Some people genuinely like the sharpness and toughness of the Black Sword, some like a certain inscription on the Black Sword, and some like both the Black Sword and the inscription.
Of course, some people want to buy the Black Sword to give as a gift, or just to show off in front of Prince Jin.
But no matter the purpose, the second half of the second auction was very successful.
Many young masters got permission from their elders and represented their families in the bidding.
This auction had quite a few officials in attendance, and Prince Jin was there too, so security was especially important.
Iron Hammer and Han Feng dared not be careless at all, staying vigilant throughout.
But they also heard the enthusiastic atmosphere in the venue, and the bids getting higher and higher.
As soon as the auction ended, the two could not wait to run over to Luo Lan to ask about the proceeds from this auction.
“This auction…” Luo Lan deliberately paused, seeing Iron Hammer so anxious he was about to stomp his feet, then smiled and said, “The ten Black Swords sold for a total of fifty thousand three hundred taels!”
Hiss!
Iron Hammer and Han Feng both drew in a sharp breath at the same time.
They had guessed this auction would make a lot of money, but they never expected it to be this much.
“My goodness, over fifty thousand taels of silver, how much is that?”
Iron Hammer stared wide-eyed and said, “Even if I spend it freely, I probably couldn’t use it all in a lifetime.”
“The gentleman said the capital is where the wealth of Great Kang gathers, I didn’t know what that meant before, but now I understand.”
Han Feng also exclaimed, “There really are too many rich people in the capital, a few thousand taels of silver, they shout it out so casually.”
“That’s natural, Jinchuan is just a remote small county, even Lieutenant Zhao in Jinchuan could amass nine thousand taels of silver, let alone these capital officials.”
Luo Lan said, “The territories they control are much larger than Lieutenant Zhao’s.”
“Then how many bandits would they have to support?” Iron Hammer asked, eyes wide.
“Supporting bandits is a low-class way to make money, the lords in the capital wouldn’t do that.”
Luo Lan said, “Their methods are much more sophisticated.”
“What methods?” Iron Hammer pressed.
“There are many, for example, many salt merchants, grain transport merchants, cloth merchants, and other giant merchants are actually their people.”
Luo Lan said, “The gentleman said the capital is the political, economic, and cultural centre of Great Kang, more than half of the rich people in the country are in the capital, what we saw today is just the tip of the iceberg.”
“Yes, yes, the biggest cloth merchant in our Guangyuan prefectural city, Zhou Changlin, is from the Zhou family in the capital, he has to offer silver to the Zhou family every year.”
Iron Hammer nodded, “And salt merchants, I’ve heard some big salt merchants can earn hundreds of thousands of taels of silver a year.”
“Big merchants do have money, today we have to thank those few merchants, without them, we probably wouldn’t have earned that much.”
Han Feng said with a smile.
“Merchants came today?” Iron Hammer asked.
“The two tables in the northwest corner were them.”
Han Feng was naturally observant, and since joining Zhong Ming, he had developed the habit of carefully watching everything around him.
During the auction, Iron Hammer was focused entirely on security, but Han Feng not only watched the outside, he also found time to observe the auction.
He soon noticed a few people bidding generously but keeping a low profile.
So Han Feng guessed these people were merchants.
“Yes, if they hadn’t kept raising the price, it really wouldn’t have sold for that much.”
Luo Lan nodded in agreement.
“Why do merchants buy Star Cutter?” Iron Hammer asked.
“Maybe for their own collection, maybe to give as gifts, who knows.”
Each Black Sword had a different inscription, which meant each Black Sword was unique, and its collectible value was immediately apparent.
“Last time that Young Master Feng thought he paid too much and wanted to make a fuss about returning it, why hasn’t he mentioned it now?” Iron Hammer complained.
“His Star Cutter was the finale of the first auction, if he sells it now, he could probably make at least a thousand taels, and if he holds it longer, it might rise even more.”
Luo Lan laughed, “These young masters may be playboys, but they’re not fools, they know it’s a money-making opportunity, how could he return it.”
“No wonder everyone in the capital is so rich, they can make a thousand taels with one flip, that’s too fast.”
Iron Hammer sighed.
“When it comes to making money, the first three who bid today spent only about two thousand taels each to get a Black Sword, they could make three or four times profit with one flip.”
Han Feng was a bit envious, “That’s several thousand taels of silver.”
“If Prince Jin wasn’t here, that money would be ours.”
Iron Hammer glanced around and said quietly, “With Prince Jin here, many people didn’t dare bid at first.”
“Brother Iron Hammer, don’t talk nonsense, many people bid today just to show off to His Highness Prince Jin.”
Luo Lan said, “And His Highness Prince Jin coming today also shows his attitude, in the future if anyone wants to make trouble for us, they have to consider His Highness Prince Jin, that’s something money can’t buy.”
“I was just saying that casually.”
Iron Hammer asked, “By the way, Sister Luo Lan, we still have thirty Black Swords, why did you tell them only three are left?”
When the auction ended, someone asked when the next auction would be, Luo Lan replied that only three Black Swords remained, and it would still be in three days.
But Iron Hammer and Han Feng both knew that Tang Fei had sent thirty Black Swords.
“The gentleman said that things are precious because they are rare, everyone scrambles for gold, but no one scrambles for stones in the mountains, the Black Sword can sell for such a high price because there are few of them, and each one is different.”
Luo Lan answered, “We’ve already sold twenty, if we keep releasing large quantities, the price will likely drop lower and lower.”
“Yes, the rarer something is, the more people want it.”
Han Feng said, “If the next auction only sells three Black Swords, it might sell for even more than ten.”
Since the emergence of private ownership, human society has never lacked speculators.
In fact, the current price of the Black Sword has been hyped too high, far exceeding its practical value, and it has instead become a collectible.
Many people buy the Black Sword for the inscription, and no longer care whether it is sharp and tough.
And this trend is becoming more and more obvious.
“I heard quite a few young masters complaining today that our place is too shabby, we’re doing business worth tens of thousands of taels, but it’s not even as good as a brothel.”
Han Feng pointed at the courtyard and said, “Now our auction’s reputation is established, more and more nobles will come in the future, Miss Luo Lan, should we redecorate this place?”
“I was thinking the same, I’ll write to the gentleman later and ask whether to redecorate or just buy a new place.”
Luo Lan said, “By the way, has Brother Tang finished buying everything, when is he going back?”
