Chapter Seventy-One: What a Huge Pit

Zhang Can smiled and said, "Alright, with all of you supporting me, I’ll go all in!"

He spoke in a low voice, barely audible over the rising bids in the room, so no one else paid them much attention.

"Three million, nine hundred thousand!"

...

"Five million!"

Zhang Can suddenly called out, his voice booming, causing everyone to freeze in surprise!

Of course, it wasn’t the volume that startled them, but the scale of his bid—while others were increasing their offers by increments of a hundred thousand, he had leapt straight to five million, catching everyone off guard.

Wang Qian smiled faintly. Zhang Can’s move was exactly to his liking; the more cautious a person, the more careful their actions. With such an aggressive raise, Zhang Can had undoubtedly sown seeds of wariness and fear among the other bidders.

In truth, any one of these people was much wealthier than Zhang Can. Competing alone, or even as a pair with Zhu Senlin, they wouldn’t have stood a chance. But behind Zhang Can stood another: Mr. Wang Qian!

He was a man everyone in the room feared. If Wang Qian were to speak or place a bid, it would be beyond their means to compete. So when Zhang Can placed his bid, they all hesitated.

Of course, not everyone was focused on this piece of Ru porcelain—about a third of those present had remained silent throughout.

Finally, someone else raised the bid: "Five million, one hundred thousand..."

Zhang Can had been worried there wouldn’t be another bid, which would leave him little room to maneuver. As soon as he heard someone raise it by a mere hundred thousand, he didn’t even wait for the auctioneer, Tang Yuan, to speak before shouting, "Eight million!"

This was too much!

A few of the would-be competitors eyed Zhang Can suspiciously. This young man had just pulled off a coup, earning a hundred million in profit, leaving them unsettled. Now he was at it again—what would he bid this time?

His bidding speed was astonishing, making their hearts race. Was he truly an expert, or just a reckless gambler riding a streak of luck? If it was the latter, luck would eventually run out.

After a slight hesitation, someone else raised the stakes: "Eight million, one hundred thousand!"

Tang Yuan glanced at Zhang Can with a sly grin. "Brother Zhang, eight million, one hundred thousand—are you bidding again? Any thoughts?"

Without hesitation, Zhang Can answered, "Ten million!"

His expression didn’t change, his voice was steady and his hands didn’t tremble. The message was clear: he was determined to win this porcelain no matter the cost, and if anyone raised the price again, he would surely follow, perhaps up to twelve or thirteen million.

"Ten million, any more bids? Ten million, going once..." Tang Yuan swept his gaze across the room. As he was about to announce the final call, someone on the other side raised their paddle.

"Ten million, one hundred thousand!"

Just a modest increase—one hundred thousand more.

"Thirteen million!" Zhang Can immediately called out, his voice loud and forceful, not giving anyone a chance to interject. If anyone dared to continue, the next bid would surely soar past fifteen million!

Zhang Can’s boldness stunned the others into silence. The value of this piece of Ru porcelain was probably around twenty million in the domestic market—possibly higher internationally, but that required connections and investment, much like business. Now, with the bidding at thirteen million, were they to continue, Zhang Can would undoubtedly take it to over fifteen million—a price at which there would be little profit left.

Old Su understood this well. While he had agreed readily alongside Wang Qian and Zhu Senlin, he still felt nervous. If the price went any higher, there would be little profit left. Of course, with Wang Qian’s business acumen, they’d still earn a few million each—a share of one or two million cash wasn’t bad at all. After all, at Zhu’s shop, his annual income was only two or three hundred thousand.

"Thirteen million, no more bids? Thirteen million, going twice... Thirteen million—sold!"

Tang Yuan brought his hand down, announcing that the Ru porcelain vase belonged to Zhang Can.

Wang Qian admired Zhang Can all the more. Such courage was rare. Normally, a person’s nerve and confidence are proportional to their environment and wealth. If you have ten million, buying home appliances or a mid-range car is easy enough. But if someone asks you to buy a forty or fifty million villa, you’d become anxious and hesitant, feeling it’s out of reach.

Zhang Can should have been in that position now. Even with Wang Qian and Zhu Senlin backing him, he still had to invest his own money—he had a share in the profits, but he would also bear his share of any losses. If the bid soared into the tens of millions, that was no small sum. He shouldn’t be so reckless, like a gambler who, after winning a round, thinks luck is on his side, only to lose everything on the next bet.

Still, luck remained with Zhang Can for now. Old Su, despite secretly hoping for Zhang Can to take a loss, prayed fervently for him to win this time—next time, when he wasn’t involved, Zhang Can could lose as much as he liked.

With the deal closed at thirteen million, the four would split the cost. Old Su did a quick calculation: each would pay three million, two hundred and fifty thousand. He himself only had two million, five hundred thousand in savings—he was short by seven hundred and fifty thousand. Old Su planned to deduct his annual salary of two hundred and fifty thousand from Zhu Senlin; usually, he only drew living expenses and collected the rest, along with bonuses, at the end of the year to keep things tidy.

