Chapter 581: The Opportunity to Get Rich Has Arrived

The morning light pierced through the gauze curtains, scattering mottled spots across the floor.

Liang Shiya faced the mirror, her face as cold as frost.

As a woman, the greatest stroke of luck is to have a good appearance. Liang Shiya's luck was not bad; she was extremely diligent in her daily life and maintained herself very well. She rarely stayed up late, rarely ate stimulating foods, and rarely got angry.

Therefore, although she was already thirty-four, those who were not familiar with her all thought she was only twenty-seven or twenty-eight.

However, having been in Beijing for less than a week, she seemed to have aged several years: faint, fine lines wrinkled at the corners of her eyes, and dark shadows appeared in her eye sockets.

This was all caused by Lin Sicheng's provocation: she had already suffered from insomnia for two nights.

The night before last, she was angered by that financial plan of Lin Sicheng's. Last night, it was because she had gone to supervise Lin Sicheng during the day, but not only did she fail to supervise him, she was instead angered by Lin Sicheng for the entire day.

It was not that Lin Sicheng's face was particularly detestable or his words particularly malicious: Lin Sicheng neither kept a cold face nor pretended not to hear.

Quite the contrary: he responded to every doubt and answered every question.

What angered Liang Shiya was Lin Sicheng's attitude: he was perfunctory the entire time, and he explicitly told you that he was indeed being perfunctory.

She asked: "General Manager Lin, how are you going to raise the next five million?"

Lin Sicheng replied: "That is a matter for next week; we will talk about it when next week arrives."

Liang Shiya asked again: "General Manager Lin, when will you rent the venue, and when will you buy the equipment?"

Lin Sicheng replied: "The funds have not arrived yet; we will talk about it when they arrive."

It was as if the topic had circled back; could Liang Shiya really keep chasing him with questions: "How exactly do you plan to raise it?"

Believe it or not, Lin Sicheng would still say the same thing: "This is a work plan for next week or next month; you will know when the time comes."

It was said to be supervising work, and Lin Sicheng was indeed working, but he was doing work that Liang Shiya could not understand.

Either he was holding an antique catalog to study, or he was holding an antique to play with.

Liang Shiya asked him: "What does this have to do with the cooperation between the two sides?"

Guess how Lin Sicheng answered: "General Manager Liang, who said it has nothing to do with it?"

"I have to raise funds, and to raise funds, I have to sell the collection. Since I have to sell, shouldn't I study it clearly myself first?"

He even deliberately provoked her with his words: "General Manager Liang, if you feel it is boring, you can find something interesting to do yourself."

The meaning was: "General Manager Liang, you are really idle; even if I told you, you wouldn't understand, so why ask so much?"

At that moment, Liang Shiya was so angry she wanted to curse.

But she held it in.

You think I don't understand, right?

It doesn't matter, I will find someone who does...

Liang Shiya had already made up her mind: starting from today, she would keep a close watch on the source of every cent of Lin Sicheng's money, and even the destination of every second of his time. She did not believe that, holding the imperial sword of authority, she could not keep Lin Sicheng in check.

Taking a few forceful breaths to calm her mood, Liang Shiya picked up her eyebrow pencil and carefully drew them.

Halfway through, the doorbell rang outside, followed by the sound of the Assistant talking to Guo Yongxin and Chen Jiashan.

Liang Shiya applied a bit more light powder and exited the bathroom.

Two supervisors and three assistants stood in a row in the suite.

Their mental states were all quite good, heads held high and chests out, like soldiers rushing to the battlefield.

Liang Shiya nodded with satisfaction: "MaRy, CoCo, be serious after you go!"

"Understood!"

"Where are the experts?"

"They have already arrived in the lobby!"

"Good, let's go!"

At Liang Shiya's command, the group marched out of the room in a grand manner.

Upon reaching the lobby, the few people in the lounge area walked over to join them.

Three men and one woman; two of them were older, around fifty-five or fifty-six. The remaining two were younger, just over thirty. Several of them greeted her in unison: "General Manager Liang!"

"Master He, Master Zhou, thank you for your hard work!"

The two elders smiled politely: "General Manager Liang, it is our duty!"

These two were both famous appraisers in Hong Kong.

The taller one was named He Jian; his father was the Second Steward to the Republic of China collector and cultural relic merchant Zhang Boju, specializing in appraisal and sales.

On the eve of the liberation in 1949, Zhang Boju ordered him to return to the country, but just as He's father arrived in Hong Kong, Nanjing was liberated.

Then, he stayed in Hong Kong, remarried, and had children.

He Jian inherited his father's true teachings, specializing in porcelain and jade, followed by gold and silver ware, and enjoyed great fame in Hong Kong and East Asia.

Previously, he was a Supervisor at the Sotheby's Hong Kong Art Center, but because he felt the money came too slowly, he switched to private appraisal.

