MAPF Chapter 50

Chapter 50: Rosewood Carving – Why are you being so nice to him?

Xie Shiwei’s smile stiffened, rendered speechless once again by his iron-clad buddy. He slid away from Huang Jingzhi with a nimble step. He Qin also stepped forward, moving past Bai An to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Xie Shiwei.

Speechless, Xie Shiwei twisted Zhang Yingjun’s arm: “Let’s go, Yingjun, it’s about to start.”

The time arrived, and everyone entered the venue and took their designated seats.

Because many young people were invited, the rules of this auction were ingenious and quite unique.

The specific process was that the auctioneer would first present the thirty art pieces participating in the auction, introducing the basic information and the stories behind them.

The guests present would then need to choose one they liked the most from these thirty pieces, write down the item number on the stationery provided by the auction house, and submit their choice to the auctioneer.

The auctioneer would tally the number of interested guests for each artwork and then auction them off in sequence, revealing the potential buyers.

The most exciting part was that the guests who voted for an item could not bid on their own favorite; instead, others present would bid for them. Bidders could be friends, family, lovers, or potential business partners.

As soon as the rules were announced, the people below the stage began to communicate, itching to try.

This rule was a powerful weapon for testing relationships, allowing everyone to see who among those present were true friends, who sincerely wanted to cooperate with you, and who truly loved you.

Xie Shiwei said to He Qin that he didn’t know which genius came up with these rules, and there might be a lot of good shows to watch later.

He Qin chuckled, with a hint of subtle jealousy: “Huang Jingzhi will definitely bid for you, right?”

Xie Shiwei raised an eyebrow: “Bai An isn’t going to bid for you?” He thought of what Zhang Yingjun said about transit love and burst out laughing.

His eyes were curved, very beautiful.

He Qin guessed what he was laughing at and smiled too.

.

Amidst the commotion, the auction officially began.

The artworks gradually presented on the stage were diverse, all from artisans or independent painters. Although not as exquisite as luxury goods, they were uniquely creative and contained beautiful meanings.

After all thirty items were displayed, Xie Shiwei suffered from choice paralysis. He called a waiter to bring him a catalog of the auction items. After flipping through it for a long time, he hesitated between a rosewood carving and an antique celadon vase, finally casting his vote for the latter.

The vase was well-made, and the glaze was like the color of the sky after rain. It should look very beautiful to put a few roses in it after taking it home.

After Xie Shiwei finished writing, he put the paper in an envelope and wanted to see what He Qin had chosen.

He Qin also sealed his and wouldn’t let him see: “You’ll know later.”

After the auctioneer tallied everything backstage, the bidding officially began.

The first item was a red agate bracelet. The material was decent, and the craftsmanship was good. The maker was a retired veteran in his eighties, and there was a touching love story behind it.

The two ladies who chose it were in the audience. The live broadcast camera focused on them, and their faces instantly appeared on the big screen.

One was gentle and classical, the other had red lips and smoky makeup. They glanced at each other and smiled kindly. This smile meant that they wouldn’t mind whether they got the item or not.

As the countdown ended, the bidding began. The people next to the two ladies simultaneously raised their bidding paddles.

A man and a woman, presumably their partners.

The man bid 100,000, while the woman bid 200,000.

The experienced auctioneer began to build the atmosphere, instantly heating up the scene and creating a sense of tense confrontation. Influenced by the atmosphere, both bidders were willing to cooperate, immediately raising the price to 300,000.

Finally, under the watchful eyes of everyone, the bidding lady won the bracelet for 500,000.

Immediately, the waiter announced that the owner of the first item had been determined and handed the bracelet’s number plate to the woman with classical clothing and a hairpin in her hair.

Xie Shiwei turned his head to look at He Qin, wondering if He Qin would bid for him later.

He was planning to help He Qin bid, but if it was too expensive, he would give up. He only earned two months’ salary, and although Xie Tian’an gave him a lot, it wasn’t as much as 500,000.

The items were exhibited one by one and auctioned off. The atmosphere became more and more lively, and the good shows that Xie Shiwei wanted to see really happened.

A beautiful and delicate young lady chose the eighth item, which was a very bizarre glass product. It was said to be the mischievous work of a child, looking a little scary, and only she chose it.

As soon as her name appeared on the big screen, six men in the audience simultaneously raised their paddles, fighting fiercely for her, almost starting to curse each other from afar.

In the end, the bizarre glass mirror was sold for 800,000, shocking Xie Shiwei for a whole year.

Proceeding to the thirteenth item, Huang Jingzhi’s name appeared.

He chose a painting.

Huang Jingzhi looked remotely at Xie Shiwei, who was sitting three rows in front of him. Xie Shiwei remained unmoved, so he retracted his gaze. His friend bid for him, but didn’t outcompete another somewhat glamorous boy, regretfully not getting the item.

Time passed, and Xie Shiwei finally saw what He Qin had chosen.

It was actually the rosewood carving that he gave up on!

He Qin turned his head and said: “When I was choosing, I realized you liked this too, so I picked it. No matter who bids it down, I can give it to you.”

These words were very blatant. He Qin thought that as long as Xie Shiwei wasn’t stupid, he should be able to perceive something.

Xie Shiwei’s ears were brushed by warm breath, and he looked up at the wooden sculpture in the glass cover on the stage, then at He Qin’s profile, becoming restless.

