The next day, rumors began to spread in the city of art.

The news that the Meyer Chamber of Commerce would participate in this auction spread throughout the city like snowflakes.

The next day, while Louis was still having lunch, he was contacted by remote communication from the Am Empire.

Louis put on a mask and communicated the situation with relevant members of the Amn Empire.

To be precise, it was the Am Empire that wanted to know what Mayer was thinking.

…

"This time it's mainly for the reputation of the Meyer Chamber of Commerce. I think you all know that when it develops to a certain level, the reputation of the Chamber of Commerce will become one of the most important cards of our Meyer."

Louis, wearing a mask, raised a glass of red wine and said to the president of the Cai Ke Tong Shen Chamber of Commerce on the other side of the communicator:

"In other words, I also need to show my loyalty to the empire now."

The president of Cai Ke Tong Shen wiped his sweat and said:

"I understand, I understand. After all, with the help of the upper echelons of the empire, the Chamber of Commerce can expand more smoothly."

He hesitated for a moment, then said awkwardly:

"You really don't want to reconsider it? "Snow Country Border" is a good work, and we can also be sure that it is definitely Ms. Xilin's posthumous work, but..."

Louis said calmly:

“The value of a work of art is determined by the artistic crystallization and historical trajectory condensed in it.”

"Ms. Celine's work guarantees its lower limit, but its value depends on the celebrity anecdotes it leaves behind."

He drank the red wine in the glass in one gulp and said with a smile:

"I know what you're worried about. Since the Meyer Chamber of Commerce plans to participate, the Snow Country Border will most likely exceed its original historical value."

No one knows the operations of those "collectors" better than Louis.

They say they cherish art, but they are actually calculating.

In the past, many works were auctioned off in a targeted manner to reap the assets of certain people.

The most typical example is the auctions of domestic antiques conducted by foreign auction houses, which will reap as much domestic revenue as possible.

After it was confirmed that the Meyer Chamber of Commerce would participate in the auction, the probability that the final auction price of "Snow Country Border" would increase became very high.

Because everyone knows that Meyer, a top businessman, has close ties with the Enser royal family.

It is impossible to expect that the auctioneer from the Am Empire will not try every possible means to cheat the Meyer Chamber of Commerce out of this one-time transaction.

"I know you are worried that the extra premium will cause losses to our Meyer Chamber of Commerce."

"But, I don't care."

“The loss is also within my estimation.”

Yes, the person in charge from Caiketongshen sent a message to Louis to consult him, but it was not because he was really kind enough to remind him.

Instead, he was worried that the harvest feast prepared by another force in the Am Empire would make Meyer feel bad, and ultimately affect the cooperation between Meyer Chamber of Commerce and Caiketongshen.

It's not impossible.

There are many cities that frequently host auctions, and there are many better places than art cities.

Why choose the City of Arts?

Just because "Snow Country Border" is a masterpiece of art lost from the Enther Empire, the top businessmen of the Enther Empire are more willing to pay a large sum of money for it when it is auctioned in the City of Art.

even……

If it can attract the royal family, so much the better.

But this behavior undoubtedly angered the upper echelons of Enther.

Especially now that the Amn Empire and Unther are cooperating happily.

The Caiketongshen Chamber of Commerce does not want any conflicts that may affect the cooperative relationship between the two parties to arise during their cooperation with Enther on behalf of the Amn Empire.

So they shouldn't have interfered in this kind of thing, but they still came to remind Meyer.

Louis accepted his kindness, but still expressed his determination to be a "sucker" with a smile.

Seeing Louis's confident smile, the head of Cai Ke Tong Shen was speechless and could only smile: "Then I wish you a satisfactory result in this auction. Next time you come to the Am Empire, I will give you a warm reception."

——He also understood Louis’s subtext, that this auction would not affect the cooperation between Mayer and the Am Empire.

…

[Location: Am Empire, Imperial Capital, Cai Ke Tong Shen Chamber of Commerce Headquarters]

The head of the Chamber of Commerce raised his head, looked at a middle-aged man in front of him and said, "Master ONE, Mr. Meyer has refused."

The middle-aged man called ONE said with a smile: "It seems that the Meyer Chamber of Commerce is more confident than we thought."

