Liu Ziqing was associated with Sotheby's in New York. Although Sotheby's had a good reputation worldwide, China Guardian was still the leader in the Chinese auction industry. When news of such a valuable opportunity reached them, the auction house naturally took it very seriously.
In the auction world, while there are established methods of evaluation, sellers often prioritize an auction house's history of achieving high prices. Even if their item is only worth 5,000 dollars, if a similar item sold for 50 million at a particular auction house, they are likely to have high hopes for that house, even if their item ends up selling for just a bit more. The more items an auction has, the more buyers it can attract. Auction houses are well aware of this psychology. Therefore, when it was revealed that there were ten rare books, each valued at over 2 million dollars, up for sale, it was an opportunity too good to pass up. There was no way they would reject Huang Xuan's conditions. Liu Ziqing, of course, was also praised for bringing in the deal, and when Huang Xuan saw him again, his face was full of smiles.
Huang Xuan was all smiles as well. He had been taught from a young age that if you have snacks, you share them with everyone; if there are benefits, everyone should enjoy them; and if there's money to be made, everyone should profit. This way, you can keep your share longer, eat more, and earn more effortlessly.
After transferring 1 million dollars from his newly earned funds to his cousin's account, Huang Xuan felt a bit of relief. The construction site's generators had increased to 15, and the fuel costs were piling up. Fortunately, Zhang Haoyu wasn't too concerned about this small amount of money and didn't chase after his cousin for repayment. Otherwise, Huang Xuan would be bankrupt, or Lorin would be running on empty.
After a leisurely afternoon, Huang Xuan returned home only to find everyone bustling about. Curious, he grabbed Butler Zhou, who was busy directing the servants, and asked, "Uncle Zhou, what's going on? Where are my mom and dad?"
"Today is the anniversary celebration—did you forget?" Zhou Lin was busy overseeing the gift wrapping but immediately grabbed Huang Xuan when he saw him, saying, "My dear young master, did you forget everything I told you this morning? I even reminded you to keep your phone on. I've been looking for you all afternoon, and you were nowhere to be found. I was worried sick!"
"The anniversary celebration!" Huang Xuan jumped up. He had forgotten what the celebration was for, or perhaps no one had ever told him, but that didn't lessen its importance to the Huang family. The anniversary celebration had gradually evolved into the Huang family's annual conference, where key decisions for the upcoming year were made. Every member of the Huang family had to attend, and failing to show up without a good reason meant no allowance—a fate too dreadful to contemplate.
Realizing his phone had been on silent, Huang Xuan angrily tossed it onto the sofa and quickly ran to his room to change clothes, gulping down a glass of water as he asked, "What time is it now?"
"5:30. There's one hour left until the celebration," Butler Zhou replied, as he grabbed two other servants to help Huang Xuan change and gather his things. He added, "I've been calling you since noon, and just now I sent out several people to find you. You, on the other hand, disappeared without a trace."
"Does my mom know?" Huang Xuan asked, fearing his mother's wrath.
Butler Zhou's voice grew stern. "The whole family is worried sick—what do you think?"
Huang Xuan shivered at the thought, shaking his head to push aside the terrifying consequences. He carefully finished dressing and said, "Well, if she knows, then it's over. Let's hurry up and go before anyone starts talking."
"The car is ready," said Li Qing, his father Huang Qunsheng's personal assistant. Like Huang Xuan, his father was quite disorganized, to the point of being almost incapable of managing his life, so someone was specifically assigned to keep his study and other spaces in order.
Realizing there was no time to waste, Huang Xuan irritably waved them off and rushed out the door.
Outside the Huang family's ancestral home, dozens of cars were parked. Among them were vehicles belonging to Huang Xuan's uncles, aunts, and cousins, as well as those of friends and extended family members. It was said that at the Sheraton Hotel in the city, many business partners were also meeting informally, since, over the next few days, decisions would be made about new company leaders and even contractual agreements. Huang Xuan had only overheard the adults discussing such matters.
