Chapter Seventy-Four: Slash After Slash!

I drew a deep breath, a tangle of emotions coursing through my heart. Gazing into Hu San’s steadfast eyes, I sighed, “Hu San, why go to such lengths?”

Hu San merely grinned at me, a simple and honest smile. “Tiger, say no more. I just want you to win! Even if I lose everything, you’d still look after my mother, wouldn’t you?”

“I’m not like you. Even if I had as much money as you do now, I’d lose it all before I reached Sister Red’s level! Look at you, holding your own against this pack of foxes!”

Given the current situation, I had no choice but to move forward. I glanced at the hostile faces surrounding me, each one watching like a predator, and steeled myself.

“All right, Hu San. I won’t let you down this time.” I patted his shoulder, determination burning in my gaze.

Hu San grinned at me, that same honest smile.

And then, from the corner of my eye, I caught a familiar pair of eyes in the crowd—eyes that reminded me of Sister Red. But when I looked more closely, the gaze vanished.

“So, Sister Red’s been here all along.” My eyes narrowed. I clapped Hu San’s shoulder again. “Step back now, wait for my news.”

Hu San nodded, giving my shoulder a firm pat. “Tiger, I trust you! Go get ’em!”

His eyes brimmed with trust and encouragement as he melted back into the crowd.

I drew a deep breath, steadying myself, eyes sweeping once more across the tense assembly. Each opponent stared back at me, waiting to see my next move.

I approached the stone betting table, listening as Lu Yier began to announce my capital.

“Wang Hu and Su Li, jointly holding funds of sixty-five million, which amounts to thirty-two and a half million each. The jadeite rough currently offered by Gao Youde is estimated at thirty million. To ensure fairness, Wang Hu, whose budget is insufficient, will supplement with a life-and-death contract. The sole purpose: to open this stone. The contest continues!” Lu Yier declared.

Standing at the table, I gazed upon the stone that now carried all my hopes. Under the lights, it shimmered faintly, as if mocking my helplessness. I reached out and touched its cold, hard surface, yet a surge of hot blood rose within me.

“Let’s begin,” I said to the stone-cutter.

The craftsman nodded, picked up his tools, and began cutting with the utmost care. The crowd held its breath, waiting for a miracle. The rasp of the blade against the stone rang harsh and clear, my heart racing in time with each stroke. Finally, at the first cut, a faint green glow appeared from within.

“There’s color!” someone exclaimed.

But the voices that followed were subdued.

The murmur of discussion swelled around me.

“There’s color, yes, but the quality’s questionable.”

“There are cracks!”

“Didn’t he just say there might be rare ice cracks in this one?”

“What a joke! Rare ice cracks—can you see them without light passing through?”

The stone-cutter pressed on, second cut, third cut—each slice revealing more of the green within. But behind me, the onlookers grew increasingly loud.

“This is just ordinary jade, and the color isn’t even consistent. I don’t think it’s pure at all!”

The crowd buzzed, disappointment heavy in their words.

But none of this fazed me. On the contrary, Gao Youde across from me seemed suddenly energized.

With each new cut, his laughter rang out unchecked, echoing with derision and triumph. Striding over, he clapped me on the shoulder, his tone mocking. “Wang Hu, did you really think you could stage a comeback? I picked this stone myself. Trying to get lucky with it—what a pipe dream!”

I shot him a cold glance, refusing to rise to his bait.

The stone-cutter continued, utterly focused, each stroke drawing out another wisp of green. Though the crowd’s chatter grew ever louder, I remained unshaken.

“Wang Hu, give it up,” Gao Youde sneered. “Look at this stone—sure, there’s some color on the surface, but the cracks and impurities inside have already sealed its fate. You’re destined to lose this one!”

“Cracks, ice cracks—madness!” he guffawed.

Still, I said nothing, my eyes fixed on the stone.

Suddenly, the stone-cutter paused, eyebrows knitting together. He peered carefully into the heart of the stone, then lifted his head to address me.

“Mr. Wang, there are indeed cracks inside, but deep within, there seems to be a purer section.”

At these words, the murmurs fell silent, every eye locked on the stone. Gao Youde’s smile froze—he clearly hadn’t expected this.

Yet, even so, he recovered quickly and scoffed, “We’re already at the core. Even if there’s ice-grade jadeite in the center, so what?”

I ignored him, turning to the stone-cutter.

“Keep going,” I ordered firmly.

He nodded, picked up his tools, and resumed. The sound of the blade rang out once more, and the green inside grew deeper, purer.

At last, with the final cut, a piece of flawless, translucent high-grade ice jadeite was revealed to all.

“My god! The surface was just green, but inside—it’s truly high ice jadeite!” someone gasped.

“Incredible! Who would have thought such jade existed?” another exclaimed.

But their voices were quickly drowned by a fresh wave of ridicule.

“Are you fools? What’s so special about this? Compared to the stone Gao Youde just opened, this is nothing!”

“At best, it’s worth a little over ten million!”

“Yeah, the material’s decent, but with those cracks and the layering, it’s not pure enough!”

The crowd erupted in a cacophony of debate. My ears tingled from the noise.

Lu Yier now stepped forward, his expression cautious. “Next, I will examine the quality of both stones!”

But just as Lu Yier approached, I suddenly raised my hand. “Wait!”

Everyone paused, caught off guard.

Gao Youde looked at me with contempt. “What now, Wang Hu? Trying some new trick? You think this is a zoo and we’re here to watch monkeys?”

I looked up, fixing him with a cold stare. “Long ago, atop Five Fingers Mountain, there was a worthless stone. From it sprang a monkey—most looked down on him, but in the end, what became of that monkey?”

Gao Youde burst out laughing. “You idiot! Driven mad by defeat, and now you’re telling me stories from Journey to the West? If you want, I can tell you some tales from The Plum in the Golden Vase instead!”