The vice principal nodded repeatedly. In fact, they had arrived long ago and had seen Jiang Ze step forward earlier. He kept praising Jiang Ze as a promising student, saying their university would spare no effort in nurturing him.
Although the vice principal was speaking to Meng Zhiyuan, he kept signaling to Teacher Deng beside him.
Clearly, those words were meant for him.
Meanwhile, Jiang Ze left the Antique Appraisal Pavilion and found a deserted spot to redeem the porcelain vase with points. He even redeemed a rather elegant-looking box for it.
He deliberately waited a while before leisurely carrying the porcelain vase back to the Antique Appraisal Pavilion.
By then, the administrators and students alike were eagerly awaiting Jiang Ze's return.
Word had even spread to other departments, drawing people over to see him.
When Jiang Ze returned, the crowd had more than doubled.
Sure enough, people's love of a spectacle never changed.
Jiang Ze set the box on the table and gestured for Elder Tong to inspect it, then hurried over to where Meng Zhiyuan stood.
He kept his gaze lowered, not daring to meet the man's searching eyes.
"Elder Tong, take a look..."
Teacher Deng turned to Elder Tong. The old man had already put on gloves and was carefully opening the box, revealing a porcelain vase identical to the first.
"It really does look exactly the same!"
"Why do I feel like the colors on this one are brighter than the other one's?"
Some of the knowledgeable students and teachers around them had noticed something, and waves of discussion rose through the crowd.
Elder Tong paid no attention to anything around him, carefully examining the porcelain vase Jiang Ze had brought.
After a long while, the old man finally let out a deep sigh, his voice weary.
"I was too confident. The one Student Jiang brought is the genuine article!"
Some people wanted to understand why, so Elder Tong simply explained the minute differences between the two.
Teacher Deng understood as well. Those details were simply too subtle. Both pieces dated to the Qing Dynasty, and their craftsmanship was so similar that even with the two vases side by side, some people might not have been able to distinguish the genuine one from the fake.
Seeing that everyone present was thoroughly convinced, Jiang Ze finally breathed a sigh of relief. He carefully put the porcelain vase away and handed it to Meng Zhiyuan.
Then he leaned closer and whispered, "Uncle Zhiyuan, let's keep this at home."
As Meng Zhiyuan watched the young man cautiously trying to please him, that soft, gentle voice brushing against his ear seemed to send ripples through his heart.
"Mm. I'll deal with you when we get home."
Jiang Ze pursed his lips at that, his eyes darting about as though he were dreaming up some bizarre excuse to wriggle out of trouble.
Meng Zhiyuan motioned for the assistant behind him to take the box, then looked at the somewhat dejected Elder Tong and handed him a card.
"I happened to learn about this porcelain vase by chance. Both vases should date to the Qing Dynasty, and their craftsmanship is similar, so it's understandable that even you might make a mistake, Elder Tong. This is an antiques market run by a friend of mine. If you're interested, you can take a look. You might find something intriguing."
With that, Meng Zhiyuan left with several university administrators.
Elder Tong nodded apologetically to Jiang Ze, clearly in low spirits.
Since Shen Yun had indirectly caused this incident, inexplicably turning a perfectly good antiques appraisal discussion into a competition, Elder Tong looked even less kindly upon him.
Shen Yun was still utterly bewildered, unsure where things had gone wrong this time.
Seeing Elder Tong leave and the matter come to an end, Jiang Ze had successfully ruined another opportunity for the protagonist. Unwilling to have any further involvement with Shen Yun, he slipped away amid the confusion.
After this incident, Jiang Ze's name quietly began to spread among the archaeology students.
That evening, Cheng Feng drove Jiang Ze back to the villa. The moment he entered the living room, he saw the man sitting on the sofa with a financial newspaper in his hands.
He froze, then started toward the stairs.
"You're back?"
"Mm... I'm back..."
Jiang Ze swallowed. A quick glance revealed that the porcelain vase from earlier was sitting brazenly in the very center of the entryway, impossible to miss.
"Come here."
Jiang Ze shuffled over, his hands folded in front of him, looking ready to obediently accept a scolding.
[This is so scary, waaah. Is the big boss going to punish me physically? Will he lock me in a dark little room, then do this and that to me?]
