Chapter 227: Chapter 224 Someone Brings a Pillow When You’re Drowsy Chapter 227: Chapter 224 Someone Brings a Pillow When You’re Drowsy Su Qingqing snorted, “Only an outsider would think that’s a good thing, which is exactly what the organizers intended, right?”
Huo Sining looked at Su Qingqing, puzzled, “What do you mean?”
Su Qingqing spoke indifferently, “It means bait-and-switch. The organizers want to use this method to advertise their own company, they’d prefer all the participants to be greenhorns who don’t understand the gambling on stones, ensuring that they are in a winning position.”
“When the time comes, they’ll win the first prize themselves and, in turn, advertise their company. It won’t cost much, but the effect will be absolutely remarkable. With that one million as bait, wouldn’t those gamblers be tripping over each other to get in?”
Bai Yishan looked at Su Qingqing in surprise, “How do you know that?”
Su Qingqing pursed her lips in disdain, “Just take a look at who the backer is, and you’ll see.”
Huo Sining flipped the flyer over to the other side and, sure enough, saw in bold letters: Organized by Zhou’s Jewelry Company.
Huo Sining’s mouth twitched, “How has the Zhou family fallen to the point of playing these low tricks?”
“Zhou’s Jewelry has had some bad luck recently, their capital chain has run into issues, and several partners are reluctant to continue working with them. Now, they are cornered and can only look for new breakthroughs.”
Su Qingqing’s eyes glittered with schadenfreude, “I heard from my brother that the Zhou family has been making new moves recently. It seems Master Zhou’s grandson has returned. That grandchild of the Zhou family is exceptionally talented, and Zhou Zhen’s position as his heir is now in jeopardy.”
Huo Sining nodded, his gaze fixed on the flyer, deep in thought.
“This stone-gambling conference, will they invite television stations to come too?”
Su Qingqing nodded, “It seems to say so on the flyer. It looks like they’re planning to broadcast it live on the S City Metropolitan Channel.”
At this, the corners of Huo Sining’s mouth lifted, and a shrewd light flashed in his eyes, “If that’s the case, then the Zhou family is really in for some bad luck.”
Su Qingqing was stunned, “Why?”
Huo Sining glanced at Bai Yishan and smiled inscrutably, “Because man’s plans can’t beat fate, they’ve planned everything out neatly, but I have a feeling that once again they’ll be making wedding clothes for someone else!”
Su Qingqing did not understand the meaning of Huo Sining’s words, but Bai Yishan caught on, casting Huo Sining a glance as if she had grasped his inner thoughts.
“Director Ou, I really have to thank you for your help. Rest assured, once the stone-gambling conference is over, Zhou’s Jewelry will take care of the jewelry for your wife and daughter. Definitely, definitely, a private custom-made. Yes, of course, thank you, thank you.”
After hanging up the phone, Zhou Zhen stood in the hospital room, a self-satisfied look on his face, “Grandfather, rest easy now, Director Ou has agreed to it, and he even said he’d personally direct the reporters and cameramen for the live broadcast, ensuring nothing will go wrong.”
After saying this, he could not resist giving a provocative look to Zhou Yan, who stood respectfully on the other side, and he snorted coldly.
Zhou Yan was expressionless, but the mocking look in his eyes was unmistakable beneath his lowered eyelids.
The little man has his day! Zhou Yan sneered coldly in his heart.
Master Zhou’s face was haggard, and in just a short two-month period, the old man, who was barely past his sixtieth birthday, now looked like an ancient septuagenarian, his whole person appeared withered and frail, with an extremely weak spirit.
Hearing Zhou Zhen’s words, a few traces of relief appeared in Master Zhou’s previously clouded eyes.
After all, Master Zhou was the one who raised Zhou Zhen himself, and compared to Zhou Yan who did not grow up by his side, his emotional scale naturally tilted more towards Zhou Zhen, and his expectations for Zhou Zhen were much higher than for Zhou Yan.
This promotional plan was conceived by Zhou Zhen himself, and after reviewing it, Father Zhou was somewhat surprised and astonished. Initially very disappointed with his son, he hadn’t expected the young man to suddenly come to his senses.
Father Zhou had many years of experience at Zhou’s Jewelry, but he admitted to himself that he couldn’t have come up with such a scheme, so he was very pleased. Without a second word, he took it to the hospital for Master Zhou to decide.
Master Zhou too found it very good and immediately decided to act according to the plan, even going so far as to request Zhou Yan, his grandson through his elder daughter and a brilliant alumnus of MIT, to cooperate with Zhou Zhen’s work.
Zhou Zhen received affirmation and also heard Grandfather say that Zhou Yan had to work with him, he naturally felt immensely proud, nearly bursting to mock Zhou Yan outright.
Fortunately, Zhou Zhen still retained some sense and knew that he was in his grandfather’s hospital room, where Grandfather valued propriety above all. No matter how brilliant his plan was, Zhou Yan was still his cousin, and Grandfather would certainly not tolerate such presumptuousness.
However, the bubbles of joy inside Zhou Zhen couldn’t stop rising, and he thought to himself: Indeed, finding a clever wife is the most important thing. Such a brilliant scheme was worth much more than the wealth and power behind that idiotic woman, Su Qingqing!
That’s right, the plan was helped along by Ye Zixin. Since learning that Master Zhou had called back his grandson, the son of Elder Miss Zhou, from abroad, Ye Zixin realized that she might have backed the wrong horse.
Zhou Zhen’s status as the heir was perilously unstable, which meant a huge blow to Ye Zixin.
If Zhou Zhen were to be disavowed and Master Zhou passed the Zhou family’s enterprises to his grandson, wouldn’t all her efforts come to nothing, gaining her nothing at all?
To Ye Zixin, this was almost unbearable. She quickly realized that if she wanted to avoid losing out, she must start using her brains to find a solution.
Now that she and Zhou Zhen were in the same boat, given that she had clung to Zhou Zhen’s coattails, aside from regaining Master Zhou’s trust for Zhou Zhen and solidifying Zhou Zhen’s status and prestige in the Zhou family, there was no other way.
It must be said that Ye Zixin did possess a certain cunning. In just a few days, she managed to come up with a complete plan.
Men are fickle creatures. Zhou Zhen, who previously felt nauseated by Ye Zixin over the King Biao incident, was ecstatic upon seeing the plan. He hugged Ye Zixin tenderly, calling her his precious little enchantress and looking at her as if she were a treasure trove.
Ye Zixin had her own grudges about Zhou Zhen’s neglect, but she knew how to read the room and understood that if she acted unreasonably now, she would be pushing Zhou Zhen away. She had fought hard to snatch this man from Su Qingqing’s hands; how could she let go so easily?
The Ye family was of modest means, favoring her brother over her and indifferent towards her. Ye Zixin had long understood that if she wanted a life of luxury in the future, she had to find her own way.
So she plotted and schemed to snatch Zhou Zhen from that woman, Su Qingqing. In her eyes, although Su Qingqing was lucky to have been born into a well-off family, she was woefully lacking in intelligence. Otherwise, how could she have been so easily deceived by a bit of scheming?