Wang Qian smiled, opened his laptop, and said, "I'll transfer the full amount to Old Tang’s account right now!"

Zhang Can immediately refused, "Mr. Wang, no, business is business, and money should be kept separate. Each of us should pay our own share. Didn’t we just split the profit among ourselves?"

Wang Qian was taken aback. Previously, when it came to transfers, Zhang Can had been indifferent, letting Wang pay as he pleased. Even the million for the Xuanwu turtle had been paid by Wang, and when the profits were divided, Wang hadn’t mentioned repayment, and Zhang Can hadn’t minded. Why was he suddenly so particular about paying his share now?

Wang Qian sensed something was amiss in Zhang Can’s demeanor, but he couldn’t quite put his finger on it. After a moment’s thought, he decided not to press the issue and simply nodded, "Alright, since you insist, we’ll do it your way."

Wang Qian transferred his three million, two hundred and fifty thousand first, followed by Zhu Senlin using his own laptop. Zhang Can and Old Su, lacking their own computers, used Zhu’s to transfer their shares. Zhang Can’s account had over forty million; three million, two hundred and fifty thousand was a trifle—he transferred it without a flicker of emotion.

Lastly came Old Su, who didn’t have enough money. He whispered to Zhu Senlin, "Old Zhu, I’m short; I only have two and a half million. Add my annual salary of two hundred and fifty thousand and I’m still fifty thousand short. Lend me that, and deduct it after the sale."

Zhu Senlin agreed without hesitation—such a small sum was nothing, especially with the Ru porcelain as collateral. There was money to be made. After Old Su transferred his two and a half million, Zhu helped him transfer the remaining seven hundred and fifty thousand. Thus, the full thirteen million was sent to Tang Yuan’s account.

Zhang Can retrieved the Ru porcelain vase in its brocade box, handed it to Old Su, and instructed, "Old Su, you’re the master craftsman—you keep it safe. When we get back, Mr. Wang will handle the sale and we’ll split the profits."

"No problem, I’ll guard it with my life! You all keep bidding!" Old Su was so excited he clutched the box tightly to his chest.

Seeing Tang Yuan preparing to bring out the next antique for auction, Zhang Can smiled, then leaned to his left to speak to an appraiser who had remained silent throughout. This man was the chief appraiser for a major antique dealer in Jincheng, a renowned expert whom Zhang Can recognized—his name was Liu Jinquan. However, Liu Jinquan didn’t recognize Zhang Can; in truth, it was more that Zhang had been too obscure for him to remember.

"Master Liu, you seem a bit unconvinced. May I ask what you think this Ru porcelain is worth?"

Tang Yuan was about to have his staff bring out the next piece, but stopped when he heard Zhang Can’s question. In this business, everyone loved to hear an expert opinion.

Liu Jinquan looked at Tang Yuan, then at Wang Qian, hesitated for a moment, and remained silent.

Zhang Can pressed, "Master Liu, please speak freely. In this line of work, ups and downs are the norm—no need to hold back."

Noticing something was off, Old Su hurriedly added, "Master Liu, no matter what, I believe this Ru porcelain is worth at least twenty million, right?"

Liu Jinquan glanced at Old Su, but didn’t answer directly. Instead, he asked, "Old Su, you and I have known each other for years. Let me ask you: are you aware that some underground black kilns, using high-tech equipment, old porcelain shards, and antique glazes, can produce fakes so convincing that even advanced instruments can’t detect them? Have you heard of this?"

Old Su’s face went pale in an instant. He shot up from his seat in panic. "Master Liu... let’s not talk about that now. Let’s just... just talk about this Ru porcelain vase..."

"I am talking about it," Liu Jinquan sighed. "You know the rules of the trade, Old Su. I’ve seen an identical vase before. Even I couldn’t tell it was a fake at the time and thought it was genuine. But my nephew bought it from a black kiln in Pingdingshan for just twenty thousand—it was a reproduction..."

"Impossible! Absolutely impossible!" Old Su jumped to his feet, face red, veins bulging, shouting furiously.

"There’s nothing impossible about it. Would I lie to you? You know as well as I do—in this trade, one step means riches, another means ruin. The risk is yours alone. When business is being done, I can’t intervene, or else I’d be breaking the rules. It’s just a shame this young man misjudged the piece."

Liu Jinquan sighed again, then looked at Zhang Can in puzzlement. "Just now, you stunned everyone with your brilliance—I would never have guessed you’d trip up over this Ru porcelain. Of course, it’s an excellent copy; being fooled is no disgrace. Besides, you just made a hundred million from Boss Tang, and now you’re only returning thirteen million—it’s a fair trade. Only... heh, only Old Su..."

Everyone understood what he meant. At first, the profits had been split among Zhang Can, Wang Qian, and Zhu Senlin—Old Su hadn’t been included. But now that this deal had gone sour, Old Su had been drawn in. The other three had each pocketed over thirty million, so coughing up three million was nothing. But for Old Su, it meant losing three million, two hundred and fifty thousand for nothing.