Chapter 5: Exposure of Identity

Mochizuki Auction House.

When Qi Youfan’s voice sounded at the door of the private room, the atmosphere, already tense, grew even more so.

But when he stood at the entrance, the tension froze for a moment.

Shang Moting, noticing Qi Youfan’s gaze fixed on Lin Ting, turned his head to look at her.

Sensing his eyes, Lin Ting shifted her chair closer to Shang Moting and whispered, “Who is he? He’s staring at me so fiercely.”

As she spoke, she pressed send and sent a message on her phone.

Almost immediately, Qi Youfan’s phone rang.

Though his face showed little reaction to Lin Ting’s words, inwardly he rolled his eyes a hundred times.

He took out his phone to check.

Shang Moting looked at Lin Ting and said, “I thought you knew him.”

“How could I possibly know someone so ugly?” Lin Ting replied.

Qi Youfan glanced at the message on his phone regarding the No. 12 bracelet, then raised his eyes to Lin Ting and asked, “Who did you call ugly?”

Lin Ting retreated behind Shang Moting, clutching his clothes. “He’s so scary. I’m a little afraid.”

Seeing her frightened expression as she hid behind Shang Moting, Qi Youfan closed his eyes, feeling as if he’d suffered a grave injury.

But forcing himself to push through his pain, he sent out a message to have the bracelet downstairs auctioned off.

Shang Moting gave Lin Ting a meaningful smile.

Lin Ting smiled obediently in return, then moved her chair back, sitting quietly and diligently shelling the nuts on the table.

Qi Youfan sat down, glanced at Lin Ting, then looked toward Shang Moting. “I didn’t expect President Shang to come in person.”

Shang Moting replied, “I’m not here to see you.”

Qi Youfan smiled slightly, and the previously tense atmosphere in the room thickened once again.

Only the three of them were in the private room.

Fang Cheng and Wei Zhishu had not entered from the beginning.

Qi Youfan said, “This incident happened at Mochizuki. I’m the owner here. If you don’t want to see me, then who exactly does President Shang want to meet?”

“Your boss,” Shang Moting said.

Lin Ting listened quietly on the side.

Shang Moting’s presence was overwhelming.

His speech was slow, his voice low and even, with no discernible tone.

But the aura of a superior—masterfully orchestrating every detail, indifferent to everything and everyone—gave Lin Ting the impression that if he wasn’t satisfied, he could easily change the ownership of someone else’s territory.

---

“President Shang, your people caused a disturbance on my turf and smashed up my place,” Qi Youfan said. “Not even a word of explanation, yet you want to meet my boss? What kind of rule is that?”

“The Imperial Commerce Hall in the capital has been closed to the public for five days,” Shang Moting said. “Either your boss comes out to meet me today, or Mochizuki Auction House will disappear.”

Lin Ting’s eyelashes fluttered slightly.

A week ago, Shang Moting’s people suddenly came and vandalized Mochizuki Auction House.

They lost more than a dozen auction-grade collectibles.

The next day, the Imperial Commerce Hall was... graffitied.

On the walls, on the glass.

Black, red.

Flowers, birds, fish, insects, turtles, scorpions...

Mochizuki Auction House was vandalized, yet the auction resumed two days later.

But the Imperial Commerce Hall remained closed for renovations.

The valuable items inside remained unharmed, but the renovation costs and daily losses during closure were no less than those at Mochizuki.

Most importantly,

The Imperial Commerce Hall belonged to Shang’s faction.

This incident was a brutal slap to their face.

Even more crucially, the person responsible for the graffiti had not been caught.

Shang Moting had probably traced the matter back to Mochizuki.

He could not possibly swallow this humiliation.

Lin Ting calmly shelled nuts.

Qi Youfan said, “Looks like President Shang came prepared tonight.”

Shang Moting said nothing, but his expression and attitude said it all.

Qi Youfan was unfazed. “I doubt my boss will be able to meet you.”

Lin Ting thought he was full of hot air.

“She had a fever recently, and her brain was fried. She’s regrowing a new one these days, so she’s not up for visitors,” Qi Youfan said with a sly grin, then turned serious. “As for the rest... I’m always available.”

Shang Moting stared at him.

The atmosphere instantly froze, a single spark away from exploding.

At that moment, Lin Ting crushed a paper-thin walnut shell with a sharp snap, the noise quite loud.

Both Shang Moting and Qi Youfan looked at her.

---

Lin Ting looked up at them and twisted her fingertips. “I thought this thing would be as hard as bone, but it broke with just a squeeze. No worries, you two can talk.”

Hearing her words, Qi Youfan instinctively rubbed his knuckles and suddenly felt a twinge of pain in his bones.

Keeping her head down, Lin Ting gathered the walnut fragments.

Shang Moting watched her long eyelashes flutter and paused before saying, “I’m here to ask about the people who caused trouble here last week.”

Lin Ting tilted her head at him, blinking her large eyes in confusion. “Why are you telling me this?”

“Then who else should I talk to?” Shang Moting said.

Qi Youfan looked at Lin Ting.

Lin Ting: “............”

Shang Moting’s gaze on Lin Ting shifted from curious to calm.

She looked at Qi Youfan: “I’ll talk to him.”

Qi Youfan nodded and stood to leave.

Lin Ting lightly brushed the nut fragments from her hands, then looked at Shang Moting and said openly, “Was my turtle drawing not good?”

Shang Moting narrowed his eyes, then grabbed her arm the next second.

Lin Ting instantly broke free and raised her hand to block his other arm.

Shang Moting reached to grab her other arm, but Lin Ting caught his wrist with her other hand.

Shang Moting didn’t struggle. Instead, as she gripped his wrist tightly, he suddenly pulled her closer.

Lin Ting rose from her chair and staggered toward him, instinctively releasing his hand.

But as soon as she let go, Shang Moting caught her arm again and tugged her closer.

Lin Ting’s hand pressed against the back of the chair behind him, preventing herself from falling onto him.

Their faces drew close, and Lin Ting lowered her gaze to his narrow eyes.

Shang Moting’s left eyebrow lifted slightly. “You seem quite confident I won’t do anything to you.”

Since last night, every time he made a move, Lin Ting hadn’t really fought back.

“Fact is, you really haven’t done anything to me,” Lin Ting said.

Shang Moting smiled faintly, but the sharpness in his eyes intensified. “Overconfidence isn’t a good thing. What if I came here today to take your life?”

“Is that so?” Lin Ting once again reversed her grip on his wrist, holding his hand and placing it on her neck, a playful smile curving the corner of her eyes. “Do you still want to try now?”