Chapter 414 Sixteenth
"Chalcedony is one of the oldest varieties of jade in human history. It has been used as ornaments for as early as 5,000 years, and has continued to be used throughout the ages. Carnelian, a gemstone with a strong religious connotation, is widely accepted. It has a fine texture, pure color, and high hardness, and when gently tapped, it makes a clear, melodious sound. Its name comes from the Latin word 'carne' (flesh and blood), implying its dazzling orange-red color. The Chinese call it red chalcedony, or blood chalcedony!"
Everyone listened attentively.
A piece of chalcedony is not as precious as jadeite, nor as dazzling as diamonds, and is relatively affordable. Logically, such a thing should not appear at such a high-level auction.
Unless, this piece of chalcedony has a great origin, which has exceeded the inherent value of the object itself and is given a higher collection value.
really--
"Legend has it that the seal of the Arab Emperor Muhammad was a carved red chalcedony framed by a silver ring! And this red chalcedony before us was unearthed from Muhammad's tomb!"
Jiang Fuyue looked at the auction table through the special glass in the private room.
"The reserve price is three million US dollars. Each bid must be no less than three hundred thousand. Bidding—begin!"
Before the hall had even warmed up a few times, in the private room on the second floor, a red bidding light flashed, and Lou Mingxin was the first to raise his hand.
No one in the hall expected that the private room would be sold so quickly, and it was Lou Mingyue who loved to give a "finale surprise" the most.
Normally, if she saw something she liked, she would just sit back and watch, waiting for someone else to win the bid and the hammer to fall before jumping out and raising the price, giving everyone a shocking surprise. But today, she was so impatient...
In the private room, Jiang Fuyue asked Liu Sisi, "What do you think?"
Liu Sisi glanced at the thing and pondered for a moment: "It looks good, but it looks like it was taken out of a tomb. Isn't it... not auspicious?"
Jiang Fuyue nodded: "It's not very auspicious, but..." It doesn't matter.
Snatching things from Lou Mingxin is a kind of happiness in itself, no matter what the things are, whether they are auspicious or unlucky.
"Get your sign ready."
Liu Sisi: "Ah?"
Jiang Fuyue's mouth twitched.
Seeing some movement in the private room on the second floor, everyone in the hall stopped thinking. Who would dare to snatch things from Lou Mingxin?
If you don't have as much money as others, you will end up bringing shame upon yourself.
Furthermore, chalcedony itself has a low collection value. Apart from its historical heritage and meaning, it is not as cost-effective as collecting a set of old mine glass jadeite.
It's really useless.
No one raised the bid anymore.
But just because these people don’t dare doesn’t mean that everyone doesn’t dare, for example - the private room with purple lights.
"Four million." The purple light came on, and a clear female voice called out the price.
It’s Liu Sisi.
Lou Mingxin continued: "Five million."
"Six million... pounds." When it was her turn, Liu Sisi called out casually.
To outsiders, the sound was as lazy as it could be, as if what was given out in the end was not money but readily available napkins.
Everyone sighed.
Lou Mingxin: "Seven million." Not hurried or impatient.
For a moment, it was difficult to predict the outcome and to tell who was better.
Everyone was already stunned.
Liu Sisi: "Ten million." The unit was omitted, and the transition from the established US dollar to British pounds instantly showed a trend of exponential growth.
"Eleven million." Lou Mingxin's voice was slightly deep.
Both private rooms were taken, but there was only one item.
Jiang Fuyue winked at Liu Sisi. She was determined to get this thing. It didn't matter how much money it was. The thing she had the most right now was money!
"Twenty million!" Liu Sisi spoke directly.
It was obvious that they no longer had the patience to deal with Lou Mingxin and planned to make a quick decision, jumping directly from 11 million to 20 million.
Everyone sighed, just for a broken chalcedony?
What is a rich person? See, this is it!
An item with a starting price of three million US dollars was instantly bid up to twenty million pounds, more than ten times the price.
Lou Mingxin's face looked extremely ugly, and the male secretary stood aside, not daring to breathe.
Until outside is ready to knock -
"Twenty million pounds once... Twenty million pounds twice..."
Lou Mingxin gritted her teeth, and the secretary could clearly see the confusion in her eyes.
But in the end, Lou Mingxin said: "...that's all."
Besides this one, there are other things to photograph.
"Twenty million pounds three times! Deal!"
