Following Lü Yunxu, he enjoyed the attention of countless staff members.
Li Chonglou walked into the venue without shifting his gaze.
He stopped at the end of the aisle: "Yunxu, I won't go up to the main stage. I'll sit in the audience."
"What's wrong, Brother Li?" Lü Yunxu asked, looking puzzled.
"I'm nobody. It's not appropriate for me to sit on the main stage," Li Chonglou chuckled.
"You're still unknown?" Lü Yunxu giggled charmingly, "Who in the Qinzhou antique circle doesn't know your name, Master Li!"
"You don't even put Chairman Lu in your eyes."
"Besides, my father personally invited you this time."
Lü Yunxu's words were not an exaggeration at all.
She had driven away Qin Muyang with a few words, slapped Cao Zhi at Qin Yun Mountain Villa, and taught Lin Ao a lesson.
He had also acquired Lu Weishen's treasure, Xima.
Each of these incidents was enough to shock the entire antique world.
It was normal for outsiders not to know, but most of the people present today were insiders.
Even if they hadn't seen Li Chonglou, they had heard of his reputation.
Moreover, without his help, this charity auction would have fallen into the trap set by the Tang father and son.
Therefore, Lü Chenggong's attitude had changed 180 degrees. Not only did he allow Lü Yunxu to come out, but he also instructed her to get close to Li Chonglou.
"I don't accept rewards without merit. I have my reasons for not going up. Please explain to Director Lü for me," Li Chonglou said enigmatically.
He had his own comprehensive plan for not going to the main stage.
It wasn't because his wife was present.
There was another extremely important matter to attend to.
Seeing him like this, Lü Yunxu couldn't insist further and could only agree: "Then, Brother Li, you are free to move around. Contact me if you have any problems."
"We'll be in touch by phone," Li Chonglou nodded and left.
He entered the grand auditorium.
Scanning the entire venue, he had to admit that the Lü family's financial resources and connections were absolutely top-notch in all of Qinzhou.
The grand auditorium, usually used for government meetings, was decorated luxuriously, earning sighs of admiration.
Countless tall, elegant hostesses in qipaos moved among the guests, providing service.
Alcohol and delicacies were readily available.
It was the standard of a high-end party.
The Lü family had made thorough preparations for this charity auction, sparing no expense.
The antiques intended for the auction alone were valued at over five million yuan, so the specifications were naturally not low.
His gaze fell on Jiang Yuxin, seated in the third row.
Many young masters, attracted by her stunning beauty, approached her with champagne, wanting to get acquainted.
However, Jiang Yuxin coldly rejected them all.
She had come to cooperate with the Lü family, not to socialize with rich second-generation heirs. She understood clearly what these playboys were thinking and had to keep her distance.
This scene made Li Chonglou feel gratified.
Besides his wife, Cao Chunhua was also present. She was sitting next to a woman who, though past her prime, was still elegant and graceful, beaming with joy.
No wonder she didn't come with him; she had company.
Li Chonglou chuckled inwardly, thinking of Old Master Cao as a mischievous old man.
In addition, there was an old acquaintance—Cao Zhi, who was speaking to a group of security guards with a gloomy expression.
Li Chonglou subtly moved to the back and found an inconspicuous seat, waiting for the charity auction to officially begin.
Soon, the beautiful hostesses requested everyone to hand over their mobile phones.
Then, Lü Chenggong and his daughter, Tang Guanghe and his son, along with Lu Weishen and a secretary-general from a Qinshi municipal government department, walked onto the main stage and took their seats.
The atmosphere in the venue instantly reached its peak.
"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the charity auction hosted by the Lü Group to raise funds for the mountain area's Hope Primary School!" The host, dressed in a tuxedo, took the stage to open. "Please welcome Mr. Lü Chenggong, the organizer, for a brief speech!"
Lü Chenggong smiled, took the microphone, cleared his throat, and began.
After a series of platitudes, he handed the topic over to Secretary-General Zhou.
"The Lü Group is the host, and I am a guest. The guest follows the host's lead. Let's begin," Secretary-General Zhou said briefly.
He directly announced the start of the charity auction.
Immediately after, all the beautiful hostesses, holding gift boxes, presented them to each guest.
"It hasn't started yet, and they're already being handed out?" Everyone opened their gift boxes, and gasps of surprise echoed through the venue.
Inside the boxes lay the item well-known to be the centerpiece of the auction—a Yongle dynasty white-glazed porcelain bowl!
"This..."
Those who were unaware looked towards the main stage.
Such valuable items were distributed to everyone. Weren't they supposed to be auctioned?
What was the Lü Group doing?
A question arose in everyone's mind.
Only Tang Guanghe and Lu Weishen on the main stage had a flash of darkness in their eyes.
They knew that Lü Chenggong must have preempted this matter, but they hadn't expected him to pull off such a stunt.
"Please allow me to explain," Lü Chenggong said, taking the microphone and speaking calmly. "It was my poor judgment, mistaking exquisite replicas for genuine articles, and I almost misled everyone."
"Fortunately, a wise person guided me, and I came to my senses. We have decided to temporarily give these exquisite replicas of white-glazed bowls, which were intended as auction items, to our guests as gifts."
"For them to learn appraisal!"
"As for the actual auction items, we have already made preparations. Please stay tuned."
Cheers!
As soon as he finished speaking, the entire hall erupted in applause.
Cheers erupted from all sides, and many people marveled at how a top tycoon could possess such magnanimity and take such grand actions.
He had successfully turned a gaffe into a celebrated anecdote.
Watching the applause below, Lü Chenggong secretly wiped a bead of sweat, grateful that fate had not abandoned him.
Having a good daughter, otherwise, he might have faced disaster today.
"To turn decay into magic, to save a collapsing mansion, Brother Li, are you truly content to be just a son-in-law?" Lü Yunxu's beautiful eyes shimmered as she looked at Li Chonglou, who sat calmly in the corner, unmoved.
Her heart was turbulent.
Without experiencing it firsthand, she could never have imagined that Li Chonglou's simple change of strategy had reversed the situation for the Lü Group.
This was only the first step, and there were still several more to come.
How formidable must a person with such strategic vision be?
If he joined the Lü氏, would there be any worry about the company's future development?
"Alright, let's proceed to the auction. The Lü Group promises that all proceeds will be donated in full. Please participate enthusiastically," the host calmed the commotion.
Beautiful hostesses, holding today's official auction items, successively took the stage.
There were Yaozhou kiln oil-spot glaze, jade, Hetian jade products, and many treasures from Donglin's collection.
A total of thirty items.
They ranged from one hundred thousand to one million yuan.
This made the faces of Lu Weishen and Tang Guanghe even darker.
"It must be that Li Chonglou kid. Otherwise, how could Lü Chenggong find so many substitutes in such a short period?" The two exchanged glances, their eyes flashing with malice.
With Li Chonglou's assistance, Lü Chenggong had doomed their previous plans.
After this auction, the Lü Group's reputation would surely soar, and its stock price would skyrocket.
However, all of this was within their expectations.
As long as the Lü father and daughter were dead, everything would become dowry for him, Tang Guanghe.
"Lü Chenggong, Li Chonglou! When the auction ends, it will be your death knell!" Tang Guanghe's gaze finally fell on Cao Zhi.