Chapter 325: No More Worries About Money
As the auctioneer’s words fell, the venue fell silent for several seconds—nowhere near the excitement that had surrounded the bidding for the Energy Borrowing Bracelet.
Su Tao held her forehead.
She had been worried this would happen. Though she mentally cursed these people for not recognizing a valuable opportunity, she still felt a bit embarrassed.
She figured it was about time to get an official recognition status for Taoyang—at least as a settlement!
Qian Rongrong comforted her, “Sister Tao, it’s their loss. If the land doesn’t sell, we’ll just keep it. We can build houses and rent them out for income—it’ll just take more time. But hey, we’ve already made nearly ten million at this trade fair. All in all, this trip wasn’t a waste.”
Su Tao nodded. Other than the slight embarrassment, she had no real loss from not selling the land. In fact, keeping it would only make it more valuable over time.
Of course, selling it would be even better—after all, opportunities to make fifty million in one go weren’t common.
The schools being built in Dongyang still needed a huge investment, and Taoyang also had many areas that required expansion.
This auction had already earned her a decent amount of energy crystals, which would allow her to further expand the land. But once the land was expanded, more money would be needed for construction.
Infrastructure projects were money pits.
Just as everyone was reassuring Su Tao that not selling wasn’t a big deal, Zhuo Ercheng went to discuss with his superior, Ling Tianji, suggesting that Xindu buy the Taoyang land.
“Mr. Ling, though the land isn’t very big, Xindu could build a commercial building next to Taoyang. Being so close, we’d always have insight into their activities, and it would help strengthen relations. Dongyang only got ahead of us because it’s close to Taoyang and had an early advantage.”
If Zhuo Ercheng had fifty million himself, he would have bought the land personally. But since he didn’t, he had to settle for acquiring it under Xindu’s name.
Ling Tianji only took three seconds to decide. He slammed the table, “Find someone to bid on it. I’ll allocate sixty million first. If it’s not enough, let me know. But I doubt anyone will raise the bid. Go ahead.”
Most of the settlements that knew about Taoyang’s situation were financially strained. Even if they wanted to bid, they wouldn’t have the funds.
Just earlier, Ling Tianji had overheard that the people from Wutai Base were frantically making calls to get approval for funds so they could bid too.
Not a chance.
However, just as Zhuo Ercheng stepped away, a new bid suddenly came in.
And it was a high one!
The auctioneer’s spirit lifted.
“Sixty-five million! This bidder has a sharp eye!”
At that moment, Zhuo Ercheng stopped in his tracks, Su Tao’s eyes widened slightly, and Xiao Wenting frowned deeply.
Someone actually raised the bid?!
And they raised it by fifteen million all at once!
Bai Jiayan couldn’t help but stand up. “Is this for real? A fake bid from Xindu?”
Sixty-five million was no small sum. Anyone who could afford it was probably on Xiao Wenting’s level.
If it wasn’t a setup, then who would be dumb and rich enough to throw money into such an obvious trap?
It was clearly a scam to lure people into bidding, yet someone had actually fallen for it.
Bai Jiayan couldn’t understand.
Xiao Wenting’s expression turned serious. He ordered his confidant to investigate Taoyang immediately.
What if Taoyang was actually as valuable as described?
What if this land really was worth the investment?
For a moment, Xiao Wenting considered the possibilities.
If the land was real, he could build a luxurious vacation villa there—perfect climate, beautiful scenery, an abundant food supply, and high security. Given his father’s hedonistic nature, he’d love it.
If he could please that old man, he might get a larger share of the inheritance.
That damned old man—making his mother suffer, bringing mistress after mistress into the house, and fathering all these half-siblings to fight for the family fortune.
It would be best if this land was a scam. But if it was real, anyone could buy it—as long as it wasn’t one of his siblings.
“Sixty-five million, going twice! If you miss this chance, you may never get another opportunity to build your own utopia!”
Zhuo Ercheng immediately turned back.
Ling Tianji panicked. “Who placed that bid?!”
As a senior member of Xindu, Zhuo Ercheng had internal access. A quick check revealed the answer, and he frowned.
“It’s Xiao Wenxu, the third daughter of the Xiao family. We probably can’t outbid her.”
The Xiao family’s children were all extravagant spenders. And Xiao Wenxu, in particular, was a successful entrepreneur—financially, she had more flexibility than her siblings.
Ling Tianji sighed in frustration. “Xindu really has no luck this year…”
They had barely caught wind of Taoyang’s potential before Dongyang snatched up the collaboration.
Now, they tried to buy the land, but the Xiao family swooped in instead.
Even the usually stable Alliance Summit had been plagued with unexpected troubles this year.
Zhuo Ercheng felt the same. He had even suffered setbacks with women this year.
Ling Tianji waved it off. “Forget it. Let Xiao Wenxu have it. Those rich brats probably just want it for leisure anyway.”
“Sixty-five million, sold!”
The auction hammer came down, sealing the deal.
Ma Dapao jumped up in excitement. “It’s done!”
He had been confident the land would sell, but he hadn’t expected it to go for such a high price—sixty-five million!
Qian Rongrong was stunned, her mouth slightly open. It felt like Taoyang’s financially struggling accounts had just won the lottery.
Su Tao was equally thrilled, silently praising the bidder’s sharp judgment.
With this sixty-five million, plus the earnings from the trade fair, she wouldn’t have to worry about money for quite a while. She could now fully commit to expanding Taoyang’s infrastructure.
As the auction concluded, Ma Dapao, representing Taoyang, quickly received the sixty-five million. After deducting a three-percent service fee to Xindu—about 1.95 million—the remaining funds were fully secured.
In his mind, Ma Dapao grumbled about how easily Xindu made money. Just sitting there, and nearly two million landed in their pockets.
Not long after the funds were deposited, Zhuo Ercheng approached him with a smile.
“Manager Ma, do you have time today or tomorrow? The winning bidder wants to meet with you.”
Ma Dapao wasn’t surprised. After all, spending such a huge sum, it was natural for the buyer to want to discuss details with Taoyang’s representatives.
He asked, “Can I bring someone along?”
He had to bring the real boss!
Zhuo Ercheng nodded. “Of course. Miss Xiao is a casual person—she won’t mind.”
“That’s good then. Chairman Zhuo, if there’s nothing else, I’ll take my leave. Thank you, Xindu, for recognizing and supporting Taoyang at the auction.”
Ma Dapao spoke sincerely.
Zhuo Ercheng shook his hand. “Xindu looks forward to a deep and lasting friendship with Taoyang. I hope you can forgive any past misunderstandings or conflicts.”
Both sides exchanged pleasantries before parting ways.
As Ma Dapao walked away, he snorted to himself.
Did they really think he didn’t see through Xindu’s plan?
They just wanted to cut Dongyang out and have Taoyang fully align with them.
At the same time, outside the auction venue, Xiao Yu was anxiously waiting—determined not to miss Su Tao so he could return the two valuable supply packs.
The first person to exit was Young Master Xiao, who didn’t even notice him at first.
It was Bai Jiayan who mistook Xiao Yu for a beggar. Seeing his thin and frail figure, she rudely scolded, “Move along! This place is for distinguished guests.”
Xindu’s auction really needed better security—why were they letting these lowlifes loiter around?
Only then did Young Master Xiao glance over. There was something familiar about the boy, though he couldn’t quite place him.
