193: Strange Buddha statue

"I withdraw."

Seeing Qin Yun's grave expression, Liang Lejia lowered his raised hand.

Although he wasn't clear on exactly what suspicion Qin Yun had identified,

in matters like this, it's better to believe it exists than to believe it doesn't.

A painting wouldn't affect him much.

But if he were to misjudge it, it would be somewhat embarrassing.

He wouldn't be able to save face.

Although he had known Qin Yun for less than three hours, Liang Lejia felt this young friend was trustworthy.

He was also willing to trust Qin Yun this once.

Therefore, he decisively gave up on raising the bid.

Twenty million was also a relatively high amount for the auction.

Everyone's attention had been fixed on Liang Lejia and Zhang Deben.

Seeing Boss Liang actually give up bidding because of a junior,

they were greatly shocked in their hearts.

"What on earth is going on? With Boss Liang's wealth, he definitely wouldn't be short of this money?"

"Who exactly is the young man beside Boss Liang? How does he have such great influence over Boss Liang?"

"Could Zhao Ji's painting be problematic? That doesn't seem right either. So many Experts couldn't spot any issues, could it be discovered only by that young man?"

"If that painting is genuine, Boss Liang, no matter how magnanimous, will resent that young man."

"Indeed, rashly stopping Boss Liang from bidding is truly unwise."

... Liu Yuanhua saw Qin Yun stop Boss Liang from bidding.

The smile on his face was impossible to hide.

"Boss Zhang, I've dealt with that kid before. He's not very capable. He also just met Boss Liang. Boss Liang must have been deceived by that kid!"

"With that kid causing trouble, you securing Zhao Ji's painting is a blessing from heaven."

Liu Yuanhua looked at Boss Zhang with an ingratiating expression as he spoke.

Zhang Deben stood up with a beaming smile, cupped his hands in a salute, and turned in a circle to express his thanks to everyone.

"Thank you, everyone, for your concession. After the auction, we can all appreciate Zhao Ji's masterpiece together!"

"And Boss Liang, thank you for showing mercy. Otherwise, I would have spent a lot more wasted money!"

Seeing Zhang Deben showing off, and even doing so by stepping on him, Liang Lejia's face instantly turned cold.

"It's just a painting by Zhao Ji, what's so great about it?"

Hearing this kind of complaint from a big boss like Liang Lejia, Qin Yun almost laughed out loud.

Such a big boss was actually getting into a spat with someone.

Zhang Deben's actions were also somewhat excessive.

Buying the painting was one thing, but to show off in front of everyone like that,

and even mock Boss Liang with sarcasm, saying Liang Lejia showed mercy.

Everyone here is in the business circle; who's short of this money?

Liang Lejia's anger was perfectly understandable.

"Whether it's actually Zhao Ji's work is still debatable. In my view, that painting is worth at most one million!"

Qin Yun stated with great certainty.

Compared to trusting the auction house's reputation, he definitely trusted his own Profound Vision Treasure Eye.

The auction house making Zhao Ji's seal and inscription so obvious definitely meant something was fishy.

Hearing Qin Yun say this, Liang Lejia felt a bit better.

However, a thorn remained in his heart.

Only when the puzzle was officially revealed, whether that painting had any tricks or not,

would the resentment in his heart be completely dispelled!

The next three auction items were all sold for around five or six million.

Qin Yun thought about it but still didn't make a move.

Competing with this group of wealthy spendthrifts for things that weren't particularly good was really unnecessary.

When the sixth auction item was placed before the camera,

everyone could see it was a Buddha's hand holding a golden lotus.

Its color was somewhat dull.

Many Experts immediately guessed.

Under the cover was likely a Gilded Bodhisattva Statue.

With only one hand and one lotus, it was difficult for everyone to guess which dynasty it belonged to.

What was the level of its craftsmanship?

Was it from a famous artist?

The price range for this kind of Gilded Buddha Statue was very large.

From the imperial family down to local landowners, they were quite common.

Even the Experts couldn't be sure how much it was worth.

The bosses weren't very interested either.

They preferred things with cultural depth.

They weren't very interested in religious items.

If it were solid gold, perhaps it would be a different matter.

