After confirming that the painting was authentic, Jose took photos and registered it. After Zhu Yu paid the deposit, he politely asked Zhu Yu and the others to leave.
When leaving, Jose gave Zhu Yu an invitation letter and said:
"Mr. Zhu, this invitation letter is required to enter the auction at the beginning. You can bring one person in then, and you no longer need to be accompanied by Mr. Robert."
Zhu Yu took the invitation and left with Robert.
In the car, Zhu Yu put away the invitation and asked Robert:
"Will you go then?"
"No. Why should I go?" Robert shook his head, "Firstly, I'm not interested in those things, and secondly..." He turned to look at Zhu Yu, and then said:
"I don't have any money either."
Zhu Yu nodded to express his understanding.
Then he couldn't help but laugh.
Robert laughed himself.
The auction will be held in the evening, and according to Jose's previous introduction, there will be a buffet after the auction. The purpose of holding the buffet is to let those participating in the auction know better and facilitate communication.
According to Jose's hint, he could bring his female companion there during the auction, but Zhu Yu finally took Cao Dalong with him.
With the invitation in hand, the journey was indeed smooth.
Zhu Yu found that although he arrived half an hour early, which he thought was early, he saw several people chatting in the open space in front of the building.
It turns out there are some early ones.
He was not familiar with any of these people, and Jose was not there, so Zhu Yu didn't stop and walked in with Cao Dalong carrying two packaging boxes.
"who's that person?"
A Chinese man saw Zhu Yu and asked a rich man next to him.
"Who?" The man turned to look at the door, only to see the backs of Zhu Yu and Cao Dalong.
He turned around and said:
"I don't know him, he must be a delivery person, right?"
The Chinese thought this person looked familiar, but he seemed to have never interacted with him before.
Maybe I’ve seen a lot of Chinese people in the past, but not so many here, so when I meet someone casually, I think they look familiar?
He shook his head and continued chatting with the other party:
"I am really honored to be invited to participate in this auction. I believe that not only will I be able to take pictures this time, but I will also make many friends from high society."
This Chinese-American used to be a powerful figure in the country, but later he retreated to the second line, enjoying super treatment, and because he was afraid of some things he had done, he simply came to New York.
"Don't worry, in this circle, you can make friends from all walks of life." The other party also smiled and said, "Just stay a while, as long as you take a few more photos, I will introduce you to other people when I think of it. It will be much easier!”
They are both old foxes, so there is no need to say this clearly, both parties naturally understand it.
Although the Chinese know that they need to bleed, but they stay on other people's territory, they also know that they have to pay the money. How can they get it if they don't give up?
As soon as Zhu Yu and Cao Dalong entered the building carrying the packaging box, Jose hurried over. He directed the two staff behind him to take the packaging box, and then said:
"Mr. Zhu, I'm sorry, I have a lot of things to do today, so I didn't greet you at the door. Should you go to the VIP room and wait for the auction in half an hour, or should I introduce you to the guests who came today?"
"I'm going to the VIP room to rest." Zhu Yu was not interested in getting to know people in those circles. They were not from the same circle. He felt that it was unlikely that he would be able to interact with them in the future.
"Okay, Mr. Mike will come to see you later." Jose took Zhu Yu to the VIP room next to the auction house.
The door of the auction house was open, and Zhu Yu discovered that this place was actually similar to a stage hall. There was a place for the host to stand on the stage near the back, and next to it were two tables covered with red tablecloths.
There are three rows of leather sofas in the middle of the hall, with wide spacing. There is a small coffee table next to the sofa, with fruits and drinks already placed on it.
Jose took Zhu Yu into the VIP room next to the auction house. The room was not big, but there were computers for surfing the Internet, TVs for watching, and fruit snacks.
A tall and beautiful blonde bunny girl stood at the door of the VIP room. Jose said to Zhu Yu:
"Mr. Zhu Yu, if you need anything, you can tell her directly."
The bunny girl looked at Zhu Yu curiously.
Most of the people who come here to participate in the auction are in their thirties or forties or even older. People as young as Zhu Yu are really rare.
Zhu Yu entered the room, nodded to the bunny girl, then sat on the sofa and started scrolling through his phone.
