Chapter 158: Shattered

Fifteen minutes later, muffled screams echoed from a small wooden lawn cabin far away from the banquet hall.

Moments later, Gong Xueyuan bolted out, her hair, face, and evening gown completely drenched in sticky, greasy, low-quality makeup remover.

Her exquisite makeup was ruined beyond recognition, streaming down in ugly black and red streaks. Even her mouth tasted bitter, and fragments of popped balloons clung to her body like a drowned rat.

Trembling with rage, Gong Xueyuan shrieked the name, "Liang Jinshang!"

Liang Jinshang walked out alongside Le Quan. Compared to Gong Xueyuan, who looked like a vengeful female ghost, the two of them were as dazzling and glamorous as actresses just stepping off a red carpet.

"Liang Jinshang! Le Quan! Are you two out of your minds?!" Gong Xueyuan squinted through her stinging eyes and spat venomously.

Acting as if they hadn't heard a word, Liang Jinshang and Le Quan each pulled out their phones and aimed them right at her.

With continuous clicking sounds, they recorded Gong Xueyuan's pathetic state from every 360-degree angle without missing a blind spot.

Having thoroughly vented the stifling anger in their chests, the two returned to the venue, the smiles still lingering on their faces.

Liang Jinshang walked up to Shang Yucheng with a beaming smile.

A flash of amusement crossed his eyes as he pulled her down to sit beside her. "It looks like you two really did something satisfying."

He didn't ask what Liang Jinshang and Le Quan had gone off to do, but out of the corner of his eye, he caught Zheng Shan receiving a phone call and stepping outside.

All the items slated for tonight's auction were already displayed on stage.

From afar, Liang Jinshang spotted the old mountain sandalwood carving inside the glass case.

Before it was lost, Liang Jinshang hadn't paid it all that much close attention.

But now, looking at it from this distance, the benevolent and kindly expression of the Maitreya Buddha had never felt so comforting.

"Shang Yucheng, with you here, that wood carving will definitely be won, right?" Liang Jinshang grabbed his hand and confirmed it once more.

Shang Yucheng gave her a look that clearly said, *Are you stating the obvious?*

Forget the fact that Shang Yucheng could afford anything that could be priced.

Among the gathered elites of Jincheng, who would actually dare to genuinely compete with Shang Yucheng for something he had set his sights on?

While Shang Yucheng maintained his aloof demeanor, Le Quan couldn't stand it and offered some reassurance. "Don't you worry. This black-hearted profiteer Shang Yucheng stripped the Zhong family of every single one of their branch stores down to the ground. So tonight's money is essentially being paid by the Zhong family anyway. Even if the price shoots up to the heavens, you don't need to feel a shred of pity—just keep bidding higher!"

Her words held not a single trace of sympathy for the Zhong family.

They didn't deserve any sympathy.

Soon, the auction for the Maitreya wood carving arrived.

Just as the auctioneer called out the starting price, Liang Jinshang glanced sideways and discovered that Gong Xueyuan—now changed into a dark green evening gown—had followed right behind Zheng Shan and returned!

Liang Jinshang's heart tightened, terrified that Gong Xueyuan was up to some sabotage.

And indeed, Gong Xueyuan had no intention of letting this opportunity pass.

This eighty-year-old old mountain sandalwood Maitreya, authenticated by a professional institution, unexpectedly turned out to be immensely popular today.

The bidding skyrocketed all the way up.

Yet towards the end, it essentially boiled down to a fierce duel between Gong Xueyuan and Liang Jinshang.

Anyone present knew that Gong Xueyuan was once Shang Yucheng's fiancée, while the woman by Shang Yucheng's side was clearly his new flame.

The competition between the new favorite and the discarded old flame escalated through a series of million-dollar, high-stakes gambles in the bidding war!

Gritting her teeth and telling herself that the Zhong family was footing the bill anyway, Liang Jinshang pushed the bid all the way to 13 million!

Just as it seemed Gong Xueyuan had lost her mind and wanted to keep raising it—

Shang Yucheng finally looked up from his email on his phone.

"Have you had enough fun?" Shang Yucheng asked by Liang Jinshang's ear.

Caught up in the heat of the competition, Liang Jinshang didn't answer him.

