I lent my brother 500 yuan, and he offered his wife as collateral.

……

Twenty million.

This number is like a stone thrown into stagnant water, failing to create the expected ripples.

Su Tianxiao sat in the first row, his cloudy old eyes filled with bloodshot veins.

He stared intently at the dark one-way glass on the second floor, the sandalwood bracelet in his hand rattling loudly as he rubbed it.

To follow or not to follow?

If he follows along, and Qin Feng suddenly withdraws like he did with that broken cup before, he'll have to spend another 20 million to buy back a piece of rotten wood.

I won't go for it, in case it really is a treasure...

"wrong."

The string in Su Tianxiao's mind suddenly tightened, and a chill crept up his spine.

"A trap! This is definitely a trap!"

He took a deep breath, a savage glint of pleasure flashing in his eyes.

"Qin Feng, Qin Feng, you've used the same trick three times already? Do you really think our Su family is brainless?"

He deliberately inflated the price of that cup to lure me in.

The land deed was a secret that threatened me into joining the scheme.

The jade pendant is a clever trick to enter the game by feigning madness and foolishness.

Now, with this piece of wood, he's resorting to the same old tricks, using sarcastic remarks and provocations, with only one goal:

This is a scam!

Even if they swindle another 20 million from the Su family, it will still disgust us for months!

"I won't fall for it!" Su Tianxiao slapped his thigh, turned to Su Linglong beside him, and lowered his voice, his tone firm, "Linglong, don't raise your paddle! Let him buy! This is a trap!"

Su Linglong, who had her hand on the bidding device, paused upon hearing this.

Although she was arrogant, she wasn't stupid.

Upon closer inspection, this wood is so black it's practically charred. Even if it's lightning-struck wood, you can buy a truckload of it for tens of thousands of dollars on the market. Why is it worth twenty million?

"Second Uncle is right."

Su Linglong withdrew her hand, a mocking smile playing on her lips. "Trying to treat us like pigs to be slaughtered? Dream on."

Once they understood this, the suffocating feeling they had just experienced vanished, replaced by a sense of superiority stemming from their superior intellect.

Su Tianxiao suddenly stood up.

He grabbed the number plate on the table, too lazy to even lift it, and slammed it down hard on the table with his other hand.

"Snapped!"

A crisp sound made their stance clear.

Su Tianxiao raised his head and, facing the direction of the private room on the second floor, shouted loudly in a clear-headed tone, as if he had seen through the world's illusions:

"Qin Feng! You don't need to act anymore!"

"Trying to provoke us? Trying to make the Su family the sucker again?"

Su Tianxiao sneered repeatedly, his voice echoing throughout the room: "You think we'll do the same thing a hundred times? Only a poor, uncultured person like you would treasure this piece of wood! You really think just because it's been painted black, it's an antique?"

With a sweeping wave of his hand, he exuded an air of domineering arrogance: "The Su family is done playing with you! Here you go! This fire poker is yours! Take it back and use it to keep warm, don't get cold!"

Su Linglong also stood up, crossed her arms, and looked smug, as if she had seen through the scheme.

"That's right! Qin Feng, don't you like collecting junk? This is a perfect match for you!" Su Linglong giggled. "Twenty million for a piece of rotten wood? Only you would do something so stupid. I may be rich, but I don't support idiots!"

The guests looked at each other in bewilderment.

The Su family... has abstained?

Many people began to whisper among themselves.

"It seems that Boss Su has learned his lesson after being ripped off before."

"To be honest, that piece of wood really doesn't look good, and 20 million is outrageous."

"Qin Feng really messed up this time; he tried to fish but ended up getting himself caught in the trap."

On the stage.

Tang Ziyun looked at the smug faces of the two Su family members, uncle and nephew, and a hint of pity flashed in her eyes.

If these two knew that this wood was actually top-grade lightning-struck heartwood that could truly save lives, I wonder if they would have a stroke on the spot.

But she was the auctioneer, and her only responsibility was to bring down the gavel.

"Twenty million." Tang Ziyun didn't give anyone time to react, speaking extremely quickly, "The Su family has withdrawn. Are there any higher bids?"

The audience was completely silent.

Who would have the time to spend 20 million to buy a piece of charcoal?

"Twenty million per time!"

