Chapter 115: Auction (2)

  Thank you for your reward, Momo.

  No matter how noisy it is downstairs, the private room upstairs has no other sound except for opening and closing the door, which is eerily quiet.

  The time had already pointed to 7:25. Song Jie glanced at her watch for the evening and estimated that everyone should have arrived by now.

  Sure, here is the translation:

  As expected, the sound from downstairs suddenly rose, and the faint murmur of conversation grew louder.

  "It's probably people from the Li and Sun families who have arrived." Zhang Fu said as he pushed open the window beside the door and looked down.

  Along his line of sight, Song Jie took a look and indeed there were several people coming hand in hand. The leaders were two middle-aged men in their thirties or forties, who looked like the leaders at first glance. Behind them followed several attendants who kept pace with them.

  Only the two leaders were seen chatting intimately, occasionally lowering their heads to whisper to each other. Those who didn't know would have thought they were good friends, never imagining that these two families were sworn enemies.

  It's clear that the politician has put in a lot of effort into his facial expressions. If Song Jie hadn't known beforehand that these two families were sworn enemies, she would have thought they were the best of friends. She still has a lot to learn and is still quite naive at this point.

  "Hmph!" Zhang's father was most displeased with the ways of these two families, and after a glance, he closed the window, too lazy to take another look.

  At 7:30, the red curtain on the stage slowly opened, and a beautiful hostess in a red cheongsam dress walked up to the auction table.

  At this time, the doors of the private room were all open, and the view in front was broad. The big screen on the stage was very clear at a glance. At this time, Zhang's father also took out a microphone from somewhere and placed it on the tea table.

  "Ladies and gentlemen, it's time. Please take your seats and refrain from walking around."

  Today is August 16th, welcome everyone to participate in the Longsheng Auction House event. In front of each seat, there is a copy of the auction catalog for this auction session. Interested friends can participate in the bidding.

  "That's enough talk, everyone must be eager by now. No more nonsense, next we'll invite the host to introduce our first auction item."

  At this time, a female hostess elegantly presented a tray. On the tray was a mud-colored tea pot-like antique object. In order for everyone to see clearly, the female hostess on stage also gave this antique a close-up shot.

  "Now, I'd like to introduce you to the origins of this artifact. This is a Northern Song Dynasty Yaozhou kiln celadon carved flower-shaped pouring vessel, produced during the Northern Song period. It stands 19 cm tall with a belly diameter of 14.3 cm and a foot diameter of 12 cm. The overall shape resembles a pear, with a double-ridge fake lid on top that is purely decorative and cannot be opened. The top... This vessel has a unique structure and exquisite design, showcasing the ingenuity of ancient craftsmen."

  "Alright. The introduction is over. The starting price for this item's auction is 5,000 yuan, and each bid increase must not be less than 100 yuan. Friends who are interested, please start bidding."

  As soon as the host's introductory words fell, the bidding voices rose and fell in succession.

  Five thousand five hundred yuan.

  "Six thousand."

  "Seven thousand."

  ……

  "Alright, we've reached 13,000 yuan. Are there any other bidders? 13,000 yuan once, 13,000 yuan twice. 13,000 yuan three times. Alright, this Northern Song Dynasty Yaozhou kiln celadon carved flower inverted vase now belongs to bidder number 58." The gavel fell, and the first auction item had found its owner.

  Song Jie did not expect that this time Long Sheng auction house had gone all out, the first item to be auctioned was a valuable Northern Song Dynasty porcelain, generally, auction houses would auction items in order of value from low to high, but this time the goods were obviously of a much higher grade.

  If bidders didn't think there was something even better coming up later, the bidding would probably have been more intense. This trip has not been in vain after all.

  Sure, here is the translation:

  As expected, one auction item was more outstanding than another, and the bidding became even more intense.

  Nowadays, there are not a few rich people who want to buy antiques to show off their wealth. They usually worry that the ones they buy themselves might be fake, but those from auction houses won't be fake, as they have all been appraised by experts.

  At this time, counterfeit goods were still rare in auction houses, unlike later when they were everywhere and overwhelming.

  The beautiful hostess on the stage had a smile that bloomed like a flower, and her voice became even sweeter and more charming. If the auction ended well, she would also benefit from it; otherwise, why would she have risked everything to participate in this auction? It's clear that all efforts will be rewarded.

  Zhang Fu also said that this auction seems to be particularly fierce, with a large number of people being one thing and the goods being good being another.

  The atmosphere gradually became more intense, and Song Jie also became curious: "Uncle Zhang, will there be any tricks inside?" She was really curious about this question.

  "This question is well asked, of course, there must be some tricks, but in such a big scene, they won't make it too obvious. When the price is almost the same, they will raise it a bit, and I guess these people won't say anything."

  "Even if they knew there was a plot, no one would dare to say it out loud. Let's not mention whether those people admit it or not, even if they did, their own dignity would probably be left with nothing. Who would do something so unprofitable and troublesome?"

