◇ 【111】 Gambling on stones
After the exchange meeting ended, Gu Juan said hello to Liang Yuntang and deliberately stayed last to leave. After waiting for Mr. Tian to finish talking with the other elders, he walked towards Mr. Tian.
When Mr. Tian saw him, he smiled and his face looked very kind.
"Xiao Gu, what do you think of today's discussion? If there's anything you don't understand, you can ask me."
Gu Juan said carefully, "Mr. Tian, I'd like to ask, where did you get this set of acupuncture needles?"
Mr. Tian was a little surprised, but still replied: "As everyone knows, it was passed down from the ancestors of the Tian family. Why?"
No wonder. Gu Juan understood, "Mr. Tian, there is something I want to say that may be a little presumptuous, but if I don't say it, I will feel bad. Please don't take it as an offense."
Mr. Tian nodded in confusion. "Tell me. Would I, an old man, be so petty with a child like you? Haha..."
Gu Juan said, "This set of silver needles you have is of extraordinary origin. It's best to keep it for your collection. Otherwise, I'm afraid it will cause you trouble."
Elder Tian frowned in confusion. He had a good impression of Gu Juan and didn't want to make malicious assumptions about him. "Little Gu, why do you say that? I've been using this set of silver needles for nearly forty years and there haven't been any problems."
Gu Juan couldn't say much, so he shook his head and said, "That's all I have to say. Goodbye. Mr. Tian, take care."
Mr. Tian returned home, sat on the sofa, took out his acupuncture kit, and examined the silver needles again. It was just a set of silver needles, what trouble could it cause? But deep down, he knew that this set of silver needles was indeed superior to ordinary ones. Sometimes, he even had a vague feeling that the healing effect of his acupuncture was not his own ability, but the result of a single silver needle. This feeling was quite vague and almost imperceptible. He had always thought it was an illusion and didn't take it seriously. But today, Gu Juan's words reminded him of this so-called "illusion."
When Mr. Tian's son came back, he saw that Mr. Tian was in a daze and was a little worried. "Dad, what are you thinking about?"
"Nothing." After a long, fruitless thought, Mr. Tian relaxed, his mind settling. He glanced at his son and sighed softly. He had two children: his daughter had no interest in Traditional Chinese Medicine; his son, though physically strong, had a simple mind and no talent for it. He felt truly regretful that his skills could not be passed on to future generations.
…
In the space fairy palace, in the empty mountains, two figures, one white and one black, holding swords, were fighting each other. The swords and shadows flashed, and the wind and clouds surged.
Gu Juan liked the sharpness of swords and had chosen the Moonlight Sword as his weapon a few days ago. The knife in Xi Lang's hand was naturally his Dragon Scale Knife.
The two had been fighting for over an hour, and the fight was becoming increasingly boring.
Gu Juan dodged and separated from Xi Lang, putting the sword into his dantian.
"Old man, have you noticed that our progress has been very slow recently?"
Xi Lang felt the same way. "That's true. It's been a month since our last advancement. In fact, we've been in this space for over a year, but we're still standing still."
Gu Juan walked towards the house and analyzed, "This may have something to do with my being in a state of excitement, but the more important reason is that I believe we lack actual combat experience and are lacking in our mental state. Our combat experience has always been gained through sparring, which is far from enough. We are unable to be ruthless to each other, so we simply cannot experience the tension, quick wits, or even the awareness of crisis and death that comes with real combat. In short, we lack real combat experience. In the long run, this will become our fatal weakness."
Xi Lang walked side by side with him and mused, "So, you're saying that we should take the initiative to contact other cultivators?"
Gu Juan nodded, looking directly at him, his eyes sparkling and full of energy. "Why not? We have many ways to disguise ourselves. We can easily change our identities and venture into the world of cultivators. On the one hand, it can improve our practical experience and strengthen our mind. On the other hand, concealing our identities won't cause any trouble in our real lives, nor will it put our loved ones in danger. What do you think?"
