Super Zoo

Chapter 448 The Strange Tridacna Pearl

"Brother-in-law, you're not joking with me, are you?! Why would Hong Feifei leave? Was she not paid enough, or did you secretly mistreat her?"

Upon hearing the news that Hong Feifei might leave, Nangong Huang almost jumped out of his skin.

"Mistreat her my ass, she has some family issues, what can I do? I'm a boss, not a slave owner, I can't stop her if she wants to leave," Suming quipped. "What's gotten into you, kid? Don't tell me you've fallen for her?"

"I've fallen for her my foot!" exclaimed Nangong Huang. "If she leaves, what the hell are we supposed to eat?! We can't possibly be expected to take a plane to another province just for a meal!"

"That's true!" Suming was also depressed, it was a topic not to be touched, lest it bring a flood of tears.

"This is just screwing us over, I've gotten accustomed to the taste of her cooking!" Nangong Huang beat his chest and stamped his feet in frustration. "Damn it, I knew I shouldn't have been greedy in the first place. Now look, I have to quit it cold turkey!"

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"Me too! Brothers in hardship!" Suming, like a martyr on his way to the scaffold, dramatically patted Nangong Huang on the shoulder. "Let's work hard together and strive to quit sooner rather than later!"

"Forget it, brother-in-law, we can't even quit smoking..." Nangong Huang had no fighting spirit and said gloomily, "At least you still have a helicopter; you could sneak off every now and then for a meal. I'm screwed. Brother-in-law, I beg you, next time you sneak off for a bite, can you at least pack something to bring back for me?"

"Sneak off your leg! Watch your mouth!" Suming raised his hand as if to strike.

"No, no, no, just kidding," Nangong Huang flinched and jumped back. It was strange – he had taken beatings from his dad since he was a kid and had never been afraid, but when Suming made a stern face and lifted his hand, Nangong Huang really felt a bit intimidated.

Suming's hand didn't come down; instead, he waved it dismissively and said, "Cut the crap, call your sister, tell her not to wander off after work, get Tony, and we'll take the plane to pick her up for dinner."

"Heh, sure thing, you never know, her colleagues might die of envy again. Brother-in-law, you really know how to give my sister face!"

Nangong Huang took out his phone to make the call, but before he could, the hurried clutter of high heels clicking rapidly approached from behind.

"Mr. Su... Mr. Su... wait for me... wait for me..." Ding Jing, wearing a midi skirt, hurried along the riverside path in short, quick steps, gasping for breath. As she reached them, her foot twisted, and with a crisp snap, the heel of her high-heeled shoe broke off, almost causing her to stumble.

Suming quickly supported her. "You could have called if it was important, you know I have a phone. Why the rush coming here?"

"Thanks, but calling doesn't seem sincere enough," Ding Jing steadied herself with Suming's help, standing on one leg like a crane, and took off the intact high heel. She then hurled it against a river stone, breaking off its heel too. The shoes were evened out, she slipped them back on, and stood upright.

"Moneybags," murmured Nangong Huang from the side: "Simmons shoes, a good twenty thousand each..."

"Hey, Nangong Huang, was it? Could you go buy me a bottle of water? Thanks a lot!" Ding Jing said.

Nangong Huang could tell that Ding Jing clearly wanted to get rid of him so she could speak to Suming alone. Rolling his eyes, he sauntered off.

As soon as he left, Ding Jing said, "Mr. Su, about the matter we discussed earlier..."

"No way!"

Even if it meant ruining a pair of Simmons shoes or having her Hermès skirt fall off while running, Suming would not agree.

"Hear me out," Ding Jing said, helping Suming to sit on a large stone by the lake, "Your reluctance isn't because you look down on us, but because you don't want to hurt your girlfriend, right?"

"Exactly," Suming nodded.

Although not in agreement, everyone has the right to choose their own way of life; as long as it's not illegal, against morals, or harming others, it's acceptable.

However, their affair... well, it's hard to say, but it certainly hurt Hong Feifei's father, at least.

"I have a way that definitely won't hurt your girlfriend!" Ding Jing said.

"Is there such a thing as a wall that doesn't leak air?" Suming was skeptical.

"Rest assured, there's no wind at all!"

Ding Jing spoke with a sense of mystery, "You don't need to admit you're Feifei's boyfriend, and if you don't want to, you don't even need to have any contact with Feifei!"

"What?" Now it was Suming's turn to be confused. If he didn't admit it, didn't make contact, how could he still be considered a boyfriend? How would they deceive her father?

Ding Jing took out a white stone the size of a pigeon's egg from her small handbag and handed it over to Suming.

In Zhao Yun's museum, Suming had seen these white stones, known as "tridacna," pronounced "fuqu," a gemstone that wasn't too rare and one of the seven treasures in Buddhism. Its most distinguishing feature was its whiteness! Its pure whiteness was regarded as the best in the world, believed to bring good fortune to the household, attract wealth, nourish the body, stabilize the mind and spirit, and calm the atmosphere. It was said that tridacna over a thousand years old could emit a powerful magnetic field, inspiring wisdom and dispelling worries... In short, it was cloaked in mystique.

"You make this into a little trinket and carry it with you. As soon as her dad sees it, we won't have to say anything, and he'll know you're the man Feifei has her heart set on! Even if anyone asks, you can deny it, and this way it certainly won't hurt your girlfriend," Ding Jing said confidently.

"In that case, I might consider it. But will her father believe it?" Suming was puzzled.

"He will for sure! This thing has a history. The first master chef of the Hong Family was given a sixth-rank official hat by the emperor, which had this tridacna on it. Before he died, he passed the hat down as a family heirloom. Eventually, the hat decayed, but the Hong Family kept the tridacna, passing it through the generations to the eldest son of the main branch. During the Cultural Revolution, to save this pearl, her family even lost two ancestors. Now it's Feifei's generation; with no male heirs, her dad passed it to her, and it's meant to be given to her son someday... oh, I'm not saying you are her son, but this treasure is so precious that even I'm not worthy of it. If you carry it, her father will understand that you're the man she's chosen..."

Suming held the tridacna in his hand, but did not respond. Instead, his brow furrowed slightly, and he gazed at the tridacna with a strange look in his eyes.

Ding Jing thought Suming was hesitating about something and threw in another huge incentive, "Mr. Su, let me say something rather vulgar—if I'm with Feifei, what's mine is hers. If you are willing to help us out, the Xiankelai Group will become your closest ally in the business world."

She completely misunderstood Suming's intentions.

The reason Suming hadn't responded was that the instant he touched the tridacna, the spiritual power within him suddenly became agitated.

His spiritual power surged crazily towards the tridacna, which acted like a magnet for spiritual power, drawing it in.

In the blink of an eye, a small portion of his spiritual power was absorbed, and it continued to drain rapidly.