his son, leaving Xiao Yu as a final safety net before entering the netherworld. Now this safety net had truly become the only hope for his son’s life!"Doctor Xiao, please help me out of consideration...Chapter 57 Another piece of Sheep Fat White Jade

In the main hall, Lu Guozhang's relatives were gathered around the main table. Xiao Yu’s nephew Hanghang was no longer shy and sat on the table curiously observing those surrounding him.

All guests who had arrived today stood up to look at the main table as well. After all, giving gifts to children is a significant part of the celebration, and the number and quality of gifts received by a child reflect the power of their family. Therefore, this aspect is highly valued in Tong City.

"Dear guests, thank you for coming to attend my grandson's first birthday banquet amidst your busy schedules. I, Lu Guozhang, sincerely appreciate all of you!" Lu Guozhang bowed to the relatives gathered around the main table and those standing at other tables looking over.

Actually, this opening remark should have been made by Xiao Yu's brother-in-law, Lu Jianhong. However, today there were many high-ranking officials from various organizations present, including Secretary Zhang Dapeng of the Municipal Committee. Therefore, it wouldn't be appropriate for Lu Jianhong to speak as his status wasn't high enough; it had to come from Lu Guozhang to show sincerity.

"Today, I feel greatly honored by the presence of Secretary Zhang of the Municipal Committee at my grandson's first birthday banquet. Although I'm not a good speaker and don't know how to express gratitude properly, I would like to invite Secretary Zhang to say something!" After Lu Guozhang spoke, he gestured politely towards Secretary Zhang Dapeng.

"Haha, today is the day of your grandson's first birthday banquet. I won’t be imposing; this is a longevity lock my wife bought for him yesterday, wishing the child long life and prosperity!" Secretary Zhang Dapeng took out a delicate gift box from his pocket, opened it to reveal a silver-colored longevity lock, and handed it over to Lu Guozhang.

…………

The entire hall seemed instantly ignited with murmurs of surprise. Everyone present was taken aback by Secretary Zhang Dapeng's unexpected appearance and gift-giving. Although the item wasn't particularly expensive—it was merely a silver piece—the meaning behind it made it invaluable to Lu Guozhang at this moment.

Fifty-something-year-old Lu Guozhang blushed with joy; he had never seen such high-ranking officials attending and presenting gifts for his grandson's first birthday. Just being present is an honor in itself, of course, but he also understood Secretary Zhang Dapeng's intentions clearly. However, what difference did it make He must choose between the mayor and the secretary. With the secretary showing sufficient respect now, Lu Guozhang would naturally reciprocate.

Zhang Dapeng achieved his goal; he wanted to create this effect, making everyone below him aware that Lu Guozhang was now under his command.

Xiao Yu and the others didn't notice Zhang Dapeng's move, but Wan Hongguang raised an eyebrow and smiled meaningfully.

Next, it was Lu Guozhang and his wife Liu Jinhua who presented their gifts. Lu Guozhang held a golden lock to hang around his grandson’s neck: "I hope my grandson will be healthy and smart, growing up to become someone useful to society!" Since many of those present today were his subordinates, he concluded with some official pleasantries.

After Lu Guozhang and Liu Jinhua presented their gifts, Xiao Yu took out a jade pendant in the form of Guanyin made from jadeite. Of course, it wasn't top-quality jadeite; although they weren’t short on money, they couldn't afford something overly expensive either. This also had to do with Lu Guozhang’s opinion of the Xiao family: he felt that Xiao Yu was not a match for his son. However, as an official, he could be considered upright and honest; whether or not he wielded power appropriately was unknown to Xiao Yu, but he certainly didn't indulge in corruption. At least today, when subordinates came by with gifts, they couldn't exceed two hundred yuan.

This was also due to Lu Guozhang's half-life of work experience in the same city; many officials who were contemporaries with him had fallen from grace due to corruption issues, but he remained steadfast and climbed from a minor clerk all the way up to vice-mayor.

"Here, this is Uncle’s gift for Hanghang!"

Originally, after the child's parents presented their gifts, it was Xiao Yu's turn as the uncle. And when Xiao Yu walked over to the main table, Jia Yaocai, who had been standing by the side of the table all along, quickly moved in and said.

The people at the main table were taken aback by Jia Yacai’s words; according to protocol, it should have been Xiao Yu's turn to present a gift now. But everyone remained silent as Jia Yaocai relied on Lu Guozhang's influence and had successfully opened a construction company in the same city, thriving in his business.

Luo Guozhang naturally didn’t say anything; he'd never taken Xiao Yu seriously anyway.

