"Sister Xuan, the items on the second floor, while decent and with orderly provenance, are far from precious enough," Li Chonglou said seriously after he and the other two had finished looking at the exhibits on the second floor.
If Lu Xuan wanted to give antiques as gifts, they had to be of considerable value. If these common items could impress someone, why would they travel all the way from the capital to Chang'an to participate in this so-called cultural heritage exchange conference? It was like trying to make soup without ingredients; he wouldn't even bother picking up these ordinary items at an antique market, let alone here. It seemed Lu Xuan's task would not be completed.
"No, Chonglou, you might not know this, but the museum will release a great 'leak' today," Lu Xuan said without any disappointment, lowering her voice. "It is precisely because of this insider information that wealthy merchants from all over have gathered here."
"That item is not among these common pieces."
"It's estimated to be the grand finale."
Lu Xuan's expression was mysterious, but Li Chonglou understood the situation. He had seen such tactics far too often. However, this was the first time he had seen an official museum employing such a strategy. He had to admit that the marketing tactics of the Chang'an Museum were quite advanced. Normally, museums could not directly sell precious artifacts. But if a staff member made a mistake and let one slip out, there would be nothing that could be done. The strange thing was that the museum had actually spread this news privately. What "insider information" was, was clearly intentional.
As for Lu Xuan's mention of a grand finale, Li Chonglou suspected it was not the case. If a precious item were truly to be presented as a solo finale, the museum would have no need to organize such a cultural heritage exchange conference at Shuhuayuan, nor would they need to leak information to these wealthy merchants. It would be an unnecessary move. Therefore, it was highly likely that this was an advanced marketing strategy, and if his guess was correct, the so-called "leak" would be hidden amongst numerous ordinary items, and it would be quite deceptive. This was the only way the museum could make a substantial profit and avoid criticism.
"Sister Xuan, let's wait and see," Li Chonglou said, not sharing his suspicions with Lu Xuan. Firstly, it was not his nature to make assumptions without verification. Secondly, Lu Xuan attached great importance to this matter, and he saw no need to increase her worries. His purpose in coming here was to resolve this matter for Lu Xuan, dealing with challenges as they arose – this was Li Chonglou's consistent style. If he couldn't find it, there were always other ways.
"Didn't they say there wouldn't be an auction? Then how would the finale be bought?" Xu Lie asked curiously. Having spent a long time with Li Chonglou, he had naturally become interested in antiques and at least understood the rules of the game. If there was no auction, where would the finale item come from?
"Indeed, there's no auction. But since it's called an exchange conference, it's a place for everyone to exchange prices," Lu Xuan replied with a smile. "It's the same wine in a new bottle; otherwise, there would be no point. The museum doesn't need us to exchange experiences and appraisal skills, they've just changed the name."
Li Chonglou had seen too much of this, so he wasn't surprised. However, he was surprised that the Chang'an Museum was the first to initiate such a practice, and many places would follow suit in the future. Especially the tactic of "unintentionally releasing a leak" – although it was obvious to anyone with discerning eyes, everyone would believe their own luck and judgment to be the best, willing to pay a high price to take a chance. In reality, everything was under the control of the organizers.
As expected, less than half an hour later, the organizers began to appear. A senior executive, accompanied by nine elegant hostesses, entered the second-floor hall carrying ten trays covered with golden domes.
"Esteemed guests from all corners of the world, you must have been waiting for quite some time," the executive said, clearing his throat and speaking into a headset microphone. All eyes were immediately drawn to the nine young ladies behind him. These girls were all hand-picked, tall, beautiful, and radiating youthful vitality. Many of the wealthy men stared with glazed eyes.
Lu Xuan covered her mouth and whispered to Li Chonglou, "These organizations are all being influenced by those online streamers now. Even for an exchange conference, they have to invite so many pretty girls. Isn't this just a form of indirect sexual marketing?"
"Most men, no matter how successful, are destined to be controlled by their genes."
"Only you are different."
As she spoke, Lu Xuan's eyes revealed undisguised admiration. Li Chonglou's gaze was clear and pure, devoid of any wicked thoughts or lust, unlike those lecherous old men. As for Xu Lie, he was looking at the ceiling, completely ignoring the hostesses. This inevitably made Lu Xuan secretly admire them. To achieve such self-control at such a young age, what profound inner cultivation this represented! Indeed, the illegitimate son of a master of cultural heritage lived up to his name. However, Lu Xuan did not know that Li Chonglou had absolutely no relation to Li Shi; his father's name was Li Fu. If she had known that Li Chonglou was merely of ordinary commoner birth, she would have been even more astonished.
"Oh, I was just thinking," Li Chonglou said, startled by Lu Xuan's words, and then smiled. It was exactly as he had predicted: the "leak" was definitely a marketing ploy, and it was among these nine items, with the other eight serving as accessories. It was likely a grand scheme to fleece the attendees. Given the discerning eyes of the wealthy merchants present, they were probably in for a significant financial hit today.
