I Got Together With the Fake Heiress - Chapter 35

Even before Wen Yunqing could say anything, this “qualified passerby” spontaneously offered a wager.

“I bet this stone will be a bust (kuǎ). If it isn’t, I will pay for the stone myself,” the passerby stated. “If it is a bust, I have no other demands; you simply need to leave this shop.”

A wager like this clearly showed one hundred and twenty percent confidence, a conviction that he absolutely would not lose.

“It sounds like I won’t lose money whether I win or lose,” Wen Yunqing said, tapping the rectangular-shaped stone in her hand.

“How about it? Will you take the bet?” the passerby asked. These little kids should just go home; this was no place for them.

Wen Yunqing smiled. “A wager is fine, but I think the stakes need to be changed. If it’s a bust, I’ll give you the exact retail price of this stone. If it is not a bust, you will pay me whatever the contents inside are worth.”

“Agreed. Then our wager is set,” the passerby said with a smile. “Old Jia, come and cut this young lady’s stone open. I’ll pay for it.”

The owner, Old Jia, walked over, chuckling. “Manager Lu, they are just kids here to play. Are you taking this seriously?”

“It’s not about being serious. They want to play, so we’ll let them play,” Manager Lu replied. “Little girl, I can give you a chance to back out. If you…”

“No need. Just slice the stone in half,” Wen Yunqing said, directly lifting the stone and placing it on the electronic scale nearby. “Twenty-four kilograms, so that’s forty-eight thousand, correct?”

“C-correct…” The owner couldn’t help but stare at the scale. The stone was indeed twenty-four kilograms. Why had the little girl picked it up so easily?

Manager Lu also raised an eyebrow slightly, a hint of his contempt receding. Had he misjudged her? Was this young lady actually a martial arts practitioner? Could she really be someone formidable?

But what did it matter? No matter how powerful a woman was, she would eventually marry and have children, ultimately becoming an appendage of a man.

“The money has been transferred for the cutting,” Wen Yunqing said, paying the fee without fuss. She then stood with Wen Yimeng next to the cutting machine, waiting for the owner to operate it.

The owner cleared his throat and called for an assistant from the shop. Together, the two men managed to lift the stone onto the machine.

“Young lady, is it alright if I cut it here?” The owner drew a line near the center.

Wen Yunqing nodded. “Cut it just like that.”

Accompanying the motor’s start, the gear began to spin rapidly, and the sharp blade cut into the stone, little by little.

After standing there for a while, Wen Yimeng couldn’t help but retreat a couple of steps. The sound of cutting the stone was simply too loud; she felt her head beginning to throb.

“Yunqing, do you have some special magic that lets you see if there’s jade inside?” Having distanced herself from the others, Wen Yimeng finally couldn’t resist asking.

Wen Yunqing first shook her head, and then nodded. “I didn’t use any ‘x-ray vision’ type of magic, but my intuition tells me that this stone will bring me financial luck.”

Hearing Wen Yunqing’s words, Wen Yimeng’s internal anxiety lessened by half. Her intuition was usually quite reliable; perhaps today they really could secure their start-up capital.

It took a full ten minutes for the rough stone to be completely cut. As the cover was opened, Wen Yimeng and Manager Lu both peered inside.

“Quickly, take it down and let’s see,” Manager Lu urged.

“Alright,” the owner said, putting on gloves and laboriously pulling out half of the rough stone.

The first person to see the cut surface was Wen Yimeng. She knew little about jade, only that the portion near the center of the stone, about ten-plus centimeters, was green—and a very good shade of green at that.

“Ice Jade!” The owner was stunned for a moment, then roared with laughter, his mouth nearly splitting to his ears. “A huge gain! Young lady, your stone is a huge gain! Do you want me to help you cut it further?”

“Yes, please cut it all open for me,” Wen Yunqing replied, unsurprised by the result. She smiled sweetly at Manager Lu. “It looks like I’ve won the bet, hasn’t it?”

Manager Lu’s expression turned sour. Ice Jade was not cheap. Was he really going to lose millions because of a casual wager?

“Let’s wait until it’s all cut out,” Manager Lu said. “After all, a patch of green doesn’t mean the whole thing is green.” He discreetly gave the owner a meaningful look.

These two clearly didn’t understand much about jade. They could easily be fooled by quoting an arbitrary price.

The owner quickly understood Manager Lu’s intent, but he struggled internally. Integrity was crucial for an opened business; he didn’t want to tarnish his reputation.

Before the owner could finish cutting out all the jade, the shop became noticeably crowded. Most of these people were attracted by the owner’s earlier excited exclamation.

“Young friend, is the jade on the cutting machine yours?” an old man dressed in a Tang suit asked with a gentle smile, his manner very amicable.

“It belongs to both of us,” Wen Yunqing said.

The old man nodded with a smile. “Do the two young friends have any intention of selling it? I can offer a satisfactory price to both of you.”

“Yimeng, do you want to keep it as a souvenir or sell it?” Wen Yunqing asked directly.

