Chapter 67 Dilemma
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Shen Shuting’s eyes were so penetrating that Jian Chi almost forgot that he couldn’t see the person behind the glass at all.
“Want to go out and say hello?”
Realizing that Ji Huaisi was asking him, Jian Chi shook his head, “Isn’t the auction about to start?”
“Yes, we can talk later.”
Ji Huaisi smiled lightly and returned to his position. Jian Chi breathed a sigh of relief in his heart, then looked at Shen Shuting’s back who walked into the box diagonally opposite. Separated by two glasses, only then did his mood slowly return back to normal.
“He usually doesn’t like to participate in such crowded activities,” Ji Huaisi opened the booklet with the auction items, saw the answer after a few pages, and raised his lips, “There is Yunlan today, no wonder he is interested.”
It sounds like one of the varieties of orchids. Jian Chi couldn’t help recalling the unlucky experience in the garden and New Year’s Eve. He picked up the tea on the table and took a silent sip, “He likes gardening? It’s hard to tell.”
“It can’t be considered as liking, habit is more accurate. If he is not allowed to do something to divert his energy, the people in the school will definitely see a more critical Shen Shuting.”
Ji Huaisi didn’t say much about Shen Shuting. After revealing that, he continued to talk about today’s auction. Jian Chi flipped through the booklet. In addition to the calligraphy, paintings and seeds mentioned by Ji Huaisi, there were also several vessels that looked very old, some beautiful and delicate, and some more in line with the temperament of antiques.
Stopping the hand that was turning the page, Jian Chi’s eyes stopped on a familiar jade pendant with different patterns; the smooth and transparent texture can be seen even through the photos. Jian Chi didn’t understand jade, but the moment he saw it, he remembered the one Ji Huaisi gave him.
Ji Huaisi asked, “Did you see something you like?”
Jian Chi turned over the page like he woke up from a dream, “No, nothing.”
On the LCD screen, the host who was walking onto the auction stage announced the start of the auction, and the projection at the rear reflected the corresponding auction items and introductions. Jian Chi found that the auction’s highlights were not only the items, but also the buyers who kept bidding and increasing their prices. Although Ji Huaisi said that no one would ‘bite hard’ at the charity auction, he heard the bids following one after another and getting higher and higher. Jian Chi will have to redefine the phrase.
The projection switched screen. The jade pendant in the photo just now appeared on the big screen. The starting price was five digits. Jian Chi was heartbroken when he saw it. Ji Huaisi, who was sitting next to him, seemed to notice it and asked gently, “You like this one, this pendant?”
“No,” Jian Chi hurriedly denied it for fear that Ji Huaisi would participate in the bidding after misunderstanding, “I just remembered the jade pendant you gave me, which is very similar to this one.”
Ji Huaisi looked at it thoughtfully for a while, “It’s the same kind of jade, a bit similar.”
Fortunately, Ji Huaisi didn’t say much after saying this, and Jian Chi’s concerns disappeared after the pendant was taken away. The entire auction ended in two hours. Perhaps every item was within his scope of knowledge and the auction process was intense, but Jian Chi didn’t feel that two hours had passed. The people in the auction booth left one after another. When Ji Huaisi got up, he glanced at his watch and asked with a smile, “It’s already past dinner, do you have any dishes you want to eat?”
“Anything can do, you decide.” Jian Chi replied, feeling a little hungry after a while.
“There is a Chinese restaurant with a good reputation nearby. I haven’t tried it yet. Do you want to try it together later?”
Ji Huaisi walked in front, opened the door, stepped out and stopped. He was followed by Jian Chi, who followed his gaze to the diagonal corner of the second floor. Shen Shuting was preparing to leave just like them, and turned around. At first glance, he noticed Ji Huaisi and Jian Chi, their bodies were frozen in place, but he was too far apart to see the expression on his face clearly.
What should come will still come. Jian Chi looked at Shen Shuting’s approaching figure, and said, “Hello, President”, Ji Huaisi smiled and stepped forward, “We saw you when you came up, and we wanted to wait until the end to say hello, what a coincidence.”
