Chapter 20

The next morning, Xiao Wei rushed to the film set as usual, while Su Yang, who had planned to visit the school, received a call from Xu Tianyang.

"Boss, do you have time this afternoon?"

"What's up? Do you have something to talk about?" Su Yang was very considerate of this nearly hundred-year-old subordinate.

"This afternoon, Yubaozhai is holding an autumn auction. They sent me a catalog of the auction items in advance, and there seems to be something that might interest you."

"Something that interests me." Su Yang paused, already understanding.

In his previous life in Shanghai, he was fond of buying peculiar and small jade artifacts. Some were street market goods, while others were priceless antiques. Xu Tianyang knew all about this.

Of course, what Xu Tianyang didn't know was that Su Yang's interest stemmed from a unique technique he had developed by combining the secret methods of the magic sect with the *Nine Transformations of the Azure Sky*. This technique could infuse the vibrant life force contained in the Azure Sky True Qi into jade artifacts with spiritual properties. Although the success rate depended on the strength of the jade's spirit, once successful, the jade would become an invaluable treasure capable of saving lives in critical moments.

For example, if one was severely injured, the life force within the jade would be released to save them. If one was ambushed, the jade would shatter to protect its owner, releasing powerful true qi to resist a fatal blow.

Several of these finished products were given by Su Yang to those around him, and they indeed saved lives, reducing many of his regrets.

Now, the only remaining spiritual jade is the jade pendant Su Yang retrieved from the Huaqi Bank, with no others left.

"Xu Tianyang, do you mean there are high-quality jade artifacts being auctioned there?"

"That's right. This autumn auction has a total of 120 items, including over ten small jade artifacts. I thought you might be interested, so I called to let you know."

"The auction sounds interesting."

Su Yang nodded and said, "Alright, you can come pick me up, and we'll go together to see if there's anything good."

In the afternoon, Xu Tianyang picked up Su Yang and they quickly arrived at the headquarters of Yubaozhai.

Speaking of Yubaozhai, this auction house has only been around for a little over a decade but has already gained a high reputation worldwide.

Unlike the world's most famous auction houses, Sotheby's and Christie's, which are global chains open to everyone, Yubaozhai targets a much narrower audience and has only set up auction venues in Shanghai and London, UK.

To participate in Yubaozhai's autumn auction, you must first be a member, and the basic requirement for membership is a net worth exceeding 100 million. Additionally, when applying for membership, you must undergo a series of verifications and pay an annual membership fee of 300,000 US dollars.

Despite this, many wealthy and powerful individuals are eager to become members of Yubaozhai. Often, they are not necessarily there to buy things but to join this global top-tier circle and enhance their status.

Moreover, the items auctioned by Yubaozhai are indeed highly anticipated. Here, many items that you have only heard of in rumors or that have been lost in the annals of history can often be found.

More importantly, Yubaozhai has a very strong backing. Even the top leaders of Shanghai, a megacity, show great respect to the boss of Yubaozhai, which gives you an idea of their influence.

Another unique feature is that at each auction, Yubaozhai requires participants to auction an item they bring, and the one with the highest final bid is exempt from the auction fee and granted lifetime membership.

In a sense, this unique rule is one of the key factors contributing to Yubaozhai's success. Because of this rule, people often auction items not just for money but to gain recognition in the global circle of wealthy and powerful individuals.

Furthermore, becoming a lifetime member of Yubaozhai is a significant political capital and honor for the upper echelons of society, even for those with net worths in the billions. Many are highly enthusiastic about it.

Yubaozhai holds one auction each in spring and autumn. To date, after 14 years of operation, there are only 28 lifetime members, all of whom are world-renowned wealthy and powerful individuals.

Given the large number of wealthy and powerful individuals vying for this honor, it is unrealistic to expect to achieve the highest bid without sufficient background and capital.

Xu Tianyang obtained his lifetime membership four years ago. The *Dwelling in the Fuchun Mountains* scroll he auctioned was confirmed as genuine and eventually sold for 260 million US dollars, ranking among the top ten highest bids in Yubaozhai's history.

Because of this, Xu Tianyang could bring Su Yang, who was not a member, to the auction, as lifetime members have an additional auction slot.

Around 2 PM, the autumn auction was about to begin. There were no more than a hundred participants, from all over the world. Some were quite familiar with each other, and even some members of the world's wealthiest and most powerful families were present.

Additionally, after the auction began, the 1,200 Yubaozhai members worldwide, even if they were not present, could watch the entire auction process through Yubaozhai's private satellite live stream and participate in the auction via encrypted lines.

