Chapter 052

Chapter 052

Upon learning that Lu Mingzhu planned to accompany Xie Junyao and He Yun on a trip north, the first thing Lu Mingzhu's father did was to ask her for the $200,000 that He Yun had given her.

If he didn’t take it, would she donate it instead?

Absolutely possible.

With the country in a state of reconstruction, she found everything pitiful and had a soft heart, always ready to donate at a moment's notice.

Because she herself possessed many assets and had a promising future income, what others considered a fortune was insignificant to her. Having it was a bonus, but not having it wouldn’t affect her life, which is why she could be so generous.

Donating it would be like giving a helping hand when it’s needed most, helping many people.

Before Lu Mingzhu could even ask, her father continued on his own, "I’ve negotiated shares in a power company, originally owned by an American business group. Now that they’re withdrawing from Hong Kong, I have the chance to acquire them. The shares aren’t many, just enough to require $200,000. You provide the money, and the shares will be registered in your name, ensuring you a substantial income in the future."

Lu Mingzhu didn’t doubt him and was even delighted.

A power company!

Electricity is closely related to the lives of Hong Kong citizens, and all industries depend on it, making electricity particularly expensive.

Acquiring shares in the power company meant that every penny paid by Hong Kong citizens for electricity would include her share. As long as she didn’t sell the shares, the income would be permanent.

Her father truly was her father, always considering long-term benefits when setting up assets for her, with almost no risk of loss.

Thus, Lu Mingzhu happily exchanged $200,000 for shares in the power company. All procedures went smoothly, and she even had the mood to care about her father: "You’ve let me buy the shares you negotiated, what about you? If you don’t earn well, how will you redeem your precious antiques in the future?"

Her father glared at her, "When signing, you didn’t think about how your old man is giving you all the quality assets, what about the future?"

Typical afterthought. She got the advantage and still played coy.

Lu Mingzhu clung to his arm, cooing, "Because I believe in your abilities! And I’ve decided, if you really can’t pay back, I’ll mortgage my assets to help you pay part of it, so you won’t be too burdened."

After all, it was all given by her father.

Moreover, Lu Mingzhu didn’t believe her father couldn’t pay back; if he couldn’t, he wouldn’t spend so lavishly.

Her father felt quite comforted inside but spoke disdainfully, "Crow’s mouth! Can’t you say anything nice? Must you always say something unlucky?"

In fact, he still had $200 million worth of gold stored in several foreign banks, accumulated over many years. Initially, it was brought back from overseas by ancestors who went to sea for business. Over generations, it was never included in the Lu family’s assets but passed down from one family head to another, adding a bit each year, accumulating to 10 cubic meters now.

The world thought the Lu family ancestors were business agents, unaware that before becoming business agents, the Lu family was already wealthy and engaged in overseas trade.

Without knowing foreign languages, one couldn’t become a business agent.

Before that, the ancestors were salt merchants, extremely wealthy, but feeling too conspicuous, they retreated from the limelight, switched to building large ships, and started overseas trade, exchanging silk, tea, and porcelain for gold, making a fortune until the situation changed and it became unsustainable, leading the next generation to become business agents, showing decline, acting low-key to ensure safety, gradually fading from the public eye, and no outsider knew the history of the Lu family anymore.

When discussing Lu Changsheng’s actions with Lu Mingzhu, and considering Wang Bohui’s presence, her father spoke half-truths about the family assets, not revealing everything.

No one said he had to spill the beans.

It was true that Lu Changsheng squandered tens of millions of family assets, but the claim of 30 million silver dollars in family assets was false.

If the Lu family only had 30 million silver dollars in assets, after deducting what Lu Changsheng squandered, the remainder wouldn’t cover the family’s living expenses, which at their peak reached 3 million silver dollars a year!

Luckily, he took over early and wasn’t as lenient as the old man. If it had been in the old man’s hands, it would have definitely been squandered by Lu Changsheng.

For generations, Lu Changsheng has been the only prodigal son!

Although Lu Mingzhu is also soft-hearted, she only does charity under the condition of maintaining her own comfortable lifestyle. Unlike Lu Changsheng, who is such a fool that his money disappears without a trace.

All of this, Father Lu would never tell Lu Mingzhu.

To prevent her from coveting those 10 tons of gold.