The other one was named Zhou Zhilin, a student of the contemporary famous painter, collector, and banker Liu Zuochou.

Liu Zuochou collected countless items in his lifetime; in 1949, he transferred them all to Hong Kong and eventually donated them all to the Hong Kong Museum of Art.

For calligraphy and painting alone, a separate hall was opened. This is the now-famous Hong Kong Art Museum Xubaizhai.

Zhou Zhilin was an Honorary Museum Curator of the Hong Kong Museum of Art and also a famous appraiser in the Chinese circles of Hong Kong and Southeast Asia.

Therefore, hiring these two cost quite a bit. But for Sai Shi and several companies, it did not even count as a drop in the bucket.

Liang Shiya invited them over specifically to throw a wrench in Lin Sicheng's plans.

Because she suspected that Lin Sicheng's so-called selling of the collection was very likely reverse money laundering: for example, an item originally worth only one thousand coins being bought by someone for one million.

He only needed to sell one hundred such items, and Lin Sicheng could raise one hundred million. And his cost was only one hundred thousand.

He could even make it so that Liang Shiya could not find any flaws: for example, by finding a large auction house to auction them.

If he found a state-run auction company, such as Poly or China Guardian, he would even save on the commission.

So, looking at it from another angle, Liang Shiya still had to thank Lin Sicheng: if it weren't for Lin Sicheng mocking her for not asking if she didn't understand, she wouldn't have realized it. The three of them truly did not understand antiques.

As the group walked out, Liang Shiya gave one more specific instruction: "Master He, Master Zhou, I have already said what needed to be said yesterday. Today, I will emphasize it again: First, be serious and meticulous. Second, report exactly what you see."

The two nodded in unison.

To put it bluntly: Liang Shiya invited them over not just to appraise, but to find faults.

Even if it is ninety-nine percent genuine, as long as there is one percent of uncertainty, the item is fake.

Even if it is one hundred percent genuine, they must find a way to label it as "uncertain."

Of course, Liang Shiya did not put it so bluntly; they realized it themselves.

It is also possible that this was not what she meant, but the two felt they had to act this way.

After giving these instructions, a dozen people got into cars. A line of three vehicles drove toward Changcheng Dasha.

Having come for two consecutive days, the security guards at the entrance recognized Liang Shiya and even specially dispatched two female guards to facilitate the security check.

Liang Shiya was very self-aware and walked straight toward the security gate. But just as she walked past, the duty Captain called out to her: "Director Liang, Mr. Lin is not here!" Liang Shiya was stunned for a moment: "Where did he go?"

"I am not too sure about that; you can call him!"

Actually, the guard knew, but he certainly would not say.

Liang Shiya did not make things difficult for him and took out her phone.

It rang twice, the call connected, and Lin Sicheng's voice came through: "Director Liang!"

"Mr. Lin, you are not at the building?"

"That's right, I'm out handling some matters today!"

"Where are you?"

"I cannot say!"

Liang Shiya sneered: It was not that Lin Sicheng could not say, but that he did not want to!

"Mr. Lin, do you see anyone among us who looks like a killer?"

"Director Liang, killers don't have it written on their faces!"

Liang Shiya gritted her teeth: "Mr. Lin, I still remember that sentence Assistant Li relayed two days ago."

If Director Liang feels dissatisfied, she can supervise in person...

Lin Sicheng had not forgotten either.

"Alright, I will arrange for someone to bring you over!"

Then, with a "beep," the call hung up.

Immediately, the Captain's phone rang; he answered and said "Mm" twice.

"Director Liang, Mr. Lin asked me to take you over!"

Liang Shiya did not speak, she only nodded.

The Captain drove a car and brought three other team members, then signaled for them to follow behind.

The three directors sat in the first car.

Once in the car, Chen Jiashan said, half-sarcastic and half-curious: "He has to arrange four bodyguards just to lead the way; how afraid of death is this Mr. Lin?" Guo Yongshan looked at her, wanting to speak but stopping herself.

Chen Jiashan was a legal officer; although she would come into contact with some dark sides, most of it still unfolded within the framework of the law, at most drilling through loopholes.

Occasionally she would cross the line, but it basically would not involve violent or bloody events.

To put it bluntly: although Chen Jiashan understood, she had never truly witnessed the darkness of capital, let alone experienced the lethality of money, so she did not feel it deeply.

But Guo Yongshan had experienced much: if it were in a small country, Lin Sicheng's actions could completely trigger a small coup. If it were a slightly larger one, such as a mid-sized country, it would still be enough to create a world-shocking accident.

For example, a ship sinking at sea, or a plane crash.

But Lin Sicheng was in China, and no one dared to be so blatant. But as long as they could eliminate this person, as long as it could be solved with money, no matter how much capital, they would be willing to pay.

Therefore, Lin Sicheng was not afraid of death. Rather, the things he worried about were very likely to happen.

