Chapter 431: The Money-Grabbing Trick

Faced with Chen Ling’s demands, the consortium members didn't dare to object. After all, the fact that Chen Ling was still willing to stay was already giving them face... The five directors looked at each other, all gritting their teeth.

They weren't sure who had set this trap in secret, but there was no doubt that someone was viciously trying to drive them to their deaths. The original consensus had been completely broken; now they were purely fighting for themselves—it was either you die, or I die.

"Special Envoy, for the transaction, wouldn't it be more convenient to go to the auction hall?" Zong Wen asked tentatively.

"No need for such trouble."

Chen Ling turned back, stepping on the void, and walked back to the center of the hall. "The valuable treasures are still being appraised at the auction house. This transaction is only for some inexpensive small and medium-sized gold treasures... no need to trouble the auction house."

Chen Ling raised his hand and snapped his fingers lightly.

【△ Special Envoy Chen Ling’s snap rings out, the hotel’s power supply returns to normal, light once again envelops the hall, and the thunder outside the window gradually weakens.】

*Snap*—

The lights above the hall flickered slightly, then lit up one after another. Only the few bulbs at the edges that had been completely shattered remained dim, but overall, visibility had recovered significantly.

Chen Ling walked to the center of the hall, sat down, placed the list recording over a hundred treasures on the table, and spoke calmly:

"Since this is a transaction segment during the banquet, we don't need to be too serious... Everyone, please take a seat."

Seeing this, the consortium directors felt a slight relief in their hearts and found seats in different parts of the hall. Mu Chunsheng, in particular, silently wiped away his sweat with the corner of his clothes, his racing heart finally returning to normal.

The accident just now had almost completely destroyed the relationship between the five major consortiums and the Envoy. Now, just by trading some cheap small and medium-sized gold, they could repair this relationship and, to a certain extent, gain the Envoy’s friendship—this was undoubtedly the best result... At least, that was what the five directors thought for the moment.

After the atmosphere became relaxed again, Zong Wen smiled and said, "Special Envoy, how would you like to trade? Is it the same as an auction? I think it would be better if you just draw a circle on the list for me. Our Huadu Consortium will buy all the treasures you circle, just to make friends."

They were just cheap small and medium-sized gold; how much money could they possibly be? He wouldn't dare speak for the large treasures, but these little trinkets were a piece of cake for them.

Mu Chunsheng gave him a cold look, his gaze as vicious as if he wanted to kill. "If that's the case, our Beidou is willing to pay double."

"This method is a bit too uninteresting."

Chen Ling narrowed his eyes and spoke unhurriedly, "Since the auction in a few days will be an open auction... then this time, why don't we have a blind auction?"

"A blind auction?"

"For each item, everyone will write down the highest price they are willing to pay on a piece of paper and hand it to me... I will display the one with the highest bid, which will be the final transaction price, and the item will belong to the bidder."

"However, during this process, I will not announce who won the item. Until all items are auctioned off, I will conduct the transaction all at once according to your bids."

"Does anyone have any objections to this method?"

This auction method was not new to the five major consortiums; blind auctions were as common as open auctions, though they had been relatively rare in recent years... However, since Chen Ling proposed this plan, no one had any objections. This was more convenient and faster than bidding one by one for each item in an open auction.

Otherwise, following the open auction process, it would probably be dawn by the time all hundred-plus items were auctioned off.

"Let's do as the Special Envoy says." Pang Shan of the Paradise Consortium was the first to nod.

"How much money did we bring this time?" Mu Chunsheng asked his son.

"Not many silver notes, maybe two or three million when converted. The rest are checks... and the Envoy doesn't accept those."

"Too little. Send someone to get another five million." Mu Chunsheng’s eyes swept over the other four consortiums and finally landed on Chen Ling in the center of the hall. "They schemed against my Beidou first; I must settle this score with them... No matter how much money it costs this time, I must build a good relationship with the Envoy. Only by winning over the Envoy can we remain invincible."

"Yes, I'll send someone to get the money right away!"

“……”

The same conversation was happening in every other consortium.

The front lines of the five major consortiums had completely collapsed, and their mutual conflicts had been ignited to the extreme. The opportunity to gain the Envoy’s friendship was right in front of them. Whoever could win this auction war could surpass the other four and gain the Envoy’s support... The value of this could not be measured in mere millions.

Chen Ling took in this scene, the corners of his mouth beneath the mask curling up slightly as he flipped to the first item.

"Item number one, a golden wine vessel, no starting price... Everyone, please place your bids."

At the same time, the directors of the five major consortiums focused on the first item. It was an exquisitely crafted golden wine vessel, about the size of one and a half palms—relatively large in size.

Mu Chunsheng narrowed his eyes, glanced secretly at the other directors, and then wrote down a significant number on the paper with a flourish.

After a brief hesitation, the other directors also wrote down their amounts on their respective white papers, which were then collected by their subordinates and brought to Chen Ling.

Chen Ling flipped through the five sheets of paper in his hand with an expressionless face...

200,000, 280,000, 300,000, 370,000, 500,000.

A decent price... At least according to the original market price of gold, selling this for 200,000 would be good. But with the added value of "Envoy’s friendship," the highest bid was actually 500,000—more than double the original price.

If Chen Ling wasn't mistaken, this should be the Beidou Consortium’s bid. It seemed that old bastard Mu Chunsheng was determined to win this time...

Unfortunately,

For Chen Ling, this was far from enough.

The five strings of numbers flashed before Chen Ling’s eyes. The corners of his mouth beneath the mask curled up. He gathered the five sheets of paper in his hand, rubbed one of them lightly, and the amount on it changed instantly. Then, Chen Ling slowly took it out and displayed it to everyone.

"The highest bid for this auction... 1.5 million."

A sheet of paper clearly stating 1.5 million was exposed to everyone’s view.

"What?!!" Mu Chunsheng’s pupils contracted sharply, and the other consortium directors also widened their eyes in disbelief. This price was completely beyond their expectations.

Meanwhile, an invisible heart-python had long been coiled around the shoulder of Pang Shan of the Paradise Consortium under Chen Ling’s command. The moment he showed a hint of shock, he was swallowed whole by the heart-python!

Pang Shan suddenly felt a sense of emptiness in his heart. Looking at the 1.5 million figure, he felt nothing, sitting quietly in his place.

And while the other consortium directors were shocked, this sole quiet person immediately attracted the attention of the others...

"It's him? He actually bid such a high price?!"

Mu Chunsheng stared fixedly at Pang Shan’s back, his teeth nearly ground to dust...

One had to know that Paradise and Beidou were mortal enemies. Now that Pang Shan had suddenly started bidding at such a high price, it meant he had spent a fortune to compete with the Beidou Consortium for the Envoy... This also meant that what he was plotting was even greater—perhaps the entire Beidou Consortium?

If he could annex the entire Beidou Consortium, what was a little money like this?

"Damn it... I knew it... He's the one plotting behind the scenes!" Mu Chunsheng’s breathing became rapid. "Fine, you want to play? I'll play with you!"

As the second item began to be auctioned, Mu Chunsheng received the second white paper and wrote down a string of numbers with a flourish without hesitation:

—1.55 million.

This scene was taken in by Chen Ling in the center of the hall. Beneath that golden mask, which seemed to hold no emotion, he looked like a conspirator who had been planning for a long time, slowly revealing a playful smile...

"Fellow brothers and sisters, watch closely. The money-grabbing trick... I only perform it once."