Spring Night Kiss.

The auctioneer brought down the gavel to start the bidding.

"120,000." Xu Zhouye raised his sign.

"130,000." The auctioneer had just finished announcing the number when the sound of bidding came from the right.

Xu Zhouye turned his head and glanced at Nie Yuhuai, who was sitting two rows away, holding a number plate in his hand, his eyes fixed on the star map on the stage.

Song Qingjia followed his gaze and frowned.

Xu Zhouye scoffed lightly and continued raising his sign.

The other party seemed to be going against him, matching his demands every time, which drove the price up to 500,000.

"Five hundred and one thousand," Nie Yuhuai continued.

Xu Zhouye licked his back teeth and turned to look at Song Qingjia: "Baby, shouldn't your brother go and check on this place?"

He pointed to his head.

His fiancée was there, why was she vying with him to take pictures?

Are you suggesting we take a picture and then give it to Song Qingjia?

He must be out of his mind, a complete scumbag. No wonder Song Qingjia doesn't like him.

His darling indeed had a keen eye.

Song Qingjia rubbed her temples: "Then why are you still arguing with him?"

"I wasn't arguing with him," Xu Zhouye said. "I was buying you something." As soon as he finished speaking, he held up the number plate again: "Six hundred thousand."

Some people in the hall glanced at him, and hushed conversations began to ripple through the room.

Zheng Zhiyi glanced at Nie Yuhuai, whose face was expressionless, seemingly unconcerned about the surrounding chatter. He simply held up the number plate again: "Six hundred and ten thousand."

Her fingers rested on her knees and curled slightly.

The numbers continued to climb alternately between the two, and the auctioneer's tone quickened accordingly.

Song Qingjia had completely stopped caring about the man beside her. She watched the show with her chin propped up, wondering how high the two of them could raise the price.

Anyway, he's very rich, so what's wrong with him spending a little on himself?

"One million," Xu Zhouye said lazily.

He paused for a moment on the right. Two rows of seats away, Nie Yuhuai finally turned his head to look in the direction of Xu Zhouye and Song Qingjia.

The two were very close, as if they were snuggling together.

He could see Song Qingjia looking up and whispering something in Xu Zhouye's ear; he could only hope that perhaps he was mentioned in their conversation.

"It seems they really like this star chart," Zheng Zhiyi suddenly said.

Nie Yuhuai paused for a moment, then hummed in agreement.

"I acted impulsively, I'm sorry," he said softly.

Zheng Zhiyi smiled and said, "It's only natural to try your best when you encounter something you like."

He turned his head to look at the girl smiling gently beside him, a hint of guilt flashing in his eyes.

She is a great marriage prospect.

To be honest, he has impure thoughts; he's climbing the social ladder.

The auctioneer's voice rang out: "One million for the first time—the second time—the third time—sold!" The gavel fell.

"Got it."

Xu Zhouye put the number plate back on the table, smiling and taking credit.

Song Qingjia: "Yes, that's great."

"Trying to coax a child again?" he complained.

"So what kind of reward do you want?" she asked lazily, tilting her head.

He thought for a moment, then leaned close to her ear and said, "From now on, let me watch the stars with you every year." He emphasized, "Every year."

The man's eyes were deep and dark, yet as bright as stars, reflecting her completely.

Song Qingjia curled her lips: "Trying to swindle me with just one million? You've got a pretty good plan."

Xu Zhouye wasn't annoyed, and deliberately sighed, "Hey, you saw through me. You're really not easy to fool."

Song Qingjia reached out and patted his cheek: "Keep up the good work!"

He took her hand and kissed it: "Okay, I'll try my best."

That's good too. She has a very strong sense of self-protection and is not easily deceived by other men.

He comforted himself with this thought.

-

The auction ended, and Zheng Zhiyi successfully acquired Dong Qichang's small regular script calligraphy.

After she signed the form, she told the staff, "Just transfer the money directly from my account."

Nie Yuhuai stood next to her, picked up the form and glanced at it: "Pay from my account."

Zheng Zhiyi smiled but did not accept the gift: "This is for my mother. She's been talking about this calligraphy for years. If I use your money to buy it and give it to her, she'll start asking all sorts of questions."

She took the form from his hand and handed it to the staff member: "So, I'll take care of it."

Nie Yuhuai glanced at her, didn't insist, and withdrew his hand: "Then let's go, I'll take you home."

Zheng Zhiyi responded, put her bag away, and followed him outside.

Coincidentally, they ran into Xu Zhouye and Song Qingjia again at the door. This time, neither of them spoke, but simply nodded to each other.

She looked away and walked straight ahead.

Her intuition told her that Nie Yuhuai had strange feelings for this younger sister. But the girl seemed very open and honest, with clear eyes, and appeared to be a very pure and innocent girl.

The intimacy between her and the young master of the Xu family is also enviable.

Ahead, Nie Yuhuai had already opened the passenger door for her. She pursed her lips, bent down, and got in.

The car drove out of the parking lot and headed towards Zhengjia along the street lit by streetlights, the night outside the car window receding layer by layer.

Neither of them spoke, and the car fell silent.

At the red light, Nie Yuhuai stopped the car, loosened his tie, and let out a deep breath.

Zheng Zhiyi looked at him for two seconds and said softly, "How come I've never heard you mention before that you have a younger sister?"

Nie Yuhuai's fingers paused for a moment on the steering wheel: "She's not my biological sister, she's Aunt Cheng's daughter. She came to live with us after Aunt Cheng married my father."

Zheng Zhiyi nodded, just as she had guessed.

Step-siblings, not related by blood.

"You and she... don't get along very well?"

"It's not bad," Nie Yuhuai said, "it's just that we don't keep in touch much."

When the red light turned green, he restarted the car and stepped on the gas.

"oh."

Then it quieted down again.

Zheng Zhiyi looked at the man's profile. The warm yellow streetlights swept across his face again and again, making his features appear even more stern.

"That star map, are you planning to take a picture of it and give it to her?" She finally couldn't help but ask.

Nie Yuhuai paused, then didn't deny it: "Yes."

Zheng Zhiyi smiled and didn't say anything more.

Half an hour later, the car came to a stop in front of the Zheng family villa.

Zheng Zhiyi unbuckled her seatbelt. "I'll go in first then, no need to see me off."

Nie Yuhuai hummed in agreement and said, "The auction house will deliver the items tomorrow. Get some rest."

Zheng Zhiyi nodded, opened the car door, got out, and walked towards the villa gate. The night breeze lifted her skirt; she walked slowly and didn't look back.

Nie Yuhuai sat in the car, watching her walk to the porch, push open the door and go in. The porch light turned on for a moment and then went off again.

He then shifted gears, turned around, and drove away. The headlights illuminated a section of the road ahead, but disappeared from sight after turning the corner.

Behind the porch, Zheng Zhiyi listened to the car drive away and lowered her eyes.

She told herself that it was just an arranged marriage, and there was no need to take it too seriously.

As long as the agreed benefits are achieved, nothing else matters.