Chapter 362: Change of Guardianship
Chapter 362: Change of Guardianship
As Lu Jiaxin's 18th birthday approached, Nie Zhan wanted to organize a coming-of-age ceremony for her, inviting relatives and friends to celebrate. However, his suggestion was rejected.
Lu Jiaxin explained, "I don't have many relatives here, just Auntie, but she's not in a clear state of mind these days. I don't have many friends either, just a handful. And we don't really have this custom in our family. It'll just be the two of us having a nice dinner together."
"Alright," Nie Zhan agreed.
Nie Zhan brought up the topic of He's Jewelry again, mentioning that He Mingzhu was struggling to keep the business afloat and might be facing bankruptcy soon. He couldn't understand why He Zhuliang treated her poorly yet she still persevered with the company.
Lu Jiaxin, who hadn't met He Mingzhu many times and didn't know her well, asked, "It's been half a year since He Zhuliang's case. Why hasn't there been a verdict yet?"
The prosecution was taking an unusually long time, and she wondered when a decision would be made. Lu Jiaxin felt that the Hong Kong police and the courts were inefficient. If this had happened in the mainland, a sentence would have been handed down by now, and it definitely would have been the death penalty.
Nie Zhan, impressed, said, "The police couldn't get him to talk, but his case should be coming to a close soon. I wonder what those people have on him that makes him so loyal."
Lu Jiaxin fell into deep thought. Perhaps it wasn't that they had a hold over him, but that he felt he could get out of it. After all, in Hong Kong at this time, money could buy a lot of things. Even if he were sentenced to life imprisonment, with enough money, he could find ways to reduce his sentence or even get medical parole. The only way to make him confess would be to bankrupt the He family and leave them without the financial resources to protect him.
"Jiaxin, Jiaxin..."
Lu Jiaxin snapped out of her reverie after being called a few times.
"Jiaxin, what are you thinking about? You seem lost in thought."
"I was just thinking that the rich people here are so lucky. If this were the mainland, they would have been long punished," Lu Jiaxin said. She felt that many countries abolished the death penalty in the name of human rights, but the real reasons were known only to those who pushed for its abolition. In her opinion, keeping the death penalty served as a deterrent for certain crimes.
Nie Zhan felt the topic was inappropriate and quickly steered the conversation towards exchange rates. The Green Dollar to Yen rate was still falling, and having already doubled his investment, he was planning to close his position.
Lu Jiaxin was aware of the continuous drop in exchange rates over the past two years, from 240:1 to 120:1, and believed it would continue to fall further. As she didn't have any immediate large expenses, she didn't want to close her position yet. "I think it will keep falling. Let's hold on to it for now."
Nie Zhan tried to persuade her, "From September last year until now, the exchange rate has already dropped by forty percent. I think it's about time to cash in."
But Lu Jiaxin remained firm in her decision.
Nie Zhan preferred to play it safe and take profits when he could, even if it meant selling only a portion of his position. He was a conservative investor—he could make money, but not as much as Lu Jiaxin, who was essentially gambling.
Lu Jiaxin compromised slightly, saying, "I'll need a sum of money in May, so we can close the position then."
March 9th arrived in the blink of an eye, and it was Lu Jiaxin's 18th birthday. Nie Zhan had booked the presidential suite at the Peninsula Hotel, and after work, he picked up Lu Jiaxin and took her shopping first.
Lu Jiaxin loved shopping, and being her birthday, she was in a fantastic mood and splurged.
Qian Xiaoxiao whispered to Gu Wenfeng, "Brother Feng, I roughly calculated that Sister Xin's purchases today add up to about 1.3 million."
She couldn't help but be amazed. Sister Xin's shopping sprees now rarely cost less than 100,000.
Gu Wenfeng was surprised, "That much?"
Qian Xiaoxiao nodded, "Yes, the jewelry she bought was very expensive and made up a large part of the total. No wonder Sister Xin wants to start her own company. With her spending, even without a company, it would be hard to keep up."
Gu Wenfeng smiled, "When you earn more, you spend more. In the past, the boss would only buy things that cost a few hundred or a thousand. She wouldn't spend money like this."
Back in the ancient capital, Zhao Dajun had commented on Lu Jiaxin's free-spending ways. If he could see her shopping now, he would probably be shocked.
Gu Wenfeng had previously taken Lu Jiaxin's advice and suggested that Zhao Dajun look for opportunities in transport companies. As luck would have it, a transport company was urgently looking for long-distance drivers, and Zhao Dajun joined. This time, fortune smiled on him as the manager in charge of vehicle operations was also a retired soldier. Despite Zhao Dajun's straightforward personality that often rubbed people the wrong way, the manager took him under his wing. Coupled with Zhao Dajun's excellent skills and abilities, he quickly established himself in the transport company. Now, he was a married father, living a comfortable life.
Qian Xiaoxiao thought about it and agreed. Lu Jiaxin's spending was directly proportional to the amount of money she had. The more she earned, the more she spent.
When they arrived at the presidential suite, Nie Zhan covered Lu Jiaxin's eyes as they walked inside. She played along and followed his instructions. Once they were in the room, he removed his hand, and she saw the room lit up with colorful lights and rose petals scattered on the floor.
Just as she was about to say something, a dining cart was slowly pushed in from outside, carrying a nine-layer birthday cake. After the cart was brought in, violinists filed in and stood in front of them, playing a beautiful and pleasant melody.
As the song ended, Nie Zhan walked over to the microphone and began singing 'Happy Birthday', accompanied by the violinists.
Lu Jiaxin's only thought was that he was quite good, and he didn't go off-key.
After the song, Nie Zhan walked up to Lu Jiaxin and said passionately, "Jiaxin, my most beautiful princess, happy birthday."
Lu Jiaxin's smile bloomed like a flower.
The next day, Lu Jiaxin slept in until past eight before waking up with a slight headache. She had been too excited the previous day and had drunk a glass of wine with Nie Zhan, but she had no memory of what happened after that.
She had already made an appointment with Li Xuanqi a couple of days ago to go to the law firm and change her guardianship. So, despite not feeling well, she got up and got ready.
During breakfast, Qian Xiaoxiao said, "Mr. Nie slept in the next room, but he left for work before eight."
In her past life, Lu Jiaxin had a good alcohol tolerance and could drink half a catty of baijiu without feeling much. So, subconsciously, she felt she could handle her drink. Thankfully, she had a good drunk personality—she would just fall asleep when drunk, or else it would have been embarrassing.
After breakfast, Lu Jiaxin headed to Hongchang Law Firm. She waited for about five minutes before He Mingzhu arrived with Li Xuanqi.
Neither party said anything, and Yan Yihua read the contract out loud to them. Li Xuanqi, looking impatient, interrupted, "Can I just take a look at it?"
She quickly glanced through the contract and signed it without further ado. It was just a change of guardianship, not a business contract, so she wasn't interested in wasting time on it.
He Mingzhu nodded at Lu Jiaxin, then hurried to catch up with Li Xuanqi.
Lu Jiaxin didn't mind. What mattered was that the matter was settled, and from now on, she would have guardianship over Auntie and Haifan, separate from the He family. She no longer had to worry about them causing trouble.
(End of Chapter)
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