Upon seeing Cao Cao's suggestion, Cao Song immediately rushed to the palace to seek the emperor's permission.
Liu Hong immediately decided to follow Cao Cao's suggestion and allow powerful families to share the quota, since more people would benefit greatly from it and it would be of great help to the development of the area in the future.
Inside the auction hall, everyone had formed groups, all eager to secure a spot – strength in numbers, after all!
Seeing that the discussion among the people below had been completed, the official in front of the stage immediately announced in a loud voice:
"Now that everyone has finished their discussion, the auction will begin! The starting price for each spot is fifty million coins, and each bid must be at least five million coins higher!"
The crowd exchanged bewildered glances. This was far too high! The starting price alone was equivalent to the entire fortune of a small family!
"I now announce: the bidding for the first spot has begun. Please make your bids!"
"My Yuan family offers 80 million!"
As soon as the official on stage finished speaking, Yuan Cheng below raised his wooden plaque and directly increased the price by thirty million.
"Hmph~ My Chen family offers 130 million!"
Chen Chen from the Chen family glanced at Yuan Cheng, then raised his wooden plaque and directly increased the price by fifty million.
Yuan Cheng frowned and looked in the direction of the Chen family. He found that the Chen family and more than ten other prominent families had already united. No wonder they dared to be the first to stand up and challenge the Yuan family.
"Hehe~ Nephew Wenkai, it seems the Chen family wants to compete with your Yuan family here!"
Sima Liang, holding a staff, stroked his white beard and looked at Yuan Cheng with a smile, his words full of provocation.
"That depends on how capable he is!" Yuan Cheng smiled dismissively.
Then Yuan Cheng raised the wooden plaque in his hand again, "My Yuan family offers two hundred million coins!"
As Yuan Cheng made his bid, the scene erupted in uproar. He had actually raised the price by 70 million. The Yuan family was truly wealthy and powerful.
Then Yuan Cheng looked at Chen Chen with a smile. There were quite a few people who had just sought to join forces with his Yuan family, so on average, it wouldn't cost much.
Moreover, the Yuan family already had the pre-selected qualification. This bid was just to provoke others; to put it bluntly, they were just a shill.
"My Chen family offers 300 million!" Chen Chen retorted without hesitation.
"The Yuan family has offered 500 million!"
Yuan Cheng casually raised the wooden sign in his hand, then glanced at Chen Chen with a smile once more.
"The Chen family offered 1 billion."
Chen Chen snorted coldly in his heart, then raised the wooden plaque in his hand, directly increasing it by 500 million, and then looked at Yuan Cheng provocatively.
Everyone present turned their attention to Yuan Cheng.
Yuan Cheng smiled calmly, closed his eyes, and sat there, no longer bidding.
"The Chen family has offered 1 billion. Are there any higher bids?"
As the bidding soared to one billion, the official presiding over the event excitedly looked down at the crowd to see if anyone else would bid.
To his disappointment, the crowd below the stage did not seem to have any intention of raising the price. After all, the Chen family had finally managed to get the Yuan family to stop raising the price. If they jumped out at this moment, wouldn't that be offending the Chen family and the family behind them to death?
Moreover, although the Chen family has taken one spot, there are still nine left, and their chances are still very good. Offending the Chen family at this time would be unwise.
Do you think this is an auction? Wrong! This is about human relationships and social interactions.
So everyone in the audience sat there in silence, and no one else made a bid.
Three breaths later, seeing that no one had made a bid, the presiding official sighed slightly.
The presiding official then took out a token and handed it to a servant beside him. The servant took the token and respectfully handed it to Chen Chen from below the stage.
Chen Chen and everyone around him looked at the exquisite wooden plaque in his hand with joy, because it meant that they would be qualified to purchase coal for the next five years.
And so, the first spot sold for a high price of one billion. Cao Song and Yuan Feng, who were sitting on the stage, also showed happy smiles. Judging from the current situation, this auction will definitely be a great success.
The official in charge then took out a second token and announced loudly, "The bidding for the second spot will now begin. Please place your bids!"
"My Xiahou family offers five hundred million!"
No sooner had the presiding official finished speaking than Xiahou Dun's father, Xiahou Cai, was the first to raise his wooden plaque, directly raising the price to 500 million.
The Xiahou family had always kept a low profile, but after Cao Song gained power, the Xiahou family gradually became more flamboyant because they were from the same clan as Cao Song's family.
In particular, the brothers Xiahou Dun and Xiahou Yuan spent their days wandering the streets of Luoyang, frequently provoking and beating up the纨绔子弟 (sons of wealthy and powerful families) from noble families, all while calling it chivalry and justice.
However, due to the mutual protection between the Cao and Xiahou families, the Xiahou brothers did not receive much punishment. This was because the spoiled brats they beat up were all verifiable individuals who had a history of bullying the innocent.
Therefore, the Xiahou and Cao families, relying on the two brothers Xiahou Dun, offended almost all the powerful families in the Sili region.
They weren't angry that their own sons were beaten, but rather that the Xiahou family showed them no mercy, directly exposing the shameful deeds of those纨绔子弟 (sons of wealthy families who squandered their wealth). As a result, Yang Qiu's people frequently visited them, causing them to live in constant fear, lest Yang Qiu seize upon some incriminating evidence against them.
Therefore, when they saw Xiahou suddenly make an offer, other families with old grudges against the Cao and Xiahou families are also preparing to take this opportunity to ruthlessly trample on the Xiahou family.
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