What did he mean by giving it to him? Giving it to him again?

He suddenly wanted to ask He Qin why he had been so nice to him lately. Was he asking for something, or…

Xie Shiwei thought of a very outrageous possibility, thought for only a second, and shuddered all over, forcing himself to drive away that thought.

He Qin shouldn’t have fallen in love with him, right?

Well, definitely not, right? After all, the original owner had done a lot of evil. Although he had worked hard to change his persona since he came, He Qin definitely wouldn’t fall in love with the person he hated the most.

The chaotic thoughts were interrupted by the bidding.

He Qin had many friends, Zhou Ze, Zhao Yan, Bai An, and some people Xie Shiwei didn’t know. They all raised their paddles at once. Xie Shiwei refused to be outdone and joined the bidding camp.

He Qin’s competitor was a gentle boy, with two or three friends raising their paddles.

Xie Shiwei was the first to be called to quote a price. He looked around and weakly said: “I bid 10,000 for Mr. He.”

The people present were stunned.

They were all people with assets of millions, and this was a charity auction. Bids had never been lower than 50,000, and suddenly hearing 10,000, and it was Xie Shiwei who bid it, caused a murmur.

“I went, is Xie Shiwei so stingy?”

“Yeah, his family is so rich, and he actually started bidding from 10,000.”

Xie Shiwei heard the two people behind him say this, felt a little embarrassed, and fidgeted. He wanted to turn around and explain, but He Qin spoke first: “I usually keep his card, and I forgot to increase the limit.”

“Shiwei, you don’t need to bid, let others do it.”

He Qin’s voice was neither loud nor soft, just enough for a circle of people to hear.

The tone was too intimate, and Xie Shiwei’s ears turned red.

The gossip that He always controlled Xie Shiwei’s finances spread in all directions in an instant, and Bai An, sitting at the back, looked even more unsightly, and suffocated: “200,000!”

Everyone was in an uproar again.

From 10,000 to 200,000, they turned their heads to see who made the offer, and found that they did not recognize the bidder.

“Who is this?”

“Let me see, the guest introduction says he is an independent painter.”

“Hey, wait, I’m familiar with the name Bai An, have you heard the gossip? He is an orphan sponsored by He Qin, He Qin seemed to like him originally, but finally married Xie Shiwei.”

Bai An instantly became the focus, and a sense of pride rose between his brows. He Qin, with a somber expression, asked Zhou Ze and the others to raise the price.

In the middle, the gentle boy’s parents called 300,000 once and 400,000 once, but ultimately lost to Zhou Ze’s 500,000.

Bai An went out of fire. He didn’t have that much money from selling paintings.

The discussion subsided, and the waiter sent the item number plate to He Qin, and He Qin, in full view of everyone, handed the plate to Xie Shiwei.

Only then did Bai An realize that the thing was actually going to be given to Xie Shiwei, and he was both angry and hateful, and lowered his head.

Proceeding to number twenty-nine, the vase Xie Shiwei chose finally appeared.

And unfortunately, his and Bai An’s faces appeared on the screen at the same time.

Xie Shiwei was stunned and looked back.

Bai An was also looking at him, his eyes dark and resentful.

The auctioneer announced that the bidding session had begun, and He Qin, Zhang Yingjun, and Huang Jingzhi raised their paddles at the same time.

The auctioneer asked who they were bidding for respectively.

Zhang Yingjun shouted loudly: “Xie Shiwei.”

Xie Shiwei blinked at him, and then he heard He Qin say: “I also bid for Mr. Xie.”

Xie Shiwei almost fainted, became restless, and his heart beat fast. Okay, He Qin not only gave him what he chose, but now he wants to bid for him.

What does this mean!?

Moreover, He Qin chose him and did not choose Bai An, so now, wouldn’t it be that no one would help Bai An bid among these people? Wouldn’t that be too awkward?

Bai An was also very nervous, always clenching his fists, and when it was almost He Qin’s turn to answer, he actually felt fear.

Because he no longer had confidence, Little Qin-gege had changed, no longer the brother who cared about him the most, worried about him the most, and wanted to give him everything good.

If He Qin chose Xie Shiwei, Bai An felt that he would not be able to breathe.

Sure enough, at the moment He Qin’s voice fell, he seemed to have fallen into the cold depths of the sea, all senses were blurred, and there was no last hope left.

He looked indifferently at Xie Shiwei’s beautiful face on the big screen, thinking that he had to destroy all this.

This was the last time he softened because of Xie Shiwei’s release of a little bit of kindness to him. Those worthless good deeds couldn’t bring him He Qin, so he didn’t need to take Xie Shiwei’s feelings into consideration.

Huang Jingzhi said: “Mr. Xie Shiwei already has two bidders, I’ll bid for Bai An.”

Bai An’s eyes flickered for a moment, but he still lowered them.

Xie Shiwei was surprised when he heard this, but then he understood.

Huang Jingzhi was a very gentle person, unwilling to let Bai An fall into embarrassment, it was his politeness and thoughtfulness.

But Zhang Yingjun and He Qin had already gotten into a fight, bidding once each, raising the price of this vase to 800,000. Huang Jingzhi only shouted once and then stopped bidding, obviously just taking care of Bai An on the surface.

In the end, He Qin called 1 million, and Zhang Yingjun was so angry that he blew his beard and glared, giving up hatefully.