Cao Dalong stood behind Zhu Yu, observing vigilantly. In a strange environment, he was the only one protecting Zhu Yu, which was quite stressful.
Ten minutes later, Jose led Mac Donald to the VIP room.
"Hello, Mr. Zhu Yu!" Mike smiled and extended his hand to Zhu Yu, "I didn't expect you to become such a famous person in the treasure hunting world at such a young age! You are so young and promising!"
There was a bit of curiosity in Mike's eyes. After all, there were really not many people like Zhu Yu.
There are many famous treasure hunters in the world, and many of them are passed down in their families. However, most of these treasure hunters have been tirelessly searching for a certain legendary treasure for several years, even more than ten years, or decades.
Once found, the entire family immediately ascends to heaven and becomes a newly wealthy family.
However, there are only a few families like this. The luckier treasure hunters are lucky enough to be able to find treasures worth hundreds of thousands or even millions in their lifetime!
It would be good if more treasure hunters found treasures that could satisfy three meals a day.
People like Zhu Yu, in less than two years, have found treasures one after another. From a penniless poor household to a young millionaire, it can only be described as a miracle!
】
So Mike was also very curious. He wanted to know where Zhu Yu's good luck came from.
But of course today was just to get acquainted, so Mike chatted with Zhu Yu for a few words, thanked him for providing such a good auction, and then left.
After a while, the auction started.
Zhu Yu was guided by the bunny girl to the left side of the second row.
There was nearly two meters between the sofas, and the space was quite large. Cao Dalong did not sit down, but stood on the right side of Zhu Yu, forcing the rabbit girl to stand on the left side of Zhu Yu and wait.
Other photographers came in one by one.
Zhu Yu looked at these people curiously until he saw a Chinese.
The Chinese man was in his fifties and was in good spirits, but compared to the middle-aged white man walking next to him, the smile on his face felt a bit flattering.
This Chinese man's position is on the right side of the second row, three positions away from Zhu Yu.
Seeing Zhu Yu looking at that person curiously, Cao Dalong suddenly whispered:
"His name is Yang Xiong. He used to be the person in charge of a domestic state-owned enterprise. Later, the state-owned enterprise was restructured into a joint-stock system. He served as the chairman of the board of directors, and later retired - it is said that after retirement, he received tens of millions in pension every year..."
Zhu Yu understood.
He said nothing.
If you are not a member of the system, you cannot comment on such things.
There is no absolute fairness in this world. The goals that some people pursue throughout their lives are just the starting point of others' lives.
Different locations and huge information gaps have created rich people who are hard to reach. A star's one-day salary is equivalent to an ordinary farmer's lifetime work. There is no way to explain this kind of thing.
So Zhu Yu withdrew his gaze and looked at the host table.
He didn't expect that the person hosting the auction would be Mac Donald himself!
"I'm very happy that our auction was successfully held again. I'm still alive and well, so this is worth celebrating."
Mike's opening statement contained a bit too much information, and Zhu Yu didn't quite understand it, but some people nearby laughed.
"There are old friends and new friends here today. Especially two friends from China, which makes me very happy——
China is a magical country. I have been there and know that many things happening there are completely different from what our media say.
But this is not the point. The point is that I am very happy that there are Chinese people participating in my private auction. This makes me feel that I am more powerful than at least the current president of the United States - he can't do it! "
The people below laughed even louder.
Zhu Yu finally understood that this Mike was either a tease or a person who was good at stirring up the atmosphere and was not afraid of making a fool of himself.
When talking about politics here in the United States, it is normal to ridicule the president or former president, and everyone also applauds them to save face.
"Today's auction will also surprise you. I think there are some things that you have already seen, and some things are our surprises for you. I will release them one by one in a while, so please wait and see——
The auction is now starting. The first lot, as usual, is provided by me, a painting from China. It is said to be a painting by a very famous painter hundreds of years ago - a picture of an osprey playing in the water. "
Zhu Yu didn't expect that the painting of Bada Shanren was actually provided by Mike.
The two bunny girls brought the painting up and showed it to everyone.
Mike also specifically explained:
"This painting is part of my family's collection. My father bought it at an auction in Europe many years ago - so Mr. Zhu, Mr. Yang, please don't get me wrong. My family has never been to China before. What a bad thing..."
