A Plan to Profit from Antiques

"I can tell you plainly: Zhang Yang is the man I love. I believe in love, and I won't divorce him. I certainly won't get involved with you, so stop dreaming."

Seeing Zhang Yang stand up for her again, Cheng Dongxue felt reassured. His methods were violent, but they made her feel safe.

"Besides, I know what's going on at your company. One phone call from me, and your company might really be finished."

Zhang Yang sneered, looking utterly confident.

"You'll pay for this..." Clutching his stomach, Xu Mingxian edged toward the door, then bolted.

"You—"

Yang Su had seen what Zhang Yang was capable of. Xu Mingxian had money and influence, but Zhang Yang had his fists. Even a wealthy young master backed down fast when faced with violence.

Yang Su had plenty to say about Zhang Yang, but she feared his temper, even if he was unlikely to turn on her.

Cheng Hai was just as shocked. Zhang Yang used to be so cowed he barely dared raise his voice. Now he could shout and throw a punch—and do it fast, accurately, and hard.

Zhang Yang had his fists, but Yang Su could still make a scene.

"Zhang Yang, you dared hit Young Master Xu. You haven't heard the last of this." Yang Su's voice was much calmer now, her insults less vicious.

Zhang Yang shook his head without a word.

"Mom, Zhang Yang is my husband. You introduced me to another man without asking me. No matter how powerful or rich he is, what you did was shameful, and I won't agree to it."

Cheng Dongxue was furious and ashamed of what her parents had done.

"Fine. You have three days to come up with five million. Otherwise, this marriage has to end." Yang Su was frustrated too. Even with her powerful connections, she couldn't force an immediate divorce through the courts.

"If there's still no five million, we can all watch the company die!" Cheng Hai admitted Yang Su had gone about it the wrong way. Still, with a good-for-nothing like Zhang Yang in the family, divorce was only a matter of time.

They parted on bad terms, and Zhang Yang went straight back to his room.

Cheng Dongxue followed him. Lin Xiaofei stood there at a loss, then hurried back to her own room.

"Zhang Yang, you need to take a stand—and do something about it." Back in their room, Cheng Dongxue spoke to him.

Cheng Company was in danger, yet her parents had pinned their hopes on her. Worse, they meant to trade her away to save it.

For a woman to be treated as a bargaining chip because of her body was humiliating. Cheng Dongxue couldn't bear it.

What she couldn't bear most was that her own mother had started it.

"Five million isn't that much. I can pay it, but I shouldn't be treated like this." Zhang Yang wasn't refusing to save Cheng Company. He simply couldn't stomach his mother-in-law's contempt and insults.

"But no matter what, she's still my mother." Cheng Dongxue bit her lip. Caught between them, she felt helpless. At times, she had even wondered whether choosing Zhang Yang as her husband had been a mistake.

Zhang Yang saw things differently. The Cheng Family had three daughters, and Xia Shiying was Yang Su's ideal son-in-law. Yet he hadn't helped the family. Even when the company was in crisis, he hadn't given them a cent, and Yang Su still favored him.

Their second son-in-law, Yang Gang, had been generous enough to offer a million, though he needed to raise it elsewhere. Yang Su had barely reacted, without a single word of praise.

Zhang Yang was sure money alone wouldn't erase her hatred of him. Even if he handed over five million, she would still look down on him. Putting him down was how she entertained herself, and she wasn't about to stop.

Cheng Dongxue didn't believe Zhang Yang had five million on hand. But she believed he could earn it, or raise it with help from his connections to the Lin Family.

"Zhang Yang, help the Cheng Family through this," she said.

She was asking for his help, and placing her trust in him.

"Dongxue, how do you want me to help?" Zhang Yang asked with a grin. He could ignore anyone else, but he would listen to his mother Liu Mei and his wife Cheng Dongxue.

Cheng Dongxue paused. Usually, it was the woman who asked what to do, not the man asking her.

But Zhang Yang had spent decades living an ordinary, even mediocre life. She could accept that.

The fact that he was asking her what to do was progress. Perhaps he would listen to her now.

"Zhang Yang, what you have right now is an eye for Antiques. Yang Gang says your judgment is exceptional. Since that's the case, we could try it." Cheng Dongxue was worried about the company's future. She didn't want to see the Cheng Family fall on hard times.

Still less did she want the family's bankruptcy to damage their marriage.

If the Cheng Family went bankrupt, Yang Su would surely take out all her anger on Zhang Yang. He might truly be driven out of the family.

"But the profits from Antiques aren't necessarily huge, and we might not be able to turn a profit right away." After a thousand years of experience, Zhang Yang knew the Antiques trade well.

Finding an undervalued treasure wasn't something you could do just because you wanted to. The timing, the place, and the people all had to align. Only then might luck bring an opportunity.

"..." Cheng Dongxue fell silent. She knew little about Antiques, but she had heard enough to know that plenty of people lost money on them.

"Still, we could take a look around," Zhang Yang said.

It was better than sitting around doing nothing. Besides, he wasn't happy in the Cheng household.

"All right. Let's go tomorrow," Cheng Dongxue replied. She still remembered clearly the day Zhang Yang had bought the White Jade Hairpin on Antique Street.

One phone call brought Yang Gang over.

When Yang Gang heard they were going to Antique Street, he immediately agreed. He admired Zhang Yang's unusual eye for Antiques, so he put aside his work and drove over to pick them up.

"Zhang Yang, I dropped everything to come here, and I've got a million ready in my account. Don't let me go home empty-handed."

Yang Gang's BMW 3 Series was parked outside the villa. He greeted Zhang Yang with a teasing smile.

His faith in Zhang Yang stunned even Cheng Dongxue. She had never seen Zhang Yang deal in Antiques; buying the White Jade Hairpin had been his first time.

"Don't worry. I won't pick a fake or anything we can't profit from. If I've examined an antique, I won't misjudge it."

Zhang Yang got into the car and answered with confidence.

Cheng Dongxue had suggested this path, but now that Yang Gang had come with a million to spend on Antiques, she grew uneasy.

The Antiques trade was treacherous. One careless move could cost them everything.

"Zhang Yang, I'm curious. How did you get into Antiques? How long have you been doing this? How come I never knew?" Yang Gang wondered aloud. After all, he'd never seen Zhang Yang deal in Antiques. His father-in-law, Cheng Hai, on the other hand, had paid dearly for mistakes in the Antiques trade more than once.

"I got into it by chance. I don't buy much myself, but I've helped a few friends examine pieces. Believe it or not, I've never got one wrong." Zhang Yang grinned, recalling his experiences during the thousand years he had spent trapped in the same day. Everything he had said was true.