Chapter 54: Good and Evil Pale in Comparison to Creating Life with You

Not to mention Meng Xinghe having no idea, even Shen Linglong was utterly bewildered. After all, from beginning to end, no one had told them that the auction prices were all calculated in euros!

Meng Xinghe might not be the sharpest, but even he knew how outrageous the euro to yuan exchange rate was. That twenty million instantly transformed into a hundred and fifty million. Granted, this sum was nothing to the Meng family, but mobilizing such a large amount of money could never be hidden from his father—he’d never escape a savage beating!

And if this news traveled back to the capital, if people found out he’d spent a hundred and fifty million on a painting, he’d be laughed at for the rest of his life!

Before Meng Xinghe could recover from the shock, the beautiful hostess on the stage had already struck the gavel three times, crisp and decisive—such a rare fat sheep comes along once in a century; even a second’s hesitation would be an insult to her commission!

“Young Master Meng, I didn’t expect you to truly love art—I thought you were just putting on a show!” Lin Tianhao called out cheerfully to Meng Xinghe.

If this wasn’t a ruthless blow, what was?

Meng Xinghe was almost in tears. “No, I didn’t know it was in euros…”

“Young Master Meng, that’s not very sporting.” Lin Tianhao replied slyly, “It’s common knowledge—everyone here knows. You’re not thinking of going back on your word, are you? If that’s the case, I’ll have to send the invoice directly to the Meng Group!”

Startled, Meng Xinghe hastily said, “No, please! I’ll find a way to scrape together the money. Please don’t tell my father—and Uncle Lin, I beg you to keep it secret!”

He was just the typical pampered second-generation heir, and his mother had risen to her position as the mistress. If word reached the Meng Group, his father would probably beat him to death.

Lin Tianhao smiled amiably. “I’m not a monster, after all. How about this—pay up tonight, and I’ll keep this between us.”

“Alright, I’ll go find the money right this minute!” Meng Xinghe grabbed his phone and hurried outside to make some calls.

Just as he turned, he was met by Chu Fei and Zhou Mi’s sympathetic gazes, as though mourning a loss.

Chu Fei said regretfully, “Sorry, Fourth Senior Sister, I’m not as wealthy as Young Master Meng—I couldn’t give you what you wanted.”

“Ah, well, life is unpredictable and full of disappointments—not everyone can become such a generous fool as Young Master Meng,” Zhou Mi patted Chu Fei’s shoulder in consolation.

“You—you two set me up!” By now, Meng Xinghe finally realized: these two had put on a show just to trap him.

A hundred and fifty million—was that money, or his very life?

Facing Meng Xinghe’s anger, Chu Fei merely spread his hands innocently. “Whatever do you mean?”

“Exactly, Young Master Meng, how can you say that?” Zhou Mi sided with Chu Fei, feigning sympathy. “Though you spent a hundred and fifty million, our Brother Chu Fei lost his chance to show off. Isn’t that a pity?”

Meng Xinghe was so furious, if he weren’t so frail and free of heart disease, he might have been enraged to death on the spot.

But lingering here arguing was pointless. He could only drag Shen Linglong outside to make desperate calls for money.

“Chu Fei, don’t get too full of yourself. One day, you’ll kneel before me and Brother Xinghe and beg for forgiveness!” Shen Linglong spat out a threat before leaving.

She didn’t think Meng Xinghe had truly lost; after all, she’d already partnered with the Chu Group. There would be plenty of chances in the future to humiliate and suppress Chu Fei.

Chu Fei couldn’t be bothered with her nonsense. If she really had the guts, she’d take her revenge on the spot—why hold back so pathetically? Besides, everything so far was under Chu Fei’s control. He wondered what expression Shen Linglong would wear when the truth was finally revealed.

After Meng Xinghe and Shen Linglong left the second floor, they didn’t actually leave the venue—Lin Tianhao’s men were shadowing them to prevent any escape. So he had to step into the corridor and dial his eldest sister, Meng Ziyi.

“Big Sis, I’m in a bit of a bind. Do you have a spare hundred and fifty million?”

“I have nothing of the sort!” Meng Ziyi snapped and hung up.

When he called again, he found himself blocked. Helpless, he turned to his second brother, Meng Kaiwen. Though Meng Kaiwen was his full brother, he’d always preferred his half-sister’s personality. She might curse, humiliate, and even hang him up for a beating, but at least she treated him like a real brother—otherwise, why hadn’t she ever beaten Meng Kaiwen?

