Chapter 4

### Chapter 4: Nanyang Jade Carving

Liu Dong clenched his fists tightly, gave himself a mental boost, and then got up and took a few steps forward. He bent down and pulled out an old brown suitcase from under the bed. This suitcase and the few clothes inside were the only things he had taken with him when he secretly left his hometown. It had been more than three years since then.

Over the past three years, he had almost become a different person, transforming from a simple village boy into a worldly businessman.

Sighing softly, Liu Dong shook his head. He was not concerned about his own transformation; what truly weighed on his mind was his hometown, which he had not visited for three years, and his aging parents.

After a while, he collected his scattered thoughts and opened the suitcase. He lifted the lid and, from beneath the clothes, took out a black wooden box carved with two lifelike fish. He remembered that he had carved this black camphor wood box more than a year ago.

It was the first time he had earned money through his woodcarving skills. At that time, he had only made fifty yuan, but for Liu Dong, who had almost no job and was often half-starved, it was a substantial sum. Now, as he recalled, it seemed like it had happened just yesterday.

He put all the more than ten thousand yuan he had into the box, rearranged the clothes, closed the lid, and pushed the suitcase back under the bed. Liu Dong let out a light sigh, slowly stood up, and felt a sense of indescribable satisfaction.

Indeed, nothing was more satisfying than the rich rewards that came after hard work.

After putting everything away, he glanced at the alarm clock on the bedside table and realized it was almost nine o'clock in the evening.

Feeling his empty stomach, he looked at the door and decided to give up the idea of going to the kitchen to find something to eat. The awkward scene he had just experienced made him reluctant to go out and cook. Fortunately, there was half a pack of instant noodles left from yesterday in the drawer by the bed, and there was hot water in the thermos next to the door, which could at least fill his stomach a little.

However, this amount of food was far too little for a young man in his early twenties. In a few bites, Liu Dong had swallowed all the instant noodles with the hot water.

Patting his stomach, feeling less hungry, Liu Dong pulled out a chair and sat down at the old-fashioned writing desk. This desk, which he had bought after moving into the neighborhood, was not expensive and also served as his workbench for carving.

On the desk, various carving tools were neatly arranged: a band saw, a wire saw, grinding wheels, files, grinding needles, and diamond carving tools. These were Liu Dong's bread and butter, and the entire set had cost him nearly two thousand yuan. In his small, less than fifteen square meter rental room, this set of tools was the most valuable.

Of course, the ten-centimeter-tall, rough-surfaced, belly-laughing Maitreya Buddha jade carving that he carefully took out from the second drawer on the left was not included. This Nanyang green jade Maitreya Buddha carving had taken Liu Dong more than a week to meticulously carve. The entire piece of jade, combined with his craftsmanship, could sell for tens of thousands of yuan in a high-end store. If someone really liked it, the price could be even higher.

However, this piece of jade was not Liu Dong's own; he was doing it as a subcontracted job for a jade shop in the antique market. For each such jade carving, he would receive a commission based on the quality of the carving. Over the years, besides selling his own woodcarvings, this subcontracted work had also earned him a considerable amount of money.

After carefully examining the Maitreya jade carving in his hands and finding no flaws, Liu Dong nodded in satisfaction. He took a new piece of sandpaper from the right drawer and began the final and most critical step—polishing.

As the saying goes, "Jade uncarved is not a vessel." Without polishing, jade carvings cannot reveal their smooth and lustrous surfaces and their true value. In ancient times, people used corn husks to polish jade, which made the surface particularly smooth and warm. However, now with sandpaper and polishing powder, no one uses this ancient method anymore.

Three years of jade carving had made Liu Dong extremely familiar with all the processes, but his expression remained as focused as ever, and his movements were skilled and natural.

As time passed, layers of fine jade dust slowly peeled off. The originally rough and dull Maitreya Buddha jade carving gradually revealed a smooth and lustrous surface under Liu Dong's skilled hands. Soon, a large-eared, broad-chested, and bare-breasted Maitreya Buddha, with flowing robes, lying on a lotus throne, began to emit a dazzling radiance.

After completing the polishing and applying another layer of polishing powder, Liu Dong carefully examined the jade Buddha and made some minor adjustments with a carving knife. Satisfied, he held the jade carving in both hands, placed it under the bright white light in the room, and squinted to examine it.

Under the bright light, the originally somewhat cloudy Nanyang green jade immediately became crystal clear. The expression of the Maitreya Buddha sitting on the lotus throne became even more vivid.

After admiring it for a few minutes, Liu Dong gently placed the Maitreya Buddha jade carving on the table. He then took out a beautifully packaged red box, placed some sponge inside, and carefully placed the jade carving inside.

After closing the box and setting it aside, Liu Dong took out four more beautifully packaged but smaller boxes from the left drawer and placed them on the table next to the box containing the Maitreya Buddha jade carving.

In fact, these small boxes contained jade pendants and small carvings of Guanyin and Buddha that he had carved from jade materials he had purchased from the jade shop where he did subcontracted work. Although the cost was high and the risk was greater, compared to pure subcontracted work, these small carvings also earned him a good amount of money.

After organizing all the jade carvings he needed to deliver the next day, Liu Dong felt a sense of relief. Looking at the alarm clock on the bedside table, he realized that more than an hour had passed, and it was now ten o'clock in the evening.

He stood up, stretched his stiff neck and legs, and put on the dark blue slippers he had left by the door. After listening for any sounds outside, he pushed the door open and walked out.

As expected, the living room was already dim, with only faint music coming from Wang Qiang's bedroom across the hall. From the familiar melody, Liu Dong immediately understood that the beautiful woman, who was a few years older than him, was once again watching "The Story of the Concubine."

Initially, his decision to carve the wooden figures of the characters from "The Story of the Concubine" was somewhat influenced by Wang Qiang.

Turning on the bathroom light, he quickly washed his feet and returned to his bedroom. After locking the door and turning off the light, Liu Dong lay down on his bed and soon fell into a deep sleep, accompanied by the sound of light snoring.

The night passed quickly. At 5:30 in the morning, when the sky was just beginning to lighten, Liu Dong opened his eyes on time.

He sat up, put on a simple tank top and shorts, and quickly walked out of the house. However, he did not go downstairs but climbed the stairs to the rooftop.

Although it was the hottest month of the year in the north, the morning temperature was still cool. However, Liu Dong, who had broken a sweat from climbing the stairs, did not feel the cold.

Looking at the open rooftop, Liu Dong's heart expanded. He walked around, found a clean spot, and sat down facing east with a solemn expression. He assumed the common Daoist meditation posture, adjusted his breathing, and slowly closed his eyes. His muscles gradually relaxed, and the unknown internal martial arts he had practiced for over a decade slowly began to circulate from his dantian.