45: Chapter 45 High-Grade Imperial Green

Jade City in Jiangcheng can be called the largest jadeite gambling and trading center in the entire Central China region.

The entire building has five floors, with the first floor mainly dealing in raw jade gambling stones, featuring a spacious and bright layout.

The dome is made of transparent tempered glass, and the midday sun pours down, causing the raw stones covering the floor to glisten with stone-like luster of varying depths.

The continuous humming of cutting machines, the enthusiastic yet slightly cunning shouts of vendors, the sounds of players squatting in front of stalls pointing and discussing, and the subtle reflections from flashlights shining on the raw stones intertwined into a noisy symphony unique to the jade gambling market.

The stalls on both sides of the aisle were densely packed, stretching as far as the eye could see, with raw stones of various sizes piled up into small hills.

There were raw, un-cut stones, semi-cut stones, windowed stones, and even fully exposed stones laid out directly, with an endless stream of people coming and going.

There were veteran players dressed plainly, collectors in designer brands, and young people just there to watch the excitement; the place was bustling with noise and shoulder-to-shoulder crowds.

Jiang Chen placed himself in the crowd, his gaze sweeping calmly over the stalls on both sides, his steps unhurried.

Unlike others who were looking around and asking for prices at random, he followed the precise information provided by the system and headed straight for the street-facing area on the first floor.

Passing by many large, well-decorated stalls with abundant stock, where owners greeted him enthusiastically, he merely shook his head faintly, his gaze always locked on his target location.

The street-facing stalls were more spacious than the central area, with higher foot traffic, and the sounds of hawking and bargaining rose and fell.

Jiang Chen counted the stall numbers along the way: No. 7, No. 9, No. 11...

Finally.

Near the corner of the aisle, he found the No. 12 jade gambling stall.

This stall was not large, and the goods were displayed somewhat chaotically.

The owner was a middle-aged man with dark skin and a greasy face, currently chewing on a cigarette while boasting to a few regular customers about how good his raw stones were.

In the corner of the stall was a pile of unremarkable, ignored raw stones that looked like scraps. Jiang Chen's gaze narrowed slightly, precisely locking onto the inconspicuous stone pressed at the very edge.

It was the semi-cut stone numbered A-19.

The stone's skin was dark and rough, covered in tiny stone veins, with no signs of favorable features like python patterns or pine flower markings on the surface.

The only windowed face was only the size of a fingernail, revealing turbid, whitish flesh that looked like the most common glutinous rice variety with a white base.

Mixed in a pile of waste, even passing players couldn't be bothered to look at it, as if it were born to be forgotten in a corner.

Jiang Chen walked up calmly, squatted down, and lightly brushed his fingertips over the cold, rough stone skin, speaking in a flat tone: "Boss, how much for this one?"

Boss Wang glanced up at Jiang Chen, seeing that he was young, handsome, and well-dressed, not like a veteran player who had been in the jade gambling circle for years, but rather like an amateur acting on a whim.

He waved his hand carelessly: "Twenty-eight thousand eight hundred, no bargaining. With the window looking like this, it's just ordinary glutinous rice variety with a white base. There's no gamble to it; it's just here to fill space. If it doesn't sell, I don't lose anything."

As soon as these words were spoken, several players and experts squatting in front of the stall to pick stones looked over, their lips curling into undisguised mockery and ridicule.

"Young man, don't buy blindly. I've looked at this stone three times last week; it's purely brick material. Buying it for twenty-eight thousand is just wasting money; you could only use it to weigh down a fish tank."

"Exactly, jade gambling is all about features. This stone doesn't even have color roots or green python patterns; you're guaranteed to lose money. Don't let the boss fool you."

"Being young and rich doesn't mean you can throw it away like this. This stone has been here for nearly half a month, and anyone who knows what they're doing walks around it. It's purely for scamming amateurs."

The discussions rose and fell, all one-sidedly pessimistic.

Jiang Chen did not change his expression, as if he hadn't heard the surrounding ridicule.

