Chapter 451 - 450: Lu Family Auction 4

The true forms of the Ice Tree and Fire Tree were finally revealed for all to see.

"Whoa! The temperature has dropped noticeably!"

"The temperature dropped over there, but it’s gotten a lot hotter over here!"

The people on the first-floor main hall were all buzzing with excitement, discussing the temperature changes.

Although the people in the second-floor private boxes couldn’t feel the obvious temperature changes themselves, they could tell what was happening from the discussions on the first floor.

At that moment, the auctioneer began to introduce the properties of the Ice Tree and the Fire Tree.

After Li Yuexing and his two companions heard the auctioneer explain that the Ice Tree and Fire Tree lived up to their names—that you could feel a change in temperature just by getting close—their expressions immediately turned serious.

"So, are these trees... is there really only one pair?"

Li Yuexing figured that if the trees’ effects were really as the auctioneer described, he would want more than just one of each.

At the very least, he’d need two of each to even begin to meet his needs.

’One for the office, one for my primary residence, and if I can get more, another for my room at the old family estate. Actually, three of each would be best.’

"As of now, that’s the case."

Scarcity creates value. Lu Yunque didn’t plan on releasing too many into the market at first.

As for the seeds he’d bought from Yun Zijin, as long as he stored them properly, he knew they’d come in handy one day.

"Bro, can you get me two more pairs? It’s way more eco-friendly than using an AC. Protecting the environment starts with me."

Lu Yunque and the others were dumbfounded by the sheer absurdity of Li Yuexing’s words.

"Mr. Li, have you lost your mind?"

’Replacing AC units with Ice Trees and Fire Trees, and using environmentalism as an excuse? The nerve of this guy.’

"What’s the problem? I’ll put one in my office and one in my bedroom. Won’t that have the same effect as an AC?"

The more Li Yuexing thought about it, the more feasible his idea seemed.

Yun Zijin and the others said nothing. ’Well, good luck with that,’ they thought.

"Sure, assuming you can win it in the auction," Lu Yunque said. "For now, there’s only this one pair."

Down in the first-floor hall, the sight of the Ice Tree and Fire Tree had already sparked a fierce bidding war.

The highest bid had already reached five million, but not many had dropped out. People were still constantly raising their bids.

Five million was far from the final price.

It wasn’t just the people on the floor below who wanted them; Li Yuexing wasn’t the only one interested in their private box either.

Lu Yunque had noticed just a moment ago that when the others saw the Ice Tree and Fire Tree, their eyes were practically glowing green with envy.

"Ten million!"

Once the bidding from the first-floor hall reached ten million, most of them stopped raising their paddles.

At this point, the occupants of the second-floor boxes began to join the fray.

"Twelve million."

"Twelve million! We have twelve million! The esteemed guest in Box Number One bids twelve million! Do I hear a higher bid? Twelve million, going once!"

"Fifteen million!"

"Fifteen million! The bid is fifteen million, still from Box Number One! It seems the competition within Box Number One is fierce as well! Fifteen million, going once!"

"Eighteen million!"

"Eighteen million! The esteemed guest in Box Number Two bids eighteen million! Eighteen million, going once!"

The auctioneer no longer made any attempt to hide the broad smile on his face.

Many people were already trying to calculate just how much the Ice Tree and Fire Tree would ultimately sell for, and whether it was worth it.

"Twenty million!"

This time, a wealthy-sounding bidder from the first-floor hall suddenly jumped in with a new bid.

Yun Zijin had originally thought the bidding would stop at eighteen million. He never expected it to reach twenty million.

However, this clearly wasn’t the ideal price for others, as people in the second-floor boxes continued to bid without hesitation.

The bidding only began to slow down when the price finally reached fifty million.

But two or three parties were still locked in a stalemate.

In Box Number One, three different people were even taking turns to bid.

The most frantic bidder, however, was still Li Yuexing.

When the price reached fifty million, Fu Ze and Sheng Hao stopped bidding and instead looked over at Lu Yunque and Yun Zijin.

Those two hadn’t participated in the bidding at all. Besides... they didn’t believe for a second that Lu Yunque truly had only this one pair of the Ice Tree and Fire Tree.

Still, this was Lu Yunque’s auction. They had to bid a little to give him and Yun Zijin some face.

But once the price exceeded their ideal limit, the two of them backed out.

Scarcity creates value. They knew Lu Yunque wanted to build hype for the Ice Tree and Fire Tree and secure a good price in the process.

Once the time was right, he’d bring out a second pair. By then, even outside of an auction, interested buyers would be too embarrassed to offer a low price.

Li Yuexing, on the other hand, hadn’t thought that far ahead and was still bidding aggressively.

"Eighty-five million!"

"Eighty-five million! The guest in Box Number One bids eighty-five million! Do I hear any higher? Eighty-five million, going once! Eighty-five million, going twice! Eighty-five million, sold for a third and final time! Congratulations to our esteemed guest in Box Number One for successfully winning the only pair of the Ice Tree and Fire Tree in today’s auction!"

In the end, Li Yuexing successfully won the pair of the Ice Tree and Fire Tree for a price of eighty-five million.

"Congratulations!"

Fu Ze extended a hand, his smile unwavering. But to Li Yuexing, it looked suspiciously like he was gloating.

"What’s with that look on your face?"

Li Yuexing felt like something was off.

Lu Yunque gave an awkward cough or two but didn’t explain.

Yun Zijin just stared at the ceiling, clearly having no intention of answering.

"Do you really think," Fu Ze said, "that Old Lu would auction these trees off if he didn’t have any for himself?"

That eighty-five million was basically spent for nothing.

"You!"

Li Yuexing shot a look at Lu Yunque. It only took a single glance for him to realize he’d been had.

While eighty-five million wasn’t a huge sum to him, it wasn’t like his money grew on trees, either. This was going to sting for a few days.

"Is it too late to back out?"

"Hey now! Auction house rules: all sales are final unless there’s an issue on our end. No refunds or exchanges. Besides, eighty-five million is just pocket change for President Li. You wouldn’t fuss over something so small, would you?"

"Lu! Yun! Que!"

’Sometimes, I really want to call the cops.’

But he’d bid on the items of his own free will. Even if he regretted it now, there was nowhere to appeal.

"Fine, fine, fine. So that’s how you want to play, is it?"

"Um... eighty-five million... isn’t *that* much. How about I throw in a lucky charm for you?"

Using his bag for cover, Yun Zijin took a Fortune Talisman out of his system inventory.

’If it’s from the System, it’s got to be good.’

Li Yuexing looked at the small, square bag in Yun Zijin’s hand and blinked. Suddenly... the deal didn’t seem so hard to swallow anymore.

"For me?"

"Take it or leave it. Zijin’s only giving it to you because he feels sorry for you. What’s with that look on your face!"

Lu Yunque snatched the talisman from Yun Zijin’s hand and tossed it straight to Li Yuexing.

Lu Yunque had personally experienced the effects of the lucky charm, so while he was a little jealous, he had to admit he hadn’t played fair today.

’This talisman... Li Yuexing is getting off easy.’

’If I’d known it would turn out like this, I never would’ve let Li Yuexing win the Ice Tree and Fire Tree today.’