"Yes, that’s the one. An opportunity just came up, so I called you right away. What do you think? I was wondering if you have the time."

The whole affair began when he and Demo Did viewed that Mona Lisa painting together.

The moment that guy, Demo Did, saw the Mona Lisa, his mind became completely captivated by the painting.

For that painting, he was even willing to spend all the allowance money he’d saved up since childhood, and then some.

However, when he asked if he could buy it, Fang Chenyi simply shook his head and refused.

But Fang Chenyi’s refusal only meant he wouldn’t sell it to him; he was, however, open to a trade. As long as Demo Did could provide enough Huaxia artifacts to satisfy him, Fang Chenyi had agreed to an exchange.

’He just hadn’t expected the other party to make a move so quickly.’

After Demo Did finished speaking, Fang Chenyi’s interest was genuinely piqued. ’Although I only said it casually last time,’ he thought, ’it’s better to trade this oil painting I can’t appreciate for a batch of Huaxia artifacts. Even if I don’t want them for myself, donating them to a museum is always an option!’

"Oh? You managed to get enough Huaxia artifacts so quickly? Heh, it seems I’ve really underestimated your abilities!"

"No! No! No! You may have misunderstood. I haven’t gotten enough Huaxia artifacts yet."

Hearing this, Fang Chenyi’s expression immediately soured. ’You haven’t gotten enough Huaxia artifacts, so why the hell are you bringing this up? Are you messing with me?’

But before he could say anything, the voice on the other end spoke again:

"Here’s the thing, Fang. I might not have been clear just now. I haven’t gotten enough Huaxia artifacts yet, but I did get an invitation to a special Sotheby’s auction in Paris. I heard this one is a special event for your Huaxia artifacts, and seventy percent of the items are from Huaxia."

After a slight pause, Demo Did continued:

"Here’s my plan. We’ll both go, and I’ll bid on anything you like until we’ve acquired enough to trade for the Mona Lisa. Doesn’t that save a lot of trouble and also let you get the things you want? Oh, to use one of your Huaxia sayings, it’s ’killing two eagles with one arrow’! How about it? It’s three days from now. I just don’t know if you’ll have time to attend."

’He’s not wrong,’ Fang Chenyi thought. ’This Demo Did is pretty sharp. This isn’t just killing two birds with one stone as he said; there’s a third bird. The items he wins for me at the auction will all need my appraisal. If any of them turn out to be fakes, I can’t blame him for it.’

’After all, if he went out to acquire them himself, he’d be very likely to end up with fakes, and I would absolutely refuse any fakes he brought me.’

Although he knew the guy had his own little scheme, Fang Chenyi was very tempted.

After a moment’s thought, Fang Chenyi nodded and said, "Alright. I’ll leave this afternoon and can be in Paris by tonight. But I won’t be bringing the painting with me."

"Oh, I was actually afraid you *would* bring it. You have to understand, if people knew you were carrying the genuine Mona Lisa, I’m sure you’d run into a lot of trouble! So it’s settled. I’ll arrange a flight over too. I’ll see you in Paris. Oh, right, Fang, that plane I gave you doesn’t come with a pilot. You’ll need to arrange that yourself."

After hanging up, Bai Menghan, who was driving, glanced at Fang Chenyi in confusion. "Chenyi, are you going abroad?"

Fang Chenyi gave Bai Menghan a smile. "There’s an auction for our Huaxia artifacts. Demo Did invited me to check it out. It’s in Paris, so we can just treat it as a vacation."

"We?? You mean you want me to go with you??"

As she spoke, the car had already driven through the gates of the Century Garden District.

"Of course. If you don’t go with me, who will? Besides, with a handsome guy like me going alone, could you really rest easy?"

Hearing Fang Chenyi’s smug remark, Bai Menghan scoffed.

"Tch, if you were that kind of person, I never would have fallen for you. But since when did you get interested in Huaxia artifacts? I haven’t seen a single antique anywhere in our house."

Busted on the spot by Bai Menghan, Fang Chenyi was mortified. To cover up his embarrassment, he flung open his door, got out, and went around to the driver’s side. Just as Bai Menghan pushed her door open, he swept her up by the waist and started walking toward the villa, saying fiercely:

"Hmph, hmph, you’ve gotten bold, haven’t you? Daring to tease your man like this. Today, your husband is going to have to reassert his authority!"

"Hey! It’s the middle of the day!"

...

Two and a half hours later, Fang Chenyi and Bai Menghan emerged from the villa together, having changed into casual clothes.

Neither of them was carrying any luggage, aside from a clutch that Fang Chenyi had tucked under his arm.

They got into Fang Chenyi’s Sesto Elemento, and with an Aston Martin following behind, the two cars headed for the airport one after the other.

"Hee hee, Chenyi, does this count as a spontaneous trip?"

An hour later, the Lamborghini and the Aston Martin arrived at the airport. They pulled up in front of the private jet Demo Did had given him, and five men got out of the Aston Martin. All five were dressed in crisp suits and shiny leather shoes.

Anyone who didn’t know better would never have guessed that these men were actually five chefs.

"Char, what do you think? Can you guys fly this plane?"

’To be honest, I have a pilot’s license myself,’ Fang Chenyi thought. ’And I know that when it comes to flying skills, Char and his four men are no match for me. But I’m the boss. I can’t very well fly the plane myself, can I?’

’Of course, if Bai Menghan were interested, I could let her experience what it’s like to fly a plane.’

"Oh, Boss, my skills might not be as good as yours, but please don’t say things that wound my pride. What do you mean, ’Can we fly it?’ That’s not even a question. Flying this thing is as easy as riding a bicycle!"

After Old Char finished, Smith, who was standing beside him, said with a baffled expression:

"Uh, Boss Char, as I recall... you don’t know how to ride a bicycle, do you?"

[To be continued...]

PS: Hey everyone, the third update for today is a bit late. My apologies! I’ll keep writing, there’s more to come. At least one more Chapter!