"Alright then, let’s start the auction. Young Master Yang, what do you think the starting bid should be?" Housekeeper Sun reluctantly agreed and asked Yang Hong.
"I’m not too familiar with this either, how about starting at ten thousand taels, with each increase no less than one thousand taels?" Yang Hong suggested. This was as Fourth Miss Zhao had instructed, to start high so that the pit could be dug deeper and Mu Hanyan could fall harder.
"Good, let’s begin then. Ten thousand taels to start, with each increment no less than one thousand taels," Housekeeper Sun announced.
"I bid eleven thousand taels," Yuan Tianbo provocatively glanced at Mu Hanyan, making the first bid.
"Twelve thousand taels." Playing along with the act, Mu Hanyan promptly followed.
"Thirteen thousand taels." Yuan Tianbo pressed on.
"Fourteen thousand taels." Mu Hanyan didn’t yield an inch.
The two of them calmly increased their bids, and little by little, the fire was stoked.
The crowd around them smacked their lips, startled by the opening bid of ten thousand taels and clearly seeing that the two men were merely acting out of spite. They were excited to see how high the final bid would go.
For a moment, the auction hall seethed with energy.
"Twenty thousand!" Seeing Mu Hanyan’s fervor escalate, Yuan Tianbo immediately raised the bid to twenty thousand. He didn’t want to drag it out; he was waiting to see how things would unfold.
"Twenty-five thousand." Mu Hanyan feigned a rush of blood to the head and raised the bid by five thousand taels.
"Thirty thousand." Yuan Tianbo hoped for Mu Hanyan to be impulsive—the more impulsive, the better. He scoffed at Mu Hanyan, effectively flaunting his attitude of crushing him with wealth.
"Forty thousand." Mu Hanyan, indeed "falling for the trap," added another ten thousand without hesitation.
"Fifty thousand." Seeing Mu Hanyan take the bait, Yuan Tianbo grew more excited and poured more fuel on the fire.
Mu Hanyan hesitated a moment, contemplating that digging this pit might end up burying himself if it were too deep. The price was already high; should he just bury Yuan Tianbo instead?
"Brother Mu, you absolutely cannot let a scoundrel like Yuan Tianbo win. What is his status, and what is yours? If you lose to him, how will you face anyone in the future?" ****Fan saw Mu Hanyan’s hesitation and began to incite further trouble.
"Sixty thousand." Mu Hanyan observed Yuan Tianbo’s expression. Fifty thousand was probably not his limit; the pit could indeed be dug deeper.
"Brother is mighty! That’s the way, crush that bastard Yuan Tianbo with money." ****Fan, seeing Mu Hanyan stimulated by his words, excitedly flattered him further.
Outside the hall, the Third Elder let out a long sigh, while Mu Huaidong next to him turned his head away in contempt.
They had come today to invite Shan Ling to divinate for Mu Ziqing, but they had not expected to witness this scene. ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇ ꜰʀᴏᴍ novęlfire.net
Others might not comprehend the grievances and character traits between Mu Hanyan and these heirs of Heishi City, but they knew quite a lot. With decades of life experience, the Third Elder, and the insights Mu Huaidong had gained from years of experiences abroad, they could tell something was amiss.
"Does Mu Hanyan really not suspect that Yuan Tianbo and ****Fan are colluding? One plays the good guy, the other the bad, purposely ensnaring him," the Third Elder sighed.
Initially, having heard Shan Ling’s unprincipled words of praise, his impression of Mu Hanyan had somewhat improved, thinking he was just young and naive, not beyond redemption, and might actually turn out well.
But now, witnessing his foolishness again, he began to doubt Shan Ling’s judgment.