Better a High Price or a Low One?

Just as the group was about to call out the number from the messenger, they saw the servant, number seven, bid for himself and lose the auction. Everyone was stunned again. What kind of bizarre tactic was this? Could this really be done?

"This is..." Fu Yunlang felt like his brain wasn't working properly.

Xiao Lingpu calmly stated, "This is my offer."

The Fu Family brothers. "..."

Although Xiao Lingpu had made bids for the previous items, he was acting as a shill. Now...

Fu Yunkai was somewhat confused about Xiao Lingpu's intentions.

The two grew up together and were as close as brothers, so he spoke rather casually, "I'm saying, Your Highness, if you're going to raise the price, at least don't raise it above mine."

"I genuinely love this painting," Xiao Lingpu said.

As a prince, he had seen and tasted countless delicacies, and being an extremely self-disciplined person, he did not allow himself to be controlled by material desires. Therefore, his material desires were extremely low, almost nonexistent. He pursued more spiritual things.

But that painting had deeply moved him, striking a chord deep within him. He genuinely wanted to photograph it.

Fu Yunkai felt the same way as Xiao Lingpu, so he could especially understand Xiao Lingpu's feelings.

He nodded, watching the crowd below snap out of their daze and begin bidding. He sighed, "Fine, even if you don't beat me, I still won't get this painting."

The Marquis of Pingnan's Residence wasn't short of money; they could easily come up with twenty or thirty thousand taels of silver.

But he can't act recklessly.

The silver in his home was essentially the army's reserve silver, capable of saving soldiers' lives in critical moments. No matter how much he liked that painting, he couldn't possibly ignore it and spend a fortune to buy it.

"Alright. You pay, and I'll come and admire it," he said again.

Xiao Lingpu punched Fu Yunkai on the shoulder and laughed, "You little rascal, you're pretty shrewd."

After saying that, he raised his chin and said, "But I'm sorry to disappoint you. I can't afford this price either."

He's not one to act impulsively. His money has important uses; he can't afford to waste it on things like this. That price he just offered was the only one he made in a moment of impulse.

Their impulsive actions, while seemingly harmless, unexpectedly drove up the price of the painting.

Things that are in demand must be good.

Those who were initially hesitant because the artist was unknown were spurred on by the price and finally let go of their desire, starting to bid wildly.

Fifteen thousand five hundred taels.

Sixteen thousand taels.

"Seventeen thousand one hundred taels."

Nineteen thousand taels.

That painting could make even people like Fu Yunkai and Xiao Lingpu, who couldn't afford to spend money, act impulsively; others would be even more so.

The items auctioned earlier, even Zuo Qiusheng's paintings and Western Ocean clocks, were being bid up by one or two hundred taels of silver at a time. But when it came to Zhao Ruxi's painting, the bid was increasing by one or two thousand taels of silver at a time.

This crazy display left everyone in Zhao Ruxi's private room speechless.

Before coming, the three senior brothers and Kang Yannian had avoided bumping into Zhao Ruxi and agreed to each bid once to support their junior sister. But before they even had a chance to bid, the price had already skyrocketed.

"Master, is it possible that your bid won't get a chance to be raised?" Wu Zong asked Kang Shilin.

After the bidding began, the master called Kang An, who was standing in the corner, over and quietly gave him a word of advice before Kang An left.

They thought their master was bidding to support their junior sister, but the sign representing their private room wasn't raised even once.

"No, it's because of something else," Kang Shilin said.

When Xiao Lingyan first approached him, he said he wanted to put Zhao Ruxi's painting last and that he would have the Emperor bid for it. In the end, the two agreed on a price that was slightly higher than Zhao Ruxi's painting.

At that time, Zhao Ruxi had not yet repainted the painting. Kang Shilin chose one of his favorite works, feeling that although it was not as good as Zhao Ruxi's, it was still comparable and had its own merits. However, his painting had the added advantage of fame, so the auction price would naturally be higher than Zhao Ruxi's.

But after seeing the painting that Zhao Ruxi sent back, he knew that Zhao Ruxi's painting might fetch a very high price at auction.

He didn't feel ashamed at all; on the contrary, he was very proud.

That was all he could achieve in his life. But in his old age, he was fortunate enough to have such an outstanding disciple as Zhao Ruxi, which only made him feel proud and honored.

This proves that Old Kang's eye for choosing apprentices is absolutely top-notch.

He immediately sent a message to Xiao Lingyan, telling him not to interfere with the price anymore. The price his and Zhao Ruxi's paintings would fetch would depend on fate.

But as soon as the starting price and the first bid for Zhao Ruxi's painting were announced, he knew he had made a mistake again. He quickly summoned Kang An and instructed him to personally meet with the Fifth Prince and find a way to lower the price of his painting during the auction. No matter what, it couldn't be higher than the price of Zhao Ruxi's painting.

After thinking for a moment, he explained, "I asked Kang An to contact the Fifth Prince and ask him to find a way to lower the price of my painting, preferably not exceeding that of Zhiwei."

He didn't want his paintings to fetch lower prices than Zhao Ruxi's, which would cause his three apprentices and son to have designs on Zhao Ruxi.

"Why?" Kang Yannian blurted out.

He glanced at Zhao Ruxi with a complicated expression.

Did his father really need to sacrifice so much for Zhao Ruxi? Zhao Ruxi has a long road ahead of her; with her abilities, surpassing her master is only a matter of time. Was it really necessary to suppress his father during their first painting sale?

If Zhao Ruxi had suppressed his father through her own abilities, he wouldn't have said anything. Everyone would rely on their own abilities. But since his father was doing this intentionally, he felt uneasy.

Is it necessary? On what grounds? Father thinks so highly of his youngest apprentice; where does he place himself and the Kang Family?

Kang Shilin gave him a look of exasperation. "Can't you use your brain to think things through? Do you think your father is some kind of saint who sacrifices himself for others? I'm not getting old yet. If possible, I'd like to compete with my little apprentice."

He sighed, feigning helplessness. "But we can't win against them, so we have no choice but to do Zhiwei favor."

"Master." Zhao Ruxi had already figured out the key to this matter in a flash.

She was moved to tears. "Master, you didn't have to do this. Really. I'm never afraid of rumors or gossip. I believe that as time goes by, people will recognize that my paintings are worth this much money."

Everyone present was a seasoned veteran of the officialdom, and even Kang Yannian, who was easily flustered by his concern for his father, realized what Zhao Ruxi meant when he heard her words.

Because Zhao Ruxi's painting had the same starting price as Zuo Qiusheng's, the price immediately surpassed Zuo Qiusheng's during the auction. It's still unknown how high it will rise.

Right now, everyone is genuinely interested in the painting and is frantically bidding high prices to acquire it. But once they get their hands on it and learn that it was painted by a fourteen-year-old girl who was previously unknown, will they feel cheated?