Chapter 230: I’m a Big Shot for No Reason?

His gaze on Gu Shengsheng was now completely devoid of its earlier contempt.

’To be able to cut off all my escape routes, this Gu Shengsheng... must be an incredibly formidable figure in the business world.’

’Someone like her has both power and ability. She deserved to win.’

’If I want to secure a place for myself in the future, I’ll have to rely on this Gu Shengsheng.’

And so, the curator of the Tokyo Museum looked at Gu Shengsheng with extreme solemnity.

He bowed deeply, performing the highest form of courtesy. Then he said, "Thank you, Miss Gu, for your mercy."

Gu Shengsheng: "???"

In reality, she hadn’t shown any mercy. She had gone for the throat, just enough to cause a major incident for Japan.

She wanted them crippled beyond recovery, and for that, she had even leveraged the power of public opinion from the livestream.

But hearing the curator of the Tokyo Museum say such things made Gu Shengsheng curious. ’Where on earth did I give him such a mistaken impression?’

Then, as if after deep consideration, the curator of the Tokyo Museum said, "Miss Gu, if it’s convenient for you, perhaps you could consider expanding your operations to Japan. When the time comes, I would be willing to pave the way for you."

Gu Shengsheng: "...?"

’That’s really not necessary. How bizarre.’

Beiyuan Cang watched the Tokyo Museum curator with a bewildered expression and asked in a low voice, "Did you get possessed? How could you bow your head so quickly? You have no backbone at all!"

"You represent the face of the Tokyo Museum! You represent a crucial part of our nation, Japan! What kind of behavior is this?!"

The Tokyo Museum curator sighed and whispered a few words in his ear.

Beiyuan Cang’s expression turned ugly as well.

But he only shot a casual glance at Gu Shengsheng before pretending nothing had happened.

He said, "Regarding this matter, we in Japan have made a promise, and we will handle it cleanly!"

"The argument I just had with your country was merely a test, to see if your side had any tricks up your sleeve. It seems now that you are all very sincere."

Zhao Dehai nodded. "That’s right. If I weren’t sincere, why would I have cursed out your entire family’s internal organs?"

"..." Beiyuan Cang wanted to punch someone, but he held back and forced a smile.

He cleared his throat and said, "That’s all for today’s livestream. We have a lot of investigating to do on our end. We’ll be in touch later. We hope netizens around the world will supervise our progress. Thank you."

With that, he quickly shut off the screen.

Gu Shengsheng couldn’t even imagine how dark Beiyuan Cang’s expression must be on the other side!

Moments like these always put Gu Shengsheng in a great mood.

Zhao Dehai leaned in, staring at Gu Shengsheng for a long moment. "That’s strange," he said. "Why the sudden, drastic change in their attitude?"

"It looked like those two were a bit wary of you. I thought the curator of the Tokyo Museum was going to lose his mind, but instead he’s trying to recruit you to Japan. Wishful thinking, isn’t it?"

Gu Shengsheng said, "I have a feeling that the me they think they know is different from the me I actually am..."

Zhao Dehai said, "Yes, but logically, they shouldn’t be mistaken. Think carefully, do you know any big shots?"

Just then, Gu Shengsheng received an international call. It was from Japan.

Finding it strange, she answered.

"Hello?"

"Miss Gu, this is the curator of the Tokyo Museum. I’m just calling to give you my number. If you come here to expand your business in the future, you can look for me. I’m quite skilled when it comes to market research." He sounded very excited, despite having lost his job.

But he could immediately latch onto a new patron and break into the financial world.

Gu Shengsheng: "...I don’t know anything about market economics. I’m just an appraiser. Sir, do you have the wrong person?"

"Or have you mistaken me for someone else?"

The man on the other end sounded incredulous. "Miss Gu, your influence extends to the financial magnates of Japan. How could you not understand? There’s no need to be so modest with me."

"But, I understand your attitude. Miss Gu, I won’t disturb you any longer. Let’s hope we have a chance to cooperate in the future." With that, he hung up.

The curator of the Tokyo Museum felt quite pleased with himself. By hanging up so quickly, he hadn’t given Gu Shengsheng a chance to refuse.

’If she really comes to Tokyo in the future, it’ll be easier to build a connection, right?’

’So, leaving himself an escape route was the best thing he could do.’

Gu Shengsheng, for her part, already had someone in mind. ’Someone in finance, who helped me, who would get involved in this sort of thing... Who else could it be but Lu Shijing?’

Zhao Dehai had guessed it too, a look of gratification on his face.

He said, "You and Shi Jing are actually a great match. You don’t even need to communicate to understand each other perfectly."

"Isn’t that what you call a match made in heaven?"

Gu Shengsheng shot him a look, and he promptly shut up.

"Mr. Zhao, instead of spending your time gossiping, maybe you should think about what to do with these nearly five hundred artifacts?"

Zhao Dehai sighed. "Normally, they would be divided among the various museums and put on display."

Gu Shengsheng nodded. "So, by that logic, my private museum wouldn’t get any of them, right?"

"Correct. But I’ll submit an application for you! Everyone has seen your contribution, after all. I think at most, we could apply to have fifty artifacts placed in your private museum... You should be prepared for that."

"That’s fine," Gu Shengsheng nodded. "Have the permits for my private museum been processed? I could set it up in my family’s courtyard home."

"My grandmother had part of the courtyard built to resemble a museum exhibit. It’s soundproofed from where we live, so privacy is good. I was thinking of discussing it further and creating a separate entrance so tourists can come in."

"They’d also be able to see the artifacts I’ve collected."

As Gu Shengsheng spoke, Zhao Dehai couldn’t stop laughing. He said, "Your grandmother has such a business-savvy mind. She knew to do this way back then?"

Zhao Dehai sighed. "And here I was thinking that with all the artifacts you find, you’d eventually donate the excess to museums like ours!"

Gu Shengsheng shot him another look. "Are you trying to guilt-trip me?"

"Any extras will definitely be allocated to your side." As for the rest, he shouldn’t even think about it.

Gu Shengsheng continued, "I have to take care of my own home before I can take care of everyone else, right?"

Zhao Dehai: "Alright, alright. You’re something else, kiddo."

The two of them walked out, talking and laughing.

After the meeting ended, everyone dispersed. Gu Shengsheng’s matter had also come to a successful conclusion.

As she came out, she ran into Lu Shijing.

When Gu Shengsheng saw him, her first instinct was to walk in the other direction.

Lu Shijing took a long stride and quickly caught up.

Just as Gu Shengsheng was about to speak, Lu Shijing said, "Ma Yaowen just called me. He said his wife had a safe delivery."

"He also said he wants to thank you."

"Do you want to go see the baby?"

Gu Shengsheng hesitated. Lu Shijing, successfully reading her mind, led her to his car.

"Let’s go," he said.

"Okay," Gu Shengsheng nodded. "And thank you for your help in the conference room just now."