Everyone could see that Zhang Hongjie had been forced to swallow a bitter pill of eight million yuan, and they all chuckled in secret.
Zhang Hongjie's face was contorted like an eggplant, and he glared at Liu Manjiang.
It was Liu Manjiang who had confidently asserted that this "Dragon Playing with Pearl" celadon-glazed porcelain with double ears was a one-in-a-million masterpiece, which was why he had spent a fortune to bid for it.
"Young Master Zhang, I..."
"Scram!"
Zhang Hongjie hissed, gritting his teeth. "Don't let me see you in Yangcheng again. If I do, I'll beat you every time!"
"Yes... yes!"
Liu Manjiang wiped the cold sweat from his forehead. Losing eight million yuan due to his misjudgment was a heavy blow, and he considered himself fortunate to leave unharmed. He dared not say another word and scurried out of the auction hall.
The matter of the "Dragon Playing with Pearl" celadon-glazed porcelain was merely a minor interruption, and the auction soon continued.
"Yang Chen, this Shoushan stone from the mid-Qing Dynasty looks good..."
"It's just 'good,' not a top-tier masterpiece. Let's keep looking."
After the incident with the celadon-glazed porcelain, Chu Xiang's belief in Yang Chen's abilities grew. She resolutely trusted his decision not to bid.
However, five more items were auctioned off, including a blue-and-white porcelain from the early Ming Dynasty, and Yang Chen deemed none of them worth acquiring. This made Chu Xiang increasingly anxious.
"Yang Chen, my grandfather's birthday is just a few days away. If we miss this auction, it will be difficult to find good antiques as birthday gifts."
"Miss Chu, please trust me!" Yang Chen said confidently. "It's better to have nothing than something mediocre. Those items were just ordinary trinkets with inflated prices. They weren't stunning enough to be worth bidding on."
"But..."
"I already have my eye on something."
"Oh?" Chu Xiang's heart leaped with joy, and she was about to ask what it was.
At that moment, the auctioneer, Zhou Hui, had someone bring a tea set onto the stage. The tea tray was made of black pottery, a circular plate about sixty centimeters in diameter, accompanied by a palm-sized Zisha teapot and four Jianzhan tea cups.
"This tea set has been appraised by a panel of experts, who unanimously agree it is from the Kangxi period of the Qing Dynasty..." Zhou Hui said with an elegant professional smile after a brief introduction. "The starting bid is one hundred thousand yuan. Esteemed collectors, please feel free to place your bids if you are interested."
However, the wealthy attendees below remained silent, with no one raising a paddle.
Although Chu Xiang was not an expert in antiques, her grandfather's fondness for them had given her some superficial knowledge. She shook her head and said, "Although this black pottery tea set is from the Kangxi era, pottery itself is not valuable. Furthermore, it's not by a renowned artisan. Even ten thousand yuan would be too much. Naturally, no one would bid one hundred thousand."
She said this to Yang Chen beside her. After waiting for a while without a response, she turned to see Yang Chen staring intently at the black pottery tea set on the auction stage. She wondered, "Could this black pottery have something special about it?"
Auctioneer Zhou Hui had not expected much from this black pottery tea set and was prepared for it to go unsold. Seeing that no one was bidding, she recited the description as a formality: "The craftsmanship and materials of this black pottery tea set are excellent, and its condition is well-preserved..."
She continued to drone on, but the hall remained silent.
Chu Xiang saw Yang Chen's gaze shift away from the tea set. He scanned the hall, a smile playing on his lips, her curiosity piqued. She gently tugged at Yang Chen's sleeve.
"Yang Chen, this tea set..."
"Miss Chu, raise the paddle!"
"Huh?"
"It's this one... It's this one! This tea set is a rare masterpiece. It's like a pearl hidden under straw right now; everyone fails to recognize its true value. It's a great opportunity to snag a bargain!"
"Ah?!" Chu Xiang was even more surprised and urged, "If this item costs over a hundred thousand, I don't mind losing money. But... what exactly is it? Tell me clearly first."
She didn't want to buy something without collectible value at ten times its worth. Money was secondary; what mattered most was not becoming a laughingstock like Zhang Hongjie.
At this moment, Zhou Hui, seeing that no one had bid after calling out three times, had to announce, "Since no one has bid, I now declare that this Qing Dynasty Kangxi era..."
Yang Chen realized there was no time to explain. He snatched the paddle from Chu Xiang's hand and raised it high, shouting, "One hundred thousand!"
As soon as he spoke, everyone in the hall turned to look, wanting to see which fool would spend a hundred thousand yuan on such a worthless black pottery tea set.