Qin Yun knew that the sixth lot was the best item among this batch of antiques.

He could let the other things go.

If the price was right, he would definitely secure this Gilded Buddha Statue!

When the sixth item started its auction,

the bosses' bids were lukewarm.

It only reached 1.8 million after half a minute.

Seeing this situation, Qin Yun decisively entered the fray, "Two million."

As soon as Qin Yun spoke, everyone around him was momentarily stunned.

They thought Qin Yun was just a junior brought by Liang Lejia, not qualified to participate in the auction.

They never expected Qin Yun to suddenly make a bid.

"Who exactly is that young man? How did he get an invitation?"

"Isn't he a junior Boss Liang brought to gain experience? How can he suddenly bid?"

"Bidding on such a common item, is he just trying to attract attention?"

"Hard to say. The world changes too fast. Who can understand what young people are thinking?"

... Many bosses were only slightly surprised.

They didn't take the matter to heart.

In their eyes, Qin Yun was just a junior, a Second-generation rich kid.

He couldn't be compared to them, the first-generation rich.

Liang Lejia was also taken aback.

He knew Qin Yun probably had a considerable family fortune.

But participating in such high-stakes gambling, as it was for ordinary people, still seemed somewhat unwise.

Bosses could afford not to care about such losses.

But for a young man, especially one not yet well-known in business circles,

losing a few million would be very painful.

However, Liang Lejia didn't say anything.

He didn't know Qin Yun's background well.

He didn't know how much weight a few million carried in Qin Yun's eyes.

Anyway, this young friend had earned a few million from him. Even if he lost it at this auction, it was nothing.

Seeing Qin Yun make a bid, Liu Yuanhua wanted to raise the price without a second thought.

But he quickly realized he didn't have an invitation.

He had sneaked in with Zhang Deben, and his enthusiasm instantly deflated.

"Boss Zhang, could you bid for me? I have some grievances with that kid. I won't let him get that antique so easily!"

Liu Yuanhua whispered his request into Zhang Deben's ear.

Zhang Deben thought for a moment, then raised the bid by two hundred thousand.

"Boss Zhang, the carving on the Buddha statue isn't refined; it seems like it's from an ordinary household. It's best not to bid."

"Indeed, this kind of gilded statue doesn't have much value."

"There's not a trace of incense aura on it. It clearly wasn't enshrined in a major temple. It's not worth much."

"The surface gilding wasn't done well either. There are signs of handling on it, and it wasn't preserved very well. It probably isn't a very good piece."

... The Experts brought by Liu Yuanhua and Zhang Deben all had a poor opinion of this Gilded Buddha Statue.

Zhang Deben didn't care about a few million.

But fighting with a junior over something, especially something not valuable,

was something his pride couldn't bear.

"Yuanhua, this Gilded Buddha Statue is too ordinary, not worth fighting over. Let's leave it for that young man."

Zhang Deben said in a tone of an elder admonishing a junior.

He didn't want to continue bidding.

Liu Yuanhua's face instantly turned green.

He thought to himself, *So you care about face, but I don't need to save face?*

But he didn't dare voice any complaint.

Boss Zhang was not someone he could afford to offend.

He now deeply regretted it.

Time was too tight. Being able to find someone to sneak in with was already lucky.

Finding another invitation was an impossible task for him.

Liu Yuanhua's resentment towards Qin Yun deepened another layer.

Why was that kid's luck so good?

At the last Warehouse Auction, he made a huge profit thanks to good luck.

At today's auction, he gained Boss Liang's recognition, received an invitation and auction qualifications, not to mention,

he also got to show off in front of so many bosses.

He achieved this effect by spending just over two million.

Liu Yuanhua was extremely envious in his heart.

He now became even more convinced that Qin Yun was just a speculator.

He resolved to definitely expose that kid's hypocritical facade.

Qin Yun finally secured the Gilded Buddha Statue for 2.6 million.

He hadn't expected it to be so simple.

He was very happy in his heart, completely unaware of the many internal dramas in Liu Yuanhua's mind.

Even if he knew, he wouldn't care.

Liu Yuanhua was just his defeated opponent.