Chapter 59
Gary dropped tuis bidding paddle. And then, the auctioneer on the stage burst out, “Five million once, five million twice!”
Athena raised her bid sign, “Five million and twenty–five bucks.”
Even though this auction had no minimum bid increment, Athena’s random twenty–five bucks had the room cracking up.
Is the Dempsey heiress broke or what? Only adding twenty–five bucks?”
“Bidder number three is Mr. Bradshaw; is Ms. Dempsey deliberately trying to gross him out?”
At the sound of twenty–five, Newman’s delicate lips twitched ever so slightly. Kent was about to raise his paddle, slapping another ten grand on top, when Newman’s cool voice chimed in, “No need to go any higher.”
“Mr. Bradshaw?”
Kent was puzzled. They could easily beat a measly twenty–five bucks, so why was Mr. Bradshaw ready to lose over it? When Mr. Bradshaw said no more, Kent obediently lowered his paddle.
The auctioneer saw Kent bow out, her eyes bugging out.
“Five million and twenty–five bucks once, five million and twenty–five bucks twice, really, no one else wants to up the ante? Anyone willing to add just one more dollar?”
The guests were silent. Was it just a dollar ther
of the whole five million!
were short of Athena’s bid? They were short
“Five million and twenty–five bucks for the third time, lot number 4, the Solara gemstone, goes to bidder number seven!”
And that was that. As a server was about to remove the gemstone from the display, Nancy strutted onto the stage, sidled up to the auctioneer, and took the mic, “A huge thanks to bidder number seven for snatching up this stone from grandma’s collection for five million and some pocket change. I grew up with it but never saw her crack any of these stones open. Today, they all find new homes. Before we part ways, I’ve got this tiny wish. I wanna see what’s inside these stones. So, how about it, bidder number three and seven, fancy cracking them open right here, right now?”
Nancy added, “We’ve got some seasoned polishers right here in Luxe Auction Emporium at your service.”
Kent, stone–faced, shot her down quick, “The stones we won ain’t for show.”
Nancy didn’t dare mess with the Bradshaw family, but they weren’t her target anyway, “I’m
super curious about that five million rock. C’mon, Ms. Dempsey, let’s crack it open for all to see. If it turns out to be a dud, I’ll personally refund you half the price.”
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Chapter 59
The quests chuckled. Even with a half–price refund, Athena would be taking a bath with half the price purchase of a worthless rock.
Leonard frowned; he uttered, “Nancy, cut it out!”
Nancy pretended she didn’t hear Leonard as she beckoned the polisher onstage. The polisher hauled up the equipment and, under watchful eyes, started grinding away at th gem’s verdigris surface, layer by layer. The crowd held their breath, eyes glued to the stone in the polisher’s hands.
But as time ticked by, the crowd became antsy; the buzz of chatter began to rise. Before their eyes, the gem was halved in size and nothing special appeared. Even the polisher felt like he was on a fool’s errand.
“Ms. Dempsey, this stone’s a bust.”
Nancy struggled to contain a snicker. Athena had spent millions on a plain rock – it was mortifying!
“Nancy, enough!”
Leonard knew Nancy was just trying to embarrass Athena, so he stood up and made a beeline for the stage.
At that moment, Athena also stood up. She approached the stage, her fingertips grazing the stone’s surface, her nails tapping lightly. Pointing to one spot, she instructed, “Start polishing here.”
“Ms. Dempsey, you’re still going for it?”
Athena smiled, “For sure!”
Nancy’s voice floated over, “Ms. Dempsey, maybe you should just call it??”
She said one thing but her eyes signaled the polisher to keep going. She wanted to see Athena become Stardale City’s biggest joke when the stone was reduced to dust.
Following Nancy’s cue, the polisher carried on. Switching to the side Athena had indicated, he polished for a few seconds before Athena commanded, “Stop!”
She directed him to change angles and continue. Seconds later, Athena called a halt again.
Nancy couldn’t help but interject, “Ms. Dempsey, stop messing with the polisher’s work.”
No matter the angle, it was still just a rock. But before Nancy’s voice trailed off, the polisher gasped, “There’s something here! This stone’s got the goods!”
The guests couldn’t yet see the quality of what was revealed, but the polisher spotted a faint icy green hue surfacing.
Nancy’s face froze. Impossible! These stones had been appraised; there shouldn’t be jade inside!
any
The polisher refined the edges, revealing a thumb–sized piece of jade, and peered through
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his loupe at the gem in hand.
“This clarity and color, it’s probably imperial jade!”
His declaration unsettled many in the crowd. They weren’t just sitting anymore, they were craning their necks to see the stage.
As the verdigris shell peeled away, revealing the fist–sized imperial jade, the polisher’s hands trembled, but Athena said, “Let me.”
She swapped the polishing tool and gave the jade a light buff. Her technique was unlike the polisher’s; she donned clear safety goggles, constantly adjusting the original water’s polishing angles.
Perched on the second floor, Newman squinted his narrow eyes. In his mind, the image of Athena polishing the rough stone overlapped with that of the silly girl.
Tapping gently on the stone three times, skillfully changing the angle of polishing, all the techniques he once shared with that girl were now brought to life in Athena’s hands. Newman’s fingers, resting on the railing, tightened slightly.
Underneath the high–definition big screen, the crystal–clear, gleaming jade dazzled everyone’s eyes. The guests in attendance couldn’t help but exclaim, “Holy smokes! Is that really imperial jade?!”
“Top–tier glass–type imperial jade, priceless! Ms. Dempsey scored big time with her five
million!”
Their gazes shifted towards Athena, from shock to envy.
Athena turned her head and lifted the corners of her lips towards Nancy, “Ms. Bishop, did you get your dream come true? And hey, no need for that half–off deal anymore. Five million and twenty–five bucks, I’m not shortchanging the Bishop family a single dime.”
Yet, with the imperial jade in Athena’s hands, she could sell it for a price that was over ten, maybe even thirty times higher!
Nancy’s emotions churned violently inside her, almost to the point of spitting blood in frustration.
Her insisting on a live stone–cutting was meant to embarrass Athena! But as soon as the news broke that Athena had bought the imperial jade rough for five million, the whole of Stardale City was buzzing!
Nancy, with her chest heaving wildly, could only watch helplessly as Athena walked away from the auction stage with the imperial jade that should have been hers.
Athena stepped down from, not intending to linger at the auction any longer. Before she had gone up, she had already felt that something was off with her body.