The chaotic times have ended, and the role of gold is diminishing. His original plan was to use the gold to redeem precious antiques at a discounted price after three years, and the $10 million from the mortgage could be spent freely.

Not wasted, all converted into fixed assets, effectively making money from money.

Only a very small portion of gold is needed, which won’t cause any significant damage.

Once in the car, Father Lu said to Lu Mingzhu, "Be good and take care of me, and you’ll be rewarded in the future."

"Even if you don’t reward me, I’ll still take care of you!" Lu Mingzhu would never tell her father that she had called him a scoundrel before. "Is there anything you want from the country? I’ll buy it and bring it back for you."

Father Lu thought for a moment, "I buried some things in our garden earlier—not much, just a few boxes of gold bars, a few jars of silver dollars, and later some boxes of antiques. At the time, I couldn’t bring them out, and it was also to leave a way out for the future. Go home once and dig these things up. I don’t want them; they’re all yours."

So it was all buried by Father Lu!

He’s really loaded.

Lu Mingzhu immediately asked, "Really for me?"

"For you." To Father Lu, it’s just a small amount of money, and it’s not going to outsiders since it’s in his daughter’s hands. Keeping it might lead to it being dug up in the future.

At this moment, he didn’t know that his daughter had already dug it all up.

Lu Mingzhu said cheerfully, "Thank you, Dad! You’re really great!"

From now on, she won’t feel guilty about using the jade carvings and porcelain antiques anymore.

Those priceless Chenghua doucai cups!

Seeing Lu Mingzhu smiling so broadly, just thanking but not asking about the burial location, which was a bit unusual, Father Lu suddenly realized, "Did you take everything I buried before you left?"

Lu Mingzhu touched her nose and looked up at the car roof.

Father Lu looked her up and down, "Do you have a dog’s nose? Can you smell the scent of gold and silver treasures? I had a feng shui master mark the spot to hide the items, seemingly in the garden, but actually not easy to find, and buried under the stone path, yet you still found it."

Lu Mingzhu chuckled.

No matter how skilled the feng shui master is, can he compare to technology?

A metal detector is worth having.

Father Lu calculated in his heart, "No, no!"

"What’s wrong?" Lu Mingzhu was puzzled. Had he discovered something?

Father Lu started to account with her, "You got your grandfather’s things. I know there are 120 gold bars in there, and you also got the 200 gold bars and 100,000 silver dollars I buried in the garden, plus what I left for you, what your mother gave you, and what you saved yourself. It’s impossible that it only amounts to buying one luxury mansion in the Peak and two Tong Lau buildings. Where did the rest of the money go?"

Lu Mingzhu blinked, "Didn’t I mention it?"

"You definitely didn’t." Father Lu knew exactly what she was thinking and couldn’t help but feel both angry and amused. "You still want to keep hiding it from me. Tell me, where did you spend the money?"

"Pingan and I jointly invested 1.2 million Hong Kong dollars to become shareholders in Brother Bohui's Glory Real Estate Company," Lu Mingzhu directly told him.

To Lu's father, it was just a drop in the bucket, and whether he knew or not made little difference.

Lu's father suddenly realized, "No wonder you came up with the idea of layered sales for Shengfeng Real Estate Company—it was your own business! You sneaky girl, you kept it under wraps, not a single clue slipped out. Just this quarter, you could earn over 10 million Hong Kong dollars in net profit, and the year-end dividends would be substantial."

He had thought that after buying the house, Lu Mingzhu had no money left, and he kept compensating her.

But what happened?

She had already taken everything hidden by herself and the old master, clearing it all out.

Lu Mingzhu smiled and defended herself, "I didn't mean to hide it from you, I just didn't know where to start. Don't be mad, it's just a small sum for you, really just a small sum."

Lu's father snorted, "You're cut off, no inheritance for you from now on."

"Don't be like that, dear father, you are my dear father! Dear father!" Lu Mingzhu hadn't yet received her diamond companies, nor the precious antiques for her dowry, and she was unwilling to be removed from the inheritance list by her father. She shook her father's arm, coquettishly saying, "It's better in my hands than being discovered by others, you should be relieved."

"I left a watch at home and didn't bring it out. If you can find it for me, I'll pretend I never said that," Lu's father came up with a good idea to challenge her.

Honestly, even he couldn't remember where he left the watch.

Lu Mingzhu blinked her eyes, then blinked again.

So simple?

Touched.

Her father really is a good dad.

