The Real Heiress Has an Appraisal System

Madam Lu quickly said, "What are you talking about? Of course you’ll live to be a hundred. Our whole family will be just fine."

"..."

After the family reunion dinner, Gu Shengsheng hurried back to Wanliu Apartment to deliver the restored artifacts to her buyers.

They had originally agreed to make the exchange whenever she was free, but after learning Gu Shengsheng had bought such a large house, they knew she was tight on money.

So, all the clients came rushing over.

As Gu Shengsheng was rushing home, she happened to run into Chen Yufan pushing Liu Li on a walk through the residential complex.

Liu Li was the first to greet her. "Shengsheng, do you need money? I can lend you some."

Gu Shengsheng quickly waved her hands. "No, no, it’s fine, Mrs. Chen. Our family has enough money."

"That’s good," she said with a smile. "I went to see Yu Xi today. She was hiding in her room. She didn’t respond when I spoke to her, but later, she secretly peeked at me."

As she said this, Liu Li’s eyes filled with tenderness.

"My daughter is finally back."

Gu Shengsheng was happy for them, too. "Once Yu Xi’s condition stabilizes, I’ll go and see her as well."

"Sister Gu, Yu Xi has actually been quite stable lately," Chen Yufan added. "The doctor said that if she gets emotional, she should be with the person she trusts most. You’re the one who rescued her, and you’re the one she’s been talking about. If her condition takes a turn, I’ll definitely call you."

Gu Shengsheng nodded. "Okay."

A family that had been shattered to pieces was finally starting to pull itself together.

She was happy to see things getting better. Having been a part of it gave her an added sense of satisfaction.

When she got home, Zhao Dehai and Pan Bowen were waiting for her at the door.

Seeing her approach, Pan Bowen put out the cigarette in his hand.

"Miss Gu," he said.

"You’re the first person who’s ever made me wait this long. If the items you have weren’t the real deal, I wouldn’t have bothered."

"A lot of them were even from the He Family’s private banquet. You’ve really got something. And the He Family still hasn’t come after you for it."

Pan Bowen was genuinely amazed by this.

That He Family... they put out so many fakes. Everyone knew the first batch had issues, but the second batch turned out to be high-quality counterfeits as well.

And then there was Gu Shengsheng, who waltzed into the discount section with a plastic bag and scooped up all the real treasures. It was just so satisfying!

’Wouldn’t the He Family be furious?’

Pan Bowen didn’t mind buying from Gu Shengsheng. Money wasn’t the most important thing. He planned to parade his new acquisitions everywhere and even invite the He Family over to appraise them.

’He couldn’t imagine how much fun that would be.’

While Pan Bowen was lost in his daydreams, Zhao Dehai looked at Gu Shengsheng and asked, "Where are you planning on making money next?"

"There’s a competition in a few days. It seems to be for appraisals, but they say anything and everything is fair game to be appraised. I hear the competition is usually fierce, but the prize money is huge. First place gets fifty million."

"Who invited you?" Zhao Dehai asked.

"A gentleman named Ryan. He said you’ve participated before? He told me to ask you about it."

Gu Shengsheng looked at Zhao Dehai, her eyes full of curiosity.

"I have. The rules are simple."

"It’s a five-million-dollar entry fee. Then you have the round of eight, the final four, and then the championship round. What you have to appraise is all up to luck."

"There are sixteen contestants in total, paired off for one-on-one matches. That means you have to defeat your opponent in every round. It’s not just about your skill, but your opponent’s as well."

"There might even be international appraisal experts. The contestants should all be top-tier this year. You’ll probably see a lot of familiar faces."

Gu Shengsheng asked, "Then why do some people end up bankrupt?"

"Well... you’ll find out when you get there." He sighed. "Aside from the main competition, there are a lot of events related to ’treasure gambling.’ What you’re referring to is probably the ’Knight’s Tour.’ The fourth stage is the one that bankrupts people."

