Chapter 434: A Truly Thrilling Auction

"This is the make-or-break moment."

Mu Chunsheng took a deep breath and slowly exhaled.

He looked at Pang Shan, who simultaneously met his gaze. Their eyes briefly locked, and sparks seemed to fly in the air.

The strategy devised by Pang Shan and Zong Wen had not significantly suppressed Mu Chunsheng. It seemed Mu Chunsheng's collaboration with the Dinglu and Jingsha conglomerates likely involved directly drawing their cash, preparing for a head-on confrontation with Pang Shan and Zong Wen.

Just then, Chen Ling's voice resounded again:

"Since there are only five items left, there's no need for further complication. These five will be bundled together and auctioned through an open bid, with the highest bidder winning."

As soon as he spoke, the five directors, who were already preparing to write down their bids, paused, seemingly not understanding Chen Ling's intention behind this design.

Chen Ling had previously opted for silent bids because it facilitated his covert manipulations. Now, the auction had progressed as he wished, entering a fierce battle of exorbitant prices, making further silent bids irrelevant. Crucially, at this point, no one in the room, except Chen Ling, knew the exact number of items each person had successfully bid on. From the perspective of the five directors, there was only a very vague guess.

For instance, Mu Chunsheng could guess that Pang Shan had allied with Zong Wen, and the two had alternately won a large number of items. Furthermore, due to the eleven items "hidden" by Chen Ling, from Mu Chunsheng's viewpoint, Pang Shan had likely acquired more items than himself. He didn't know the exact difference, but it shouldn't be more than five items.

Pang Shan, at this moment, also held a similar belief. He felt there was a gap between him and Mu Chunsheng, but it wasn't insurmountable. This was precisely why the final five items were exceptionally crucial; whoever secured them had a high probability of becoming the winner.

If the items were not bundled but auctioned individually, the winning price for each would not be high, as neither party would be sure if securing one or two items could turn the tide. However, with five items bundled together, there was a sense of being able to "seal the deal" with a single strike.

The voice from beneath the golden mask slowly emerged:

"Gentlemen, please make your bids."

As his words faded, Mu Chunsheng's voice was the first to speak: "Ten million."

"Twelve million." As expected, Pang Shan raised the bid with a cold expression.

"Fifteen million."

"Seventeen million."

"Nineteen million."

"Twenty million."

The two men's confrontational voices echoed through the venue. Su Xiaohong and Lu Yuanzheng showed no intention of participating. Only Zong Wen sat by, his eyes flickering with shrewdness, seemingly hesitating whether to join the bidding war.

According to his assessment, the gap between himself and Pang Shan wasn't large. If he could secure all five items in one go, he might have a chance to surpass his opponent. As for their agreement?

Weren't agreements simply meant to be broken? Zong Wen had navigated the business world for so many years, and going back on his word was common practice for him. He only cared whether breaking an agreement would yield a worthwhile return.

After much deliberation, Zong Wen ultimately refrained from bidding.

After all, if he truly intended to confront Pang Shan, he had to ensure victory. Otherwise, he would lose both the auction and his ally, and all that money would be wasted. Zong Wen carefully considered it and, lacking absolute certainty of success, withdrew from the final contention.

"T-twenty million?" Outside the window, Jian Changsheng's jaw dropped in shock upon hearing the figure.

"For these conglomerates, twenty million isn't a small sum, but it's not a huge one either," Heart of Nine grumbled. "But spending twenty million on five pieces of gold? That's insane. Why don't we just rob the five major conglomerates? They look incredibly rich."

"Why don't you rob the envoy then? He's the richest person in the room right now."

"...Have you forgotten how we got here?"

Inside the venue, Mu Chunsheng stared intently at Pang Shan. After a long moment of gritted teeth, he made another bid:

"Twenty-one million!"

Twenty-one million for five items meant each item's price exceeded four million. This was no longer just a premium; it was an absolute sky-high price.

Damn it...

Pang Shan glanced at the cash box beside him, took a deep breath, and said, "Twenty-two million."

"Twenty-five million!!!"

Mu Chunsheng instantly added three million, a heavy blow to Pang Shan, whose face immediately darkened.

In the center of the hall, Chen Ling's gaze fixed on him, his voice devoid of emotion:

"Twenty-five million, going once..."

Pang Shan's eyes were bloodshot, and his hands unconsciously clenched. Just as he was about to make another bid, his subordinate behind him suddenly spoke:

"Chairman... we don't have enough silver notes on hand."

"What??"

"Our cash flow was already unhealthy, and it's difficult to raise such a massive amount of silver notes overnight; selling assets is also out of the question. The Big Dipper Conglomerate has already contacted all the banks, ensuring not a single penny in loans is given to us. You've already spent over forty million tonight; we can't come up with another twenty million in silver notes in a short amount of time..."

"Isn't the Huadu Conglomerate still here? Go borrow from them."

"They don't have enough silver notes either," the subordinate shook his head. "In the entire main city, only the Big Dipper Conglomerate, which started as a bank, can produce that much cash at once..."

Hearing this, Pang Shan seemed to lose all his strength, slumping into his seat, his face ashen.

He knew... he had lost.

"Twenty-five million, going twice..."

"Twenty-five million, going three times."

"Sold."

Seeing Pang Shan's utterly depleted state, Chen Ling couldn't help but feel a touch of regret. He had hoped his strategy would be more effective and push the price above thirty million. It seemed the Big Dipper Conglomerate's financial strength was indeed formidable.

Hearing that he had secured the final five items, Mu Chunsheng finally relaxed. He leaned back in his wheelchair, his back drenched in sweat.

Who could have imagined that this banquet, originally intended to scheme against the envoy, would ultimately unfold this way?

Fortunately, the outcome was good. He had likely acquired the most items in the entire auction. Spending so much money would definitely be worth it if it helped him forge a closer relationship with the envoy!

Under the gaze of everyone in the room, the figure wearing the golden mask slowly rose from his seat.

His gaze swept over the crowd, and his voice was completely devoid of its previous coldness.

Instead, it carried a subtle sense of satisfaction:

"What a truly exhilarating auction..."