"You mean people would actually handle things this way?" The executive committee member stared, dumbfounded, at the suddenly opened gates. Before he could even grasp what had happened, he heard the president say, "Everyone, I've already reached an agreement with Mr. Huang He. Hurry inside and prepare for tonight's grand show. We only have seven hours left!"
The president's words finally brought them back to their senses, and they all rushed in. Only Kaelen was shouting, urging his people to go in first, warning that if the stage couldn't be built, no one would get to walk the runway.
In short, the entrance to the Tuileries Garden was in chaos. The president, however, watched it all with a complex expression. He had never known what it felt like to be slapped in the face by money, but now, he seemed to understand.
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"Brother, you're just going to let them in like that?" Inside a small building deep within the garden, Vivian asked with a grin, watching the throngs of people pouring into the garden entrance.
This wasn't just any small building; it was one of the few remaining palace structures of the Tuileries Palace.
Upon closer inspection, one could see many bullet holes and scorch marks on the building, evidence of cannon fire, not battlefield artillery.
The Tuileries Garden was originally the private property of Empress Medici. After becoming Empress, she established the Tuileries here, which later served as the royal residence and a venue for royal banquets.
It wasn't until the more magnificent and grand Palace of Versailles was completed and the Emperor moved his Empress there that the Tuileries Palace was neglected.
However, as fate would have it, with the advent of the French Revolution, the people of Paris forced King Louis XVI out of Versailles and back into the Tuileries Palace to reside.
Later, Louis XVI attempted to escape from the Tuileries Palace, was caught, and lost control even over the Tuileries. He was only allowed to reside in the main palace building, while other structures within the Tuileries Palace became public facilities.
For instance, the Tuileries Palace stables became the meeting place for the assembly at the time.
Later still, a locksmith exposed Louis XVI's plot to collude with foreign powers and overthrow the revolution. The army then attacked the Tuileries Palace, and fierce fighting ensued, resulting in the destruction of half the palace.
Ultimately, Louis XVI was captured here and sent to the guillotine, becoming the second king in Europe to be executed.
Only three kings in all of Europe were executed; the previous one was Charles I of England, and the next would be the last Tsar of Russia.
However, the legend of the Tuileries Palace was just beginning.
After the brief French Revolution ended, the miraculous Napoleon rose to power.
Soon, Napoleon crowned himself Emperor, becoming King of France. Logically, he should have resided in the intact and more luxurious Palace of Versailles.
However, the newly enthroned Napoleon, wishing to show he did not seek a life of luxury, abandoned Versailles and chose to reside in the Tuileries Palace, making it the imperial palace at the time.
Later, Napoleon was defeated, and the Bourbon Restoration occurred. Louis XVIII, perhaps to distinguish himself from his brother Louis XVI, also chose the Tuileries Palace as his primary residence.
Subsequently, the Napoleonic dynasty was restored, and Napoleon III, seeking to emulate the greatness of his uncle Napoleon I, inherited his legacy, and the Tuileries remained the imperial palace.
But the good fortune of the Tuileries Palace ended there. Later, due to the Franco-Prussian War and movements like the Paris Commune, the Tuileries Palace was ultimately destroyed by conflict, reduced to scorched earth. Only a few small buildings remained, while the main structure of the Tuileries Palace had become a pile of ruins.
Later, the Paris government sold the ruins of the Tuileries Palace to a private contractor for $130,000, tasking them with clearing away all the debris.
It is said that the contractor subsequently discovered hundreds of art treasures from the ruins, as well as many destroyed but artistically rich architectural fragments that were preserved. The combined value of these items exceeded one hundred million dollars.
However, these had no bearing on the Tuileries Palace anymore.
After all the remaining ruins of the buildings were cleared, the empty land was entirely planted with various flowers and plants. The remaining structures either became garden management offices or cultural preservation units. Finally, the Tuileries Palace was straightforwardly renamed the Tuileries Garden.
The building that Huang He and Vivian were now in was the most intact surviving building in the Tuileries Garden, a structure from hundreds of years ago. It was said to be a building specifically for the craftsmen and gardeners of the palace to live in.
And so, the great Emperor's palace vanished, but the humble workers' dwellings remained, a rather ironic twist of fate.
But these details were irrelevant for the moment. Huang He and a few others had found a quiet place to observe the large number of people flooding into the Tuileries Garden from a distance, rushing to prepare for this fashion show in the remaining time.
Meanwhile, in response to Vivian's question, Huang He said calmly, "There's no way I can stop them. When I negotiated with the President earlier, he made it very clear to me. As long as the Fashion Association backed down and agreed to let Qu Wei participate in the main show, then I could no longer obstruct the holding of Paris Fashion Week. Otherwise, the government would forcibly clear the area!"
