Chapter 133 Differences in Wool
Hall D is about the same size as Hall A, where Qin Xuanbing's booth is located. However, the exhibits for sale here are not finished jewelry pieces, but mostly rough jadeite and other raw jade materials.
The number of people in this exhibition hall was relatively small. Most of the people wandering around the various booths were processors or investors. It is worth noting that since the beginning of 2000, the market price of jade has been rising steadily. This has led many people with some spare funds to invest in the industry, buying and hoarding good raw materials so that they can make a fortune when the market rises again.
After entering the exhibition hall, Gu Lao said to Zhuang Rui and Liu Chuan, "These are all merchants from Chaoshan and other places in Guangdong. Most of the stones they brought are semi-gambled rough stones. Xiao Rui, you can wander around as you like, but don't make any purchases casually. If you see a stone you like, tell me. You two girls, come with me."
After giving Zhuang Rui some instructions, Old Gu left with Lei Lei and Qin Xuanbing, leaving Zhuang Rui and Liu Chuan behind. The two looked at each other, somewhat at a loss. They knew absolutely nothing about gambling on stones. However, as Old Gu had just said, it all depended on luck. So the two of them walked around together and started wandering around.
Hall D was large, but less crowded. The white and black lions, who had been cooped up in the booth in Hall A for a while, started running around excitedly. After Zhuang Rui's spiritual energy conditioning, these two Tibetan mastiffs, although fierce in appearance, lacked the inherent ferocity of Tibetan mastiffs. Except when their owners were attacked, the white and black lions rarely attacked others. This was why Zhuang Rui and Liu Chuan felt comfortable bringing them to crowded places.
There weren't many exhibitors selling raw jadeite here, only three or five, clustered in a corner of the exhibition hall, occupying about a few dozen square meters. Their participation in this trade fair was much cheaper; they didn't build any booths or stands, just a rope cordon around an area of about ten square meters, then placed a table there—that was their booth. Inside the rope, stones of various sizes were displayed on the ground, and quite a few people were there, some with magnifying glasses, others with powerful flashlights, carefully examining them.
These stones range in size from one or two square meters and weighing hundreds of kilograms to as small as a fist. They are arranged in several rows according to their size. In front of the table where the boss is sitting, there is a simple wooden frame with stones on it. There are not many stones, only about seven or eight on each frame. They must be the better quality rough stones.
Next to each booth selling raw materials, there were several cutting and grinding machines of various sizes. Looking at these professional machines, Zhuang Rui recalled what he had done a few days ago and couldn't help but feel ashamed.
Zhuang Rui and Liu Chuan knew nothing about it, so they simply went over to see how others identified these raw materials.
Zhuang Rui and Liu Chuan approached a middle-aged man squatting on the ground and examined the stones for less than three minutes. The owner, sitting at the only square table in the rough stone booth, called out to them, "You two, are you new to the business? Come on, take a look at these stones and see how they look."
The two men looked at it for a few minutes but couldn't figure it out. After hearing the boss's greeting, they went over and saw a few chairs by the square table. They had been standing all morning and were a little tired, so they sat down without ceremony.
"Boss, are all these stones yours? By the way, how did you tell we're both newbies?"
The jadeite rough stone merchant, who looked no older than Liu Chuan and Zhuang Rui, chuckled and said, "The question you asked is just layman's talk. This isn't called a stone, it's called rough stone. Also, in this business, there's a first-come, first-served rule. When someone is looking at a rough stone, no one else is allowed to interfere. Only after someone else has finished looking at it or doesn't want it can others examine it. You two squeezed in next to others as soon as you arrived. Do you think I wouldn't notice?"
"Hehe, we're not newcomers to the industry."
Zhuang Rui felt a little embarrassed by what the boss said and explained, "We're complete novices. We heard there are jadeite rough stones here, so we came here specifically to take a look. Please forgive us if we've offended anyone in any way."
The young boss laughed upon hearing this and said, "It's alright. My surname is Yang, and my given name is Hao. It's fate that you've wandered into my stall. Let's be friends."