The person in charge said:

"Master One, do we need to do this and specifically inform the Meyer Chamber of Commerce?"

His dark eyes swirled around, and he finally revealed a cunning smile: "Rather than cooperating with the Meyer Chamber of Commerce, isn't it a better choice to first ensure that our trade routes in the Am Empire are unobstructed?"

ONE looked at the person in charge silently and said:

"Do you know who wrote Snow Border?"

"It's Ms. Xilin's work."

"Then do you know that almost all of Ms. Xilin's works produced so far have the power to turn decay into magic?"

The person in charge nodded: "But Snow Border is not."

ONE shook his red wine glass and said slowly:

"Ten years ago, Love Has Destiny, also one of Ms. Xilin's posthumous works, was purchased by the Church of Love."

"The previous owner of Love Has a Will, spent 50 years trying to figure out how to use the painting."

“But the day after Love Has Destiny was taken away by the Church of Love, it became a sacred object of the Church of Love.”

"Any archbishop of the God of Love, when holding this holy object, can exert the power of a top demigod."

"And he is a top demigod blessed by the power of the God of Love."

"But do you know how much the auction price of "Love Has Destiny" was?"

“240,000 gold coins!”

"240,000! What does that mean?"

"If we knew the hidden power of this work from the beginning, we could have auctioned it off and then negotiated with the Church of Love. It would have been possible to sell it for 2 million or even 10 million gold coins."

ONE's eyes flickered with uncertainty: "Loyal believers from the Church of Love from all over the world don't mind paying a little gold to add to the church's heritage."

"Who can guarantee that this is not the case with Snow Country Border?"

The person in charge suddenly realized: "Are you trying to test the Meyer Chamber of Commerce's ideas?"

ONE nodded and said, "If the royal family is involved, then this news must be told to FIVE. As you said, opening up internal business channels is more important than staying close to Mr. Meyer."

A trace of deep fear flashed across the person in charge's eyes:

"Even if you admire Mr. Meyer so much?"

ONE showed an undisguised smile on his face:

"Mr. Meyer is a man worthy of my respect. If he comes to the Am Empire, I will prepare the best wine and the most delicious food and welcome him with treatment comparable to that of an emperor."

"But let's talk business. I'm a member of the O5 Council, and I can't let FIVE suffer losses."

The red wine glass swayed, reflecting his sharp eyes:

"Not to mention, if Enser really has the method of using Snow Country Border, I don't want to trade such an important thing away."

"Isn't it better to buy it with money?"

“No problem is too big if it can be solved with money.”

【Location: Robert City Louis Temporary Office】

Louis turned off the communicator with the person in charge, and Beatrice came out from behind the curtain and said:

"It looks like there's some ideas over there."

Louis spread his hands and said, "It would be strange if you didn't have any ideas, but they're not that easy to fool over there."

Beatrice asked curiously:

"What do you mean?"

Louis said calmly:

"I told him in such an exaggerated tone that I would definitely win Snow Border, but he didn't react much."

"He didn't even look like he was being taken advantage of. This is totally different from the character of the Amn people."

Louis put down his red wine glass and said, "I have dealt with the person in charge of Cai Ke Tong Shen before. His greed far outweighs his ambition."

"In the waste treatment plant incident, he was willing to lower his head for short-term benefits and even wanted to prove his sincerity with his saliva."

“This kind of person values ​​short-term benefits more than long-term benefits.”

“Even though he knew that in the long run, this deal might become the basis for his resignation, he still agreed without hesitation.”

"Because Cai Ke Tong Shen's performance is not enough for him to report to his boss behind him."

"It is inevitable that Cai Ke Tong Shen will not go bankrupt. After all, the O5 Council is involved."

"But even if Cai Ke Tong Shen doesn't go bankrupt, it will be meaningless to him if the person sitting in the position of responsibility is not him."

Beatrice nodded and said:

"So he, who values ​​short-term benefits, is unlikely to come to inform us specifically?"

Louis did not reply immediately, but stood up and walked to the window, looking at the God-cast incarnation in the center of the city, and said lightly:

"No, it's because he's pursuing short-term benefits that he's so eager to contact me."

"How can a guy who can roam around the Empire of Amn and act as the white glove of the O5 Council be a fool?"

Beatrice didn't understand what Louis meant for a moment.