  "I didn't know there was such a way. Thank you for teaching me." Song Jie nodded thoughtfully, indeed, life is full of lessons everywhere.

  Zhang Yang beside him also seemed to be thinking deeply. He has become more open-minded now and is very interested in these things. In the future, it's estimated that he will take over his father's business without any problem.

  Zhang's father not only told Song Jie, but also explained to his own son. Normally, these things are not used, but when they encounter them, saying a few words makes them even more memorable and clear. It must be said that Zhang's father is also a kind-hearted father.

  Then some famous antiques such as Qing Yongzheng's rouge water glaze small bowl, Northern Dynasty celadon lotus vase and so on were introduced, the price was also rising all the way, the scene was called hot.

  It was almost nine o'clock when it was finally time for the introduction of minerals.

  The rest of Song Jie wasn't interested in anything else, but that empty stone was something she wanted to take a picture of.

  At this time, the scene really calmed down. The ore was not a hot spot, so there were not many bidders, and the price was not too high. Only a few people who knew their stuff participated in the auction repeatedly, while others just watched the excitement.

  The beautiful hostess saw that the scene was a bit dull, fortunately she had expected this beforehand, so she wasn't disappointed, and just slightly accelerated the pace to let the auction items transition smoothly.

  It was soon the turn of Song Jie's favored Qingming Stone, and at this time, Song Jie stretched her neck to look down at the stage, where the dense crowd made it impossible to distinguish one person from another.

  "Next, we introduce the next auction item. This is a rare mineral that comes from the deep sea layer of the Pacific Ocean. It was inadvertently obtained by an adventurer and has been tested to contain rich metal elements. If further refined, it can be used in many aspects. Okay, I won't introduce more. Friends who want to bid, please start bidding. The starting price is 3000 yuan, and each bid must not be less than 100 yuan."

  After listening to the beautiful hostess's enthusiastic introduction, the audience below was still inexplicably cold. You don't even know what this thing is for, how to take pictures with it, and won't you end up buying a useless item?

  The host indeed did not know the specific use of this ore and could only give a vague introduction. Everyone is not stupid, so they naturally will not bid.

  The first few pieces of ore were barely recognizable, but then a piece came that no one recognized. Now nobody is willing to take the risk, after all, losing money is a small matter, but losing face is a big deal.

  A man with thick glasses said weakly, "3,100 yuan." He was an academic researcher of minerals, but no one bid, and he also hesitated.

  "3,200 yuan." Zhang's father started raising the price.

  Someone heard that there was someone in the private room who wanted to buy it, and they even more wanted to buy it.

  "3,500 yuan." Booth No. 5 also started bidding, and it was the Liu family, the old rival of the Zhang family. The patriarch of the Zhang family had not spoken up until now, but this time he only bid on an unremarkable ore, and no matter what, they had to fight for it, betting on their pride.

  His father was not afraid of him and started raising the price: "4,000 yuan."

  "5,000 yuan." Number Five started bidding aggressively and wouldn't back down.

  "5,500 yuan."

  "6,000 yuan."

  Seeing that everyone has raised the price to 6,000 yuan now, I estimate it will be increased again. I really don't know what Liu's family is thinking.

  The people below also saw that the two families were not bidding, but were fighting. It's lively and can't be seen all the time. This is a rare opportunity to see it openly and fairly, or else you'll regret missing it.

  Zhang's father didn't want to be laughed at either, so he quickly said: "Liu brother, the best is yet to come, my family's red treasure will be the finale, I'll give 6,500 yuan."

  The person in room five, Liu Kun clenched his fist. What Zhang's father said didn't make sense, but it reminded him what he came here for today - wasn't it all about the beauty?

  For a piece of unknown ore, I had a falling out with the Zhang family, which is not a good thing. One can't be impulsive and must endure. Once the Red Dan formula is in hand, it will definitely suppress the Zhang family.

  Liu Kun didn't want to be laughed at by the people below either. He let out a cold snort: "Since you want it, then I'll give it to you."

  The silent smoke just dissipated like that, and the people below were quite disappointed. How could it stop after just a few sparks? I thought this piece of ore would be able to create another new high.

  The host on the stage was also a bit disappointed, weren't they fighting for their own profit? However, since others didn't fight anymore, she couldn't do anything about it. She could only say that she was just a small figure, and her small expectations were suppressed.

  She cleared her throat, and her tone finally returned to normal: "Alright, 6,500 yuan for the first time, 6,500 yuan for the second time, 6,500 yuan for the third time. No one is bidding anymore, this mineral stone belongs to Room Number One now, congratulations." The gavel finally fell.

  The Kongming Stone finally fell into Song Jie's pocket without any mishap. Song Jie's admiration for Zhang Fu was as boundless as the Yellow River.

  Too awesome! The 7-inch pinch is really accurate!!