Chapter 248: Flower Arrangement?
Li Yuexing looked at Yun Zijin. "Zijing, I’ll head in now. I’ll come back to chat with you in a bit."
Since it was an order from his own grandfather, of course Li Yuexing couldn’t refuse.
Once the grandfather and grandson had gone inside, Qin Sitong couldn’t help but marvel, "What a coincidence! I never would have guessed that the old man you mentioned is actually President Xiao Li’s grandfather.
Don’t you think fate works in mysterious ways?"
"I didn’t expect it either. The first time I came here, I just felt that Grandpa Li and I really clicked. I had no idea about the connection to Li Yuexing."
Running into Li Yuexing today was completely outside of Yun Zijin’s plans.
However, to prevent any misunderstandings with Lu Yunque, Yun Zijin quickly sent him a message explaining the situation.
That way, even if someone tried to spread rumors to Lu Yunque, he wouldn’t be misled.
The grandfather and grandson emerged a moment later. Li Bingzhen walked slightly ahead and to the left, while Li Yuexing followed, wearing gloves and carefully carrying the Yuan Blue and White Porcelain vase.
The old man wouldn’t keep something like a piece of Yuan Blue and White Porcelain out in the open unless it was absolutely necessary.
Otherwise, if someone with ill intent targeted it, got it stolen, or staged a break-in, his old bones truly wouldn’t be able to handle the shock.
The items on display were mostly a mix of authentic and reproduction antiques, or modern artisanal pieces.
However, the modern artisanal pieces here were not something you could compare to what street vendors sold.
Even his modern pieces were genuine, kiln-fired, hand-painted porcelain. In terms of price and quality, they were in a completely different class from the mass-produced goods you’d find elsewhere.
"Zijing, come take a look. See if it’s to your liking."
Li Yuexing carefully placed the vase on the low table and gestured for Yun Zijin to come over and have a look.
Yun Zijin went over with Qin Sitong to look, while Zero One and his men stepped outside to stand guard by the entrance.
"The pattern and glaze are so well-preserved."
The reason Yuan Blue and White Porcelain is so precious is because so few pieces have survived to this day. Given their age, even the ones that were preserved often have many flaws.
But this particular vase not only had a perfectly preserved design, its colors were also remarkably pure. It could be considered an exceptionally rare treasure, even among other pieces of Yuan Blue and White Porcelain.
"Grandpa Li, are you really willing to sell this to me?"
Although Yun Zijin didn’t know Mr. Li very well, as the patriarch of the Li family—one of Dijing’s four great families—he certainly wasn’t hurting for money.
Running an antique shop like this could only be a hobby.
"Hmph! I have others at home. This one has just been sitting in storage. Since you want it, it’s no trouble to let you have it."
"But I’m warning you, once you take it home, you must treat it well. Otherwise, I’ll take it back."
If he hadn’t taken such a liking to Yun Zijin, the old man would never have been willing to part with such a fine piece of Yuan Blue and White Porcelain.
Yun Zijin, who had only wanted it for arranging flowers: ...
"How about... you pick out a more ordinary one for me? I’m just going to use it to arrange flowers."
She personally didn’t mind using a Yuan Blue and White Porcelain vase for flowers, but she was afraid the old man’s blood pressure would skyrocket if he found out.
"Arrange flowers?"
"Yep! Or how about you pick out an ordinary one for the flowers, and I’ll take this Yuan Blue and White Porcelain one home and put it away safely in a cabinet. I won’t use it for flower arrangements."
Li Yuexing rubbed his nose. He recalled what Yun Zijin had said while bidding at the Huaxin Auction and suddenly thought that if his grandfather hadn’t told her to treat it well, Yun Zijin would have absolutely used the Yuan Blue and White Porcelain vase for her flowers.
That was definitely something Yun Zijin would do.
The phrase "rich and willful" was embodied to perfection by Yun Zijin.
