Chapter 58 Shareholders: "The police are here."

Chapter 58 Shareholders: "The police are here."

Yuan Kai hadn't expected Ye Hantao to be so difficult to approach.

Judging by his demeanor alone, one might think he was as naive as the college students he had previously interacted with.

Yuan Kai collected his thoughts and apologized, "I was just lost in thought and didn't notice. Did I keep you from making breakfast?"

After he finished speaking, he tried to force a gentle and composed smile, but the sinister look Cheng Zhao had given him not long ago suddenly flashed through his mind.

His lips suddenly froze.

Yuan Kai stepped aside to make room, his hands clenched tightly at his sides, palms damp with sweat.

"Brother Yuan, you and Boss Ji must both be very sensitive to heat, right?" Su Yi'ang strolled over after washing the vegetables. "Your head and neck are covered in sweat."

When he mentioned Ji Changtu, the others in the kitchen recalled Jin Shiyue's comment about smelly sweat.

Then look at Yuan Kai, who is covered in sweat.

"..."

Jin Shiyue said impatiently, "You didn't cook this morning either, so don't stand there in the way."

What if sweat drips into the pot?

Yuan Kai smiled good-naturedly and gave up all the kitchen space, just in time to run into Ji Changtu who was coming downstairs.

"Hey?" Su Yi'ang used his sharp eyes again, "Boss Ji, you have a cut on your lip?"

Ji Changtu was angry but couldn't express it.

If this gets out of hand, it's hard to guarantee that no one will suspect that Ye Hantao's Shoushan ornaments are old mine glass-type jadeite.

Ji Changtu touched his stinging lip. "I accidentally scratched a tree branch when I went out this morning."

Jin Shiyue slowly washed the lettuce without even looking up.

Ye Hantao, however, was distracted while making breakfast and glanced up at the corner of Ji Changtu's mouth.

A bright red bloodstain ran from her cheek to the corner of her mouth and then to her chin.

Ouch, it looks painful.

She witnessed Sister Shi Yue slap Boss Ji across the face, but before she could see clearly, Sister Shi Yue dragged her away from the scene of the crime.

Looking at it now, the slap wasn't solid, and the fingernail scratched very deep.

Ye Hantao stared at the shrimp cakes in the pot again. If the price of glass-type jadeite is 30,000 yuan per gram, then a whole Shoushan ornament would cost around 600,000 yuan.

So, Boss Ji's offer of 700,000 yuan isn't too outrageous, right? Why is Sister Shi Yue so strongly opposed?

Why do I feel like there's a very faint handprint on his face?

Who is it?

[Where's the sleepwalker from before? Ji Changtu!]

No, it might be a lighting issue?

[They only have willow trees in their yard, how could willow branches be scraped like that?]

[During the live stream, he and Yuan Kai stayed in the bathroom for several minutes. Did they fight in there?]

Yuan Kai's fingernails were quite long.

In the monitoring room, an employee asked Director Wan for his opinion, "Director, what should we do with the footage captured by our monitors?"

The live stream started promptly at 8:00 PM, but to prevent any accidents from happening to the guests, and with special instructions from the big spender that everything must be done safely, they installed miniature surveillance cameras in various corners of the guesthouse.

The relevant details are mentioned in the contracts signed between the production team and the guests.

At night, several staff members take turns observing and monitoring the situation.

Ten minutes ago, the staff member in charge of monitoring handed over a video clip and said, "Director, Jin Shiyue slapped Ji Changtu."

Director Wan was drinking soy milk when he suddenly spat it out.

"Let's keep it for now; it's not appropriate to put it in the behind-the-scenes footage," Director Wan instructed. "Besides, the victims have chosen to keep it a secret, so let's just leave it alone."

The employee made a statement clarifying the situation.

Director Wan rested his chin on one hand and held the mouse in the other, looking at Ji Changtu in the live broadcast room with an inquisitive gaze.

Is it possible to buy a Shoushan stone ornament by Ye Hantao for 700,000 yuan?

Is this price fair? Jin Shiyue is really too angry.

besides--

He didn't think Ji Changtu was the kind of person who could understand others' choice to keep things to themselves. Why didn't Ji Changtu use this opportunity to attack Jin Shiyue?

After making breakfast, Ye Hantao planned to go upstairs to wash up before coming down to eat.

Just before going upstairs, Jin Shiyue suddenly called out to him.

Jin Shiyue casually brought it up, "Didn't you say last night that you had something you wanted to share with everyone at breakfast?"

Upon hearing this, Su Yi'ang hurriedly asked, "What? What?"

