Chapter 217: Want to Meet Mr. Lynch?

Chapter 217: Chapter 217: Want to Meet Mr. Lynch?

Soon, the bidding commenced.

The plot of land was valued at tens of billions, but as this was an auction, the starting bid was set at three billion.

Nathaniel Sloan raised his paddle, and Theodore Lancaster was not to be outdone.

This marked the first public clash between the Sloan Family heir and the "illegitimate son." It was a highly conspicuous affair, drawing the secret attention of many in the room.

The bids climbed higher and higher. By the time the price reached ten billion, the venue fell deathly silent. Only the auctioneer’s voice echoed through the hall.

The latest bid was Theodore’s ten billion.

Ethan Sloan suddenly spoke up. "Nathaniel, that’s enough."

Nathaniel shot them a half-smile. Ten billion was enough? Not quite.

The man continued to carelessly raise his paddle, bumping the price up by another billion.

Although the Sloan Family had already made their plans, Laura Jennings secretly gritted her teeth. "Nathaniel Sloan! Did my words just go in one ear and out the other?"

Nathaniel kept his eyes straight ahead, not even sparing Laura a glance.

Theodore, however, chuckled. "It’s fine. Since this is an auction, let’s keep it a fair competition. Continue."

The crowd couldn’t help but exchange glances. They had expected to see the legitimate son, Theodore, ruthlessly mock the "illegitimate son," Mr. Sloan, yet surprisingly, he was quite amicable.

Estelle Lockwood narrowed her eyes and scoffed. Fair competition? Leaving aside the fact that Nathaniel’s identity as an illegitimate son was the direct result of the Lancaster Family and Sloan Family joining forces, just the word "fair" itself was a joke.

On one side was Nathaniel, who hadn’t relied on the Sloan Family to independently found Evernight International and was now fighting a lone battle. On the other was Theodore, backed by both the Lancaster Group and the Sloan Group, who had the financial support of two prominent families just to attend an auction.

How did he have the nerve to call this fair?

Another round of bidding ensued, and the price soared to fifteen billion.

This price had pretty much hit the ceiling. Any higher, and the profit margin would become razor-thin.

Yet Nathaniel acted as if he hadn’t noticed and raised his paddle once more.

Ethan and Laura both clenched their jaws. Theodore paused for a moment before remarking with an ambiguous tone, "It seems Mr. Sloan’s financial resources are much more abundant than I imagined."

On the surface, the comment seemed harmless enough, but upon closer inspection, it was laced with heavy sarcasm.

Liam Sloan couldn’t take it anymore. He stood up, fully intending to help Nathaniel hurl the sarcasm right back at them!

Nathaniel’s tone remained perfectly flat. "Then your imagination is truly lacking."

Liam, completely speechless, sat back down.

Theodore probably hadn’t expected Nathaniel to be so brazen. His gentle expression darkened for a split second before a smile smoothly slid back onto his face. "In that case, let us continue.

"Nathaniel, we are brothers, so we shouldn’t be fighting like this, but my hands are tied. I must have this piece of land."

Nathaniel remained expressionless.

The bidding climbed even higher, reaching a point where the auctioneer could barely breathe. People in the audience were secretly doing the math. At fifteen billion, there was still some profit to be made—while not substantial, it would at least break even after a few years. But if it surpassed twenty billion, it would be an absolute loss.

At this rate...

Ethan naturally knew this as well. He secretly furrowed his brows. Seeing Nathaniel acting as if he had no intention of letting go, and looking at the current bid of eighteen billion, he started to feel unsure.

If it went any higher, it wouldn’t be worth it...

Right on the heels of that thought, Theodore bid nineteen billion.

This price was already in the danger zone. If it wasn’t managed profitably, it could lead to significant losses. If it went up again...

Ethan pondered for a long moment before lowering his voice. "Theodore, if Nathaniel bids again, let the land go. If he spends twenty billion to buy it, the loss will outweigh the gain for him."

