PCJ – Chapter 550 We Meet Again

“Here, here!”

Xu Xiaoting kept waving at Zhang Jiaohua. Zhang Jiaohua looked over in the direction of the voice and saw Xu Xiaoting standing gracefully at the entrance of Xu’s Auction House, dressed in carefully chosen clothes.

Zhang Jiaohua smiled and walked over. He was dressed casually, but his attire made him appear more mature compared to others of his age in the capital.

“Is this Zhang Jiaohua?” Tang Jingxian, who had been standing at the door with her husband to welcome guests for the auction, walked over.

“Mom, what are you doing here? You better not scare my classmate away,” Xu Xiaoting frowned, feeling uneasy. She had liked Zhang Jiaohua ever since the day they first met, and this affection had slowly turned into admiration over time. As a sensitive and timid girl, she couldn’t tell whether Zhang Jiaohua also liked her.

Tang Jingxian glanced at her daughter with some concern, thinking, Silly girl, why is she so lacking in confidence? This guy looks pretty ordinary, though.

Tang Jingxian then turned her gaze to Zhang Jiaohua, wanting to understand the boy who had made her daughter so infatuated.

As Zhang Jiaohua walked over, he immediately felt Tang Jingxian’s gaze.

Tang Jingxian was no naive woman. As Zhang Jiaohua approached, she greeted him with a smile, “You must be Zhang Jiaohua? Tingting often mentions you at home. I can see now that you’re quite a handsome young man. Welcome.”

“Hello, Auntie. I’m just a country kid, not used to this kind of place. I came to see the excitement today,” Zhang Jiaohua said naturally.

“Ah, Zhang Jiaohua, you’re so modest. You’re definitely more eloquent than our Tingting. You must come over to our house more often. Tingting says you’re not only good at studying but also do well in other areas. I hope you can help her more in the future,” Tang Jingxian warmly led him into the auction house.

Xu Xiaoting’s father, Xu Yanzhang, was busy receiving guests.

Just as Zhang Jiaohua, Xu Xiaoting, and Tang Jingxian entered the auction house, three people Zhang Jiaohua was very familiar with arrived behind them.

“Mr. Ji, Mrs. Ji, and the lovely Jia Jia, hello. As soon as you arrived, this auction immediately became more upscale. Mr. Ji, Mrs. Ji, I’m so grateful you could find time to come,” Xu Yanzhang greeted, his tone becoming noticeably more cautious.

“Old Xu, you’re making too much of it. We’ve been good brothers for years, and now you’re being so formal. I can’t get used to it. I won’t come next time,” said Ji Jianming, who had recently returned to work in China and held an important position in a key department. This is why Xu Yanzhang was more careful with his words. However, they had a deep friendship, which was why Ji Jianming had brought his family to support Xu Yanzhang.

“Alright, alright, it’s my fault. Brother Ji, Sister Ji, please forgive me. I’ll make it up to you both later. Recently, I got a bottle of ancient cellar wine. It’s not that famous, so it probably won’t be sold at the auction, but I decided to keep it for myself. Brother Ji, it’s been a while since we had a drink. We must find time to do so,” Xu Yanzhang said.

“We can do that,” Ji Jianming smiled.

Ji Jiaxin was curiously looking around. She had come along to see the excitement of the auction.

“Jia Jia, when she heard about your auction, she insisted on coming. Actually, she’s been wanting to see Tingting for a while. Is Tingting here?” Shen Bing asked.

“She’s here. She just arrived with a classmate and went inside. I’ll ask Jingxian to take you to them in a moment,” Xu Yanzhang said, pointing inside.

“Old Xu, you stay here and greet the guests. We’ll go in on our own,” Ji Jianming said, knowing that Xu Yanzhang had a lot to handle today.

“Don’t worry, Xiao Huang, come here for a moment,” Xu Yanzhang called a young man over. “Take Mr. Ji and his family to the front seats. Then let Tang tell her that Mr. Ji’s family has arrived. Brother Ji, I’ll have Xiao Huang take you in.”

Ji Jianming and his family, guided by Xiao Huang, went to the front row of the auction house. As soon as Ji Jiaxin saw Zhang Jiaohua, she immediately rushed over.

“Zhang Jiaohua! You’re here too?” Ji Jiaxin shouted excitedly.

“Huh? Ji Jiaxin, you’re here too? I’m just here to watch the excitement, what about you?” Zhang Jiaohua laughed.

Ji Jiaxin giggled, “I’m here to watch the excitement too.”

Just as Tang Jingxian was about to head back to the door to greet more guests, she saw Ji Jiaxin running over and chatting enthusiastically with Zhang Jiaohua. Immediately, she started worrying about her daughter. “This guy really is a heartbreaker. Tingting, you really have bad taste.”