Seeing Yang Hao's generosity, Liu Chuan and Zhuang Rui introduced themselves. Yang Hao fiddled with the tea set on the table and chatted with the two of them, ignoring the customers who were identifying the raw jade. This business attitude made Zhuang Rui and Liu Chuan a little suspicious.
"Hehe, they are all experts. They won't buy it just because you say a few nice words. That saves me from wasting my breath. If they like it, they buy it. If they're not sure, they can look at another piece of rough. In our line of work, we don't need to say much. Of course, for customers like you two, if I can persuade you to spend money, I don't mind saying a few more words."
Upon hearing Zhuang Rui's question, Yang Hao laughed. Like Zhuang Rui, he possessed a comfortable aura that made people feel at ease, so even when they had just met and were joking around, it didn't feel abrupt or offensive.
"Brother Yang, are there good and bad grades among these rough stones? I see that these booths all have this rack set up. Does that mean the rough stones on the rack are better than those on the ground? How can you tell the difference?"
Zhuang Rui wouldn't pretend to know what he didn't. It was rare to meet a boss who was about his age and quite talkative, so he naturally asked the questions that were on his mind.
"Gentlemen, as you all know, there is currently no instrument in the world that can see through the inside of a jadeite rough stone. Therefore, no one can guarantee whether there is jadeite inside a rough stone, or what its grade is. That's why buying rough stones is called gambling on stones. There are two types of gambling on stones: half gambling and full gambling. Half gambling means that I cut a piece of the rough stone, which is called opening a window, or I polish away a little bit of the outer skin of the stone from the side, which is called polishing the stone. Whether it's opening a window or polishing the stone, the purpose is to reveal the green inside the rough stone. As long as the green is revealed, it proves that there is jadeite inside the stone. The person who buys the rough stone can judge the type and color of the jadeite inside the stone based on the revealed green. This kind of gambling is called half gambling."
As Yang Hao spoke, he picked up a basketball-sized, oval-shaped rough jadeite from the shelf in front of the table and pointed to the cut on one side, saying, "This is a semi-gamble rough jadeite. You see, the cut has already revealed green, and the water content is quite good. Generally, the closer to the core of a jadeite rough, the better the jadeite's quality and color. Of course, there are many exceptions. This rough jadeite might contain glass-like jadeite, or it might be dirt. However, it's certain that there is jadeite inside. The reason it's called a semi-gamble is because we're betting on the grade, color, shape, and size of the jadeite inside."
"Brother Yang, how much is your piece of raw jade worth?"
While observing, Zhuang Rui had thoroughly examined the basketball-sized rough stone. Apart from about an inch of green on the edge, the stone was entirely white inside, with no jadeite at all. It wasn't even a piece of dog poop, let alone glass-type jadeite.
"Hehe, this rough stone is quite good. Judging from the direction of the pine flower pattern, if jadeite is found inside, it should at least be of the icy type. It should be no problem to get a dozen or so cabochons or three to five bracelets. I'll price it at three million."
Yang Hao answered, touching the stone in his hand. Zhuang Rui gasped. This was indeed a gamble. Neither he nor Liu Chuan had said they wanted to buy it, and the shop owner knew they didn't know anything about it and wouldn't lie to them. In other words, Yang Hao really thought so. Even the shop owner selling the rough stone had misjudged it. If anyone bought this rough stone, they would lose a fortune.
After placing the semi-gambled rough stone back on the shelf, Yang Hao pointed to a pile of dark stones on the ground next to the shelf and said, "These are the fully gambled rough stones. They are much cheaper than the semi-gambled ones. However, whether they contain jadeite depends entirely on the buyer's eye and luck. Of course, the quality of fully gambled rough stones also matters. Some fully gambled rough stones with excellent python patterns and pine flower patterns can be just as expensive as semi-gambled ones. So, you two, how about giving it a try?"
Yang Hao seemed to be a talkative person. Perhaps he was also quite bored sitting here. Knowing that the two people in front of him knew nothing about jadeite rough, he simply started explaining to them from the very basics.
