Meng Qingyan walked ahead, not noticing Qin Qiqi’s expression, and went straight over to greet them.
Qin Yuanhe quickly waved her over. “Yanyan, come here. Let me introduce you. This is Ah Yan’s wife. You both like calligraphy and paintings, so I’m sure you’ll get along.”
“Ah Yan is married?”
Meng Qingyan was a little surprised but accepted it after just a few seconds, smiling as she said, “Congratulations. When did this happen?”
Ah Yan.
Hearing her use such an intimate form of address, Mu Ci couldn’t help but glance at her a few more times.
She was beautiful, elegant, and poised.
“It wasn’t long ago. Since it was a secret marriage, many people weren’t notified.”
“A secret marriage? Why keep it a secret?” Meng Qingyan seemed very interested in their affairs.
Mu Ci wasn’t sure how to answer the question safely, so she looked up toward Qin Yan in the distance.
Qin Yan was looking down at his phone, dealing with emails, and hadn’t noticed what was happening over here.
Since she couldn’t rely on him, she had to answer herself. “We both felt the timing wasn’t quite right yet…”
“Wait, let me bring these walnut cakes to Ah Yan first, then we can talk.”
Meng Qingyan smiled as she interrupted her, turning around and murmuring, “I made these walnut cakes especially for Ah Yan. They won’t taste as good once they’re cold.”
Her voice wasn’t loud, but it clearly reached Mu Ci’s ears.
It felt a bit uncomfortable to hear.
What did she mean by “especially”?
Before Mu Ci could figure it out, she suddenly felt a gaze fixed on her.
She looked up and saw Qin Qiqi’s gloomy, resentful little face.
Her eyes were blank, completely stunned.
“…”
Uh…
It seemed the shock had been a bit too much for her.
Qin Qiqi was utterly stunned.
With a wooden expression, she walked over and said gloomily, “Xiao Ci, you’ve been playing the field everywhere, and now you’ve played it right over my head.”
“What are you calling her? No manners! You should call her Auntie!”
Old Master Qin glared. The Qin family valued family rules, and titles couldn’t be used carelessly.
Qin Qiqi looked utterly defeated. “Auntie.”
Mu Ci gave an awkward smile. “Qiqi.”
Meng Qingyan placed the fragrant walnut cakes on the table next to Qin Yan’s hand and called out softly, “Ah Yan.”
“Try these walnut cakes. They just came out of the oven and are still warm.”
Qin Yan recognized her voice but didn’t look up, murmuring a low “thank you” before casually picking up a walnut cake and putting it in his mouth.
A smile spread in Meng Qingyan’s eyes.
Watching this, Mu Ci’s expression cooled slightly as she silently counted.
One bite, two bites, three bites.
Three bites for one walnut cake.
He ate it all.
Qin Qiqi looked over here, then over there, and her gossip engine instantly started up, sweeping away the numbness from the shock.
While the old master wasn’t paying attention, she pulled Mu Ci aside and whispered in her ear, “Xiao Ci, want some intel? V me 50.”
“What intel?”
“About my uncle and Yan… that woman.”
Mu Ci frowned. Did the two of them have a past?
Qin Qiqi’s loyalty to her best friend knew no bounds. Seeing her silent, she quickly summarized the intel in a few words.
After listening, Mu Ci’s expression didn’t lighten. “So, you’re saying Qin Yan and she grew up together as childhood sweethearts, and she still admires him to this day?”
Qin Qiqi nodded, selling out her uncle without hesitation. “That sums it up perfectly. As expected of my amazing Xiao Ci.”
“…”
Mu Ci sneered slightly.
She wasn’t the type to dwell on past affairs. What bothered her was seeing Qin Yan finish one walnut cake and reach for a second one.
Great.
The things made by his childhood sweetheart were just that delicious.
Qin Yan remained oblivious to the looming danger, still engrossed in the emails on his phone.
Meng Qingyan approached with a smile, saying, “Where were we just now? Let’s continue.”
Mu Ci withdrew her gaze and replied indifferently, “I’ve forgotten too.”
So, let’s not talk about it.
Meng Qingyan seemed to ignore her displeasure and turned to Qin Qiqi, starting a new topic: “Qiqi, why didn’t your father and mother come?”
Just then, Old Master Qin happened to walk over. Hearing this, he was so angry his beard seemed to bristle: “That unfilial son and his wife went on a trip abroad. They probably timed it to avoid my nagging!”
Qin Rui had no interest in business, nor did he possess any talent for it.
For this reason, Old Master Qin had often scolded him.