"Oh! Luckily you reminded me, Sister Shiyue." Ye Hantao quickly ran upstairs. "Okay, I'll bring it over in a bit and you'll see."

Even after Su Yi'ang could no longer see Ye Hantao's back, he was still shouting from downstairs, "Taotao! I'm waiting for you!"

Wu Xia didn't shout, but he was also looking in the direction of the stairs.

Last night, when he gave the poria cocos cake to Tao Tao, Tao Tao said that she had also brought some food.

Our peach shortbread is indeed delicious!

[Tao Wu is no less impressive! While Ye Hantao was cooking, Wu Xia silently assisted her (starry-eyed.jpg)]

No, no, I'm sticking with Tao Cheng!

Why can't we just go all in and accept it all?!

[Wake up, shippers! Ye Hantao doesn't even like these three.]

[Flash is famous but comes from a very ordinary family; Wu Xia is not famous but also comes from an ordinary family.]

Ye Weizheng was furious. "Can't they just watch the variety show in peace? They can analyze hundreds of comments just from a random pairing."

"Go ahead and curse, but don't wander around." Zhou Ti lay on the bed. "If you're too free, go out and make breakfast."

Ye Weizheng was scolded and obediently went out to cook.

The villa's servants had all been given a holiday before they even moved in.

Just before he left, Zhou Ti said casually, "Just grab something ready-made; watching the live stream when we get back is the real business."

Ye Weizheng responded loudly.

The kitchen contains toast, milk, ham, eggs, vegetables, and so on.

He didn't try to fool anyone; he made several different flavored sandwiches and added poached eggs.

When Ye Weizheng returned to the room, he was sure to see Zhou Ti still lying in bed.

well.

Once upon a time, he was also a good-for-nothing young master who slept until late morning.

If they hadn't been kindred spirits, he and Zhou Ti would never have been able to get married so smoothly.

Ye Hantao ran downstairs in the morning light.

Everyone had just placed the breakfasts on the table.

Ye Hantao's dishes are quite plentiful, a fusion of Chinese and Western styles, ensuring that everyone can find something to their liking.

Su Yi'ang smiled brightly and clapped first, "Thank you for your hard work, Squad Leader Tao!"

Hearing this, Ye Hantao smiled and said, "You all worked very hard to help!"

That's the truth.

Without help from others, she simply couldn't have finished the amount for ten people by herself.

He Qiang disagreed with Ye Hantao making a table full of breakfast for everyone, but she clapped her hands as if to applaud.

Everyone clapped when they saw He Qiang, and Jin Shiyue clapped even harder and louder.

Chen Xiaofeng joined in the fun, raising both hands and clapping. The volume of his applause overwhelmed Jin Shiyue's, earning him a fierce glare from Jin Shiyue.

Chen Xiaofeng: "???"

His brother didn't even glare at him!

Chen Xiaofeng turned to look for Cheng Zhao, and saw that wherever Ye Hantao went, Cheng Zhao's gaze would inevitably land there. "..."

After a moment, he said to Jin Shiyue, "You might as well glare at me."

Jin Shiyue ignored him.

idiot.

The dining table in the guesthouse is round, and a group of ten people sat around it.

When Ye Hantao arrived, there was one empty seat left. Teacher He Qiang was on the left, Sister Shi Yue was on the right, and Chen Xiaofeng was sitting next to her.

As I walked to an empty seat and sat down, I looked up and met Cheng Zhao's gaze.

Ye Hantao recalled the two people saying "Please" and "Please also" in the kitchen that morning, and her eyes curved into a smile.

Cheng Zhao tried to control his facial expressions.

It got out of control.

So, in front of everyone, the corners of his mouth turned up exceptionally high.

[I'm really tired of talking. The moment you see Ye Hantao, your smile is harder to suppress than an AK!]

[Does anyone remember when Lao Chen first started making videos? Cheng Zhao's mouth sounded like he was spewing poison gas :)]

He's now speaking very harshly to Chen Xiaofeng and Ji Changtu!

Ye Hantao will probably never see another side of Cheng Zhao in her life.

Ye Hantao placed the pickled cucumbers she had brought down on the table and introduced them, saying, "These are pickled cucumbers I brought from home."

What did you bring? Pickled cucumbers? Liao Jiayue looked over in surprise and sure enough, there was a box of pickled cucumbers.

Liao Jiayue tried hard to suppress her laughter.

The item she brought to share on the show turned out to be something unpalatable: pickled cucumbers.

A look of disdain crossed Ji Changtu's face; how could someone with such a standard of living still be making such outrageous demands?

He wanted to see how long Ye Hantao could hold out.

If it weren't for Jin Shiyue's interference this morning, he would definitely have succeeded.

