Howard Jiang stormed off in a fury. No one thought he'd let things go so easily, so the crowd looked at Ian Song with a hint of pity in their eyes.
But Ian stayed perfectly calm, as if nothing had happened. He turned to Victor Tai, the jewelry merchant, and said, "Boss Tai, do you still want this jade? Thirty-one million!"
"Well..." Victor Tai hesitated, torn. High-grade jade was always in short supply; there was never a lack of buyers. That's why he made the trip to the Jade Gambling Hall to buy up good pieces.
Honestly, if he bought Ian’s jade for thirty-one million and had it made into jewelry, he could easily make at least eight million in profit, maybe even ten.
But Ian had just offended Howard Jiang. If Victor bought the jade, he'd definitely earn Howard's grudge. If he refused, he'd have to watch eight million slip away right in front of him.
In the end, he gritted his teeth and said firmly, "Alright, I'll take it."
"Boss Tai, you’ve got guts! Tell you what, I’ll knock off another million—thirty million flat, just for you." Ian gave him a big thumbs-up.
"No way, thirty-one million is already a bargain for me!" Victor quickly waved it off. "Let’s stick with thirty-one million."
As they spoke, Victor was already pulling out his phone to call his company and arrange the transfer to Ian.
With the deal done and another thirty-one million in his pocket, Ian was in a fantastic mood. As for Howard Jiang’s threats, he didn’t really care. He was an Innate-Rank Master, after all. If Howard really wanted trouble, Ian wouldn’t mind teaching him a lesson.
Next, Ian picked up another rough stone and got ready to cut.
Under the crowd’s shocked and envious stares, he cut open another stone. This time, it wasn’t high-grade jade, but a piece of mid-grade.
"Interested, Boss Tai?" Ian glanced at Victor Tai.
He’d already offended Howard Jiang, so what was one more time? Worst case, he’d just stop coming to the Jade Gambling Hall. So Victor paid twenty-two million and bought another jade piece from Ian.
Another deal done, Ian kept cutting.
By now, the stone-cutting machine was surrounded—three layers deep inside, three layers outside. Everyone crowded in, hoping Ian would work another miracle.
Chiiii! Chiiii! Chiiii! Chiiii!
With the screech of the cutting machine, stone dust and sparks flew everywhere.
Ian rinsed off the cut with clean water, and immediately someone in the crowd shouted excitedly, "It’s up! Another win!"
"No way, can he really see through rough stones? How did he get another rise?" one onlooker said, equal parts envy and disbelief.