Thinking of this, Guo Yongshan sighed: "Diwen, setting aside the stance of being opponents, I still quite admire him."

Chen Jiashan did not understand, but Liang Shiya did.

Looking at it from another angle: these nineteen technologies were things Lin Sicheng fought for with his life.

Just like the words Li Zhenghao said when they parted: Lin Sicheng, although your goal has been achieved, from now on, trouble and danger will accompany you for the rest of your life.

Perhaps at any moment, a knife might suddenly stab at him, or a car might crash into him.

For this entire life, Lin Sicheng would be trapped in endless fear and endless suspicion.

He would suspect and guard against everyone who wanted to get close to him, including relatives.

But what did Lin Sicheng gain?

For the time being, Liang Shiya saw nothing. She only saw Lin Sicheng running around exhausted, racking his brains to think of ways to deal with them. Thinking of this, Liang Shiya sighed: in today's society, such people are indeed rare.

But unfortunately, they were opponents.

While feeling emotional, the car stopped, and Liang Shiya glanced through the window.

Magnificent pillars, bright red lanterns, and six large characters on top: Beijing International Hotel!

Previously, Lin Sicheng's negotiations with the six companies were held here, lasting a full three weeks.

The delegation had long since left; what was Lin Sicheng still doing here?

It couldn't be that he was pushed too hard by her and came here to reminisce about his victory to relieve pressure?

Secretly speculating, Liang Shiya got out of the car.

Entering the lobby and seeing the sign directly opposite the entrance, Liang Shiya suddenly realized: Bonhams International Auction, please go to the sixteenth floor.

This was no small company, but an international auction house on par with Sotheby's and Christie's.

Moreover, it was even purer than the previous two: it was entirely held by British shareholders.

So, did Lin Sicheng come to attend an auction?

Just as she was suspicious, the Captain pointed to the elevator: "Director Liang, please this way!"

As the voice spoke, the remaining three security guards stood at the left, right, and rear positions, as if surrounding them in the middle.

At the same time, four pairs of eyes swept back and forth, like hawks.

Zhou Zhilin and He Jian were baffled, but the eight members of the inspection delegation knew clearly: the four bodyguards were observing whether anyone would tip off others or leak Lin Sicheng's exact location.

Liang Shiya gave an instruction: "Master Zhou, Master He, to avoid unnecessary misunderstandings, try not to make any phone calls!"

The two did not understand why, but they still nodded.

They entered the elevator and went straight to the sixteenth floor.

Lin Sicheng was waiting at the elevator entrance, with a very pretty girl standing beside him.

Zhu Heng and two team members stayed slightly behind, while Li Zhen and Fang Jin each held several guest passes, handing them out one by one.

Lin Sicheng sighed: "Director Liang, I have a suggestion: if it really doesn't work out, why don't you move over and live with me?"

"At the very least, the next time I go out, I can notify you on the spot and we can make plans in advance. At least it won't be as sudden as today..." Before he could finish, Ye Anning patted him, then smiled apologetically: "Director Liang, my surname is Ye, Ye Anning. Professor Wang is my uncle."

"Don't misunderstand, what Lin Sicheng meant was: he didn't know you were coming too, and it took quite a bit of trouble to get these temporary guest passes..." Upon hearing the name, Liang Shiya matched the person to it and subconsciously looked her over a few times.

She was very tall, her skin was very fair, and the key point was, she was very pretty.

And she was very polite.

She really wanted to ask: Miss Ye, you are so pretty and your family background is so good, why do you like such an abominable person?

Lin Sicheng is arrogant, conceited, and rude; there isn't a single good point about him, what on earth do you like about him?

But Liang Shiya did not ask, instead extending her hand: "Miss Ye, nice to meet you!"

Her attitude was very polite, and there was a smile on her face.

But when she turned to Lin Sicheng, her face went as stiff as a poker: "General Manager Lin, you aren't thinking of raising funds here, are you?"

This was a jab at Lin Sicheng: I guessed your little scheme long ago.

Lin Sicheng pretended not to understand: "General Manager Liang, that's exactly what I was thinking: perhaps I might pick up a bargain and make a huge profit!"

Liang Shiya didn't speak, just let out a laugh, her attitude self-evident: if you can pick up a bargain, I'll do a handstand.

But immediately, she frowned again.

Liang Shiya did not believe Lin Sicheng had such good luck. But accidental events can be artificially manufactured.

For example, placing a rare treasure, disguising it as an ordinary collection piece, and then letting Lin Sicheng buy it.

She wouldn't dare say too much, but letting Lin Sicheng earn a few million or even ten million would not be difficult.

The more she thought about it, the more she felt it was possible, so Liang Shiya turned her head and looked at Guo Yongxin.

The latter understood in a second, stepped back, and whispered something into the ears of the two Appraisers.

The two Appraisers nodded repeatedly, but their eyes grew brighter and brighter: it seemed that an opportunity to get rich had arrived?