He didn't understand, of course. Looking meant picking by feel, then asking Zhu Nian. If she nodded, he kept it; otherwise, he put it back.
And he only looked at the cheaper stones.
As the saying goes, you get what you pay for. Even in the world of stone gambling, where luck plays a larger role than skill, it was hard to find anything good among the cheap roughs. So, after browsing for a long time, Lu Chongyan only picked up two.
Together, they cost a little over a hundred thousand, even less than the previous stone.
He held up a roundish stone and asked, "How about this one?"
Zhu Nian shook her head. "No."
Lu Chongyan put it down with a hint of dejection, giving up on striking it rich. "There's nothing else. I don't want to look anymore, let's go cut the stones."
The stone-cutting area had already attracted a crowd. The stone cutters were busy, and many people were waiting in line. Everyone else's stones were more expensive than theirs, so it seemed it wouldn't be their turn anytime soon.
Lu Chongyan held the two stones tightly, unwilling to let go. Zhu Nian kindly reminded him, "If you don't put them down, you'll have to queue up at the back later."
Only then did he reluctantly put them down, his eyes immediately drawn back to them, as if afraid someone would snatch them away.
With him physically present but his attention elsewhere, Zhu Nian, who had initially thought Lu Chongyan was just asking for trouble, now felt she was the one at a disadvantage.
She forcefully turned him around. "Stop looking. No one will dare to take them from you."
Lu Chongyan snapped back to attention, his gaze returning to her. But he still couldn't help but glance at those two worthless stones. His reluctant demeanor was truly speechless.
As the crowd grew, the organizers added two more stone-cutting machines. They also allowed participants to cut their own chosen stones with professional guidance. Those familiar with the craft had some understanding and weren't worried about accidents.
This significantly sped up the stone-cutting process.
After waiting for another half hour, it was finally their turn for his two small stones.
The stone cutter had been working on large pieces. When he received the two small stones, he was a bit unhappy and grumbled at them, "How should I cut this?"
Lu Chongyan looked at Zhu Nian as if seeking help.
Zhu Nian stepped forward. "Cut it here, and then slowly rub it down on this side."
Even with such a small stone, he still had to rub it. The stone cutter became even more unwilling, but patiently made a cut first, thinking that if there was nothing, there would be no need to rub the other side.
Unexpectedly, when the cut was made, it revealed green.
There was a small stir in the crowd. Although green stones were becoming more common in the later stages, it was rare to find one in such a small piece.
The stone cutter's interest piqued. Following Zhu Nian's instructions, he slowly rubbed the other side. Just under a centimeter of the rind revealed, just like the previous stone, a piece of ice-jade without any impurities.
The stone cutter looked at the couple nervously. "Do you want to continue?"
"Yes, rub off the rest."
Someone in the back expressed dissatisfaction. In their opinion, even if the entire small stone was rubbed open, it wouldn't be worth much money and was a waste of time.
But the cutter still painstakingly rubbed it all away.
The previous stone had quite a bit of impurity, but this one only had a thin layer. Once completely revealed, it was a piece of jade half the size of an adult's palm, with moderate thickness and no cracks. The bids from the crowd immediately surpassed those for the previous stone.
When the bidding reached 800,000, the value of this stone had already multiplied twentyfold. Lu Chongyan didn't hesitate and sold it directly to the highest bidder.
It was finally sold for 808,000.
For the next stone, the stone cutter dared not be negligent.
"How do you two want to cut this one?"
Zhu Nian stepped forward. "I'll do this one myself."