Ji Changtu gently stroked the borrowed jade pendant on his wrist with his fingers, thinking to himself that Ye Hantao would come to him wanting to sell it within one breakfast.

At that time, whether it was 600,000 or 700,000 was not up to Ye Hantao to decide.

Liao Jiayue: "Taotao, did Auntie make these pickled cucumbers herself?"

“This isn’t it.” Ye Hantao sat down. “This was made by my neighbor aunt; her pickling skills are absolutely amazing!”

Ye Hantao opened the lid, smelled the spicy and refreshing aroma, and unconsciously salivated.

"Jiayue, are you still feeling bloated?"

"...I don't feel too bad now."

"Great! You can eat pickled cucumbers." Ye Hantao said with a smile, "You guys should try some, I almost couldn't resist sneaking a bite last night."

Since Jiayue is feeling much better, it won't be a problem for her older brother to come whenever he wants.

Su Yi'ang had been eager to try it for a long time, and as soon as Ye Hantao said it was ready to eat, he reached for the pickled cucumber with his chopsticks.

But two pairs of chopsticks were faster than him.

Two pairs?!

Who else is there besides Cheng Zhao?

Before Su Yi'ang could even ponder the reason why he subconsciously believed Cheng Zhao was involved, he raised his head.

Cheng Zhao picked up two pickled cucumbers and placed them on the plate.

Another one, Jin Shiyue, also picked up... a small half-box of pickled cucumbers.

"???"

Jin Shiyue grabbed the pickled cucumber but didn't eat it right away. She first glanced at the camera, then raised an eyebrow and said to He Qiang in a sarcastic tone, "You, as her senior sister, aren't very supportive of your junior sister either."

He Qiang, expressionless, reached out with her chopsticks and scooped up a few more of the few remaining pickled cucumbers.

"!!!" Su Yi'ang hurriedly picked up two pieces, one and put them on Wu Xia's plate and the other on Chen Xiaofeng's plate.

Chen Xiaofeng: "...Thank you?"

While saying no, Su Yi'ang scooped the box of pickled cucumbers into his own hands. "Jia Yue, Brother Yuan, Boss Ji, do you want some pickled cucumbers? I'll share with you!"

After dividing them up, the remaining pickled cucumbers were all his, hahaha.

"I don't like food that's too strongly flavored."

"I don't like pickled vegetables."

"Thank you, I'll have two." Yuan Kai pushed the plate over and said with a gentle smile, "Tao Tao has a golden tongue, so I have to savor the pickled cucumbers that Tao Tao praises."

【Aaaaaaaah, I think so too!】

[If Ye Hantao personally certified that the cooking skills are exceptional, it must be delicious!]

I wanted to pull the pickled cucumbers off Jin Shiyue's plate; she wouldn't eat them anyway.

As soon as the comments started scrolling, Jin Shiyue picked up a pickled cucumber from the plate and took a bite. In that instant, netizens suddenly understood what it meant to have their "eyes light up".

Jin Shiyue still had that arrogant expression.

But she ate the pickled cucumbers very quickly, and before taking a bite, she would always mock He Qiang, saying, "You're eating too slowly, aren't you giving Tao Tao any face?"

After saying that, Jin Shiyue finished eating the remaining pickled cucumbers.

Audience: [...]

I could tell that Kinshitsuki was trying very hard to hide it.

These pickled cucumbers must be so delicious!

While others were enjoying pickled cucumbers, Ye Hantao was searching through a table full of breakfast for the half-eaten egg pancakes and muffins she had eaten not long ago.

Immediately afterwards, Ye Hantao noticed a small piece of golden omelet left on Cheng Zhao's fork.

"???"

Before Ye Hantao could even ask if this was made for her, Cheng Zhao had already pushed a steaming hot egg pancake over.

"You made a new one?"

"This one's fresh out of the pan, it's still hot." After saying that, Cheng Zhao ate the remaining, now-cold, egg pancake.

【Yo yo yo!】

[You have good taste, haha!]

Cheng Zhao glanced at Ye Hantao's empty plate and put one of the two pickled cucumbers he had taken earlier into Ye Hantao's plate.

If you can't resist eating it at night, you must really love it.

Ye Hantao declined, saying, "You keep it to eat, there's still a lot left in the box."

What came into view was an empty glass box and Su Yi'ang looking on expectantly.

"Tao Tao! The pickled cucumbers you brought are delicious!" Su Yi'ang, who especially loves salty food, said enthusiastically, "Once, the big boss also brought two boxes of pickled green beans from our neighbor to the base, and we were fighting over them at lunchtime."