"Come on, Brother Yang, this piece of junk you're selling for three million? Even if I sold all two hundred pounds of these, I still couldn't afford it. Can you give me a discount? A few dozen yuan each, I'll buy a few and cut them up for fun..."
Liu Chuan waved his hand and said casually, "Unlike Zhuang Rui, who is always humble when meeting people of similar age, Liu Chuan will definitely act as the older brother."
However, judging from Liu Chuan's appearance and demeanor, Yang Hao could tell that this person genuinely didn't know anything and wasn't there to cause trouble, so he wasn't angry when he heard this. He was just a little amused and exasperated, "A few dozen yuan worth of raw material, do you think it's like buying cabbage at the market?"
"Brother Liu, please don't joke with me. These rough stones, whether they are semi-gambled or fully gambled, were all transported from the jade mines in Myanmar. They all have the potential to contain jade. Not to mention the price I paid for these jade stones, or the shipping costs from Myanmar to China, just the cost of renting a car in Guangdong to bring them here was considerable. If I sell them for tens of yuan each, I can't even earn back the gas money."
Chapter 134 Enemies Meet on a Narrow Road
Yang Hao's words made Liu Chuan a little embarrassed. He scratched his head and asked, "Are there any cheaper ones? If I buy this for several million and there's nothing inside, wouldn't I be losing a fortune?"
Yang Hao had figured out that Liu Chuan was a scoundrel, and he didn't have time to get angry with him. Pointing to the pile of rough stones that were all gambling, he said, "Brother Liu, if you want to play around, go pick a piece from the rough stones. The prices there range from five hundred to five hundred thousand."
Yang Hao glanced at the two Tibetan mastiffs lying at their feet and knew that these two men were quite wealthy. It wasn't impossible for them to spend tens of thousands of yuan to cut a few stones, which was why he deliberately befriended them.
"Five hundred dollars for a piece of broken rock? That's just hitting the jackpot, Wood, are you in or not?"
Liu Chuan was a little undecided. Although five hundred yuan wasn't a lot, it was money he had worked hard for, not something that came out of thin air. So he wanted to ask Zhuang Rui for his opinion.
"Let's pick a few cheap ones and try our luck. Since we're here, let's bring some business to Brother Yang."
Zhuang Rui nodded. Even if there were top-quality jadeite among those semi-gambled rough stones, he couldn't afford to gamble on them. He only had a little over 100,000 yuan left, which wasn't enough to gamble on a single semi-gambled rough stone. However, these fully gambled rough stones were more interesting. If jadeite could be found in the stones worth 500 or 1,000 yuan, it would definitely be a sure thing.
As the two stood up while talking, a person walked towards them and came face to face with Zhuang Rui and Liu Chuan.
Liu Chuan recognized the man immediately; it was General Manager Xu, whom he had met at the Song Army Teahouse after the New Year. He couldn't help but exclaim, "Oh ho, it's Brother Xuwei! What a coincidence, what are you doing here?"
As Xu Wei turned to face them, he saw Zhuang Rui and his companion. He couldn't help but lament to himself, "I've hidden all this way, how did we end up running into them?"
He came to Hall D partly because he was afraid Wang Kun would come back to haunt him, and partly because he wanted to see the raw jadeite at the exhibition.
"Oh, it's Mr. Zhuang and Mr. Liu. What a coincidence! I'm an exhibitor at this trade fair, so of course I had to come. May I ask what brings you two here?"
Xu Wei felt a little guilty for encouraging Wang Kun to cause trouble for the group.
"What a joke! Are you the only jewelry company in the world that can come? You can come, but we two brothers can't? Can't you see we're about to gamble on stones?"
Liu Chuan glared at Xu Wei and replied irritably, "I was in a good mood, but meeting this guy has ruined it all."
"Jade gambling?"
Xu Wei's eyes darted around. These two people were actually gambling on rough stones; they'd probably lose their pants. So he said, "Boss Liu, which rough stone have you taken a fancy to? Let me broaden my horizons."