"Alright, I won't keep you in suspense any longer and spoil your enjoyment. All bids at this exchange conference will be private and submitted in the form of sealed bids," the executive announced, raising his voice. "The public auction for jade is something you are all familiar with, and we are adopting that format."
"Each person can submit up to three bids. The museum reserves the right to reject bids below the reserve price. The highest bidder will win."
"These are the rules. Please enjoy the museum's collection!" As the executive waved his hand, the nine hostesses one by one lifted the golden domes from their trays, revealing nine different artifacts.
Roars...
Suddenly, the scene erupted in a chorus of exclamations. These nine items were all different, and none were large in size. From left to right, they were: a blue and white porcelain brush pot with a "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" story motif, a white jade goose with spring water patterns as a belt ornament, a cinnabar lacquer bowl with dragon and phoenix patterns, two rectangular green stone seals, a kernel carving of the Eight Immortals crossing the sea, a Kesi tapestry painting, a string of old Baoshan agate beads, a silver coin of the Da Chao Tong Bao era, and a glass water vessel with gold specks.
They covered nine categories: porcelain, jade, lacquerware, seals, carvings, textiles, jewelry, ancient coins, and old glassware. Each item was in excellent condition, and describing them as exquisite and opulent would not be an exaggeration. Each one appeared to be priceless. Instantly, those who had heard the rumors and came to find a "leak" were dumbfounded.
How... how could they tell which one was the "leak"? Even Lu Xuan's beautiful eyes widened in confusion. In the entire venue, only a select few individuals remained composed. These included Li Chonglou, Xu Lie, and Zhu Qiliang, who stood beside Zhong Liang.
"Kid, let's wait and see how capable you really are," Zhu Qiliang said to Li Chonglou, his lips moving with a mocking expression. Li Chonglou could clearly see what he was saying but ignored him.
"Chonglou, can you tell which one is the 'leak'?" Lu Xuan, unable to discern, could only turn to Li Chonglou for help. This exchange conference was using a sealed bidding system. This meant she had no idea what others were bidding, relying purely on guesswork. The Chang'an Museum's marketing strategy was truly ingenious.
"I can see it, but although it's a sealed bid, there are quite a few people with discerning eyes present," Li Chonglou nodded. "The bidders are likely to have considerable financial means as well."
"The difficult part is setting the price, determining what is appropriate."
"Sister Xuan, what is your maximum budget?" While these items might pose a challenge for others, requiring them to study each one and eliminate possibilities before taking a chance on a few likely candidates, Li Chonglou only needed to glance at each item to identify the "leak." Moreover, this particular item was truly extraordinary. The Chang'an Museum was willing to put such a treasure up for bidding. Although there was a reserve price, this item was not something that could be bought simply with money. It was a treasure with no market price. Did they themselves not recognize the true origin and significance of this item? If so, that would be truly interesting.
"Within ten million," Lu Xuan's beautiful eyes lit up. She had indeed placed her hopes on Li Chonglou, but she hadn't expected him to be so quick.
"Sister Xuan, you have three bidding opportunities. Don't use them on just one item; split them across three different items," Li Chonglou replied after a moment of thought. "Among the precious items this time, besides this treasure, there is another that is quite valuable."
"That is the Kesi tapestry painting. If you intend to give it as a gift, its value is already sufficient."
"As for the third item, I haven't quite understood the organizers' intentions, and I'm not yet certain of its value."
"Let's set the bid for the Kesi tapestry painting first."
"Based on the current market, if this painting were auctioned at Sotheby's or similar auction houses, with good luck, it could fetch tens of millions."
"But here, don't aim for that price. I suggest you bid three times, with amounts of 1 million, 3 million, and 6 million respectively."
Hearing this, Lu Xuan looked utterly bewildered. "Why not just bid ten million? If the bid is so low, what if someone else gets it..." Since it was a treasure worth tens of millions, it should be the "leak" this time. One should go all out, like a lion preying on a rabbit. Why bid such a low amount? She couldn't understand Li Chonglou's plan.
"Because it's worth at most six million!" Li Chonglou's gaze narrowed slightly as he fixed on the two green stone rectangular seals. "There is also another item that is priceless!"
"I will also bid on that item. This item cannot be given away as a gift by you."
"Sister Xuan, I apologize." He had not revealed which items he was referring to until now, not to be mysterious, but to prevent anyone present from deciphering his lips, bidding higher than Lu Xuan, and claiming it first. Furthermore, these two green stone rectangular seals were too precious. He could not let them fall into the wrong hands, nor did he want them to be given as gifts to someone who might not cherish them. That would be a waste of nature's bounty.
Lu Xuan's brows furrowed slightly at his words, but then relaxed, showing understanding. "You don't need to apologize. I only need one gift; I'll leave the rest to you."
"Actually, even if you agreed, it wouldn't be so easy to win today. There are experts present," Li Chonglou said, glancing subtly at Zhu Qiliang, his expression not optimistic.