Looking at the girl's clear, bright eyes, Zhou Yi was momentarily stunned—in truth, it wasn't that he was reluctant to part with the jade pendant, but Qīqī's explanation was so bizarre that he found it hard to accept all at once. He was actually more suspicious of that man named Róng Yí—had he instigated Qīqī to conspire in some scheme together?
But Lù Wéi had always trusted this girl so deeply, even in his severe illness, he kept muttering about his little junior sister. With Wéi's discernment, there shouldn't be a mistake, right?
Unless the girl before him, with her earnest expression, was an exceptionally skilled con artist.
After weighing it for a moment, Zhou Yi made up his mind—no matter what, since there was a way, he had to try it. He couldn't just stand by and watch Lù Wéi die.
He nodded. "Alright, I agree. This afternoon, I'll bring the jade pendant to Lù Wéi's house. But I have one condition."
"What condition?"
"That jade pendant is a heirloom of our Zhōu family, of great significance. I'm lending it to you now, but who knows if you might damage or lose it? If that happens, I'd be an unfilial descendant. So, when you perform the ritual, I want to watch."
"This..."
Qīqī was stumped—how could that work?
"What's wrong? What are you worried about?"
Qīqī gritted her teeth and nodded. "Fine, I agree."
She'd figure out a way to get him out of there later.
If all else failed, she'd have Róng Yí knock him out.
Qīqī settled the matter of the jade pendant with Zhou Yi and then took her leave, knowing that as the vice president of MD Group, he still had plenty of work to do in the morning.
Zhou Yi personally escorted her downstairs, and they took the private elevator to the first floor. However, the first floor was buzzing with noise, and the lively scene was far from what anyone expected—
Outside the main entrance of the MD building, a crowd of media had gathered at some point. Blocked by security from entering, they had set up cameras and other equipment outside, looking ready to camp out.
As soon as Zhou Yi appeared, the flashbulbs went off in a frenzy of clicks, and a few reporters even broke through the security line, trying to shove microphones toward him—
"Mr. Zhou, is it true that MD Group is planning to venture into real estate?"
"Did you send a representative to yesterday's auction at the Imperial Financial Building?"
"Is Xià's Real Estate Development Company a subsidiary of your group?"
"We heard that the land on the outskirts was originally planned for the Hope Project, but now you've bought it to build a five-star resort. Is that true? Why are you doing this?"
"As a leading conglomerate in multiple economic sectors, what impact do you think your company's actions will have on Y City's real estate industry?"
"..."
Qīqī was secretly alarmed—judging by this scene, yesterday's events at the Imperial Financial Building had already been exposed.
So fast? Could Zhuāng Ruòtóng be behind this?
Zhou Yi stepped back a few paces, raised an eyebrow slightly, and immediately an assistant rushed to his side.
Zhou Yi asked, "What's going on? Why are the reporters here?"
The assistant wiped sweat from his forehead, looking flustered. "It seems someone tipped them off, saying that people from our group participated in yesterday's government land auction..."
"Is that so? Investigate it immediately." Zhou Yi gave the order. "Also, notify the PR department to come and handle the media. This is a disgrace."