Zombie Bodyguard-Chapter 1473 - 1470: Cheng Yaojin Appears Out of Nowhere

"Twenty-five billion, second time..." Ling Xiao didn’t waste any time and started the countdown decisively.

Lin Tian, who had been motionless in the private box, suddenly stood up and reached out to strike the copper bell beside him. But just as his hand extended, a "ding" sound echoed in the auction hall.

The sound of the copper bell signified someone was raising the bid. Ling Xiao immediately stopped the countdown, and everyone turned to look at the bell ringer. To everyone’s surprise, it turned out to be someone from the first floor.

Through the bead curtains, Lin Tian saw that the one who rang the bell was a woman in a plain long dress, wearing a wide-brimmed hat, its veil obscuring her face, making it hard to discern her appearance.

The woman’s hat wasn’t anything special, just a usual sun hat worn by women, with an added circle of veil around the brim. She sat in an inconspicuous corner and had never made a sound, so no one had noticed her presence until now.

"Twenty-five billion five hundred million," the woman said blandly.

"Who is this unexpected Cheng Yaojin?" someone murmured to himself.

"By the looks of it, she’s just like that masked person, unwilling to reveal her identity."

"Probably it’s just us who don’t know her. Langya Pavilion surely knows who she is. Everything is likely within the Pavilion Master’s expectations."

...

The Ancient Martial Artists started discussing again about this woman who had suddenly appeared, throwing the bidding results into uncertainty. However, many wondered if the woman actually had the money to back her bid. But since Langya Pavilion didn’t intervene, everyone remained silent, avoiding embarrassment like before.

Li Wenfeng couldn’t ponder more and secretly dialed the family patriarch’s number.

"Grandpa, the situation has changed. A woman has suddenly joined, competing against us in the bidding, and Langya Pavilion isn’t stopping her, indicating her qualification is recognized. She probably has some influence," Li Wenfeng said quickly, mindful of the time.

After a moment of silence, a voice replied, "Raise the bid to twenty-six billion to test her reaction. If she continues to follow, we should withdraw. Let’s not involve ourselves further."

"Our agreement to give benefits to the Yun Family..." Li Wenfeng wanted to say that if they couldn’t secure the Heart of the Meteorite, they would incur a big loss.

"Those territories originally belonged to the Yun Family. It was only after Yun Hongxi fell that we, the Li Family, took over. Over the years, we’ve profited enough. Withdrawing from these projects can help mend the tense relations between the Yun and Li Families. Yun Hongxi is recovering, ready to make a comeback. If we don’t withdraw, conflict will eventually arise, and two tigers fighting will only benefit others."

"I understand, Grandpa," Li Wenfeng frowned slightly, agreeing. But he thought to himself that perhaps his grandfather had aged and was no longer as sharp as before.

Yet, he quickly brushed the thought aside and struck the copper bell beside him, "Twenty-six billion!"

"Twenty-six billion five hundred million!" It didn’t take long before the woman once again raised the bid.

Li Wenfeng’s eyes narrowed slightly. Even though he knew the woman wouldn’t give up easily, he still felt unwilling when she increased the bid. But the family patriarch had already given his orders, and he had to comply.

He glanced at the Heart of the Meteorite on the auction stage, gritted his teeth, then turned and left. With his retreat, it became clear to everyone that Li Wenfeng, or rather the Yuwen Family, had given up on the bid.

Unexpectedly, even the wealthy Li Family had given up. Lin Tian pondered, glancing at Li Wenfeng, and finally focusing on the woman in the corner.

Lin Tian sharply noticed that the veil on the woman’s hat fluttered slightly as Li Wenfeng withdrew from the bid, as if she had breathed a sigh of relief.

So that’s how it is. Your bid has also reached its limit, Lin Tian captured the subtle psychological change of the woman, and a faint smile appeared on his face, because his betting increased the stakes even further.

"Twenty-eight billion!" As everyone’s thoughts were racing, Lin Tian suddenly struck the copper bell, announcing a shocking price.

In the bidding, Lin Tian’s group had always been despised. Twice he had bid, and both times he only added a million, making it hard not to be looked down upon.

But now, suddenly, he shot up and directly escalated the price to twenty-eight billion, catching everyone off guard. Even Li Wenfeng, who had just backed out, came out again, staring intently at the box where Lin Tian was, as if trying to see through everything inside.

In the Situ Family’s box, Situ Ming frowned, "Who exactly is this man in black?"

"If I’m not mistaken, he is the Pharmacist Ling Xiao mentioned," Situ Yufeng also fixed his gaze on the box, his eyes flickering.

In the Wang Family’s box, Wang Wanxi turned to Yun Xiaotian, smiling slightly, "Xiao Tian, who do you think the man in black is?"

Yun Xiaotian felt a bit unnatural under his mother’s gaze, stammered twice, and feigned ignorance, "Maybe... perhaps a mysterious expert."

The Ghost stared straight ahead, pretending as if he hadn’t heard anything, while Wang Wanxi glanced at the two, shook her head with a smile.

The woman in the corner moved slightly, as if looking up at Lin Tian’s box, while those around her watched her, unable to discern her expression.

As time ticked by, the scene became somewhat quiet. Everyone knew that the climactic auction was about to be decided, and this was the most crucial moment.

"Twenty-eight billion, first time..." Ling Xiao still reported punctually, while everyone looked around, trying to see who might bid again.

"Twenty-eight billion, second time..." This time, even the Ancient Martial families from the second floor came out, excluding the mysterious Ling Pavilion Master, of course.

"Twenty-eight billion, third time!" Ling Xiao announced loudly, and then without hesitation, struck the copper bell. The crisp sound reverberated through the auction hall, declaring the end of the climactic auction and ownership of the Heart of the Meteorite, while the woman who appeared mid-way ultimately remained silent.

"Senior... we won," Xing Shan was thrilled, then remembered something and asked, "Senior, twenty-eight billion? Do you... have that much money?"

"No," Lin Tian replied straightforwardly but internally thought, someone else does.

Ling Xiao’s ears twitched downstairs, as if she heard Lin Tian’s words. She discreetly signaled to the guards in the corner. In less than a minute, Lin Tian heard a knock at the box’s door, and he nodded at Xing Shan, indicating for him to open it.

Even if Xing Shan was dense, he realized it was Langya Pavilion’s people coming to collect the payment — a staggering twenty-eight billion. Even Langya Pavilion couldn’t afford to be careless.

Recalling Lin Tian’s straightforward "no money," the bull-headed Xing Shan couldn’t help but feel a jolt of anxiety. He gritted his teeth and opened the door.

Standing outside was a man and a woman; the man was a guard in black, and the woman, whom Xing Shan recognized, was Ling Shuiyao, with whom he had sparred. Xing Shan inwardly cursed, realizing this young girl had come personally to collect the payment.