhou Mu secretly gritted his teeth. So it really was because of that face!

Just as he could not resist Gu Jiuque's face, could Shen Heng have taken an interest in Gu Jiuque too?

The thought made Zhou Mu's heart jolt. He had no idea whether Shen Heng would affect their upcoming plans.

For a moment, Zhou Mu did not even have the mood to accompany the beauty anymore. He could not wait to return to the hotel and inform his boss behind the scenes of Shen Heng's presence.

Shen Heng glanced at the distracted Zhou Mu, then asked Gu Jiuque with a smile, "Do you like playing cards?"

Gu Jiuque looked expressionlessly at Shen Heng, who was handling himself with effortless ease at the gambling table. He truly could not understand why Zhou Mu had chosen a casino as one of their destinations.

Even if it was the most upscale casino in Fog City, it was still a casino. What was fun about gambling on cards?

As expected, going out with people like this was just a waste of time.

Gu Jiuque had no interest whatsoever in gambling. Shen Heng, however, was like a peacock flaunting its feathers. He pulled Gu Jiuque over to sit at a gambling table, displayed his superb card-playing skills from every angle, and piled all the chips he won so casually in front of Gu Jiuque. "These are for you."

"I don't want them," Gu Jiuque said.

"Don't like chips? If you're out playing, you can't do much without chips." Shen Heng deftly rolled a chip between his fingers as he smiled. "Then tell me what you like. I can give you anything."

Gu Jiuque did not want anything. He got up and left the casino, walking expressionlessly toward an antique shop on the corner of the street.

Shen Heng followed behind. When he pushed open the door, he heard the crisp chime of the wind bells. In an instant, Gu Jiuque's tall, slender figure blended into the setting with no sense of incongruity.

Shen Heng chuckled and followed behind Gu Jiuque with his hands in his pockets. "As expected, this place suits you better."

Gu Jiuque said nothing. He carefully selected many souvenirs in the antique shop, intending to bring them home for his family.

Shen Heng casually picked out a gold coin as well, smiling at Gu Jiuque. "Everyone who sees it gets a share. Can you give me this one?"

Gu Jiuque was holding his things while checking out. At that, he motioned for the shop owner to add the gold coin to the bill as well.

Shen Heng smiled faintly and tucked the gold coin away without the slightest hesitation.

Zhou Mu wanted to ingratiate himself with the beauty, and he also wanted to show off his capabilities in front of a big shot, so naturally, he had to appear generous. Using expense reimbursement as an excuse, he rushed to pay all of Gu Jiuque's bills.

Gu Jiuque looked at the exceedingly attentive Zhou Mu and smiled ambiguously. "You certainly like picking up the tab."

Zhou Mu secretly felt pleased with himself. He knew he had judged correctly. No matter how otherworldly the young master of Antique Appreciation Studio seemed, deep down he was still a shallow man who cared only about money. Otherwise, he would not have insisted earlier that Zhou Mu transfer the fifteen million yuan payment into Antique Appreciation Studio's account in advance.

Hearing Gu Jiuque praise him, Zhou Mu said even more smugly, "Of course. I've always liked paying for my own choices."

Bringing Gu Jiuque out to have fun was his choice. Gu Jiuque himself was also his choice.

At those words, Gu Jiuque's smile became even more meaningful.

That was good, then.

Shen Heng watched the two men sparring verbally with cold eyes and smiled ambiguously as well.

By the time the three returned to the hotel, it was already evening.

Grandpa Gu was not interested in the souvenirs Gu Jiuque had bought. Sitting at the desk, he was looking through the auction catalog with his head lowered. As if something had occurred to him, he suddenly said, "When you attend the auction tomorrow afternoon, if you see anything you like, you can bid on it."

Given the Gu family's foundation and financial resources, they might not be able to compete for the very finest lots at the auction, but they could still participate in bidding for items worth less than tens of millions.

Gu Jiuque was slightly stunned. Looking at his grandfather carefully leafing through the auction catalog at the desk, he suddenly remembered that the Gu family of today was no longer the Gu family at the end of its rope from his previous life. And he was no longer the harbinger of misfortune who had caused the deaths of his entire family, only to be disfigured and crippled himself.

"Mm!" After a long while, Gu Jiuque answered obediently.

Grandpa Gu did not notice. His attention had already returned to the auction catalog.

The following afternoon, the auction organized by the High-End Auction House began on schedule in the top-floor banquet hall of the Fog City Grand Hotel.