Miao Mingyi had a difficult personality, but he had never caused any major trouble, and he was generally efficient in getting things done.
The previous phone call probably clued him in that Li Quyin was angry, which made him work even faster. As soon as Li Quyin gave him the task, he got it done.
Li Quyin had truly poured a lot of effort into the new film. Every aspect of production was top-notch domestically, and naturally, the professional consultancy they hired would also be the best.
From the very beginning, they aimed for the top experts in the industry.
The expert they finally decided to invite wasn’t widely known outside the field, but within the industry, he was a legendary figure known to all.
His family had been in this line of work for generations—some were archaeologists, some were appraisers, and others were in related professions. The family had produced quite a few famous figures, the kind recorded in history books.
Having grown up in such an environment, while other kids were still playing with mud and wiping their noses, he was already tagging along with his family on various expeditions.
By the time he was seven or eight, he had already witnessed many significant events alongside his family.
Because of his early exposure and the guidance of many elders, combined with his own intelligence, he graduated from school at a very young age, becoming one of the earliest graduates in his field—truly a prodigy.
However, the antiques world is so isolated from the outside that, apart from the school records showing this prodigious student, the rest of the world barely noticed.
Of course, what truly made him exceptional wasn’t just his early graduation but his actual ability.
Due to his family background, even before he finished changing his baby teeth, he was already privately helping people with simple appraisals.
Although these appraisals were informal and had no legal weight, word quickly spread in the circle about this young genius.
Their community wasn’t large, and since they frequently crossed paths, they enjoyed the spectacle.
For a long time, many people purposely brought items to him, just to see if the young genius lived up to his reputation.
It caused quite a stir at the time.
After his graduation, he officially entered the profession and began issuing official appraisals.
After two years of quietly honing his skills, he gradually became more elusive, rarely showing up to meet outsiders.
Eventually, the people seeking him out were no longer ordinary individuals but experts within the field.
Now, those who go to him are almost exclusively experts themselves, unsure of their own judgments. He has essentially become the expert that other experts rely on, a true industry giant.
Because of this, he holds a highly respected and influential position in the field, with a reputation that commands absolute authority.
He remains quite mysterious, with almost no public information available.
The materials Miao Mingyi provided only included a brief overview of his background and a student ID photo from when he was still in middle school.
The person in the photo looked quite young, with his facial features not yet fully developed, suggesting he had probably skipped grades.
Still, he was good-looking—his features were well-proportioned, his skin fair, and he appeared rather cute.
When Li Quyin first saw the photo, he vaguely felt the person looked familiar. But since it was a slightly distorted ID photo, he didn’t dwell on it.
After reviewing the photo and the materials, Li Quyin was left with a throbbing headache.
He had heard that so-called "geniuses" often had odd temperaments, but he hadn’t expected this one to be so downright mercenary, even prone to raising prices on the spot.
Yet, after going through the information, Li Quyin understood the gravity of the situation.
If someone like him decided to blacklist someone, it wasn’t a trivial matter.
Anyone with even a bit of fame in the industry would hesitate to oppose him for money, as doing so could mean offending the entire field.
If any expert took on his job, the next person to face a full industry boycott could very well be that expert themselves.
Li Quyin stared at the photo, his eyes cold.
Across from him, Xia Xixi, sitting on the sofa, involuntarily furrowed his brows slightly.
The person texting Xia Xixi was the same "young old man" who had called him earlier.
According to him, he was considered young in their circle, so naturally, he referred to himself as a "young old man."
"I’ve already told the other old men about this. You don’t need to worry, leave it to us."
"That guy, Shen, who does he think he is? Coming to our turf, strutting around like a peacock, even harassing people? He must be tired of living! So what if he’s a celebrity? If I’m afraid of him, I’ll write my name backwards!"
"Young people these days! I really don’t know what goes through their heads!"
"Just this morning, someone came to ask me to go. I said no, and guess what? They straight-up threw a check at me, saying their boss has money and doesn’t care about the cost."
"If I had thought of it at the time, I swear, if I didn’t beat them with a broom, I’d take their last name!"
...
Reading through the furious messages, Xia Xixi couldn’t help but find it both amusing and a bit exasperating. Shen Bailou kept pushing his limits, continuously changing his perception of him.
Xia Xixi had initially thought Shen Bailou’s character was lacking, but now it seemed his brains weren’t functioning well either.
After thinking for a moment, Xia Xixi's fingers moved quickly as he replied, "This is between him and me. You all don’t need to get involved."
"How is this only your problem?" The "young old man" immediately protested. "He came to our turf to throw his weight around and bully people. How could we just stand by and do nothing?"
The more he thought about it, the angrier he got.
He cursed, "In any case, don’t worry about it. I’ve already given a heads-up to the other old men. If they dare come again, they’ll definitely get what's coming to them!"
"Everyone else knows about this too?" Xia Xixi was shocked. He hadn’t intended for this to escalate.
"Yup, I called them one by one and told them."
For a moment, Xia Xixi didn’t quite know how to respond.