His serious explanation made many people in the audience burst into laughter again.
But Zhu Yu thinks this Mike is good.
At least he knew how to explain to Zhu Yu and Yang Xiong, and he was considerate of their feelings.
This person is worth getting to know.
To be honest, not many people can appreciate Hua Xia's paintings.
So when Mike invited interested people to come up and take a look, apart from Zhu Yu and Yang Xiong, two other people came up to take a look and then sat down.
Although he knew that the possibility of fakes in this auction was extremely small, Zhu Yu still opened his eyes when he stepped forward to observe and looked at the painting - the genuine article.
It's just that it has Old Man Shiquan's seal stamped on it, which is really a bit speechless. It is estimated that this painting was also exiled from the imperial city at that time.
Yang Xiong only got up after watching Zhu Yu get up.
Previously, he felt that Zhu Yu's figures looked familiar, but he didn't recognize them and thought they were staff members.
Now Zhu Yu appeared at the auction house, and Mr. Mike specially introduced him, side by side with him, and in front of him.
Yang Xiong knew that this young man was definitely not simple - either he himself was great, or his family was great.
Gotta hand it over.
So Yang Xiong followed Zhu Yu’s footsteps and went on stage——
Originally, Yang Xiong wanted to get close to Zhu Yu and have a few words.
I just didn't expect that Zhu Yu stepped forward and simply looked at the painting, and then turned around and left within a minute.
He didn't even get a chance to talk.
This made Yang Xiong a little annoyed - he was once considered an elder in the country. When other people saw him, they would come over to talk to him. Many young people like Zhu Yu would come over and ask for autographs.
But this person named Zhu seems to have never known or heard of himself at all. He is so rude!
But here, he couldn't get angry, so he had to pretend to watch for a few minutes, and then went down last.
Mike held the auction table with both hands and said like a storyteller:
"China is a magical country, and many people are now learning about Chinese culture. On our Internet, many young people are buying all kinds of things from China——"
When he said this, Zhu Yu's mind immediately appeared in Zhu Yu's mind: a spittoon with the word "Double Happiness" written on it, a coin with the bank of heaven and earth printed on it, and mahjong!
"The author of this painting was born five hundred years ago. He is a royal and has a very noble status. His paintings are very famous in China and Japan -
Of course, for many of you, you won’t know it at all. I’m just telling you that knowing more about Chinese culture will not only be beneficial to the development of your business, but it will also be helpful to make money by hoarding cultural relics——”
His words again elicited some chuckles.
"Okay, I won't say much more. Although it is my own painting, it will be auctioned according to the procedures - "Osprey Playing in the Water", the starting price is 20 million US dollars, let's begin!"
For the first time, no one raised a sign.
Mike looked embarrassed:
"You don't want me to miss the shoot, do you? This embarrasses me..."
There was another round of laughter.
Zhu Yu raised the sign:
"Twenty million."
He didn't know much about Zhu Da's paintings, so he couldn't say whether he liked them or not.
But if you come across it, if there aren’t too many people competing, you’ll just buy it.
But he was naturally not the only one who wanted to support him. Yang Xiong immediately raised his hand:
"Twenty-one million!"
Others, probably wanting to speculate, are also bidding.
"Twenty-one and a half million!"
"Twenty-one million eight hundred thousand!"
Someone asked for the price, but Zhu Yu didn't bid again. He wanted to see if these people were asking for it or if they really wanted to buy it.
However, what surprised Zhu Yu was that everyone's bids were not high. After several rounds, the price did not exceed US$23 million.
Finally, it got stuck with a bearded man who offered $22.55 million.
Mike probably felt that the price was about the same, and he glanced around.
Zhu Yu held up the sign.
"Twenty-three million!"
"Twenty-three million...Mr. Zhu, you have good taste - I heard that your ancestors were also nobles. I wonder if it is related to the owner of this painting?"
Mike was joking, but this did not affect his hosting. After speaking, he looked around again and finally dropped the hammer.
But his words caught the attention of others.
Unexpectedly, this young Chinese man is also a descendant of a noble family!
But Yang Xiong immediately misunderstood.
The one who is famous in China now and can be called the authentic descendant of the Zhu family is the one who has not been around for a long time.
Could it be from his family?
