Chapter 72: The Mysterious Jadeite and the Frenzy of Stone Gambling

Su Yi merely nodded politely to Boss Quan and the others, without engaging in conversation, then turned her attention to listen to Old Tang and Old Han as they listened to the middle-aged man speaking.

His accent suggested he was from the Guangzhou region; his Mandarin was somewhat muddled and awkward. Only those like Old Tang, who were accustomed to dealing with people from all walks of life, could fully understand him. For younger ones like Su Yi, they could only grasp the general meaning.

The man’s name was Zhang Guangbiao, a businessman from Guangzhou who had arrived in Nanxun Ancient Town ahead of time to participate in the upcoming Jade and Antiquities Fair. Since Old Han was the main organizer, Zhang had made arrangements with him in advance, hoping to start warming up the event—a bit of early advertising, so to speak.

As for what he was advertising, that depended on what he was selling…

“Rough stones?” Su Yi caught the term and was a bit puzzled. She had never dealt with this before; her knowledge of it was limited to what she had read in books.

Seeing her confusion, Old Tang explained, “This is stone gambling—jadeite. You see those portly fellows running jewelry shops? The jade and jadeite in their stores are all in this category.”

Su Yi was no stranger to gems and jade; after all, some of Old Tang’s friends were in the trade. She just hadn’t known there was such a thing as stone gambling.

As for jadeite…

She recalled a passage from Ouyang Xiu’s “Gui Tian Lu” from the Northern Song dynasty: “My family owns a jade urn, ancient in form and exquisitely crafted. I first acquired it from Mei Shengyu, who thought it was nephrite. When I was in Yingzhou, I once showed it to my colleagues. Among them was Deng Baoji, a veteran court eunuch from the Zhenzong era, who recognized it and said: ‘This is a treasure, called feicui (jadeite). All treasures in the imperial collection are kept in the Yisheng Treasury, where there is a jadeite cup, which is why I recognize it.’”

Green was revered, jade a treasure, reserved for the noble and the sage.

Throughout Chinese history, jade has been a symbol of wealth and prestige, famed for centuries. Royals and aristocrats prized it above all. In the feudal era, the finest jade was monopolized by the imperial family; apart from the aristocracy, only wealthy merchants might own a piece, often treasured as a family heirloom.

Jade as a family heirloom—this was the most devout expression of respect in collecting.

Now, even in modern times, jade’s prestige remains. The wealthy pursue it fervently, while the poor covet it, hoping to make their fortune.

Everyone, rich or poor, desires fine jade—but where does it come from?

It doesn’t fall from trees or grow from the ground.

It bursts forth from stone!

“A large amount of rough rock is mined from jade quarries—these are what you see here—known in the industry as ‘rough stones.’ Not all rough stones contain jade. There’s currently no machine in the world that can detect if there’s jade inside, so it’s a gamble.”

This is stone gambling.

With a few concise words, Old Tang gave Su Yi a lesson. As for the economic system and profits involved, Su Yi only needed a little thought to understand.

No wonder these people were so enthusiastic. Gambling is the eternal pursuit of excitement for mankind.

A single night to wealth, the carp leaping the dragon gate.

The temptation is immense.

The wealthy of Nanxun Town were all drawn in; even those without money came to watch, or perhaps…try their luck!

Already, some twenty or thirty people were squatting on the ground, examining the rough stones.

Zhang Guangbiao was very pleased with this, lighting a cigarette and puffing contentedly as he said to Old Tang and the others, “Won’t you have a go?”

Old Han laughed, “We’re too old, can’t keep up with this anymore. Let the young folks play.”

Stone gambling is even more costly and unreliable than collecting antiques—at least with antiques, you can examine the object; with these stones, there’s no seeing through them.

Old Tang, equally shrewd, had no interest and waved the offer away, but Boss Quan and the others were itching to try. They were businessmen, naturally drawn to high-risk, high-reward ventures, and quickly joined in.

Zhang Guangbiao explained, “Over there is the ten-thousand yuan section, here is the thousand-yuan section, and over there the hundred-yuan section… The few pieces under my feet here are all over a hundred thousand yuan.”

Such prices were shocking.

Goodness—tens of thousands for a single stone?

Who would buy that!

Someone voiced this thought, but Zhang Guangbiao just laughed, exhaling a smoke ring. “Back in our part of Guangzhou, three years ago at the Yulin public auction, dozens of rough stones sold at an average price of over five million each… As for the king of the auction, its price was…”

He held up three fingers.

“Three million?” someone asked, their mouth dry.

Zhang Guangbiao’s expression twitched. “The others were all over five million—how could the king be three million?”

The young man flushed; the others burst into laughter.

But some found it hard to laugh and asked, “You mean…thirty million?”

