Chapter 307: The Final Step
It wasn’t just Xu Youyou who didn’t expect the Gu family of Hong Kong City to go against convention and put their most precious item up for auction first. Even many of the guests present, including those familiar with the Gu family’s usual style, looked visibly surprised.
“It seems the new generation leader of the Gu family is quite smart. At least by doing this, they’re winning everyone’s favor and signaling their serious intention to return to the top ranks of high society,” Lu Jingyao commented.
Xu Youyou nodded lightly, watching as the woman on stage gently introduced the item to the audience.
Because it was the most important treasure, the story associated with it was particularly dramatic, though few present truly believed the “story.”
Most of the people in the room were buyers, but a few were agents sent by buyers who couldn’t appear in person. With this unexpected move, the agents rushed to contact their clients. Gu Jiuyan’s slow and steady speech on stage conveniently gave them time to do so.
The introduction lasted a full fifteen minutes, and the price started rising steeply right from the beginning.
By the time Lu Jingyao raised his paddle, the bid had already soared to 800 million.
His participation made many others hesitant to bid.
However, some remained determined: “Xu Youyou has always had a sharp eye. Since Lu Jingyao is interested, it’s probably authentic.”
An authentic calligraphy piece by Wang Xizhi could be considered a one-of-a-kind treasure. They hadn’t seen another one elsewhere. Even if Lu Jingyao was the wealthiest person there, others still wanted to compete.
Lu Jingyao wasn’t fazed by the competition at all, as if his pockets were endlessly deep.
When a Hong Kong tycoon bid 1.2 billion, Lu Jingyao immediately accelerated, calling out: “1.5 billion.”
The room fell silent.
Throughout the process, the Gu siblings didn’t intervene in the auction. Their goal wasn’t the calligraphy. Even knowing Xu Youyou liked the piece, they didn’t dare compete.
If they accidentally won the bid and Lu Jingyao dropped out, the price would be unbearable for them.
Even at such a sky-high price, someone still chose to continue bidding: “1.6 billion.”
Onstage, Gu Jiuyan’s eyes flickered slightly when she saw the number and immediately looked at Lu Jingyao.
He didn’t disappoint: “2 billion.”
The audience immediately broke into murmurs, staring at the outrageous figure on the big screen and debating whether it was worth it.
Even Xu Youyou heard someone behind her muttering: “Does Lu Jingyao have that much cash flow? He can just throw out that kind of money?”
Everyone present, aside from assistants, had a net worth of at least 10 billion.
But assets and cash flow were two very different things. It wasn’t rare for someone worth billions to struggle to produce even a hundred million in cash.
As the price soared, more people began to question like Liu Xiangyi: “Is it really worth it just for a calligraphy piece?”
Even Liu Xiangyi herself widened her eyes and whispered to Xu Youyou: “Are we really buying this? Boss, is Mr. Lu really going to spend so much money on a pile of paper?”
Xu Youyou, amused by her wide-eyed innocence, smiled and asked, “You think we shouldn’t?”
Liu Xiangyi looked torn: “Even though… it’s Mr. Lu’s money… I still feel like it’s not worth spending this way…”
While Liu Xiangyi struggled internally, someone in the crowd smiled faintly.
Red Dragon King, watching Lu Jingyao’s bid, felt like all his recent misfortunes were about to vanish.
As long as Lu Jingyao bought that piece…
“2.1 billion.”
Suddenly, the latest bid flashed across the screen.
Even knowing it was someone else bidding, Red Dragon King remained unfazed.
Just as Lu Jingyao was about to counter-bid, Xu Youyou suddenly pulled his hand back.
“No rush,” she said softly.
Before Lu Jingyao could ask why, Xu Youyou turned and asked Liu Xiangyi an unexpected question.
“If I ask you to bid on this calligraphy, and the final price is under 5 billion, I’ll reward you with 50 million. Now, with the bid at 2.1 billion, will you continue?”
Liu Xiangyi’s first reaction was: “Is there such a good deal in the world?”
But seeing Xu Youyou’s serious expression, she started thinking carefully.
Onstage, Gu Jiuyan announced: “2.1 billion, going once…”
Before the gavel fell, Liu Xiangyi said, “I won’t buy it. I don’t think we should. I might lose 50 million, but I can’t let my boss lose over 2 billion.”
Xu Youyou turned to Lu Jingyao and said, “I don’t want it anymore.”
Lu Jingyao hesitated: “Don’t you really like it?”
Xu Youyou raised her head slightly and said, “You want to buy it to make me happy, but if getting it makes me unhappy, then we’ll both be unhappy. I trust Xiao Liu’s judgment. If she says not to buy it, there must be some hidden flaw outsiders can’t see.”
Lu Jingyao seemed convinced and didn’t bid further.
Gu Jiuyan dropped the gavel. Although she congratulated the buyer, her expression carried a hint of regret, as if the final price hadn’t met her expectations.
The buyer who won the item suddenly stood up and looked at Lu Jingyao, asking, “Why didn’t you continue bidding?”
Lu Jingyao casually replied, “I just didn’t feel like it anymore.”
The buyer’s face turned awkward as he said, “I’m willing to sell it to you for 2.1 billion, okay?”
Lu Jingyao shook his head. Since Xu Youyou didn’t want it, even if it was an authentic Wang Xizhi, he could only regretfully let it go.
The buyer’s face grew desperate as he looked around for someone else: “I… I was just trying to drive the price up for fun…”
It wasn’t that the buyer wanted to cause trouble. It’s just that he had always been compared to Lu Jingyao by his family. Even though they never had direct conflict, he had long held a grudge against him.
Seeing how Lu Jingyao had casually raised the bid by hundreds of millions earlier, the buyer thought he could trick him into a loss. After all, every time he raised before, Lu Jingyao had matched it without hesitation.
But now that Lu Jingyao dropped out, the buyer couldn’t afford 2.1 billion and didn’t want to pay the 20% penalty either. He frantically searched for someone willing to take it off his hands.
However, despite the earlier excitement, no one was willing to take the deal now.
“I… I’ll never dare to do this again… 400 million in penalty fees…”
