The noise on the first and second floors gradually died down. After all, those who could only sit downstairs were inferior in power and wealth to those on the third floor. Bai Zheng was well aware that after this amount, it would be a fierce competition among the people on the third floor.
"One hundred and fifty thousand taels." The voice came from Feng Jingye's room.
Bai Zheng frowned. Suddenly thinking of the relationship between Feng Jingye and the Prime Minister's Mansion, she understood that most of this money would probably be paid by the Prime Minister's Mansion. One hundred and fifty thousand taels! It was no small matter for both the Prime Minister's Mansion and the Crown Prince's Mansion to take out such a large amount of money at once.
"One hundred and sixty thousand taels." Just when everyone was silent, someone in the private room next to Bai Zheng's spoke up.
"I didn't expect the General's Mansion to be interested in this thing." Feng Jingyi said coldly.
"Isn't Your Highness interested?" Bai Zheng's fingers tapped rhythmically on the bidding card that had been used once and then left unused ever since, as she asked with a smile.
"How could I not be interested..." Before Feng Jingyi could finish his sentence, he saw Bai Zheng raise the bidding card.
"One hundred and seventy thousand taels!" The clear voice came from Bai Zheng's mouth. This voice was like the gavel in the auctioneer's hand, hitting Feng Jingyi like a thunderbolt.
Feng Jingyi's eyes widened instantly. He looked at Bai Zheng in disbelief as she calmly put down the bidding card after making the bid. He stood up abruptly, then slumped back into his chair weakly.
Bai Zheng turned her head and looked at Feng Jingyi, whose eyes were red with shock. Only then did she say apologetically, "Your Highness, please forgive me..."
"One hundred and eighty thousand taels!" Right after Bai Zheng spoke, a woman's voice came from the General's Mansion, full of determination not to be outdone.
Feng Jingyi exchanged a glance with Bai Zheng. Then he regained his strength and slowly sat up straight. Still feeling uneasy, he snatched the bidding card and held it tightly in his hand.
"Miss Bai should just watch the fun from the side."
Bai Zheng smiled sheepishly. "I just wanted to tease my cousin for what happened earlier."
You're not just teasing your cousin. You're probably trying to take my life!
Feng Jingyi rubbed his throbbing temple and began to wonder if he should stay away from this girl in the future.
There was a long period of silence in Jizhen Tower.
At the high price of one hundred and eighty thousand taels, no one dared to raise their bidding cards easily.
Those who couldn't afford the price had already fallen silent, while the few who could seemed to be calculating whether the papermaking technique was really worth one hundred and eighty thousand taels.
The auctioneer below slowly raised the gavel in his hand. "Is there anyone else who wants to raise the price?"
Bai Zheng curled her lips. From her line of sight, although she couldn't see clearly what the people in the General's Mansion were doing at the moment, she could see that the figures inside were in a complete mess.
Today, the Minister's Mansion and the General's Mansion were sharing a private room. Su Muxiao had impulsively made a bid with the Minister's Mansion's bidding card. I'm afraid the first person who wouldn't let her off easily was her father, Su Zheng.
This cousin, who had always taken pleasure in bullying her since childhood, I wonder what kind of situation she was in now.
The auctioneer's voice continued. "One hundred and eighty thousand taels. Is there really no one who wants to raise the price?"
Silence. There was still complete silence.
It seemed that even those who could afford the price thought that one hundred and eighty thousand taels was beyond their limit.
"If not, one hundred and eighty thousand taels, going once!"
"Bang!"
With the sound of the gavel falling, the door of the private room where Bai Zheng was located was suddenly pushed open. A figure rushed straight towards her.
"You bitch!"
Bai Zheng nimbly got up and hid behind Feng Jingyi. "Cousin, what are you doing?"
"You bitch! Why didn't you continue to bid? Why didn't you compete with me? Don't you want the papermaking technique?"