"Just use any modern blue-and-white porcelain for flowers. That one over there is almost identical to this one, how about it?"
The old man pointed to a blue-and-white porcelain vase on a display shelf. It looked identical to the Yuan Blue and White Porcelain vase on the table; one was just an antique, and the other was a modern artisanal piece.
"That works. I’ll take them both, then. Grandpa Li, when you pack them, please remember to label them. Otherwise... I won’t be able to tell them apart."
Yun Zijin knew nothing about appraising antiques and was afraid she’d get them mixed up after taking them home.
"Don’t worry, I know this stuff. I’ll do it!"
When Li Yuexing had free time, he often came over to help his grandfather. A small task like packing items for a customer was a piece of cake for him.
"Then I’ll leave it to you."
Li Bingzhen glanced at his grandson, then at Yun Zijin, and he understood everything.
’This grandson of mine has a sharp eye,’ he thought to himself. ’He managed to pick out such a fine young woman.’
Having lived for so many years, the old man was an excellent judge of character; his first impressions were always spot-on.
Those young ladies from the elite families all seemed cut from the same cloth, their every word twisting with hidden meanings.
They would even try their petty schemes in front of him. As someone from a simpler era, the old man truly disliked all that cunning nonsense. A straightforward girl like Yun Zijin was much more his style.
"These two together aren’t cheap. Won’t your family have something to say about you spending so much money?"
The Yuan Blue and White Porcelain piece alone was worth well over ten million. The old man was genuinely worried that Yun Zijin was being too extravagant and would get an earful from her parents when she got home.
"Have I not mentioned it? I grew up in an orphanage. It’s all my own money, so you don’t need to worry."
’Then again,’ she thought, ’this is only our second meeting, so it’s reasonable that he wouldn’t know.’
Li Bingzhen hadn’t expected Yun Zijin to drop such a bombshell.
"You grew up in an orphanage? Then you..."
’So young, yet she’s already earned so much money?’
’In that case, she and my grandson are a good match. Both of them know how to make money.’
"Where did my money come from? I’ll tell you, but you can’t tell anyone else, okay?"
Yun Zijin leaned in a little closer and lowered her voice.
The old man nodded. "Go on."
"Haha! I’m just teasing you. It’s common knowledge—I’m Dijing’s ’little landlady.’"
’Oh, wait, not just Dijing anymore. My rent-collecting business has expanded to C City.’
Li Bingzhen: ...
’Collecting rent in Dijing at such a young age... Her knack for making money is quite impressive.’
"Alright, as long as you’re not under financial pressure, that’s all that matters. If you run into any trouble, or if anyone in Dijing gives you a hard time, you come find me. I’ll stand up for you!"
Having finally met a junior he clicked with, and learning that Yun Zijin grew up in an orphanage, Li Bingzhen’s protective senior instincts kicked in.
"With those words from you, I can probably do whatever I want in Dijing."
"If you wanted to, it wouldn’t be out of the question."
Li Bingzhen was now looking at Yun Zijin as his future granddaughter-in-law.
Li Bingzhen could tell in an instant from the way his grandson kept stealing glances, wanting to look but not daring to.
However... Li Bingzhen also noticed that Yun Zijin didn’t seem to have any romantic feelings for his grandson.
’I can’t tell if she’s just oblivious, or if my grandson just isn’t her type...’
The old man’s mind raced with possibilities, truly worrying himself sick over Li Yuexing’s prospects.
Yun Zijin smiled. ’As things stand, anyone in Dijing who could bully me probably hasn’t even been born yet.’
But she didn’t say anything more. She appreciated the old man’s kind intentions.
Since the old man was so kind to her, Yun Zijin decided to bring him a canister of the Lingwu tea she had received as a system reward the next time she visited.
Drinking Lingwu tea regularly was good for one’s health, and it would be a small token of her gratitude for the old man taking her under his wing.
Just then, the sound of a car braking sharply echoed from outside Jubao House.