"Good idea." Xi Lang praised. "Well, your winter vacation will be in a few days. We can start this project after we return from Yunnan."
"Do you still remember?" Gu Juan had actually forgotten about it, but hearing him mention it made her feel like she was bathed in sunshine. What could be more joyful than having someone you love always cherish you? Meeting the old man was his greatest achievement in life.
Xi Lang lowered his head and kissed his lips, "Of course I remember. We've used quite a bit of jade in learning to refine talismans and set up formations. This time when we're traveling to Yunnan, we can go shopping on Taobao."
The Xi family's pharmaceutical factory, with formulas provided by Gu Juan, had developed miraculous medicines like hangover pills and quick blood-replenishing pills. The Xi family had given him a 50% stake, and with the flourishing flower farm, Gu Juan was now a multi-millionaire. This time, he went to Yunnan specifically to spend money.
He wanted to gamble on stones first and then go sightseeing, so the two of them flew directly from the imperial capital to Tengchong.
On the plane, Xi Lang gave Gu Juan a refresher on the knowledge of gambling on stones.
"The so-called 'gambling on jadeite', in short, is to set a price when the quality of the jadeite rough material is unknown. If a piece of jadeite rough stone looks like it could be glass-type jade, worth tens of millions, but turns out to be a lower quality glutinous jade after being cracked, it is called 'breaking the jadeite'..."
Gu Juan found what he said interesting and asked, "How many times have you gambled before?"
Xi Lang said, "Twice, one crash and one surge, but I still lost over three million. Later, Mu Heng and the others tried to get me to go again, but I refused."
Gu Juan laughed and said, "I'll earn it back for you this time."
"Okay." Xi Lang stared at the young man's profile. Xiaojuan was smiling more now than before. He liked to see Xiaojuan smile; it would make him feel better too.
Gu Juan leaned on his shoulder and prepared to fall asleep, as sleep could make time pass faster.
It was around eleven o'clock in the morning when they arrived in Tengchong. They first checked in at the hotel, had lunch at the hotel, and then headed to the largest jade trading market.
This jade market is simply called Jade Street. Three streets stretching nearly five miles are lined with jade shops of all sizes, offering both rough jade and processed jade. Crowds of people flock here every day of the year. Ninety-eight percent of those who come here hope to get rich quick, while the remaining two percent are truly wealthy individuals seeking to expand their wealth.
Hearing Xi Lang describe gambling on jade as "crazy people buying, crazy people selling, and a group of crazy people waiting", Gu Juan just thought it was interesting. However, when he actually saw the crowds surging in front of the shops on Jade Street and the crying or laughing sounds one after another, he fully understood the meaning of this sentence.
Here, some people become rich overnight, while others lose everything overnight. Gambling on stones is like heaven or hell at the drop of a hat.
Gu Juan knew Xi Lang didn't like to be crowded. He glanced at the street and found a shop with relatively few people in front of it. "Let's go there."
Xi Lang said, "Okay."
A fat man suddenly jumped out to stop them and whispered, "Dude, you two must not go to that store."
"What?" Gu Juan raised his eyebrows.
The fat man whispered, "Haven't you heard yet? Someone bought a fake stone there yesterday, and once the news got out, no one wanted to go to that store anymore."
Gu Juan nodded slightly, "Really? Thanks for the reminder."
Watching him continue walking towards the store, the fat man looked puzzled, "After all I've said, you still want to go?"
Gu Juan smiled. "Since this shop's counterfeiting scandal has become so serious, they'll definitely be bringing out some valuable items today to restore their reputation. The chances of a price increase are high." He was just saying it casually. Whether the fat man's words were true or not was irrelevant to him. This was his first time gambling on gemstones, so he just wanted to find a shop to check it out first.
"It seems to make some sense." The fat man was stunned by what he said, and followed Gu Juan and Xi Lang in.
The shop assistant came over with a smile and said, "Welcome, please feel free to look around."
