Zombie Bodyguard
Chapter 554 - 551: Hypocrisy

Chapter 554: Chapter 551: Hypocrisy

Shi Feifei, seeing that the mood was ripe, timely announced, "The second auction item, a Tianzhu bracelet, starting price 300,000 yuan, with each increment not less than ten thousand yuan, let the auction begin."

The base price of the Tianzhu bracelet was the same as that of the red coral bracelet, and even the increment rule was identical, which made the comparison between the two all the more intense. However, everyone knew that without even starting the bidding, the outcome was already clear, for winning the Tianzhu bracelet for one million yuan was like a fool’s dream.

That is to say, in this contest, the Li Family had lost. The Li Family rarely lost in its past contests with the Yun Family, but this time the Yun Family had the upper hand, and of course, the people of the Yun Family were delighted.

Second Young Master Yun glanced at Li Zhengyang, who was sitting at the next table, his eyes brimming with undisguised amusement. At this, Li Wenrong’s head drooped even lower. Even though he knew this outcome was likely and that it would embarrass the Li Family, when the moment came, he was still afraid, wondering whether his father would break his legs when he returned home.

Every contest between the Li and Yun families always drew attention, and this time was no exception. Whether it was people in the private rooms above or ordinary businessmen on the first floor, all were looking up at Li Zhengyang, watching how the Family Head would handle the situation.

"Brother Lin, Li Zhengyang is going to be embarrassed this time. Li Wenrong really is a thorn in his father’s side," Zhou Botong said with delight in another’s misfortune.

"Let’s see. While Li Wenrong is indeed a thorn, his father is not so easy to fool," Lin Tian commented casually after glancing at Li Zhengyang above.

"It’s obviously clear that the final bidding price for the Tianzhu bracelet will exceed one million yuan, even if domestic businessmen fear offending the Li Family and do not raise their bids. But there are many Huaxia businessmen here, not to mention Futian Yizhi from the Rizhao Group; these people won’t care about losing face for the Li Family," Zhou Botong said, evidently not understanding Lin Tian’s point.

"Don’t underestimate Li Zhengyang. As the Li Family Patriarch, he’s survived more storms than you can imagine. This situation probably doesn’t even count as a storm to him. If it were me, I could think of more than one way to turn this situation around," Lin Tian said indifferently.

"You have a way? What way?" Zhou Botong asked in surprise, but Lin Tian just smiled and did not answer him.

At the moment, everyone’s attention was on Li Zhengyang, causing everyone to temporarily forget to place their bids.

Despite the focus on him, Li Zhengyang’s expression remained unchanged from beginning to end, still wearing a calm smile.

His broad palm clutched the handle of the mahogany chair, as if holding a scepter of authority, then he stood up. Just as people thought he might leave because he could no longer bear it, he spoke loudly, "I bid two million yuan."

"Two million yuan?" Zhou Botong thought he had heard wrong and was extremely surprised as he said, "Brother Lin, what is he trying to do?"

Not only him, but Li Wenrong, originally anxious and fearful, suddenly lifted his head, thinking his father had misspoken by raising the bid for the Yun Family’s Tianzhu bracelet to such a high price in one go, and the others were also dumbstruck.

Li Zhengyang spoke again, "My bid of two million yuan is just to cast a brick to attract jade. Regardless of the worth of the Tianzhu bracelet, it’s to contribute to those in need. As a businessman, I believe one must constantly think about giving back to the community to qualify as a businessman."

His words silenced the crowd; whether these words came from the heart or not, they certainly gave the businessmen something to ponder.

Someone from the private rooms above stood up—it was from the table of the Japanese, precisely Futian Yizhi.

He faced Li Zhengyang and commended, "Mr. Li Zhengyang spoke wonderfully, showing me the elegance of Huaxia businessmen."

"You flatter me. There are countless businessmen like me in Huaxia, all doing the same thing," Li Zhengyang replied modestly.

"Brother Lin, are our businessmen really so compassionate?" Zhou Botong asked, his face full of disbelief.

"Heh, businessmen pursue profit. I won’t deny that some entrepreneurs indeed do a lot of good deeds, but the majority are still led by self-interest. This is true for businessmen all around the world; these words are just formalities," Lin Tian explained.

He then countered, "Now you understand Li Zhengyang’s intentions? By directly raising the bid to two million yuan, he immediately transformed into a conscientious businessman, appearing lofty and righteous, which is much greater than simply winning this contest."

"So that’s how it is," Zhou Botong said, as if he had had an epiphany.

Futian Yizhi from the second floor then added, "I add one million, bidding three million yuan."

"Four million yuan!" Just as his words fell, one of the Huaxia businessmen immediately added another million.

"Five million yuan!" Without needing Shi Feifei to spur them on, people were continuously raising the bid.

Moreover, the increment rule of not less than ten thousand yuan suddenly turned into increments of one million yuan, as if everyone was racing to show they were conscientious businessmen.

But five million yuan seemed not to be the end; these businessmen couldn’t stop themselves, continuing to add one million yuan at a time through another round of bidding.

"Nine million yuan!"

An overseas Huaxia businessman bid nine million yuan—an amount, Lin Tian believed, that was already exceeding the value of the Tianzhu.

Though the Tianzhu was rare, this strand of Tianzhu was not near being the finest quality. Moreover, its purported abilities to preserve righteousness and bring good luck were subjective.

Of course, if that person believed in such things, then to him, the bracelet was worth that price.

After the Huaxia businessman announced a high bid of nine million yuan, no one else followed suit.

Shi Feifei, having seen bigger auction scenes, naturally was not impressed by this mere nine million yuan.

She spoke into the microphone, "Gentleman number nine bids nine million yuan, are there any higher offers?"

Shi Feifei’s eyesight and hearing were exceptionally sharp; she had instantly spotted which Huaxia person and their bid number it was.

"Nine million yuan for the first time!"

"Nine million yuan for the second time!"

"Nine million yuan for the third time!"

Shi Feifei once more struck the bronze small bell, announcing, "Congratulations to gentleman number nine for winning the second auction item, the Tianzhu bracelet, please follow our staff after the auction to complete the transaction procedure."

Finally, the auction of the second Tianzhu bracelet came to an end. Originally, it was a rivalry between the Li and Yun families; no one had expected it to evolve into something else.

The Yun Family’s Tianzhu had fetched a high price of nine million yuan. Second Young Master Yun should have been happy because it far surpassed the value of the red coral bracelet, but he just could not feel happy, because the status of the Li Family had not suffered at all; instead, Li Zhengyang had been praised.

"Second Grandmaster, it’s okay. The result is a donation, as long as it helps those in need. A mere competition between winning and losing isn’t important," Yun Xiaotian softly consoled Second Young Master Yun.

"You, like your father, always carry a kind heart. Although sometimes it may cause you to suffer a bit, it’s still times better than their hypocrisy," Second Young Master Yun smiled knowingly, the competitive spirit from earlier seeming just a facade.

Lin Tian pocketed their words, a smile appearing at the corner of his mouth; these Yun Family people were indeed interesting.