Theodore naturally understood the logic. "Father, I know. You don’t need to worry."

The crowd shifted their gaze onto Nathaniel.

From the bystanders’ perspective, this was the first time they had seen Mr. Sloan frown. He seemed hesitant about the price. After mulling it over repeatedly, he suddenly chose to give up.

...Wait, Mr. Sloan was dropping out of the bidding?!

Because Nathaniel had been bumping up the price so casually and generously before, his sudden withdrawal left the crowd struggling to process what had happened. Even the auctioneer was stunned for a moment.

However, the auctioneer’s professionalism allowed him to quickly recover. "Mr. Sloan withdraws from the bidding. This auction will now enter the final countdown. Five, four..."

It wasn’t just the spectators; even Ethan and Theodore were stunned!

Nathaniel had given up?

Ethan wondered why he had suddenly given up. Could it be a trap? That was his first thought.

Twenty billion was not only the absolute ceiling for the land, but it was also the final bottom line for the Sloan and Lancaster Families. And Nathaniel had dropped out right at that very threshold...

As the countdown finished, the auctioneer finally announced, "The winner of this auction is Mr. Theodore Lancaster! Congratulations, Mr. Lancaster!"

Applause broke out across the floor. The attendees looked at each other, unable to figure out why Nathaniel had thrown in the towel. After all, it wasn’t like Mr. Sloan was strapped for cash.

Laura didn’t think that deeply about it at all. Over the moon, she cheered, "Wonderful! This plot of land belongs to Theodore now!"

Theodore offered a polite, refined smile. "Mr. Sloan, thank you for conceding."

With a cold expression, Nathaniel stood up nonchalantly, ready to leave.

Having held her anger in for so long, Laura finally found an outlet to vent. "Nathaniel, I told you not to fight with Theodore, but you just had to ignore me. See what happened now! Sigh, it’s a good thing we’re all family and Theodore won’t hold it against you!"

Nathaniel shot Laura a fleeting glance and walked away with Estelle Lockwood.

Laura’s face twisted with disdain. "He doesn’t have the skills to outcompete our Theodore, so who is he pulling a long face for? So petty and narrow-minded!"

Ethan had been observing Nathaniel’s expression the entire time. Seeing that Nathaniel truly looked displeased, he finally relaxed his brows slightly.

It seemed he had overthought things. Nathaniel did indeed want the land but simply couldn’t afford it in the end and had no choice but to give up.

That made sense. After all, Theodore had the backing of the Sloan Group and the Lancaster Group, whereas Nathaniel only had himself. It was perfectly logical that he couldn’t afford to bid higher than nineteen billion.

As the auction concluded, Laura felt a rush of vindication. With Theodore securing the land, no one could say he was unqualified to inherit the Sloan Group anymore! His foresight was far superior to Nathaniel’s!

Over at the Lancaster Family, they were similarly overjoyed to hear that Theodore had successfully acquired the property. Although Old Mr. Lancaster furrowed his brows upon learning it had cost nineteen billion, he ultimately felt it wasn’t a major issue.

It was merely a sign that Nathaniel’s power was indeed more substantial than they had estimated. Still, it was harmless. Could their century-old, prestigious Lancaster Family truly be outshone by Nathaniel?

Laura was in a fantastic mood. "Not only did we get the land this time, but we also gave Mr. Lynch such a massive welcoming gift. I refuse to believe Mr. Lynch won’t support Theodore now!"

Even Old Mr. Lancaster had to curry favor with that Mr. Lynch. If Theodore could befriend him, would he ever need to worry about Nathaniel stealing the Sloan Group from him?

Laura approached the auction manager, Ian Perry, with a sycophantic smile. "Mr. Perry, is Mr. Lynch available? Could we possibly meet him?"

Ian remained expressionless. "Mr. Lynch is very busy. He has no time."

Five minutes later, in the backstage lounge of the auction hall.

KNOCK, KNOCK. Ian knocked on the door. Upon seeing Nathaniel, he nodded and said respectfully, "Sir."