Pan Yaowen's face turned red. The youngster walking in the middle was not the kid he had encountered by the roadside yesterday. He had mocked the other's plain dress, making him seem like a poor boy, not realizing that the person now had two stunning beauties by his side.
"Xiao Huan, do you know him?" Lu Huahui frowned in suspicion.
Lu Huan smiled cheekily, arm in arm with him, "Dad, didn't I tell you about a guy I met on the road yesterday, and I gave him a lift?"
Lin Mo heard the noise and looked over. Seeing Lu Huan and the others, he walked over with Xia Mengdie and Yingzi.
"What a coincidence, I didn't expect to see you again so soon," Lin Mo said with an indifferent smile.
"Right, let me introduce you, this is my old man, Lu Huahui." Lu Huan was lively and innocent, easily familiar with anyone.
Lin Mo nodded toward the middle-aged man.
Lu Huahui, a seasoned fox in the business world, had seen all the big shots and heads of top-notch families but had never encountered someone with the hermit-like and composed temperament of a young master like Lin Mo, whose demeanor seemed as though nothing could capture his interest.
Such a person, unless he truly possessed sky-high abilities to disregard everything, would just be pretending.
"Hello, I'm Lu Huahui, Chairman of Huahui Group," Lu Huahui stood up and said.
Lu Huahui believed in his own ability to judge people. This young man had to be from some super influential family.
"My name is Lin Mo." Lin Mo then found a seat alongside Xia Mengdie and Yingzi and sat down.
"Who would have thought that guy was quite the ladies' man? I wonder which one is his girlfriend," Lu Huan mused curiously.
"I don't think any of them are. Why would he have such pretty girlfriends? I refuse to accept this," Pan Yaowen said, flames of jealousy flickering in his eyes.
"Please, you can't even charm a pretty girl yourself, and now you're begrudging others?" Lu Huan gave her cousin a disdainful glance and laughed.
Pan Yaowen snorted coldly and turned his face away.
Uncle Guan withdrew his gaze from behind Lin Mo and furrowed his brow slightly, "This person feels very familiar, as if I've seen him somewhere before, but I can't remember."
Thinking this, Uncle Guan shook his head.
The auction commenced soon afterward. The most significant item this time was the company mortgaged to the bank by the Su Family, and other things were incidental, not stirring much excitement.
"Okay, this item is a contract for the transfer of a company. The lulu fashion brand, under the Su Family, ranks among the second-tier fashion brands in Huaxia. I believe everyone is familiar with it. The starting bid is ten billion, and each bid must be no less than one billion," said an auctioneer in a cheongsam, addressing the crowd through the microphone.
Lu Huan raised her bidding sign, "We'll start with eleven billion."
Among Lu Family's main industries was the fashion business, but it lacked significant fame. You know, to build a brand especially in fashion, it's not enough to simply throw money at advertising to improve prestige and recognition. A great brand, like Louis Vuitton or Dior, often needs decades of nurturing to become an international first-rate brand.
Thus, the Lu Family was determined to acquire the Su Family's fashion company.
"Heh, you have the gall to bid eleven billion. I'll go with thirteen billion," said a thirty-something year old man in a purple suit raising his bidding card from the right-hand seats.
Lu Huan glared fiercely at the man. That was none other than Chai Xiujin, the young master of the Chai Family. In Ha City, the Chai Family was merely a third-level family, weaker than both the Su and Lu Families, but the Chai Family's Sect was one of the Four Great Families of the Northeast.
Apparently, their intention to take over Su Yongchun's fashion company was also a directive from the Chai Family Sect.
"Twenty billion!"
Lu Huan raised her sign, causing a stir throughout the auction room. The market value of the Su Family's fashion company was just twenty billion, water included or not.
Also, with the Lu Family's long experience operating fashion companies, they might have the ability to turn around the Su Family's losses. Others who had considered bidding opted out.
Twenty billion surpassed their limit. If mishandled, it could become an unbearable burden.
Moreover, the number of those present with sufficient funds could be counted on one hand.
"Twenty-two billion!" Chai Xiujin said expressionlessly.
The entire auction room fell into a hushed silence, the Chai Family seemingly resolute in their bid for the Su Family's fashion company.
"You don't throw money away like this, even if you have it. The price is now above the company's worth. What are they planning to do with it?" Yingzi asked, frowning in doubt.
The young girl had always followed Lin Mo, studying and learning martial arts, her understanding of business quite limited.
Xia Mengdie bit her thin lips and spoke, "Twenty-two billion indeed exceeds the value of the Su Family's clothing company. But the Su Family Sect has shares in this company. If I'm not wrong, they're bidding on this company to make a move, aiming to bring down the Su Family Sect."
Xia Mengdie's intelligence shined through in her quick deduction of the Chai Family's scheme.
"What's scheming and plotting in the face of real power? All of it is nothing," Lin Mo said calmly.
Hearing Chai Xiujin's bid, Lu Huan clenched her pale hand, a look of anger appearing on her face.
The Chai Family had their own clothing company and had a long-standing feud with the Lu Family, but what Lu Huan disliked most about Chai Xiujin was his character. He had once deceived one of her close friends into an abortion, which almost led her to attempt suicide by wrist cutting. In the end, Chai Xiujin paid her off without even showing his face.
