Jing Lei took the stone wrapped in kraft paper and opened the paper layer by layer. A colorful, crystal-clear treasure appeared before our eyes.
After Jing Lei brought it back, she had the shop's master remove the remaining skin. Just as I had imagined, it was a full piece, without any flaws.
I saw the excitement emanating from Lin Hui's face. This stone had actually made this usually stoic man lose his composure, his eyes shining with unusual excitement.
Without any embellishment, just displayed like this, it was enough to make one's mouth water!
He gently stroked it for a long time, touching almost the entire stone, before looking up and speaking to us, "When Xiao Lei called to describe it, I was still a bit skeptical. How could such an object exist in this world, colorful and flawless? Now that I see it, I know it truly exists. Although the water penetration is slightly insufficient, this can be compensated for during future processing and polishing. If you are willing to part with it, I will take it, but I don't know if my offer will be acceptable to you."
Lin Hui rambled on and on, becoming a bit incoherent.
I said, "Good jade should naturally be given to someone who appreciates and loves it. Of course, we are willing to entrust it to you. I believe this jade will shine brightly in Mr. Lin's hands!"
Lin Hui said, "Then I will make an offer. If it's suitable, I'll take it. I have a red-eye flight back to Hong Kong."
This was truly a man who valued time as much as his life, traveling thousands of kilometers back and forth by plane without delay.
He said, "I offer thirty million. If you are not satisfied, I can increase it a bit, but not too much. Remember to tell me if you find any more good rough stones in the future."
I looked at Jing Lei. This price had already exceeded our psychological expectation and doubled it. We had no reason not to be satisfied.
Jing Lei's eyes signaled to add a bit more, but I shook my head. One shouldn't be too greedy, nor push things too far; one must leave some room for the other party.
I said, "Then that's it. We will contact you immediately if we have any top-quality rough stones in the future. We were going to have dinner together, but since Mr. Lin is in such a hurry, we won't keep you."
As I spoke, I wrapped the stone and placed it in the small suitcase he had brought. Jing Lei called the finance department to arrange the transfer and issue an invoice.
For a stone of such great value, it would be detained by customs without an invoice.
I said to Mr. Lin, "I have some business outside and need to leave. I won't be able to see you off to the airport."
Lin Hui clasped my hand and said, "Young and promising. I have truly witnessed something today. I hope we have the opportunity to cooperate again in the future."
I nodded. I couldn't claim to be young and promising. Gambling on stones relies on courage and luck. I might just be lucky, favored by heaven, allowing me to encounter good stones.
After bidding farewell to Mr. Lin, I mentioned to Jing Lei the matter of Brother Leopard looking for a jade sculptor. Jing Lei said she would arrange it. I didn't dare to delay and hurried out. I asked the driver to take me to the winery warehouse as quickly as possible.
This Brother Leopard is really interesting. He actually came up with such a plan, using a废弃 factory as a market. Not only did he help the higher-ups take over a mess, but he also saved a large sum of construction costs.
When I heard Brother Leopard mention the opening of the gambling stone city in three months in Myanmar, I found it incredible. Not to mention anything else, just the land approval alone would not be enough in three months, let alone construction and other miscellaneous matters.
Now I realize that three months is a bit long; one and a half months at most would be sufficient.
The car drove very fast, and soon we arrived at the winery.
I got out of the car at the warehouse entrance and saw that the machines were still cutting. Fortunately, I arrived before the cutting was finished.
Brother Leopard was still standing at the entrance. Seeing me return, he said, "Qing Ge's side has replied. Bo Gang did not return to the villa. It's estimated he's been active on the other side these past few days. He has already sent people to track his whereabouts."
I nodded. The villa was shelled yesterday, and it's estimated that repairs alone will take some time. Besides, after that encounter, he probably wouldn't stay there for a while.
The roar of the machines finally stopped. This time, the cut was almost perfectly in half. The workers didn't need to be so careful. They just needed to move the slightly smaller side away with a forklift.
A worker was constantly rinsing the stone with a hose. I saw the result I most wanted to see. The color of the stone was not broken. The two sides were almost identical, like a giant concentric axis passing through.
I shone my flashlight on it, and it was no different from the opposite side. The texture, water content, and color had all continued perfectly.
I went to look at another stone. The beam of my flashlight continued to shine, and there was still at least tens of centimeters of flesh.
I said to Brother Leopard, "Don't cut the flesh on this side anymore. Dig directly into it. Whatever can be dug out, so be it. Cutting it again doesn't make much sense."
Brother Leopard nodded and said, "When these two stones are sold, I'll give you and Lan Ya ten percent each. You two contributed the most to this matter and almost lost your lives at Bo Gang's hands. This is what you deserve."
I said, "Brother Leopard..."
Brother Leopard didn't let me finish and directly said, "I'll handle the subsequent matters. Just do your job well. Remember, as long as I have a meal to eat, I will never let my brothers go hungry. The rest will happen naturally."
I understood what Brother Leopard meant. With the stones cut like this, even if Qing Ge were called over, it would only cause a greater misunderstanding, and it would be impossible to explain clearly.
Tomorrow, the masters from Jing Lei's side will handle the stone carving. Brother Leopard has arranged for guards at the warehouse. Brother Leopard told me to pay attention to strangers around me these days, then left in his car.
Lan Ya and I took a car back to the clubhouse.
She arranged a position for me as a vice president at the clubhouse, mainly responsible for security and logistics.
Today was my first day in office.
It was now seven in the evening, just in time for the nightlife shift.
As I entered the main hall, roll call was being taken. Lan Ya walked to the front and said a few words to everyone, then announced my position and responsibilities. She then asked me to say a few words, but I declined, saying that from now on, everyone should work together with one heart to accomplish the work well.
After the meeting, I saw the female demon there. She was waiting to report to Lan Ya.
Lan Ya said, "We haven't eaten yet. Please wait for us for a while, and I'll talk to you when I get back."
Although the nightclub in the suburbs was also Brother Leopard's property, it was all managed by Lan Ya. The previous two managers bullied her for being a woman and, being unwilling to submit, insisted on independence.
After Brother Leopard took it back, he still handed it over to Lan Ya. Even though Lan Ya sent the female demon to be the general manager, she was still Lan Ya's subordinate. Her business and personnel arrangements were managed by the Grand World.
We went to a nearby restaurant, ordered a few dishes, and a bottle of red wine.
She poured a glass for each of us and then raised her glass, saying, "Come, my brother, let's have a drink."
After experiencing that life-and-death situation, our relationship had transcended that of seniors and juniors, elevated, and the distance between us had shortened considerably.
The relationship between men and women is very subtle. It's like Lan Ya and me, and Jing Lei. Although we haven't experienced twists and turns, we naturally came together. As for Lan Ya, we knew each other the earliest and went through so much together. Although we can be frank with each other, we have never crossed the line.