Director Wang rubbed his hands together, "Come take a look at today's grand finale, dried blood mushrooms. Ever heard of them?"
It was the usual trick, familiar to seasoned buyers. These dried blood mushrooms had been hidden at the very bottom before, so most people didn't even notice them. Those who did were old hands and kept quiet, which meant a lot of careless buyers missed out. Otherwise, given their quality, these would've long been on the most popular list.
So as soon as Director Wang announced it was the grand finale, everyone instantly understood.
"Wait, dried blood mushrooms? Aren't blood mushrooms supposed to be impossible to dry?"
"I've heard of them. If I'd known there'd be blood mushrooms today, I would've brought my own supplies to sell. That sneaky bastard."
"Just telling us now, huh? Hmph."
"They're trying to make us borrow money, but blood mushrooms haven't shown up in over a year, right? With Lord Long here, they'll probably all go to him."
"Why worry? Lord Long's rich, but don't forget some big players from above showed up too. This should be fun. Let's see how these two titans fight over it."
Some were there just to watch the show, others sharpening their competitive edge. Only Jing Shu was busy tallying her gains from the day. Just by trading honey and some farmed blood mushrooms, she'd secured a bunch of items that had been missing for a long time. Buying stuff really made her happy, and it gave her a sense of security.
Director Wang cleared his throat and personally brought out ten boxes. He first skimmed his hand over the wooden cases, inhaling deeply as if in a trance, then carefully opened them, revealing dried blood mushrooms lined with golden thread inside.
The camera zoomed in, and a subtle, moving soundtrack played, instantly setting the mood. The atmosphere hit a new level of sophistication. Even Jing Shu thought, wow, this feels like appraising a billion-dollar antique.
After capturing every angle of the dried blood mushrooms, Director Wang explained:
"These blood mushrooms are unlike any you've seen before. They've been specially processed. Our professional inspection confirms their nutritional value and unique properties are well preserved. Compare these reports with past blood mushroom data, and you'll see—they're almost twice as potent as ordinary blood mushrooms."
On the screen, two detailed inspection reports appeared, with key traits highlighted for easy comparison.
"Most importantly, these specially treated dried blood mushrooms can be stored for years without losing their properties. Extremely rare."
Now the audience started to react, some visibly tempted.
"You can also see the size is much larger than regular blood mushrooms. After discussion, we've decided to auction these ten batches by weight. Quantity is limited, opportunity is rare. And just for this auction, I've used my director's authority to give everyone triple the usual spending limit. So no worries if you're short on funds."
"Seriously?"
"Knew he'd pull this trick."
"Damn, looks like I'm selling a kidney this time."
The audience shouted curses, but they all applied for the limit anyway. Money was devalued in this era, but everyone had real goods in hand. Complaining was just part of the performance—it only cost a little when it came time to convert things into trade currency.
With the items displayed, Director Wang gave everyone a minute or two to prepare their funds. Then he announced, "Alright, the grand finale starts now. Countdown's two minutes. This time, we'll start bidding by weight. Each dried blood mushroom is clearly labeled with its mass."
The mushrooms varied in size, so weight-based bidding made everything fair.
Jing Shu lounged on the soft leather sofa, a small thrill stirring inside. If this method worked, she could swap excess funds for scarce, useful supplies in the future. Her past life had been a struggle for food, so now her space was stocked and abundant. Other items were slowly running low, but that wasn't a problem.
Warm lighting, bold music, a five-star hotel's class. Yet the crowd went silent, except for the constant tapping of screens.
Director Wang remained calm, stroking the mushrooms and tossing out lines like, "Blood replenishing miracle, prolongs life. Especially good to keep on hand for emergencies. Which ancient noble didn't have some ginseng?" It was an instant tease—any well-off household kept insurance goods, after all.
The numbers skyrocketed.
If the auction didn't have rules limiting price jumps and set a two-minute limit, some big players probably would've thrown in millions right off the bat.
The auction house represented the capital's market, so inflation and outrageous prices were restricted. Even so, the ten dried blood mushrooms sold at the highest allowed price.
Oddly, Director Wang disappeared briefly midway and returned with a strange expression. Outsiders assumed he'd gone to the restroom, but experienced buyers knew something had happened—some items were beyond price alone.
Jing Shu didn't care. Director Wang's assistant, Xiao Zhang, brought her two sets of the 648 package, leaving Tank disappointed. At this grand finale, he couldn't afford anything. He was probably just a porter here.
Tang Toguang said without expression, "Your items were preemptively bought."
"Hmm?" Jing Shu frowned, then realized. It was normal. Not being preemptively bought would've been stranger. The world wasn't unfair—it was just the rules.
"This is my big data number. Interested in collaboration?" Tang Toguang showed his phone. "Leave it to me, I'll handle the management mode."
Jing Shu spotted the orders on his phone—he'd snatched two dried blood mushrooms! Seconds ago, her electronic board suddenly gained seven million trade coins. That was an astronomical sale!
"Better than preemptive buying. You're impressive. Let's give it a try."
Tang Toguang, expressionless as always, turned out to be kind of interesting.
"I was just helping Lord Long grab them. This person has a lot of stuff. If there's a chance in the future, I can help make connections."