kvmb Chapter 464 The Highest Bidder Wins
Chapter 464 The Highest Bidder Wins
Guan Zaizhou's miserable life was something Fu Qiyuan only learned about after returning from England following the wedding, while Zhang Xiafei's busy schedule was right before their eyes.
As her secretary, Zhang Xiafei worked diligently for more than two days to oversee the progress of the various groups' preparations for the charity gala, finally bringing the "Phoenix Rebirth" charity gala to a close.
That afternoon, while setting up the venue, Zhang Xiafei suddenly received a notification from the young lady that the Governor's wife would be attending in person.
She was completely stunned for a moment.
Zhang Xiafei knew that the Governor's wife had been actively involved in charity and social welfare activities over the years, but there had been no prior announcement. Why did she suddenly announce her arrival so late in the afternoon?
In her top-floor office, Fu Ziyan was explaining to her father, who had come to inspect the hotel, "My term ends next year, and we don't know what the next person will be like, so let's make the most of the time to promote ourselves using the title of the Governor's wife."
Finding a pretext at other times would be too abrupt, so choosing this charity gala at the hotel, which the organizers were using to reshape their brand image, was just right.
“She said before that she wasn’t sure if she would be free to come. I found out that her flight to London is only leaving tomorrow,” Fu Ziyan smiled slyly. “So I specially had someone put a box of top-grade Japanese Akoya pearls in the auction items to get the news to her.”
It was all for the purpose of seducing the wife of the Governor of Hong Kong.
Ordinary top-tier jewelry might not have been able to attract the Governor's wife, but this time it was no problem. After all, the main characters of the wedding in a few days liked pearl jewelry, and a gift should always be something that touches the heart.
Anything that is labeled "top-tier" is always rare.
Even if you've prepared a wedding gift in advance, it doesn't stop you from checking out the "top-quality pearls" at the charity auction. If there are better ones, you should definitely bid on them.
Fu Ziyan chuckled smugly, "You really do have time now!"
Fu Qiyuan ignored the Governor's wife and looked at his daughter instead: "Do you still have Akoya pearls yourself?"
Fu Ziyan smiled brightly, "Of course, I can't bear to give it all away, so I'll only give away a small portion~"
It's only because she has such a rich collection that she can play around with it so effortlessly.
After acquiring several mines, Fu Ziyan's desire to collect jewelry beyond her mineral holdings surged. Coupled with ample funds in her bank account, her purchasing agents would buy anything they encountered. Now, her safe room not only houses a considerable amount of high-end jewelry but also boasts an exceptionally rich collection of top-quality raw materials.
Fu Qiyuan nodded, saying nothing more, but he made a mental note of sending someone to Japan to acquire top-grade Akoya pearls. Even if Titi didn't care about it, he still wanted to make up for the losses in Titi's collection.
The presence of the Governor's wife, who had been lured into the trap, undoubtedly added a touch of solemnity and attention to this charity gala.
The head of the He family was startled.
The theme of this dinner was to protect and respect women's privacy, which corresponds to the incident where his daughter, He Jiayue, brought reporters into his home to catch him in the act of adultery, thus violating women's privacy.
He had originally planned to donate a large sum of money to charity, both to show that he knew his mistakes and repented, and to maintain the Ho family's reputation through charity. In addition, since the charity was organized by the Yuanxi Hotel, donating a large sum of money would also increase Miss Fu's goodwill towards the Ho family.
The head of the He family silently doubled the amount of donation he had in mind.
With the Governor's wife's arrival, tomorrow's newspapers will surely be abuzz with excitement; it's a perfect opportunity to salvage their reputation!
"Thank you to all the distinguished guests for attending this charity gala... All proceeds raised tonight will be donated to the Hong Kong Women's Association..."
"This is the first item in this charity auction," the auctioneer, dressed in a graceful cheongsam, began with a smile, introducing the item, "Thank you to Ms. He Jiayue for her donation..."
The audience was astonished; no one expected that He Jiayue would donate an item for auction, and that it would be the first item to be auctioned.
This was also something Fu Ziyan and the head of the He family had agreed upon that day; "Phoenix Nirvana" refers to both Yuanxi Hotel and He Jiayue. As the victim of this marriage and the person who violated others' privacy in the adultery incident, He Jiayue acknowledges her mistakes and undergoes a phoenix-like rebirth, contributing to women's career development and mental health protection.
Whether openly or secretly, many eyes turned left and right, toward He Jiayue and Xi Qingzhou, who was about to become her ex-husband.
Some people chuckled inwardly, finding the seating arrangement at the Yuanxi Hotel's charity gala truly amusing. Placing He Jiayue and Xi Qingzhou at opposite ends of the spectrum, like the distant stars Altair and Vega, seemed almost too far apart. However, their reunion on the Magpie Bridge was certainly out of the question; their next meeting would undoubtedly be to discuss asset division and divorce proceedings.
Having been raised in a wealthy family, Xi Qingzhou remained unfazed by the attention she received. A polite, business-like smile graced her lips, though her hands clenched tightly, and she harbored resentment towards Fu Ziyan.
The incident of catching someone in the act damaging the hotel's reputation was clearly caused by both He Jiayue and him. Why did Fu Ziyan only help He Jiayue and completely ignore him? Fu Ziyan is a shareholder of Xi's Group, after all. Does she completely disregard the company's stock?
Wei Ruzhen was also surprised for a moment, but quickly recovered, smiled and raised her paddle, doubling the starting price of 300,000.
She plans to bid a high price for He Jiayue's charity auction items, both to express her apology and respect for He Jiayue, and to showcase the Xi family's charitable actions.
Wei Ruzhen had a good plan, but she failed to win the bid in one go.
Auctions are inherently based on the highest bidder winning.
The starting prices for items in charity auctions are always deliberately lowered. Even if the price of the item provided by He Jiayue doubled from the starting price, it would still be worthwhile. Some people were genuinely interested in the item, while others bid with the intention of currying favor with the He family.
Xi Qingzhou hesitated for a moment, but quickly realized his mother's plan and raised his paddle to join the bidding.
When Young Master Xi made his move, he exuded an invincible aura of determination to win. The bidders, after a moment's thought, chose to give up. Since they were destined to lose, they figured it was better to back down early and save face.
The item was eventually sold to Xi Qingzhou for a high price of one million.
And this million is just the beginning of the charity auction.
Fu Ziyan watched from below the stage with a smile, as both He Xi and his party made contributions to charity, and a slight smile appeared on her lips.
Although she didn't earn the money, it was charity money she secured for the Hong Kong Women's Association, so of course the more the better.
Moreover, the larger the donation amount at this charity gala, the greater the public interest it will generate when it is reported in tomorrow's newspapers, and the more people will notice Yuanxi Yuanchen Hotel and learn about its "Guest Privacy Protection Plan".
......
"Tonight's charity auction has come to an end. A total of 12.65 million has been raised, which the Yuanxi Hotel will transfer in full to the Hong Kong Women's Association. Best wishes..." The auctioneer's calm and friendly voice rang out on the stage. As the charity gala ended, news about the event swept into newspapers as the media left.
The news was disseminated to the general public through newsstands the following day, and another round of gossip and sharing spread.
Fu Ziyan, however, was oblivious to the public's heated discussion; she was already reviewing documents on her private plane bound for London.