At eight o’clock in the morning, He Ju appeared on time in the underground parking lot of the auction.

As soon as He Ju parked the car, he saw Bai Yan, Fatty, and Motor walking towards him. They were all dressed in suits and leather shoes, and He Ju looked quite impressive.

He Ju smiled, unfastened his seat belt, put on the same mask as them, and got out of the car.

Yes, He Ju and Bai Yan had also informed Fatty and Motor about today’s auction.

They were all good buddies, and with such an opportunity for success, they would support each other.

Fatty walked over and punched He Ju on the shoulder, “You, have you been drunk in the land of tenderness recently and can’t come out? Both Motor and I were about to break your door, but we didn’t see you coming to open it.”

He Ju smiled, “A man with a charming wife shouldn’t be disturbed in the middle of the night.”

Motor exclaimed, “Wow! A man with a charming wife? You’re something else!”

Bai Yan’s thick-skinned face turned red, “Alright, alright, let’s focus on the business at hand. Let’s go upstairs first.”

The three of them nodded and followed Bai Yan to the elevator. The process was the same, but this time the elevator went straight to the sixteenth floor, and Bai Yan handed two admission tickets to the staff.

The people at this auction were all invited guests, and both Bai Yan and He Ju had received invitations. Fatty and Motor had to rely on the admission tickets Bai Yan had obtained from various sources.

Bai Yan explained to them in the elevator, “Above the tenth floor and below the sixteenth floor, there are small-scale gambling and auction venues. Before the actual auction begins, many people will bring in experts in various fields to raise money. Generally, the small-scale gambling venue that opened this morning is the best time for everyone to raise money.”

Fatty’s eyes widened, “Is this personal or organized by the auction?”

Bai Yan replied, “The venue is provided by the organizers, and all the booths are rented out and managed by individuals or third parties.”

Bai Yan looked at He Ju, “Some people might find valuable items. Do you want to take a look later?”

He Ju asked, “Then why didn’t we just start from the eleventh floor and work our way up?”

Motor added, “Yeah, why not go up floor by floor to see what we can find?”

At that moment, the elevator arrived, and the four of them stepped out. Bai Yan continued to lead the way, “Are you guys going to wander around on an empty stomach without having breakfast?”

Fatty’s eyes lit up, “There’s breakfast?”

Bai Yan nodded, took out a bunch of keys, and said generously, “Since you’re here, how can I not treat my buddies to a meal? Order whatever you want for breakfast, my treat.”

He Ju and the others cheered, “Great, great, that’s true friendship!”

So, the four of them walked arm in arm, getting faster and faster.

The rooms here were all independent VIP suites, and they were very luxurious. World-class wines were displayed inside, but if you touched them, you had to pay the price they set.

Bai Yan was not short of money, and he was in a great mood today.

Originally, he only had the three million yuan given by Elder Bai, but Si Hua knew that He Ju was coming and transferred two billion yuan to his account for him to use as he pleased.

Bai Yan really loved this good buddy of his!

So, of course, he had to treat He Ju well.

Two billion yuan!

Bai Yan had been with the Bai family for so long, and he had never had so much money in his hands before.

Bai Yan said, “Oh, I forgot to tell you, the auction will last for seven days. During these seven days, no one is allowed to leave the venue. If you do, all the items you bought inside will be invalidated, and you will have to pay a penalty of two million yuan to the organizers.”

He Ju and the others stopped in their tracks, exclaiming in unison, “What?!”

Fatty and Motor felt like the sky was falling, “Why didn’t you say so earlier?!”

Bai Yan scratched his head awkwardly, “I, uh, forgot…”

Who cared about two million when you had two billion…

But he forgot, and his buddies didn’t!

Fatty and Motor looked at each other and accepted their fate, “You’re covering our food and accommodation, right?”

Bai Yan immediately patted his chest, “I’ll cover it, I’ll make sure you eat and drink well!”

Fatty said, “Then it’s fine, it’s just a week, we’ll treat it as a vacation.”

He Ju, however, was not very happy. His charming wife was at home, and not touching her for a week would be unbearable.

He Ju thought to himself that once he achieved what he wanted and stepped on the Qiu family, he would leave immediately. As for the items he wanted to buy, he would temporarily use Bai Yan’s name.

Just as the four of them were about to enter the room, He Ju heard a familiar voice, “Little friend He Ju—”

He Ju turned around and saw Elder Jiang. Although he was wearing a mask, He Ju recognized his familiar Zhongshan suit, cane, and the bodyguards behind him.