Shang Yucheng took the bidding paddle from Liang Jinshang's hand and directly stated a figure: "20 million."

That clinched it.

Whether it was the insane 200% premium or the identity of the bidder, no one else had any way to continue competing.

Shang Yucheng checked his watch. The reason he drove the price to the absolute ceiling was also because he had urgent business that required him to leave early.

"I'm heading back to the company first. Will you take the wood carving and head back to Guanlan Courtyard later?"

Liang Jinshang kept her eyes fixed on the stage. "Mm!"

"I might not have time to drop by tonight. Be careful at home alone, okay?"

Liang Jinshang nodded absentmindedly. With a helpless sigh, Shang Yucheng withdrew his gaze and glanced at Young Master Zheng.

Zheng Shang replied, "Don't worry, I'll drive her back. I'll drop her off."

Shang Yucheng's displeased gaze swept over the pale gold laurel leaf pinned to Zheng's lapel; all of Zheng's diligent and uncomplaining service still couldn't erase the irritation brought on by those matching "couple's outfits."

After Shang Yucheng departed, once all the auction agreements were signed and the transaction of money and goods was completed, the winning bidder could finally take possession of the item.

Liang Jinshang waited until the very end, after almost everyone else had left, before walking over.

Gong Xueyuan stood at the edge of the stage, cradling the wood carving in her arms.

When Liang Jinshang approached, Gong Xueyuan didn't hand it over right away. "Eighty-year-old old mountain sandalwood; it takes forty years of curing for its fragrance to reach absolute perfection. That's what Zheng Shan's paternal uncle taught me. I never expected your family to have something so exquisite."

Liang Jinshang had no desire to entertain her nonsense.

One of Gong Xueyuan's hands fumbled inside her clutch. "Do you know what else, besides women, is terrified of makeup remover?"

Liang Jinshang looked at her with utter bewilderment, though a deeply ominous feeling was already taking root in her chest.

She reached her hand out directly. "Hand it over!"

Gong Xueyuan's hand suddenly whipped out of her clutch, pouring a vial of makeup remover directly over the old mountain sandalwood Maitreya.

The dripping liquid, reeking of a heavy, pungent fragrance, poured straight down from the top of the Maitreya's head, seeping deep into every single crack of the wood carving.

Liang Jinshang widened her eyes in total disbelief.

Old mountain sandalwood couldn't even tolerate water; scented liquids like this would completely ruin its pure, naturally sweet wood fragrance!

Liang Jinshang ground her teeth fiercely, telling herself it was fine—she could always find a professional to restore it!

She reached out to snatch it back, only to watch Gong Xueyuan break into a vicious, ugly smile and loosen both hands without a moment's warning—

*Crash!* With a deafening shatter, the Maitreya's head, staff, and exquisitely inlaid beads scattered everywhere!

It was broken. Smashed to pieces.

Liang Jinshang's hand remained frozen in the posture of grabbing for it.

Three seconds passed in silence.

"You're the one who failed to catch it," Gong Xueyuan's malicious voice brimbed with undisguised triumph. "This must be the most valuable thing that convicted criminal Fang Xin'ou left you, right? Oh, what a pity..."

*Slap!* Liang Jinshang's hand finally regained movement, delivering a vicious, ringing backhand across the other's face.

Gong Xueyuan clutched her cheek. "You..."

The corners of Liang Jinshang's mouth twitched as she ruthlessly grabbed a handful of Gong Xueyuan's freshly washed, loose hair, forcing her heavily to her knees on the ground. "Gong Xueyuan, you have insulted the deities. You will pay for this!"

"Don't try to scare me! I don't believe in any of that!"

"Then I'll make sure you face your retribution." Liang Jinshang struck her with another fierce slap. "Remember this pathetic, wretched look of yours today. When you've shed all your tears one day, I'll make sure to make you cry all over again."

Zheng Zheng and Le Quan had gone to fetch the car.

Refusing any comfort, Liang Jinshang stayed alone in the restroom to wash her face.

After taking a long time to pull herself together and force some color back into her complexion, she pushed open the restroom door to leave.

The exact second she pulled the door open, she caught sight of a horribly scarred, demonic face, and she almost screamed out loud in sheer terror!