The rough jade in this shop is basically divided into two types: one with a clearly marked price, and the other sold by the pound. The individually marked jade rough is further divided into full, half, and clear. Full refers to the rough jade being intact, without any cuts or windows; half refers to the rough jade with cuts and windows; and clear is easier to understand, as the outer layer has been completely removed, revealing the entire piece of jade. Therefore, it's not surprising that clear jade rough is a relatively larger investment.
Jade is inherently spiritual, but Gu Juan didn't investigate directly; that would have spoiled the fun. After a cursory glance around the shop, he picked up a piece of rough that caught his eye and examined it carefully, following the common sense Xi Lang had shared with him. Rules like "It's better to buy a line than a large piece," "It's better to buy ten drums than a ridge," and "There's green beneath the black moss" are all lessons learned by generations of stone gamblers.
Xi Lang walked over and put his arm around his waist. "Xiaojuan, how are you looking? Did you see anything?"
The fat man and the shop assistant noticed the intimate behavior of the two and were a little surprised.
Gu Juan nodded and gave Xi Lang a serious analysis. "Old man, I think this piece should be able to increase its value. First, it's a bit heavier than it looks. Secondly, look, although there are four strands on it and no python belt, there are six pine flowers, two of which are very bright. Let's shine a flashlight on it." He turned on the flashlight specially used for gambling on stones and pointed it at the rough material. "The transparency is also good, right?"
Xi Lang listened with a smile on his face, nodding occasionally. "That makes sense. Buy it?"
The fat man shook his head a few steps away, having also secretly glanced at the rough stone. The young man's analysis was just rote memorization, without getting to the heart of the matter. If gambling on stones were really that simple, there wouldn't be so many people losing everything overnight. These two were clearly lovers, and the more mature one was just trying to cheer her up.
"Put this one aside for now and look at the others." Gu Juan didn't make a decision immediately and asked Xi Lang, "Do you have any favorites?"
"Here." Xi Lang hugged him and walked to another area, pointing to a piece of raw material weighing about five or six kilograms, "This one."
Gu Juan looked around the raw material and couldn't help nodding, "The quality is really good. There are three python belts and at least eight pine flowers, and one of the python belts even has pine flowers. I'm afraid the price won't be low." The better the quality of the raw material, the higher the possibility of appreciation, and the higher the price set by the seller will naturally be.
Xi Lang nodded, and there was a price tag next to it.
"Two million."
Gu Juan couldn't wait to see the stone cut, "How about buying this one first?"
"As you say." Xi Lang waved to the clerk and immediately wrote a check.
After confirming the check was valid, the clerk wrote out a transaction ticket and asked with a smile, "Would you like your two guests to have their stones cut? We can do it for free."
Gu Juan said, "Understand."
The waiter was a perceptive person and had already determined that Xi Lang and he had a close relationship. He was not foolish enough to ask Xi Lang's opinion. Instead, he smiled and said, "Okay, this way, please."
He lifted the stones and placed them on a wheelbarrow, then led them to the stone-cutting area next door, where there were stone cutters and stone grinders.
Because the surface of the rough material has loose flowers, it needs to be rubbed first. When the stone cutter starts the stone grinding machine, the stone grinding machine emits a harsh and high-pitched humming sound, and stone powder flies in all directions.
Passersby outside the store heard the noise inside and came in to watch.
Jade shops are not opposed to this situation, but rather welcome it. If the price goes down, it is normal. After all, no matter which shop it is, only a few will increase the price. But if the price goes up, it will be a very strong publicity for their shop.
Gu Juan stared at the stone grinder, feeling a little nervous. That was two million, not two hundred. To him and Xi Lang, two million wasn't a huge sum, but it wasn't something that fell from the sky either.
Xi Lang saw him pursing his lips unconsciously, without blinking, a doting smile appeared in his deep eyes, and the hand that was around his waist patted him gently.
Gu Juan turned her head, smiled at him, and relaxed.
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