The car drove into their home, and she invited her father in for tea, "Wait here!"

She ran upstairs and came down shortly after with a slightly old diamond watch, handing it to her father, "I found the watch, you must keep your word!"

Lu's father fell silent as he looked at the recovered watch.

After a moment, he roared, "Lu Mingzhu, what else haven't you taken out?"

"Lu Family Garden! I can't move the entire Lu Family Garden to Hong Kong." Actually, there were many things in the storeroom, just not as valuable; the valuable ones she had already picked out.

If it weren't for the limited space, she would have cleaned out the storeroom long ago.

Lu's father was left speechless by her, "If you could move the Lu Family Garden, you'd be walking on water."

He took the watch from his daughter's hand, lovingly touched it, and then took off a brand new Patek Philippe watch from his wrist, replacing it with this slightly old watch.

Clearly, this watch held significant meaning for him.

At this moment, a memory came to him, and Lu's father said, "No wonder the ring on the female star Rong Yan that Ming Hui brought last time looked familiar—I thought it couldn't be. Now seeing your ability to scavenge, what's impossible? It's very possible. That 4.3-carat diamond ring was also something you found in my room, wasn't it?"

Lu Mingzhu didn't deny it, "Just recycling, dad!"

Then she pretended to be pitiful, "Now that you know I had to sell jewelry to scrape by when I first got to Hong Kong, don't you feel a bit sorry for me?"

Lu's father didn't feel sorry for her at all.

Not at all!

Seeing that he wasn't falling for it, Lu Mingzhu felt quite regretful and took out another watch, "Found in Seventh Brother's room, please return it to him for me. It looks like an expensive Rolex, must have cost a lot when bought."

Mr. Lu gestured for the bodyguards to take it, then suddenly said, "The fourth concubine mentioned she forgot to bring out a pair of heirloom jade bracelets."

She had been regretting it the entire time.

It was said that along with the jade bracelets, there were also 10 large gold bars.

At that time, she was busy retrieving items from various hidden compartments, thinking they were packed into the luggage like other jewelry, only to realize they were left at home after boarding the ship.

Lu Mingzhu feigned ignorance, "What does the fourth concubine's heirloom have to do with me? It's not in my hands now."

It's in the vault of Wing Fung Bank.

Mr. Lu looked at her, "If you retrieve that pair of bracelets for me, I'll give you a better pair."

"Why are you so fixated on that pair of bracelets? Willing to trade for a better one." Lu Mingzhu didn't understand, scrutinizing the still elegant Mr. Lu, a thought flashed through her mind, "Is it because you're seeing Miss Xia, making the concubines throw a fit around you, and you want to use these bracelets to please the fourth concubine?"

With the heirloom back, the fourth concubine would surely appreciate his thoughtfulness in retrieving it for her, and any resentment caused by Xia Lin's appearance would surely dissipate.

It's entirely possible!

Seeing Mr. Lu not denying it, Lu Mingzhu became more convinced she was right and couldn't help but negotiate, "The stuff I worked so hard to bring out isn't something you can just swap for a pair of bracelets."

"What do you want?" Mr. Lu asked her.

Lu Mingzhu extended a finger, "Christmas is coming, at least add a Christmas gift."

"So you do have them." Mr. Lu wasn't surprised at all, "I'll have someone bring it to you once I'm back, and then take the bracelets back for me."

Lu Mingzhu shook her head, "Come pick it up tonight."

Mr. Lu didn't understand, "Why?"

"Didn't I mortgage a batch of jewelry to the bank? That pair of bracelets isn't the best quality, I found it not transparent enough, so I included it in the mortgaged jewelry." Lu Mingzhu truthfully informed, "So I need to find Junyao's elder brother, ask him to open a back door, and exchange it with equivalent jewelry."

Switching mortgaged items midway is a very complicated process.

Generally, it's not easy to accomplish.

But, who made Lu Mingzhu a shareholder? And with Xie Junhao as a back door.

After a series of complicated procedures, Lu Mingzhu successfully retrieved the fourth concubine's heirloom jade bracelets, also adding an equivalent piece of jewelry, and re-registered it.

By evening, she handed it over to the bodyguards sent by Mr. Lu to deliver the items.

Xie Junyao got off work early tonight and came over to join Lu Mingzhu for dinner, seeing this, he asked, "What's going on?"