"Are you ever going to stop? This place is so big, go see somewhere else."
Liu Chuan waved his hand impatiently. He was annoyed just looking at this guy. When he was teaching Wang Kun a lesson earlier, he saw a familiar figure in the crowd. He guessed it was this hypocrite. He had clearly seen him and Zhuang Rui, but he was pretending that he had only just noticed them.
"Hehe, we're in business, everyone who comes is a guest. Brother Liu, say less, harmony brings wealth."
Upon seeing Zhuang Rui, Liu Chuan, and the newcomer, Yang Hao quickly stood up to smooth things over. Liu Chuan snorted coldly and turned to walk with Zhuang Rui towards the area filled with gambling stones.
Whether out of genuine ignorance or tact, Xu Wei followed behind Zhuang Rui and his companion, muttering, "These are all rough stones for full gambling. Why don't you two go check out the semi-gambled stones? The chances of finding jadeite in those are much higher. Full gambling stones are very risky."
Zhuang Rui was getting a little annoyed. "We're not that close, why are you sticking around like this?" He thought to himself. "This guy is encouraging us to gamble on semi-gambled stones. He probably doesn't have good intentions. But if he thinks he can trick me, he's mistaken." With that in mind, Zhuang Rui said, "Since Mr. Xu has said so, let's take a look at the semi-gambled rough stones. Mr. Xu, could you give us a brief introduction?"
Xu Wei was somewhat taken aback by Zhuang Rui's sudden change of attitude. He chuckled awkwardly and said, "I don't really know either. Let's discuss it together."
Yang Hao didn't bring many semi-rough jade stones this time. Besides the seven or eight smaller stones on the shelf, there were only two semi-rough stones weighing several hundred kilograms on the ground. Both had windows cut on one side. One stone had already revealed green jade, so it was a successful gamble and its price would definitely be high. The other stone was also in good condition. Judging from its python-pattern and pine-flower patterns, and the absence of cracks, the possibility of it revealing green jade if it continued to be cut was also very high.
Of the rough stones displayed on the shelf, the one Yang Hao had just taken out was the best. It had already revealed green from the edge, and the water content was good. If the inside was also like that, buying this stone for three million would basically be a sure thing.
Zhuang Rui walked to the shelf, reached out and took the semi-rough stone that Yang Hao had just picked up, took out a magnifying glass from his pocket, and squatted down to examine it. Xu Wei circled the rough stones on the shelf, but his performance was generally unimpressive. His eyes involuntarily turned to the rough stone in Zhuang Rui's hand, and he followed it over.
"Hey, hey, I'm talking to you, Mr. Xu. You're the big boss, you can't be ignorant of the rules, can you? The stones our buddies are looking at, you should at least wait until we've finished looking at them."
Liu Chuan's words almost made Zhuang Rui burst out laughing. This guy has a good memory; the boss just finished teaching him, and he immediately put it to use.
"Please continue, gentlemen. I'll just be watching from the sidelines and won't say a word. If you're interested in buying, I won't raise the price. Is that alright?"
Xu Wei was quite tolerant and didn't get angry. He always had a smile on his face, and Liu Chuan couldn't do anything about it.
Zhuang Rui looked at it for a while, frowned, stood up and said to Yang Hao, "Mr. Yang, can you make this stone cheaper? I just bought a car this afternoon and I don't have three million on me."
Yang Hao was stunned for a moment upon hearing this. He knew that Zhuang Rui was a novice, yet he dared to bet three million on a stone. However, after looking at Xu Wei next to him, he seemed to understand something. It turned out that these two were arguing.
"Boss Zhuang, it's not that I don't want to give you a discount, but this price was set by my elders. I can only sell it at this price; I can't make the decision myself. Besides, this rough stone is really good. Take a look with a flashlight; there's not a single white band inside. It might even turn out to be glassy jade. If it does, it could fetch more than three million, maybe even several times that."
