Carrying a Jurassic on me
Chapter 1446 - 699: Auction_2

Chapter 1446: Chapter 699: Auction_2

People were already displaying inexplicable smiles below; who could still be unaware of what that piece of land was like!

To the uninformed listening in, they really might assume it was a good plot of land. But those sitting below, not to mention anything else, included no small number of individuals who could draw a map of Provincial City with their eyes closed—they carried a perfect image of what every place within the city looked like in their minds!

Real estate sometimes has this mystical aspect—two identical communities, even if not far apart, could differ drastically in price. This difference stems from more than just people’s concepts of commercial and affordable housing—it’s a matter of habitual recognition.

In any case, market conditions of all sorts must be considered, and real estate developers even have to ponder a somewhat nonsensical issue—feng shui.

Some communities launch with great fanfare, only to have some inexplicable reason lead to a situation where, even with discounts, nobody will buy there. Such cases are not unheard of.

Particularly near the northern suburbs, by the museum area, there have been paranormal events. Outsiders might not understand, but old-time residents of Provincial City would absolutely not be enthusiastic about that area.

Despite this, there were still those who kept inflating the price; only after the auctioneer had finished his spiel and there had been some surreptitious whispering amongst the attendees did someone start bidding again.

Yan Fei waited until the price rose to ten million, then offered another bid; after that, he began to drink tea out of boredom, continuing to watch others discuss whether this land was still worth investing in.

And then Yan Fei suddenly realized that he was really quite well-suited for attending auctions.

These kinds of auctions weren’t like others that would finalize after a few price calls; there was still ample time for discussion. To Yan Fei, who was all perked up, the discussions of others in the spacious and somewhat empty hall were no different from if they were happening right beside him.

Those few who continued to drive up the price all had a very clear goal—they wanted to capitalize on the opportunity to ’collect’ another plot of land.

Indeed, ’collect’. Buy it cheaply now, leave it be, and wait a couple of years for the city to develop before deciding whether to proceed with development.

The consensus was that developing this land now would be somewhat of a loss. If it was acquired at the current price and immediately developed, there was a high risk of such financial loss that one might not afford a meal.

Only by waiting a few more years, when the influx of outsiders increased and the area’s popularity surged, would development potentially be viable.

Since the land was intended for ’collection’, everyone’s appraisal of its value wouldn’t be too high—who would want to tie up development funds in some undevelopable land? Only someone who had water in their brain!

After hearing those discussions, Yan Fei learned about the issues with the area. However, clearly, he wasn’t concerned with such matters. How could any paranormal event be more supernatural than himself?

When the price had risen to thirteen million, the faces of a portion of the crowd at the front conveyed their disappointment—indeed, one shouldn’t harbor illusions when doing business! The price was still far from everyone’s expectations, and it seemed like there was no inclination to continue bidding.

After another ten minutes, Yan Fei once again lifted his sign: "Thirteen million and five hundred thousand!"

His bid sparked another wave of murmured conversations. Some even quietly sent people to inquire if this young man was a ’plant’ or if there was some new plan afoot in Provincial City that they hadn’t yet caught wind of.

Such speculation was quite normal; everyone mixed in Provincial City knew the situation with that land. Suddenly, a young man appeared with the aim of bidding on an unattractive plot of land—there had to be ’something fishy’!

Of course, asking wouldn’t yield anything, as those in the know wouldn’t spill, and those who didn’t simply guessed wildly. Amidst all this, there was one bidder willing to take a chance, raising their sign: "Fourteen million!"

"Fourteen million and five hundred thousand!" Yan Fei quickly raised his sign in response.

Perhaps it was the swift confidence of his bid that conveyed a determined-to-win attitude, fueling further speculation of an inside story. Another bidder tentatively raised their sign: "Fifteen million!"

"Fifteen million and five!" Yan Fei raised his sign once more.

"Sixteen million!" The one who had previously bid fourteen million called out again.

Yan Fei played with the sign in his hand, head bowed in silence.

At this point, the gazes from the audience shooting towards him had become too numerous; he just had to casually glance around to ensure he could meet someone’s eyes, no matter which direction he looked.

Even a couple of people in the front row, faces familiar to Yan Fei, had turned their attention towards him.

The turning of these two heads, whether intentional or not, ultimately led to a misunderstanding.

So, the person who had just bid fifteen million clenched his teeth and raised his sign again, "Sixteen million five hundred thousand."

Yan Fei had already picked up his phone, set to silent mode, and was discussing with his wife what to eat for lunch. He had thought there were only three plots of land to deal with and that it would be quick, but unexpectedly it was now lunchtime and there was still no final result.

The auction house fell quiet, then the whispers began to grow louder before silence took over once more.

The auctioneer on stage repeated his call for a while, then gave everyone nearly half an hour of ’thinking’ time before he had to make a decision, "Sixteen million five hundred thousand, sold."

Yan Fei shoved everything on the table into his bag and left.

When he got home, Xu Xiaoyan still consoled him, "It doesn’t matter if we didn’t get the land; we won’t be staying here for long anyway. If they really develop a market there later, and you find it too busy, we can just get a house somewhere else."

Yan Fei wore a look of dejection, "Ah..."

Seeing him like this, the girl, uncharacteristically, took the initiative to hug him, and Yan Fei embraced her, then began twirling her in his arms, "Ha ha, you fell for it! That plot of land isn’t worth that much, even if they build a market, with so few people in Provincial City right now, it won’t get bustling. Don’t worry, I’m not disappointed at all!"

Xu Xiaoyan was so mad she was still twisting in his arms mid-air, "Put me down, hmph, you just love to tease me... put me down quickly..."

After a lot of commotion, once the girl was convinced he was telling the truth, she pushed him away, "Alright, alright, go wash your hands now, no more fooling around. Do you still have things to do in Provincial City? If not, head back this afternoon; there’s less than a month left until the college entrance exam..."

The two of them laughed and played as they finished their meal, and after the girl had cleaned up, she gestured, "Let’s go, I’ll take you out of the city, then you hurry back home, stop wandering around here."

Yan Fei thought about it and realized he indeed had nothing else to do, so he nodded and said, "Alright, just drop me off at the final stop of the No.12 Bus. You can take the bus back from there."

"Mm!" the girl nodded.

His wife was driving him, just as he had taken the public bus to the auction that morning. Apart from the fact that it was difficult to hail a taxi from their place, the main reason was that these last few days, Provincial City was filled with traffic and police officers, and the control was too strict.

The reason for this was because, a few days ago, a particularly severe case had occurred in Provincial City. Three police officers were unfortunately killed by an armed criminal while handling a murder case.

The eldest of the three officers was fifty years old, while the youngest was just twenty-two, a fresh graduate from the police academy, still an intern.

The situation was highly dangerous; facing the fleeing armed criminal, all three officers were shot during the pursuit, particularly the fifty-year-old who ran towards the gunman and was shot directly in the chest during the struggle.

It was in those crucial moments you knew what courage was.

This tragic and heroic arrest sparked outrage across the city. Consequently, the entire city mobilized thousands of police and citizens in a unified effort to crack down on the crime syndicate and capture the criminals, kicking off the summer ’strike-hard’ campaign.

In such circumstances, Boss Yan, who drove without a license, considered himself lucky to have arrived at night already; he didn’t dare to rely on that elusive luck to leave.