Lu Mingzhu didn't explain seriously, "The fourth concubine's stuff, my dad is exchanging his good stuff with me. You got off work early today, seems my visit to the office yesterday had some effect."

Xie Junyao pouted, "That's because we're all accompanying him north tomorrow, giving me a day off."

"When are we leaving?" Lu Mingzhu asked him.

To clarify and prepare in advance.

Hong Kong's climate is warm, but the capital is very cold, probably with heavy snow?

Fur coats will come in handy.

Xie Junyao came to inform her of the specific departure date, "We'll leave after Christmas, the luxury cruise ship of Hui Shipping Company happens to pass by Hong Kong, we can take the first-class cabin."

Lu Mingzhu exclaimed, "That's just two days away!"

Today is Christmas Eve.

Time is running out!

"I need to ask Ah Rong and Hong Jie to help pack the luggage," she said.

Xie Junyao held her hand, "No need to go through all that trouble. Just bring a few changes of clothes, shoes, and socks. You don't need to bring too much jewelry; we can buy new ones in the capital."

Lu Mingzhu thought it made sense, "That's true."

The economy back home is underdeveloped; they are going there to spend.

As they spoke, she felt a cool touch on her finger.

She looked down and saw a ring on the ring finger of her right hand.

The ring featured a rectangular ruby, about an inch long and half an inch wide, completely covering the finger. The color was like pigeon's blood ruby, transparent and clear, with no impurities or cracks visible to the naked eye.

The setting was simple, with only a platinum ring holding the four corners of the gemstone.

The simpler the style, the more it highlighted the gem's natural beauty.

It was stunningly beautiful, uniquely captivating.

Lu Mingzhu couldn't put it down, "Why did you think of giving me a ring?"

"Christmas gift," Xie Junyao said. "According to Western tradition, you should hang a pair of socks by the bed tonight, and Santa Claus would put the gift in the socks. But I can't climb the wall in the middle of the night to put the gift in, so I had to give it to you early. Do you like it? I picked this pigeon's blood ruby from a pile of gemstones and had it set into a ring."

Lu Mingzhu smiled brightly, "I love it! Absolutely love it."

"Good that you like it." It was worth Xie Junyao rummaging through his and his brother's safes, going through several selections to find such a rare, flawless ruby.

Only the best is worthy of her.

Fortunately, the setting was simple, so it didn't take long to get it.

Lu Mingzhu couldn't help but examine it closely.

Paired with the emerald ring, the extreme red and extreme green rested peacefully on her snow-white fingers, brightening up the otherwise dreary winter, very eye-catching.

In comparison, the Christmas gift from her father was less impressive.

It was an emerald-cut diamond solitaire.

The diamond was colorless; how could it compare to the beauty of the gemstone?

The next day, Lu Mingzhu and Xie Junyao went shopping wearing only the emerald ring and the ruby ring, planning to watch the popular Yue opera movie "The Cowherd and the Weaver Girl" before departure.

Just after buying the tickets, they saw Lu Feifei and Li Qingyun arriving together.

Li Qingyun was wearing the suit Lu Feifei bought at Wan Gu Department Store, with a black trench coat over it, his hair slicked back, looking even more handsome, with no trace of the shabby appearance of wearing a faded shirt.

Lu Feifei was dressed more formally, in a silk cheongsam with a fur coat, complete with a hat and hand muff.

If one didn't know the background, they would think they were a perfect match, made for each other.

Lu Feifei also saw Xie Junyao and Lu Mingzhu, and thinking that Lu Mingzhu had kept her promise not to tell their father, she pulled Li Qingyun over to greet them with a smile, "Eighth sister, are you also here to watch the movie? Recently, 'The Cowherd and the Weaver Girl' has been very popular, but I've been busy with exams and haven't had time to watch it until today."

She and Lu Mingzhu enrolled in the same year, and although her grades were not good, with her father's influence, it was no trouble at all to arrange her admission to an ordinary university in Hong Kong.

Therefore, she is now also a college student.

Lu Mingzhu looked at her, her eyes full of meaning, "You really should watch this movie carefully."

In the script of this movie, she shattered the fantasies of countless poor men dreaming of marrying fairies, princesses, or heiresses, exposing their dirty thoughts. Perhaps it was also because of the unconventional storyline that could alert privileged women, which led to the audience's enthusiasm and the continuous rise in box office sales.