Chapter 188: Shamelessness
As Bruce’s words hit the ground, even if the crowd’s nerves were dull, they could smell the faint smell of gunpowder floating in the air.
The press in the room, in particular, picked up on the strong scent of gossip.
Lindsey had followed Edward away and had not been heard from for three years.
Suddenly, Lindsey returned one day and held a joint charity exhibition with Edward. On that occasion, the two were so intimate that many people speculated that they were close to each other.
A few days later, Lindsey was abducted in the street.
The car was clearly filmed by journalists who were present. A man who takes his ex-girlfriend away from him in the street, what else do you need to analyse?
Tonight’s event was a big event, not only official leaders attended, but also academic authorities and business tycoons, all of whom are of extraordinary status.
The answer to the question of Bruce and Edward fighting on such an occasion is a no-brainer.
It must be about Lindsey.
“Six million!” Aurora’s heart was on fire, but she couldn’t help it.
Bruce was willing to throw his money away for Lindsey, and she had no business stopping him. And if she didn’t say anything, there would be no one in the news tomorrow to say anything good about her.
Externally, she was at least Mrs. Grant.
Her husband is fighting with the head of The Hawke family to get a laugh out of his ex-girlfriend in front of her.
She had lost her face, not to mention her reputation.
There was a moment’s silence before the host took over with a trembling voice. “Six million a time, any more bids.”
“Seven million.” Edward raised his eyebrows slightly, not taking Lindsey’s words into account.
Today was a very special day for Lindsey, and he had to back it up.
The fact that a young girl with no background had set up a charity fund to benefit many underprivileged children on her own was enough to convince him of her dedication.
She is also the treasure he wants to protect the most, not to mention a thousand dollars, even ten thousand dollars he will not give up.
The host was so excited that he was going crazy. It was only the words “Healer’s Heart” that had fetched such a high price.
He had participated in so many charity auctions, but he had never been as excited as he was now.
A true family man’s handwriting is different from that of an ordinary businessman.
Bruce’s cold face was a touch of anger, and he gave Edward a sidelong glance before continuing to raise his bid. “Ten million.”
If he could make Lindsey happy with the money, he would give her the entire Grant family’s money, he didn’t care about this small amount.
“… ten million at a time.” The host was now in a state that could not be described as excited, but simply shocked beyond belief.
“Fifteen million!” Aurora clenched her silver teeth and raised her bid again without even thinking about it.
He wanted to get a smile out of her, but she wouldn’t let him!
Seeing that the drama was about to get out of hand, Lindsey had to leave her seat, get up and walk over to Fredy and whisper to him.
Fredy had a pleased smile on his face and nodded his head, seemingly pleased with her offer.
Lindsey bowed gratefully, walked graciously over to the host, smiled, took the microphone and said, “I’m sorry, but Fredy has offered to take back his calligraphy, and this work will be in my personal collection.”
While the host was still in a daze, Lindsey had already rolled up Fredy’s calligraphy and transferred $15 million to a charity account.
Her actions drew a gasp of surprise, followed by a sudden applause that drew the attention of the audience to the work.
Bruce rose calmly and walked up to the stage with an erect posture, donating the same 15 million.
The balance of the charity’s account on the big screen changed and Edward also took to the stage, donating 15. 1 cents.
Lindsey was so angry that she wanted to kick him off the stage, but Bruce gave another 20 cents and walked off the stage with his head held high.
Edward was pulled by Lindsey and couldn’t move, so he watched as Bruce used his pennies to crush him.
The audience applauded, watching and cheering.
Lindsey’s head ached and she dragged Edward back to their seats.
After a brief interlude, the MC came back to his senses, subconsciously wiped his sweat and announced the start of the fourth round of bidding.
Aurora switched seats and sat next to Selena, wrinkling her brow and chilling her face with an unusually stony expression.
“This woman is quite a scourge, and a lot that clearly has nothing to do with her can cause a vicious fight between two men.” She gritted her teeth and muttered with great irritation, “Shameless.”
Selena nodded in agreement, not commenting.
What she had seen tonight was enough to give her a more intuitive understanding of Lindsey, in general. You know, the circle of the gentry family is also divided into three, six and nine classes.
Even though she had no roots, there were countless people who, for one reason or another, sold her a favour.
Aurora, on the other hand, has probably spent too much time abroad. She doesn’t know how to judge the situation and has no tolerance for others, otherwise she wouldn’t have angered The Grant family in the first place.
How many times can a woman spend three years alone?
“Selena …,” Aurora whispered to her as she stared at the stage with furrowed brows and a tilted head. “Do me a favour, for the last time.”
“Okay …,” Selena nodded helplessly, a melancholy wave running through her eyes.
