My disciple, you are now invincible. Go down the mountain and wreak havoc on the world!

Su Qingyuan frowned and tugged at Ye Xunhuan's arm: "Don't follow him anymore. It's just a century-old tangerine peel. We can find other channels later. Lu Mingchen is obviously doing this on purpose. It's too much of a loss to compete with him."

"That won't do."

Ye Xunhuan, with a candy in his mouth, spoke indistinctly, but his eyes shone brightly, "The medicine for the old man's illness cannot be missing even one ingredient."

"Besides, if someone willingly offers themselves up to be a sucker, why wouldn't you take advantage of them?"

As he spoke, he slowly raised the sign again:

Three million.

"Four million."

Lu Mingchen's voice followed immediately, carrying an undisguised provocation.

"Ye Xunhuan, is that right? I advise you not to waste your energy."

"There's nothing in the entire Jiangnan Province that I, Lu Mingchen, want but can't get."

"You gigolo who lives off women, how much money do you have to play with me?"

These words immediately sparked a low murmur of discussion from the audience.

"So you really are a gigolo? No wonder you dared to compete with Young Master Lu for something."

"The Su family is already in dire straits, yet he still dares to squander money like this; he's truly courting death."

"He'll be in for a rough time later. The Lu family is not to be trifled with."

The murmurs weren't loud, but they drifted over intermittently. Su Qingyuan's face turned pale with anger, and she clenched her fists tightly. Just as she was about to stand up and retort, Ye Xunhuan pressed her shoulder down.

Ye Xunhuan turned to look at her, a smile still playing on his lips, his eyes warm and gentle.

"What's there to be angry about? If a dog bites you, are you going to bite it back?"

"Just wait, I'll beat his face so badly that even his own mother wouldn't recognize him."

As he spoke, he held up the sign again, his tone nonchalant: "Five million."

"Six million."

Lu Mingchen raised the price without hesitation, and even sneered.

"Keep going, don't stop. I want to see if the Su family's wealth is enough for you to squander."

"Even if you're living off a woman, you have to know your limits. Don't end up ruining the entire Su family and having Su Qingyuan begging on the streets with you."

These words touched a nerve with Ye Xunhuan.

His smile faded slightly. He twirled the candy stick between his fingers but didn't raise the sign again. Instead, he leaned back in his chair and leisurely swung his legs.

The host called out the price three times, but no one raised it further. The gavel fell, declaring, "Six million! The 300-year-old tangerine peel belongs to Young Master Lu!"

Everyone in the room showed expressions of understanding.

Sure enough, the pretty boy chickened out and didn't dare to confront Young Master Lu head-on.

Lu Mingchen picked up a glass of red wine in the private room, took a sip, and a disdainful smile curled at the corner of his mouth.

"I thought he was some tough nut to crack, but he's just a paper tiger."

"Give the order: for the next item in the auction, if he dares to raise his paddle, add one million to the bid."

"I want him to come in naked tonight and leave empty-handed, without even a fart to his name."

His subordinates immediately flattered him, "Young Master Lu is brilliant! This kid dares to compete with you for the Ice Lotus, he's simply overestimating himself! When the auction for the Ice Lotus starts later, we'll crush him and make him lose face in front of everyone!"

From below the stage, Su Qingyuan grew anxious: "Are we really not going to follow? What about Chen Pi...?"

"What's the rush?"

Ye Xunhuan crunched the candy in his mouth with a crisp sound. "If he wants it, just give it to him. It's his money anyway, so we're not losing out."

"There's also Blood Spirit Mushroom and Ice Lotus coming up later. He's got money, so let him spend it as much as he wants."

He paused, leaned close to Su Qingyuan's ear, lowered his voice, and his warm breath brushed against her earlobe, tickling her.

"Besides, everything he photographed today, he'll still have to obediently deliver it to me in the end, won't he?"

Su Qingyuan's ears turned red, and she was stunned for a moment, not understanding what he meant.

Ye Xunhuan, however, had already sat up straight, his eyes sparkling as he stared at the stage, as if waiting to watch a great show, a roguish and cunning smile on his lips.

A short while later, the second medicinal ingredient appeared—

A century-old blood-red Ganoderma lucidum.

The reddish-brown Ganoderma lucidum is placed on a tray, its veins clear and full of spiritual energy.

The host introduced, "This century-old wild blood-ganoderma has extremely high medicinal value. The starting price is three million, and each bid must be at least five hundred thousand higher!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Ye Xunhuan raised his sign: "Four million."

Five million.

Lu Mingchen's voice rang out right on time, filled with sarcasm.

"What, still not giving up? I thought you were scared out of your wits just now."

The guests below the stage looked at each other, all thinking that Ye Xunhuan wouldn't shed a tear until he saw the coffin.

Ye Xunhuan chuckled and raised his sign: "Six million."

"Seven million."

Lu Mingchen answered quickly, as if seven million was just seven hundred dollars to him.

"Eight million."

Ye Xunhuan spoke casually, crossing his legs and making the chair creak softly.

Nine million.

