Chapter 79: Unconditional Favor Toward Lin Xi

"Wow." Hearing that number, Bai Xu raised his hand and clapped lightly. "I told you, I’m not the craziest one here."

Lin Xi ignored his sarcastic remark.

Bai Xu tilted his head, leaning closer to whisper, "Why do I feel like it’s not even a painting up for auction anymore, but our Third Brother himself?"

“…”

"Doesn’t this scene really look that way to you?"

"Will it kill you to shut up?" Lin Xi frowned.

Bai Xu laughed. "Ask yourself—are you still after the painting? And her, do you really think her goal is the painting either?"

"Am I not bidding to clean up your mess?" After all, it was Bai Xu who provoked the other party first.

Bai Xu refused to take the blame. "It’s really not because of me. Believe it or not, if I raised my paddle, she’d never dare follow this time."

"A real versus a fake, what a show," Bai Xu clicked his tongue, clearly satisfied with the current situation.

Forty-five million—already ten million above the estimate.

But Song Ning still pushed the bid higher.

"What, you’re giving up?" Seeing Lin Xi unmoved, Bai Xu raised an eyebrow.

Lin Xi said nothing, her face expressionless as she looked downstairs, deep in thought.

Watching her hesitate, Song Ning sneered, sure of her victory.

But in the next second, the auctioneer’s voice rang out again: "Fifty million."

Song Ning’s eyes widened as she looked toward Lin Xi’s booth.

Lin Xi hadn’t moved at all—wait, it wasn’t Lin Xi...

Then who was it?

As Song Ning searched the room for the bidder, the auctioneer smiled and announced, "Mr. Qin bids fifty million. Fifty million, first call."

Unlike Song Ning’s shock, Lin Xi had already noticed when the paddle went up in Booth No. 1. She didn’t know why Qin Yu had decided to intervene, but on the surface, she appeared far calmer than Song Ning.

Her expression remained tranquil.

She raised her hand.

This time, the auctioneer was genuinely stunned.

If she had competed with Qin Yu from the start, it would have been nothing extraordinary. But at this stage, following Qin Yu’s high bid was hardly a wise decision…

"Number 3, fifty-two million."

A commotion swept through the room.

Downstairs, Song Ning had already leapt to her feet. She wanted to keep bidding, but someone beside her spoke up just in time: "Do you really dare to go against President Qin?!"

Song Ning’s breath caught.

Of course. Why had Qin Yu suddenly stepped in—was it for the painting? No… it was for Lin Xi!

Others might not know, but she did.

Qin Yu was warning her to stop.

If she dared to raise her paddle again, Qin Yu would not let her off lightly.

"Fifty-two million, first call. Fifty-two million, second call. Fifty-two million… sold. Congratulations, Miss Lin."

Hearing the auctioneer’s announcement, a stir ran through the crowd downstairs. "It really is her, the one from the Lin family!"

"No wonder President Qin backed down. Actually, it’s not backing down at all—he’s clearly just here to support the Lin family’s young lady."

"It’s been years since anyone’s seen her. I heard she returned from abroad not long ago. This must be her first appearance at such an event since coming back, right?"

"Must be. Didn’t you notice the Bai and Qin families’ young masters both came along? In the past, Bai wouldn’t have bothered with an event like this. Neither would President Qin."

"Song Ning is bold, isn’t she? Does she even know her place, daring to challenge the Lin family?"

"Isn’t Song Ning President Qin’s fiancée?"

"She was, but the engagement was called off. I heard she’s been cozying up to President Wan of Chenglin International—otherwise, how could she have had the nerve to keep bidding tonight?"

"But even if her backer is still President Qin, tonight, if it comes down to a choice, obviously President Qin would support the Lin family’s young lady without question."

"Her? She wouldn’t even be considered as an option next to the Lin family’s miss. That’s giving her far too much credit."

—

"Didn’t Third Brother already bid? Why did you keep raising the price?" Bai Xu was a little surprised.

"All that back and forth—a lot of money," he clicked his tongue.

If Lin Xi really wanted it, she could have just asked Third Brother for it after the auction ended. Not to mention buying it from him, Third Brother wouldn’t even hesitate to give it to her for free.

He didn’t believe Lin Xi didn’t know that.

She hesitated when fighting Song Ning, but was so decisive when bidding against Third Brother.

To this, Lin Xi only replied with three words: "None of your business."

Which made Bai Xu laugh uncontrollably.

Qin Yu’s assistant entered the box. Seeing this, Lin Xi stood up, ignored Bai Xu’s laughter, and without waiting for the assistant to speak, made her way directly toward the private booth.

Bai Xu lounged in his seat, covering his lips with one hand as the smile faded from his face. His gaze followed Lin Xi’s departing figure until she entered the booth and the assistant gently closed the door, blocking out the prying eyes.

Many in the hall were watching Lin Xi, not just Bai Xu; plenty of others were casting glances toward the booth.

The auction continued, but Bai Xu had lost interest. He downed his wine and headed downstairs.

Inside the booth—

"Third Brother." Without waiting for his response, Lin Xi sat down in the empty seat beside him.

Only a square rosewood table separated them.

Unlike the champagne and wine set on the tables outside, Qin Yu’s table bore a teapot and two teacups.

One cup was already half empty.

Lin Xi refilled Qin Yu’s tea, then, after setting down the pot, asked the attendant to bring her some tea as well.

She took a sip, and her eyes lit up, unable to hide her delight. She couldn’t help but take another taste.

After a while, she spoke to Qin Yu, "Did you actually want that painting, Third Brother?"

"No."

"Then why did you suddenly step in just now—throwing out five million in one breath."

"And you still followed my bid?"

"I was just worried someone else would snatch it away." Lin Xi gave a sheepish smile.

"Someone else?" Qin Yu’s gaze shifted to her. "In this room, who besides you would dare compete with me?"

"It’s not that—I was worried… you’d win it and then give it to some other girl."

She said it with a perfectly straight face, deliberately provoking him, refusing to let him off easily.

They both knew exactly who she meant.

A shadow crossed Qin Yu’s brow, a hint of anger flickering in his eyes. "You think I did it for her?"

"Actu—"

He cut her off coldly, "Think before you speak."

Lin Xi fell silent, fingers tracing the rim of her teacup as she dropped her gaze guiltily. "No, I don’t."

Indeed, when Qin Yu suddenly started bidding, everyone present understood his intentions.

He was issuing a warning.

At first, she’d been a little confused, but quickly understood.

"But since I’d already raised the price that far, I couldn’t just back down the moment you entered. I have to save face, don’t I?"

She changed her tack, "It doesn’t matter anyway, in the end it’ll be donated. It’s for charity."

She’d added two million more in the final bid, but it was worth it—not a total loss.

"If we’re talking about extravagance, Third Brother, that necklace earlier was something, wasn’t it? You donated it yourself only to buy it back—why bother?"

"I never intended to donate it in the first place," he replied. "From the very start, I was going to buy it back. Besides, if she really got it, you’d only be overthinking it later."