Master Han never makes a move lightly, but when he does, the price always skyrockets.
Anyone who's spent any time in the stone-gambling world knows this saying.
So when everyone heard Master Han was taking part in the bet, they all flocked to Warehouse No. 9. For a while, the place was buzzing with excitement.
"Who is it? Who's got the guts to bet against Master Han?"
"Who else could it be? That old playboy from the Zhao Family—Charles Zhao!"
"Him? He dares to go up against Master Han? They're not even on the same level!"
"Maybe he's just got too much money to burn?"
"I happen to know a bit of the inside story—he got set up by Old Seven from the Lee Family!"
Listening to the surrounding chatter and all the strange looks, Charles Zhao's face turned dark with anger.
"Fourth Master, how about I cut you a break and let you pick your rough stone first?" Old Seven Lee walked up to Charles Zhao again, wearing a smug look like he'd already gotten the upper hand.
Hearing Old Seven Lee's provocation, Charles Zhao nearly wanted to slap the guy into eight pieces. He replied coldly, "No need!"
"Haha, then I won't stand on ceremony!" Old Seven Lee laughed nonchalantly, then turned to Harold Han and said, "Master Han, go pick a rough stone!"
Harold Han nodded and strode steadily into Warehouse No. 9.
About ten minutes later, Harold Han selected a basketball-sized rough stone from over a thousand available.
"Master Han really lives up to his reputation—his eye for rough stones is incredible! Just one look and he can pick out high-grade jadeite!" praised an onlooker.
"Isn't that obvious? When Master Han picks a rough stone, there's no way it'll be a dud!"
Hearing these comments, Charles Zhao felt especially irritated. He turned to Ian Song and said, "Ian, you go pick a rough stone too."
"What, Fourth Master Zhao, you're not going to pick one yourself?" Old Seven Lee joked with a laugh.
Charles Zhao refused to show weakness and replied coldly, "Don't underestimate Ian just because he's young—he's got real talent when it comes to stone gambling!"
"Heh! Just a kid who still smells of milk. Are you sure you're not desperate enough to bet on a rookie doctor?" Old Seven Lee mocked.
"Don't start running your mouth before the game's decided, Old Seven Lee!" Charles Zhao snapped angrily.
"Relax! Fourth Master Zhao, just relax! No need to get mad. Wouldn't want people to think you can't handle losing!"
Seeing the two of them start another round of verbal sparring, Ian Song ignored them and headed straight for Warehouse No. 9, activating his Clairvoyant Vision to check the rough stone Harold Han had picked.
He couldn't help but admire the choice. The stone wasn't large, but the jade inside was sizable and high quality—top-grade violet jadeite, worth at least a hundred million.
So, to beat him, he'd have to pick a rough stone of equal or better quality.
Entering Warehouse No. 9, Ian Song scanned each rough stone and found the overall quality to be excellent—about forty percent of them would yield jade, meaning at least four out of every ten stones contained jadeite.
Finally, his gaze locked onto the largest boulder in the warehouse. He walked over and started examining it, putting on a show for the crowd.
"Ha! That clueless kid didn't just pick the biggest one, did he? Does he really think the bigger the stone, the better the jade? Charles Zhao, this is your so-called expert?" Old Seven Lee couldn't help but mock.
"Haha, Old Seven's right—he really is a rookie. Does he even know who he's up against? Still, gotta admit, it takes guts to challenge Master Han!" laughed a wealthy businessman standing next to Old Seven Lee.
"Boss Yan, could you have someone move this for me? I'll choose this one."
The next moment, Ian Song turned to Boss Yan and made his request.
His words instantly drew another round of ridicule from the crowd.
Five minutes later, everyone moved to the stone-cutting area.
"Our stone is smaller, so we'll cut ours first!" Old Seven Lee said cheerfully.
This time, Charles Zhao didn't argue. Instead, he looked resigned to his fate.
"Don't worry, Uncle Charles. We'll win this!" Ian Song whispered to him.
"Well, I hope so," Charles Zhao sighed, clearly not convinced by Ian's words.
"Hiss—hiss!"
Stone dust flew as the cutting began.
Since Harold Han's stone wasn't very big, they used the rubbing method to cut it.