"Forget it, Xiao Huan," Lu Huahui shook his head.
Lu Huan frowned, "But Dad, Chai Xiujin is really annoying, I hate seeing that smug look on his face the most."
Speaking, Lu Huan gnashed his teeth.
"I know you can't stand Chai Xiujin, but others have the Chai Family Sect backing them, and twenty billion has already exceeded our expectations. You've grown up, you can't throw tantrums and act on a whim anymore," Lu Huahui said with a serious expression.
Lu Huan deflated like a balloon and let out a sigh, "Understood, Dad."
"Another bid from a guest!" The female auctioneer's voice cracked with excitement as she stood on the auction stage.
Everyone turned their heads simultaneously, focusing their attention on a beautiful girl standing next to a young man.
"Twenty-five billion," the young lady said softly.
The entire auction hall was in uproar, that was almost double the value of the Su Family's clothing company—was this a case of having too much money to burn?
Lu Huan, Lu Huahui, Pan Yaowen, and Uncle Guan almost simultaneously widened their eyes as they looked at Lin Mo.
"Any more bids?" the auctioneer on the stage asked, somewhat excitedly.
Chai Xiujin, on the other hand, clenched his fists, along with an old man by his side who also frowned slightly. The family had set a limit of twenty-two billion for him to handle this matter and then use the Su Family's clothing company to bring down the Su Family Sect, but they hadn't expected someone to disrupt the plan like a bolt from the blue.
"Which big family's young master is this, so extravagantly wealthy."
"So high-profile, can't afford to provoke."
"There are only a few big families in the Northeast, could it be the Su Family's young master?"
"No, I've seen the big masters of the Su Family, it's definitely not them."
"The Feng Family, the Qi Family? Doesn't seem like it, could this be some ferocious dragon from across the river?"
While everyone was discussing fervently, a staff member walked onto the auction stage and whispered a few words to the auctioneer, who suddenly changed her expression and then coughed before saying,
"Sir, it seems you are not a registered member of our auction house, and you haven't registered your bank card, so..."
Everyone realized, as auction houses have regulations to prevent arbitrary bidding, they require prior registration of bank cards to prove the bidder's financial capability.
"Ha ha, didn't even register a bank card, so you think you can just shout out any price?" Chai Xiujin burst into laughter upon hearing the auctioneer's words.
Others also looked at Lin Mo with a subtle change in their gaze.
"So he's a fraudster."
"I was wondering how a super-rich tycoon could suddenly appear, who doesn't even have the money, and yet bids like that here."
"He must be crazy for attention."
Hearing the crowd's comments, Lin Mo slightly furrowed his brow. Indeed, when he had come in with Yingzi and Xia Mengdie, he hadn't registered any bank card.
"Turns out he's just pretending to be rich, with no money at all?" A hint of disdain appeared on Pan Yaowen's face.
Originally, yesterday Pan Yaowen thought Lin Mo had no money and looked just ordinary, but today Lin Mo showed up with two beauties like Heavenly Immortals by his side, and casually offered twenty-five billion, which had unsettled Pan Yaowen.
Now, seeing Lin Mo's embarrassed state, he couldn't be happier.
Chai Xiujin boldly stood up and said loudly in front of everyone, "If you don't have money, don't pretend to be some rich young master, go and cool off somewhere else."
Lu Huahui also frowned slightly, thinking to himself, "Could I have misjudged him, that he's not some super-rich young master, just a pretender?"
Everyone's gaze fell on Lin Mo, filled with mockery, contempt, sneers, and schadenfreude.
Lin Mo's face showed neither sadness nor joy as he sat in his place, totally unaffected.
After Chai Xiujin finished speaking, his gaze suddenly fell on Xia Mengdie and Yingzi, his eyes revealing a trace of lust, "Yo, these two little beauties are quite striking. Why follow this pretend-rich poor kid when you could be with me? I guarantee you'll live in mansions and drive sports cars."
"If you say one more word, believe it or not, I'll cut off your tongue," Yingzi said, her beautiful eyes widened in anger.
"Feisty little girl!" Chai Xiujin rubbed his chin, a lewd expression on his face.
A cold glint burst from Lin Mo's eyes, "Kneel down and apologize, and I might spare your life."
Hearing Lin Mo's words, Chai Xiujin was momentarily stunned, then anger spread across his face, "Who the hell do you think you are? Telling me to kneel, are you tired of living?"
At that moment, the elder standing next to Chai Xiujin took a subtle step forward, his gaze piercing like sword light at Lin Mo, "To insult the Chai Family, are you tired of living?"
Suddenly, the surrounding crowd scattered like birds and beasts but didn't leave, looking on with anticipation as if watching a good show.
Who could blame them? Since Lin Mo was accompanied by two great beauties, naturally, they were a bit envious, and now that they saw Chai Xiujin about to deal with him, they were naturally content to watch the excitement.
"Tsk tsk, I finally know what it means to be asking for trouble," Pan Yaowen pursed his lips, a trace of a smile appearing on his face.
"Uncle Guan, can you help him?" Lu Huan furrowed her brow, being a kind-hearted girl. Although she had only met Lin Mo once, she couldn't bear to see him being roughed up by Chai Xiujin, especially since she herself disliked Chai Xiujin immensely.
(Wonderful continuation tomorrow.)