Su Muxiao had completely lost her mind. She stretched out her long fingernails and lunged at Bai Zheng mercilessly. Her sleeves were rolled up high, and the hairpins on her head had messed up her hair. She looked like a shrew, completely losing the elegance of a young lady from a noble family.
"What do you mean, cousin? Why should I compete with you? Although I also like the papermaking technique, His Highness the Fifth Prince said that the highest he could offer was one hundred and seventy thousand taels. He couldn't afford any more, so I didn't dare to bid randomly."
As Bai Zheng spoke, she skillfully dodged Su Muxiao's attack again, circling around Feng Jingyi.
After all, one was a young lady raised in a deep boudoir, while the other was a modern woman who insisted on doing yoga and keeping fit. Although Su Muxiao looked imposing, she didn't gain any advantage after a few rounds.
"You!"
"One hundred and eighty thousand taels, going twice!"
There was a terrifying redness in Su Muxiao's eyes. She grabbed the cup on the table and smashed it to the ground. "I'm going to kill you!"
The crisp sound of the broken cup finally brought Feng Jingyi, who had been in a daze, back to his senses.
In his life, he had never seen a person like Su Muxiao!
Those young ladies from noble families were either shy or elegant in front of him on weekdays. At most, they would just make some sarcastic remarks. This was the first time he had seen someone like her who actually rolled up her sleeves and wanted to fight.
Seeing Feng Jingyi's face getting darker and darker, and the third strike of the gavel downstairs about to fall, Bai Zheng finally stopped teasing Su Muxiao and spoke.
"It's not impossible for cousin to ask me to bid again."
Hearing Bai Zheng's words, Su Muxiao immediately stopped smashing things. She stared at Bai Zheng fixedly, as if she would overturn the table if Bai Zheng's words didn't satisfy her the next second.
"According to the current rules, raising the bidding card one more time means adding ten thousand taels. If cousin hadn't bid, His Highness the Fifth Prince could have bought the papermaking technique for only one hundred and seventy thousand taels. But in the end, because of cousin, he has to spend an extra twenty thousand taels."
"What exactly do you mean?" Su Muxiao gritted her teeth.
"Since His Highness the Fifth Prince can only afford one hundred and seventy thousand taels, why not let the Minister's Mansion help His Highness the Fifth Prince pay the extra twenty thousand taels? In this way, His Highness the Fifth Prince can get the thing he loves, and it can also solve cousin's urgent need. What do you think, cousin?"
As Bai Zheng spoke, she gently patted Feng Jingyi's shoulder. This pat also made Feng Jingyi swallow the words of scolding Su Muxiao that were on the tip of his tongue.
Su Muxiao frowned. Twenty thousand taels of silver! All the dowries prepared for her by the Minister's Mansion might not be worth twenty thousand taels. If she gave this money away as a favor today, her father would definitely skin her alive.
But compared to the astronomical figure of one hundred and eighty thousand taels, twenty thousand taels was really a lot more reasonable.
"But I have to say this ugly thing first." Seeing that Su Muxiao seemed to be about to agree, Bai Zheng quickly added.
"Today, cousin came to ask His Highness the Fifth Prince to save you on your own initiative. If there is someone else who raises the price after His Highness the Fifth Prince makes a bid, and this thing doesn't end up in His Highness the Fifth Prince's hands in the end, cousin still has to pay the twenty thousand taels. Consider it as repaying His Highness the Fifth Prince for his timely help."
"You!" Su Muxiao suddenly raised her head and grabbed an empty small stool beside her.
"If cousin doesn't agree, you might as well go out now and see if you can find someone else to help you out with twenty thousand taels." Bai Zheng simply suggested.
"One hundred and eighty thousand taels..." The auctioneer's voice came again.
"Cousin, don't hesitate. Time waits for no one!" Bai Zheng grabbed the bidding card from Feng Jingyi's hand and waved it at Su Muxiao.
Su Muxiao felt like she was about to collapse. She only felt the world spinning in front of her eyes, and the auctioneer's voice seemed to be like a death knell ringing in her ears.
"Going ..."