Zombie Bodyguard
Chapter 565 - 562: The Birth of an Exorbitant Price

Chapter 565: Chapter 562: The Birth of an Exorbitant Price

"I left when they were still auctioning the Outer Heaven Flying Immortal, so how come they’re already on the Bai Family’s jade? Is the Bai Family’s jade third in line?" Lin Tian puzzledly said.

It’s quite normal for the Bai Family to publicly identify themselves as the sellers because their aim is to defeat the Xiao Family, and only by winning can they gain the honor they seek.

"No, the Bai Family is actually fourth. After you left, the Outer Heaven Flying Immortal got auctioned off very quickly, and the third item even more so. The third item was a jade bowl, which only received a few bids before Futian Yizhi raised it to one hundred and fifty million. No one competed with him after that, so naturally, the next item turned out to be the Bai Family’s jade," Zhou Botong spread his hands and said in a resigned tone.

"One hundred and fifty million for a jade bowl, my god, Futian Yizhi really does have too much money. But it’s still better than the previous two items, which can only be looked at; with the jade bowl, at least you can eat rice from it, it’s just that I don’t know what it feels like to eat from a bowl worth one hundred and fifty million," Lin Tian shook his head, unable to understand the hobbies of these rich people.

"Brother Lin, that’s art, which we, the uncultured people, just can’t comprehend," Zhou Botong also laughed.

"Oh, right, who eventually got that first jade cabbage?" Lin Tian recalled something and asked.

"Guo Caizhe’s bid was invalidated, so naturally it went to Second Young Master Yun. He finally got his hands on an authentic piece and didn’t waste his money," Zhou Botong said.

"Then that’s not too bad; it didn’t exceed its value by too much. Let’s see how the Bai Family’s jade fares—I’ve only just taken my seat, and people have already consecutively raised the price," Lin Tian said.

He had just sat down for a little while when he already heard someone calling a bid of one hundred and sixty million, surpassing that of the jade bowl.

At this moment, on the auction stage, the Bai Family’s jade was on display in a glass cabinet. The jade was carved into a lush green lotus leaf, and on that leaf stood a frog, half-leaping as though startled and about to jump into the water. Perfectly adorned on the lotus leaf were a few glistening droplets of water.

In this jade piece, the lotus leaf was static, while the frog in mid-leap created a dynamic contrast. The combination of stillness and motion brought a harmonious balance to the artwork.

Moreover, the material of the jade was at least of middle grade or higher, and those few water droplets reached the quality of high ice kind, semi-transparent and very fitting for carving droplets.

"Brother Lin, what do you think? The Bai Family really went all out this time. Supposedly, this jade artwork is from a renowned artist in Japan named Endo Kenji. This individual once studied abroad in Huaxia and is said to have mastered the essence of both the sea and inland jade carving styles. He’s not to be underestimated," Zhou Botong said with a touch of concern.

"The Japanese have always been like this. In the past, they learned our Tang Sword, imitated it and made the katana, studied our Taoist arts, and developed what they call Onmyoji. But they used what they learned to come back and contend with us, which is really detestable. However, claiming mastery of all styles is definitely an exaggeration; each school of jade carving has been passed down for thousands of years, and it’s not something one person can master in a lifetime. Those Japanese just like to boast," Lin Tian said dismissively.

"If Brother Lin says so, then I feel relieved. If it were indeed a masterpiece of all combined styles, I fear Sister Song would be slightly inferior," Zhou Botong breathed a sigh of relief.

"Don’t worry about that. I understand Sister Song very well; she is intensely dedicated and sincere to jade carving. Only with such a heart can one create great works. To use the terms of an Ancient Martial Artist, Song Yanan is extremely talented, and her pieces are bound to be exceptional," Lin Tian affirmed.

"That’s good to hear..." Zhou Botong began, but before he could continue, he was interrupted by a loud shout.

"Two billion, I bid two billion!" That was the voice of Second Young Master Yun.

"Damn, with Second Young Master Yun shouting the price like that, isn’t he just making it easy for the Bai Family?" Zhou Botong said very discontentedly.

Lin Tian chuckled, "Brother Zhou, you’re too naive. It’s us who have a bone to pick with the Bai Family, not the Yun Family. They’ll bid however they please and won’t consider us at all. If we want to win, there’s only one way—we must produce a jade carving that surpasses the Bai Family’s. Otherwise, you can’t expect others to bid higher."

At this time, the happiest were the people from the Bai Family. Up to now, the bidding price for the Bai Family’s jade was holding the highest record, a whole fifty million higher than the previous jade bowl, and two billion was not even the final deal yet.

"Old Man Yun, you’ve just secured the highest bid, the jade cabbage is yours. There are only five pieces of jade in total, surely you can’t want to monopolize all of them, right? That’d be quite unfair," Old Man Zhao squinted at Second Young Master Yun, voicing his dissatisfaction.

Second Young Master Yun rolled his eyes, snorted, and said, "Hmph, what does ’fair’ mean? If you can pay the price, you’re fair. This constant letting others win, would that still be called an auction?"

"Forget it, I can’t be bothered to argue with such a stubborn old man. Ten days and nights of debate wouldn’t make you understand. I bid two billion and one hundred thousand!" Old Man Zhao, furious with Second Young Master Yun, immediately raised the bid by one million.

"Sigh, this is really adding insult to injury. With these two old men at loggerheads, the Bai Family folks must be grinning from ear to ear about now," Zhou Botong shook his head.

"With an auction, it’s a genuine fight without any fakery. A good item naturally fetches a high price; that’s inevitable. Look at the Li Family—one of the great wealthy families—and Mr. Li hasn’t even made a bid yet. Knowing Li Zhengyang’s character, his bid is likely to take you by surprise," Lin Tian commented with a relaxed perspective.

"Three billion!" As if to confirm Lin Tian’s words, Li Zhengyang’s voice suddenly rang out, and when he called out that three billion, his voice was steady as if it were as disposable as scrap paper.

"You’re like a bad omen," Zhou Botong glared at Lin Tian.

"Mr. Li bids three billion; do we have any higher offers?" Shi Feifei’s voice rose.

"Three billion and ten million," a Chinese businessman refused to be outdone and promptly raised the bid by ten million.

At this price, the people on the first floor had long fallen silent, only the big shots on the second floor dared to call out bids. Three billion—what a concept! A regular businessman on the first floor, for all their years of profits, might not make it to three billion.

Even though it’s just one floor apart, the disparity in wealth is staggering, their fortunes vast enough to drive an ordinary person to despair. There’s a saying that goes like this: even if you win the lottery every day with a five million jackpot until the day you die, it wouldn’t compare to the wealth of the richest individuals.

"Lin Tian, these prices aren’t going to stop climbing, are they?" Zhou Botong asked with some concern.

"Everything has its price. If the bidding was just gradually increasing, I wouldn’t have seen the ceiling yet. But when Li Zhengyang directly called out three billion, I knew the price was near its peak. I estimate it won’t exceed four billion," Lin Tian analyzed.

"Four billion is still a lot. If our Tianxue Jewelry’s jade doesn’t fetch four billion, then wouldn’t we lose?" Zhou Botong said.

At this moment, Futian Yizhi stood up and spoke solemnly, "The ’Summer Lotus’ piece originates from our country’s jade carving master, Endo Kenji. Therefore, no matter the cost, I won’t allow it to leave Japan. I am determined to secure this jade carving."

"So, I bid four billion!" Futian Yizhi called out an astronomical price of four billion.