As for his second brother—far too cunning and deep for comfort. Their relationship was polite on the surface, but Meng Xinghe kept his distance. Still, he had no choice now but to call for help.

“Bro, I just won a painting at an auction and I’m a bit short. Can you lend me some money?”

“How much can a painting cost? Name your price, I’ll transfer it.”

“One hundred and fifty million!”

There was a long silence on the other end.

Then, dumbfounded, “How much did you say?!”

“One hundred and fifty million,” Meng Xinghe repeated, gritting his teeth.

Usually refined, even Meng Kaiwen couldn’t help but raise his voice. “A hundred and fifty million for a painting—are you insane? What is it, a portrait of you, or a nude?”

Meng Xinghe sighed, “Bro… It’s not about the money. I just tried too hard to show off…”

He explained the whole fiasco in detail.

After listening, Meng Kaiwen finally sighed. “Fine, I’ll wire you the money. But you’ll owe me a favor…”

At this point, Meng Xinghe would have agreed to a hundred favors if it meant keeping this from their father. But that was exactly why he’d hesitated to ask Meng Kaiwen—repaying his favors was never easy.

After Meng Kaiwen agreed to help, Meng Xinghe finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Shen Linglong said indignantly, “That bastard was too despicable, making us suffer such a loss. Xinghe, you can’t let him get away with this!”

“I’ll make him pay back a hundredfold!” Meng Xinghe’s face twisted with rage at the thought of Chu Fei. He picked up his phone and made another call. “Uncle Zhao, come to Longcheng tomorrow. I need you to teach someone a lesson!”

Without Meng Xinghe and Shen Linglong—the two fools—the auction lost much of its entertainment value. Still, since they were here, Chu Fei spent a few million to win a jade pendant for Zhou Mi. Zhou Mi was delighted; after all, it was the first gift Chu Fei had ever given her, and she was already planning how to show it off in their group chat.

After the auction, Lin Tianhao handed Chu Fei a bank card. “Brother Chu, here’s the nineteen million euros from Meng Xinghe. After deducting costs, the rest is yours.”

Chu Fei shook his head. “Tonight is a charity gala. With the money in your hands, more hope schools can be built. That’s better than me keeping it.”

Good deeds are always worth multiplying. Besides, with Fourth Senior Sister as a guarantor, Chu Fei trusted Lin Tianhao—he wouldn’t dare pocket the money.

Lin Tianhao’s admiration for Chu Fei grew. He cupped his hands, “You truly are a man of principle. I was right about you, Brother Chu—you’re a good man!”

“Enough, I’m no good man.” Chu Fei waved dismissively. “My happiness is built on the suffering of others. Besides, I’m less interested in being good or bad—what I really want is to make babies with Fourth Senior Sister!”

Faced with Chu Fei’s lecherous gaze, Zhou Mi only rolled her eyes. She turned to Lin Tianhao and said, “Uncle Lin, don’t mind him. He’s always like this—nothing decent ever comes out of his mouth. But my little junior’s Chu Group has just been established in Longcheng. We’ll be doing business here, so I hope you’ll look after us.”

Lin Tianhao was surprised. “So the recently rising Chu Group is yours, Brother Chu?”

“Shh,” Zhou Mi made a hush gesture, smiling. “Please keep it confidential for now. In a few days, it’ll be announced publicly. We hope Uncle Lin can attend as a witness.”

“Of course, of course!” Lin Tianhao replied cheerfully.

After parting with Lin Tianhao, Chu Fei took Zhou Mi to the car.

“That line just now—was it Miao Yu who told you to say it?” Chu Fei asked quietly.

Zhou Mi nodded. “Yes, that girl is clever—she specifically told me to mention it to Uncle Lin, to stir up some buzz.”

“If only she were as shrewd with the Shen family,” Chu Fei muttered.

Zhou Mi laughed. “I heard from Third Brother—if she were truly that heartless, you probably wouldn’t care for her, would you?”

Chu Fei didn’t deny it. Instead, he opened the car door. “So, where to now, Fourth Senior Sister?”

Zhou Mi sweetly called out, “Chu Fei~ Brother~ Didn’t you say you wanted to take me to make babies~~?”

That eldritch whisper—who could resist such temptation?

How could anyone not be swayed by that?