The bond she had grown up with made it impossible for her to refuse Aurora’s request. But she knew that if she made any more mistakes, she might be implicated.
Bruce’s eyes never left Lindsey’s from the moment he entered the room.
How could such a deep love be erased by a little trickery?
The bidding continued, with a wide range of jackets worn by popular stars and the first records of famous singers.
An hour passed unnoticed.
“Now, please settle down and get ready for tonight’s grand finale auction.” The host’s excited voice was dripping with laughter. “This piece has a very common origin, so before opening it, please allow me to interview it live.”
After speaking, he stepped off the stage and came to a wealthy businessman, smiling as he handed over the microphone. “Mr Lin, what kind of a lot do you think it will be.”
Mr. Lin smiled and looked at the tray on the stage and spoke without thinking: “Probably a handmade piece.”
“Thank you, Mr. Lin, for your answer.” The host smiled again, his face mysterious as he walked towards the next person. “Ms. Pang, what kind of lot do you think it will be.”
Ms. Pang smiled slightly. “I also think it looks like a handmade piece.”
“Well, both Mr. Lin and Ms. Pang feel that this last lot is a handmade piece.” The host smiled as he returned to the stage, his eyes roving around the room and landing on Lindsey. “I’d like to invite Ms Lindsey, herself, to unveil this lot for you.”
Lindsey nodded at him, got up and walked to the stage, smiling as she personally uncovered the red cloth covering the lot.
The final lot was also a piece of calligraphy, the difference being that it was by Lindsey’s hand.
Unrolling the scroll calmly, Lindsey took a step back and accepted the microphone from the host. “I am grateful to our guests and friends who are here today, and I hope that this work of art, has not tainted your eyes.”
As the camera drew closer, the ten large words written on the rice paper became clear: “I wish I could have someone with my heart, and never be apart.
Lindsey bowed with a smile, turned back to the host and whispered a thank you before returning to her seat.
If she had known that Bruce would fight with Edward over her, she would never have brought out this inscription.
The words were secondary to the fact that when she wrote it to Bruce, she really wanted to be with him until the end of time, until the end of time.
She put all the words she wanted to say, but could not say them explicitly, into these ten words.
Bruce could read and understand her feelings, only that things were different now!
“Just now Mr. Lin and Ms. Pang both said it was a handmade piece, and now that the mystery is revealed, it does have something to do with the hands.” The host joked and his gaze turned to the stage. “The bidding will now begin.”ConTEent bel0ngs to Nôv(e)lD/rama(.)Org .
“Five million.” The moment Bruce saw the inscription, it was as if a heavy hammer had slammed into his chest and his eyes blurred.
He could not have imagined that Lindsey would put something so precious up for auction.
It might not mean much to anyone else, but it was the most moving confession he had ever heard, at his age.
Edward noticed Bruce’s expression and guessed the sweetness of Lindsey’s relationship when she wrote the words, and his heart sank.
If he had known it was so precious, he should never have encouraged Lindsey to take it out.
Even if he had asked her to write another one, it would have been better than this one.
Lindsey’s face was impeccably smiled, and no one knew what was going on in her mind.
The more he did so, the more he felt guilty.
He had never been able to hurt her.
There was a lot of chatter among the guests in the room, none of whom followed the bidding, but instead old Mr Fredy, who was the least likely to participate, raised his bid card sharply. “Six million.”
“Hiss …” huffed the room.
If Fredy’s writing was still collectible, Lindsey’s could only be hung in the toilet for his own enjoyment.
It’s not famous, and you can’t tell if it’s well written or not.
Who knew that just as Fredy’s voice fell, Professor Lee followed suit and raised his sign. “Six and a half million.”
The crowd was still dazed and confused when Professor Lee’s offer was made and several of the rest raised their bids.
There was an uproar and the MC stumbled in shock, nearly losing his footing.
What was going on? A few of the biggest names in the art world were paying a high price for the work of an unknown girl.
Aurora was also confused, she originally wanted to participate in the auction, but now looking at the situation, it seemed that Lindsey’s calligraphy work was very popular.
“Eleven million.” Bruce’s sword brows knitted slightly, unable to figure out what Professor Lee, exactly, meant.
The calligraphy, which Lindsey had written for him, was something he had to buy back.
Edward curled his thin lips and raised the sign slowly and deliberately. “Eleven million one hundred thousand.”
In fact, like Bruce, he didn’t understand Professor Lee’s intentions, but he had only one purpose tonight.
As long as Bruce offered, he had to outbid him.
It was unbearable to hold a penny against him.
Aurora was clearly more furious than the two men’s open battle.
She didn’t know anything about calligraphy, nor did she know why her grandfather, back in the day, had nothing better to do than to show the calligraphy Lindsey had given him.
She was just shocked, too shocked to understand.