NOVPUBMrs. Xiang was naturally Long Wu’s wife. Although she seemed a bit plump, Suming had seen her photos from her youth online, and it was fair to say she was no less stunning than any female star under Long Wu’s entertainment company umbrella. With Long Wu being a dominating figure in both the entertainment industry and the underworld, his enduring marriage to her was considered a beautiful tale in Xiangjiang, suggesting Mrs. Xiang must also have some tricks up her sleeve when it came to handling her husband.
On their way to the charity banquet, the formation of the group changed, with Suming and Long Wu, who were wearing the same outfit, walking in front while Mrs. Xiang strolled behind with Nangong, constantly imparting wisdom. "You see, men are all about loyalty; they get hot-headed and forget everything else. Look at him, he can never say no when his friends ask for help—which is fine at the Horse Club with so much money on the line; what’s losing a few tens of millions? Why should he get involved...?"
Though her words were tinged with a thick air of bragging, they came across as sincere and not at all annoying. Implying through her words that Suming was also a friend on their side, suggesting he should win more money from the Horse Club. Nangong, shrewd as they come, laughed and said, "Brother Ten has quite the reputation. Here, his word carries more weight than the Chief Executive’s orders. Otherwise, why would the Horse Club specifically ask for Brother Ten? Mrs. Xiang, what exactly are we auctioning off tonight?"
"Just some useless stuff that they want us to throw money at. But at least it’s all for charity, accumulating virtues for our descendants."
The banquet was held at Felix Restaurant on the 28th floor of the Peninsula Hotel. The organizers had booked the entire restaurant. Upon entering, Suming saw that many guests had already arrived to attend the dinner. Along the way, quite a few people greeted Long Wu.
Unlike the press conference in Yangchuan City, in tonight’s setting, Suming was a mere bystander, not recognizing a single person. So he simply greeted Long Wu’s family before heading straight to his seat, a window-side position where he sat down.
From the 360-degree circular viewing glass, looking down upon Victoria Harbour at dusk, one could see lights scattered about, brilliant like a river of stars. Sitting in such a place, even the most ordinary person could easily develop ambition or, let’s say, motivation to strive.
"That’s what the glitz and glamour mean. Who knows how many people struggle their entire lives, thinking they’ve finally reached the peak of the pyramid, only to find out they’re still just powerless ordinary humans," Suming suddenly mused aloud.
"Wow, Mr. Su, you have such a beauty by your side yet you’re pondering philosophy. What a waste," an expat suddenly appeared across from them, wearing a flamboyant, tight-fitting, lace-patterned suit and striking a coquettish pose with his hands.
Seeing him like this, Nangong thought she was encountering a pervert, subconsciously inching closer to Suming. However, upon second thought, she felt it was rude and forced a smile, asking, "Who might this be?"
"Mr. Su, don’t remember me? Wow, that’s too forgetful, it really breaks my heart," the expat said with a forlorn look, casting Suming a flirtatious glance.
"Luo Ben, are you hosting the auction tonight?" It took Suming several seconds to recognize the man—it was the auctioneer from the last Sotheby’s auction. He later found out that the man was an unabashed gay.
"Of course it’s me. That **** once said Mr. Su had potential, right? Half a year later, you’ve become even more handsome!" Luo Ben said with a smitten smile.
Nangong felt goosebumps crawling on her skin. Suming laughed it off, "Don’t worry, this guy isn’t into women. Luo Ben, can you help me take a look at these items tonight and tell me which ones are particularly valuable for collecting?"
Before entering the venue, the waitstaff had distributed a small booklet to each guest that introduced tonight’s auction items. Suming had flipped through it and wasn’t very interested. He wasn’t an expert in this area, but since Luo Ben had shown up, it was worth asking him in case there was a chance to score a bargain.
"Oh, Mr. Su, isn’t that like asking me to compromise my professional ethics?" Luo Ben blinked, sending electric shocks through Suming, before pretending to be reluctant, "But who could resist such a handsome request? I simply can’t refuse you."
"So you’re saying I’m trading in my good looks," Suming also laughed.
Before the start of this kind of charity banquet, small groups of acquaintances would gather and chat; no one paid much attention to Suming’s group. Luo Ben flipped through the booklet, pointing out a few trinkets. A flag signed by Peng Dingkang, the last Governor of Xiangjiang, and a discontinued Patek Philippe watch both held potential for appreciation. Hard to say that buying them was as good as making money, but compared to other charity auction items that were almost like giving money away, they wouldn’t be a total loss.
"There are animals too?" Suming was slightly startled, pointing to a page in the catalogue featuring a rare pure white Golden Dragon fish, along with several Hexagonal Dragon fish.
The pure white Golden Dragon fish was actually just suffering from albinism, its body entirely devoid of any impurities except for its red eyes, giving it an extremely elegant appearance. As a high-end pet fish, its price could reach as high as two to three hundred thousand US dollars per fish. However, the starting bid for this fish was already a hundred and fifty thousand US dollars, which made purchasing it rather pointless.
Hexagonal Dragon fish aren’t fish but a type of salamander that lives in the water. They look like a miniaturized version of axolotls, but they’re much cuter; pink in color with a flat broad mouth, two naive little black eyes, and around their large heads are six coral-like tendrils, making them appear like water sprites from a fairytale.
