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墨書 Inktalez
I decided to return to Rongcheng, as the matter with Desert Eye was nearly settled. Bowl nodded in agreement, readily accepting the plan. That night was uneventful, and by morning, we packed our luggage. Following the Outsider's directions, we navigated through the desert in Dong Tong's car. After a week of long travel, we finally arrived back in Rongcheng. It felt as if we had been away for many years; the air in the city was particularly sweet.
It had been a long time since I left my hometown, and even though it had only been half a month, I missed it terribly.
The faint scent of the sea from my hometown, the lush green leaves of the banyan trees throughout the city—my heart raced with excitement. I wanted to stand atop a high mountain and announce to everyone that I was back!
As soon as we got out of the car and entered the city center of Rongcheng, Bowl gazed at the scenery with wide-eyed enthusiasm, almost like Liu Laolao entering Grand View Garden. I felt embarrassed just watching her.
Her outfit drew a lot of attention, so I took out some money and bought her a modern outfit. At first glance, she truly looked like a stunning beauty. However, her movements and speech were awkwardly out of place!
I could imagine a modern urban woman in a flowing white dress, exuding elegance. Suddenly spotting a toy, she would bounce over excitedly. If she saw something delicious, she would dash toward it; if something amused her while walking, she would burst into laughter. How embarrassing! And Bowl was currently in that state. Please don’t let me be recognized as her acquaintance; it would be mortifying!
“Brother Xia, there are so many people over there! Let’s go take a look!” Bowl tugged at me and bounced over to a crowd.
It was outside a jewelry store in the bustling market where people were gathered around a pile of stones, shouting excitedly. I saw someone using professional tools to split open a stone, only to find nothing inside. A chubby man in the crowd saw this and immediately collapsed to the ground, crying loudly. Bowl asked in surprise, “Why is such a big guy crying? How embarrassing…”
“That’s just how it is; this is called gambling on stones. They split open stones to see if there’s jade inside! That chubby guy clearly lost; he’ll probably have to live off wearing pants for the rest of his life!”
“Wow! That sounds interesting, Brother Xia! Let’s try it!” As soon as she said this, an attentive Dealer overheard and shouted, “Hey there! You’ve got an eye for this; come buy a piece!” Just as I intended to pull her back, she bounced over excitedly. “Great! Let me see… Hmm! By the way, sir, what does jade look like?” The Dealer burst into laughter and pulled out a piece of jade about the size of a fingernail—its vibrant green hue was striking. Bowl gasped and waved at me.
“Brother Xia! Come here!” She whispered excitedly in my ear, “Brother Xia, that big black stone in the middle has a large patch of Emerald Green inside!” She pointed at a massive dark pebble and smiled. “Brother Xia, trust me; you should choose that one!”
I shrugged helplessly; these gambling stones were mostly scams with little hope of yielding any jade. Gambling on stones refers to jade that is encased in weathered skin when mined; its quality can only be determined after cutting it open. This unique high-end jade stone trading method is popular around the Dian-Mian Border region due to its thrilling gamble-like nature and high risks that attract merchants from all over to participate—it's truly enduringly popular.
I walked back in time and picked up the stone, which was nothing special. The onlookers around me looked incredulous, even booing. One older man shouted, "You greenhorn, just wait to be taken for a ride!" I turned to look at her, and she nodded confidently.
"This is the one, Boss!" The Dealer had a sly smile on his face as he said, "One price: ten thousand. Whether it's good or not, it's up to fate!" Hearing the price of ten thousand made my heart bleed, but for some reason, I felt a rush of heat in my head. "Ten thousand it is!" I immediately transferred the money via my phone. A few experts nearby chuckled, holding jade pieces the size of their fingertips.
"As the saying goes, better to buy a line than a piece!" Another person began to explain: "A 'line' refers to jade with a green band that has the potential for growth; it's more reliable. In contrast, soft bands and scattered colors are weak and lack clear boundaries with the base. Green that appears scattered or faint lacks the strong color and clarity of a solid band, which has clear boundaries and shows potential."