When Ye Hantao heard about the two boxes of green beans, she thought of the two large boxes of green beans that Aunt Wen's relatives from her hometown had mailed to her. Aunt Wen had pickled them and then sent them a large jar of them.

It has a volume that can hold three or four large bowls used for eating noodles.

Since they couldn't finish the food at home, her brother suggested packing two boxes to take to the internet cafe for his colleagues. She and her brother packed the boxes together.

Su Yi'ang continued, "Later, the big boss said that Quanwei sells pickled green beans, and the canteen buys a batch every now and then to improve the taste. When you came to the base last time, the canteen had pickled green beans, right?"

Ye Hantao: "..."

Thanks to Aunt Wen, she ate too many green beans during that period, and now she no longer picks up pickled green beans when she sees them.

“This pickled cucumber is made by Quanwei,” Ye Hantao explained under Su Yi’ang’s surprised gaze. “My neighbor is a shareholder of Quanwei.”

My mom told me that Aunt Wen doesn't own a large share, but she contributed her technical expertise.

[Disease progression: 70.2%]

"!!!"

Ye Hantao was absolutely certain that the rate of decline in her condition had accelerated!

[Ye Hantao! You're lying so convincingly now, it's unbelievable!]

[Could just any random neighbor be a shareholder of Quanwei?]

[What are you guys arguing about? If Ye Hantao's family is wealthy, isn't it normal for her to know people from her own social class?]

[If you believe me, ask Ye Hantao if she can name the shareholders!]

Su Yi'ang was puzzled, "I've never seen this pickled cucumber at Quanwei."

Ye Hantao thought for a moment, "It seems like it will be released at the end of the year."

[...]

[Really...?]

Alright, we'll see at the end of the year, haha.

[No need to wait until the end of the year, just tag the Quanwei official website now.]

As they finished breakfast, Ji Changtu realized that Ye Hantao hadn't thought about the Shoushan ornament at all and was still talking to Su Yi'ang about Quanwei. His arrogance gradually turned into unease.

Is Ye Hantao perhaps thinking of finding another buyer?

If you happen to run into someone who really knows their stuff, you're doomed!

After breakfast, everyone set off.

Throughout the morning, from visiting the old town streets to exploring the secrets of donkey-hide gelatin, Ji Changtu's attention was entirely focused on Ye Hantao.

As they were about to head to the next mission location, Ye Hantao remained silent.

"..." Ji Changtu had to admit that Ye Hantao really didn't intend to take the initiative to contact him!

Ji Changtu couldn't wait any longer: "Speaking of which, a friend of mine urgently needs a jade ornament related to birthday celebrations. Does anyone have any recommendations?"

"The price varies depending on the raw materials," Ji Changtu said, glancing at Ye Hantao, who was leading the group. "For example, the glass-type jadeite we saw yesterday, my friend said it could fetch 50,000 yuan per gram."

Su Yi'ang was shocked, "Isn't that the glass-type jadeite that Tao Tao was wearing for a birthday celebration? Last night they said it was worth 30,000 yuan per gram!"

Ji Changtu smiled and said, "My friend urgently needs it, so the price will definitely be higher than the market price."

100w.

He didn't believe Ye Hantao wasn't tempted!

Ye Hantao actually stopped, but she wasn't looking at Ji Changtu, but at Jin Shiyue, worried that Jin Shiyue might slap Ji Changtu again in the live stream.

Jin Shiyue did not call out.

She had told Ye Hantao that if she needed money, she could borrow from her; she could give her ten million, let alone a million.

"Ahem..." Ji Changtu asked casually, "My friend saw Tao Tao's ornament in the live stream yesterday. If you want to sell it, I'll help you make connections. Getting a million won't be a problem."

Others: "!!!"

[Family members, you see? Ye Hantao bringing the decorative items really worked!]

[They almost doubled in price.]

[Didn't Ji Changtu say his friend urgently needed it? That's why the price is high!]

If Ye Hantao didn't have the personal subsidy of three million, she would definitely be tempted right now.

Thinking of the two million she still had in her account, she firmly shook her head, "No need to bother, I won't sell."

Boss Ji and Teacher Yuankai are indeed worthy of being classmates.

She had already refused once, but they still wouldn't listen.

Ye Hantao could only say, "You can't afford it."

[Disease Progress: 70%]

[Note: The disease progression has reached the critical threshold of 70%. Progress is paused. The host must maintain their character setting 10 times within the next 5 days. Currently, character setting maintenance is 0/10.]

Last time it was within 7 days, now it's only within 5 days. Although Ye Hantao was puzzled, she was still quite happy that the disease progression had dropped to 70%.

