Chapter 40: This Concubine Wishes to Have a Deep Exchange with You, My Lord

Knowing that these people were anxious, Lu Chuan naturally did not beat around the bush and immediately announced the official commencement of the auction for the final ten commercial properties, which offered permanent ownership and an annual tax-free allowance of one million coins each.

These ten commercial properties had been meticulously handpicked by Lu Chuan, representing the absolute finest among the best, and their pricing naturally reflected that quality.

Aside from slight differences in location, the layout and specifications of all ten shops were identical, each starting at a base price of two million coins.

Buying a shop for two million coins sounded like a fantasy at first glance; even commercial properties in Luoyang and Chang'an could not command such a price!

However, a quick calculation revealed that two million coins was actually a bargain.

Therefore, the moment the auction for the first shop began, the enthusiasm of the merchants present was fully ignited. Bids were hurled one after another, and the price of the first shop rapidly soared to five million coins, showing no signs of stopping.

After persisting for the duration of it takes to brew a cup of tea, the first shop was ultimately clinched for eight million seven hundred thousand coins by a merchant who had been doing business in Luxian for three years.

Then came the second shop, the third shop...

The auction for the first six shops went smoothly, mostly closing between eight million and ten million coins. However, when the seventh shop was put up for auction, the atmosphere shifted instantly.

Lu Chuan had stipulated that each person could purchase a maximum of two commercial properties. Zhen Jiang and Miss Mi had yet to make a move, clearly reserving their strength for the final four shops situated in the prime locations.

Thus, once this round of bidding commenced, the merchants present reached a tacit understanding and held off on bidding, turning their gazes simultaneously toward Zhen Jiang and Miss Mi.

Miss Mi’s lips curved into a slight smile as she raised her bidding paddle.

"Twenty million coins!"

Earlier, during the real estate auction, Zhen Jiang had stolen the spotlight, leaving Miss Mi harboring lingering resentment. Consequently, for this commercial property auction, she shouted an exorbitantly high price right off the bat, intending to deliver a sharp blow to Zhen Jiang's prestige.

As for whether Zhen Jiang would counterbid?

Miss Mi deemed it unlikely. After all, Zhen Jiang had just lavished fifty million coins. No matter how wealthy the Zhen family was, scraping together fifty million coins in such a short span of time would be an immense challenge.

Even if equivalent goods were used as substitute payment, time would still be required for preparation.

The reason the Mi family dared to invest three hundred million coins in a single stroke was primarily their optimism regarding the massive returns promised by the development of the northern outer city—a one-time investment yielding long-term, highly substantial profits.

Yet what returns could Zhen Jiang possibly reap from dropping fifty million coins on a single residential property?

To live more comfortably?

Now that she had directly driven the price of the shop up to twenty million coins, the Mi family could readily accept it, but could Zhen Jiang?

Did she possess the audacity?

Miss Mi looked over at Zhen Jiang, curious to see how this eldest young lady would respond.

Zhen Jiang, however, did not even glance at Miss Mi. Instead, she calmly raised her bidding paddle.

"Fifty million coins!"

Gasp—

The crowd drew in a sharp breath once again. Did she really have to play like this?

Wasn't this going too far?

Having traveled the length and breadth of the country for so many years, they had witnessed countless instances of people using power and wealth to crush others. Yet it was their first time witnessing a scene like today’s: Zhen Jiang, backed by the near-limitless wealth of the Zhen family, delivering a resounding slap to Miss Mi's face right in front of her!

The smile on Miss Mi’s face froze instantly, and the upturned corners of her mouth slowly dropped.

At that moment, Zhen Jiang looked over. "Young Master Jun, shall we continue raising the bid?"

Miss Mi gripped the bidding paddle in her hand tightly. She desperately wanted to lift it, but her reason told her: No!

No matter how wealthy the Mi family was, they could not afford to squander money recklessly at this juncture.

An investment of three hundred million coins was already massive, posing a tremendous burden for the Mi family. To rashly add another heavy financial burden to the family at this moment might push them beyond their limits.

Should they fail to sustain it and disrupt the Mi family's commercial framework, the resulting losses would be catastrophic.

Therefore, despite her anger, Miss Mi could not afford to be impulsive.

There were still four shops left anyway; even if Zhen Jiang bought two, the remaining two would be more than enough.

After a bout of inner struggle, Miss Mi ultimately refrained from raising the bid. Zhen Jiang secured the first shop at the astronomical price of fifty million coins.

Next came the auction for the eighth shop. The moment Lu Shui announced its start, Zhen Jiang raised her paddle once more, quoting another astronomical sum of fifty million coins and easily claiming victory.

With this, Zhen Jiang had already poured a staggering one hundred and fifty million coins into this pre-sale auction.

Such a lavish display of wealth was enough to startle everyone present.

Even though many of the merchants in attendance were elite businessmen whose annual taxes paid to Luxian exceeded one million coins and whose yearly profits were calculated in tens of millions, they still felt deeply inferior after witnessing Zhen Jiang's formidable opulence.

Was this the gap between them and the Zhen family?

Truly as uncrossable as a chasm!

Miss Mi watched helplessly as Zhen Jiang hogged the spotlight, utterly powerless to do anything.

Who could blame her for lacking Zhen Jiang's financial muscle?

Fortunately, having made two consecutive bids, Zhen Jiang had exhausted her eligibility to participate further. The ninth and tenth shops were bound to fall into Miss Mi's hands.

Yet, with so many people watching, since Zhen Jiang was willing to spend fifty million coins on a single shop, would the Mi family—boasting of being the wealthiest household in Xuzhou—have the nerve to snap up the remaining properties cheaply?

After all, both Miss Mi and the Mi family cared about their reputation and still needed to make a living in Luxian.

Thus, gritting her teeth, Miss Mi bid twenty million for each of the final two properties, securing them at a total cost of forty million coins.

With Miss Mi claiming the last two shops, the pre-sale auction came to a successful conclusion.

Lu Chuan returned to the stage to announce a new policy.

Considering that copper coins were bulky and difficult to transport, Lu Chuan announced that he would accept equivalent goods as payment. However, these had to be goods currently in high demand within Luxian, such as building materials, timber, and clay for brick-firing needed for the construction of the northern outer city, or universally coveted commodities like iron ore, furs, and warhorses.

Furthermore, for transactions exceeding ten million, Lu Chuan proactively granted a three-month grace period for delivery.

As long as the overall delivery was completed within three months, it would not be considered a breach of contract.

This policy significantly alleviated the financial pressure on everyone present, ensuring they would not have to liquidate their entire family fortunes to purchase houses and shops.

Upon hearing these two policies, the crowd broke into cheers. Even Zhen Jiang and Miss Mi let out sighs of relief.

Among everyone present, the two of them had placed the highest bids. Without the three-month delivery grace period, even with the deep pockets of the Zhen and Mi families, they would have had to scramble to manage their cash flow.

With three months granted, the pressure was vastly reduced.

At that moment, Zhen Jiang's gaze toward Lu Chuan shifted. Lu Chuan was simply too considerate of businessmen, possessing a profound understanding of what merchants truly desired.

Having announced these two policies, Lu Chuan intended to leave, only to be intercepted by Zhen Jiang and Zhen Mi the moment he stepped out of the hall.

"Does Lord Lu have a moment? This concubine wishes to have a profound discussion with Lord Lu."