Wen Yimeng was somewhat conflicted. Keeping it as a souvenir seemed nice, as it was the first stone they had opened, but hadn’t they come here precisely for capital accumulation? If they didn’t sell it, how would they make money?

“How about we each keep a small piece, and sell the rest?” Wen Yimeng suggested.

Without waiting for Wen Yunqing to speak, the old man in the Tang suit spoke first. “If the two young friends are willing to sell the stone to me, I can gift you each a finished, processed pendant free of charge.”

“We want them to be identical,” Wen Yunqing said.

“It might not be possible for them to be completely identical, as the internal structure of jade is naturally formed, so the grain patterns cannot be exactly the same,” the old man explained.

“That’s fine. As long as the carving theme is consistent,” Wen Yimeng said. She knew with her eyes closed that Wen Yunqing was aiming for “couple pendants.”

“In that case, there is absolutely no problem,” the old man said with a warm smile, his gaze lightly skimming over their interlocked hands.

Upon hearing the trio’s discussion, Manager Lu’s face darkened. The more onlookers there were, the harder it would be for him to tamper with the price, especially since many people here were from the industry circle. If he backed out, his reputation would be damaged.

The owner, who had been struggling, no longer had that worry now that a crowd had gathered. With so many customers present, he definitely couldn’t engage in fraud. His duty was to extract this Ice Jade as perfectly as possible and seize the opportunity to promote the shop.

Another twenty minutes passed, and, to everyone’s anticipation, the jade inside the rough stone was fully taken out. It comprised approximately two half-oval shapes. The owner cleaned them, and they were immediately surrounded by the crowd.

“The quality is excellent! There seem to be no cracks. If designed well, it could definitely yield five or six bangles!”

“Young lady, I’ll offer two million! How about selling the piece to me?” The people genuinely interested in buying did not rush forward but stayed back to communicate with Wen Yunqing.

“Two million? Old Li, you’re cheap! I’ll offer four million for your jade!” a man holding a leather satchel said.

Wen Yunqing raised her hand, interrupting their bidding. “Excuse me, I have already promised to sell it to this elderly gentleman.”

“Elderly gentleman, what is your offer?”

The old man in the Tang suit smiled and gave a fair price. “I offer five million five hundred thousand.”

The satchel man hesitated. Thinking of his struggling shop, he gritted his teeth and said, “I offer five million six hundred thousand!”

“No need. Five million five hundred thousand. I’m selling it to this elderly gentleman,” Wen Yunqing said. She was a woman of her word, and besides, she could tell that five million five hundred thousand was a very reliable price. There was no need to ruin her credibility for an extra one hundred thousand.

“Young friend, are you sure you want to sell it to me at this price?” The old man was also surprised, as he had thought she might go back on her word.

“What’s wrong, sir, do you not want it?” Wen Yunqing asked.

The old man stroked his beard and smiled happily. “Of course, I want it. Please give me your account number, and I will have the money transferred immediately.”

Wen Yunqing didn’t equivocate and immediately provided her bank card number. Not long after, her phone received a text message.

“Manager Lu, do you need me to repeat the bank card number?” Wen Yunqing stood in front of Manager Lu, blocking his attempted escape route.

Manager Lu’s face was grim, especially after spotting familiar faces in the crowd. His expression was shadowed.

“You can have the money, but you need to think clearly about whether you’ll live to spend this money,” Manager Lu threatened in a voice only they could hear clearly.

“What did you say? If I take your money, I won’t be able to walk out of this street?” Wen Yunqing took a step back. Her voice didn’t quiet down; in fact, it was two decibels higher than normal. “Are you a triad? Is this place a den of thieves?”

Upon hearing Wen Yunqing’s words, Manager Lu’s face completely darkened. What was this brat playing at?! He was trying to threaten her discreetly! Why was she shouting it out loud?! Did she have no common sense?!

“Of course not,” the elderly gentleman said, looking at Manager Lu with displeasure. “Though I have no other great abilities, I have walked this street for over thirty years and have never heard of any triads here.”

Manager Lu’s expression changed repeatedly. He finally gritted his teeth and uttered two words: “Card number.”

Wen Yunqing let out an undisguised laugh and fluently recited the card number. This person was truly a “God of Wealth” delivered right to her doorstep. Not only had he been forced to embarrass himself, but he was also helping her accumulate the funds to start her company.

Only after receiving the bank transfer notification did Wen Yunqing slowly step aside, allowing Manager Lu to shoot her a fierce glare before stomping away in a huff.

“Where are the two young friends heading? Do you need me to call someone to escort you out?” the old man in the Tang suit asked.

“We appreciate your kind offer, sir, but we plan to enjoy ourselves here for a little longer,” Wen Yunqing said with a smile. He was just an ordinary businessman, posing no threat whatsoever.

The old man stroked his beard, likely guessing that they had some backing, and didn’t press the matter. After exchanging contact information, he had his attendant leave with the two pieces of jade.

“Wait up, two friends.” Just as Wen Yunqing was planning to visit another shop to look at stones, the satchel man chased after them. “I am the owner of Yu Huang Pavilion. If the two of you open any more stones, could you prioritize selling them to me?”