Love Began with the First Meeting novel Chapter 208

The older man said,"It's been said that there are great ancient Greek treasures hidden in the engraved text on the Pluto."

He looked at Philip. "Don't you want to get your hands on those treasures?"

The taller man had a far-away look.

"Of course I want to get my hands on them!"

His voice sounded dreamy. "Who can refuse such a temptation?"

Then his tone changed to match the scary smile on his lips. "But has anyone ever found these treasures since ancient times?" he inquired.

"I've also learned that people seeking for treasures almost always end up cursed. But I am not as stupid as they are!"

He puffed in pride. "I need to be certain in whatever I do."

The white-haired man only smiled but said nothing. Philip was greedy, and he always knew what he wanted and would stop at nothing to get it. It was no wonder he had made a big splash when it came to secret trading.

"Now, what are you going to do with the girl?" he pointed at Molly.

Philip glanced at the unconscious Molly and didn't answer. She wasn't stunningly beautiful, but she did have alabaster skin and long eyelashes that probably hid a pair of beautiful eyes. And when he stared at her, it felt like there was something mysterious surrounding her. It was like something waiting to be explored in her body, akin to the Pluto.

As he pondered this, Philip gently rubbed the Pluto with his fingers and coldly said,"Why don't we use her to show the Pluto at tonight's auction?"

The older man was taken aback.

"But, will she be obedient?" he worried.

It didn't sound like a good idea.

With a sneer, Philip ordered,"Put her in the crystal bucket and give her the medicine so she'll be unable to speak!"

*

The auction hall was filled with people from all over the world. Everyone who was a collector of treasures seemed to be present. It was attended by the very rich and powerful. Even some government officials came.

It was not hard to imagine how attractive Philip's auction would be.

Brian had yet to speak since entering the hall. He sat quietly, drinking liquor and watching everything that was happening. It was disgusting to look at the beautiful waitresses who mingled with the crowd in their nearly naked uniforms. Eric looked bored and had been scouting the area for someone he might know.

The auction had already started, with several treasures up for bids. They were auctioned off according to value, with varying costs. People in their seats whispered to one another.

"I just heard there is one more item to be auctioned this evening," one said.

"Really? Do you know what it is?"

"Yes, what is this item?"

"When I came in, I overheard someone say it was Pluto."

"Pluto?"

"What's the Pluto?" Everyone in the group looked clueless.

"You don't even know the Pluto?"

The person seated beside him sneered, but had no intention of explaining what it was. Greed flashed in his eyes. Then he shared a tidbit to make the people more curious.

"They said Philip wants to use the crystal bucket to showcase the Pluto!"

His words raised an uproar.

Eric had listened in on the discussion. He turned to Brian and asked,"Do you know what the crystal bucket is?"

"It's a glass bucket made of crystal, and filled with water and oxygen," Brian replied with little interest.

Eric stared at him and saw his impassive face.

He pouted and declared,"Such a bore!" Brian remained quiet, ignoring his cousin.

Unable to resist and with a need to talk, he launched into a description. "The point is not the crystal bucket or its contents but the people displayed in it!

It's said that with each auction item comes a different person to show it off while in the crystal bucket." "And that's not even the point," he continued.

"The point is that the person in the crystal bucket will be auctioned off together with the item."

Eric's discourse didn't surprise Brian. He was aware of many places which conducted the secret auction of people, and it wasn't uncommon in QY Island.

But he was curious about the Pluto. How valuable was it that Philip wanted to use the crystal bucket to auction the item?

"I'm not interested in the Pluto. But if it's a valuable auction item, that means there will be fewer people to compete with me for the bracelet," he told Eric. There was nothing else of interest to him but the bracelet.

"The next auction item is the bracelet with the mandarin duck engraving!" the emcee announced. "The starting price is five million dollars!"

Brian looked at the solid gold bracelet on the exhibition booth. It glowed and shimmered under the bright lights.

He hadn't made a bid for it yet, but the bidding was already frenzied, and the amount had reached ten million dollars after several rounds.

The noise gradually dwindled as the price for the mandarin duck continued to rise. Most people were waiting for the Pluto and had to assess if they could still bid for the Pluto later. Eventually, many decided to stop competing for the bracelet. There were fewer and fewer bids and then it stopped. Brian finally opened his mouth to announce,"Twelve million dollars!"

The audience was shocked at the price. A hushed silence filled the hall. Those who wanted the bracelet hesitated whether to continue or not. Eric quietly enjoyed the spectacle from the sidelines. His cousin was really good at reading people. He knew his bid would make competitors for the bracelet think twice because they were still waiting for the Pluto. After all, it is said that the key to ancient Greek treasures was engraved on the Pluto.

In the end, Brian won the bracelet because no one raised the amount after his twelve million dollar bid price. At the fall of the auctioneer's gavel, Tony went to work on the procedures for payment and claiming and returned with the bracelet on hand. When he saw Tony approaching him, Brian stood up to leave.

"Brian, are you leaving already?" Eric inquired.

"Don't you even want to have a look at the Pluto?"

Eric continued to convince his cousin to stay, but Brian said firmly,"I'm not interested in it."

His face remained impassive. He turned around and headed for the door without hesitation. But suddenly, Brian felt uneasy, as if something bad was about to happen to Molly. He was worried about her and wanted to leave the auction quickly to see if Molly arrived at the hotel safely.

Eric shrugged as Brian headed for the exit, and stood up to follow his cousin. The truth was the Pluto did not interest him as well, nor did he want to stay longer in the auction. The only reason he came was to be with Brian, who wanted to buy the bracelet for Aunt Shirley. Aside from accompanying his cousin, it would give him a chance to experience the so-called Supreme Auction organized by Philip. Not surprisingly, the items auctioned off by Philip tonight were different from those at yesterday's auction. All those items were antiques dating back to thousands of years.

And they were treasures valued by people from many countries around the world.

The emcee announced,"The next item up for auction tonight is also the last item on the program. It's the Pluto!"

As Brian and Eric were approaching the exit, a bright light hit the crystal bucket on stage.