C13 My Rationality Is Gone

Shaang Peiyan glanced at Chiang Ci before stepping aside to make a phone call. A moment later, he spoke into the phone, "Did you find out everything about the girl I asked you to look into this afternoon?"

"..."

"Ugh, cut the chatter. Just send it over now." Hanging up, he crossed his arms and focused intently on the girl at the long table, his enigmatic eyes revealing a deeper curiosity.

Chiang Ci quickly finished writing her answer, slipped it into a pile of answer cards, and returned to her spot. Young Master Lee, trying to be reassuring, said, "These are just the old man's games. It's normal if you can't guess them, Ci. Don't stress about it."

Recognizing Young Master Lee's attempt to comfort her, Chiang Ci responded warmly, "It's okay, I've always been pretty lucky." She flashed him a sweet smile.

That smile sent Young Master Lee's heart racing, and his infatuated expression nearly ignited a fire in Ding Lirong, who had been watching them closely.

She let out a disdainful snort, refusing to believe that Chiang Ci could continue to bluff her way through so many antiques. She was eagerly waiting for this "nobody" to embarrass herself.

With no one else stepping up to appraise the treasures, Elder Ji finally asked Ding Lirong to check the answers. Everyone watched patiently as she slowly sorted the answer cards into several piles.

Upon seeing the handwriting on the answer sheet, Lirong felt a wave of delight and relaxation. The person who got it right definitely wasn't Chiang Ci; such elegant and strong handwriting must belong to a successful individual.

She stood up, nodded toward Elder Ji, and then cast a few mocking glances at Chiang Ci. With a feigned air of mystery, she cleared her throat and announced loudly, “Today, we have 23 guests participating in the appraisal. Eight answered one item correctly, five got two items right, and only one person answered everything correctly.”

Lirong's undisguised look of disdain prompted many in the audience to glance knowingly at Chiang Ci, as if to say, "Pretending to know what you don't, huh?"

Chiang Ci tilted his head slightly and returned her gaze with a smile.

As Lirong slowly opened the inner page of the answer card, revealing the name, she froze. The guests watched as the previously confident Miss Ding's face turned bright red, her hands visibly trembling as she held the card, even closing her eyes.

In that instant, Lirong felt the blood rush to her head, her mind nearly overwhelmed. How could it be... how could it be him?

Shaang Peiyan, who had been mostly silent, raised his chin slightly with an authoritative air, arching an eyebrow as he coldly remarked, “Don’t waste time; everyone’s waiting.”

Miss Ding was on the verge of tears. She bit her lip, fighting the dizziness, and announced slowly and clearly, "The correct answer is—Chiang—Ci—"

A hush fell over the room as guests exchanged incredulous glances. It was hard to believe. At Elder Ji's gathering, filled with his friends from the antique world, none of the seasoned experts could outshine an eighteen or nineteen-year-old girl. It just didn't seem possible!

Then, like a pot of boiling water with the lid suddenly lifted, the crowd erupted into chatter.

"Wow... I've been dealing with antiques for over twenty years, and I'm outdone by a young girl. It's humbling!"

"Remarkable, truly remarkable."

"So when she said the bracelet was a fake, it wasn't just a wild guess. She really knows her stuff."

"Did the Ding family actually buy a counterfeit?"