Mind reading saves the whole family; I'm firmly in the role of a charlatan.

Chapter 199 No one... is innocent.

The host, who was on stage at the time, wearing a professional smile and giving a eloquent speech introducing the auction items, had no idea how important these items were in the top-ranked melodramatic romance novels.

Seeing the guests below whispering and discussing because of Master Liang's reputation, he smiled with satisfaction and continued, "It is worth mentioning that this set of jewelry is not only Master Liang's final work, but Master Liang designed this necklace on the occasion of his golden wedding anniversary with his wife. The inspiration for this necklace comes from the beautiful love story of the two of them through thick and thin over the decades."

"The centerpiece of the necklace is an extremely rare and beautiful tanzanite. The ten-carat tanzanite is rich in color and crystal clear, making it a top-quality tanzanite. It is surrounded by a total of 520 white diamonds, which is Master Liang's expression of love for his wife."

"This necklace can be said to be a testament to the love between Master Liang and his wife. Therefore, this set of jewelry also has another name: Eternal Love. The starting price for this set of jewelry is ten million, and each bid must be at least one hundred thousand. Interested guests can start bidding now."

As soon as the host finished speaking, someone immediately raised a sign.

"Ten million."

"Eleven million."

"Twelve million."

"........."

The appearance of the Heart of the Ocean instantly enlivened the atmosphere in the audience, with a continuous stream of people raising their paddles. In just a short while, the number of paddles exceeded 20 million and headed towards 30 million.

"As expected of a top-tier item in the jewelry industry, the starting bid was higher than the previous items, and so many people were vying for it, causing the price to skyrocket like a rocket."

Seemingly hearing Du Anrao's sigh, Ms. Qiu stepped past Xi Jingyue and asked, "Ms. Du, are you interested in this jewelry set? If you like it, I can..."

"No need, no need. I was just watching for fun. If I were really interested, I would have raised my sign already."

[Heaven can see, I really just wanted to watch the show and enjoy the gossip, not become part of the drama. Don't drag me into this!]

Jiang Changbin and Xi Jingyue: Pfft...

Ms. Qiu looked at Du Anrao for a while, and seeing that she didn't seem to be very interested in the jewelry, she didn't press her further, nodded, and sat back down.

Although many people bid on popular items, it's actually quite quick to determine the winner.

When the price was around 20-30 million, the competition was quite fierce. But when it reached 40 million, fewer people participated in the bidding, and the amount and frequency of the bids gradually decreased.

Forty-one million.

"Forty-one million five hundred thousand."

"Forty-two million..."

"........."

Du Anrao rested his chin on his hand, watching the few remaining survivors fight back and forth. His eyes flickered slightly, as if he had discovered something: "That number fifteen over there..."

Jiang Changbin followed Du Anrao's gaze and met a well-dressed, jewel-adorned middle-aged couple: "What happened to number fifteen?"

"They seem to really want this necklace. From the very beginning, they've matched every bid increase. And they've been very close to it."

Xi Jingyue also noticed the couple and almost immediately guessed their identities. He whispered to Du Anrao, "That's the chairman of Anxiang Group and his wife. Anxiang Group mainly deals in perfumes and fragrances. The chairman and his wife's marriage is a business arrangement. They don't have any feelings for each other, and after getting married, they each did their own thing, but..."

Du Anrao keenly smelled the aroma of melons and excitedly moved closer to Xi Jingyue.

The faint scent of soap wafted over, causing Xi Jingyue's thoughts to momentarily freeze.

"Ahem, it's just that Anxiang Group is preparing for its IPO, and the two of them were recently photographed spending the night with their respective lovers. In an instant, all their past scandals were dug up, and the private moral issues of the company's senior executives have seriously affected the group's reputation and also impacted their IPO preparations..." Du Anrao immediately understood after Xi Jingyue's explanation.

"In other words, they want to use the Heart of the Ocean to salvage their marriage reputation, thereby stabilizing the company's stock and helping the company successfully go public?"

"You are very smart."

Du Anrao chuckled, slightly embarrassed, "No, not really."

Of course! I'm a seasoned veteran who's read countless books; these basic business tidbits are no challenge for me.

Xi Jingyue chuckled. This little liar...

"This Heart of the Ocean is Master Leung's final work, and it has the effect of celebrity endorsement. In addition, his inspiration comes from his sincere feelings for his lover over the years. As long as they bid for this necklace and find a suitable occasion for the man to give it to the woman, showing off their affection, and coordinating with the online public opinion, they can minimize the impact of their previous negative rumors on the company."

After listening to his explanation, Du Anrao nodded with a complicated expression.

Using someone else's love to prove your own? I don't really understand the thought process of you rich people.

However, this also proves that money can make the devil turn the millstone; only with money can one bid for this necklace, and only with money can one hire online trolls to help whitewash the situation.

When many people talk about something, and when there are many different versions of the story, it can cause confusion and make it difficult to distinguish between truth and falsehood.

After a series of maneuvers, the whitewashing effect was achieved, and black could be turned into white.

The couple knew this, which is why they acted so recklessly. Their high-profile bidding at this moment was perhaps a result of their arrogance in believing they could control people's hearts.

However, in Du Anrao's view, this matter is not so simple.

Just as their company was about to go public, a scandal involving the company chairman and his wife's private life broke out. The timing was so coincidental that it was definitely not a coincidence, and it was most likely intentionally orchestrated by their rival company.

It's obvious that the other party could have resolved the crisis by having them use this necklace.

Indeed, wherever there is a Heart of the Ocean, there is conflict. In this chaotic world, no Heart of the Ocean is innocent.

The two were speechless. The Heart of the Ocean felt a bit wronged.

"Forty-nine million five hundred thousand."

"Fifty million."

"Fifty million, any higher bid? Okay, fifty million once, fifty million twice, fifty million three times, sold! Congratulations to customer number fifteen for winning this Ocean Heart, which symbolizes beautiful love."

As soon as the hammer fell, symbolizing the dust settling, applause erupted in celebration. The chairman of Anxiang Group even stood up and waved, his face beaming with pride.

The applause quickly subsided, and the next item was brought to the stage.

"The next lot is an antique blue-and-white porcelain vase from the Yuan Dynasty with a design of intertwined chrysanthemums. The base diameter of this vase is..."

The host on stage was still talking eloquently about the blue and white porcelain in the glass window when Du Anrao suddenly sat up as if he had discovered something.

【Hey, this vase…】

(End of this chapter)