Bai Yan was not familiar with the circle, but he could tell at a glance that this person was no ordinary man.

He Ju said to Bai Yan and the others, “You guys go have breakfast first. I’ll chat with an acquaintance.”

Bai Yan nodded, “We’ll save some for you.”

He Ju replied, “Okay.”After speaking, Bai Yan and the others returned to the room, and He Ju walked towards Elder Jiang.

He Ju reached out first: “Grandpa Jiang, nice to see you again.”

Elder Jiang nodded with satisfaction: “I thought it was you just now, and it really is you. Come, I’ll treat you to a meal today.”

He Ju smiled and declined: “I’m really sorry, Grandpa Jiang. As you can see, I have a friend waiting for me. How about… a cup of coffee?”

Elder Jiang nodded in agreement: “Alright.”

The two were then led by the staff to a coffee shop that was converted from a hotel room.

He Ju ordered an iced Americano. Ever since he became an adult, he relied on Americano to survive every time he studied and worked.

Elder Jiang ordered an original latte.

They sat face to face, and Elder Jiang didn’t beat around the bush. He directly took out a check, wrote ten million on it, and handed it to He Ju with a kind smile: “Little friend He Ju, if you can help me get what I want at this year’s auction, I’ll pay you the deposit first. Can you do it?”

Wasn’t this just backing He Ju as the master of jade gambling on Elder Jiang’s side?

Everything he bid on belonged to Elder Jiang.

He Ju wasn’t that foolish.

He Ju smiled and pushed the check back: “Grandpa Jiang, it’s not good to measure our relationship with money. If I can help, I’m willing to do my best.”

Elder Jiang looked at He Ju steadily for a moment, then smiled: “What? Young man, do you think the money is not enough?”

Faced with Elder Jiang’s pressure, He Ju remained calm. He had signed a contract with Elder Jiang, but it was only for the design sketches of wedding dresses. He didn’t want to have too much involvement with Elder Jiang in the jade gambling industry.

After taking a sip of coffee, the bitterness cleared his mind: “Elder Jiang, your words are too heavy. As I said before, if I can help, I’m willing to do my best. I’m sorry about the rest.”

Elder Jiang smiled and put away the check on the table: “Little friend He Ju, every time I see you, you give me a big surprise. I hope we can always be partners.”

He Ju stood up and shook hands with Elder Jiang again: “Sure, let’s keep in touch on WeChat. Goodbye.”

It wasn’t until He Ju left that Elder Jiang withdrew his gaze and sighed: “Such great courage, but it’s a pity he can’t be used by me.”

The bodyguard behind him said, “Boss, isn’t this He Ju underestimating us a bit?”

Elder Jiang smiled: “He has the capital. There’s an old saying in China: How can a real man stay under others for long?”

“He Ju is a good seedling. In the future… his prospects are limitless.”

In the end, Elder Jiang left. He had guessed that He Ju would come today and was prepared to offer him a check to join his camp, even if He Ju asked for a lion’s share.

Who knew that He Ju not only didn’t ask for a lion’s share, but also refused without blinking an eye.

This was a bit unexpected for Elder Jiang, but it only proved that he hadn’t misjudged He Ju.

He Ju was not someone to be offended.

During the conversation between He Ju and Elder Jiang, another old man overheard everything clearly.

It wasn’t until He Ju and Elder Jiang left that Lin Feng looked up, excitedly watching the direction He Ju had left: “Young man, I’ve prepared a lot of surprises for you at this auction. I wonder… if you can win them all?”

In order to test how much talent He Ju had in jade gambling, he had brought out all the good things he had collected over the years from a certain triangle. Some were artificially synthesized jade, and some were genuine auction items, real and fake…

It all depended on the judgment of these people.

And this time, big shots from all walks of life had come. It had been many years since He Ju had consecutively opened green, a situation that hadn’t happened in many years.

He Ju had truly made a name for himself, and many people, even if they didn’t participate in the auction, came just to see if He Ju really had this ability.

Of course, most people didn’t know He Ju’s name, only his track record.

If He Ju shone brightly from the beginning of this auction, then there would definitely be many people trying to recruit him as their own jade gambling master.

With just this, He Ju could earn a lot of money, but it was a pity…

He Ju didn’t seem to be prepared to become a jade gambling master.

Lin Feng also left, looking forward to He Ju’s performance in the future.

Everyone had left, and no one noticed that in the corner of the coffee shop, there was a delicate and charming girl.

