The village beauty and me!

The antiques on the stage have already been displayed.

It was a gilded Buddha statue, and I used a hundred pieces of dark gold to make it look somewhat lifelike.

"Everyone is welcome to come up on stage for a closer look and to make their judgment."

"That's how the competition is fair."

"Let's emphasize this again: no matter how many people complete the final challenge, they can all share the five million." The host reiterated the rule very seriously.

Now, including this gilded Buddha statue, only two antiques remain on the table.

In other words, this is the second to last step away from winning the five million jackpot.

Almost everyone remaining on the stage turned their gaze toward Li Baohua.

Li Baohua slowly approached the table and carefully examined the gilded Buddha statue from all angles several times.

About ten minutes later, she gently put it down and, without saying anything, stood directly on the left.

"This thing is real!"

"It looks like it; the experts certainly wouldn't be wrong."

"Once we get past this hurdle, we'll be just one step away from five million." Those who had been watching closely all began to take sides.

As a result, a clear polarization emerged on stage.

There were seven or eight people standing around Li Baohua; they were all people who believed in him.

Only two people stood on the right side.

Chen Huan was one of them. The other person was unremarkable in appearance and short in stature, and was not very noticeable in the crowd.

Standing next to Chen Huan at this moment, the two of them immediately became the focus of attention.

Some people in the audience scoffed, "Are these two out of their minds?"

"There are experts on stage, so why don't you follow their judgment?"

"They're definitely going to be eliminated this round. Two fewer people will share that five million. The remaining ones are really lucky."

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Chen Huan glanced to the side.

Just then, the man was also glancing sideways at Chen Huan.

The moment their eyes met, Chen Huan noticed that the other person seemed somewhat dissatisfied.

"What's wrong? You're unhappy that someone else is being mocked with you?" Chen Huan teased with a chuckle.

The man immediately put on a seemingly simple and honest smile, "I like to do things the opposite of what others do, so don't follow my example."

"The experts I found to be quite reliable."

Chen Huan nodded. "I also think he's quite reliable, but I also like to do the opposite of what others do. Fortune favors the bold, you know."

"If you change your mind, it's not too late to stand there now."

After saying that, Chen Huan stepped aside.

The short man glared at him, then turned his head away and ignored him.

The host on stage subtly changed his expression.

But finally, under everyone's urging, it was announced in public that "this gilded Buddha statue, although the level of imitation is ridiculously high, is actually a fake."

The audience erupted in uproar.

Those who had just been completely trusting of Li Baohua and praising him as an expert were suddenly furious.

Some people directly cursed, "What kind of bullshit expert is this? How could they get this wrong?"

"We trusted you so much, you wouldn't be doing this on purpose, would you?"

Li Baohua's face darkened. He walked up to the host with his hands behind his back and said very seriously, "Are you putting on a fake event?"

"Based on my years of experience and expertise in appraising antiques, there is absolutely no way I could be wrong."

"The gilded Buddha statue has no flaws in its appearance, shape, or material. How could it be fake?"

"Don't think we're so easy to fool."

After he said that, the people who had just been cursing him suddenly felt that he was quite wronged.

They all crowded around to speak up for him, saying, "That's right, the expert's words are authoritative. Don't you usually watch treasure appraisal programs?"

The host scratched his head awkwardly. "Expert Li, right?"

"To be honest, it's understandable that you made this mistake today."

"This antique was bought at a high price from an overseas auction house by one of Mr. Ma's friends."

"After being examined by Mr. Ma's professional team, it was determined to be fake."

"I'm displaying this here today partly to test everyone's ability to distinguish, but another important reason is to warn everyone not to blindly trust their so-called experience and eyesight."

While he was speaking, the host pulled a small copper hammer out of his pocket.

"What do you want to do?" Li Baohua stepped back slightly, a little nervous.

"Expert Li, don't worry, this thing is specially designed to distinguish genuine from fake and destroy counterfeit items." The host waved the small copper hammer in his hand.

Suddenly adopting a very serious expression, he said loudly, "Our boss, Mr. Ma, said that counterfeit goods are absolutely not allowed in this antique market."

"If anyone dares to shirk responsibility and try to take advantage of the situation, this fake will be their fate!"

After saying that, he exerted force with his arm and smashed the gilded Buddha statue to pieces with a loud crack.

The broken fragments clearly show that the materials inside are brand new; even someone with only a superficial understanding of the subject can make that judgment.

"This thing really is fake."

Li Baohua swayed on stage, her face pale, "I never thought I'd be so wrong."

"Sorry, everyone." After saying that, she rolled her eyes and fainted.

Immediately, staff members rushed onto the stage and carried him off.

Those who chose the wrong side and missed the chance to advance to the next round can do nothing but shake their heads and sigh at this moment.

No one pursued the matter further or questioned anything; they simply blamed their bad luck.

There are still two people left.

"They both made it to the finals. If one of them chooses one side, wouldn't that mean at least one of them will get five million?"

"I never expected things to get this exciting."

"These two got a bargain."

"It's still a minority who benefit," the audience murmured.

They now feel nothing but envy, jealousy, and hatred towards Chen Huan and the other person who are still standing on the stage.

"Congratulations to you both! You stood your ground and didn't follow the crowd or blindly trust the experts. You're truly a breath of fresh air among all the contestants." The host came over with a perfunctory congratulation.

But Chen Huan could clearly sense that this guy was hostile towards him, though he didn't show it on his face.

By now, Chen Huan had roughly figured out the tactics of Ma Yanping and his gang.

That Li Baohua was indeed a bug; he was an actor hired from elsewhere.

He deliberately misled everyone into standing on his team in the penultimate round.

If Chen Huan hadn't possessed special abilities and made the correct judgment, he would have been eliminated just like everyone else at this moment.

So the short man who makes it to the final round will get five million.

Or rather, this guy, who is also an actor, will get back five million for Ma Yanping.

"You bastard, you're really good at playing the game."

"Unfortunately, despite all your calculations, you didn't anticipate that I'd come looking for trouble today."

"This five million is destined to belong to the Chen family today, and no one can stop them!"