Chapter 55: Special Passage

Having only known each other for a few hours, Fang Yufei and Elaine had already become inseparable confidantes. When Xiao Ran returned to the suite arranged by the consulate, the two beauties were sitting on the sofa, chatting animatedly and giggling incessantly like a pair of old hens.

Upon seeing Xiao Ran enter, Elaine first gave him a once-over, her smile broadening with delight. But when her gaze shifted to Xiao Ran, her expression darkened instantly. He immediately understood—Fang Yufei must have dredged up some embarrassing stories from his childhood and shared them with Elaine.

Sure enough!

The next moment, Elaine laughed and asked, “Xiao Ran, I heard that when you were in elementary school, you dressed as a girl and danced in a ballet skirt. Can you show me a photo of you in that ballet skirt? It must be hilarious.”

Xiao Ran’s face flushed crimson. Gritting his teeth, he said, “That’s it, Fang Yufei—our friendship is over. From now on, we are strangers!”

“Ha ha ha!”

But Fang Yufei burst into laughter, rolling on the sofa with glee.

After some playful banter, the two beauties suddenly noticed someone was missing.

“Xiao Ran, where’s David? Didn’t he go to the conference room with you? Why hasn’t he come back?” Elaine asked in surprise.

“The matter here is basically settled. David left because there are many other issues outside that need his attention,” Xiao Ran explained. “The consulate will send lawyers to assist him. Once they finish handling those external matters, we’ll be able to leave and return to school.”

To prevent the two beauties from worrying, Xiao Ran offered a few more details.

“Are you being overly cautious, Xiao Ran? After all, the United States is a democracy that upholds the sanctity of private property,” Elaine remarked.

Hearing this, Xiao Ran scoffed coldly.

“Ha! Sanctity of private property? I wouldn’t bet my safety on that,” he said. “If this were France, I might feel a bit more secure—at least France sometimes has a conscience. But this is America. When has it ever cared about principles? Just look at what America has done.”

Elaine paused, then nodded helplessly.

“That’s true. America is just a rogue state; it doesn’t care about principles at all.”

After a brief casual chat, Xiao Ran shifted the conversation. He decided to start a livestream to sell the pair of Yongzheng blue-glazed celestial globes and those valuable antique watches. Once sold, he wouldn’t have to worry about anyone coveting them. As for the proceeds from the globes and watches, David would transfer the funds to Xiao Ran’s bank account after handling the external matters.

Hearing that Xiao Ran was about to livestream and sell these items, the two beauties grew even more excited.

Soon, Xiao Ran entered the livestream room.

Fortunately, the Americans hadn’t gone to extremes.

Although the consulate had stationed police outside to guard, they hadn’t shut down Xiao Ran’s personal livestream channel nor frozen his bank accounts. Just moments ago, he was able to transfer payments to Anthony and Sam without issue.

Perhaps it wasn’t that the Americans didn’t want to act, but they hadn’t yet conceived this step, or the situation hadn’t escalated to that level.

As soon as the livestream started, countless fans flooded in like a tidal wave. Many newcomers, drawn by Xiao Ran’s reputation, eagerly requested to join.

Xiao Ran had barely appeared and not yet spoken when the fans began chattering.

“How’s everything going? Xiao Ran, where are you? Are you safe?”

“You finally showed up! Looks like you’re safe now—that puts our minds at ease.”

Listening to these caring words, Xiao Ran felt touched.

He waved at the phone camera and smiled warmly.

“Thank you all for your concern. We’re currently staying in the consulate’s apartment building, very safe, so please don’t worry. The situation is nearly resolved. My personal lawyer is busy handling other matters outside. We should be able to leave here and return to normal life in a few days.”

Hearing this, the fans in the livestream visibly relaxed. None wished to see any harm come to Xiao Ran. Beyond any sense of patriotism, from their own perspective, if something happened to him, the livestream channel that brought them joy, benefits, and all kinds of fresh excitement would come to an end. That would mean much less fun and the loss of a valuable source for discovering treasures.

