The Art of Teasing - Chapter 25

Chapter 25

Wen Zhengyu sat beside Old Master Wen for a while, sorting through her thoughts, then moved to the sofa nearby to lie down and rest.

Now that the old gentleman had collapsed, she would have to hold up this family from now on.

Before, it was the old gentleman who protected and cared for her; now it was her turn to care for him.

At dawn, a nurse doing rounds startled Wen Zhengyu awake.

After washing up, Wen Zhengyu saw the old gentleman get out of bed, his eyes listless, his aged state fully apparent, as if he had aged several years overnight. She suppressed the ache in her heart and first helped him to wash up.

The old gentleman's steps were still steady, but his back was no longer straight, his posture slumped, and his entire being seemed wilted.

She waited until he finished washing, helped him sit on the hospital bed, then sat beside him and said, "Grandfather, just consider this a chance for me to gain some experience. Let me handle this matter. What do you think?"

Old Master Wen lifted his eyelids to look at Wen Zhengyu and asked, "How do you plan to handle it?"

Wen Zhengyu said, "I'll have Uncle Zhan look into it first, find out exactly who is involved and what their goal is, then decide based on the situation."

Old Master Wen thought for a moment, nodded with an "mm," and said, "I still have a few hundred thousand on my card. Take it and use it first."

Wen Zhengyu said, "Don't worry about money. I'll think of something. If I can't even afford to have Uncle Zhan handle some errands, what face would I have left to call myself your granddaughter?"

Old Master Wen gently patted Wen Zhengyu's hand, saying nothing.

Sun Yuan brought breakfast over. After Wen Zhengyu accompanied the old gentleman through the meal, she went to hire a 24-hour caregiver for him.

Zhan Cheng arrived after breakfast. After a brief visit with the old gentleman, he followed Wen Zhengyu out of the hospital.

Wen Zhengyu had Zhan Cheng drive her home.

She went to her room and took out the pair of jadeite bangles her grandmother had left her.

These bangles were keepsakes from her grandmother and the only thing in the house that could fetch any real money.

The art studio had just opened and wasn't yet profitable. Her only income at present was that monthly salary and bonus. After household and daily expenses, she now had only twenty thousand yuan left on her card.

The old gentleman was at an advanced age; his energy, stamina, and health were all declining. With some money on hand, he could feel a bit more at ease. If he had nothing at all, who knew how panicked he'd become. His money, she absolutely could not touch.

That six-million-yuan external debt had to be repaid. Having Zhan Cheng go out and handle matters would cost money everywhere. To investigate clearly, and then to try to recover the porcelain that had been stealthily swapped out, more money would be needed.

If she couldn't come up with operating funds, she could forget about recovering that porcelain and would have to shoulder that six-million debt as well.

The only thing she could exchange for a large sum now was this pair of bangles, but this—this was the last keepsake from her grandmother.

Selling these bangles would be easy—just contact a buyer. But once sold, buying them back would be difficult. For a few million in working capital, she would be selling them…

She couldn't bear to part with them, and she couldn't hide it from the old gentleman. When the time came, if he learned she had sold the bangles to pay off debts, who knew how heartbroken he'd be.

Wen Zhengyu hesitated for a long time, then called Ye Ling.

Soon, Ye Ling's call connected. She said, "Zhengyu," and asked, "How is Old Master Wen?"

Wen Zhengyu replied, "Much better." She then said, "I've run into a bit of difficulty here and would like to ask CEO Ye for a favor. I wonder if it's convenient to come find you now?"

Ye Ling said, "It's convenient, certainly convenient. I'm in the office at the studio."

Wen Zhengyu said, "Alright. I'll head over now."

Ye Ling responded, "Okay."

Wen Zhengyu hung up, took the jewelry box containing the jadeite bangles, and had Zhan Cheng drive her to the studio.

Arriving at Ye Ling's office door, she knocked softly.

Ye Ling opened the door, invited her in, poured her a glass of water, and asked, "Didn't sleep well?"

Wen Zhengyu said, "A bit. The hospital sofa was somewhat uncomfortable." She placed the carved jewelry box on the coffee table, took the water glass Ye Ling handed her, and cradled it as she drank.

Ye Ling's gaze fell on the brocade box. Though she wasn't very knowledgeable about antiques, she had seen plenty of fine things and could tell a bit. From the box's material and carving, it was a somewhat old piece.

