Chapter 57

Compared to the monochromatic white jade, the color of jadeite is undoubtedly more vivid and eye-catching. Although it has only been available in the jewelry market of Shishi for a few years, it has already become very popular among young girls.

High-quality top-grade jadeite is also in high demand in some business circles.

Since Nie Tianbao deliberately wore an ice-type green jadeite ring at a chamber of commerce event, wearing a jadeite ring has become a symbol of status.

And those bosses' wives also highly favor top-grade jadeite. The purpose of Nie Tianbao's trip to Myanmar this time is to purchase some good jadeite rough stones to meet the demand of the high-end jadeite market in Shishi and surrounding cities.

"By the way, boss, how did the rough stones you bought in Myanmar turn out? I heard that Boss Ge also got a batch of goods. We don't have many finished products left."

The topic shifted away from Nie Yuanlong, and Zhao Zhang's expression became more relaxed. After all, he didn't want to get involved in the boss's family affairs. Sometimes Nie Tianbao isn't a reasonable person.

"Hey, Old Zhao, if I hadn't gone out, I wouldn't have known how big the world is..."

When Zhao Zhang mentioned Myanmar, Nie Tianbao's spirits lifted, and he said, "This time in Myanmar, I met a bid king. A thirty-kilogram rough stone, Old Zhao, guess how much it was finally auctioned for?"

"Thirty kilograms isn't a large piece, right? After removing the stone skin, even if the jade inside is good, it's worth a few million, right?" Zhao Zhang pondered for a moment, held up his hand, and tentatively said, "Five million?"

"Five million? Multiply by six, that's more like it!"

Nie Tianbao sighed, "I thought my business was already quite big, but compared to those Hong Kong people, I'm just a poor boy in the city... I've never seen such a scene. I also bid on that stone, but my bid was far below the reserve price!"

To say that Nie Tianbao's trip to Myanmar was a significant blow, he had accumulated a fortune of nearly a hundred million over the past decade, making him one of the top tycoons in Shishi.

Of course, most of Nie Tianbao's assets were investments and fixed capital. This time, he only brought the equivalent of six million RMB in US dollars to Myanmar. According to his understanding of the jade market, this amount should have been enough to buy some good rough stones.

However, Nie Tianbao didn't expect that due to recent unrest in Myanmar, the price of jadeite rough stones had suddenly risen, and the supply was far less than the demand. The rough stones in the hands of small traders were almost all swept up by powerful merchants.

In desperation, Nie Tianbao could only participate in the unique jadeite auction in Myanmar. This auction was a significant blow to him because with six million, he couldn't even make a ripple in the market.

Nie Tianbao bid on twelve pieces of rough stone, but none of them were successful. In the end, he had to pay a high price to buy some jadeite that others had gambled on, at least he didn't return empty-handed.

"Xiao Zhou, go check the door."

After hearing Nie Tianbao's words, Zhao Zhang hesitated for a moment, then sent the shop assistant out and said, "Boss, Mrs. Li from Tianhong Group ordered a set of high-quality jadeite jewelry a while ago. What should we do? Should we... push it off?"

Originally, Zhao Zhang was waiting for Nie Tianbao to bring back good rough stones from Myanmar, process them into finished products, and then sell them to Mr. Li. But looking at the current situation, those rough stones were clearly not satisfactory.

"No, we can't push it off!"

Nie Tianbao shook his head and said with a dark expression, "Old Zhao, you've been in this industry longer than I have. You should understand that if we don't have what others have, we won't have an advantage in customer competition. I don't want to be overshadowed by Old Ge."

"Boss, what should we do? We really don't have any stock. We can't keep Mr. Li waiting forever, right?"

Zhao Zhang's face showed a look of difficulty. He had been in the jade business for a long time, but even he couldn't create something out of nothing.

Nie Tianbao gritted his teeth and said, "Here's what I'll do. I'll go to the capital tomorrow and see if I can buy a set of finished products. Even if this business is a loss, we can't ruin our reputation!"