What utter nonsense.
Meng Zhiyuan frowned as he watched the young man lower his head, looking aggrieved and pitiful, while his thoughts had wandered who knew where.
An urge to tease him arose.
"Take off your shirt."
Jiang Ze was slow to react. He unconsciously swallowed again, his eyes full of disbelief.
The man had one arm draped along the edge of the sofa, his posture unusually relaxed and languid. His dark eyes remained fixed on Jiang Ze, his expression allowing no argument.
"Uncle Zhiyuan..."
The man spoke calmly, lifting his eyelids slightly.
"Take it off."
Jiang Ze was so frightened he nearly cried. His hands trembled as he unfastened his buttons. He did not know whether the man had arranged it deliberately, but thankfully, the two of them were alone in the living room.
Otherwise, he would have been so embarrassed he would have wanted to crawl into a crack in the floor.
The young man opened his shirt. The air against his exposed skin seemed a little cold, and he could not help shivering.
"Come here."
The man's voice was slightly husky, as though he were suppressing something.
Jiang Ze could only reluctantly move a little closer, only for the man to pull him over, sending him tumbling into a powerful embrace.
"Didn't you say you liked me?"
"Meng Zhiyuan, you..."
The young man's shirt slipped down to the crooks of his elbows, exposing his long, graceful neck. A thin veil of moisture seemed to gather in his eyes, dark as black grapes.
He pressed both hands against the man's chest in resistance, his cheeks faintly flushed, making his delicate features all the more striking.
Meng Zhiyuan's original intention to tease him began to drift off course. Beneath his fingertips lay the young man's tender skin, and the lightest touch made that little patch tremble.
"What have you been hiding from me?"
"Um... I just... just..."
Jiang Ze had no idea how the atmosphere had become so intimate. His mind seemed to stop working. He wanted to explain, but his head was blank, and he could not come up with a single word of an excuse.
His body trembled slightly. He held himself stiffly, not daring to look up.
Finally, he simply threw caution to the wind, relaxing and slumping into the man's arms. He felt the man's body instantly tense, and the hand around his waist tightened.
"Uncle Zhiyuan... waaah... I'm scared..."
The young man's voice was soft, as though he had completely surrendered. His fluffy head rubbed against the man's chest like a kitten's, openly trying to win him over.
He heard the man sigh softly beside his ear. Without warning, his earlobe was taken into the man's mouth, and a sharp sting made him clutch the fabric over the man's chest.
"Ah... that hurts!"
[Waaah, it hurts! Is the big boss going to eat me?!]
Meng Zhiyuan pressed gentle little kisses to the young man's small, delicate earlobe. A trace of blood seemed to appear, and the earlobe gradually turned a tender, vivid pink.
"I'll let you off this time. In a couple of days, get this ear pierced. I'll give you a stud."
Listening to the man's voice, Jiang Ze did not dare raise his head. His face was crimson with embarrassment, and his heart was racing wildly. Whatever the man said, he agreed without thinking.
All he could hope was that the man would stop teasing him soon. His face was burning.
[It's over. My lifelong reputation is ruined!]
The man suddenly gave a couple of low chuckles, as though reason had abruptly returned to him. His fingers brushed seemingly casually across the young man's front, sending tremor after tremor through the person in his arms.
He dressed the young man again, his fingers stroking that small, delicate earlobe, seemingly already imagining which earring would look prettiest there.
"The Meng Group has businesses in many industries, and the Meng Family holds considerable influence in B City. Whatever you do from now on, make full use of those resources. If anything happens, I'll shoulder it for you."
"Do you understand?"
Only then did Jiang Ze finally dare look up at him, his eyes still misty. Although he did not know why the man had changed the subject so abruptly, he knew he was looking out for him.
He could not stop sweetness from welling up in his heart.
"I understand."
[What's going on? The big boss looks even more handsome than ever. My heart is beating so fast!]
Only after that burst of excitement did Jiang Ze realize he was still in Meng Zhiyuan's arms. He hurriedly stood up and moved away.
Afraid the big boss would notice his unusual behavior and scarlet cheeks, he did not even bother saying anything before scrambling toward the second floor.
Meng Zhiyuan watched him flee, then glanced down at his own lower body, his expression inscrutable, his thoughts unknown.
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