boyutpedia Chapter 151 The Auction Ends
Chapter 151 The Auction Ends
Because of the stimulation and warning from the manager of Cuiwenzhai, all the managers realized an important issue: what mattered to them when they came to the auction was to acquire the qualification, and whether the money they spent would exceed their expectations was not the main point.
In other words, even if it exceeds their expectations, they still have to secure this spot.
So, the second spot was put up for auction.
Several booksellers from the western part of the city simultaneously raised their signs and shouted, "One thousand taels!"
They didn't even consider that the spot was only worth a few hundred taels of silver, and directly raised the starting price.
Mao Zheng stood on the stage, watching the starting price rise to one thousand taels, and raised an eyebrow without making a sound.
I realized that my previous worries about the price being too low were unfounded.
Mao Zheng said calmly, "Manager Wu was the first to raise his sign just now."
Upon hearing this, a shopkeeper immediately raised his sign: "One thousand and fifty taels."
"Manager Zhou is being far too stingy. One thousand two hundred taels."
One shopkeeper not only added 150 taels directly, but also mocked Shopkeeper Zhou.
No sooner had this person finished speaking than someone else said, "Five thousand five hundred taels!"
Adding three hundred taels directly shows even greater wealth and power.
Several shopkeepers sitting nearby, watching their fierce competition, couldn't help but swallow hard and whispered, "How can they be raising it so high?"
"This shows that the popularity of the Beijing Daily far exceeded our expectations. We have been selling the Beijing Daily from the very beginning. We sell it to anyone who comes to us. When we tally the sales figures, we are amazed at how many copies we have sold."
"But these shopkeepers must have experienced being asked countless times every day if they have the Beijing Daily for sale, and may even have lost some old customers because of it, which is why they value the Beijing Daily so much."
"That makes sense. We are very lucky."
Everyone sighed once again.
The auction over there was highly competitive, with no one willing to give up the second spot, and the price had already been bid up to 2,300 taels.
As everyone pondered how much more to add, one person shouted, "Three thousand taels!"
They added seven hundred taels right away!
Unbelievable, the right to sell a copy of the Beijing Daily was inflated to three thousand taels of silver.
And it still didn't end there.
"Three thousand one hundred taels!"
"Three thousand two hundred taels!"
……
"Four thousand taels!"
crazy!
This was the thought that popped into everyone's mind.
Looking at the last few shopkeepers in Xicheng who were still arguing, they thought they had all gone mad.
They've probably let their emotions cloud their judgment and gotten into a heated argument.
Mao Zheng was also worried about this, and coughed lightly: "There are still four spots available in Xicheng. Please act according to your abilities."
The price shocked him.
But this had no effect; the price continued to be driven up until it reached five thousand taels.
The reason it ended wasn't because they had sobered up, but because Mao Zheng spoke up: "Gentlemen, Lord Wen previously instructed that this auction has a fixed price setting. If someone directly bids five thousand taels, they can directly obtain a spot without having to participate in the auction."
When Mao Zheng first learned about this from Wen Zongji, he thought it was impossible for anyone to offer such a fixed price.
He was proven wrong as soon as the auction started.
The person who heard this had an eye-opener: "Manager Mao, then there's no need to argue, I'm willing to pay five thousand taels."
"I'd like to too!"
"willing!"
Mao Zheng looked closely and realized that the people who spoke were all shopkeepers from the East and West Cities. The bookstores in these two cities had the best business and were also wealthy. Most importantly, they were determined to get this spot, even if it meant losing money to gain publicity.
Mao Zheng began to count the number of shopkeepers willing to pay a fixed price. It was a coincidence, but these people had filled all the remaining spots in the East, West, and Central districts.
Not one more, not one less!
This saved Mao Zheng some trouble. He could continue auctioning off the spots in Nancheng, where there were still eight spots left.
Instead, the bookstores in the south and north of the city are closer to the outer city, and they are not as wealthy and powerful as the bookstores in the past.
Their starting price was perfectly reasonable: "Two hundred taels!"
Upon hearing the price, everyone was in a daze again, as if the previous transactions of five thousand taels were just an illusion.
Compared to the heated bidding war in the West City, the bidding in the South City was relatively mild, and it all came down to who had the most cash flow.
In the end, all eight slots in the southern city were auctioned off, with an average price of one thousand taels of silver.
Although it was higher than they had expected, with those who had paid five thousand taels as a base, they felt that the price was still normal.
After the southern part of the city ends, the northern part begins.
The North and South cities are roughly equal in strength, but because the North city has ten remaining slots, it is slightly wealthier than the South city, so the average price is lower, less than a thousand taels.
At this point, the auction for all the slots in the five inner city districts was concluded.
Next up are the eight wards of the outer city.
The reputation of the bookstores in the outer city has been downgraded once again, with their base price reduced to one hundred taels.
The average value was further reduced to five hundred taels.
But even though all forty-eight spots were sold out, it still brought in more than 2 taels of silver.
Mao Zheng was completely stunned; he never expected to reap so much from a single auction.
"Ladies and gentlemen, I have already asked Wangchunlou to prepare fine wine and food. Today, since you have come to participate in the auction, I will certainly treat you all well."
Upon learning that there was still food available, the group, who had originally planned to leave, sat down again.
Since we're already here, I'd feel uneasy if we didn't have a meal.
Those who had spent a lot of money especially wanted to rip off Mao Zheng.
"Manager Mao, is this really good wine? Don't try to fool us!"
Mao Zheng laughed and said, "I guarantee it's a fine wine just taken from the Wangchunlou wine cellar, and it hasn't been opened yet. If you don't believe me, you're welcome to come and ask."
"That's fine, we trust Manager Mao."
Mao Zheng's smile deepened.
But he soon realized he had laughed too soon.
As the banquet began, Mao Zheng became the most sought-after person. Everyone held up their wine glasses to toast him, and he couldn't refuse, since he had presided over the auction that day and had received a considerable amount of money from everyone.
Although the silver wasn't for him.
But now that Wen Zongji is not here, these shopkeepers can't vent their dissatisfaction on him, so Mao Zheng has to keep watch over them.
Even though Mao Zheng was used to socializing and had a good alcohol tolerance, he couldn't withstand being toasted so many times.
Good wine is strong, and Mao Zheng was already unconscious after drinking for a short while.
The staff at Ruijintang quickly helped Mao Zheng up, saying, "Managers, our manager is drunk."
Everyone shook their heads in disappointment: "Manager Mao's alcohol tolerance is too low."
"That's right, you need to practice more in the future."
Unable to tolerate Mao Zheng's drinking habits, they dispersed and returned to their own tables to eat and drink normally.
As for Mao Zheng, he was unable to eat and was sent back to Ruijintang by the staff.