Tianhong Group is the largest private enterprise in Shishi, and its boss, Li Gongliang, has a very deep background. It is rumored that he has connections in the provincial government and the capital. Although Nie Tianbao is also a well-known figure in Shishi, he still falls short compared to Li Gongliang.

So even if it means a loss, Nie Tianbao doesn't want Li Gongliang to buy jadeite from "Qishi Zhai." This concerns the reputation and face of "Yushi Zhai," and he can't afford to lose face in the Shishi business community. It also affects the market share of "Yushi Zhai" in the Shishi jadeite market.

Zhao Zhang nodded and said, "That's the only way. Old Ge has a wide network in the industry, so he might really have some good material."

"Damn, jadeite is different from Hetian jade. It's only produced in that damn Myanmar. By the way, Old Zhao, is there anything else...?"

Nie Tianbao cursed angrily, though he didn't finish his sentence, Zhao Zhang understood what he was thinking.

Hetian jade is valued for its whiteness, but white jade is not limited to Hetian jade. Jade from Qinghai and Russia also has excellent white jade, but the price is much lower than Hetian jade.

Therefore, in the jade industry, it is common to pass off Qinghai or Russian jade as Hetian jade, which has almost become an unwritten rule.

Like the Hetian jade seed pendants in the glass cabinets of "Yushi Zhai," more than half of them are actually made from cheaper Russian jade.

But what troubles Nie Tianbao is that jadeite is only produced in Myanmar, and there is almost no substitute. Domestic jade merchants have limited experience with it, and Nie Tianbao is one of the earliest in Shishi to deal with it.

More importantly, he has only heard that the surface of jadeite rough stones can be tampered with, but he hasn't heard of any methods to fake the jadeite inside.

"Boss, I've only dealt with soft jade before, and I don't know much about jadeite. I really can't say."

Zhao Zhang shook his head. He is only in his fifties and has been dealing with Hetian jade since he started in the business. He only began paying attention to jadeite in recent years, and his level is about the same as Nie Tianbao's.

"Hey, you two little brats, do you want to die?"

Just as Nie Tianbao was talking to Zhao Zhang, there was a loud "bang" from outside, followed by the cries of the shop assistant.

Nie Tianbao was taken aback and turned to look out the open door. He saw two young men, one fat and one strong, running away as fast as they could, disappearing in the crowded street in the blink of an eye.

"Zhou Bing, what's going on? Who are those people?" Nie Tianbao walked to the door and saw a young man on the ground, holding his face, and frowned.

"Uncle Nie, this guy's wallet was stolen. We had already caught the thief, but then his accomplice hit him. When those two ran away, they hit your car."

Zhou Bing, the shop assistant, smiled with a hint of schadenfreude. In fact, when the young man was looking at things outside the store, Zhou Bing had already noticed that he was being targeted by a thief.

To be honest, the fat thief's technique was really not good. He had almost taken the wallet out, but his hand shook, and it almost fell to the ground. Otherwise, the young man wouldn't have noticed.

Zhou Bing is a distant relative of Nie Tianbao, and he is also a bit of a troublemaker. He just watched the commotion, and when the young man was hit, he almost cheered.

If it weren't for the tall thief hitting the car while running away, Zhou Bing wouldn't have even bothered to say anything. Such incidents are not uncommon on the antique street.

"Is the car damaged? If not, let him go. He's blocking the entrance and affecting business."

Nie Tianbao frowned but didn't take it seriously. The antique street is full of tourists from other places, and there are all sorts of people. Wallet thefts happen almost every day, and as long as it doesn't happen in his store, Nie Tianbao doesn't want to get involved.

Hearing the boss's words, Zhou Bing walked down the steps, kicked the young man who was holding his eye, and said, "Hey, kid, are you okay? If you're fine, get lost. Don't stand there like a pillar!"

"Damn, you dare to kick me?"

What Zhou Bing didn't expect was that the young man, who had just been hit, suddenly became furious and raised his right hand, slapping Zhou Bing across the face with a "slap."

PS: Second update. Be kind, and please vote! Thank you all for your support!