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A special phone number, "8888-8888," was auctioned Tuesday in Chengdu, Sichuan Province, for 2.33 million yuan (US$280,723).

The digit eight is a lucky number in China as it has a similar pronunciation to the Chinese character which means "rich."

At the auction, the phone number was eventually bought by a bidder representing Sichuan Airlines after several rounds of bidding.

Yu Xiudao, deputy general manager of the company, said that the phone number would be used for the company's 24-hour hot line for ticket reservation and flight information services.

"Everyone at the company believes the number was worth the price we pay," said Xing Bing of the airline's corporate relations department.

Xing said the number had already had a "good advertising effect."

Xing said that the airline bought the number to use for their hot line as it was easy for customers to remember.

"It's a number that will make customers happy when they call," she said.

At the auction a total of 100 phone numbers, which include combinations of special numbers like "8," "6" and "9," were sold for a total of 7.13 million yuan.

Zhang Xin, chief of Chengdu's telecommunications office, said all the money would be donated to the city's "reemployment project" which aims to help laid-off workers, and a special fund for firefighters.