As Yang Hao spoke, he handed Zhuang Rui a small flashlight, asking him to take a closer look, and he also changed his address from "Brother Zhuang" to "Boss".
In fact, Yang Hao himself was very optimistic about this semi-gambled rough stone. However, those who are in the jadeite rough stone business rarely cut the stone themselves. Since he had already made a profit, he would never cut any further. This is a major taboo in the rough stone business.
Zhuang Rui did not take the flashlight that Yang Hao offered, but said somewhat dejectedly, "To be honest, Mr. Yang, I really don't have three million on hand right now. How about this, two million. If you're willing to sell, I'll take it; if not, then forget it."
Liu Chuan listened intently, blinking repeatedly. He couldn't figure out what Zhuang Rui was up to, but he knew that Zhuang Rui never spoke empty words. When he was planning to scheme against people since he was a child, he always had this serious demeanor.
"Yes, Mr. Yang, what do you think? This is a big deal! A broken rock can sell for 2 million, not bad..."
Liu Chuan glanced at Xu Wei, who was staring intently at the rough stone, and got a sense of the situation. He then started to encourage Zhuang Rui.
"Gentlemen, I only told you the bottom price because you weren't interested in buying earlier. To be honest, 3 million is the lowest price, and I can't lower it by a single penny. You two should look at other gambling materials instead."
Yang Hao was both amused and exasperated. This jadeite rough worth several million yuan was actually called a broken stone by Liu Chuan. However, what he said was true. If an expert had asked about this rough stone, Yang Hao would have offered at least 3.5 million or 4 million yuan.
Upon hearing this, Zhuang Rui's face clearly showed disappointment. He stared at the stone for a while, shook his head, and pulled Liu Chuan, who was still haggling with Yang Hao, toward the area where all the stones were gambling stones.
"Hey you two, aren't you going to look at this rough jade anymore?"
Xu Wei's slightly smug voice came from behind, which angered Liu Chuan so much that he turned around to cause trouble, but Zhuang Rui grabbed him and dragged the cursing Liu Chuan to the area with all the gambling stones a dozen meters away.
"Tch, people from small towns are just like that. They're ignorant and stingy. They can't even come up with a few million for rough stones, yet they dare to gamble on them."
Seeing the two walk away, Xu Wei revealed a disdainful expression and spoke to Yang Hao beside him.
"Is this gentleman also interested in this rough jade?"
Yang Hao didn't care about their past grievances; he only cared whether you bought his raw materials.
"Okay, let me take a look first."
Xu Wei took the magnifying glass and flashlight handed to him by Yang Hao and began to examine it carefully. When he was standing next to him earlier, he had a very good opinion of this rough stone. If the green color that had been polished on the surface could be extended deeper, there might be top-quality jade inside. At the very least, he could make back his investment.
In April, there was a jade auction in Myanmar, and some major jewelers from home and abroad sent people to participate. Xu Wei was left in China by his company to participate in the Nanjing Jade Exhibition because of the mistakes he made some time ago. However, because of this, the experts in the company who were good at gambling on jade all went to Myanmar, and he now has several million yuan to purchase raw materials.
"Wood, are you trying to trick that guy into buying that stone? How do you know there won't be any jade in it?"
Liu Chuan nudged Zhuang Rui, who was examining the rough stones for gambling, and asked in a low voice.
"I don't know, I just don't have a good feeling about that stone. It's like when I look at antiques, it's a sixth sense, you know?"
Zhuang Rui couldn't explain it to Liu Chuan either, so he simply attributed it to his feelings, since no one could really explain it anyway.
Chapter 135 A Lucky Break (Part 1)
"Sir, can you really lower the price any further for this semi-rough jade stone?"
Xu Wei held the magnifying glass and a powerful flashlight for more than ten minutes before putting them down and asking Yang Hao, who was waiting to the side.
"Mr. Xu, right? I can tell you're an expert. You've already seen the quality of this semi-rough jadeite. I don't need to say more. 3 million RMB is the lowest price. If you put this in Puning or other jadeite rough markets, you definitely wouldn't be able to buy it."