Wen Zhengyu had never borrowed money before in her life, let alone from Ye Ling. She was thin-skinned and a bit embarrassed to ask. However, thinking of it as a business transaction, she suppressed her awkwardness. She said, "I currently need some working capital and wanted to ask CEO Ye…" She paused, then continued, "The bangles in this box were left to me by my grandmother. It's said they came from the palace. At… at market estimate, they're worth at least ten million. I… want to use them as collateral to borrow some money from you. If… if I can't repay, then the bangles will be yours."

Ye Ling's brow twitched; she instinctively thought of the bangles Wen Zhengyu wore on her wrist. She asked, "How much?"

Wen Zhengyu said, "Seven million." She said, "I don't know much about private lending; we can have a lawyer come and draw up a loan agreement now." After she spoke, she saw Ye Ling glance at her with an indescribable look—seemingly a bit pained? Wen Zhengyu then felt this was even more absurd than Ye Ling having feelings for her, and quickly swept the thought from her mind.

Ye Ling said, "Judging from the studio's current operating condition, it's a bit doubtful you could pay back seven million in two years, but three years should be no major problem. For the sake of our partnership, I'll give you a cheap interest rate—ten percent annual interest." She asked, "No problem?"

Wen Zhengyu said, "No problem."

Ye Ling quickly printed out a loan agreement for Wen Zhengyu to review.

Wen Zhengyu had never seen a loan agreement before. She read through the terms very carefully. When she saw that upon Ye Ling lending her the money, the first year's interest would be deducted upfront, she was slightly taken aback. Then she thought, private lending is probably like this. If Ye Ling did this, it meant she wasn't interested in her and deliberately giving her leeway, which inexplicably made her breathe a sigh of relief. The interest amount and repayment dates on the loan agreement were all written clearly. She mentally calculated twice, confirmed the figures were correct, read through the loan agreement again carefully, made sure there were no errors, then signed and affixed her personal seal.

After signing, she remembered that Ye Ling hadn't yet examined the bangles, and told her to quickly take a look.

Ye Ling opened the box and recognized at a glance that these were the very same jadeite bangles Wen Zhengyu had worn the first time they met.

Wen Zhengyu had accompanied her to look at a house, in the rain, holding an umbrella as she walked beside her. Her hand holding the umbrella was slender and delicate, so tender it seemed a puff of air could break it. Her snow-white, slender wrist was like a willow swaying in the misty rain of Jiangnan, soft as if boneless. The translucent jadeite bangle hung on her wrist, setting off her skin to appear even fairer and more delicate, and she held an umbrella with an exquisitely crafted wooden handle carved with flowers and tassels. The poetic misty rain, the picturesque beauty—it made one's heart flutter. Even now, recalling that day, the scene was still vivid in her mind.

Ye Ling quickly reeled in her thoughts, closed the brocade box, and dialed the valuables storage according to an internal phone list, telling the warehouse manager to bring over the sealing wax for securing valuable boxes.

She sealed the box with the wax, then had Wen Zhengyu give her personal seal, and stamped Wen Zhengyu's seal into the sealing wax.

This was Wen Zhengyu's personal seal. The box was a carved one with an uneven surface; if someone tried to open the box or peel off the sealing wax, the wax would definitely be damaged. Without Wen Zhengyu's personal seal, it would be impossible to counterfeit a new wax seal.

Ye Ling said, "According to the contract, three years from today, if you haven't repaid the seven million, this pair of bangles will be mine."

Wen Zhengyu nodded.

Ye Ling asked, "Your personal bank account hasn't changed, right?"

Wen Zhengyu said, "No."

Ye Ling said, "Okay." She chose same-day arrival to transfer the money to Wen Zhengyu's account. As she transferred the money, she specifically added, "I'll deduct the first year's interest directly."

Wen Zhengyu responded, "Alright."

Ye Ling sent the money, received the bank's debit notification, and said to Wen Zhengyu, "The money's been transferred." At the same time, Wen Zhengyu's phone chimed.

Wen Zhengyu checked the message, said, "Received." She stood up and said, "Then I won't disturb CEO Ye any further."

She exited Ye Ling's office, called Zhan Cheng to her own office, and transferred him funds for his assignment, saying, "Investigate as soon as possible to avoid unnecessary complications."

Zhan Cheng acknowledged, saying, "I'll go right away."

Wen Zhengyu nodded.

After Zhan Cheng left, she handled the day's studio matters. Seeing it was almost noon, she went to the hospital to see her grandfather.

