Esteemed Guest

Upon hearing Dirk's words, Jake felt slightly relieved. However, since the final transaction had not yet taken place, everything was still uncertain. Consequently, Jake's mind was preoccupied with this matter throughout the day, and he even went to JH Auction House early in the evening. Upon arriving, Jake realized that Dirk had actually arrived before him.

"Jake, I knew you couldn't wait and would come early," Dirk greeted with a cheerful smile.

"Dirk got here earlier than me," Jake replied with a smile.

"To be embarrassed, I've been thinking about this all day, so I thought I might as well come early in the evening," Dirk said, "I've bought things here before, but this is my first time auctioning something. It's quite exciting when I think about it."

Dirk's excitement wasn't because of the money, but rather because this auction was a novel experience for him, which he found intriguing.

"Dirk, Jake, you're here," at this moment, Jaden, the manager of the auction house, walked over with a warmer expression on his face than when they had previously met.

"Yeah," Dirk nodded and asked, "There shouldn't be any issues with the calligraphy work I consigned, right?"

"No, Dirk, rest assured, there won't be any problems," Jaden immediately reassured, "We've promoted 'Farewell to a Guest' for the past two days, particularly among calligraphy enthusiasts. The feedback has been positive, and I believe tonight, Mr. Wang's painting will undoubtedly fetch a satisfactory price."

"That's good," Dirk nodded, then pointed to Jake next to him and said, "Actually, that calligraphy work is jointly owned by Jake and me. To be precise, he was the first to discover it, not me."

Jaden looked at Jake with surprise and curiosity. Although he didn't fully understand what Dirk meant by Jake being the first to discover the calligraphy work, he was still surprised that Jake had ownership of the painting. Jake rarely spoke when he was with Dirk, and Jaden hadn't heard of any wealthy individuals surnamed Wu in J City. Therefore, he had assumed that Jake was just an ordinary rich second-generation who had recently connected with Dirk. Now it seemed he had underestimated Jake.

Jaden quickly changed to a more enthusiastic expression and said to Jake, "Jake has a keen eye. There are many forgeries among Li Suzhi's works, but Jake managed to identify the authentic piece. His discerning eye far surpasses the norm."

Initially, Jaden's attitude towards Jake had been average, but out of respect for Dirk, he had treated Jake relatively politely. However, now the situation was completely different.

It's important to note that their auction house's main objective is to receive valuable antiques for auction. Doing so not only allows them to earn substantial commissions but also greatly enhances their reputation. A higher reputation results in more and better items being entrusted to them, creating a virtuous cycle. So, valuable antiques—those exceptional and authentic pieces—are crucial to their auction house. Those who can provide such items become esteemed guests of their auction house and cannot be treated negligently.

Jake's ability to discover and authenticate "Farewell to a Guest" makes him an esteemed guest for their auction house. Jaden took out a business card from his pocket and handed it to Jake, saying, "Jake, if you have anything to auction in the future, feel free to contact me. We can offer a 10% discount on the commission, and as long as the item is of good quality, I assure you that we will promote and package it well, fetching a satisfying price for you."

Jake accepted Jaden's business card and said, "Such valuable items may not be encountered frequently, but in the future, there might indeed be other things that require Manager Jaden's assistance."

Since he possessed the identification skill, Jake naturally wouldn't let it go to waste. While finding hidden treasures was difficult, with time and repeated attempts, he was bound to discover a few. At that point, he would need the services of places like JH Auction House to help with the process.

"Sure thing, sure thing," Jaden chuckled even more joyfully. Gaining another potential customer was undoubtedly a great thing for him.

"Well, it's getting late. Let's head inside," Dirk suggested.

"Both of you take care, and I hope you have a pleasant evening," Jaden said.

"Jake, in Jaden's eyes now, your status is even higher than mine," Dirk said to Jake with a smile after bidding farewell to Jaden.

Dirk knew the reason why Jaden valued Jake – the ability to bring benefits and fame to the auction house. So, it wasn't surprising that Jaden would pay attention to Jake.

"Dirk is joking. How could I compare to you?" Jake replied. Jake had some understanding of Dirk's background; Dirk's family was a prominent one in J City, and his status was quite esteemed.

"That might not necessarily be true," Dirk replied, "Your ability to appraise antiques and provide items for auction is crucial for them at the auction house. Over the past few years, there has been intense competition among China's major auction houses. JH is under quite a bit of pressure. Thus, being able to acquire a few more valuable items, especially treasures like 'Farewell to a Guest,' is extremely important for them. So, of course, they need to curry favor with you and please you." Dirk had some understanding of the competition among auction houses.

"Unfortunately, these kinds of treasures aren't so easy to come across. Even if I do find them, I might not necessarily have the opportunity to obtain them," Jake said.

Such treasures were naturally scarce, and instances where they could be found overlooked were even rarer. Even if Jake discovered them, he wouldn't necessarily purchase them if the price was too high. It wouldn't make sense. As they conversed, they arrived at the auction hall for the evening.

Tonight's auction was a summer-themed special event hosted by JH. Both the auction items and the attendees couldn't be compared to the small-scale auction three days ago. As a result, the venue for this auction wasn't the same smaller hall as before; it had been changed to a larger and more luxurious hall.

The hall already had several people within it. Groups of two or three were gathered, engaging in conversations related to antiques. Those attending tonight's auction were all veterans in the world of collectibles.

Of course, except for Jake. Dirk had many acquaintances, and soon someone came over to greet him. Meanwhile, Jake wandered around by himself.

"Jake, my young friend, you're here too?" As Jake wandered, he heard a familiar voice.Turning towards the source of the sound, he saw the gentleman from Beijing, Bob, whom he had met yesterday.