Lu Mingchen's voice carried a hint of mockery, "Go on, if you can raise it to ten million, I'll give you this Blood Spirit Mushroom."

"Oh wait, I almost forgot, you're just a gigolo living with a woman's family. Do you really have the money to come up with ten million? What if you can't pay for it after the auction and get thrown out by security? That would be too embarrassing."

There was a murmur of laughter from the audience, but it quickly subsided; no one dared to actually laugh out loud.

They all looked at Ye Xunhuan with a mixture of pity and disdain.

Su Qingyuan's eyes reddened with anger, and she bit her lip, remaining silent.

Ye Xunhuan patted the back of her hand, squeezed it reassuringly, then slowly put down the plaque in his hand and shrugged:

"Okay, nine million, right? Here you go."

The entire room fell silent.

Have you given up again?

So this kid's just here to drive up the price?

Did they deliberately swindle Lu Shao out of his money?

But what's in it for him?

What good would it do Lu Mingchen if he offended him?

Lu Mingchen's face darkened in the private room, then he sneered, "You're smart to know what's good for you."

Although spending nine million to buy a Blood Spirit Mushroom was a bit of a loss, it was enough to trample Ye Xunhuan underfoot and make him unable to hold his head up in front of Su Qingyuan. This amount of money was nothing to Young Master Lu.

The host wiped the sweat from his brow and quickly brought down the gavel: "Nine million! The century-old Blood Spirit Mushroom belongs to Young Master Lu!"

Shen Wenbai, who was sitting next to him, couldn't sit still any longer and leaned closer to whisper:

"Mr. Ye, how about I speak with Lu Mingchen on his behalf?"

"The Ice Lotus is the key to treating Grandpa Su's illness; we can't afford any mistakes."

"If all else fails, I'll use the Shen family's connections to intercept the Ice Lotus."

"What are you talking about?"

Ye Xunhuan took the candy stick out of his mouth, his fingertips spinning rapidly, the plastic stick flashing a faint, cold light under the lamp.

"He likes to play, so I'll play along to the end. The first two herbs are just to collect some interest. The real show is the Ice Lotus, which will be the grand finale later."

As he spoke, he glanced up at the private room on the second floor, a sharp, wolf-like glint flashing in his eyes, so quick it was impossible to catch.

Lu Mingchen, you'd better prepare more cash.

Otherwise, we might not have enough to lose later.

After another dozen or so items were auctioned, the atmosphere finally reached its climax.

The host took a deep breath, his voice trembling with excitement: "Ladies and gentlemen! Next up is tonight's grand finale auction item—"

"A 500-year-old polar ice lotus!"

Two staff members, wearing white gloves, carefully carried a white jade box onto the stage.

The jade box slowly opened, revealing a pure white lotus flower lying quietly inside. Its petals were crystal clear, as if carved from ice. Wisps of cold air emanated from the jade box, and a refreshing coolness could be felt from a distance.

The entire venue erupted in cheers.

"It really is a five-hundred-year-old ice lotus! This is a rare and precious treasure! You can't buy it even if you have money!"

"No wonder it's the grand finale, this is incredibly rare! Growing in the far north, it's difficult to even harvest, let alone one that's 500 years old!"

"This is going to be interesting. Young Master Lu is definitely determined to get it. Will that kid still dare to follow?"

Amidst the clamor of discussion, the host announced loudly: "The 500-year-old Ice Lotus, starting bid five million! Each bid must increase by at least five hundred thousand! Now, let the auction begin!"

No sooner had he finished speaking than Lu Mingchen's confident voice came from the private room on the second floor, doubling the amount: "Ten million."

The entire audience gasped.

Ten million!

Starting with ten million right from the start—only the eldest son of the Lu family could pull that off!

All eyes immediately turned to Ye Xunhuan in the first row below the stage.

Having backed down twice and admitted defeat twice, will he dare to follow now, facing the most important finale, the Ice Lotus?

Lu Mingchen stood in front of the floor-to-ceiling window of the private room, looking down at Ye Xunhuan, a sinister smile curling at the corner of his mouth.

He raised his hand and slowly gave a thumbs-down gesture in Ye Xunhuan's direction.

Provocation and contempt were palpable in his words.

He wanted to publicly humiliate Ye Xunhuan, to let everyone know that anyone who tried to take something from him, Lu Mingchen, would only have one outcome—

A crushing defeat.

Su Qingyuan's heart was in her throat, her fingertips were icy cold, and she was tightly gripping the hem of her clothes.

Ice Lotus is the only hope to save Grandpa; we must obtain it.

But Lu Mingchen was clearly going to drive the price up to an astronomical figure. If this continued, even if they won the bid, it would be an astronomical sum.

She was just about to tell Ye Xunhuan that she could ask her grandfather's old friend for help when she saw the people around her move.

Ye Xunhuan slowly sat up straight from his chair. He looked up and gazed towards the private room on the second floor. His narrow eyes curved into a smile, like a wildcat eyeing its prey, both languid and dangerous.

Then, amidst the shocked, bewildered, and amused gazes of everyone present, he slowly raised his hand, his well-defined fingers gripping the bidding paddle, and leisurely lifted it up.