Chapter 1

As a new first-tier city and a rising internet celebrity destination, Xingcheng has seen an increasing number of young tourists visiting over the past two years. Liu Shan sat on the high-speed train back to Xingcheng, occasionally overhearing people discussing whether to go for milk tea or stinky tofu first. He glanced up, then refocused his attention on his phone screen.

《Pingzhou Jade Auction King Wins with 150 Million Bid, 2021 Domestic Record!》

In this report on the current Pingzhou Jade Auction, the focus was on the emerald jade rough stone that Liu Shan had seen at the exhibition. The 21-kilogram stone sold for a staggering 150 million yuan, averaging over 7 million yuan per kilogram!

Liu Shan paid close attention to this news, not because he was interested in the auction king, but because he wanted to see if the report mentioned the two jade rough stones he had sold.

"Sure enough, such news usually only cares about the 'first,' not even mentioning the second, let alone the seventh and eleventh."

Relieved that he wasn't mentioned, Liu Shan was about to put away his phone and rest when it vibrated again. He looked and saw a bank deposit notification.

Liu Shan's heart skipped a beat as he opened the message.

Industrial and Commercial Bank of China: Your account 8768 received 27,560,070.00 yuan on August 19, with a balance of 27,726,142.59 yuan.

Looking at the previous balance, it was 166,072.59 yuan. This trip to Pingzhou, to build connections, had cost him a lot, spending half of the 300,000 yuan from selling gold, but it was all worth it!

Liu Shan was extremely excited. Since obtaining the fragment space, he had been busy for over a month and finally reaped substantial benefits.

He slumped in his seat, not wanting to move a finger. The 27.56 million yuan in cash made him feel warm and comfortable, but a WeChat message he received next gave him a new burst of energy.

The message was from Wang Yuan, his collaborator this time: "Mr. Liu, your funds should have arrived. Please check and confirm."

Wang Yuan was a senior member of the Pingzhou Jade Association and a small but influential jade merchant. She often posted videos of herself playing with stones on online platforms. Before obtaining the world fragment, Liu Shan had already followed her channel on a small platform.

To be cautious, Liu Shan logged into the ICBC app to check his balance. It was indeed 27,726,142.59 yuan.

Liu Shan took a deep breath, and seeing the old man next to him looking over, he instinctively turned off his phone, smiled, and then unlocked the screen in a position where no one could see, exited the ICBC app, and replied to Wang Yuan.

"The funds have arrived. Thank you for your help this time, Wang Jie. It was a pleasure working with you."

He sent five 200-yuan red envelopes along with the message.

Wang Yuan quickly replied: "I should thank you. I also gained a lot this time. Thank you for your support."

This time, Liu Shan had found her to collaborate on selling stones at the auction. They had agreed from the beginning that she would act as the agent and take a commission.

The two stones Liu Shan provided were of extremely high quality, with a pre-tax transaction amount exceeding 30 million yuan. Although she only took a little over 2%, she still made a substantial profit.

However, she immediately accepted the red envelopes and sent a "Thank you, boss" emoji.

Liu Shan smiled and was about to put away his phone when another message came in.

"Mr. Liu, a few familiar bosses have approached me, wanting to buy some high-quality stones at a high price. What do you think?"

Liu Shan was taken aback, then closed his eyes and "looked" at the three-meter-diameter fragment space. There was one stone left, with quality similar to the two he had sold, but slightly larger.

After a moment, he opened his eyes and replied: "Sorry, I don't have any good stones left. If I get any new good stones in the future, I'll contact you."

Although he still had one stone left, it wasn't the right time to sell it yet.

"Okay, I'll respond to them accordingly."

"Sure, if you come to Xingcheng, remember to visit me. I'll treat you to spicy shrimp and stinky tofu."

"Sure."

After a brief chat with Wang Yuan, Liu Shan put away his phone and pondered how to spend the 27.56 million yuan.

Before obtaining the world fragment, Liu Shan was just an ordinary person who had graduated from university three years ago, with a monthly income of around 7,000 to 8,000 yuan. Suddenly having so much cash, he wasn't really at a loss.

After all, he was now someone who possessed a world fragment.

Since accepting the world fragment in his mind, Liu Shan's adaptability had significantly improved, and he had already thought through how to spend the money over the past month.

He mused to himself: "I used to fantasize about what I would do if I won a 10 million yuan lottery. Naturally, I would buy a house and a car, which are standard operations. Additionally..."

As Liu Shan was pondering how to spend the money, a call from an unknown number came in. Without thinking, he hung up, but the caller seemed persistent and quickly called back. He picked up his phone, stood up, and walked to the train car connection area before answering.

A rather magnetic female voice came from the other end: "Hello, may I ask if this is Mr. Liu Shan?"

"Yes, who is this?"

"Hello, Mr. Liu, I am Zhou Ying, a financial manager at ICBC. Our recent financial products have had excellent returns. I wonder if I have the honor of serving you?"

Liu Shan hesitated and asked, "If I buy your financial products, what kind of return can I expect? By the way, what is the current fixed deposit rate?"

He wasn't interested in buying, but he wanted to understand.

Now, he wouldn't easily miss any opportunity to broaden his horizons.

"Mr. Liu, our current large-denomination fixed deposit rates are 2.25% for one year, 3.1% for two years, and 4.12% for three years. However, if you buy large-denomination financial products, the return will not be less than 5% to 8%."

Liu Shan quickly calculated in his mind. A 10 million yuan fixed deposit would yield 220,000 yuan per year, and if deposited for three years, it would yield 410,000 yuan annually. This means that his 27.56 million yuan, if deposited in the bank for three years, would yield over 1 million yuan annually without doing anything.

So, he could earn over a million yuan a year? In the past, he would have had to work hard for over ten years to earn that much.

Indeed, the rich can earn money while lying down.

"Mr. Liu, if you are interested, we can schedule a meeting to discuss our financial products in detail." The voice on the other end was gentle and pleasant.

Liu Shan politely declined and hung up the phone.

"Buying financial products is out of the question. The housing prices in Xingcheng are not high. As a newly rich person, I don't need to buy a luxury house or car right away. I can start with a decent house and car to get used to it, which would cost a few million yuan. Yes, I can deposit a few million yuan as a fixed deposit as a reserve fund."

"The remaining money should mainly be used to invest in myself, broaden my horizons, and learn more knowledge, to continue my education."

"Additionally, I need to find ways to enhance my reputation and social influence!"

Liu Shan's thoughts were all aimed at strengthening his mental awareness, which was related to the world fragment in his mind.