Chapter 44: Enemies on a Narrow Road
Chen, the owner of the jade store, replied, “Miss Xu is our esteemed guest here at the Jade Pavilion.”
Lu Shaoyan nodded at Xu Youyou, acknowledging her presence.
Chen then called over one of the store’s staff members and instructed, “Take Young Master Lu and Miss Gu to the warehouse and let them choose from the new batch of stones that just arrived.”
Hearing this, Gu Xueying felt displeased.
Chen hadn’t even stood up for Lu Shaoyan, yet he was being particularly courteous to Xu Youyou.
After thinking about it briefly, Gu Xueying figured out the difference—Chen treated Lu Shaoyan as if he were a friend’s child, but when it came to Xu Youyou, he regarded her as an equal.
Being inexplicably put at a lower status than Xu Youyou irritated not only Gu Xueying but also Lu Shaoyan, who clearly noticed the subtle distinction.
“Boss Chen, every time I come here, you personally accompany me to select stones. Now you’re prioritizing Miss Xu over me? That’s favoritism!” Lu Shaoyan complained.
Chen let out an awkward chuckle. “You brat, I arranged for Xiao Liu to help you—what more do you want? You expect me to exhaust my old bones just for you?”
Though it was meant as a joke, Xu Youyou caught the slight downturn at the corners of Lu Shaoyan’s mouth—a sign of his displeasure.
What a coincidence—Xu Youyou didn’t like Lu Shaoyan either.
Lu Shaoyan was originally from a branch family of the Lu family. However, after the main heir of the Lu family suffered an accident, Lu Shaoyan got lucky and became the heir. In the future, he was even supposed to marry Gu Xueying.
In her past life, Lu Shaoyan never openly opposed Xu Youyou. To him, she was just trash—not even worth stepping on. A single word from him could ruin her prospects effortlessly.
However, Xu Youyou strongly suspected that many of the obstacles she faced in her past life—like getting fired from jobs shortly after being hired—had something to do with Lu Shaoyan.
She still remembered confronting one of her former managers, only to accidentally witness the man bowing and scraping in front of Lu Shaoyan’s secretary.
Whether it was Lu Shaoyan’s order or Gu Xueying’s personal meddling, Xu Youyou no longer cared. As long as someone was close to Gu Xueying, they were her targets for retaliation.
At that moment, Xu Youyou set down her teacup and said to Chen, “Boss Chen, so you have stones that aren’t displayed outside? You never mentioned that before.”
Chen remained unfazed. “Miss Xu, you never asked. If you had, do you think I would’ve kept it from you?”
“If you had told me earlier that there was a VIP warehouse, maybe I would have bought something by now,” Xu Youyou teased.
Chen folded his hands in a mock plea. “Miss Xu, you always manage to outtalk me. Fine, since you’re interested in the warehouse, I’ll personally show you around. But if you don’t buy anything, I’ll be very upset.”
Chen got up and, as an afterthought, invited Lu Shaoyan and Gu Xueying along.
Lu Shaoyan had brought Gu Xueying here to impress her with his wealth and to show her something new. However, since Chen hadn’t prioritized him, Lu Shaoyan felt like he had lost face.
Now that Chen was personally accompanying Xu Youyou while treating him as an afterthought, Lu Shaoyan was even more irritated. But he still couldn’t figure out who exactly Xu Youyou was.
A young and beautiful woman like her—if she were from a powerful family, he would have remembered seeing her before.
Yet, in all his years within Shanghai’s elite circles, he had never encountered Xu Youyou.
“Miss Xu, you don’t seem to be from Shanghai. Are you from the capital?” Lu Shaoyan asked.
Xu Youyou didn’t even glance at him and casually replied, “I’m from Huangshan.”
“Huangshan? You mean that famous tourist destination?” Lu Shaoyan asked.
Xu Youyou nodded.
Though Huangshan was well-known, it was famous only for its scenic views. Lu Shaoyan instinctively assumed it was a small place, and his gaze toward Xu Youyou carried a hint of disdain.
Gu Xueying, who had been tense throughout the conversation, subtly relaxed. She was afraid Xu Youyou would bring up the Gu family.
The Gu family had kept the truth about their “switched daughters” tightly under wraps. None of Shanghai’s elite knew that Gu Xueying was a fake heiress.
Lu Shaoyan continued probing. “Miss Xu, did you grow up abroad? Or did you study overseas before returning?”
Xu Youyou laughed at that. “Mr. Lu, do you think that only the wealthy, like yourself, can enter this place and receive Boss Chen’s hospitality?”
Her blunt words made Lu Shaoyan pause, but he still responded, “Isn’t that the case?”
Xu Youyou said straightforwardly, “I’m afraid you’ll be disappointed then. I’m an orphan—both my parents are deceased. I also don’t have a massive inheritance waiting for me.”
Lu Shaoyan’s expression shifted immediately, a trace of disdain appearing in his eyes.
Xu Youyou sighed internally. This circle was still as superficial as ever. If you had no wealth or status, the rich and privileged would naturally look down on you.
Even in her past life, when she was the real Gu family heiress, Gu Xueying’s friends had tormented her endlessly.
Unexpectedly, Chen spoke up. “Miss Xu is truly remarkable for her age. When I was your age, I didn’t have your boldness. In the future, I’ll have to rely on Miss Xu to look after me.”
Lu Shaoyan asked directly, “Boss Chen, what exactly did Miss Xu do?”
Chen chuckled and explained, “You must have been away a few days ago. Miss Xu brought in an unremarkable stone carving and asked me to cut it open. Turned out, it contained top-grade Imperial Green jade. In the end, Miss Cen bought it from her for ten billion yuan.”
Lu Shaoyan had vaguely heard about Cen Mingzhu acquiring a high-quality jade piece, but he hadn’t known Xu Youyou was involved.
“Miss Xu, are you an expert in stone gambling?” Lu Shaoyan asked.
With a deliberately frustrating tone, Xu Youyou replied, “Not at all. I just bought it for fun.”
Chen added, “Spending a few hundred thousand just for fun, then turning it into ten billion? If that’s just luck, you must be the ultimate koi fish! But you didn’t treat me fairly, Miss Xu—you made a fortune in my store, yet you haven’t spent a dime here. I’ve only made 200 yuan off of you.”
Chen clearly held some resentment over the matter, but Xu Youyou nonchalantly responded, “Unlike the young masters and ladies from wealthy families, who can throw away millions without blinking, every yuan I spend has to be worth it.”
Lu Shaoyan, who had wasted millions on stone gambling, felt as if he had just been kicked in the chest.
He was exactly the kind of wealthy fool who loved gambling but lacked skill. Every year, he spent half of his allowance on this obsession but rarely ever made a return.
“Miss Xu, since you’re so skilled, would you help me pick a stone?” Lu Shaoyan shamelessly asked.
Xu Youyou suddenly stopped in her tracks, then smiled. “Young Master Lu wants me to help. What about Miss Gu? Shouldn’t she also toss in a few million to play along?”