“Glad everything’s fine! Hope you return to normal life soon. We’re counting on you, lucky guy, to keep helping us find bargains!”

“Exactly! Hope you can still uncover some national treasure-level antiques to open our eyes.”

Xiao Ran smiled and nodded, then got down to business.

“The situation is special now, so please be cautious and watch what you say to avoid surveillance.”

“Next, I’m going to auction off the pair of Yongzheng blue-glazed celestial globes and those high-end antique watches.”

“The auction will work just like last time. I will set a reasonable reserve price. You can send me private messages with your bids—only one bid per person is allowed.”

“If the highest bid exceeds the reserve price, the item sells; if it doesn’t, the auction fails. Please bid carefully.”

Hearing this, many fans were already eager.

“Awesome! Xiao Ran, finally the auction segment!”

“Bro, I mortgaged my house to the bank just for those Yongzheng blue-glazed globes—gotta win them at all costs!”

“Let’s start already! Whether it’s the Yongzheng globes or those luxury antique watches, I want them all!”

Seeing the lively atmosphere in the livestream, Elaine instantly got excited. The French beauty quickly pulled out her phone, entered the chat room, and began interacting with the crowd.

She had previously participated in auctions for Wang Yeting’s porcelain paintings and ceramics, witnessing firsthand the excitement of livestream auctions—and had thoroughly enjoyed herself.

Now with such an opportunity, she certainly wasn’t going to miss out.

Unlike Elaine, Fang Yufei was utterly dumbfounded.

She had only been an admin of the livestream for a few days and mostly stayed in the background, rarely interacting.

She had heard others say Xiao Ran’s livestream was popular, but she never imagined that a channel with only about a thousand followers could be this wild.

The fans in the chat, who joked and bantered endlessly, were acting so crazily—and were so wealthy.

“Am I seeing this right? Someone actually mortgaged their house just to bid on the Yongzheng blue-glazed globes? Are they insane?” Fang Yufei exclaimed, eyes wide with disbelief.

“Don’t take it seriously—it’s probably just talk!”

“But there really are some big spenders in my livestream, I only just realized it,” Xiao Ran joked.

His words immediately drew a flurry of mock criticism.

After the laughter died down, he returned to the main point.

“Let me announce: after appraisal by several top experts, the pair of Yongzheng blue-glazed celestial globes are genuine. You can bid with confidence.”

“Also, I have an extra benefit for you all. I’ve reached an agreement with the consulate.”

“They will periodically coordinate to arrange some spare cargo space on freight planes to help me bring things back to China. It’s a kind of reward for me.”

“Of course, I have to pay a hefty fee for this, but it’s well worth it!”

“My family will receive the goods, so when you come to Beijing, you can pick up your auctioned treasures without the hassle of shipping from the U.S.”

“In other words, regardless of whether you have family or connections in the U.S., you can now participate in this auction game.”

“Compared to these benefits, I think the risks I’m taking today are absolutely worth it!”

As soon as he finished, the livestream erupted in excitement.

“You’re amazing, Xiao Ran! Well done! Now even we can join this game and leave those big spenders to their own devices!”

“Great news, Xiao Ran! Too bad you told us so late—we don’t have time to gather funds now!”

Almost everyone cheered and eagerly prepared for the bidding battle ahead.

Seeing the livestream erupt like a volcano, both Elaine and Fang Yufei were stunned but also had eyes shining with excitement.

Xiao Ran simply smiled, then proudly announced:

“Alright everyone, you may now send private messages to bid on the pair of Yongzheng blue-glazed celestial globes. Remember to keep screenshots of your messages!”

“Before opening your private messages, I will first announce the reserve price publicly to ensure transparency.”

The next moment, a pleasant notification sound rang out.

No need to ask—fans had already hastily composed their bids and sent them eagerly.

One after another, the message alerts burst forth continuously, unceasing!