Chapter 1350: Black Widow Gets Snubbed

"Of course, I would be honored!"

The two of them went onto the floor to dance the first dance!

The gentlemen around them also began inviting the ladies they admired to dance.

Black Widow dug her well-manicured nails deep into her palms; how much did it hurt? She knew herself.

Damn it.

She hadn't managed to frame her, but had actually helped her instead.

Shi Ran danced in the middle of the dance floor like a fluttering elf.

Her cold and elegant temperament and her dance moves were not only completely harmonious, but also exceptionally beautiful.

Everyone's gaze was drawn to her, and people standing around the perimeter applauded and cheered.

Black Widow only felt the world go black before her eyes, and a mouthful of old blood almost sprayed out.

She was so angry; she couldn't stand other women being more outstanding than her, absolutely not!

At this moment, an oblivious man came over to invite her to dance: "Beautiful lady, may I invite you to dance?"

The man was round, short, fat, and greasy; she almost vomited her previous night's meal just by looking at him once.

"Get lost!"

Was just anyone worthy of inviting her to dance?

The man didn't "get lost," and the words he spoke were even uglier than his appearance: "Hmph! Someone like you thinks you're too good for me? Why don't you look at what kind of thing you are? Just a plaything that survives by clinging to men, what's so great about you..."

The man cursed and swore as he "got lost."

"Bastard, I'll deal with you once I have a moment." A flash of ruthlessness crossed Black Widow's eyes, and then she continued to stare at Shi Ran.

The first dance ended.

Black Widow hurried over to invite Kang to dance the second dance.

"I would like to invite you to dance the second dance and chat about Leng Feng!"

Leng Feng was Black Widow's pawn, but he was the savior of Kang's grandmother.

Originally, he didn't want to dance anymore, but since the woman before him had taken the initiative to bring up Leng Feng, he agreed.

The second song ended.

Black Widow was already quite familiar with Kang; the two of them chatted and laughed as they left the dance floor, exchanging contact information.

The ball ended, and it was time for the highlight of the annual charity gala—the auction segment!

The so-called auction.

It was where everyone brought some good items from home to auction off and donate the money to impoverished mountain areas.

In years past, the items everyone brought, while not too bad, weren't very valuable either; as long as they were presentable, that was enough.

Although they wanted the reputation, they wouldn't bring out their family's valuable treasures; no one was stupid.

But things had changed in recent years.

The treasures people brought to auction were becoming more and more valuable and precious.

The reason the businessmen changed was, of course, not because their awareness had improved, but because the rules had changed.

Starting a few years ago, the Jiangzhou charity gala had a new rule—the top three contributors at the annual charity gala would be qualified to bid on government Architecture projects to be announced a few days later.

No one knew who had proposed this rule, but the effect was indeed surprisingly good.

It both raised more charitable funds for impoverished mountain areas and allowed merchants to make money!

Therefore, in recent years, the Jiangzhou charity gala had become larger and larger, and the treasures people brought to auction were becoming more and more valuable.

This trend reached its peak this year.

The project a few days later was a Jiangzhou landmark Architecture, and everyone was eyeing it, so the treasures everyone brought today were all very valuable.

The auction officially began.

People moved to the auction hall and sat down according to the names on their seats.

There was a method to the seating arrangement; it was actually simple: seats were arranged according to the level of contribution, with those sitting in front having made larger contributions, and those further back having made fewer.

The first item brought out was a ruby bead from the hat of a first-rank imperial official during the Kangxi reign of the Qing Dynasty.

The entire bead was round and lustrous, a fine piece for a collection.

The starting price was three million, and each bid increased it by one million!

This bead had been appraised by professionals as authentic, but there were no bidders.

The reason was simple: most people at the scene were businessmen, and businessmen valued the cost-effectiveness of an item; even if this bead could be collected, it wasn't worth three million.

Rubies were not considered particularly precious items, and the Kangxi reign was a prosperous era, so most of the items left behind didn't have particularly great collection value, so basically no one was interested.

Shi Ran stared ahead, appearing fully focused, but in reality, she wasn't paying attention at all—this bead was indeed not worth this price.

Black Widow didn't look at anyone else; her eyes were just fixed on Shi Ran, observing her.

If Shi Ran wanted it, she would compete!

If Shi Ran didn't want it, she wouldn't either.

Shi Ran caught a glimpse of Black Widow's expression from the corner of her eye; she chuckled inwardly, but her face remained expressionless.

"Three million, going once." No one bid.

"Three million, going twice." Still no one responded.

"Three million, three times—"

Just as the auctioneer held the wooden gavel in his hand high, preparing to bring it down...

Shi Ran suddenly raised her paddle: "Four million."

The people who had been uninterested just a moment ago immediately became excited, and they all raised the paddles in their hands: "Five million."

"Six million."

"Ten million."

"Eleven million."

In just a few short minutes, the ruby that had almost failed to sell at three million just moments ago had increased tenfold, bid up to thirty million!

And the price was still rising...

By the time the intermission arrived, that bead had already risen to eighty million.

Everyone knew that anything the Sheng Family set their eyes on was bound to be a good item.

Now, even the owner who had offered up this bead was panicking; he wondered if he had brought the wrong item?

Had he taken out the most valuable treasure in his home?

And yet he hadn't realized it before?

The owner of the bead was so heartbroken he nearly fainted!

Eighty million.

The bead could sell for a sky-high price, but the money wouldn't end up in his own hands.

At the auction, everyone was fired up with excitement, with only two exceptions—Shi Ran and Black Widow!

While Shi Ran was silent, Black Widow was also silent.

Although the old man beside her, James, was acting increasingly anxious, constantly tilting his head to whisper to Black Widow, asking if this national treasure of Jiangzhou could be won?

Foreigners had always coveted the treasures of Jiangzhou.

James wanted it, but she simply wouldn't budge.

Black Widow was locked in a standoff with Shi Ran; if Shi Ran didn't want something, Black Widow wouldn't take it no matter how good it was, but if Shi Ran was determined to get it, Black Widow would get her hands on it no matter the cost!

The intermission ended, and the bidding resumed.

"Eighty-five million."

As soon as the start was announced, Shi Ran raised her paddle.

There was an uproar in the room, and the atmosphere was pushed to a climax once again.

But now, no one was bidding anymore; their financial strength didn't allow it.

"Eighty-five million, going twice—"

Black Widow stared fixedly at Shi Ran; she was making a judgment.

Judging whether Shi Ran truly wanted this bead, or if she was really trying to set a trap for her!

She understood men very well, but when it came to women... she had misjudged!

Just as the auctioneer slowly raised the wooden gavel in their hand and said, "Eighty-five million, going three times," and prepared to bring the gavel down, she quickly nudged James.

James raised his paddle and added another five million.

"Very well, Mr. 250 bids ninety million. Are there any further bids?"

There were none; Shi Ran did not bid again.

"Ninety million, going once."

"Ninety million, going twice."

"Ninety million, going three times."

"Clang!"