That was Su Ran.

She had gotten up too early with her parents today, intending to have an Americano to wake herself up, but who knew…

Although she didn’t hear clearly what He Ju and the old man had said, she understood the check.

That check was only used by the Jiang Business Association, which was ranked in the top fifty globally.

He Ju…

In such a short time, how did He Ju get involved with the Jiang Business Association?

Who was that old man?

What did He Ju want to do?

Su Ran felt extremely uneasy.Su Ran’s brows were tightly furrowed, her hand holding the coffee continuously caressing it. She felt that things were increasingly veering off the intended path.

He Ju was also losing control more and more.

Moreover, Su Zhen was now keeping a tight watch on her, leaving her no time to seek out He Ju.

Thinking of this, Su Ran’s eyes reddened, filled with a mix of resentment and hatred.

She hated Si Hua, and she despised her too. Why should Si Hua steal her man?

The whole world knew that He Ju belonged to her, Su Ran. How could Si Hua be so shameless as to snatch love with such brazenness?

Su Ran was extremely unwilling, but at this moment, she was utterly helpless.

——

He Ju also returned to his room.

At this time, the waiter came in, pushing the breakfast cart.

Just as Bai Yan had said, the breakfast here was complimentary and of high quality, almost encompassing the special breakfast items from both the north and south.

In addition to steamed buns and bread, there were Yunnan’s crossing-the-bridge noodles, Xi’an’s roujiamo, mung bean noodles, as well as the Capital city’s soybean juice, rice cakes, syrup-glazed fritters, and various pastries, truly a feast for the eyes.

The eyes of He Ju and his three companions lit up. No wonder, no wonder Bai Yan was willing to spend so much money for a VIP box.

He Ju knew a bit about it; VIP boxes were limited.

The four were extremely satisfied, quickly dividing up the delicious breakfast, each one of them eating until their bellies were round and full.

Then Bai Yan suggested, “Let’s go for a walk, help digest the food.”

Fatty struggled to get up from the leather sofa, “Let’s go, it’s my first time at the jade market, Brother, will you show us around?”

Bai Yan patted Fatty’s large belly with his hand, laughing heartily, “Sure thing, follow me, and I’ll guarantee you a life of glory and wealth in your later years.”

Motor scoffed, “Keep dreaming!”

Fatty chuckled, and He Ju couldn’t help but laugh out loud as well.

Bai Yan didn’t mind the laughter of his brothers at all. He was now a wealthy tycoon and didn’t care about these trivial matters.

The four took the private elevator down to the thirteenth floor.

The tenth, eleventh, and twelfth floors were almost entirely dedicated to food, drink, and entertainment, all public areas designed to meet these essential needs. In a corner of the third floor, there was even a maid café and a butler café.

The compartments opposite the maid and butler cafés had excellent soundproofing, all prepared for essential needs, like private movie theaters.

Of course, there were also rooms, but checking into a room required registering an ID number, and under normal circumstances, no one would be foolish enough to bring someone back.

The layout of the thirteenth floor was very similar to what He Ju had seen when he followed Bai Yan the other day.

Stepping out of the elevator, there was a row of long tables pieced together at the entrance, piled with many stones, all clearly priced.

As long as you take a number and then pick the corresponding stone, you can follow the staff to have the stone cut. If a good gem is revealed, it’s yours to keep; if not, you only pay for the stone.

Someone would specifically keep accounts for them, and on the last day of the auction, the bill would appear on everyone’s phone.

At that time, money and goods would be exchanged, accounts settled, and people could leave.

This time, Bai Yan didn’t head to the high-end area but instead scrutinized these so-called waste stones with earnest.

There’s also something known as a beginner’s luck period in stone gambling.

For example, Motor and Fatty each picked up two stones and brought them to He Ju and Bai Yan for inspection.

Bai Yan couldn’t see anything special, but He Ju sighed, “Just take them.”

Although they wouldn’t reveal any jade, for these two carefree guys, it was still a considerable sum.

Motor and Fatty exchanged glances and immediately took them with glee. As the saying goes, if you want to be fed, you must be obedient.

They might not be good at much, but they excelled in one thing: obedience!

After much picking and choosing, Bai Yan didn’t get a nod from He Ju for any stone, until He Ju, unable to watch any longer, casually picked two stones for him to hold.

Thus, Bai Yan was also pleased.

The four continued walking inside. The hall was set up for a small auction, featuring personal items brought in for sale. It hadn’t started yet, but the items were already scrolling on the big screen.