Chapter 1274 — Auctioning a Kiss
The Blossom Guardian · Page 1 of 2
And then Zou Tiandi went up on stage as well, donating five hundred thousand to the orphanage on behalf of Tiandi Entertainment Group, which drew a hearty round of cheers from the crowd! Compared with Xie Yufeng's two hundred thousand, this was a very large sum from Zou Tiandi!
"Thank you, Mr. Zou!" Tang Zhi knew perfectly well that he was Zou Ruoming's father, but the thought that Zou Ruoming now treated her with such deference had swept away all her old resentment. She even felt a little grateful to Zou Ruoming: if he had never bullied her, how could she ever have crossed paths with Wei Zhao? In the end, he was still her matchmaker!
"No need to thank me. Lending a hand to the orphanage is the responsibility of every entrepreneur. When it is a charity gala hosted by Ms. Tang Zhi herself, opening my own wallet is a duty I cannot decline!" Zou Tiandi meant these words for Wei Zhao's ears, and the message was plain enough: I am here to support Tang Zhi, and were it not for Wei Zhao, he would never have given away so much money.
"Hehe, my thanks once again to Mr. Zou!" Tang Zhi smiled. She was no fool, and she naturally took his meaning.
Having made his donation, Zou Tiantd stepped down from the stage in high spirits, today's mission accomplished to perfection.
After that, a great many well-known local entrepreneurs came up and donated, though the sums were nothing like Zou Tiandi's, ranging from ten thousand to fifty thousand, with nothing spectacularly large among them.
All of this lay within Tang Zhi and Gu Mengyao's expectations. After all, this was only a small-scale drive organized by the school; that these people donated anything at all, out of consideration for Gu Pengzhan, was good enough. Zou Tiandi alone had been the surprise, giving because of Wei Zhao.
As for Fatty Lai's side, Wei Zhao had not informed him. Wei Zhao had no wish to put on a show of it; Fatty Lai could donate to the orphanage in the name of Dr. Guan's Pharmaceuticals without ever passing through the school's gala.
Good deeds are not performed for others to see, and Wei Zhao wanted no idle reputation for himself.
"Next, we move on to the following segment of the gala: the auction!" Having tallied the total donations and the list of donors, Tang Zhi took the stage and announced the next segment.
"Every lot in this auction has been donated privately by individuals, and all proceeds from the bidding will go to the orphanage," said Gu Mengyao.
That was what Gu Mengyao said, though in fact most of the items had been put up by Gu Mengyao herself, with a number contributed by Gu Pengzhan; and these, precisely, were the things the tycoons cared about most. As the richest man in Songshan City, Gu Pengzhan's household could hardly be short of treasures.
The donations so far had merely been the appetizer. The real main course was this auction. Rare calligraphy and paintings, curious artifacts and precious stones, these were the favorites of that crowd of celebrities.
"The first item up for auction is a painting and calligraphy scroll donated by Principal Ding Binggong, executed by Principal Ding himself. Principal Ding's reputation needs no introduction..." Tang Zhi introduced the first lot. Since this was not a proper auction, with neither a big screen nor a catalogue, she could only describe it aloud, while Shen Yushu and Feng Xiaoxiao were left to display the pieces.
Ding Binggong was a calligrapher and painter. His fame throughout the country was not especially dazzling, but he was still a notable figure in academic circles. His work was good and much sought after in Songshan City. Naturally, the prices were not high either: the dearest piece he had ever sold went for fifty thousand, and that had been an award-winning work.
The piece now on the block, though painted with evident care, was plainly not worth as much as a prize-winning work.