“What? 210 million dollars? Forget it, I don’t have that much money. I give up.” … The entire auction hall was dead silent.The people who had been waiting for a good show to play out exchanged glances with each other. They thought they might have misheard North.Had North really… given up?They recalled the intense bidding battle between North and Sharon before. No one expected that North would simply give up after Sharon’s bid of 210 million dollars.Nathan hesitated for a moment. It seemed that North really wanted that violin but did not have the money to keep the bidding going. Why did Gerald not give her some more money?Nathan could not believe it. Was Gerald really that cheap?! Could he not transfer the money to North?Meanwhile, Veronica was terrified that North was tricking them. Her eyes were wide as she said, “What do you mean by that? You’re giving up on the violin?!”North was unperturbed. She feigned resignation and said, “Well, it’s not that I don’t want it. I
Ivan smiled and feigned confusion. “You’re giving it to me? Ms. Sharon, there is no reason for this gift. I simply cannot accept it.”Sharon smiled warmly. Generously, she said, “Don’t think too much about it, Mr. Ivory. This violin will only be valuable when you play it.”Everyone watched as Ivan considered it for a beat. He seemed to really want it. After hesitating for a long while, he nodded gratefully in the end.“Thank you, Ms. Sharon. You’re welcome in the Ivory family at any time. From now on, any of the Ivory family’s properties will have its doors open to you.”Everyone exclaimed. They looked at Sharon in admiration.Goodness, what an honor it was to have the Ivory family offer Sharon such an invitation! With one violin, she had gotten a great reputation and the Ivory family’s support. That was 210 million dollars well spent!Veronica was haughty. She bumped North hard. “Some people are short-sighted. Are you jealous now that Sharon is getting the spotlight?”North nod
Meanwhile, Ivan coolly finished his sentence onstage, blocking out what Georgia said. “...North. Come up here, North.”Ivan’s gaze swept lightly past Georgia as he said meaningfully, “Don’t you really love this violin? Hurry and thank Ms. Sharon for it.”…The entire hall grew quiet. Georgia’s mouth was still open. She swallowed the rest of her words. What…? Who was Ivan calling onstage? North? How could it be North?!Everyone was stunned. Their mocking gazes abruptly turned disbelieving.Ivan had said that North liked this violin and told her to thank Sharon for the gift. Ivan was going to give the violin to North!In that case, the Lane family had made a mistake.North slowly looked up. She propped her chin up and said in fascination, “Mrs. Lane, I was only telling the truth. I would never hold a grudge against Ivan.“Because… Ivan only ever wanted this violin to be given to me. Tell me, why would I hold a grudge against him for that?”Georgia abruptly came back to herse
“Ms. Sharon was the one who said that this violin belongs to me. Thus, I can naturally do with it as I see fit.”Ivan feigned confusion. “However, when I said that I was giving it to North, the Lane family wouldn’t allow it anymore. If that’s the case, let’s pay for it ourselves, North. It’s 210 million dollars, right? I’ll transfer it to the Lane family.”North shrugged helplessly. “Alright. I knew that the Lane family wouldn’t keep their word. But that’s alright. In any case, I had planned to buy this violin today. It’s okay to spend a little more money.”Ivan’s assistant came forward. “Don’t worry, sir. I’ve contacted the bank. They will complete the transfer within half an hour. Please wait, Ms. Sharon.”Nathan scratched his head and mumbled softly, “Can you take back something you’ve given to someone? Then who was the one who made the donation? Ivan or Sharon?”The person in charge of the auction was also getting anxious. Sharon’s name had already been written down as the per
Sharon’s eye twitched violently. The terror she felt nearly overwhelmed her.Siblings? They were siblings? How was that possible?! Hadn’t Ivan said that they were siblings only to help get North out of trouble at Giselle’s birthday banquet? How could it be real…?Sharon had offended the heiress of the Ivory family… She had spent 210 million dollars and also offended the Ivory family!Why? Why?!But now, there was nothing else she could say. She was the one who had wanted to give the violin to Ivan. She was the one who had wanted to suck up to the Ivory family. For her reputation, she had no choice but to swallow down her indignation.Sharon was ready to explode. Her vision was blurry, and she only managed to speak with great difficulty. “I didn’t mean that… North, since I gave it to you, it’s yours. I hope you…”“Sharon!”“Sharon, are you okay?!”Sharon’s face was deathly pale. She fell to the ground weakly. Georgia rushed over to catch her. She was crying as she said, “Just yo
Gerald was elegant and charismatic. His attractive eyes were warm and gentle.North felt a little bad. She had stolen Sharon’s violin, but now Gerald was actually congratulating her on her “comeback”.She forcefully changed the subject. “The next auction lot is that plot of land in Southvale. Are you going to bid for it?”Gerald suddenly smirked.Seeing that smile on his face, North knew that someone was going to be in trouble.“I wonder how much money you’ve prepared?” came Mike’s haughty voice suddenly. At some point, he had come to stand next to them. He scoffed disdainfully and condescendingly.“Gerald, both the Howard and Bracken families support me in developing that land. I wonder if your funds can compete with that of both those families?”North’s eyes narrowed. Was Mike here for a fight?She feigned curiosity and asked, “Both the Howard and Bracken families support you?”Mike was even more delighted. “Of course! I’m sure Gerald understands that he has no clout at home
The Howard family had broadcast that they were determined to get that plot of land. Since everyone knew about the grudge between Gerald and the Howard family, no one dared to bid for it.The bid opened at three billion dollars. Gerald casually raised his paddle, and Mike joined in callously.The price climbed to five billion dollars, and someone said softly, “I heard that the Howard and Bracken families are supporting Mike with their funds. I really wonder if Mr. Gerald will be able to beat him.”“If Mr. Gerald really loses, it will be quite embarrassing…”When Mike heard all this, he was even more determined to defeat Gerald!If Gerald really lost to him, Mike wanted to find out what those in the know would say. Would they say that Gerald was short-sighted to skimp out on paying the extra hundreds of millions and give up on the land? Would they say that the Howard and Bracken families’ preference for Mike was not misguided and was because Gerald did not have any clout?Mike gr
North really understood him. She even knew what his purpose was here today.Seeing that no one was speaking, North feigned ignorance of the situation and said absentmindedly, “Since this is the Howard family we’re talking about, those shares would mean a huge sum. If you can bid using those shares… Ah, but forget it. I think Mr. Mike doesn’t have that kind of clout. Congratulations, Gerald.”Gerald looked coolly at the auctioneer and asked, “Can we end the bidding already?”The auctioneer came back to himself. “Yes. I would like to announce that this bidding is done and the price is set at eleven billion—”The resentment in Mike’s heart rushed up.He had lost? He had lost to Gerald again!He had said so confidently that he would obtain the land in Southvale and even mentioned that he had the Howard and Bracken families at his back. If he lost to Gerald now, his reputation would be done for!He could not give up this plot of land… If Gerald was so invested in it, then it meant th