"Some kind-hearted, well-born kid must have donated their pet," Luo Ben shrugged and added softly, "Actually, they just didn’t want to care for them anymore."
"These long-horned little fish are so cute; let’s buy them and keep them!" Nangong had no resistance to such mythical creatures.
The Hexagonal Dragon fish weren’t expensive; nine of them were bundled together with a starting bid of ten thousand US dollars. However, ten thousand dollars could buy a truckload of Hexagonal Dragon fish in the pet market.
Suming flipped through a few more pages and burst out laughing when he came across a horse. Upon reading the description, he couldn’t help but chuckle—it was "Fortress Dragon."
"Mr. Su, please don’t buy it; this horse is terrible," Luo Ben urged upon seeing Suming seemingly interested, "It’s always at the bottom each year. Its role in horse racing is just to play the clown and amuse everyone."
"I like it!" Suming’s eyebrows raised, Nangong was having a great time, and he himself didn’t have a horse yet. Buying one to ride would also put some pressure on his second senior brother, lest he think he’s the only mount and become spoiled and arrogant.
...
The auction began promptly, and since it was for charity, Luo Ben’s hosting style was completely different from his usual at the Sotheby beverage exclusive sale, focusing on jokes and banter, making the audience laugh time and again.
The bidding wasn’t too competitive either. After a symbolic two or three raises in the price, if someone showed genuine interest, others would naturally bow out. Following the thought that as long as Nangong was happy, the money was well spent, Suming bought that small box of hexagonal dragon fish for twenty thousand US dollars after bidding twice.
When Luo Ben announced that the item up for auction was the Lion Castle Dragon, the room burst into laughter, and no one raised their paddle for a long while. It was not a matter of being stingy with money—the Lion Castle Dragon was a live creature that would surely race again. To spend money on it and then lose face in future competitions was unthinkable.
Hence, Suming didn’t even encounter any competition and bought it at the starting price.
"Eighty thousand US dollars for a purebred racehorse, Su Sheng has scored big!" Luo Ben declared with a hammer fall, using a comical tone.
Those present turned their heads to look at Suming, some with expressions reserved for amateurs, some even with kind smiles, sympathetically shaking their heads.
If it was purely about pedigree, for eighty thousand US dollars, getting a purebred racehorse was indeed a steal. However, this batch of Lion Castle Dragon had virtually no competitive value, turning into a burden once bought. Only good for playing the clown and finishing last, its previous owner could not stand the mockery, which was why it was put on auction as a charitable item.
Many even thought that this new face was using such methods to make a name for himself, even if it meant integrating into the upper circle as quickly as possible.
No matter what, once Luo Ben called out the buyer’s name, the elites in attendance immediately remembered Suming.
"Don’t mind their opinions. The Lion Castle Dragon has potential; it just lacks a good owner. If it’s well trained and achieves one or two good results in major races, its value could increase tenfold or a hundredfold. Let them regret it then," Long Wu advised with a smile, standing by his friend’s side to cheer him on, though it was clear he didn’t really believe in the Lion Castle Dragon’s potential.
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The Lion Castle Dragon’s former owner presented the documents to Suming, saying, "I heard from Brother Shi that Mr. Su won tens of millions at the Horse Club a few days ago, a true connoisseur. I hope that the Lion Castle Dragon will shine in your hands!"
This man’s surname was Luo, a textile magnate from Xiangjiang and the son of Luo Dingbang, founder of the Lion Castle Dragon brand, which is why the horse was also named ’Lion Castle Dragon’.
"Wow, so the ’Horse God’ who ’robbed’ the Horse Club in Happy Valley is Mr. Su! Mr. Su, you’ve taken a stand for all of us. I suggest we give Mr. Su a round of applause!" Luo Ben, making an extremely excited face on stage, began clapping first.
The tycoons at the dinner changed their expressions slightly as they looked at Suming, and the sympathetic smiles that were previously on their faces disappeared, replaced by curiosity.
Most of the tycoons present were horse racing enthusiasts. Tens of millions was an amount they could afford, but winning tens of millions from the Horse Club was another concept altogether. Usually, they were the ones giving money to the Horse Club, and the Horse Club earned loads of money from them every year. Hearing Luo Ben saying this, everyone smiled knowingly and started clapping humorously.
After the little interlude, a few more trinkets were auctioned off. Suming’s table was fairly close to Long Wu’s, and they chatted idly while watching the auction.
Just as the auction was coming to an end, the Lion Castle Dragon’s previous owner, Luo Jiaju, who was sitting not far away, suddenly walked over to Long Wu disrespectfully with quick strides.
Those sitting close by could see that Luo Jiaju’s face was extremely pale; despite the restaurant being air-conditioned, his forehead was drenched with large beads of sweat.
"Mr. Luo, what’s the matter?" Long Wu asked, frowning.
"Brother Ten, I just received a phone call from home. My daughter has been kidnapped. I have already asked my family to call the police. The police have no leads for now, and I would like to ask Brother Ten for help in gathering information," Luo Jiaju said with a grim face.
His voice wasn’t loud, but because of the close distance, Suming heard everything loud and clear.
Finally, a big event had occurred! Suming’s eyes brimmed with tears.
