At the art exhibition at Château McKinley, the air was filled with soothing cello music and a subtle, gentle fragrance. Well-dressed guests, holding champagne, admired the artworks while spontaneously forming several seemingly loose but actually well-defined small groups.
Although she was faced with invisible yet real high walls, Lin Jicheng was unconcerned. To her, the artworks on the platform were far more worthy of her attention.
"The imperial seal of the Roman Empire, with a starting bid of eight million euros..."
On the grand stage at McKinley Castle, a professional auctioneer was displaying various items for auction. Beside him stood William McKinley, who had just greeted Lin Jicheng. As the organizer of the entire event, although he sat in a corner of the stage, he still held considerable weight, firmly controlling the pace of the entire auction.
Under his arrangement, even more precious exhibits were brought to the forefront—
"A painting by the Renaissance master Raphael, depicting the Virgin Mary and the Christ Child on a biblical theme, of extremely high quality and in exceptional condition, with a starting bid of ten million euros!"
"A sculpture by Renaissance artist Michelangelo, in excellent condition, starting bid: twelve million euros!"
"The crown of King Louis XVI of France, adorned with more than a dozen jewels including gold, rubies, sapphires, tourmalines, and pearls, has a starting bid of 13 million euros!"
"Queen Victoria's tiara, adorned with pearls and diamonds, was worn on her wedding anniversary and is of great historical significance. The starting bid is 15 million euros!"
Exquisite products appeared on the exhibition stand in a flowing stream. These products were not only extremely well preserved and of high quality, but also had profound historical value, with many dating back hundreds of years!
Faced with these basic products, even those who called themselves European nobles no longer held back, and bidding wars erupted one after another. Countless social celebrities argued fiercely over their favorite exhibits!
Among everyone, Lin Jicheng paid special attention to the Duke of von Demier and the chairman of de Rothschild.
Even though he hadn't been to Europe much before, Lin Jicheng had heard of these two resounding surnames, and the Duke of von Demier and the de Rothschilds held significant positions in their respective families.
Both men possessed deep family connections and substantial cash flow from their businesses. They appeared remarkably composed and calm at the auction, and whenever they raised their paddles, they consistently delivered a decisive high price, silencing the entire audience…
The two controlled the rhythm of the entire auction, like two spiders standing in the middle of a giant spider web woven from bloodlines and wealth, controlling all the prey around them...
As Lin Jicheng looked at the exhibits on the display stand, he also observed the undercurrents of relationships among the so-called "elite old money circle" around him, finding the drama both on and off stage equally fascinating...
During the auction, Lin Jicheng raised his paddle several times and won a few artworks at a fairly standard price. For most of the auction, Lin Jicheng did not stand out. He was like an Eastern face who had accidentally wandered into the circle of old European money. He might have some taste, but he was not at a point where he needed to attract their attention.
As more and more products appeared, the auction reached its climax—
When a painting, covered with a white sheet, was carefully placed on the display stand by two staff members wearing white gloves, the entire hall fell silent. Everyone attending the auction realized the immense significance of this item—
The auctioneer took a deep breath, his tone becoming very serious:
"Ladies and gentlemen, next, we will present a special highlight of this auction—"
Just as everyone's curiosity was piqued and all eyes were focused on the auctioneer's platform, with a "whoosh," the auctioneer abruptly ripped off the white sheet covering the stage—
It was a portrait painting; the dark background made the young woman in the center stand out even more.
The soft, warm light illuminated the girl as she turned her head to look back. Her eyes were bright and clear, yet held a pure and wistful quality. Her lips were slightly parted, gleaming in the light, as if she wanted to tell the viewer of the painting something, but remained silent...
The visual focus of this painting naturally lingers on the girl's pearl necklace. All the pearls are lifelike, resembling a large, lustrous teardrop, so vivid and expressive, showcasing the painter's unique skill...
"This painting... the style of this painting is quite distinctive, could it be..."
"How come this style is so similar to Vermeer's style?"
"But... this master has very few masterpieces. I've never heard of this one before."
The moment the painting appeared, the entire auction hall fell silent for a moment. All the attendees were stunned for a moment, and then they burst into a heated discussion!
Yes, that's right!
He was very pleased with the enthusiastic attention the painting had attracted during the auction, and he firmly and solemnly announced—
"That's right, ladies and gentlemen..."
"You guessed right, now is the moment to witness history—"
"This painting, titled 'Girl with a Pearl Necklace,' has been authenticated by our McKinley family through years of scientific and art historical research, and has been confirmed as a long-lost original by the Dutch master Jan Vermeer!"
"Clearly, this painting employs Vermeer's most classic and iconic techniques. The overall atmosphere is warm and gentle, yet it is also rich in narrative..."
"You should know that although Vermeer was a painter with extremely high technical skills, very few of his works have survived. So far, only forty-five of them have been discovered."
"The painting we are auctioning today is the forty-sixth verifiable masterpiece by Vermeer. It can be said that each of this master's masterpieces is one less available, making it an extremely rare and highly scarce work!"
The moment the host finished speaking, the entire venue fell into a deathly silence, followed by another burst of gasps!
“Vermeer…every work by this artist commands an exceptionally high price, simply because they are so rare…”
"Yes, each of his works has its own unique techniques that others can't imitate!"
"I want to buy this... Don't anyone try to take it from me!"
"How could this be?! This clearly belongs to me!"
The atmosphere at the scene was stirred up to a great degree, and at this moment, the auctioneer revealed his price—
"Starting bid: 50 million euros!"
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