He applied slight pressure with his fingertips, feeling the distinct, warm, and moist texture beneath the stone skin, then took his bank card out of his pocket and handed it to the boss.

"Swipe the card, full payment. I want this one."

Boss Wang was stunned on the spot, clearly not expecting anyone to actually take over this unwanted piece of waste.

The next second, he was beaming with joy, quickly snatching the bank card, efficiently swiping it and printing the receipt, his smile practically overflowing.

"Oh! You're certainly straightforward, young man! I'll get this sorted for you right away. The public stone-cutting machine is right there, and it's free to cut. Do you want to cut it on the spot? One cut and we'll know the result!"

"Cut it on the spot."

Jiang Chen was concise and to the point, his tone devoid of any waves.

Payment complete, 28,800 yuan successfully transferred. This A-19 raw stone, which everyone regarded as trash, officially belonged to Jiang Chen.

A crowd instantly gathered around, layers upon layers, densely packed. Everyone's face was filled with the expression of watching a good show, with whispers of bets and discussions non-stop.

"Just wait and see, when it's cut open and it's all white cotton stone, this kid will definitely regret it to his guts."

"I bet two hundred yuan that this stone won't be worth more than a thousand yuan when cut. He'll lose his shirt!"

Jiang Chen ignored all the noise and ridicule, walking steadily to the public stone-cutting area nearby, and instructed the experienced stone cutter in a low voice.

"Cut thinly parallel to the windowed face, two millimeters per layer. Be careful with the operation, don't chip it."

The master nodded, skillfully securing the raw stone and pressing the switch.

The cutting machine instantly let out a piercing roar, and the sharp diamond saw blade slowly descended, creating fine sparks as it rubbed against the stone skin.

Sss—

The first piece of stone skin peeled off as expected and fell to the ground.

The cut surface was still the same turbid, white-based flesh, dry and rough, without a hint of green.

"See! I told you it wouldn't work! Pure waste!"

"Hurry up and stop, cutting more is just a waste of time, don't bother!"

Laughter exploded instantly, even louder than before. The stone cutter also stopped the machine and looked up to advise him.

"Young man, this stone really looks hopeless. Cutting further is useless, so stop cutting and save your energy."

"Keep cutting, do as I said."

Jiang Chen's tone was firm, without the slightest wavering, his eyes as calm as a deep pool.

The master sighed helplessly and had no choice but to restart the cutting machine.

The saw blade cut in again, precisely removing another thin layer of stone skin.

The next second.

The whole place suddenly fell into dead silence.

Even the humming of the cutting machine seemed to have been completely cut off at this moment.

A streak of deep, dripping, icy, and translucent Imperial Green bloomed on the cut surface of the raw stone without any warning.

That was not ordinary green, but a top-tier color so deep it was almost black, as jade-like as a gemstone, and as moist as cold ice.

The color was pure and the luster was abundant; it was fine without cotton, completely pure without cracks or impurities, and the aura of jewels rushed towards them, dazzling everyone present.

[Image]

High-Icy Variety Imperial Green

High-Icy Variety Imperial Green!

The true King of Jadeite, something that can be met but not sought, impossible to find even for a thousand gold!

The dead silence only lasted for half a second.

The next moment, a deafening exclamation directly blew the roof off Jade City!

"Im—Imperial Green?! It's High-Icy Variety Imperial Green!"

"My God! This quality! No cracks, no cotton, icy, translucent, and moist—this is the top of the top!"

"How is this possible! An unwanted piece of waste actually cut out Imperial Green!"

The crowd surged forward like madmen, surrounding the stone-cutting table layer upon layer, blocking it completely, even the aisle was completely clogged.

Senior appraisers of Jade City, owners of major jewelry stores, and professional collectors who traveled from afar all came running frantically.

The high-intensity flashlights in their hands all shone on the raw stone, their eyes wide and round, their faces filled with disbelief and madness.

Someone reacted extremely quickly and immediately brought a precise electronic scale.

On the display screen, the numbers jumped clearly.

1.8 kilograms.

The whole crowd gasped, and exclamations rose and fell.