In the Su Family’s building, people were gossiping right after the meeting ended. In just the time it took to have lunch, the whole Su Family was buzzing with talks about the auction.
"Have you heard? The auction was organized by the young lady," said a long-tongued female employee.
"I knew it. Miss Chang’s auction last time was both grand and low-profile, not one," commented a gossipy male employee with a sycophantic expression.
"I also heard that the company is in trouble now. The police have arrested the young lady for disturbing public order," a gossiping auntie said convincingly, as if she had witnessed Ziceng getting into the police car herself.
"Moreover, as soon as the chairman heard the news, he had a heart attack during the meeting and was sent to the hospital," an uncle who seemed to enjoy chaos interjected.
"Really? Are there any more insider stories?" a lazy female voice joined in.
"There’s more... The young lady!!!" Suddenly, the crowd dispersed like birds and beasts.
Ziceng was still wearing the loose sportswear she had on in the morning for setting up the auction house, and standing beside her was Secretary Wang, his face stern. They got on the elevator together.
During the elevator ride, Ziceng asked Secretary Wang and got a rough idea of the situation.
So when she entered Su Qingzhang’s office and saw the schadenfreude on the faces of the Chang’s mother and daughter and the cold-suited Su Qingzhang, she was already somewhat prepared.
"From now on, Xiao Chi will manage the auction house. You are not allowed to interfere in any matters," Su Qingzhang said in one breath, negating all of Ziceng’s hard work.
"I disagree. I organized this evening’s auction myself, and I will see it through no matter what," Ziceng did not compromise, as she had already sunk in seven hundred thousand of her own without return.
"You don’t get to disagree. For the following week, you are not allowed to go anywhere," Su Qingzhang once again used the old method of "house arrest," and this time, Ziceng had no chance to run.
"Of course, I can disagree. It doesn’t matter if I don’t leave the house, but by then, I’m afraid nobody in the Su Family, including the Su Family itself, will be able to leave," Ziceng glanced at the joyous Chang’s mother and daughter, "Without me, I really want to see how you’ll come up with the five hundred million worth of auction items in such a short time."
At one-thirty in the afternoon, the sun shone straight into the top-floor office, bathing the entire room in dazzling sunlight. Ziceng stood under the sunlight, the defiance in her eyes even more striking than the bright light itself.
Ziceng was actually threatening Su Qingzhang, and once they realized this, the faces of the Chang Family and Su Qingzhang changed again. Ziceng, who was originally completely subdued by Su Qingzhang, had learned to fight back. Who had taught her this? The three people in the office all turned their gaze to Ziceng.
She stood upright, her shadow cast by the sunlight as if to indicate that she had a strategist behind the scenes giving her counsel. After saying all this, Ziceng was also somewhat frightened. She subconsciously reached for her necklace, seeking the "Red Love" pendant, hoping for its warmth to support her.
"Chairman," Secretary Wang burst in again, in his hand was a newspaper that had just been delivered, "It’s out."
That very afternoon, newspapers including the Mo City Evening News marked their pages with: "Sky-high Auction Shocks Mo City." The news anticipations also commented: "An ad campaign this dominant, seen once in a decade."
Su Qingzhang waited another day, until the Huaxia Daily, a bellwether of national media, published its newspaper the next day, before he could breathe a sigh of relief. The headline of the Huaxia Daily’s economy section read: "The economic situation of 19** remains optimistic, state departments continue to implement relevant policies and regulations." In the social welfare channel of the Huaxia Daily, a medium-length report was published: "Domestic private auction houses boldly adopt new ideas, attracting wide attention from the whole society."
On the day the helicopter advertisement was distributed, in a hidden location of Bianjing City, the Central Military District also received a few pages of this kind. When the old man received the "Five hundred million auction" pages from a duty soldier, he chuckled, "This girl has really made it happen. It’s the era of the young people now, let her give it a go."
With no negative news, Su Bi Auction House’s "Five hundred million high-priced auction" surprisingly did not attract criticism. By Thursday, it was still the same. Su Bi Auction House had made the social headlines for two consecutive days, the aftermath continued, and as the news spread widely, the subsequent impacts had only just begun.