Unexpectedly, the electronic voice started playing again.

[Beep, positive interference detected, requirement adjustment.]

[Note: The disease progression has reached the critical threshold of 70%. Progress is paused. The host must maintain their character at least 3 times within the next 5 days. Currently, character maintenance is at 0/3.]

"!!!" Ye Hantao emphasized loudly, "You really can't afford it!"

Ji Changtu's lips twitched.

Not even a million? Ye Hantao wants millions to sell?!

"One million is already a lot, you—"

"Boss Ji, I advise you to stop."

No one expected that the person who interrupted would be Cheng Zhao.

"You want to buy it for a million?" Cheng Zhao smiled lazily. "Then you probably won't have the chance."

Ji Changtu suddenly sensed something was wrong. Could it be that Cheng Zhao had also recognized the material of the ornament?

He took two steps forward and said quickly, "One million won't do, how about two million! Ye Hantao, aren't you even tempted by two million?!"

【？？？？】

Family members, something doesn't seem right about him.

There's a sense of urgency, like missing out on a fortune if you can't buy it now.

At this moment, Ji Changtu could not control the surrounding cameras, nor could he control the viewers in the live broadcast room.

He was in a great hurry to buy a decorative item worth millions to fill the hole first, otherwise he would be finished!

If Ye Hantao hadn't repeatedly opposed him, exposing the problems with his tea shop and jade plaque, the sales of the two stores would have already paid off the debt!

Ye Hantao's Shoushan ornament should be given to him!

Ji Changtu stared intently at Ye Hantao, "Have you thought this through? You'll never see a price of two million again!"

At this moment, Cheng Zhao, not wanting to miss out on the excitement, raised his hand, his casual voice carrying a hint of recklessness, "If it's really for sale, I'll offer ten million."

The audience exclaimed, "Wow!"

Do you even have ten million? Then you'll be a sucker!

[Hahaha, you're really going to go too far to help Ye Hantao raise the price!]

Ten million?! Ten million!! Cheng Zhao really knew the true price of Shoushan ornaments?!

Ji Changtu panicked, but forced himself to remain calm and questioned, "Cheng Zhao! What do you mean?!"

Cheng Zhao raised the corners of his lips and said unhurriedly, "I like it."

Ye Hantao reached out and patted Cheng Zhao's arm, telling him to stop talking and causing trouble.

Seeing this, Cheng Zhao shut his mouth and swallowed the words he was about to use to mock Ji Changtu.

Ye Hantao straightened her expression and said, "No matter if you offer ten million or twenty million, we still can't afford it. Forget about it."

It's fake. If it were ten million, she would definitely sell it.

She likes Shoushan ornaments, but she likes ten million even more.

Ye Hantao raised her chin and said, "My family is very rich, we don't lack a mere ten million."

[The disease has progressed to 70% (critical threshold), and the character's persona is currently maintained at 1/3.]

How could Ji Changtu just stand by and watch tens of millions of yuan worth of jade slip through his fingers?

"Ye Hantao, don't be so—"

Suddenly, Wu Xia hugged the thermos cup in his arms tightly and said with pursed lips, "The police are here."

ah?

police?

Everyone stopped paying attention to Ji Changtu's unusual behavior and turned around, including passersby, to look at the few people in police uniforms who were gradually approaching.

Ye Hantao realized that the police seemed to be targeting them...

The lead officer had a dignified appearance.

He walked straight up to Ji Changtu and said, "Ji Changtu, we are from the Economic Crime Investigation Division of Yuncheng Public Security Bureau."

To his left are the local police officers who are assisting with the case.

Viewers cannot see the police officers' faces in the footage, but they can see their uniforms, which are indeed police uniforms.

"We received a report from the bank that you are suspected of loan fraud." The officer's voice was stern. "Please come with us to cooperate with the investigation."

Ye Hantao and the others who were watching: "Huh???"

Audience: [Huh? ??? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ]

Facing the police directly, Ji Changtu's face drained of color, but he still insisted, "You must have made a mistake!"

After the lead officer verified his identity, he ignored Ji Changtu's shouts that he had made a mistake and immediately ordered his subordinates to prepare to take the person away.

Family members, what's going on?

[I saw an arrest scene the first time I watched a live variety show?]

[Suspected of loan fraud? Huh???]

This variety show is definitely worth watching...

Ye Hantao was still in shock.

One second the person was recording a show with you, the next second they're being taken away by the police?

-----------------------

Author's note: Farewell~

--Randomly dropping red envelopes~--

(Regarding the positive interfering factors, there were several foreshadowings earlier, did you guys guess them? [Let me see])