"Twenty million twice!"

Tang Ziyun raised the wooden mallet high, then drew a clean arc in the air before slamming it heavily onto the base.

"Bang!"

"make a deal!"

A hammer is fixed.

There was no reversal, no hijacking.

Qin Feng secured the first item of the night with a starting price of 20 million.

A peach heartwood struck by lightning a thousand years ago.

Compared to Su Tianxiao's 80 million worth of worthless paper, Su Linglong's 300 million worth of poisonous jade was a stark contrast.

This is practically free.

They even pay out of their own pockets.

Inside a private room on the second floor.

As Qin Feng looked at the two large characters "Transaction Completed" on the big screen, his tense body completely relaxed.

He picked up the damp towel on the table, wiped his hands, and a sincere smile appeared on his lips.

"It's done."

This time it wasn't acting; I was genuinely happy.

He pressed the button on the loudspeaker.

"that……"

Qin Feng's voice rang out in the hall, sounding somewhat shy, "Thank you."

"Thank you, Mr. Su, for your kindness, and thank you, Miss Su, for not trying to take it from me."

Qin Feng paused, his tone so sincere it almost brought tears to one's eyes: "I really need this. I was worried about not having enough money, but I didn't expect you two to be so generous. Twenty million... that's too cheap, I'm almost embarrassed."

His gratitude came from the bottom of his heart.

After all, if the Su family really invests several hundred million, the money he made by picking up bargains is really not enough.

How can I buy the thousand-year-old snow lotus?

However, these "heartfelt words" took on a different meaning when they reached the ears of the Su family.

Su Linglong laughed so hard she almost cried, as if she had heard the funniest joke in the world.

"Hahaha! Cheap?"

Su Linglong pointed to the second floor, laughing uncontrollably: "Qin Feng, have you gone mad from some kind of shock? You think 20 million for a piece of rotten wood is cheap? Are you being stubborn or have you lost your mind?"

Su Tianxiao also looked disdainful, shook his head, and spoke in the tone of an elder lecturing a junior:

"Young man, if you lose, you have to admit it. Stop trying to save face here; the more you try to explain, the worse it gets."

"Your little schemes are crystal clear to me. Trying to trick us into taking over your business? In your next life!"

Su Tianxiao was in high spirits, feeling that he had finally turned the tables.

Although he lost more than 400 million yuan earlier, he outsmarted Qin Feng in the last round!

This allowed him to regain some of the dignity of a person in a superior position.

The audience burst into laughter.

"This Qin Feng is a real oddball; he's stuck with a bad deal but he's still stubbornly holding on."

"I bet he'll cry in his bed when he gets back. Twenty million! That's several lifetimes' worth of money for an ordinary person."

"Now look what happened. The Su family lost money, but they gained face; Qin Feng won the prize, but he's now a fool."

Faced with the ridicule from the audience, Qin Feng did not refute it.

He simply smiled faintly and turned off the loudspeaker.

He turned around and looked at Su Qingxue, who was sitting on the sofa looking somewhat lost.

"Brother Feng..."

Su Qingxue asked softly, her big eyes filled with worry, "They're all laughing at you... Did I cause you trouble again?"

Although she didn't understand, she could tell that 20 million was a large sum of money, and that what they bought seemed to be something that nobody wanted.

"joke?"

Qin Feng walked to the sofa and gently brushed Su Qingxue's nose.

"How can a sparrow know the ambition of a swan?"

Qin Feng's eyes were clear as he pointed to the crowd still celebrating downstairs: "Let them laugh. In a few days, they'll know who the fool really is."

At that moment, there was a knock on the door of the private room.

Tang Ziyun personally led two bodyguards in.

This time, there was no radiation-proof lead box, only an exquisite mahogany tray lined with yellow brocade, on which the charred piece of lightning-struck wood lay quietly.

Even though they were several meters apart, Qin Feng could still feel the pure yang energy emanating from them.

[Ding! Congratulations, host, you have successfully snagged a bargain!]

[Item Obtained: Millennium Lightning-Struck Peach Heart (S-Rank Rare Treasure)]

[True Market Value: Priceless (Invaluable under Specific Demand)]

[High Return on Investment for Bargains!]

[Gained 5000 Treasure Points!]