The younger generation had their own gathering place. Although Huang Xuan didn't particularly like the small garden surrounding the lotus pond, attendance was mandatory if he wanted his allowance.
For now, Huang Xuan had 16 cousins and 12 female cousins. Four of the male cousins were the sons of his third uncle, making them his first cousins, while the other 12 were cousins from his granduncles' lines—descendants of his grandfather's elder and younger brothers. The number was temporary, as it fluctuated each year.
Of course, the overall trend was one of growth.
Huang Xuan entered the lotus pond area sullenly. After June, he would be 16, making him one of the oldest in this small garden, although a few of his cousins were older by two years.
Two of his younger cousins, Huang Zhi and Huang Ling, who were 13 and 14, respectively, waved excitedly when they saw him. The two families were close, so they were quite familiar with each other. More importantly, like Huang Xuan, they didn't enjoy studying and were always causing trouble.
"Hey, big brother, how about we sneak out tonight?" the two boys suggested, eager to break the rules. Huang Xuan didn't even consider it before refusing, "I have to head back tonight. You two should behave yourselves."
The boys circled him as if they didn't recognize him. "Big brother, did Auntie hit you so hard you lost your mind?"
"You're the ones who've lost your minds," Huang Xuan said, playfully knocking Huang Zhi on the head. "I have things to do tonight. You guys go play on your own."
"Is it Illidan?" the two asked, aware of their cousin's obsession with World of Warcraft.
"Something like that," Huang Xuan thought. What I'm doing now is way more interesting than Illidan.
At that moment, a few more kids joined in, and Huang Zhi and Huang Ling stopped pestering him, engrossed in their own conversations. Watching them, Huang Xuan suddenly felt a bit out of place.
I used to be like this, Huang Xuan thought. He used to play and joke around without a care, following his whims. But whether it was due to growing older or Lorin's influence, he now found the idea of living just for fun rather meaningless. This mindset seemed to distance him from his peers and the social circle he was part of.
Even though they were all part of the same large family, the sheer number of descendants meant that not everyone was close. Huang Xuan's grandfather, Huang Jindi, was a strict man, and with his busy schedule, he wasn't particularly close to his grandchildren. Moreover, the complex family dynamics inevitably led to the children forming small cliques. Those who were closely related or had strong family ties formed one group, while others with more distant connections formed another. The opinions and attitudes of the older generation naturally influenced these divisions. And these divisions would, in turn, affect their relationships as they grew older—just like with Huang Xuan's father's generation.
Across the lotus pond, a group of ten or so young people were gathered, enjoying barbecued meat and chatting about their lives, new entertainment venues, and so on. This area was traditionally the domain of young adults who were not yet married, but things had changed slightly for Huang Xuan's generation.
Huang Jindi was the third child among his siblings, with two elder brothers and one younger brother. Although he had successfully led the Huang family to maintain their status and power, his achievements were seen as merely maintaining the status quo.
Because of this, as the head of the Huang family, Huang Jindi faced a lot of scrutiny, especially from his two older brothers—Huang Xuan's granduncles.
Huang Jindi was nearly ten years younger than his brothers, and his first two children were daughters. This meant that while Huang Xuan was the eldest grandson of the main Huang line, he was still 15 years younger than his oldest cousin—a whole generation apart.
Due to this division within the Huang family, while Huang Xuan was still playing around on one side of the lotus pond, his cousins from the main branch had already moved to the other side, forming their own group.
Huang Xuan spat into the pond in disgust. He had never gotten along with those cousins, and as they grew older, the divide became more apparent. As Huang Jindi's health declined, the rivalry between the two factions intensified.
Seeing Huang Xuan spit, Huang Ling leaned in conspiratorially and whispered, "Big brother, should we spice things up for them?"
"What do you mean by 'spice things up'?" Huang Xuan asked with a grin. These boys were all from the third branch of the family, and since their two feisty older sisters had gotten married, they had never won a direct confrontation. So, pranks had become their go-to strategy.