A bearded old man with a weathered face entered from outside. He greeted Brother Qing from a distance, as if they hadn't seen each other in a long time.
Brother Qing motioned for him to come closer and introduced him to Brother Leopard.
Brother Qing said, "This is Mr. Teng Ji, an old friend of mine. He owns five or six mines in Damakan. Many of the raw jade stones at this public auction were supplied by him."
At this, Brother Leopard stood up. Brother Qing continued, "This is my brother from the mainland, Ah Bao. He's a dominant figure here in Ruili. You two should stay in touch, exchange ideas, and cooperate more. That way, this old man can also benefit from your success."
Teng Ji did not speak much Chinese, but he understood. He nodded repeatedly. Then, the two shook hands and performed a Burmese greeting, signifying their introduction.
I couldn't figure out Brother Qing's motive for introducing this bearded man to Brother Leopard. Was Brother Leopard planning to venture into the jade business? Or did Brother Qing have other plans?
Teng Ji spoke a few words in Burmese. Brother Qing translated, "Teng Ji would like you to inspect his mines. As long as the raw jade stones weigh less than 100 kilograms, he can directly export them without needing government permits."
Brother Leopard nodded and said to Brother Qing, "Then we'll decide after the public auction concludes."
It turned out Brother Leopard was indeed interested in the raw stone business. This meant Brother Qing was more than just a facilitator; there was definitely some kind of transaction involved.
If that was the case, the giant stone became much simpler. At least from Brother Qing's perspective, he wouldn't manipulate this particular stone. Whether it contained jade or not would be purely a matter of luck.
Just then, a bell chimed from outside. Brother Qing signaled for everyone to head out; the public auction was about to begin.
On a makeshift platform, an official-looking man was speaking, entirely in Burmese with no translation. Everyone looked bewildered.
Although this was an internal public auction, and most of the guests were from the mainland, they should have considered the guests' experience.
Fortunately, most of the service staff communicated in Chinese, which made things much easier.
After the man finished speaking, another bell rang, signaling the official opening. Bidding on the stones could now commence.
Brother Leopard was here for the giant stone and had no interest in other raw jade. I told Brother Leopard that the giant stone hadn't been revealed yet and that I would go take a look at other stones first.
I remembered my master telling me that public auctions were true showcases of raw jade, where one could find genuine top-quality pieces. Of course, if one misjudged, they could also lose their fortune.
In other words, here, aside from fully exposed jade, gambling on the stones with covered exteriors was a test of skill and luck.
I didn't linger among the exposed jade. These were almost all top-grade pieces, priced at the ceiling. Unless one was in the finished product business, gamblers wouldn't stop here.
I went directly to the section for stones with covered exteriors.
There were many stones with covered exteriors from various mining areas. Their surfaces were all cleaned meticulously and then sorted into piles based on weight.
When I arrived, I had obtained a card from Jing Lei. If I found anything suitable, I would try my luck at the public auction.
I bypassed the black sand stones and went straight to the raw stone area of Damakan.
The Damakan mining area is located downstream of the Wulu River, to the west of the old mining areas. Damakan is adjacent to the old Hpakant mining area, about 30 kilometers from Hpakant.