Chapter 80: The Auction (Part Two)

After the woman was auctioned off, the middle-aged man continued to bring out more people, both men and women. The men fetched low prices, while any woman with a pretty face didn’t go for less than ten thousand gold coins. Even so, the beautiful women remained in high demand. The man who had just been outbid by Old Doctor bought three beautiful women at once. Judging by his look, one wondered if he had the stamina for the night ahead.

After a while, the middle-aged man auctioned off a rather attractive woman, then tapped his gavel on the lectern and announced, “That concludes the population auction. Next, we move on to the sale of medicinal items.”

Lu Zhe perked up at this, hurriedly straightening in his seat and fixing his gaze on the stage.

The man bowed slightly to the audience, then strolled backstage. Moments later, a beautiful woman in a blue cheongsam stepped onto the stage, bowed to the crowd, and announced in a velvety voice, “We now begin the auction of medicinal items. The first is: the Strength-Enhancing Pill.”

At her words, a maidservant carried a tray to her side. On the tray sat a translucent green jade bottle, containing a crimson pill about the size of a large bean.

“This Strength-Enhancing Pill has been authenticated by our chief pill examiner. It’s guaranteed genuine. Starting bid: five thousand gold coins,” the woman said sweetly, gesturing to the pill beside her.

“Five thousand five hundred!” someone called out almost immediately.

“Six thousand!”

“Seven thousand!”

“Seven thousand five hundred!” Each bid rang out louder than the last, as if the bidders were competing for volume. Eventually, the pill’s price was driven up to fifteen thousand.

“A Strength-Enhancing Pill—one cauldron’s worth. After taking it, a spirit user can temporarily increase their strength by two to three stars,” Old Doctor’s murmuring voice suddenly sounded in Lu Zhe’s ear.

Lu Zhe turned to look at him, only to see Old Doctor continue muttering, “I have no interest in even looking at this kind of pill, but it’s perfect for you to try making. You should take some time to make one or two; they might be worth some money someday.” He tilted his head toward Lu Zhe, speaking calmly.

Lu Zhe nodded, then replied, “Maybe I’ll buy some herbs here to practice refining.”

Old Doctor shook his hand, a weathered smile on his face. “There’s plenty of those herbs outside. No need to waste money here.”

Lu Zhe shrugged and scratched his nose, looking unimpressed.

Soon, the Strength-Enhancing Pill was bought by a man in his twenties for twenty-one thousand gold coins. The man’s delighted expression made Lu Zhe shake his head in amusement, thinking to himself, “He doesn’t even realize he’s been fleeced; still, he grins like a fool.”

Once the pill was sold, the woman struck her gavel and continued, “Next is the Healing Powder, renowned for its miraculous effects on external injuries. Starting bid: six thousand gold coins.”

Lu Zhe ignored the feverish bidding behind him and leaned over to ask Old Doctor, “Master, do they take a commission here?”

Old Doctor nodded, then pondered for a moment. “They take ten percent of the final sale price as commission.”

Lu Zhe inhaled sharply. “So if something sells for hundreds of thousands, they pocket tens of thousands in commission?”

Old Doctor chuckled, “Hundreds of thousands? Don’t be ridiculous. That’s just this small auction. In the Black Triangle, commissions are thirty to forty percent, and the items there routinely go for millions or tens of millions. You really don’t know how the world works out there.”

Lu Zhe gasped again, but as he collected himself, he sensed something was amiss and asked, “Master, you’ve been to the Black Triangle?”

Old Doctor gave him a sidelong glance. “Once, long ago, I went there to refine a pill. But it’s been ages. I haven’t visited since. That place is known as ‘No Day’—you need eyes in the back of your head to walk there.”

He waved his hand, signaling Lu Zhe to drop the subject, then added, “If you want to know what it’s like, go see for yourself someday.”

Lu Zhe nodded and sat up straight, returning his attention to the auction.

As more bottles of pills were brought forth and auctioned off at high prices, the woman’s face blossomed with joy. Time passed, and after selling a three-cauldron silver pill for one hundred thousand gold coins, she regained her composure and smiled again, announcing, “The pill auction is now complete. Next, we move on to medicinal herbs.”

She waved her hand, and a maidservant brought over a silver tray covered with a red cloth. The contents were hidden, but judging by the shape, it looked like a lingzhi mushroom or similar herb.

The woman lifted the red cloth and called out loudly, “One-cauldron herb: Water Jasmine! Used for refining pills that dispel internal heat and toxins. Starting bid: three thousand gold coins.”

This time, fewer bids were heard. The herb was of little use to most people, mainly sought after by pill refiners. Even so, the bidding continued:

“Three thousand three hundred!”

“Three thousand five hundred!”

“Three thousand seven hundred!”

...

But Water Jasmine was an obscure herb. When the price reached four thousand one hundred, no one bid further. Despite the auctioneer’s enthusiastic explanations about its virtues and bargain price, no one raised their bid.

In the end, the auctioneer sighed softly and let the herb go for four thousand one hundred.

After steadying herself from the disappointment, the auctioneer beckoned again. A maidservant carried another tray, again covered in red cloth. She approached, and the auctioneer lifted the cloth, announcing loudly, “Two-cauldron herb: Fireleaf! Starting bid: five thousand gold coins.”

Fireleaf was somewhat more desirable than Water Jasmine, but still failed to draw high bids. It stalled at eight thousand gold coins, with no further raises.

This time, the auctioneer frowned slightly. Their job was to ensure items were sold, and both the number and price of items affected their pay. This round had been a disaster—two consecutive flops. Her year-end bonus was slipping away, and if there was another disappointment, she’d be left with nothing for the month.

But ultimately, the sellers couldn’t force buyers to bid. Some of the audience members wielded considerable influence, so they dared not offend anyone.

Finally, the auctioneer sighed again and weakly struck her gavel. “Fireleaf, sold for eight thousand gold coins.”

She then lowered her head in thought, whispered a few words to the tray-carrying maid, who nodded and went backstage. Soon, she returned with a silver tray.

The auctioneer looked it over, smiled, cleared her throat, and returned to her sweet, delicate voice. “Four-cauldron herb: Firelin Grass! Starting bid: thirty thousand gold coins!”