“Yes, thirty million. And you think that’s expensive? Last year, the total turnover at the Myanmar public auction reached 18 billion yuan… In our region, stone gambling is common knowledge.”

His words brimmed with pride, with a hint of disdain for those present—as if doubting their purchasing power.

Many of the businessmen felt insulted. Damn, does he think we can’t afford it?

Just ten or twenty thousand—what’s that!

Some of the younger crowd eyed the stones in the hundreds range—those, they could consider.

Thus provoked, the crowd surged forward. Zhang Guangbiao’s many assistants, along with Old Han’s people, were busy maintaining order, lest the rough stones get snatched in the chaos.

Watching this, Su Yi thought to herself that Zhang Guangbiao was quite the schemer. A few words, and he had stirred everyone’s desire to buy.

But, admittedly, it was rather alluring.

Su Ziyi was interested too and asked Su Yi if she wanted to try buying one together.

Given Su Yi’s current status, he figured she wouldn’t be short of money; in fact, she wasn’t.

Just as they were heading to the hundred-yuan section, Qian Fengling suddenly blocked Su Yi’s way.

One look at her expression, and Su Yi knew she was here about that million yuan.

Sure enough, Qian Fengling launched into a tirade, hurling harsh insults—calling Su Yi shameless, mad for money, accusing her of cheating their family, demanding repayment…

Her voice was loud, clearly meant for others to hear.

Su Yi stood silent, suddenly understanding why Old Tang and the others felt such pity for Boss Qian.

Truth be told, not a single member of the Qian family, including Qian Shuangyu, was reliable.

Setting aside ability, their intelligence was sorely lacking.

As expected, Old Tang and Old Han’s faces darkened at Qian Fengling’s outburst. Yu Quan, who had only just arrived and was talking to Old Tang, heard Qian Fengling dragging in Su Yi and Yu Hang in her rant.

He frowned, glancing at Boss Qian, whose face was equally grim, and smiled coldly. “Old Qian, she’s one of yours, isn’t she?”

That smile was icy.

The tone, full of mockery.

—Only in your family would a child make such a spectacle.

A public shouting match—what a family tradition.

Boss Qian was already in a foul mood. Disliking Su Yi, he’d spoken harshly to his granddaughter, who had then run out to cause trouble.

Damn it, all his teachings about thinking before acting and keeping one’s feelings hidden—were they all wasted?

Had it all been fed to the chickens?

No brains at all—couldn’t she be a little craftier?

His network of contacts was going to be ruined by her…

Boss Qian scowled and barked, “Shut up!”

Qian Fengling jumped, and, seeing his dark expression, paled and fell silent, though unwillingly.

Old Tang had intended to intervene, but seeing Su Yi calmly conversing with Su Ziyi, he changed his mind.

From start to finish, her expression hadn’t changed, not even her eyes.

This was what one called bearing—what it meant to have grace.

Boss Qian grew ever more resentful, forcing a cold laugh as he said to Su Yi, “Young lady, you’re so talented you can easily tell real antiques from fakes. Surely you’ll pick an outstanding jadeite today.”

Was that praise?

Qian Fengling was incredulous, not realizing it was a veiled attack.

Raise her high, then let her fall—an insidious blow.

Old Tang frowned, but Su Yi simply smiled and replied, “Even a seasoned figure like you can’t guarantee jadeite, Boss Qian—how could I? Why don’t you show us your skill?”

Taunts like that had no effect on someone as composed as Su Yi; instead, she returned it quietly.

Boss Qian said nothing, just laughed hollowly, and turned away to examine the rough stones.

For some reason, Old Tang, who had intended not to buy, now entered the fray, following Boss Qian.

Su Yi frowned—so it was Old Tang who’d been provoked, not her?

Oh well, Old Tang was shrewd enough not to suffer a loss.

——

Su Yi and Su Ziyi now moved to inspect the rough stones.

Most of them looked like ordinary rocks, but knowing that jade might emerge from them, and seeing their price tags, made one treat them with a certain reverence. The small ones were handled carefully; the big ones—well, they couldn’t be lifted, and even touching them was done gingerly.

Su Yi knew nothing about these stones, but Su Ziyi, having just learned a bit from Old Han, was eager to show off for her.

In truth, every field has its specialists. With enough time and expertise, true professionals emerge. For rough stones, there was a group of experts—though their accuracy was far from perfect, they were much better than ordinary folks. Some masters were even considered national treasures, now worshipped at major jewelry companies.

“Grandfather says those masters look at things like ‘rinds,’ ‘pine flowers,’ ‘mist,’ and ‘python lines’ to judge if a rough stone contains jadeite…” Su Ziyi said, then smiled sheepishly at Su Yi. “These things…are these the ones?”

In fact, he had no idea which was which.

Su Yi didn’t press him. Instead, she casually picked up the smallest rough stone, turning it over in her hand with an air of nonchalance. (To be continued.)