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墨書 Inktalez
However, if you were to see Bird Uncle on the street, you wouldn't associate him with being wealthy. At that moment, Bird Uncle was wearing a white T-shirt and a pair of flip-flops made in Myanmar, carrying a large rectangular bag. The bag was made of gaudy synthetic material and had a very poor texture. Yet it wasn't just any domestic synthetic woven bag; it was handcrafted by the Burmese, giving it a rough and simple appearance.
In the city of Ruili, seeing such a bag meant that the person was there to buy stones. It was sturdy, spacious, durable, and most importantly, it had a humble look that blended in. Gradually, it became customary for everyone to use this type of bag to carry heavy and valuable stones.
Bird Uncle noticed me looking at his bag and chuckled, "They all call this bag the Ruili Hermes."
The "Hermes" looked quite light, suggesting he hadn't yet found the stones he wanted. I asked him, "How long have you been coming to Delong to buy materials?"
"I came to accompany a friend," Bird Uncle introduced the man beside him, who was dressed in an elegant suit. "This is Mr. Xu; he’s an old friend of mine who has always taken good care of me."
I quickly greeted Mr. Xu. He seemed somewhat indifferent and gave me a slight nod.
Bird Uncle continued, "This is Xiao Kun, our local emerging jade sculptor and Master Wei's disciple."
Upon hearing his master's name, Mr. Xu showed some interest: "Oh, Xiao Kun, nice to meet you."
I followed Bird Uncle as we strolled through the night market. Whenever Bird Uncle was around, I tried my best to stay close—not just for opportunistic reasons but because he was the only senior who spoke the truth to me. Being with Bird Uncle felt like an invaluable learning experience.
However, the Delong Night Market was indeed crowded that evening. He and Mr. Xu walked ahead while I trailed behind, listening to their casual conversation. They were discussing how today would be the day for me to find a good piece of stone!
Bird Uncle joked, "If Xu Ge wants me to pick women, I really can't do that; but choosing stones? No problem at all."
After some banter, Bird Uncle fell silent and began examining the stones closely. I followed behind him, using my flashlight to scan the stalls on either side of the path. Bird Uncle's flashlight beam moved quickly; he only needed half a second to assess each stone. But occasionally, he would pause on one stone for as long as ten seconds, inspecting it closely without asking about the price.
The strong beam of the flashlight illuminated the jadeite rough stone, allowing for an analysis of its internal condition.
After walking past more than twenty stalls, Bird Uncle stopped, holding up a sizable piece of rough stone with one hand. I leaned in to take a closer look: it had a black-gray outer skin, and under the flashlight, the sand grains appeared very fine and square-shaped, looking quite dense. If it were any larger, it would be impossible to hold with just one hand.
"Xiao Hei, is this material from Hothin?" Bird Uncle asked the Burmese vendor across from him.
"Yes! This one will yield a good profit when cut! Will you buy it, boss?"
"How much?"
Xiao Hei quoted a price of 170,000. After some vigorous bargaining from Bird Uncle, they settled on 90,000. Mr. Xu nodded in agreement, indicating his consent. Although he didn't understand stones well, he trusted Bird Uncle's judgment. He was confident that Bird Uncle wouldn't steer him wrong, so he promptly took out his phone to prepare for payment. However, there was a complication: Xiao Hei did not accept mobile payments. Despite using a smartphone, he had neither green nor blue payment options available, and there was certainly no card reader in sight.
I asked him, "Why not set up mobile payments? It would be much more convenient for doing business in China."
Xiao Hei replied, "We, the Burmese, are not allowed to withdraw cash."
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