Louis said coldly:

"When I used the communication crystal to contact him just now, there was a silver-white decorative mirror on each side of his conference room."

"The decorative mirror is facing a direction that is not visible from the communication crystal, and there is a sofa hidden in the corner."

"Although I can't see the specific images clearly, at least I can be sure that someone is listening to our conversation somewhere that the communication crystal can't see."

Beatrice frowned and finally sighed:

"Thank goodness you were able to notice this kind of detail, but I didn't expect that the O5's white gloves would be so thoughtful."

Louis said calmly:

"It's not that he has many small plans. Cai Ke Tong Shen was originally a chamber of commerce with no subsidiaries. Becoming the white glove of O5 is a later matter."

He poured half a glass of wine into the red wine glass and said slowly:

"The Cai Ke Tong Shen Chamber of Commerce once had a glorious period. Although it is not as good as the five major chambers of commerce directly under the O5 Council, it is also considered a first-tier powerhouse."

"However, compared to an O5, he is like a candle in the wind, which could be blown out at any time."

"In the end, Cai Ketongshen took the initiative to surrender and became a white glove. Was it because he really surrendered?"

"No, it's because he has no choice. Being caught between the top chambers of commerce, it's not easy to be a fence-sitter."

"You can only submit to whoever gives you more. That's what happens to guys who are strong but not strong enough."

"The only choice is to surrender, even if it will cause hostility from the other side."

"They even have to serve as dogs for the people behind the scenes. Of course, they are not born to be dogs. They even want to fight with their 'masters'."

"The reason I didn't do it is, first, I have enough bones, and second, I can't win."

"But... it doesn't stop him from giving a slap to the person behind the scenes."

Louis looked a little dazed.

Money can make you a god, and this is also true for some countries in the monster house in the previous life.

The world has changed dramatically, but history always boomerangs back.

"…But this time, the boomerang won't hit me so easily."

Louis looked at Beatrice and said:

"Of the 1 million gold coins that the royal family has allocated, I've taken out about 50,000 to 100,000 and told the person in charge of royal procurement that I'm going to update the gallery in the palace."

Beatrice nodded and said:

"The royal family purchases a batch of high-quality works every year and supports new painters at the same time."

“If I don’t buy anything this year, it will make people suspicious.”

Louis smiled and said:

"That's why we have to confuse people and tell the procurement manager to follow the standards of previous years."

He pulled out a piece of paper from his dimensional bag and said, "This is the list of outstanding young painters that Olivia and I have discussed. We can purchase more of their works."

"If you have any new painters you think are good, add them here."

Beatrice nodded.

But she didn't know that Louis had made a lot of preparations just for this small list.

The new painters on the list are mainly based on the suggestions given by Olivia.

Olivia, who was reborn, just couldn't leave the palace that year, but she was not locked in the room.

For the second daughter of the royal family, no one knows better than her which young painters will achieve high-quality achievements in the future.

Let the Am Empire investigate with all their efforts! The final result of their investigation will only be "they are indeed supporting newcomers, and the newcomers are very good."

Louis turned around and said:

"I am basically certain that this time it will be a tough battle between us and the Amn Empire."

The white gloves of the O5 Council, the unknown people hiding in the corner and paying attention to the white gloves, the "Snow Country Border" that was deliberately promoted so that the whole continent knew about it...

There were too many coincidences coming together, and he believed that the Amn Empire did want to sell it, but it also did have the idea of ​​testing the Enther Empire.

He opened his palm, then gently clenched it, and finally showed a bright smile: "Coincidentally, in terms of pure liquid cash, the Mayer Chamber of Commerce can fight with anyone."

"A trouble that can be solved with money is not a trouble."

At this moment, Louis and Mr. ONE reached a spiritual understanding.

With undercurrents surging behind the scenes, the auction in the city of art kicked off.

…

Robert ushered in the morning.

A young man looks out at Robert City.

He pulled the hat on his head slightly lower while wearing a wizard robe and whispered, "More than a hundred years have passed, and it seems that this city hasn't changed much."

He stared at the God-cast Avatar in the center of the city, and suddenly said:

"No, there have been some changes."

Bathed in the morning sunshine, he walked out of the wilderness, like a magician waiting for a grand performance.

(End of this chapter)