Chapter 19: It’s For Sienna Everett

Chapter 19: Chapter 19: It’s For Sienna Everett

One... one hundred million?!

Holy shit!!!

The bid rang out like a thunderclap, stunning the crowd into absolute silence!

Even the auctioneer on stage was so shocked he nearly bit his tongue. His voice trembled as he spoke, suddenly rising with excitement. "Ladies and gentlemen! The gentleman in the second-floor private room bids one hundred million! That’s right, that gentleman has just bid one hundred million!!"

In truth, the auctioneer knew the gentleman in the second-floor private room was a major shareholder of their auction house and, what’s more, the CEO of the Forresterer Group. However, Mr. Forrester was always very discreet when he attended auctions and never revealed his identity.

So, being quite perceptive, the auctioneer followed the usual protocol and didn’t reveal Julian Forrester’s identity, referring to him only as the gentleman in the second-floor private room.

The auctioneer’s excited, high-pitched shout seemed to jolt the guests below as if from a dream, finally snapping them out of their earlier shock.

"M-my heavens! I didn’t mishear, did I? Did someone just bid one hundred million??"

"Compared to this, the previous bids look like child’s play. Mason Everett was gritting his teeth and forcing himself to add a million at a time, but the gentleman on the second floor just opens his mouth and says one hundred million. It’s an absolute blowout!"

"Tsk, to be able to call out a price of one hundred million so casually, without any hesitation, as if it were just for fun... That’s not something your average person can do..."

Some people in the hall couldn’t resist standing up, craning their necks to look toward the second-floor private rooms.

But from below, they couldn’t see anything, let alone who had made the bid.

「On the second floor.」

Sienna Everett was sitting right beside Julian Forrester. When she heard his unhurried utterance of "one hundred million" float past her ear, her hand trembled, and tea sloshed out of her cup.

She turned her head stiffly to look at him, her clear eyes filled with disbelief. "You’re a grown man, and you actually like necklaces?"

’I never would have guessed.’

Julian Forrester looked at her, confused.

Julian Forrester pinched the bridge of his nose with a helpless air. He pulled a tissue from a nearby dispenser and wiped the spilled tea from the table in front of her, his tone casual. "I noticed you were very interested in this necklace, Sienna."

Sienna Everett froze once again.

’He couldn’t be... buying it for me, could he?!’

The auctioneer was still reeling with excitement—after all, a hundred-million bid wasn’t a common occurrence. He looked excitedly toward Mason Everett. "The gentleman in the second-floor private room has bid one hundred million! Is there anyone who wants to raise the bid? Anyone at all!"

Mason Everett’s expression darkened visibly.

He wanted to win this necklace for Shannon, but sixty-nine million had already been his limit. Meanwhile, the gentleman in the second-floor room opened with one hundred million, jumping the bid by more than thirty million on top of his offer. And he’d made the bid so casually; it was clear that a hundred million was nothing in his eyes.

With that kind of monstrous power and wealth, how could he possibly compete?

Shannon Everett had thought the necklace was as good as hers, but she never expected this sudden twist. The prize had flown away just as she was about to grasp it. She grew anxious at once. "Brother..."

Mason Everett couldn’t stand to see his sister upset, but he was in a tight spot. "Shannon, I’ll get you a different necklace. Let’s just pass on this one, okay?"

Shannon Everett was absolutely fuming. She had already imagined flaunting this necklace in front of Sienna Everett, savoring the look of defeat on her face. ’How can I just give up now?’

Wyatt Everett, always hot-tempered, grew furious seeing Shannon upset. "Damn it! Who the hell is this guy who just jumped in out of nowhere!"

Morgan Everett suddenly thought of something, his expression turning grim. "The second-floor private rooms... that damn wretch Sienna Everett was in one of the private rooms on the second floor, too..."

Wyatt Everett scoffed in disdain. "Dad, there are two private rooms on the second floor. That damn girl Sienna Everett getting into one was just a stroke of dumb luck. How could she possibly know the gentleman who just made that bid? They’re definitely not in the same room!"

Morgan Everett thought about it and had to agree. ’What connections could Sienna Everett possibly have? How could she know such an important figure?’

At this point, no matter how much Shannon Everett still wanted the necklace, there was nothing she could do but painfully give it up.

’But on second thought,’ she mused, ’at least Sienna Everett didn’t get it. Not knowing who won it is still some small consolation.’

On stage, the auctioneer looked toward Mason Everett and asked one more time if he wanted to continue bidding.

But it was clear that Mason Everett, who only moments ago had been determined to win the necklace, was now completely crushed, with no power to fight back. He was utterly unable to place another bid.

None of the other guests had the means to bid, either.

The auctioneer raised his gavel high, preparing to bring it down. "Since there are no further bids, then... going once for one hundred million! Going twice! And... third and final call!"

The gavel fell, and the auction was decided.

The auctioneer, beaming, looked toward the second floor and announced at a rapid clip, "Congratulations to the gentleman in the second-floor private room on winning the necklace known as ’Rest of Life’! Congratulations!!"

The crowd below craned their necks toward the staircase. Now that he had won the necklace, he would surely come down to collect it. Everyone was dying to know which tycoon had just bid one hundred million.

As they waited with bated breath, they were surprised to see the auction house’s own Manager Jennings walk onto the stage.

"Here, put this necklace in its gift box," Manager Jennings instructed a nearby staff member, adding a warning, "Be very careful. Don’t let it get bumped or scratched."

Then, lowering his voice so the audience couldn’t hear, he added, "I’ll deliver it personally. I’m sure this was bought for Sienna Everett, and as it happens, I have some business with her."

The contract to hire Sienna Everett as a senior appraiser had already been drafted, and he could take it to her for her signature at the same time.

The auctioneer was surprised for a moment to hear Manager Jennings, but then it all clicked into place. Mr. Forrester had never brought a female companion to an auction before, but today he had come with Miss Everett. A single glance told you their relationship was anything but ordinary. It was no surprise, then, that Mr. Forrester would buy this necklace for Sienna Everett.

After speaking, Manager Jennings carefully cradled the gift box in both hands and headed up to the second floor.

This was one hundred million we’re talking about! One hundred million!

But as fate would have it, Manager Jennings’s words were still overheard by a few sharp-eared guests in the front row, and the crowd instantly erupted.

"H-holy crap, for Sienna Everett? Did I hear that right?? Is that the same Sienna Everett who was bidding against Wyatt Everett earlier?!"

"Who else could it be? Besides, Sienna Everett is in one of the private rooms on the second floor!"

"Hey, you up front! What did you hear? What did Manager Jennings say just now? We’re too far back to hear."

"Manager Jennings said the necklace is a gift for Sienna Everett!!"

"What? Sienna Everett? For real??"

"Of course it’s real! Manager Jennings said it himself. All of us sitting in the front heard him!!"

The news spread like wildfire, from one person to the next, and soon everyone in the first-floor hall knew.

Shannon Everett froze for a moment before her brows knitted together tightly.

’What?’

’The necklace is actually a gift for Sienna Everett!’

’Someone spent a hundred million on this necklace just to give it to Sienna Everett?!’

Shannon Everett’s expression instantly turned sour.

Not only had she failed to get the necklace she wanted, but someone had spent a fortune to give it to Sienna Everett instead. For Shannon Everett, this was a fate worse than death!