Chapter 10: A Stunning Start—350,000 in a Single Strike!

Qin Xiaoshu looked at the perfectly matched pair with a kindly smile. He stepped closer and teased, “What are you two up to here? On a secret date?”

The moment he said this, Shen Sining panicked like crazy, her face flushing bright red.

“A sec... secret date? Qin Xiaoshu, you’re so annoying!” Shen Sining said coquettishly.

Seeing Shen Sining’s shy reaction, Qin Xiaoshu, ever the mischief-maker, laughed heartily.

“Sining, look at my brother here—he’s got such a rogue’s charm. Doesn’t he look just perfect standing next to you? Why don’t you just be his wife?” Qin Xiaoshu joked.

Hearing the words “be Jiang Cheng’s wife,” Shen Sining’s face turned so red it seemed ready to boil.

“Xiaoshu, what nonsense are you talking about? Does Sining even look at me that way?” Jiang Cheng rolled his eyes at Qin Xiaoshu in exasperation.

Shen Sining’s voice was barely a whisper, “I...” She wanted to say they could start with dating, but her heart was pounding so fiercely she couldn’t get the words out.

Before long, Jiang Cheng had picked out the stones for Shen Sining.

Four pieces in total.

They were exactly the four stones he had been eyeing earlier.

Since money was no object, Jiang Cheng didn’t hold back.

Zheng Wanfu wanted to see him throw money away? Jiang Cheng would give him a “surprise” all right!

After choosing, Jiang Cheng deliberately announced loudly in front of everyone, “Sining, let’s go with these four stones! But just so you know, if nothing good comes out, don’t blame me!”

Shen Sining blinked, growing more suspicious of Jiang Cheng’s strange behavior.

She had a feeling he was deliberately saying that.

She was beginning to realize Jiang Cheng was no ordinary fellow.

Nodding, she replied, “Don’t worry, Brother Cheng. Even if there’s nothing inside, I won’t blame you. I just want to try it for myself!”

“Boss Zheng, how much is it? I’ll transfer the money right away!”

Seeing Shen Sining so straightforward, Zheng Wanfu felt even more smug.

He said, “Alright, miss, those two smaller ones are 50,000 each, and the two slightly bigger ones are 100,000 each.”

The materials he had were mostly worthless leftovers, usually sold by weight or for a few thousand at most.

The actual cost of these four stones didn’t exceed 10,000.

He was selling them for 300,000, making a clear profit of 290,000—enough to make him grin crookedly.

Shen Sining didn’t care at all. She had originally thought the baseline price would be at least a million!

But it was only this little.

This small sum didn’t even cause her to blink.

Without hesitation, she transferred 300,000 yuan to Zheng Wanfu.

That was 300,000 in real money!

Just casually spent like that?

Qin Xiaoshu’s eyes nearly popped out.

He couldn’t help but sigh inwardly—this girl, Shen Sining, really won’t cry until it’s too late.

When the stones were cut open later, she’d have plenty to cry about.

Even a layman like him could see that Zheng Wanfu was surely trying to rip them off with his exorbitant prices!

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Seeing Zheng Wanfu’s smug expression, Qin Xiaoshu felt a fierce urge to bite his tongue.

But since it wasn’t his money, he found some balance.

He shook his head helplessly and followed the workers carrying the stones out.

Jiang Cheng, naturally, was completely unfazed.

He said nothing during Zheng Wanfu’s price haggling with Shen Sining, even though he knew Zheng was overcharging.

He didn’t bother to warn Shen Sining.

Three hundred thousand was nothing compared to the real value of these raw stones.

Zheng Wanfu’s current pride would turn to despair once the stones were cut open.

People from the Dragon Kingdom loved to watch exciting events unfold.

The live stone-cutting quickly drew a crowd.

Soon, Zheng Wanfu’s cutting site was packed.

There were backpackers, local residents, and jade traders who came to check the market in the evening.

As the stone-cutting machine roared to life, everyone held their breath, afraid to miss a single moment.

Jiang Cheng watched calmly on the side.

The first two smaller stones were worth 320,000 and 690,000 respectively.

The two larger ones were worth 1.23 million and 4.3 million.

His own stone was valued at 3.5 million.

He already knew their potential value, so he remained unphased.

The blade of the cutting machine spun rapidly.

Qin Xiaoshu couldn’t help but feel nervous.

He had heard of gambling on stones and even watched it before, but never gambled personally.

Today he’d spent 30,000 yuan; if the cut ruined the stone, he wasn’t sure if he could bear the loss.

Shen Sining hadn’t been too anxious before, considering it was just 300,000 yuan.

The money wasn’t much, but as the blade slowly cut into the raw stone, her heart tightened.

She wondered what she’d do if it turned out to be worthless.

But then she thought, what if it suddenly rose in value?

“Click!”

The old craftsman switched off the machine.

Everyone’s eyes widened in anticipation, eager to see the result of this cut.

The craftsman took the stone cut in half, rinsed it in a dark bucket, and then wiped it with a cloth.

He held it up to a flashlight.

“Floating green—it’s ‘Nuo Bing’ jade! Creamy green.”

Everyone present was thrilled.

“Creamy green” was local slang.

Also called “bean green.”

Bean green or bean blue shades usually appear in low-grade jadeite.

Though considered low-grade, bean green is a relatively bright and fresh color.

If bean green appears in bean-quality jade, it is somewhat valuable.

If it appears in high-grade jade, it’s even more precious.

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Shen Sining’s stone was Nuo Bing jade with a hint of bean green.

Though small, it was definitely a big gain.

“Good water content, even cotton-like texture. This cut is a big win, miss!”

Though Shen Sining didn’t understand jade well, hearing “big win” made her grin from ear to ear.

Qin Xiaoshu was excited too, secretly admiring Shen Sining’s incredible luck.

“I bid 100,000!”

“I bid 150,000!”

“I bid 200,000!”

“Little lady, I’ll offer 350,000!”

No one raised their bids beyond 350,000.

Most present were seasoned jade traders, some could judge the value at a glance.

Shen Sining glanced at Jiang Cheng, seeking his opinion.

“Sining, this is worth around 320,000. Selling at 350,000 is definitely a good deal,” Jiang Cheng smiled and advised.

She nodded.

She sold the stone to the buyer directly.

Soon, 350,000 yuan was credited to her account.

Shen Sining clung tightly to Jiang Cheng’s arm, jumping with excitement.

The first stone had already recouped the cost, plus a 50,000 profit.

Even if the rest turned out worthless, she wouldn’t lose money.

It was a promising start!

Shen Sining looked at Jiang Cheng with admiration. He truly seemed like the protagonist of a story.

Orphaned, handsome, with a younger sister, and so capable!

Undoubtedly the main character’s script.

She grew more and more eager to see what the next three stones would reveal.

Though Zheng Wanfu made money, his face showed no smile.

In truth, that stone was worth about 1,000 yuan; selling it for 50,000 was already a good profit.

But he was still uneasy.

If he had cut that stone himself, he would have made 350,000 yuan.

People were like that—when they saw others getting rich, they imagined themselves in their place.

Even if they made money, they felt it wasn’t enough.

They couldn’t help but envy others.

Still, he wasn’t too angry.

He didn’t expect the next stones to suddenly jump in value.

He knew these stones were of poor quality.

Having run the cutting site for years, he could count on one hand how many customers had truly struck it rich there.

Most lost everything, ending up with nothing.

He naturally assumed Shen Sining and Jiang Cheng would meet the same fate.

But was it really that simple?