Xu Tianyang knew that his boss did not like dealing with complicated people, so he quietly sat in a corner of the auction venue, not drawing much attention.

However, the more he tried to avoid attention, the more someone unreasonably approached him, and it was someone who didn't get along well with Xu Tianyang.

"Mr. Xu, I waited for you last year, but you didn't come to the auction, which was quite disappointing!" The man who approached was a slightly overweight, squint-eyed fat man. His tone clearly indicated some past grievances with Xu Tianyang.

"Fortunately, I met you this time. I wonder if Mr. Xu is interested in a bet?"

Four years ago, when Xu Tianyang auctioned the *Dwelling in the Fuchun Mountains* scroll, this man also auctioned a rare treasure. He thought the highest bid would definitely be his, but Xu Tianyang unexpectedly outbid him, securing the lifetime membership he thought he would surely get, and he has been resentful ever since.

"Boss, if you don't want to deal with this vulgar person, I can kill him right now." In front of Su Yang, Xu Tianyang felt like he was back to his old self, whispering to Su Yang.

Looking at his nearly hundred-year-old subordinate, Su Yang smiled and whispered, "Tianyang, when did you become so violent? I can't believe it. Your hair and beard are white, but your fighting spirit hasn't diminished."

Xu Tianyang briefly explained the past grievances to Su Yang, which piqued Su Yang's interest.

"It sounds quite interesting. Do you think this guy is planning to bid the highest this time?"

"This yellow fat man has a net worth of about 10 billion, but his family business is in the north of China, and there is a powerful figure in the older generation of his family. He has always been arrogant. After I obtained the lifetime membership a few years ago, he caused me a lot of trouble, but I didn't bother with him."

"I think he is determined to win this year, otherwise, he wouldn't come here to show off."

"Bet with him."

Su Yang couldn't stand people being arrogant in front of him, even if it wasn't directed at him but at someone close to him.

"Boss, I didn't prepare anything this time. It's not easy to come up with an item that can achieve the highest bid in a short time." Xu Tianyang looked troubled.

"You don't need to. I have one."

Su Yang smiled confidently and quickly whispered a few words to Xu Tianyang. Xu Tianyang was initially stunned but then turned to the yellow fat man and said, "It seems Mr. Huang has brought something good this year. I, Xu, have never been afraid of challenges. Let's make it a big bet."

The yellow fat man didn't expect Xu Tianyang, who already had lifetime membership, to agree. He had absolute confidence in the item he brought. Recalling his loss four years ago, he said proudly, "It's rare to see Mr. Xu so enthusiastic. What do you want to bet?"

"Let's bet on the items we bring to the auction. Whose item will have the higher bid?"

"What if I win?"

"Nothing too much, 1 billion US dollars." Xu Tianyang, who had been briefed by Su Yang, said calmly.

"1 billion US dollars?!"

The yellow fat man was taken aback, realizing his loss of composure. It wasn't his fault, as he had a net worth of nearly 10 billion, but as the head of a family business, such a large sum of money wasn't something he could lose with a word.

However, he was now in a bind. The yellow fat man took a deep breath and nodded expressionlessly, "Since Mr. Xu is so confident, I will accompany you."

After setting the bet, they called the on-site lawyer, and within ten minutes, a tripartite agreement was signed. As a notary, this high-stakes bet was immediately reported to the upper management of Yubaozhai.

As businesspeople, the upper management of Yubaozhai immediately recognized this as an excellent opportunity for hype. In a very short time, the private satellite live stream sent this sudden event to the world, attracting the attention of wealthy individuals worldwide.

In Dubai, UAE, in the long-term presidential suite on the 25th floor of the Burj Al Arab, Saudi Prince Al-Had focused on a line of bilingual subtitles, finished his glass of red wine, and called his servant, instructing, "Cancel the afternoon schedule."

"A bet worth 1 billion US dollars, the items must be even more valuable. I'm quite looking forward to it."

In the United States, on the private plane of the Rockefeller family, a man in his fifties looked at the screen with interest and muttered, "It seems this autumn auction will have some surprises."

At the headquarters of the Sumitomo Group in Japan, Sumitomo Eita frowned for a moment. Although the 1 billion US dollar bet piqued his interest, he was more concerned about the items that triggered this bet.

In Frankfurt, at the family castle of the Rothschild family, Yasin Rothschild stared intently at the display and excitedly called his sister Lin, who shared his interest in collecting, to join him in this autumn auction, which he had only planned to glance at.

Second update of the day!

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