"Haha, don't laugh at this brother! There's a saying: 'Dogshit soil grows high green.' The reason for the vibrant green in jade is due to high chromium content, often accompanied by high iron content. When iron oxidizes, it can appear like dogshit soil; thus, the outer shell of such jade often reveals high green inside. Just look at this jade; it’s not impressive!" More mocking laughter followed.
I ignored their chatter and urged the Boss to cut open the jade. The Boss sharpened his knife with water and made an incision. Laughter erupted as everyone saw that the blade had penetrated halfway into the stone without revealing any green. The crowd burst into laughter, except for one person who remained expressionless. Suddenly, there was a loud cry from the Dealer; everyone turned to see a tiny spot of green appearing in the stone. Instantly, all fell silent. As the Boss's expression changed continuously, an eerie quiet enveloped us. Everyone's eyes gradually turned red as the jade grew larger; all the weathered stone was chipped away until it was as big as a bowl.
"Oh my!" one onlooker exclaimed before fainting.
"Oh my! You’re so lucky... you actually uncovered such a large piece of jade..." The Boss was visibly excited, even gasping for breath as his hands began to tremble! More people gathered around us until it became impossible to move through the crowd. Waves of people surged forward while several figures pushed against the tide.
"I'll offer five hundred thousand!" A hefty Boss stepped out of a luxury car and raised his hand high. "I'll offer one million!" another Boss shouted as well. My heart raced with excitement; I thought to myself, "One million? Why not!" I shouted back, "One million! Deal!" The jade was taken away while the money quickly arrived.
I knew that fame brought trouble, so taking advantage of the chaos, I grabbed the bowl and jumped into a Taxi, disappearing without a trace. Not long after, news appeared on my phone: "Sudden Wealth Overnight: Is It Moral Decay or Human Deficiency? Why Don't Jade Gamblers Donate to Poor Mountain Areas?" This article fabricated all sorts of scandals about me; it was utterly outrageous!
We drove around several circles in the city before randomly getting out at an unknown location.
Once out of the car, I felt nauseous for a moment before complaining about being hungry. So we casually found a hotel. Having made a fortune today and endured hardships in Desert Eye for so long, I wanted to indulge in something extravagant. We arrived at a Seafood Restaurant where everything sparkled like an aquarium filled with Seafood; it delighted her immensely as she clapped her hands.
"I want to eat this! I want to eat this Lobster!" Her tone was filled with joy, making even the staff smile. The manager hurriedly grabbed a large lobster from the tank that weighed about five or six pounds.
This was real Australian Lobster—deep brown in color and as long as a large platter—still wriggling its claws and antennae shaking wildly.
I ordered several Mantis Shrimp and a Coconut Crab. Salmon, Sandfish, Great Opium, Giant Eel, Giant Grouper, more Salmon, Mouth Fish, Barfish, Boss Fish, Yellow Croaker, Anglerfish, Bait Fish, Gudgeon, Floating Fish, Starry Flounder, Sardine, Red Snapper, Bighead Fish, Chang Fish, Pointed Fish, Knife Fish, Mr. Fish, Noodle Fish, Black Fish, Throwing Fish, Pike, Crucian Carp, Red Knife Fish, River Knife Fish, Mixed Fish, Osmanthus Fish, Big Head Treasure, Nine-Tailed Fish, Fathead Fish, Disc Fish Head, Tuna, Octopus, Island Fish, Joyful Fish, Octopus again, Blackfish Summer Shell, Red Snapper once more, Red Fan Treasure, King of Crabs, Conch, Korean Snail, Black Abalone Shell, Navel Shell, Goose Egg, Mango Clam, White Cloud Shell, and Butterfly Shell.
I went on a wild ordering spree. The manager's face turned pale as he looked us up and down. He said seriously, "You two are not joking around. Our restaurant operates on thin margins; we cannot afford any debts!" I chuckled and asked him how much all this would cost. "Given your appetites," he replied cautiously, "it should be around ten to twenty thousand." "Then let's pay by card!" I said as I settled the bill and sat back to wait for the feast.
(To be continued)
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