Because of his family background, he had known this group of old men since he was very young.
In a way, they had watched him grow up.
Their relationship was a mix of friendship, mentorship, and something akin to that between a grandfather and grandson.
A warm feeling rose in Xia Xixi’s heart, and his clear black-and-white eyes softened with affection.
“Take it easy, don’t get yourself all worked up and then blame me for it,” Xia Xixi joked.
"Get lost."
Seeing the vigorous response from the other side, Xia Xixi smiled and put away his phone.
When he looked up again, Li Quyin's expression had become even more troubled, as if he was grappling with some difficult problem.
"Are you okay?" Xia Xixi asked.
Was Li Quyin having work issues?
“Sorry,” Li Quyin said as he pocketed his phone.
It was rare for Xia Xixi to hang out with him, but his mind had been preoccupied with work matters.
“It’s nothing,” Xia Xixi shook his head. "If you're busy, feel free to handle it first."
“No, it’s fine. Let’s go fishing!”
With that, Li Quyin led the way to the counter, grabbed some fishing rods, and headed toward the lake with Xia Xixi in tow.
At the bottom of the information packet Miao Mingyi had given him was the contact information of the person in question. Li Quyin was tempted to reach out immediately, but now was clearly not the right time.
The sun wasn’t as harsh as it had been the day before, and a cool breeze made the weather feel especially pleasant.
Sitting by the lake, the two chatted intermittently while keeping an eye on their fishing rods.
That afternoon, their luck wasn’t too bad—they managed to catch a fish, though it was just a small one, only three fingers wide.
Seeing that there wasn’t much meat on it, they decided to release it back into the lake after a moment of thought.
“Wise up, don’t get caught by someone else. Wait for me to come and catch you next time,” Li Quyin said as he released the fish, not forgetting to give it some advice.
Xia Xixi found it amusing. By the time Li Quyin came back next time, that fish would probably swim as far away as possible.
After returning to the villa and having dinner, Xia Xixi was on the rooftop enjoying the breeze when he noticed that Li Quyin had disappeared.
Sitting in the greenhouse, Xia Xixi was wondering where Li Quyin had run off to when his phone suddenly rang.
It was an unfamiliar number.
Xia Xixi instinctively frowned. Hadn’t Shen Bailou already given up harassing him?
He chose to hang up the call and swiftly added the number to his block list.
He had no idea why the other party suddenly thought to call him again, but he had no intention of wasting any more words. For someone who simply couldn’t take a hint, Xia Xixi wasn’t about to bother explaining further.
Downstairs, Li Quyin had stepped outside for a moment to make a call. Frowning at his phone, which displayed that the person he was calling might be busy, he wondered—had the other party just declined his call?
He hung up and dialed again.
This time, a notification came almost immediately. Clearly, the other person had blocked him.
His company had mentioned before that any attempts to call were quickly blocked.
Li Quyin’s eyes darkened as he pulled out another phone, hesitating over whether to use his personal number to call.
Halfway through inputting the number, he paused and turned off the phone.
It was obvious the other party wasn’t going to answer any unknown numbers. Even if he used a different number, they wouldn’t know it was him.
Chances were, it would just get blocked again.
After some thought, Li Quyin opened the materials Miao Mingyi had given him earlier, flipped to the last page, and found the other person’s email address.
Copying the address, Li Quyin opened his email, thought for a moment, and then composed a message before sending it over.
Since the other party didn’t want to take his calls, Li Quyin decided to contact them through other means. No matter what, he was determined to talk to them directly.
If the other person was merely trying to raise the price, given their expertise, as long as the price wasn’t outrageously high, he would consider it.
But if the person was simply trying to cause trouble, Li Quyin wasn’t someone who could be easily pushed around.
After sending the email, Li Quyin went to the bathroom and washed his face.
He didn’t want to bring any of these negative emotions into his time with Xia Xixi. This was supposed to be a date, and he didn’t want to ruin it.
Once he was composed, Li Quyin headed upstairs.
The night was so peaceful that by the time he got back, Xia Xixi had already fallen asleep in the greenhouse.
Xia Xixi lay on the lounge chair, his long legs stretched out naturally onto the footrest in front of him, hands folded over his stomach, with his phone resting beside him. His face was serene and calm in sleep.
His soft pink lips were slightly parted, and the unguarded look on his face made Li Quyin’s breath catch in his throat, a dry, scratchy feeling rising there.
Unconsciously, Li Quyin moved closer. It was as if he was bewitched—his hand slowly reached out, wanting to touch him.
The moonlight was hazy, and with the surrounding greenhouse, Li Quyin had an odd, surreal feeling, as if everything in front of him was just an illusion.
He still couldn’t quite understand why Xia Xixi had agreed to date him.
Maybe this really was all just a dream?
Just as his fingertips were about to brush against Xia Xixi’s cheek, Xia Xixi’s phone suddenly vibrated.
After a brief buzz, the screen lit up, showing that he had received a new email from an unknown sender.
Startled by the sound, Li Quyin instinctively glanced over at the phone.
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