She hadn't told even Wen Li or her aunt about the old gentleman's situation, and he wouldn't go around spreading it accidentally. She'd thought no one would come visit, but just as she reached the hospital room door, she heard a voice of one of her grandfather's friends inside: "I tell you, you're taking this way too hard. If you ruin your health over this, what then?"

Curious, Wen Zhengyu stopped and peeked in, only to be spotted by the sharp-eyed Old Master Wen.

Wen Zhengyu pushed open the door, entered with a smile, and called out, "Grandpa Wu." Her gaze swept over the two of them. This old friend was the one who had transferred the six million to her grandfather's account. Old Master Wu was forthright and loyal, without much guile, overly honest. He'd been cheated a few times, had his ups and downs in life, and wasn't particularly wealthy. Because his temperament matched Old Master Wen's, Old Master Wen often liked to bring Old Master Wu along when he ran into suitable deals.

As it was getting late, after the two old gentlemen exchanged a few casual words, Old Master Wu prepared to take his leave.

Wen Zhengyu said, "Grandfather, I'll see Grandpa Wu off."

Old Master Wu cheerfully said, "Then see me off."

Wen Zhengyu accompanied Old Master Wu downstairs. After they exited the elevator, the old gentleman advised, "Xiao Yu, in this life, ups and downs are inevitable. You, have your grandfather relax, don't let him take this to heart, health is most important, okay. I just came to see him, saw he's alright, I'm at ease. Nothing else, no need to see me further, go on back."

Wen Zhengyu called out slowly, "Grandpa Wu," and asked, "What's the story with the six million you transferred to my grandfather?"

Old Master Wu immediately glared and said, "How did Old Man Wen even tell you about this? This is us old folks' business, don't you meddle."

Wen Zhengyu said, "I've told the old gentleman to focus on his health; I've taken over this matter." In antique trading, to avoid disputes, it's always cash on delivery. Even if a buyer is lined up, they only pay upon inspecting the goods and transacting. The money Old Master Wu transferred to her grandfather was either borrowed by him or Old Master Wu trusted her grandfather and had taken a stake. She said, "Currently, I have people tracking down the porcelain. It's hard to say whether it can be recovered. My thought is, first, I'll return part of this money to you. If it can be recovered, you two will conduct the deal as originally agreed. If not, I'll repay you the full six million, principal and interest. Give me a month's time, what do you think?"

Old Master Wu readily nodded, "Fine." He added, "If you can't repay, no problem; a delay is fine."

Wen Zhengyu helped Old Master Wu sit on a bench by the roadside and said, "Grandpa Wu, I'd like to know what kind of porcelain piece it was."

Old Master Wu said, "It was a Qianlong blue-and-white lotus vase, the 'heavenly globe' bottle. It was very well-preserved, without any cracks or restoration marks. But its provenance is a bit murky."

Wen Zhengyu nodded. If the provenance were all clear, it wouldn't be sold privately; it would go straight to auction. It's not that private transactions of antiques are illegal, but some procedures are troublesome, and sorting out historical backgrounds and origins gets especially tangled. On the market, which antique hasn't passed through the changes of time and changed hands countless times.

She didn't ask how Old Master Wu and Old Master Wen had negotiated the deal; she only asked, "Then I'll first pay you back two million, deposited into the account you used to transfer to my grandfather. How does that sound? I could transfer the full amount now, but I'm considering the possibility that the vase might be recovered, and you two might still continue the deal."

Old Master Wu said, "Let's do the two million."

Wen Zhengyu thanked Old Master Wu.

She saw Old Master Wu off and returned to the hospital room.

Old Master Wen glanced at her, wanted to ask something, but swallowed the words back.

Wen Zhengyu sat beside Old Master Wen and said, "You just wait for news at ease. Whether it can be recovered, I'll tell you in due course. I'll handle this myself if I can; if I can't, I'll go to Aunt. I definitely won't recklessly overreach."

Old Master Wen nodded, but still added, "I reckon they saw your father fall, and that I'm not much use anymore, so they want to make a big score."

Wen Zhengyu asked, "Just for money?"

Old Master Wen said, "Eighty percent yes." He glanced at Wen Zhengyu and said, "If they were after you, this little money wouldn't touch you."

Wen Zhengyu gave the old gentleman a sidelong, exasperated glance and said dismissively, "What's there to be after? I'm just a poor little painter." As she spoke, she saw Sun Yuan arriving with food and quickly helped the old gentleman out of bed to eat.

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