"Have you arrived at the hotel?"
"Yeah."
Jiang Li heard the click of a lighter on the other end and knew he was smoking. "Smoke less. You won't be able to sleep later."
Her sudden concern made Xiao Yanzhi fall silent for a few seconds.
After a long while, he grunted sullenly, presumably putting out the cigarette.
Rarely did he follow her advice.
Then, Jiang Li's voice was gentle and clear. "How much is the necklace? I'll transfer the money to you."
It was a plain and simple sentence, but Jiang Li clearly felt the air pressure from the man on the other end of the phone drop. "Jiang Li, don't be ungrateful. I got it to please you."
Jiang Li smiled.
She knew it.
In Xiao Yanzhi's eyes, even if this necklace was worth a fortune, it was just a trifle he casually bestowed on her to make her happy.
The result of trying to please her.
Was to make her please him in return.
"I don't want to owe you, Mr. Xiao." Jiang Li's voice was close to the phone receiver, echoing in his ear. "I can't accept a reward without doing anything. This necklace is really beautiful, but I must pay for it."
Xiao Yanzhi said casually, his words carrying the implied meaning only adults could understand. "Your payment will do."
"I'd like to pay with money."
Xiao Yanzhi: "..."
His patience was running out. He sneered. "It's very expensive. You can't afford it."
This answer was also within Jiang Li's expectation.
She didn't continue the conversation with him. Instead, she silently hung up the phone, then took off the necklace in front of the mirror.
He was right.
It was extremely expensive.
She couldn't afford it.
Holding the necklace in her palm, she called Sister Chen and asked her to buy some gift - wrapping paper on her way back, preferably in a style that little girls liked.
Sister Chen didn't know what she was up to, but still bought beautiful pink wrapping paper and a gift bag according to her request.
"Are you giving a gift?" Sister Chen put the things in front of her and asked. "Who are you giving it to during the Chinese New Year?"
"I'm giving this necklace away."
Jiang Li's expression remained unchanged as she continued wrapping. "I checked. This necklace is worth at least 50 million. If it's made according to a royal - customized design, it might be another 20 million more expensive."
Sister Chen's heart skipped a beat and she couldn't help exclaiming. "So expensive?"
Sure enough, Mr. Xiao was generous.
Jiang Li nodded. "So it should be given to the right person."
Rather than staying in her hands.
She felt it was burning hot to hold.
Sister Chen watched her wrapping the gift meticulously and asked, "Are you planning to...?"
"Yeah."
"Will Mr. Xiao agree to this?" Sister Chen was still worried.
"Don't care about him."
Jiang Li didn't even raise her head.
She wrapped the necklace herself, then put the bag at the door. She called Xiao Ye and asked her to come over, saying that she needed her help to take the thing to Qin Yaoyao.
She also specifically told her that it was a surprise gift.
That night.
Qin Yaoyao posted a selfie on the social platform. In the photo, the girl was smiling brightly, unable to hide her joy.
The diamond necklace around her neck was equally brilliant.
It was very shiny and bright -
"Ding ding ding! The New Year gift is here!"
The comments below were also lively, all complimenting her beauty.
Some people even started guessing the price of the necklace.
Jiang Li didn't pay much attention. After seeing the posted photo, she took a deep breath and locked the phone screen.
At least it was given to the right person.
...
At the Xiao family's mansion.
Xiao Yuanfeng, sitting in the living room, slammed his teacup down hard. His mature and reserved face was now full of anger. "I think he's really becoming more and more presumptuous!"
Su Jialan was sitting in a wheelchair. Looking at the photo of Qin Yaoyao on the tablet held by the nanny, her face also showed a strange expression, but she still said softly, "Yuanfeng, don't get angry first. Call A Yan and ask him."
"What's there to ask!" Xiao Yuanfeng directly threw the teacup out, his voice cold and stern. "He's deliberately going against me. He just has to find an unworthy woman to enter the Xiao family!"
Such a precious necklace was a gift from a European royal family to the Xiao family and was originally intended as a betrothal gift for the future daughter - in - law of the Xiao family.
The value of the necklace far exceeded its monetary value.
It represented a kind of courtesy and, more importantly, recognition.
Su Jialan wasn't as angry as Xiao Yuanfeng, but she was still surprised.
This necklace had been in Xiao Yanzhi's hands without any change. She once thought that he would give it to Jiang Li, the woman who had been with him for four years without being replaced.
But now, it appeared on another young girl.
It was really hard to figure out his intentions.
...
Xiao Yanzhi, who was far away abroad, knew nothing about all this.
He had to be busy attending international meetings with the new guild chairman and business partners to discuss the plans and contents for the new quarter.
Besides, he was busy working in front of the computer.
Xue An sometimes checked the news in China. When he saw what Qin Yaoyao had posted on the platform, he was a little surprised.
Such a valuable thing. Mr. Xiao actually gave it to Qin Yaoyao?
He hesitated to ask Xiao Yanzhi, but felt it was inappropriate.
If Mr. Xiao really intended to make Qin Yaoyao his wife in the future, wouldn't it be a real killjoy for him to ask such a question now?
Thinking about it, he silently suppressed his curiosity.
"Xue An."
The man's deep voice came. Xue An immediately straightened his back and walked into the room. "Mr. Xiao."
The lights were on in the presidential suite of the hotel. The man was leaning back on the chair, his eyes showing tiredness. He looked very exhausted. "Book a flight back to China for tomorrow."
Xue An was stunned for two seconds. "Tomorrow? Do you want to rest for one night and we'll go back the day after tomorrow?"
The original business - trip was supposed to last for a week, but Xiao Yanzhi had worked non - stop for several days and managed to compress all the work into five days.
The price was that his deep, black eyes were full of bloodshot and there were obvious dark circles under his eyes.
"No. I'll leave right after the last summary meeting tomorrow." Xiao Yanzhi rubbed his temples. "Book the earliest available flight."
It seemed that he was in a hurry to return to China.
"By the way, remember to send the flight information after landing to..."
Xiao Yanzhi coughed twice because his throat was uncomfortable. After he recovered, he said indifferently, "Go and do it."
Xue An didn't hear clearly. He opened his mouth to ask who to send it to, but seeing that Xiao Yanzhi had already shifted his gaze back to the computer screen, he was a bit hesitant.
According to the previous habit, it was sent to Jiang Li.
But the significance of that necklace made Xue An a little hesitant. He didn't know what his boss was really thinking.
"What are you standing there for?" Xiao Yanzhi didn't even lift his eyelids.
Xue An immediately responded and quickly backed out of the room. He quickly booked a flight back to China and sent the flight information to Qin Yaoyao.
"Miss Qin, this is Mr. Xiao's flight. Please remember to pick him up on time."
After thinking for a while, Xue An added another sentence.
"Be sure to arrive on time. Mr. Xiao wants to see you as soon as possible."