Chapter 54

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As Wang Xiaoqiang stood at the door of the hotel room, he took a deep breath and tightly held the letter containing the secret that his mother had given him. Upon entering, he found Xia Gui Fang sitting on the bed, wrapped in a thin blanket, her frail body still exposed.

At that moment, her large, bright eyes were curiously examining the Jinsha tree chrysanthemum on the windowsill. Seeing Wang Xiaoqiang enter, she asked curiously, "Xiaoqiang, what kind of flower is this?"

"It's a type of orchid, called Jinsha tree chrysanthemum, also known as the Thousand-Handed Guanyin!" Wang Xiaoqiang replied.

"Is it very valuable? To make you carry it all the way from home." Xia Gui Fang asked in surprise.

Wang Xiaoqiang nodded and said something that left Xia Gui Fang speechless: "If I sell it, it could buy a high-end three-bedroom apartment in the provincial capital!"

As Xia Gui Fang stared in shock, Wang Xiaoqiang walked out with the Jinsha tree chrysanthemum. When he entered the flower market, he immediately attracted the attention of many people, both customers and flower shop owners. The plants nourished by spiritual energy were naturally more vibrant than ordinary plants. The Jinsha tree chrysanthemum in Wang Xiaoqiang's hands had green leaves and bright flowers. Anyone who knew the trade could see the extraordinary quality of this pot of Jinsha tree chrysanthemum at a glance.

Suddenly, a middle-aged woman and a woman in a denim outfit blocked Wang Xiaoqiang's path. The middle-aged woman was in her forties, elegant and graceful. She smiled warmly at Wang Xiaoqiang and asked, "Young man, where did you buy this pot of Jinsha tree chrysanthemum?"

"Uh, I found it in a stream near my hometown and now I want to sell it." Wang Xiaoqiang told a lie so convincingly that no one would doubt it, and with his honest appearance, anyone would believe him. Moreover, the truth was more powerful than any words. Regardless of where Wang Xiaoqiang got the flower, it was clearly a Jinsha tree chrysanthemum, and it was of very high quality, much more beautiful than other orchids.

"Selling it..." The woman, wearing a lace hat and a silk dress, looked dignified and noble. When she heard that Wang Xiaoqiang wanted to sell it, her eyes lit up, and she said, "Young man, since you want to sell it, why not sell it to me?"

"Uh..." Wang Xiaoqiang looked a bit hesitant and said, "But I've already found a buyer..."

The woman's name was Zhong Ping, and she had come to the flower market specifically to buy orchids for her father. Tomorrow was her father's eightieth birthday, and the old man had no hobbies except for growing flowers, especially orchids. For his birthday, she wanted to give him something unique and elegant. This year, she planned to give him an orchid, which would be both unique and pleasing to the old man. She originally intended to buy a "Tianyi He," a top-tier orchid variety that costs millions of yuan per plant. However, for Zhong Ping, the chairman of a well-known national retail company, this was a small matter. To her, buying a "Tianyi He" was like an ordinary person buying an expensive mobile phone. Unfortunately, "Tianyi He" was extremely rare, and she couldn't afford it, so she had to settle for a Jinsha tree chrysanthemum. She had searched the entire flower market, and while there were some Jinsha tree chrysanthemums, none of them looked very good. The one in Wang Xiaoqiang's hands was the best she had seen.

Thus, she had a strong urge to buy it. Seeing that Wang Xiaoqiang had already found a buyer, she didn't give up but asked, "Young man, how much did the other party offer you?"

"Two million yuan." Wang Xiaoqiang answered honestly.

"Young man, I'll add twenty thousand yuan. Will you sell it to me?" Zhong Ping said without hesitation.

"This, this isn't quite right! I've already agreed with someone else." Wang Xiaoqiang showed a look of difficulty, but in fact, he was already tempted. Twenty thousand yuan could buy a small truck.

"Two million and fifty thousand yuan." Zhong Ping added another thirty thousand yuan. She was determined to get this Jinsha tree chrysanthemum but didn't want to appear too eager, which would put her at a disadvantage.

Wang Xiaoqiang asked, "Do you really want to buy it?"

Seeing that he was wavering, Zhong Ping breathed a sigh of relief and nodded seriously, "Yes, I really want to buy it."

"Alright, the flower is yours!" Wang Xiaoqiang said.

At that moment, a fat middle-aged man intervened, "Hey, this flower is mine. You can't take it from me..."

The man speaking was the middle-aged shop owner who had agreed to buy the flower from Wang Xiaoqiang. He had been standing at his stall, watching the entrance to the flower market, afraid that Wang Xiaoqiang would sell it to someone else. His fears came true when Wang Xiaoqiang, carrying the flower pot, was stopped by a woman who had just asked about the Jinsha tree chrysanthemum at his stall.

To prevent the woman from taking the flower, the shop owner ran over to stop him.

"How can this be called 'taking' when you haven't completed the transaction yet?" The woman remained calm and spoke slowly, but her voice was firm.

"Young man, we had a deal. You can't break the rules!" The fat shop owner said to Wang Xiaoqiang.

"That's true, we agreed on the price, but I made it clear that I have the right to terminate the transaction before you pay me. Did you forget?" Wang Xiaoqiang shrugged.

The fat shop owner was speechless, deeply regretting that he hadn't been more specific. But it was too late now.

The woman immediately chimed in, "Since that's the case, the flower belongs to the young man. He can sell it to whoever he wants. Young man, who do you want to sell it to?"

Wang Xiaoqiang said to the woman, "Of course, I'll sell it to the highest bidder. The shop owner offered two million yuan, and you offered two million and fifty thousand yuan. If the shop owner offers a higher price, I'll still sell it to him..."

Although Wang Xiaoqiang's words were a bit roundabout, his meaning was clear: he was selling the flower based on the price, not the person.

"Two million and fifty thousand yuan." The fat shop owner muttered, thinking that the price was getting too high.

"Right, two million and fifty thousand yuan. Will you offer more?" Zhong Ping asked the fat shop owner.

"I'll offer two million and sixty thousand yuan." The fat shop owner shouted the price with a show of confidence, but he felt a pang of pain inside.

However, before he could finish speaking, Zhong Ping casually said, "Alright, I'll offer a lucky number: two million and eighty thousand yuan."

The moment she said two million and eighty thousand yuan, the fat shop owner felt a mix of frustration and excitement. Wang Xiaoqiang, on the other hand, was thrilled, as he would earn an additional eighty thousand yuan in the blink of an eye.

The fat shop owner hesitated, looking at Zhong Ping deeply. He immediately decided to give up, not because he was unwilling to raise the price, but because he knew that the Jinsha tree chrysanthemum was not meant for him. The woman in front of him was clearly wealthy and determined to get the flower. If he raised the price, she would raise it as well. As a businessman, he valued profit, and it would be unwise to keep raising the price, which would ultimately be futile and make him look foolish. Why bother?

So he decisively said to the woman, "The flower is yours."

With that, he glared at Wang Xiaoqiang angrily and stormed off.

Wang Xiaoqiang didn't care whether he was angry; at this moment, he only cared about the money.

Seeing that her competitor had left, Zhong Ping looked very pleased. She took the flower pot from Wang Xiaoqiang, admired it again, and handed it to the woman in the denim outfit, saying, "Hold it carefully."

Then she said to Wang Xiaoqiang, "Alright, let's go to the bank to complete the transaction."

Wang Xiaoqiang nodded and followed the woman out of the flower market, then walked with them to a red BMW parked outside. The car was elegant and luxurious, matching the woman's refined demeanor.

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