Chapter 52

Hearing that the price of the teacup had soared to 500 million, Bryant's face turned pale. If he had known this thing could be hyped up so high, he should have gone for the pair of phoenix porcelain vases instead!

However, the thought of giving up was still unbearable to him. Ru porcelain is already extremely rare, and a complete and exquisite set of "After the Rain, the Sky Clears" is priceless. Giving it up like this would be a lifelong regret.

"510 million!" Bryant almost gritted his teeth as he shouted out this price.

Mr. Li from Wanzhou sighed when he heard Bryant bid again. He had no more strength to offer a higher price.

Mr. Ni from the capital, although he had 600 million in funds and did not want the Americans to buy the national treasure, felt it was a loss to spend 600 million on a teacup, so he did not bid again either.

"510 million once! 510 million twice! 510 million three times! Sold, congratulations to Mr. Bryant from the United States!"

Seeing that the first sky-blue teacup belonged to him, Bryant smiled. He turned to his secretary and said, "Transfer another billion dollars in working capital to me. The price this time might be higher than I expected."

"Yes, sir!"

The secretary quickly injected a billion dollars into Bryant's account, giving him more confidence. After all, a billion dollars in US dollars is several billion in RMB.

For the second teacup, Bryant did not participate in the bidding at the beginning. When the price broke 200 million, he reappeared.

"This American!" Mr. Li gritted his teeth and directly bid, "400 million!"

He saw that Bryant wanted to drive up the price, probably because he was unhappy about paying 500 million for the teacup and wanted to make him spend more money.

"450 million!" Bryant responded directly.

"500 million!" Mr. Li, in a hurry, revealed his bottom line again.

"510 million!" Bryant loudly said.

Hearing the American bid 510 million again, the scene fell silent, and no one followed.

Spending over a billion on two teacups was truly a display of wealth. There were still two teacups and a crucial teapot left to be auctioned!

Just now, a pair of exquisite sky-blue phoenix vases were sold for less than 1.4 billion!

"510 million once! 510 million twice! 510 million three times! Sold, congratulations to Mr. Bryant from the United States!" The auctioneer's hammer fell, deciding the归属 of the second teacup.

After a short break, the auctioneer returned to the stage and presented the third teacup.

Similarly, when the bidding reached over 200 million, Bryant reappeared, and the scene once again turned into a showdown between Mr. Li and Bryant.

"Why is this American driving the price up so high again?" someone asked in confusion.

"He probably isn't trying to drive up the price but to collect the entire set!"

"Yes, he must be collecting the entire set. Wait and see, the remaining teacup and teapot will also go to him!"

"My goodness, to get the entire set of Ru porcelain teaware, how wealthy must he be?"

"Haven't you heard of the Rockwell Group? It's one of the top five conglomerates in the United States. Bryant is a direct descendant of the Rockwell family, controlling one-sixth of the family's assets. He loves antiques, and several of the highest-priced antique auctions in Europe and America were driven by him!"

"My goodness, with him here today, no one else stands a chance. The prices are soaring, almost like the Pacific Ocean!"

Mr. Ni from the capital, hearing the crowd's discussion, felt a surge of anger. The Americans were being too excessive, not content with two pieces of Ru porcelain, they even wanted the entire set. How could our national treasures be given to them in full?

At this moment, Mr. Li bid 500 million again, followed by Bryant bidding 510 million, and the scene fell silent once more.

Without a doubt, everyone thought the teacup would go to Bryant again.

"550 million!" Mr. Ni stood up, deciding to drive the price up further to prevent the American from having it so easily.

Bryant's eyebrows furrowed. Spending 510 million on two teacups was already a severe premium, and he didn't expect the third one to go even higher!

Should he follow?

No way! I've already spent over a billion, and I have two teacups. How can I not follow?

"560 million!" Bryant said.

"570 million!" Mr. Ni was not to be outdone.

"580 million!" Bryant raised the bid again.

"600 million!" Mr. Ni was furious, putting all his cards on the table.

"600 million, 600 million!" The scene buzzed with discussion.

A porcelain vase being auctioned for 600 million was expected, but no one thought a teacup could reach 600 million!

This was truly a crazy night!

"610 million!" Bryant gritted his teeth and followed.

He was determined to get the entire set of Ru porcelain!

"610 million once! 610 million twice! 610 million three times! Sold, congratulations to Mr. Bryant from the United States!"

With the auctioneer's hammer falling, the third teacup also went to the American.

"Damn American!" Mr. Ni clenched his teeth and started making a call.

"Hello, is that Mr. Zhang? It's me, Ni Liqun. Yes, I'm at an antique auction, but I don't have enough money. Can you lend me some? How much? Whatever you have, I'll take it. I don't have much cash now, but I can mortgage four properties in Australia. Don't worry!"

After the call, Ni Liqun borrowed another 200 million. He angrily aimed for the last teacup, determined to keep it in the country!

After a short break, the fourth and final teacup appeared.

The auctioneer had just started when Mr. Li from Wanzhou directly bid, "500 million!"

He only had 500 million, so if he could buy it, he would; if not, so be it!

"510 million!" Bryant quickly followed.

"600 million!" Ni Liqun shouted.

This shout was earth-shattering, making everyone scream in surprise.

An item with a base price of 70 million was bid to 500 million on the first offer and 600 million on the third. This was absolutely a record!

"610 million!" Bryant said calmly.

"620 million!" Ni Liqun called out.

"630 million!" Bryant shouted.

"640 million!" Ni Liqun continued.

"Over, over, it's more expensive than the phoenix vase!"

"Too exciting, a teacup is actually more expensive than the phoenix vase, anything can happen!"

"Let's see how high this price can go!"

Bryant snorted coldly, his eyes blazing with determination. He had already acquired the first three teacups; how could he give up on the fourth?

"650 million!"

"660 million!" Ni Liqun was not to be outdone.

"670 million!" Bryant continued.

...

The two alternated bids without much consideration, each one following the other, instantly pushing the auction to an unprecedented climax!

Everyone's hearts were racing. If this teacup could break the record set by the phoenix vase, it would definitely be the headline news tomorrow!

One auction, two records broken, it would be strange if it didn't make the headlines!

"700 million!" In the heated atmosphere, Ni Liqun pushed the bid to a new height!

"Already 700 million! A 700 million level!" The crowd cheered in unison.

Bryant stood up from his seat, his eyes full of anger. For just a broken teacup, the other party had bid up to 700 million, which was too much!

He was tired of competing with the other party in increments of 10 million, so he directly said, "750 million!"

In terms of wealth, there are few in the world who can match the Rockwell family!

"750 million! It's on par with the phoenix vase! One more bid and it will break the record!" The crowd buzzed with discussion.

The entire hall then fell silent like a midnight, everyone looking at Ni Liqun, hoping he would bid an even more shocking number.

Ni Liqun, influenced by the atmosphere, said, "760 million!"

"760 million, indeed a new record!" Many collectors slapped their thighs, and some even jumped up from their seats!

Today's auction was truly thrilling, setting a record of 760 million for a single item, and it wasn't the expected porcelain vase but one of the four teacups, distinguished only by being the last one presented!