Hearing Jia Yacai’s words, Xiao Yu was momentarily stunned. Her smiling face immediately turned somber as she discreetly pinched Lu Jianhong, hoping for a response from him. But all that Lu Jianhong could offer was a forced smile and he stopped Xiao Yu from speaking out of turn; after all, it would be inappropriate to stop someone from giving a gift.

Xiao Yu said goodbye to Song Hushan and others before heading over to the main table, while Chen Ying was telling Song Hushan and company about Xiao Yu's purchase of jade, implying that Xiao Yu should be presenting one of those top-grade white jadeware pieces.

Suddenly everyone noticed that just as Xiao Yu had arrived at the main table, he was blocked by a crowd inside. They all looked on in astonishment while Song Hushan and company got up from their seats and headed over to the main table.

Jia Youcai smiled smugly when he saw everyone looking at him and took out an exquisite wooden box wrapped in paper from his bag. Jia Youcai held the box and, with a provocative glance at Xiao Yu outside the crowd, slowly walked up to Hanghang, Lu Jianhong’s son. Although it was meant as a gift for the child, Jia Youcai directed his gaze towards Lu Guozhang and Zhang Dapeng. Seeing both men paying attention here, he smiled even more smugly.

Jia Youcai slowly opened the box, saying as he did so: "There’s an old saying that gold has its price but jade is priceless; in fact, what it means by ‘jade’ is jadeware like this white sheep-fat jadeware I’m holding!"

Jia Youcai took out a piece of white jadeware from the box. The surface was very white and the texture fine with a glossy sheen, resembling congealed fat.

He held the jadeware in his hand and twirled it around before saying: "This is an extremely rare white sheep-fat jadeware piece that I managed to obtain after much effort!"

"Son, you must have paid quite a lot for this jade," said an elderly lady of about 60 sitting by the side of the main table with a smug look on her face. She looked at Jia Youcai and asked.

Actually, she knew how valuable this piece was, but since she also knew that he had done well for himself thanks to Lu Guozhang’s influence, she didn’t object when Jia Youcai bought the jadeware. In fact, Jia Youcai had specially instructed her not to talk about its value because anyone with a discerning eye would be able to tell just how much it was worth.

However, Jia Youcai’s mother was merely a petty bourgeois and felt that she should let the other party know the value of what they were receiving as a gift. That was why she asked this question.

Hearing his mother’s question, he did not want to talk about its price at first but seeing so many people looking in his direction made him feel like showing off, so he said: "Ah, I bumped into someone who didn’t know how valuable it was and paid 108,800 for this top-grade white sheep-fat jadeware!"

The moment Jia Yaoci quoted the price, everyone gathered around the main table erupted in a buzz of chatter. Some praised him for getting a bargain, others complimented his generous spending, while some younger folks envied how he was profiting from the Lu family's influence.

Jia Yaoci looked around with an air of petty triumph and noticed Xiao Yu standing at the periphery of the main table. His eyes lit up as he thought to himself, "You asked for it."

"Everyone, please calm down! Let’s welcome the child’s uncle and his gift!" Jia Yaoci clapped his hands together while looking at Xiao Yu, but the look in his eyes was one of contempt mixed with schadenfreude.

Xiao Yu's expression changed upon hearing Jia Yaoci speak so. Though she knew her brother wasn’t short on money and hadn't asked what he had bought, she only feared that Xiao Yu might suffer some injustice.

At this moment, everyone turned their gaze to Xiao Yu. None of them were fools; they could see Jia Yaoci’s ulterior motives but since most didn’t know Xiao Yu personally, they just watched with the detachment of spectators at a show.

Xiao Yu walked up to the main table and instead of approaching Jia Yaoci, he addressed his nephew: "Hanghang, call your uncle!"

"Doudou, Doudou!" came the child’s innocent voice.

"Hmm, good boy. Here's a gift from your uncle," Xiao Yu pulled out a piece of jade from his pocket and hung it around the child’s neck.

Chen Ying observed this from behind. It was one of the three pieces of white sheep fat jade he had sold to him. Upon closer inspection, Chen Ying frowned; although he remembered selling this particular piece, there were subtle differences compared to when he first held it, though he couldn't pinpoint exactly what they were.

Translator's Note: This is all for today; I need to work the night shift at my unit. Tomorrow, I’ll try to add more chapters and thank everyone who has supported me through donations and votes. Seeing the rapid increase in various forms of support, I feel quite pressured but also hope this pressure can only grow stronger!all was still as it used to be. In fact, Wan Sheng Hall had already fully entered a routine operation phase. His presence there would no longer make much of a difference. With Xiao Hongyang's level, h...