บท 19: Chapter19-Unexpected Cargo! Three Million!

At this moment, Joseph Thompson's gaze was glued to a text message on his phone.

"What do you mean you don't know what's inside?"

"Fuck you!"

"Fuck!"

Joseph Thompson was seething, veins popping on his forehead, yet he held his anger in check, quietly waiting for Daniel's bid.

Meanwhile, he was utterly frustrated, unsure whether the container in front of him contained what he sought.

Robert looked at Daniel and asked, "Mr. Roberts, the bid is at 1.7 million StellarCoins. Do you wish to continue?"

Regardless of whether Daniel continued to bid, Robert was already winning.

So, he was ecstatic, unable to hide the twinkle in his eye.

Seeing that Daniel intended to raise his bid, Durant, who had remained silent until now, couldn't resist stepping forward to discourage him.

"Mr. Roberts," Durant began, "I'll also get a cut from the bidding commission, but out of respect for Benjamin Taylor, I feel obligated to remind you: there may not be anything valuable in this container. If it's just regular old goods, it's only worth ten thousand StellarCoins at most."

With Durant's well-meaning advice, Daniel responded courteously with a smile, "Thank you, Mr. Durant."

"I'll make one last bid. One million eight hundred thousand. If he continues to raise, I'll let him have it."

Durant nodded, satisfied with this response.

Daniel then turned to Robert, saying, "One million eight hundred thousand StellarCoins."

Joseph Thompson abruptly exclaimed, "Fuck, you!"

He was so damn close!

Even if it was just ten thousand less, he could've gone further.

One million eight hundred thousand was genuinely beyond his maximum capacity.

Suddenly, he turned his head, looking at the others nearby.

"Who can lend me twenty thousand StellarCoins? Once I win this container, I'll pay back double!"

Emilia, standing beside him, patted Joseph's face, "Wake up, Joseph Thompson."

"There might not be anything inside. Your million-plus would be better spent on the next batch of goods."

Joseph Thompson, desperate, grabbed Emilia's hand, "Lend me twenty thousand StellarCoins, and I'll repay you fifty!"

"Two hundred thousand is also okay!"

Emilia shook her head.

The others, too, ignored Joseph Thompson's plea.

If they actually lend him the money, and he successfully bids for the container, and if it turns out empty, Joseph Thompson would lose everything.

The fifty thousand StellaCoins would have been tossed away like water.

The chances of this happening were high.

They weren't about to take such a gamble.

Seeing this, Daniel was even more convinced of his hunch.

Joseph Thompson must have some connection with the bandits, otherwise he wouldn't be so certain of the value of the container to the extent of borrowing money for the bid.

Sadly, no one was willing to lend him anything.

In the end, Robert announced loudly, "The first container today has been bought by Mr. Roberts for a price of one million eight hundred thousand StellaCoins!"

"Mr. Roberts, you may now pay and open the box!"

A staff member, holding a laptop, walked up to Daniel.

After a few clicks, the money was transferred from Daniel's account to that of Golden Shores port.

Robert then gave another shout, "Open the box and verify the goods!"

Camera crew, already prepared, were capturing Daniel from every angle.

Daniel stepped forward and pulled back the cover.

What he saw was a deep red wooden bedside table.

It looked clean, almost new, but upon close inspection, signs of use could be spotted.

Durant stepped forward for a closer look and after a while called out, "A custom-made golden Phoebe bedside table, worth ten thousand StellaCoins!"

"There should be another one."

Daniel found another item that looked similar, lifted the cover and announced, "Just as expected, exactly the same."

Two bedside tables, directly covering twenty thousand of the cost.

At this moment, what everyone cared about the most was the loot hidden by the bandits.

The bedside tables had signs of use, the items in here must all be second-hand goods.

This fits with Robert's terms.

Joseph Thompson, amongst the crowd, was also intensely focused on the container.

His eyes occasionally landed on Daniel, revealing a cold and killing intent.

