As Wu Zi Jin's words fell, the surrounding security guards all moved closer to Ye Ling, intending to apprehend him.
"What are you doing?"
At this moment, a cold shout rang out. Wu Zi Jin and the security guards looked over and saw a beautiful woman wearing sunglasses and a fiery red dress, accompanied by several bodyguards, walking towards them.
"Ms. Du?"
Upon recognizing the newcomer, Wu Zi Jin's expression shifted slightly. He quickly greeted Du Ya Meng with a smile, "Is there anything I can help you with?"
The Du family had numerous business collaborations with the Jiang family in recent years, making them a major client of the Jiang Group.
It was the Du family who had acquired that gemstone worth a billion dollars back then!
As a top-tier client of both the Jiang Group and Sky Auction House, Du Ya Meng was usually greeted personally by Jiang Wen Chun. Wu Zi Jin, being merely a supervisor, knew that offending Du Ya Meng would certainly cost him his million-dollar annual salary.
Du Ya Meng had come to the auction house because she had her eye on a treasure she intended to bid on. However, as soon as she arrived at the entrance of Qingyue Building, she saw Ye Ling being surrounded by a group of security guards, prompting her to rush over.
After witnessing Ye Ling's capabilities, she had returned home and inquired further from her grandfather. She confirmed that Ye Ling was the legendary "异人" (Yi Ren), and moreover, a master-level existence among them!
Her grandfather had said that individuals like Ye Ling were national treasures, capable of destroying a local family with a mere flick of their fingers. It was best to befriend them and absolutely not offend them!
Hearing her grandfather's words, Du Ya Meng recognized Ye Ling's importance even more. She had been hoping to see Ye Ling again, and unexpectedly encountered him at Sky Auction House the very next day.
Du Ya Meng removed her sunglasses, cast a cold glance at Wu Zi Jin, and then smiled at Ye Ling, saying, "Shen..."
Just as Du Ya Meng was about to utter the word "Shen Xian" (Immortal), she remembered her grandfather's advice that most Yi Ren disliked exposing their identities. She quickly changed her words and respectfully addressed Ye Ling, "Young Master Ye, what are you doing here? Do you need my help?"
"It's nothing major. I just wanted to attend the auction, but I was disgusted by two flies."
Ye Ling looked deeply at Du Ya Meng and smiled, "We're quite fated to meet again so soon."
Hearing Ye Ling's words, Du Ya Meng was flattered and quickly replied, "Young Master Ye is too kind! It is my honor to meet you!"
"This..."
The conversation between Ye Ling and Du Ya Meng left everyone present with extremely complex expressions, especially Fan Xiao Ya and Hu Qian.
Their faces were swollen, their eyes wide, and filled with disbelief!
'Fan Xiao Ya, how could you trick me?' Hu Qian glared at Fan Xiao Ya, practically wishing she could devour her.
She had befriended Fan Xiao Ya precisely because of her relationship with Jiang Tian Hao, hoping to one day latch onto Jiang Tian Hao's influence.
She had also come with Fan Xiao Ya to mock Ye Ling and have some fun, having been told by Fan Xiao Ya that Ye Ling was a fallen rich second-generation heir who had become useless.
But now, Du Ya Meng, a scion of a prestigious family and a true top figure in Jiang City, was showing such deference to Ye Ling...
How could Ye Ling be a fallen rich second-generation heir?
He was clearly the real big shot!
The thought of having insulted someone with such perfect looks, demeanor, and background as a mere "diaosi" (loser) made Hu Qian want to burst into tears.
She was certain that with Ye Ling's connections, if he so much as mentioned it in the circles, her path to marrying into a wealthy family and climbing the social ladder would be completely severed.
No one would be willing to offend the Du family and Ye Ling for her sake.
To cut off someone's livelihood was akin to killing their parents. In that moment, Hu Qian's hatred for Fan Xiao Ya reached its peak.
If Ye Ling hadn't been present, she probably would have torn Fan Xiao Ya apart on the spot!
"Young Master Ye... this is all a misunderstanding! It was that slut Fan Xiao Ya who lied to me. I'm also a victim!" Hu Qian forced an ugly smile onto her swollen face and quickly tried to explain to Ye Ling, shifting all blame onto Fan Xiao Ya.
Fan Xiao Ya was also completely stunned. She stared blankly at Ye Ling, utterly unprepared for how things had unfolded!
Back then, the Ye family incident had been widely publicized. She had personally seen the news reports of Ye Ling's parents' car accident. Afterward, Ye Ling had disappeared, and she had always assumed he had faded into obscurity...
But she could never have imagined that Ye Ling had become such a prominent figure that even the Du family's young lady had to treat him with such respect!
Why did Ye Ling still possess such high status?
Fan Xiao Ya's mind went blank; she had stopped thinking and had no idea what to do next.
She suspected that her status as Jiang Tian Hao's ex-girlfriend might no longer be enough to protect her job.
In fact, she might even be blacklisted by the auction industry and be unable to work in this field again.
No one would be willing to hire a greeter who lacked judgment and dared to openly provoke a prominent family.
Witnessing the current situation, Wu Zi Jin quickly realized he had misjudged the circumstances and offended a powerful figure he shouldn't have.
Fortunately, he hadn't said anything inappropriate and hadn't caused irreparable damage. He immediately apologized to Ye Ling, "I'm sorry, Young Master Ye. This was an oversight on our part. We will deal with these two employees seriously and will not allow Young Master Ye to be wronged!"
With that, Wu Zi Jin quickly took out a gilded black membership card from his pocket and respectfully handed it to Ye Ling, "This is your first time at Sky Auction House, isn't it, Young Master Ye? This is our highest-tier black gold card. Please accept it!"
This black gold card was one of only nine that Sky Auction House had issued so far. The black gold card Wu Zi Jin held was the tenth, originally intended for another young master from a prominent family.
However, with the urgent situation, Wu Zi Jin had to give this card to Ye Ling first and then immediately return to have another one made.
Fortunately, the black gold card was not registered, so Wu Zi Jin wouldn't encounter any issues by presenting it to Ye Ling.
Du Ya Meng herself possessed a black gold card from Sky Auction House. Since Du Ya Meng respectfully addressed Ye Ling as "Young Master Ye," Wu Zi Jin believed Ye Ling was naturally qualified to receive a black gold card.
Du Ya Meng glanced at everyone present and said with a smile, "Young Master Ye, since you'll also be attending this auction, having this black gold card will be much more convenient."
Generally, attendees of auctions were required to have their assets verified before bidding to prevent malicious price inflation.
However, guests holding Sky Auction House's black gold cards had unlimited credit and were exempt from any asset checks, with no restrictions on their bids.
Moreover, the black gold card was universally accepted across all auction houses in Jiang City, making it an extremely valuable item.
Many wealthy individuals and socialites longed to obtain a black gold card but couldn't.
Ye Ling looked at Wu Zi Jin holding out the black gold card with both hands, and a slight smile curved his lips, "Good."
Seeing Ye Ling accept the black gold card, Wu Zi Jin breathed a sigh of relief and quickly said, "I will personally escort the two of you inside!"
Wu Zi Jin cautiously led Ye Ling and Du Ya Meng towards Qingyue Building. Hu Qian still wanted to struggle and was about to chase after them to defend herself, but she was stopped by the building's security guards and Du Ya Meng's bodyguards.
"You two have committed an offense. Come with us."
Hu Qian and Fan Xiao Ya looked at the security guards and bodyguards surrounding them, fear flashing in their eyes.
"Wh-what do you want?"