Chapter 24

Suddenly, the sound of firecrackers rang out outside the Stone City, startling Wu Di. The old man's hands were steady, completely unaffected, while the onlookers pulled out their phones and made calls non-stop. The stone was not large, and it was quickly opened. In the old man's hand was a dark green stone slightly larger than a duck's egg yolk. Although unpolished, its natural fluorescence already dazzled the eyes of the onlookers. The crowd became noisy, jostling forward. Wu Di looked around and realized that the area was already crowded with people.

Wen Yajiu's voice came through,

"Wu Di, Wu Di, have you bought it yet?"

Wu Di smiled bitterly,

"Don't rush, Brother Wen, let's see what happens first!"

Wen Yajiu apologized while pushing his way in. The old man who had opened the stone did not return it to Wu Di but asked,

"Little brother, are you interested in selling it? I'll offer twenty million!"

"Twenty-two million!"

"Twenty-three million!"

"Twenty-five million!"

Hearing the bids, the crowd became excited, with prices being called out one after another, making Wu Di dizzy. Could such a small piece of stone really be worth over twenty million?

Wu Di said,

"Everyone, don't rush. Let my old brother come in first. If he doesn't want it, then you can bid."

Wen Yajiu finally squeezed in, looking dejected. Wu Di, not noticing his expression, pulled his hand and asked,

"Brother Wen, do you want this stone?"

Wen Yajiu shook his head,

"I can't afford that much. I can only offer up to ten million. How can I compete with them?"

A little girl standing next to Wu Di suddenly called out,

"Thirty million!"

The old man who helped Wu Di open the stone glanced at the old man behind him. After a moment of thought, he shouted,

"Thirty-two million!"

"Thirty-three million!"

This price made the crowd fall silent. The old man was about to bid again, but Qian Fatty quickly stopped him, clasping his hands and bowing to the crowd,

"Those who aren't bidding, please step aside, please step aside."

He turned to Wu Di and whispered,

"Little brother, for the sake of your old brother, let's go to the VIP room to discuss this. Brother Wen, help me out."

Wu Di nodded,

"Alright, it's too chaotic here. I underestimated the value of this stone."

Wen Yajiu still didn't understand the situation. He hadn't heard clearly what Wu Di said on the phone and was puzzled about why Qian Fatty wanted his help. The crowd was reluctantly dispersed, and Wu Di, Wen Yajiu, the two old men, and the two girls were led into the VIP room.

Qian Fatty made a round of bows and said,

"Everyone here is a friend or mentor of Qian Fatty. Each of you has a reason to want this piece of jade. I called you here to find a suitable solution. Continuing to compete will only hurt our friendship."

He then whispered to Wu Di,

"Little brother, if the final price doesn't reach thirty-three million, I'll make up the difference. Please give Brother Fatty some face."

Wu Di hadn't expected them to be so crazy. Qian Fatty's handling was exactly what he wanted, so he said,

"Sure, I'll leave it to Mr. Qian."

Qian Fatty patted Wu Di's shoulder and said loudly,

"Everyone knows the purpose. Mr. Zeng wants to find a set of jade jewelry for his mother's birthday. Miss Qi wants to give a set of jewelry to her grandmother. Brother Wen owes his wife a pair of earrings. I have an idea. Do you agree?"

Mr. Zeng said,

"Mr. Qian, go on."

The others nodded in agreement. Qian Fatty turned to the other old man and bowed,

"Mr. Tang, how many pieces can this material produce?"

The old man, guessing Qian Fatty's thoughts, praised him silently and said after careful consideration,

"If I carve it, it can produce that many pieces. If the earrings are slightly smaller, an additional ring face can be made."

Qian Fatty was delighted and said,

"Everyone has heard. Instead of fighting to the death, why not let Master Tang do the carving, and each of you can get what you need? It will be a bit unfair to Wu Di, but I'll make it up to him later."

Wu Di smiled,

"No problem. I'll make a huge profit no matter what. The stone only cost me a hundred yuan. The key is not to delay everyone's plans."

Everyone thanked him. The little girl poked Wu Di and said,

"I didn't know you were a good person. Thanks, pervert brother."

Wu Di's smile turned into a bitter one. The tall girl felt a bit embarrassed and quickly said,

"Brother Wu, don't mind her. She's just being naughty."

Wu Di finally saw the girl's face. She looked like a sprite from an anime, with everything a bit larger than the little girl, adding an indescribable charm. Her eyebrows and eyes were all lively, and he couldn't help but stare. Seeing Wu Di's gaze, the little girl pouted but didn't scold him.

Wu Di felt ashamed, wondering if he really was a pervert. He said,

"You're welcome, you're welcome. Kids should be lively."

The little girl was unhappy and wanted to say more but was pulled away by the cartoon beauty, turning her head and ignoring Wu Di, angry.

Mr. Zeng smiled,

"With Master Tang's work, I'm reassured. I'll offer fifteen million for the set of jewelry."

The cartoon beauty also said,

"Fifteen million, no problem."

Wen Yajiu hurriedly said,

"I'll offer three million. Is that okay?"

Everyone nodded, but Wu Di said,

"Isn't that a bit high?"

Master Tang's face turned serious,

"Little brother, do you look down on my skills?"

