章節 70: Auction Start (1)

The direct Imperial families get to stay at Tier 3 without having to spend the complete required amount but they still have to spend some money to keep their Tier. Lotus Pavilion is a business after all, not a governmental office. It's usually not a problem though as there are auctions every two months and a special auction once per year. They usually spend some money, either selling or buying.

Shen Tianyu nodded to herself. 'Considering the this world is more or less in a medieval time, this business model is pretty great if I do say so myself.' She complimented herself. Whether the model was good thing, the success of Lotus Pavilion and it's yearly earning spoke for itself.

Seeing her nod out of nowhere, Rong Jian stared at her. "What are you nodding for?"

Startled, Shen Tianyu looks at him. "Eh? Uh, nothing. The auctions is about to start. Let's watch." She hurriedly looked out the curtained window at the semicircular stage below. Rong Jian also dropped the topic and looked down. It wasn't important anyways.

The guests were all seated now. The normal, less wealthy customers sat in chairs on the ground floor. The customers with jade plagues were seated in their respective arranged seatings. There weren't many at Tier 5 so many of the rooms on the fifth floor were unoccupied. Since this was the special once in a year auction of Lotus Pavilion, it was more crowded than usual below. Some of the customers who came a little later stood at the sides of the hall to watch, and perhaps, bid.

A middle-aged man in a dark green robe appeared. At the cuffs and collars were embroidered leaves in a light green color. On his chest was a 15 petaled lotus badge carved out of stone. He had a unique air. Dignified and elegant yet not to the point of being unapproachable. He waved his hands and with a booming voice that could reach the ends of the big building stated: "The Specialty Auction held once a year by Lotus Pavilion is now to start!"

There was a defining roar form the crowd on the ground floor and excitement filled the air. The tiered guests saw it beneath them to shout like the poor peasants on the ground floor but their excitement couldn't be hidden nonetheless.

With the buzzing excitement, the auction began. It was indeed worthy of being a specialty auction. All the items presented were rare and nigh unobtainable and they also sold for sky-high prices. The cheapest treasure was sold for 500 million yuan by a customer on the fifth floor beside the couple of Shen Tianyu and Rong Jian. Seeing the profit being made and the excitement swirling in the air, Shen Tianyu smiled throughout the auction. However, though she stayed, she didn't raise a single bid to buy anything. Following her lead, Long Jian didn't either.

"Tian'er, is there something you want? If there is, tell me, I'll buy it for you." Rong Jian urged her. They had came here and been sitting here for so long, what would be the point in coming here if they didn't compete for something at least?

"No need. There isn't anything I particularly want." Shen Tianyu responded without moving her gaze away, her smile shining brightly.

"Why not? There are so many are treasures here, there must be something of use to you." Rong Jian pressed a little.

"A tall tree attracts the wind." Shen Tianyu responded simply with a proverb.

Rong Jian understood and no longer pressed her. He moved his gaze back to the stage. Indeed, if she bought something here, it might attract the attention of other forces that wanted the object and she might be chased down for it if she wasn't careful. Even if the curtains here veiled a person's appearance, and Lotus Pavilion didn't share information of it's customers, it would not be impossible to find them. Just bidding on something a big force wanted might create enmity. Auctions are just like the Imperial Family. They look glamorous on the surface, but in reality, there are a lot of sinister things attached to it.

"It is now time for the last three items of the auction!" The auctioneer announced. At his words, the hype increased exponentially. The information for the last three items weren't airtight. It was made that way, otherwise, not as much money would have been spent because people would have been wary of obtaining the last items of the auction. Also, there were only three items so, only three groups could obtain them, or even less. If everyone was vying for it, the previous items would sell for a lesser price and not as much money would have been made in total. Those big powerhouses "managed to get" information on the last three items. Of course it wasn't explicit but enough for them to know whether they wanted it and how much they wanted it.

'This auctioneer really has good oratory skills. Well, to be the head auctioneer at such a young age isn't easy.' Shen Tianyu thought with her cheeks on her hand as she watched. For profit in auctions, the item doesn't only need to be rare, the auctioneer must also have good oratory skills and be able to advertise the best out of the item without exaggerating. The audience must also be taken into consideration. Different audiences need different ways of presentation. Especially such a diverse audience as in the auction. It may sound easy, but walking that thin line was not something everyone could do. Otherwise, good auctioneers would not be so rare. Though, the target audience is usually the tiered customers since they have the money to spend to get into that tier, they have more finances than the customers on the ground floor. Everything is according to business with the objective of creating profit.

A woman wearing a slightly provocative robe, but not enough to seem indecent brought up a tray covered in soft velvet cloth. She placed it on a wooden pedestal in front of the auctioneer and winked at the audience before flipping her hair and leaving the stage. The auctioneer took off the velvet cover in a flourish to reveal an exquisitely carved wooden box.

"This here is the first of the last three. Don't look down on it's size! In this box contains a beast core. Not just any beast core, but the beast core of a Netherworld Siren!" He announced in an excited voice.