Chapter 668: Practically cronyism
“In the end, I didn’t make many true friends. I have a lot of bad friends, and I didn’t learn many skills. I like to go to those compet.i.tive places to gain face. This time, Grandpa’s illness made me realize that I’m not young anymore. I can’t continue like this.”
When s.h.i.+ Jin saw her like this, she remembered that she had been the same back then. Therefore, she could see some traces of her previous life in Jiang Ning. Fortunately, she had a second chance, and it was not too late for Jiang Ning to wake up.
She said softly, “It’s never too late to start working hard. Moreover, fortunately, Grandpa Jiang is safe and sound. The Jiang family still has a chance to let you grow.”
Jiang Ning stopped choking up and smiled. “That’s right. The heavens have finally brought me up. Let’s go, I’ll show you our other jewelry.”
s.h.i.+ Jin stood up and smiled. “Let’s go. I’d love to see the rest.”
Jiang Qingsong hurriedly left, but he felt very upset. It turned out that Old Master Jiang had already handed such an important banquet to Jiang Ning.
This old thing was simply allowing cronyism!
It seemed that if Jiang Ning could really take on the responsibility, there would be nothing left for a side faction like his in the future.
***
Three days later, the Jiang family’s banquet was held as scheduled.
This banquet was held in a super luxurious seven-star hotel in Hong Kong.
Jiang Ning had been busy these past few days and was prepared.
In the middle of the hotel’s banquet hall was a gla.s.s statue wrapped in a red velvet cloth, making it impossible to see what was inside.
There were security systems all around, and countless surveillance cameras were trained on the gla.s.s structure. Security guards also stood at attention, guarding the gla.s.s structure.
The security captain walked over and said to them, “Guard the thing well. Inside are the ruby crowns for the Princess Consort of England. They’re the things that the Princess Consort of England will use during the ceremony when she officially enters the royal family. If anything goes wrong, you’ll all be in trouble.”
“Understood!” the security guards said loudly.
Jiang Ning walked over and the security captain said to her, “Miss, everything is fine here. There’s no problem. I’ve already arranged for strict security. Don’t worry.”
“Yes, keep a close eye on it,” Jiang Ning said. She looked a little tired. The past few days of supervising the designer’s final completion of the crown and preparing the banquet had consumed a lot of her energy. Fortunately, everything went smoothly.
She hid her fatigue very well.
This time, she would not disappoint her grandfather. She would also let everyone see her efforts and her ability to take on the responsibility of the Jiang family.
As she was thinking about it, s.h.i.+ Jin walked in. She had specially changed into an evening gown tonight. It was a low-key black dress, which made her look mature and did not easily steal the limelight from the main guests.
She walked in Jiang’s direction.
Jiang Ning was wearing a red gown. She was calm and composed, suppressing her usually willful personality. She really looked like the head of the Jiang family.
“Sis!” Jiang Ning walked up to s.h.i.+ Jin and smiled. “You’re here. You didn’t break your promise. You’re the first to come.”
“I’ve made a promise to you, and I’m going to keep it.” s.h.i.+ Jin c.o.c.ked her head at her and smiled. “You’re starting to look like the woman in charge.”
“Hehe, Grandpa and Grandma said the same thing. They can’t come over tonight, so I’ll be the only one in charge.”
As they spoke, guests gradually began to appear.
The Princess Consort was coming to the banquet tonight. The Jiang family was going to personally hand over the crown that had been made for her, so many guests would come to witness this scene.
A moment later, the entire banquet hall was filled with people.
Jiang Ning squeezed her sweaty palms and said to s.h.i.+ Jin, “Then I’ll go receive the guests.”
“Go.” s.h.i.+ Jin gave her an encouraging look.
Then, s.h.i.+ Jin found a seat and sat down. She picked up a drink and watched Jiang Ning greet and interact with the crowd. Seeing that she was becoming more and more skilled and comfortable, s.h.i.+ Jin’s cold eyebrows curled into a warm smile.
“s.h.i.+ Jin, so you’re here.” Jiang Yiqian walked towards s.h.i.+ Jin. Seeing that she was wearing the latest bracelet from the Jiang family’s jewelry, she could not help but say, “It seems that Jiang Ning treats you quite well.”
“Indeed. So what’s your problem?”
Jiang Yiqian’s status in the Jiang family was even lower than Jiang Qingsong’s. After being questioned by s.h.i.+ Jin, she really had nothing to say.
She picked up a gla.s.s of red wine and said coldly, “Do you really think Jiang Ning can control the Jiang family’s business alone? You’re too naive!”
“That doesn’t seem to concern you, does it?” s.h.i.+ Jin said coldly.
Jiang Yiqian snorted and turned to leave.
When most of the guests had arrived, there was a sudden commotion outside.
Someone whispered, “The Princess Consort is coming!”
Everyone fell silent and looked outside.
They saw an extended limousine appear in front of the hotel, flanked by two teams of uniformed bodyguards. One of them stepped forward and opened the door.
The new Princess Consort appeared in front of everyone and walked towards them gracefully.
“Princess Consort Charles, welcome!” Jiang Ning greeted her graciously in English.
“How do you do, Miss Jiang?” Princess Consort Charles greeted Jiang and walked in with her.
When Princess Consort Charles sat down, Jiang Yiqian and Jiang Qingsong also went forward to greet her.
Princess Consort Charles maintained a standardized smile that was neither too eager nor too amiable. She was still very young, but she was very skilled in etiquette.
Jiang Yiqian and Jiang Qingsong wanted to say more, but in front of such an elegant Princess Consort Charles, they suddenly did not know what else to say.
s.h.i.+ Jin sat to the side, neither coming forward to greet her nor leaving. She just watched silently.
Today was Jiang Ning’s home ground. She only needed to accompany her at the side. Jiang Ning would deal with everything else herself.
After a series of small talk and communication, Jiang Ning said to Princess Consort Charles, “Princess Consort, we have completed the crown you reserved. It can be placed in your hands now.”
“Alright, thank you.”
At the side, Jiang Qingsong said, “Princess Consort, why don’t we take a look at the concept design first? Let the guests who came today take a look at the crown first.”
Seeing that Princess Consort Charles had no objections, Jiang Qingsong clicked on the large screen beside him and placed the picture of the crown in front of everyone.
“The main structure of the crown was created after the gold was extracted into thin threads. The requirements for the craftsmans.h.i.+p are very strict. After the finished crown, one can only see the faint golden color. The visual effect is focused on light colors and light gems, as if it has fused with the gentleness of pearls.”