"Although Mr. President dislikes the Paris Fashion Association, he dislikes Paris becoming a laughingstock even more. So, he could only tolerate moderate obstruction; he wouldn't allow me to truly shut down Paris Fashion Week."
"My original goal was simply to have Qu Wei and our clothing participate in Paris Fashion Week. Now that my objective has been achieved, there's no need for me to push things to the extreme."
"This is Paris, after all. And the people of Paris have a precedent for chopping off a king's head, let alone me, a mere businessman?"
"But spending $1 billion seems like such a waste!" Vivian pouted, asking with considerable puzzlement, "1 billion dollars, and you only got a morning's satisfaction. You still have to pay millions of dollars in operating expenses every month. Is it really worth it?"
"Of course, it's worth it!" Huang He nodded emphatically. "First of all, I felt incredibly satisfied this morning. I rarely feel that exhilarated in my life, so that alone is worth $1 billion!"
"Also, this is the Tuileries Garden. Perhaps others see it as a money-losing venture, but that's because they lack foresight. And my mention of a three-month renovation isn't just an excuse. After Paris Fashion Week concludes, it will indeed be immediately closed for renovation. Then, you'll see if this place is a money-losing one or not!"
"And finally!" Huang He rubbed his nose. "I can guarantee that starting today, no wealthy person in Paris will be unaware of me, Huang He, and the Jiangnan Group!"
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Indeed, Huang He was right. In just one afternoon, before Paris Fashion Week had even begun, Huang He had once again swept through Paris like a whirlwind. This time, however, it wasn't the common folk he swept up, but the circles of Paris's wealthy elite and dignitaries.
Although the president hadn't revealed the full truth on the spot, the executive committee member had witnessed the entire event. And his mouth was certainly not one that could keep a secret.
Thus, the truth quickly spread to the ears of other committee members and dignitaries. Then, through their social circles, this explosive news spread like wildfire. Before nightfall, many of Paris's powerful figures had already heard this astonishing story that made their very foundations tremble.
For the sake of a female designer and the qualification to participate in the main show of Paris Fashion Week, a Chinese man had directly bought the Tuileries Garden for $1 billion and blocked the entire Paris fashion scene for an entire morning, causing the Paris Fashion Association to beg and plead, without knowing the truth of the matter.
It wasn't until Princess Vivian's words enlightened them that they understood the full story.
And such a story was incredibly captivating.
After all, while Paris is a city brimming with all sorts of jokes and tales, a story of spending $1 billion in a fit of pique for a woman's sake – no, a story of spending $1 billion for a woman – was unparalleled in Paris.
The humor and infectiousness of this story were on par with those of Snow White and Cinderella. In just one afternoon, over 10,000 people learned of this astonishing tale.
And by the time Paris Fashion Week concluded a week later, practically everyone in Paris knew this story.
So, was the impact of this story good or bad? Did it bring Huang He fame or infamy?
That was hard to say. After all, the Paris Fashion Association must have harbored immense hatred for Huang He, as they had become the backdrop of the story, the ones who had been thoroughly humiliated.
But they were powerless against Huang He. They even had to grant Qu Wei the best position for the next day's main show, fearing that Huang He might go mad again and shut the gates of the Tuileries Garden once more, preventing the week-long Paris Fashion Week from continuing.
They had originally thought that no such madman existed in the world, but now, they believed he did.
As for the other onlookers, while there were certainly those who disliked and despised Huang He for being Asian, there were also no small number who cheered, applauded, and even admired him.
After all, the target and backdrop of Huang He's story was the Paris Fashion Association, an institution with power and influence. Over a hundred years, it had surely done many bad deeds and had a generally negative reputation.
Therefore, when Huang He tormented an entity with a negative reputation rather than bothering the unfortunate common people, and for a very just cause, the story won the favor of ordinary people, at the very least.
In fact, many wealthy individuals were not put off by this; instead, they expressed envy, regarding Huang He as their idol, vowing that when they became rich, they would play like him.
But none of that was as important as the fact that the image of Huang He and the Jiangnan Group in the hearts of all women had been transformed to a overwhelmingly positive and majestic one through this story.
For the fair treatment of a female designer, Huang He had wielded $1 billion to bring her justice and exact revenge.
Such a story held immense power over women. Countless women, upon hearing this tale, felt their legs go weak, wishing they could transform into Qu Wei and experience the thrill of a man defending their dignity with $1 billion.
So, what was Qu Wei doing at this moment?
Well, after Princess Vivian left, Qu Wei placed her delicate, jade-like fingers on the lapel of her blouse and whispered into Huang He's ear, "Want to see my bodice?"