I plan to rob you anyway.

Might as well let you bid for the loot.

That saves me a considerable expense.

Joseph Thompson smirked.

Daniel didn't notice any of this, he was too busy uncovering the next item.

A square wooden table with a very thick surface appeared in front of him.

"This table's surface is a little too thick, isn't it?" Daniel felt something was off.

He moved in for a closer look, and that's when he saw the system's description.

[Item]: Death Swan (Custom-made Golden Phoebe Piano)

[Age]: 20th Century (1905)

[Condition]: Well preserved

[Details]: A piano used by the world-renowned pianist Rubinstein. Made from carefully chosen materials, some of which include the most precious wood from Serenalia, Golden Phoebe. Coupled with the celebrity effect, its price is rather high.

[Appraisal]: Highly collectable.

[Market Price]: 409,000 StellaCoins.

[Buyback Price]: 300,000 StellaCoins.

Soon, Durant also gave an appraisal, "350,000 StellaCoins, and it's worth every penny, if not more."

Upon hearing this, many in the crowd were buzzing with excitement.

"Only three items and he's nearly made four hundred thousand?"

"It seems like he could break even just with these second-hand goods!"

"Darn, how is this guy so lucky?"

"Why the rush? There are still plenty of items inside."

Just as the crowd was abuzz, someone shouted out, "Holy cow, he's hit the jackpot!"

Everyone stretched their necks, trying to get a better look inside the container.

The workers were seen hauling a table from inside.

The table was entirely wooden, built with the same golden Phoebe wood as the other furniture.

Surprisingly, the table was so heavy that it took four men to carry it out, even though it was less than two meters long and one meter wide.

Durant adjusted his glasses, took one look and stated, "If this table is entirely made of golden Phoebe wood, it's worth at least eight hundred thousand, no less!"

This declaration shocked the treasure hunters around them.

No one had expected that the container would have so much golden Phoebe wood furniture.

Just these four pieces of furniture were worth nearly 1.2 million!

And that's just Durant's estimation, and he said no less!

Daniel smirked satisfactorily.

Through his system, he was already aware of the prices of these pieces of furniture.

The newly revealed table was worth 980,000 in the market!

So far, he had already recouped 1.4 million, only 400,000 short.

And more than half of the items in the container hadn't been hauled out yet.

From these few items alone, it could be inferred that the entire container was filled with high-end custom furniture, possibly all made of golden Phoebe wood, which was why the system had given an appraisal of 2.8 million for the container.

In a short while, all the items in the container were hauled out, revealing their true value in front of everyone.

Bed frames, tables and chairs, wardrobes, desk lamps...

Durant appraised each item, finally revealing an astonishing total value.

"Three million, no less!"

The professional treasure hunters exchanged glances.

Their eyes fell on Daniel, their emotions complex.

They wanted to gamble too, gamble on these so-called E country tycoon's collectibles.

This container didn't have them, but its value already exceeded their expectations.

Who could have imagined that the second-hand furniture inside would be worth over three million.

Darn, it was just absurd.

Joseph Thompson's face darkened at Durant's estimate.

But when he thought that what he wanted hadn't appeared, he relaxed somewhat.

No matter what Daniel got out of the container, he was determined to rob him!

Robert was also surprised, but more than anything, he was incredulous at Daniel's good luck.

This guy dared to take a gamble even without any useful information, an audacity far beyond ordinary people.

Robert gave Daniel a nod and turned to the crowd, "Don't rush."

"This is just the first container. Today, we have three to auction."

"Now, we will start bidding for the second container."

Everyone followed Robert to a new location less than a hundred meters away, where a slightly rusted red container was placed.

Without much thought, Robert directly announced, "As I've already briefed you all, this container also originates from Lomand, E-country."

"The previous container didn't reveal any collectibles of the E-country tycoon, so there's perhaps a fifty percent chance they might be in this one." With these words, everyone was raring to go, tensed for action.