Shen Shuting nodded as a greeting, his cold brows did not show whether there was any surprise or not. His emerald eyes were like the butterfly emerald brooches on his chest, flowing with a low-key and elegant dark light; it swept across Jian Chi, and then he opened his lips after a while, without any intonation or comprehensible meaning.
“You two came together?”
Jian Chi met his gaze and suddenly remembered that when Yunlan was auctioned just now, the first person raised the price to 100,000. Obviously, no one wanted to continue to increase the price for a pot of orchids. Only number 25 raised the sign and directly went to 500,000. Some people cast a look of surprise and inquiry, and the person who quoted 100,000 immediately changed it to 550,000. Before he finished speaking, number 25 raised it again, one million.
No one continued to bid, and the lot naturally belonged to No. 25. Jian Chi didn’t have to think about it, he could guess who this neat and clean style of doing things came from.
“I had two tickets, so I asked Jian Chi to come and have a look. We’ll be going for food later,” Ji Huaisi said calmly, with a natural tone that made people not think there was any problem, “You’re getting ready to go back?”
“I’ll go get the Yunlan first.”
Shen Shuting didn’t say much, and withdrew his eyes and walked towards the elevator. Jian Chi was sure that the glance he just swept over contained a familiar sense of coldness and distance, but there was less rejection, perhaps because he didn’t want to be too obvious in front of Ji Huaisi. No matter what the reason was, Jian Chi would act unaware. Once they walked out of the door downstairs, they would be able to part ways completely.
Holding down the down button, the indicator light came on. During the waiting period, Ji Huaisi didn’t let the atmosphere cool down, and always wore a faint smile, “Will you stay in the country for the New Year this year?”
“My mother is coming from Boros in a week.”
Ji Huaisi looked a little surprised, and then covered it up, “How long is she going to stay this time?”
Shen Shuting looked indifferent when talking about his mother, he seemed to be talking about someone who had nothing to do with him at all, “I don’t know, she won’t live with me.”
As soon as he finished speaking, Jian Chi heard someone call Ji Huaisi’s name behind him. The person in charge walked over with a respectful smile and couldn’t help apologizing, “Mr. Ji, I’m sorry, the buyer who bought the picture discovered your presence. He said that he had admired Mr. Ji for a long time and wanted to take this opportunity to get to know you.”
The smile on Ji Huaisi’s lips was with just the right amount of gentle alienation, “Who he wants to get to know is my father, not me.”
“Yes, I also rejected him at first, but the buyer insisted. He has bought a lot of Mr. Ji’s calligraphy and paintings. He is our honored guest. “
Jian Chi remembered that picture with six figures. If he really bought a lot of pictures, he was indeed a real honored guest. Ji Huaisi lowered his eyes and pondered for two seconds. At the same time, the elevator arrived with a “ding” sound. He turned his head and smiled helplessly at Jian Chi, “I’ll deal with this matter first, you and Shuting go down first, the car should be at P2, I’ll call the driver to come up later.”
“No need, I’ll just go to P2.”
Jian Chi’s heart skipped a beat when he heard the word ‘and Shuting’. He walked into the elevator, pressed P2, looked up and saw Shen Shuting walking in, then stood on the opposite corner farthest from him. Probably because of Ji Huaisi’s face, he didn’t take another elevator like he used to, Jian Chi thought silently.
The elevator door closed, the numbers jumped, and the atmosphere reconciled by Ji Huaisi, turned into a suffocating silence. Jian Chi lowered his head and stared at the toes of his shoes, waiting for the short one minute to pass, but it didn’t go how he wanted. He subconsciously looked at the number in the upper right corner, and when it stopped at P1, it stopped moving.
Jian Chi reached out and pressed the P2 button, but there was no response. He tried to press the door button, but the response was still silence.
An increasingly uneasy feeling filled his heart. Jian Chi pressed the door button several times, staring at the number parked at P1. He wondered if this move had a negative effect, then the lights flickered overwhelmingly a few times, then slammed them into complete darkness.
I’m finished.
Jian Chi listened to the thundering heartbeat in his ears, and held the elevator to stand firm. In the darkness, a voice came from Shen Shuting, who couldn’t hide his sorry state. He squeezed out word by word from the cracks in the ice: “What have you done”
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