Nichole’s cheeks were tinged with a hint of pink. She had studied finance for so long at college,


    precisely. for this day.


    From the second floor, Sophie watched as James and Nichole chatted animatedly, quietly averting her


    gaze.-


    Nichole indeed had some talent, which was one of the reasons James would find himself drawn to her


    in


    the future.


    In her previous life, Nichole had identified a prime plece of real estate for James, which had made him


    see her in a new light.


    But in reality, that property was already valuable, especially as it was located near the Burke


    International properties. With James’ finances at her disposal, Nichole drove up the price without


    hesitation, which in turn increased the value of the surrounding Burke International properties. Either


    way, James couldn’t lose.


    Even without Nichole, that piece ofnd was something James would have acquired anyway.


    As soon as the auction began, Nichole started bidding. She snagged the first three prime properties.


    James sat beside Nichole like a guardian angel.


    “Devonport Crescent, starting at one billion!”


    “Two billion.”


    It was the first time Sophie spoke up at the auction, and the entire room gasped.


    James frowned. What was she thinking?


    Nichole whispered, “Thatnd isn’t worth much. Sophie’s going to lose two billion.”


    James pulled out his phone and texted Sophie, [What are you doing?]


    Sophie nced at the message and then flipped her phone face down.


    “Two billion once…


    “Two billion twice…”


    “Da m n, has Sophie lost her mind? Two billion for that?” Adler was on the second floor and shocked.


    “Three billion.” Beside him, Colby casually threw out a number.


    Adler nearly flipped the table. He gritted his teeth. “Colby! Have you also lost it?”


    Across the room, Sophie was frowning, trying to figure out who was crazy enough to bid against her for


    such a worthless piece ofnd, only to spot Colby.


    Sophie vaguely remembered that Colby was involved in some shady businesses. Since when did he


    get into real estate development?


    “Four billion!” Sophie calmly raised the bid.


    Downstairs, James’ frown deepened, and he typed furiously on his phone. [Sophie, shut it!)


    13:14


    This time, Sophie turned her phone off.


    “Five billion.”


    Facing Colby’s deliberate provocation, Sophie almost gritted her teeth to dust. ‘Alright, ying it this


    way, huh?”


    Sophie spoke up. “Ten billion!”


    “She’s definitely gone mad!” Adler eximed.


    Downstairs, James stood up. The usuallyposed man was also somewhat unable to fathom


    Sophie’s intentions. In his view, that piece ofnd wasn’t even worth one billion, and Sophie was willing


    to spend ten billion on it.


    This belongs to N?velDrama.Org.


    Meeting Sophie’s indifferent gaze, Colby smiled slightly and gestured for her to proceed.


    “Ten billion once…”


    “Ten billion twice…”


    “Ten billion three times! Sold!”


    As the gavel struck, Sophie’s heart finally rxed. She had secured thend, though she had spent an


    extra eight billion unnecessarily.


    All because of Colby!


    Sophie red at Colby from across the room.


    Adler nudged Colby. “Hey, hey, Sophie’s ring at you. If I were her, I’d probably want to kill you!”;


    Colby raised an eyebrow, seemingly unconcerned.


    Downstairs, Nichole tugged at James. “Mr. Burke, Sophie’s going to bankrupt you.”


    James coldly replied, “She set the price herself. No one else will foot the bill for her.