Qin Qiqi couldn’t help but defend her father: “Grandpa, if you nagged less, my dad definitely wouldn’t avoid you.”
“He’s useless and lacks ambition—am I not allowed to say anything?”
Old Master Qin glanced at Qin Yan in the distance, wanting to say that Qin Yan, at least, was capable, having managed the Qin Group with great success. But then he remembered Qin Yan’s aloof and rebellious nature.
Forget it, another unfilial son. No point in talking about him.
At least the daughter-in-law he brought today was pleasing to the eye.
Seeing the old man’s affectionate gaze toward Mu Ci, Meng Qingyan felt a pang of frustration.
However, she showed no sign of it on her face and spoke up: “By the way, Uncle, for your birthday today, I specially acquired a painting by Master Wu Guannan. I hope you’ll like it.”
“A painting by Master Wu?”
Qin Yuanhe’s attention was completely captured, his eyes sparkling with excitement: “Master Wu’s paintings are no longer circulating on the market, aren’t they?”
Meng Qingyan smiled. “It took some effort, but as long as you like it.”
Hearing this, Mu Ci’s eyes lifted slightly, a flicker of surprise passing through them.
A painting by Master Guannan?
As far as she knew, only four of her teacher’s paintings were circulating on the market. Three were collected by a wealthy individual overseas and shouldn’t have been easy to acquire.
As for the fourth one—well, it was in her possession.
Curious, she followed to take a look.
The Ming-style painting table was cleared, and Meng Qingyan carefully unrolled the scroll.
It was Wu Guannan’s Lotus in Clarity.
As an enthusiast of calligraphy and painting, Qin Yuanhe couldn’t contain his excitement while admiring such a masterpiece: “Master Wu’s painting… Look at the brushstrokes, the colors… Truly…”
But Mu Ci was puzzled.
Coincidentally, the painting she owned was also Lotus in Clarity.
It had been given to her personally by the old man himself, so it couldn’t possibly be fake.
Then what about this one…
She lowered her head to examine it closely. After a moment, she looked up with a complicated expression and turned to Meng Qingyan: “May I ask, did you spend a lot of money on this painting?”
Meng Qingyan was confused by the question and felt somewhat uncomfortable: “Money isn’t the point. Master Wu Guannan’s paintings can’t be measured in monetary terms. He has retired and won’t produce any more works.”
Mu Ci thought to herself, she knew he had retired.
The old man was now focused on enjoying life and had no interest in painting anymore. He only occasionally painted fish or shrimp and sent her pictures to enjoy her praise as his little apprentice.
Mu Ci had no intention of being sarcastic; she simply didn’t want the old man’s genuine admiration to be wasted on a counterfeit.
She straightened up and tactfully reminded, “Although this painting is exquisite, its collection value isn’t high. If you didn’t spend too much money on it, it’s not a loss.”
Meng Qingyan frowned.
What did she mean? Pretending to understand art when she clearly didn’t?
How could Master Wu Guannan’s painting have low collection value?
It seemed she was nothing more than a pretty face trying to win the old man’s favor.
She gave a silent sneer, yet wore a smile on her face. “Miss Mu, in your opinion, how much is this painting worth?”
Mu Ci glanced at the painting and, considering the exquisite level of imitation, offered a fair price. “Two hundred thousand.”
Meng Qingyan let out a light laugh, then, as if realizing it might be impolite, quickly restrained her smile and looked at Mu Ci.
“Miss Mu, I’m sorry, I don’t mean to mock you, but the price you mentioned is just… too far off.”
Truly a vase that’s all looks and no substance.
Anyone with even a basic understanding of traditional Chinese painting would know of Master Wu Guannan. The price she quoted wasn’t even a fraction of its worth.
Old Master Qin also found it absurd. “Young lady, you might be new to traditional Chinese painting and unfamiliar with Master Wu. His paintings aren’t something you can buy for two hundred thousand.”
Qin Qiqi didn’t understand traditional Chinese painting, but she blindly supported her best friend and stood by her side this time.
“Grandpa, if Auntie says it’s two hundred thousand, then it’s two hundred thousand.”
“What do you, an outsider, know?” The old master shot her a sidelong glance.
Qin Qiqi muttered in response, “I don’t know, but Auntie does.”
She never doubted Xiao Ci’s talent in painting.
Meng Qingyan wore a smile on her lips, but her eyes betrayed an unconcealed mockery.
“A-Yan.”
Eager to escalate the drama, she turned and called out to the man not far away. “It turns out Miss Mu is so skilled—she even knows how to appraise traditional Chinese paintings. Won’t you come take a look?”