After the entire venue quieted down, Zhou Zhishan, wearing a kind smile, cleared his throat and said loudly, "Thank you all for taking the time out of your busy schedules to attend my eightieth birthday celebration."

"To be honest, I haven't celebrated my birthday for twenty years. Time flies like a river, never ceasing day or night. The older one gets, the more afraid they are of aging, the more worried about time passing too quickly."

"I've recently come to terms with it. Being afraid is useless, worrying is even more useless. Time will pass regardless. No matter how reluctant I am, it won't stop for me."

"It's better to enjoy life and cherish every moment in the time I have left. Coinciding with my eightieth birthday, my children discussed having a grand celebration for me. Originally, I wanted to object, but after all, this is a token of my children's affection. If I refused, I was afraid of hurting their feelings."

"Most of those present today are my old friends, whom I've known for decades. Of course, there are also new friends. Your presence is a sign of respect for me. I am very happy and grateful. I hope that in twenty years, you can still come to attend my birthday banquet."

"Alright, enough nonsense. Everyone, eat and drink well. Those who can drink, drink more; those who can't, eat more. In short, be sure to enjoy yourselves!"

Zhou Zhishan had excellent eloquence. This speech earned him another round of applause.

The birthday banquet began, and guests presented Zhou Zhishan with the birthday gifts they had prepared for him.

"Old Zhou, I've long heard that you like antiques. This snuff bottle was specially scavenged for you. It's definitely an old item. This is my birthday gift to you."

"Old Zhou, this is a blue-and-white porcelain vase I prepared for you. It was auctioned off at an auction in Hong Kong last month for more than five million."

"Old Zhou, this is a pair of lion heads that I spent more than ten million to find for you at Panjiayuan. Look at the color and the outline. I wish you good fortune as boundless as the East Sea and longevity as high as the Southern Mountain!"

……

Everyone presented Zhou Zhishan with congratulatory gifts one after another. Chen Xiao felt a little restless. He asked Li Ziqing, "Ziqing, I didn't prepare any birthday gifts. Isn't that bad? Should I give something too?"

Chen Xiao's Yin-Yang Jade had plenty of treasures. In addition to those ten-thousand-year-old earth-core rocks, there were also antiques and cultural artifacts that the big shots of Jiangbei had collected for him. Any one of them was worth millions or tens of millions.

However, Li Ziqing shook her head, saying with a playful look, "No need. I've already prepared his birthday gift. Just wait and watch the fun!"

Chen Xiao was stunned for a moment, wondering what gift Li Ziqing had prepared, and how could there be fun to watch?

One valuable birthday gift after another was presented to Zhou Zhishan. Old Zhou nodded and thanked them frequently, his face filled with undisguised pride.

The value of the birthday gifts was one aspect; the most important thing was face.

The scale of the Zhou family's birthday banquet and the value of the birthday gifts were such that no more than five families in the entire Weicheng could match it, and this also represented the Zhou family's status in Weicheng.

Back then, Zhou Zhishan was just a small gangster mixing around the wharves. Who would have thought that he could build such a large family fortune in his lifetime?

Looking back on the past, Zhou Zhishan certainly had the right to be proud.

The guests lined up to present gifts in turn. By the time everyone had finished, more than an hour had passed.

And next was the highlight.

After the guests finished giving their birthday gifts, it was time for Zhou Zhishan's children and grandchildren!

Zhou Weiguo gave his younger brother Zhou Xingguo and younger sister Zhou Yuanyuan a look, and the three of them came to Zhou Zhishan together and bowed.

Then Zhou Weiguo, representing his younger siblings, said, "Father, Xingguo, Yuanyuan, and I have also prepared a birthday gift for you. It's a small token, and we hope you like it."

Zhou Zhishan smiled and said, "As long as it's from you, Father will like it."

Then Zhou Weiguo waved his hand and shouted loudly, "Bring up the birthday gift!"

Immediately afterward, someone was seen carrying an object in.

The object was covered with a piece of red silk, so you couldn't see what was underneath.

And the object was carried by eight people, and they were struggling, which showed that the object was very heavy.

Everyone couldn't help but be very curious, what exactly did the Zhou family's children give to the old man?

The three siblings jointly grabbed a corner of the red silk and suddenly lifted it up. Along with the flying red silk, the object underneath also revealed its true colors.

And when the red silk was lifted, there was an uproar in the audience!

"This is – a dragon throne?!"

"Made of pure gold, with golden dragons carved on it. What else could it be but a dragon throne?"

"Judging by the looks of it… this is a real dragon throne, but I don't know which dynasty's emperor used it."

The crowd was in an uproar, while Zhou Weiguo spoke eloquently, "Father, this object is the dragon throne that Emperor Xuanzong of Tang once sat on. It is the birthday gift that your children are giving you!"

"This is… real?"

Even Zhou Zhishan, with his experience and composure, couldn't help but stand up and go forward to examine it closely.

He saw that nine giant dragons were carved on the dragon throne, lifelike.

It was covered with a golden cushion, just like the dragon thrones in TV dramas.

"Of course, it's real."

Zhou Weiguo smiled and said, "Father, how dare we use a fake dragon throne to fool you? This dragon throne was auctioned off at Christie's auction fifty years ago for a high price of 90 million. This time, my brother and sister and I spent a total of 500 million to buy it."

As soon as this remark came out, the audience was shocked again.

As expected of the Zhou family, they were really generous. They spent 500 million to prepare a birthday gift for their father.

But then again, it was worth it to spend 500 million to buy a dragon throne that an emperor had sat on.

Such treasures are priceless!

"Father, please sit on it and feel it, see how it feels."

Zhou Weiguo quickly invited him.

Zhou Zhishan didn't decline and sat down with a plop.

In an instant, a domineering aura of "I am the only one" appeared on the old man's face, and even his eyes became condescending!

At this moment, he seemed to have really become a king who ruled the world!

In reality, however, this dragon throne was made of gold. How comfortable could it be?

Even with a cushion, it was still hard. How could it be as comfortable as a real leather sofa!

And the person sitting on it was not sitting for comfort. Sitting on it could make people feel the taste of power.

Even a beggar, sitting on the dragon throne, could create a feeling of ruling the world.

"Wonderful, wonderful! Hahahaha…"

Zhou Zhishan laughed loudly, looked at his three children, and praised, "You have put your heart into it. Father likes this gift very much!"

He had already decided that he would sit on this dragon throne for a few hours every day in the future. He believed that living another forty or fifty years would not be a problem.

After all, power is the best medicine in the world!