Bang——
The final word.
"Congratulations to Yufeng Group for winning the silver-rimmed, intaglio-carved red chalcedony jade seal!"
The applause was thunderous and lasted for a long time.
Lou Mingxin gritted his teeth, a flicker of unwillingness flashed across his eyes, and ordered his male secretary: "Go and find out who this person from Yufeng Group is..."
It's as if he's specifically against her!
…
Purple Lantern Private Room.
The waiter walked in carrying a tray, lowering his head and bowing.
The tray just happened to contain the red chalcedony seal that had been on the table.
"This is what you just won at the auction. Please inspect it."
Ignoring the white gloves offered by the waiter, Jiang Fuyue directly reached out and took the exquisitely carved carnelian into his palm, playing with it for a moment, and then casually handed it to Liu Sisi, "Take a look at it too, it doesn't seem to be that interesting."
The waiter's eyelids jumped, seeing that the priceless carnelian was being played with like a toy by a man, and then casually thrown to his woman to look at?
This is simply not treating money as money!
Even an outsider watching him would be terrified. What if he fell?
That's 20 million pounds! My dad!
No matter how unreliable Jiang Fuyue was, the waiter could only complain silently in his heart. Now he had to put on a smile and humbly asked, "Have you passed the inspection?"
"good."
"Would you like to pay by card or check?"
Jiang Fuyue didn't even need to say anything, Liu Sisi had already handed over the check for 20 million that she had prepared long ago. In the issuer column, the signature "Jiang" was flowing and beautiful.
"Okay." The waiter bowed and retreated.
The first auction item was sold at a sky-high price of 20 million pounds, and everyone also watched the "battle" for private rooms for free.
It doesn’t matter whether today’s auction will yield any results. It’s more interesting to sit on the mountain and watch the fight between the two tigers, isn’t it?
Jiang Fuyue sat on the leather sofa in the private room. Her high vantage point allowed her to see every movement in the hall, but the people downstairs could not see what was happening in the private room.
Inequality is taken for granted and exists with impunity and is accepted and observed by everyone.
"Are we going to continue filming?" Liu Sisi asked.
"It depends."
At this time, the second item had been delivered to the hall.
Perhaps because of the astronomical price paid for chalcedony, the host's pleasant voice couldn't conceal the trembling of excitement: "Now, please welcome the second auction item..."
As soon as he finished speaking, a beautiful host in cheongsam presented the tray.
"As we all know, porcelain is a national treasure of China, and blue-and-white porcelain is the pinnacle of it. However, blue-and-white porcelain is also divided into different grades, with Yuan blue-and-white porcelain being the most prestigious. This piece on the stage is a Yuan blue-and-white jar depicting Guiguzi descending the mountain, certified by 72 international appraisers."
It turned out to be Yuan blue and white porcelain!
Most of the people present were Chinese, and when they heard that it was such a treasure, they gasped.
As expected of a Ketijin-level auction, two items were sold in a row, both of which were top-quality, and any one of them could be the main attraction.
"...The main decoration on the jar is the 'Guiguzi Descending the Mountain' painting, depicting the story of Sun Bin's master, Guiguzi, who, at the repeated request of Qi envoy Su Dai, agreed to descend the mountain to rescue the famous Qi generals Sun Bin and Dugu Chen, who were trapped by the Yan army. This vessel was sold at Christie's London on July 12, 2005, at the 'Chinese Ceramics, Fine Arts and Export Crafts' auction, for £14 million, or £15.688 million including premium, equivalent to approximately 230 million RMB, setting a world record for the highest price paid for a Chinese work of art at auction at the time."
"Now, this exquisite piece has been rediscovered. What a rare opportunity! The starting price is 20 million pounds, and each bid must be no less than 500,000!"
"Next, the bidding begins—"
"Twenty-one million." Someone in the third row, on the far left, was the first to raise a sign.
This reserve price has already discouraged most people, so the bidding progress is not fast, and can even be said to be slow and cautious.
Until the amount reached more than 30 million.
"Thirty-two million once, thirty-two million twice, thirty-two hundred..."
"Forty million." The voice came from Lou Ming's heart.
Wow——
“He strikes again!”
"It's a shame I missed out on the Chalcedony. Boss Lou, are you planning to make a comeback?"
"It seems that we are bound to win..."
"Do you think Yufeng Group will continue to bid this time?"
(End of this chapter)
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