"It’s a treacherous world. I went once and got eliminated in the first round." He hesitated, then said, "But forget it. It’ll be good experience for you either way. I won’t say any more."

Pan Bowen smiled. "I’m going this year too, Miss Gu."

Gu Shengsheng was pleasantly surprised. ’Does that mean I’ll have company?’

"Except I’m attending as one of the domestic investors," Pan Bowen clarified. "Me, the He Family, and the Ryan you mentioned. Besides us, there are also some international investors. It’s a huge event."

Seeing that Gu Shengsheng was about to ask a question, Zhao Dehai cut in, "Pan Bowen just knows how to throw money around; he doesn’t understand all the intricacies. If you want to know something ahead of time, you’d be better off asking Ryan."

"I agree, I don’t know a thing," Pan Bowen admitted. "How do you even know Ryan?" ’This guy may be a big shot,’ Pan Bowen thought, ’but he has no integrity at all!’

’Knowing him is definitely not a good thing.’

’Especially someone like Gu Shengsheng, who looks so innocent. Wouldn’t she just get eaten alive? It’s a good thing she’s married. Otherwise, I’d suspect Ryan has his eye on her!’

Pan Bowen had never met this mysterious man, but he’d heard plenty of stories. Rumor was, his methods were even more formidable than Lu Shijing’s back in his prime.

’He built a huge enterprise abroad, made so much money, and the second he comes back, he starts targeting the Lu Group, toying with them like they’re nothing!’

Gu Shengsheng replied, "He lives across the hall from my husband’s apartment in the Wanliu District. We’ve just run into each other a few times. There’s been no real interaction!"

Pan Bowen nodded. "That’s good."

Zhao Dehai said with a smile, "The event doesn’t start for a few more days. Why don’t you come help with some restoration work at the Cultural Relics Administration in the meantime?"

"The pay isn’t great, but we really need you right now. We have a lot of artifacts that no one else can fix."

Artifact restoration was Gu Shengsheng’s profession in her past life, and she had nothing else to do for the next few days anyway.

Besides, it would be a perfect opportunity to wheedle more information out of Zhao Dehai about the mysterious appraisal competition and increase her chances of winning.

So, she agreed.

——

「One week later.」

Gu Shengsheng drove to the exclusive hotel for the World Crown All-Star Appraisal Competition.

She would be staying here for a little over half a month.

She didn’t know the exact location of the competition venue; a staff member was scheduled to take her there tomorrow.

When Gu Shengsheng arrived at the hotel, she found it was a five-star, all-suite establishment.

She picked a room with a view, then proceeded to try all the food the hotel had to offer.

Just as she was about to burst, she ran into Zhang Sanwang.

Zhang Sanwang looked like he’d seen a ghost.

"No way, you’re a contestant too?"

Gu Shengsheng nodded. "I am."

"Oh my god! I’ve been struggling in the appraisal world for decades, and I’ve been trying to get into this competition for ten years straight. I never had a chance, and then this year, I somehow got in out of the blue."

"I was bragging about it to everyone. All the other shop owners in my area were green with envy! I can’t believe you’re here too. You’ve only been in the business for a few months!"

The comparison was just infuriating.

Zhang Sanwang sighed at the thought, but he was still terrified of Gu Shengsheng. ’What if I get matched with her tomorrow? Won’t I be knocked out in the very first round?’

Seeing his anxiety, Gu Shengsheng said, "It’s not just you. Anyone could lose to anyone here."

"The items we have to appraise are all different. There could be all sorts of bizarre things, stuff we’ve never even heard of. We should just go with the flow and leave it to fate. There’s a ninety-nine percent chance of losing. The first round, narrowing it down from sixteen to eight, won’t be easy."

"Instead of worrying, we might as well eat and drink our fill. Why torture ourselves?"

Zhang Sanwang grew even more anxious. "...You really have a way with words."

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