Chapter 40: The Emerald Unveiled
The two bodyguards kept their word. An hour and a half later, they arrived at Xu Youyou’s home and swiftly lifted the stone sculpture onto a trolley.
Xu Fang was already waiting downstairs.
After Xu Youyou got into the car, it smoothly made its way to the destination. Even though everyone knew she preferred silence, she still found it too cramped with four people in one car.
“Do you know how to drive?” Xu Youyou asked bodyguard Zhang Jun.
Zhang Jun immediately replied, “Boss, I have ten years of driving experience.”
Hearing this, Xu Fang tensed up, afraid of losing her job. She dared not turn around to check her boss’s expression while driving.
Xu Youyou didn’t let her worry for long. She simply told Zhang Jun, “Since you can drive, go pick a car later. From now on, you two will drive separately and follow behind.”
Zhang Jun’s eyes lit up. Though he knew the boss found the car too crowded, the freedom of driving himself was incomparable to just being a passenger.
Xu Fang kept her job, but the sense of crisis remained. She needed this job more than anyone. The more useful she was to her boss, the higher her chances of keeping it.
When they arrived at their destination, the bodyguards got out first, taking over the tasks Xu Fang usually handled. Seeing an opportunity, Xu Fang quickly grabbed a sun umbrella.
In front of the jade shop, piles of raw stone materials and a stone-cutting machine were set up. A group of people gathered around, watching stones being cut. Suddenly, someone called out, “Here comes a big spender!”
Everyone turned to look.
First, they saw the car and mentally estimated its price.
Then, they noticed the two bodyguards in black suits, raising the “big spender” level even higher.
Finally, they saw a female driver holding a sun umbrella, making them instantly believe she was worth over a hundred million.
With three people practically treating her like royalty, Xu Youyou walked toward the jade shop entrance.
“Miss, interested in stone gambling? Just one cut, and you could double your wealth!” the shop owner greeted with a smile.
Xu Youyou glanced at him and replied, “Doubling my wealth with one cut? That seems unlikely.”
The shop owner’s eyes sharpened. He hadn’t expected her to say something like that—it was basically admitting she was extremely wealthy.
Ignoring his scrutiny, Xu Youyou asked directly, “How much does it cost to cut a stone?”
The owner answered, “If you buy the stone from my shop, cutting is free. If you bring your own, the price depends on the stone’s size.”
Xu Youyou turned to her bodyguards. They immediately brought down the stone sculpture from the car.
The owner took one look and said, “Stone used for sculptures rarely contains jade due to its material. Are you sure you want to cut it open?”
Xu Youyou nodded. “Give me an estimate. I’ll pay whatever the cost.”
The owner shook his head. “First-time customer—I’ll do it for free as a gesture of goodwill.”
His main profit came from selling raw stones, not cutting them. Since Xu Youyou seemed wealthy, he wanted to build a good relationship.
But Xu Youyou said, “If you don’t charge, I won’t feel at ease. I don’t like uncertain friendships.”
The owner chuckled helplessly. “You’re too polite, miss. Alright, just 200 yuan.”
After paying, Xu Youyou instructed her bodyguards to move the sculpture closer to the cutting machine.
The jade shop’s staff was about to start, but the owner waved them off. “I’ll handle this personally.”
Xu Youyou didn’t mind who did it.
“Miss, draw a guideline first.” The owner handed her a pen.
“I’ll leave it to you,” she said, admitting her lack of expertise.
Realizing she was an outsider to the trade, the owner still treated her with respect.
There was a ritual to stone-cutting.
With a loud declaration of “Let the machine roar, and gold will pour!”, the owner started the cutting process.
He used a careful grinding technique, slowly shaving around the stone.
After the first round, there was nothing but white specks.
“Boss, this stone doesn’t look promising. Stop wasting time and just slice it down the middle,” a spectator suggested.
The jade shop owner hesitated and looked at Xu Youyou.
She shook her head. “Keep grinding.”
Sighing, the owner continued the slow process.
Many bystanders lost patience and moved on to watch other stones being cut. Xu Youyou’s stone was now mostly ignored.
Twenty minutes later, someone curiously came back to check. Seeing the slow grinding, they shook their head. “Boss, she’s clearly an amateur. Why are you playing along?”
The owner was now stuck in an awkward situation. Initially, he thought Xu Youyou was someone important, so he had taken over personally.
Now, he was starting to regret it. His hands even grew slightly careless as he lost focus on the stone’s surface.
“Stop!” Xu Youyou suddenly shouted.
The owner frowned in confusion.
She stated, “There’s green.”
The owner instinctively replied, “Miss, sculpture stones rarely contain jade—”
Before he could finish, he looked down and froze.
There, under the grinding wheel, was a patch of vivid green.
His breath hitched. He hurriedly brushed off the stone dust. The more he wiped, the more breathtaking the green became.
A rich, uniform, flawless green—just one glance, and it was mesmerizing.
Having been in the jade industry for years, the owner immediately recognized it.
“Imperial Green!” he gasped, his voice trembling.
The words sent shockwaves through the crowd.
Within three seconds, everyone swarmed back.
“It really is Imperial Green!”
“I never thought I’d witness an Imperial Green being uncovered in my lifetime!”
“And such a large piece—this could yield several kilograms!”
“This is a jackpot! Where did this stone come from? I need to buy from that same batch!”
Excited discussions filled the air, and many people’s eyes turned red with envy, wishing they could snatch the stone for themselves.
But as the owner of this miraculous stone, Xu Youyou remained calm. “Keep cutting.”
The shop owner hesitated and then offered, “Miss, if you’re willing to sell, I’ll buy it for fifty million.”
Stone gambling had two risks:
- The first gamble—whether the stone contained jade at all.
- The second gamble—how much jade was actually inside.
More cautious people would sell after seeing green to guarantee profit.
Xu Youyou had spent around 300,000 yuan to transport the sculpture back to China.
A 300,000 yuan investment turning into 50 million—many would take the deal.
But not Xu Youyou.
With full confidence, she said, “Keep cutting.”
