Road to becoming the wealthiest: Starting From Treasure Hunting in the Cabinets
Chapter 667 - 429: Interesting Mike_2

Chapter 667: Chapter 429: Interesting Mike_2

It’s already good enough for many treasure hunters to find treasure that can satisfy their daily needs.

For someone like Sean Knight who, in less than two years, found one treasure after another, going from a penniless man to a young billionaire, it can only be described as a miracle!

So Mike was very curious and wanted to know where Sean’s good luck came from.

But today was just a day for getting acquainted, so after exchanging a few words with Sean and thanking him for providing such a great auction item, Mike left.

Not long after, the auction began.

Sean was led by Bunny Girl to a seat on the left side of the second row.

There was a nearly two-meter distance between each sofa, and the space was quite large. Douglas Cooper didn’t sit down but stood on Sean’s right side, forcing the Bunny Girl to stand on the left side to serve them.

Other bidders came in one by one.

Sean curiously observed these people until he saw a Chinese man.

The man was in his fifties with good energy but compared to the middle-aged white man he walked in with, there was a flattering smile on his face.

This Chinese man’s seat was on the right side of the second row, three seats away from Sean.

Seeing Sean’s curiosity, Douglas whispered to him:

"His name is Alex Young, he used to be in charge of a state-owned enterprise in China. After the enterprise was restructured, he became the chairman of the board and later retired— reportedly receiving tens of millions of retirement funds every year..."

Sean understood.

He didn’t say anything.

As an outsider, it’s hard to comment on such things.

There’s no absolute fairness in this world. Some people spend their whole lives chasing goals that are merely a starting point for others.

Different positions and the massive information gap create rich people that others cannot reach. A celebrity’s one-day wage could be equivalent to a lifetime of labor for an ordinary farmer. It’s hard to rationalize such things.

So Sean turned his attention to the auction stage.

Unexpectedly, Donald Mackenzie was the one hosting the auction!

"I’m delighted that our auction has been successfully held once again. I’m still alive and well, and this is something worth celebrating."

Sean didn’t understand the abundance of information in Mike’s opening remarks, but some people around started laughing.

"Today, we have old friends and new friends here, especially two friends from China, which makes me very happy—

China is a magical country. I’ve been there and know many things that happened there, which are completely different from what our media says.

But that’s not the point. The point is, I’m thrilled that Chinese people are participating in my private auction, which makes me feel even more accomplished than the current American President— he couldn’t do it!"

People below laughed even louder.

Sean could now tell that Mike was a fun guy who was skilled at creating a lively atmosphere and didn’t mind self-deprecating humor.

In America, discussing politics or mocking the president or former president is very normal, and people would give applause to show support.

"Today’s auction items will surprise you. I think some of you have seen them already, and some are surprises we’ve prepared for you. Later, I’ll reveal them one by one, so please stay tuned—

The auction starts now, and the first item, as usual, is provided by me: a painting from China said to be from a famous artist centuries ago—’Fishhawk Playing in the Water Painting.’

Sean didn’t expect the Zhu Da painting to be provided by Mike.

Two Bunny Girls brought up the painting for everyone to see.

Mike even took the time to explain:

"This painting is part of my family collection. My father bought it many years ago at an auction in Europe— so, Mr. Knight and Mr. Young, please don’t misunderstand, my family hasn’t done anything wrong in China in the past..."

His serious explanation caused more laughter from the audience.

But Sean felt that Mike was a good person.

At least he knew to explain and be considerate of Sean and Alex Young’s feelings.

He was worth getting to know.

Truthfully, not many people could truly appreciate Chinese paintings.

So when Mike invited those interested to take a closer look, only Sean, Alex Young, and two other people went up before returning to their seats.

Although knowing that the possibility of fake items at this auction was minimal, Sean still activated his Sky Eye while inspecting the painting— genuine.

The only issue was the stamp of Elder Perfection on it, which was a bit speechless. This painting must have also been circulating out of the Imperial City in the past.

Alex Young only got up after Sean did.

He had noticed Sean’s familiar silhouette before but failed to recognize him, thinking he was a staff member.

Now Sean Knight appeared at the auction house, and Mr. Whitmore introduced him, putting him on par and in front of him.

Alex Young realized that this young man must be extraordinary - either he himself was extraordinary, or his family was extraordinary.

He must make an acquaintance.

So Alex Young followed Sean’s steps to the stage.

Originally, Alex Young wanted to get close to Sean and chat.

But to his surprise, Sean only took a brief look at the painting, not even a minute, and then turned and left.

He didn’t even get a chance to strike up a conversation.

This slightly annoyed Alex Young, who used to be a bigwig in China. Ordinary people would take the initiative to strike up a conversation with him, and many young people like Sean would come to ask for an autograph.

But this guy named Knight didn’t seem to know or have heard of him, so rude!

But here, he couldn’t get angry, so he had to pretend to look at it for a few minutes and then leave last.

Leaning on the auction table with both hands, Mike spoke like a storytelling teacher:

"China is a magical country, and now many people are learning about Chinese culture. On our Internet, many young people are buying all kinds of things from China."

As soon as he said this, images of spittoons with Chinese happiness characters, hell banknotes printed with the heaven and earth bank, and mahjong popped up in Sean’s mind!

"The author of this painting was born five hundred years ago, he was of royal lineage, and his status was very noble. His paintings are very famous in China and Japan.

Of course, for many of you, you won’t know this. I’m just telling you, learning more about Chinese culture is not only beneficial for your business development, but also helpful for stocking up on cultural relics to make money."

His words once again elicited some laughter.

"Alright, I won’t say much more. Although it’s my own painting, I have to follow the auction procedure - ’Fishhawk Playing in the Water’, starting price 20 million dollars, start!"

At first, no one raised their hand.

Mike’s face was embarrassed:

"Don’t tell me you guys want me to drop the hammer? It’s very embarrassing for me..."

There was another burst of laughter.

Sean raised his card:

"20 million."

Others didn’t know much about Zhu Da’s painting, and naturally, they couldn’t talk about liking or disliking it.

But now that he had run into it, if there wasn’t too much competition, he would buy it.

However, there was more than one person who wanted to support the auction. Alex Young immediately raised his hand:

"Twenty-one million!"

Another person seemed to be speculating and started bidding.

"Twenty-one million, one hundred and fifty thousand!"

"Twenty-one million, one hundred and eighty thousand!"

As long as someone was bidding, Sean didn’t bid again. He wanted to see if these bidders were shills or really wanted to buy.

But to Sean’s surprise, the auction prices were not high, and after several rounds, the price didn’t exceed 23 million dollars.

Finally, it stopped at a big-bearded man who bid twenty-two million, five hundred and fifty thousand dollars.

Mike probably thought that was about the right price. He looked around.

Sean raised his card.

"Twenty-three million!"

"Twenty-three million... Mr. Knight, you have a good eye - I heard your ancestors were nobles too. I wonder if it’s related to the master of this painting?"

Mike was joking, but it didn’t affect his hosting. After speaking, he looked around again and finally brought down the hammer.

But his words did catch the attention of others.

It turned out that this young Chinese man was also a descendant of nobility!

Alex Young immediately misunderstood.

The famous family in China that could be called the authentic descendants of the Zhu family was the one that had not come out for a long time.

Was it from his family?