Tang Jingxian stared at Ji Jiaxin, finding her more and more familiar, and then exclaimed in surprise, “Jia Jia? Is that you?”

“Aunt Tang, hello. Huh, Xiaoting, you’re here too?” Ji Jiaxin had been so focused on Zhang Jiaohua that she hadn’t noticed Tang Jingxian and Xu Xiaoting until now.

“You know Zhang Jiaohua?” Tang Jingxian asked in surprise.

“Yeah, we’ve known each other for a while. This guy even said he’d come play with me, but if we hadn’t met here today, I’m sure he would’ve forgotten about me a long time ago,” Ji Jiaxin complained.

Xu Xiaoting didn’t know what to do. She and Ji Jiaxin were both attractive, but Xu Xiaoting had always been a good student, unlike Ji Jiaxin, who had a wilder personality. In the past, this had been a good trait, but now it made her feel inferior. If they were to compete for a boy’s affection, Xu Xiaoting didn’t stand a chance. Her heart was conflicted, as she wasn’t sure what the relationship between Zhang Jiaohua and Ji Jiaxin was, but seeing them together made her feel like she was a mere leaf while Ji Jiaxin was the flower.

“Tingting, what’s with that silly look? Tell me, what are you thinking? Hmm? You and Zhang Jiaohua are just classmates, right?” Ji Jiaxin remembered that earlier, Xu Yanzhang had mentioned a classmate arriving, so she assumed it must be Zhang Jiaohua.

“Yes, yes, Zhang Jiaohua and I are classmates,” Xu Xiaoting said awkwardly.

Zhang Jiaohua smiled, “Jiaxin, you and Xu Xiaoting were classmates?”

“Well, our relationship is more than just classmates. Xiaoting is a good friend I’ve grown up with,” Ji Jiaxin replied.

“Jiaxin, did your parents come?” Tang Jingxian asked.

“They’re here, they’re over there!” Ji Jiaxin pointed to Ji Jianming and Shen Bing, who were walking over.

Because they had been greeting familiar people along the way, Ji Jianming and his wife were still quite far away.

Tang Jingxian quickly went to greet them, saying, “You kids chat here, I’ll go over there for a moment.”

“Jiaohua, you’re really just here to watch the excitement?” Ji Jiaxin looked at Zhang Jiaohua with a teasing expression. She had thought there might be something more than just a classmate relationship between him and Xu Xiaoting.

“Well, I came to try bidding for a Dan furnace,” Zhang Jiaohua replied.

“A Dan furnace?” Ji Jiaxin looked confused.

“Heh, this guy really believes in alchemy. He’s probably planning to buy one of the unsold Dan furnaces from our auction house,” Xu Xiaoting said, feeling quite amused.

“Why would you buy a Dan furnace? Are you planning to practice alchemy, or maybe use it to roast tea leaves?” Ji Jiaxin asked.

“Roast tea leaves? No, I’m planning to study alchemy,” Zhang Jiaohua corrected.

“Xiaoting, you didn’t know Zhang Jiaohua’s family background?” Ji Jiaxin asked, surprised.

“Zhang Jiaohua’s family?” Xu Xiaoting had always thought that Zhang Jiaohua came from a relatively well-off farming family, perhaps even one that had recently become wealthy through the coastal boom.

“You really don’t know? Jiaohua’s family is famous for making tea. They sell it all over the world,” Ji Jiaxin explained.

“You’re not saying that their Biyu Xianyin tea is from his family, are you?” Xu Xiaoting asked skeptically.

“Yes, that’s right. Biyu Xianyin is from his family,” Ji Jiaxin nodded. This was a secret that not many people knew, but Ji Jiaxin was one of them.

“Ah?” Xu Xiaoting was completely stunned. Biyu Xianyin was well-known, and as the second generation of an auction house, she knew exactly what it meant. Her family’s auction house had even auctioned off the finest Biyu Xianyin, but even the biggest auction houses in the capital couldn’t easily acquire the top-tier Hongyu Xianyin. To think that the boy she had assumed was ordinary came from such a prestigious background.

“Ah, Jiaohua, I’m sorry for revealing that,” Ji Jiaxin apologized, scratching her head.

“It’s fine. I’m not involved in anything underground,” Zhang Jiaohua said casually.

“So why are you bidding on a Dan furnace? Are you really going to roast tea leaves with it?” Ji Jiaxin asked.

“Well, I want to give it a try,” Zhang Jiaohua admitted.

“I knew it, you’re planning to roast tea leaves!” Ji Jiaxin said with a knowing smile.

Xu Xiaoting wasn’t sure what to say. She didn’t want to seem too eager, but she also wanted to talk more with Zhang Jiaohua. Seeing Ji Jiaxin chat so eagerly with him made her heart race.