Wu Di couldn't speak, clasping his hands and begging for mercy. Qian Fatty explained,

"Little brother, your stone, if not snatched, would be worth about twenty million. But after carving, it's like selling finished jewelry, and a price increase of thirty to forty percent is normal. Especially with Master Tang's work, it could be even more expensive! Master Tang, I'll cover the labor cost. Is one million appropriate?"

Master Tang angrily said,

"Only you, Qian Fatty, know how to be a person! This time, I'll do it for free and thank Wu Di for letting me carve a piece of imperial green jade!"

The little girl counted on her fingers and suddenly called out,

"There's still one ring face..."

Wu Di quickly said,

"The ring face is not for sale. I need it for my sister."

The little girl glared at Wu Di, then suddenly laughed, her face blooming like a thousand pear blossoms, dazzling Wu Di. He quickly turned away, but the little girl didn't let him off, running to his side and whispering,

"I'll give you eight million for the ring face and introduce my sister to you. How about that?"

Wu Di felt he had already made a fool of himself enough today. He silently recited "form is emptiness, emptiness is form" and avoided her gaze, shaking his head. The little girl was angry and shouted,

"Coward, pervert, coward!"

After the transaction, Wu Di's account increased by thirty-three million, making him a multimillionaire again. Looking at the string of zeros on his phone, he couldn't help but sigh,

"These rich people really don't treat money as money."

The group went downstairs. The crowd waiting downstairs didn't know the final price but knew it couldn't be less than thirty-three million. After all, the little girl had already bid that much. They whispered and sighed, slowly dispersing under Qian Fatty's persuasion. The back yard returned to peace.

Master Tang and Mr. Zeng left together, and the little girl was pulled away by her sister, making a face at Wu Di before leaving. Qian Fatty wiped the sweat from his forehead and sighed,

"Thanks to Brother Wu's help. I can't afford to offend any of these people. Later, pick a few stones to take home as a gift from me."

Wu Di smiled,

"I've already made enough today and should thank Mr. Qian for his help. How can I take your stones for free?"

"You're wrong. Both sides are wealthy and have their reasons for wanting the stone. They also care about face. If they continued to compete, it could go over forty million. But that would make enemies. Now, Brother Wu seems to have lost but has gained many connections. You'll see the benefits later."

"Ha, I knew it. I didn't lose money and gained a big favor. I should thank Mr. Qian. If you have such matters in the future, come to me. Ha ha."

"Ah, this one thing has cost me countless brain cells. Even eating ten servings of pig brain won't make up for it. I dare not come again. Brother Wu, pick your stones, and I'll go to the front. Call me when you're done."

Wen Yajiu patted Wu Di's shoulder and said,

"Your luck is really out of this world. You opened an imperial green jade from that broken stone? Do you know how much you've gained today?"

"What? Do you know their backgrounds?"

"That Master Tang is the vice president of the National Gem and Jade Association and a leading figure in the Northern School of carving. I don't know Mr. Zeng, but someone who can have Master Tang accompany them is no ordinary person. I don't know the two girls either, but they might be from the Qi family. We'll talk about this later. Not only them, but I also owe you a big favor. You've gained a lot."

"Really? I just let you have it, and you all offered high prices."

"You're not in this industry, so you don't understand. Just remember what your old brother said. Go, pick a few more stones, and let me help you judge."

Wu Di went to pick stones, and Wen Yajiu sat and drank tea, watching Wu Di's energetic figure, feeling a deep sense of emotion. Who would have thought that a little brother he met on the train could fulfill his long-held wish in one day? He took out his phone and made a call.

Wu Di tried hard to find pine flower patterns on the stones but gave up after a while. He realized he wasn't cut out for this. The imperial green jade was purely a stroke of luck. He didn't know that the pile he was picking from was the worst, a mix of stones and rough material. Any stones with even a hint of value had already been picked by Qian Fatty and marked at a high price. If he could find anything valuable in this pile, Qian Fatty would be amazed by his eyesight.

Wu Di shook his head and picked three stones that looked nice, taking them to Wen Yajiu for his opinion. Wen Yajiu hung up his phone, looked at the stones, and smiled,

"Not bad. Your luck is really good. You picked three rough stones out of so many. Your luck is great. You should try buying lottery tickets."

Wu Di understood his meaning,

"Damn, Qian Fatty is so greedy. Not only are they expensive, but they're also fake?"

"Those buying the stones don't know the difference between stones and rough material. Didn't you see that you were the only one working hard there?"

Wu Di was unhappy and called for the bill. Soon, Qian Fatty ran over, saw the stones in his hand, and said,

"Brother, are you trying to embarrass me? Pick some better ones, and I won't charge you."

Wu Di ignored him and suddenly pointed to a stone weighing over ten pounds with a triangular cut face next to the stone-opening machine,

"Is that one rough material too? Why is it there?"

"That's a piece of rough material that a group of customers cut yesterday and didn't have time to clean up."

"Alright, these three plus that one, a total of five hundred yuan. This favor, you can consider it repaid, okay?"

"Brother, this..."

"Say it again, and we're not brothers anymore!"

"Alright, Brother, I have thick skin. Thanks, little brother."

"That's better. Actually, today's outcome is a win-win. Mr. Qian, you don't need to take it so seriously."

Qian Fatty gave him a thumbs up,

"Brother, you're a wise man."

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