Perhaps seeing through her thoughts, Gu Zheng said slowly, “As long as you like it, so what if I spend money? What I don’t lack the least is money, so it’s worth it to spend money to buy you happiness.”

Just as Qiao Xi was about to speak, Luo Qing’s voice sounded in her earpiece, and her expression changed.

Gu Zheng seemed to have sensed something and slowly turned around. “I’ll take my leave first. Miss Bai, if you need help, you can go to the third floor to seek help. They’re all my people there. Don’t put yourself in danger.”

Qiao Xi’s entire body trembled. Gu Zheng really knew everything. Nothing could be hidden from him.

…

After Qiao Xi finished dealing with Yang Lin, the people from Ling Pavilion appeared and took Yang Lin away. The rest of the matter was left to Luo Qing to handle. She would not continue to participate.

The banquet had already been going on for more than an hour. Qiao Xi felt that the layer of skin on her face was not breathable and very uncomfortable, so she entered the lounge and prepared to remove it before secretly leaving when no one was around.

However, not long after she walked out of the lounge, she bumped into a familiar figure.

Gu Zheng’s footsteps were steady. Song Shijing and the others followed behind him and walked over majestically. They happened to meet Qiao Xi, who was still wearing Bai Lu’s gown.

Song Shijing looked surprised. “Young Madam, aren’t you feeling unwell? Why are you here? This gown…”

“Yes, before I went out, you said that your stomach hurt. Are you feeling better now?” Gu Zheng looked meaningfully at the flustered little woman in front of him.

The corners of Qiao Xi’s mouth twitched slightly. She was truly too unlucky. She had just left the lounge when she encountered the person she least wanted to see.

Seeing her awkward expression, Gu Zheng waved his hand to signal Song Shijing and the others to leave. He asked them to put the exquisite mahogany box on the sofa. The man waved at her. “Come and see the gift you chose.”

Qiao Xi could not help but look at the mahogany box on the sofa. She recalled that when she was fighting with Gu Zheng earlier, she had instigated him to bid for the expensive Nine Heavens Chinese Zither.

Gu Zheng said casually, “That necklace is indeed beautiful, but a kind, lively, cute, gentle, and elegant woman like Mrs. Gu should have a more expensive gift.”

His tone was calm, but it carried a trace of ridicule. Not only did he repeat Qiao Xi’s words, but he even grunted lightly. “Why didn’t I realize before that you were so narcissistic?”

Qiao Xi’s face flushed red as she flew into a rage out of humiliation and questioned, “Are you saying that she’s not such a person?”

Gu Zheng smiled and did not say anything. He looked at the mahogany box on the sofa and slowly opened it, revealing the colorful zither.

Before Qiao Xi could speak, a male voice sounded from afar. “Isn’t this the Nine Heavens Chinese Zither from the auction?”

Qiao Xi turned around and saw a few people walking toward them. The middle-aged man standing at the front was dressed in bright clothes, and behind him was a man who looked like an assistant. He looked cunning and wretched. As soon as he walked over, he started sowing discord. “You said you wanted to bid for this ancient zither a long time ago, yet someone actually snatched it from you!”

Qiao Xi was slightly surprised. It turned out that this ancient zither was something that someone else wanted. She had just casually pointed at something expensive for the sake of teasing Gu Zheng, but if this ancient zither was really taken, Gu Zheng would not have blindly snatched it.

At this moment, the middle-aged man spoke with a calm tone, “The two of you aren’t from the music industry, right? Can you sell this zither to me? I can raise the price.”

These words sounded quite polite, but the disdain in his eyes could not be concealed.

Gu Zheng’s voice was cold. “This is a gift for my wife. I don’t intend to give it up. Moreover, when I bought this ancient Chinese zither, it was made known to me that it wasn’t reserved.”

The moment that was said, the man’s expression darkened. The assistant behind him was immediately indignant. “Do you know who the person in front of you is? Do you know why we’re here in Li City?”

Qiao Xi: “???” ‘Who do you think you are?!’

Gu Zheng was naturally unwilling to pay attention to these two people. He did not even bother to look at them and directly pulled Qiao Xi out of the door.

The middle-aged man’s expression changed as he questioned coldly, “What kind of attitude is this? This belongs to me, so you have to give it to me!”

Gu Zheng stopped in his tracks and said calmly, “If the two of you have any objections, you can look for the person in charge of the charity banquet. There’s no need to pester us here.”

Unexpectedly, that person was unconvinced and shamelessly sent someone to stop Gu Zheng.

Qiao Xi knew that these two people must have just arrived in Li City, so they did not know the famous Gu Zheng.