Chapter 563: Mo Jingshen’s Gaze Fell on Her Face. “You Want It?”
Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations
When the painting was still hanging in the Ji family’s study, she was still young and her mother was still alive. Once her mother carried her into the study to get something, and her hand touched the painting.
Ji Nuan thought that no matter how much the painting cost, she should buy it and hang it back in the study of the Ji family.
“This painting is indeed one of the ten most valuable in China.” Mo Jingshen’s flat voice rang and his gaze fell on her face. “You want it?”
Ji Nuan was about to speak when suddenly there was a familiar voice in the distance. She turned her eyes and saw, two rows from their seats, about six or seven meters away, where Rong Yan and Rong Cheng were sitting. Someone got up to go out and passed by them and the sound of their voices reached here.
Ji Nuan’s eyes just met Rong Cheng’s and the latter’s face immediately darkened.
Ji Nuan: “…”
Just because his sister was rejected by the man she liked and now the latter showed up with a female companion, the general manager of the Rong Corporation gave her that look?
No wonder it was said that the kids of the “Capital Circle” were all arrogant. Now she knew what real arrogance was.
Ji Nuan indifferently withdrew her stare.
Rong Yan, sitting next to Rong Cheng, had been looking at Mo Jingshen. The auction had been going on for nearly an hour and Mo Jingshen had never left Ji Nuan nor bidding for a single item.
He just sat there motionless. In such a noisy environment, he would not be drowned out by the noisy crowd, but stood out like a crane in a flock of fowls.
People had begun to bid. More than ten years ago or even nearly 20 years ago, this famous painting had been sold at a high price of more than 100 million yuan, now in a twinkling of an eye, the price had reached three hundred million yuan.
Ji Nuan had wanted to wait until the end of the bidding, so as not to raise the price too high, but there was no end to the bidding. But after the price reached as high as 300 million yuan, it began to increase by 10 million instead of 100 million yuan.
Ji Nuan kept staring at the painting, reminiscing of the time when her mother had loved to carry her back and forth in the study when she was a child.
When she didn’t pay attention, Rong Yan and Rong Cheng sat behind them. Ji Nuan heard the brother and sister talk. “Brother, the painting called ‘The Land of Peach Blossoms’ and Grandfather’s favorite were both Zhang Daqian’s works. Grandfather has always liked Zhang Daqian’s paintings. Shall we buy this for him?”
Then Rong Yan said, “Now the price won’t increase much. I think they will stop the bidding within 500 million yuan. The price within 500 million yuan is just right.”
As soon as Rong Yan stopped, Ji Nuan’s eyelid twitched.
500 million yuan?
The MN Group developed very well and had a lot of assets, but she would still consider carefully whether she should spend 500 million Yuan for a single painting.
After all, this money was not a small amount, not even for a company like MN Group. She didn’t have money to burn. Besides, a lot of her money was still in the company’s working capital to support the stable operation of the company’s various projects.
The price she could accept was two or three hundred million Yuan.
Did Rong Yan and Rong Cheng also like this painting?
Ji Nuan looked up at the painting hanging on the stage again without a word.
Just then, the auctioneer said, “‘The Land of Peach Blossoms’ of Zhang Daqian has hit the high price of 390 million yuan. Does anyone still want to bid? At present, none of the auctioned famous paintings has exceeded 400 million yuan in price. I wonder whether this painting will break this record today…”
“Forty hundred million yuan.” Rong Cheng raised his number plate at this time.
The auctioneer’s eyes lit up at Rong Cheng as he held up the number plate. “Great, it’s a historic moment. Anyone still wants to bid?”
“…”
There was a moment of tension in the auction hall.
No matter how famous Zhang Daqian’s paintings were, their market prices were not more than 200 million yuan. Now the price had hit 400 million yuan. They had to wonder if there was someone deliberately bidding up the price.
No matter how much the bidder liked collecting artworks, this price was way too high. Paintings could only be hidden at home and couldn’t be taken out, and had no value other than meeting a hobby. People considered and the bidding voices in the hall gradually grew weaker and weaker until no one bid any longer.
“There should be no more bids, I guess?” Rong Yan whispered to Rong Cheng.
From time to time, Ji Nuan tapped her knee with the number plate in her hand, staring at the painting, struggling inwardly. Should she pay a high price for this painting that she once saw with her mother when she was a child and used to belong to the Ji family, or should she save the money, considering that MN Group was scaling up and needed money? Five hundred million yuan was enough for the company to do many things.
“Four hundred million yuan once, four hundred million yuan twice…” The auctioneer solemnly grandly announced, “Four hundred million yuan thir…”
She was about to raise the number plate in the hand to bid. However, at the very second before she raised her hand, the man beside her had already raised the number plate in his hand one step ahead of her, and his low and indifferent voice sounded in the trapezoidal hall and stunned everyone else. “Six hundred million yuan.”
“…”
“…”
There was a moment of eerie silence, followed by sounds of gasps.
Six hundred million! The painting was the only one to reach that price in China’s auction history.
Although Zhang Daqian’s paintings were valuable, this price was way too high. Many people in the audience had given up when the price reached just 400 million yuan let alone this price. No one would dare to bid a higher price.
There was a silence in the hall, and the Rong Brother and Sister had no idea that Mo Jingshen, who rarely participated in such kind of an auction, would suddenly bid.
Rong Yan pursed her lips hard and stared at this man’s back.
“Six hundred million Yuan once, six hundred million Yuan twice… six hundred million Yuan third, deal!”
The auctioneer struck the hammer with excitement.
Rong Cheng’s face was all dark. At the moment the hammer was struck, he got up and Rong Yan hurriedly grabbed his arm. “Brother.”
Ji Nuan remained seated and did not get up.
She didn’t know why he bid such a high price, but she could understand it was just to get the painting for her. After all, let alone the powerful Shine Group, even the old Mo Corporation had the financial resources that no other company in China could match. But he spent six hundred million yuan to buy a painting! Even she felt that was too much.
Hearing Rong Cheng’s angry voice behind, she vaguely felt that it should be because Rong Cheng bullied her in the bathroom that Mo Jingshen didn’t save him any face now, not even leaving him room for continuing to bid for the painting.
Seeing Mo Jingshen remained deadpan and no looking back and saying sorry to them after bidding for the painting, Rong Yan felt hurt.