Zhuang Rui had just remembered this. The jade tree in his museum was absolutely impeccable in terms of design, which was enough to prove Hu Rong's jade design skills. Moreover, this way, the old man would have less to worry about, which would also be good for his health.
"Alright, Xiao Hu, you decide what to carve this piece of material into..."
After hearing Zhuang Rui's words, the old man nodded. He knew that Zhuang Rui had a sharp eye. Since he said that the Hu family's design was good, there must be some basis for it. Moreover, he had seen the jade tree. The design was novel and the theme was unique. It was clear that the designer had a solid foundation.
"Oh, thank you so much, Lao Gu. I'll take the dimensions and then I'll work on the design..."
Hu Rong was overjoyed to find that both Zhuang Rui and the old man agreed to let him design the jade. His main focus was not jade carving, but jade design.
So as long as the object carved from this material can have his name signed in the designer's column, Hu Rong will be satisfied.
Moreover, the jade ornaments he designed were personally carved by Gu Tianfeng, which greatly boosted his reputation. It should be noted that the reputation that Master Gu has built in the jade industry over the past decades is unshakable.
Zhuang Rui's idea delighted both of them, and the atmosphere in the room immediately became harmonious. The old man and Hu Rong talked about the design of jade ornaments, and Hu Rong benefited greatly from his decades of experience.
During dinner that evening, Zhuang Rui deliberately poured a few extra drinks for Grandpa Gu, causing the old man, who couldn't hold his liquor, to quickly leave the table to rest. Taking advantage of this opportunity, Zhuang Rui gave the old man a thorough check-up. ...
"Zhuang Rui, you've been keeping this a secret for a while now! When did you get that piece of jade? Was it when you first participated in a jade auction?"
Back in the courtyard, Zhuang Rui and Hu Rong sat down to drink tea. Hu Rong was still thinking about the piece of material; if he hadn't taken the measurements, he probably would have taken it home.
"I got it back then, but it was really just cut out. It's been two years since that public auction. If I had unearthed it earlier, would I have waited until now to start carving it?"
Zhuang Rui nodded in admission. There was no point in hiding it. Nowadays, everyone in the antique business knows that he has a sharp eye and it's normal for him to find a good piece of material.
"Let's not talk about this anymore. When you have time later, just think carefully about what to carve from this material. Working with Master Gu will greatly benefit your reputation..."
Zhuang Rui changed the subject, diverting attention from the matter, and continued, "Brother Hu, you've been waiting for me here for several days. Is there something important that you need?"
Zhuang Rui had been keeping this matter to himself, and now he finally had the chance to ask it.
"Hey, I almost forgot about the important thing if you hadn't mentioned it..."
Upon hearing Zhuang Rui's words, Hu Rong slapped his forehead. Ever since he saw that piece of yellow jade, his mind had been filled with images of it, which had really confused him.
"It's about our jade mine. I've come to ask for your opinion..."
That evening, Hu Rong had also drunk quite a bit of wine. After rinsing his mouth with his teacup, he continued, "Our mine has been operating for almost two years, and the quality of the jadeite it produces has always been the best in Myanmar. We've even produced imperial green jadeite..."
Zhuang Rui, unsure of what Hu Rong wanted to say, waved his hand and said, "Brother Hu, just tell me what's going on. I know all this..."
"Here's the thing, since the beginning of this year, a British mining and energy company has been very interested in our jade mine, and they've been investigating it for about three months now. Last week, their boss contacted me and expressed interest in acquiring the entire jade mine..."
When Hu Rong talked about serious matters, the alcohol on his face disappeared. This matter was of great importance to him, concerning the future of the Hu family in Myanmar, and he dared not make a decision lightly.
Furthermore, Zhuang Rui also owns a 40% stake in that jade mine. Even if he agrees to sell, it doesn't change Zhuang Rui's mind. Therefore, Hu Rong must come in person to negotiate with Zhuang Rui.
Zhuang Rui hadn't expected Hu Rong to bring up this kind of thing. After pondering it for a moment, he asked, "How much did they offer?"
There is no commodity that cannot be sold. Although the jade mine brought Zhuang Rui and Hu Rong hundreds of millions or even billions of dollars, Zhuang Rui would not mind selling it as long as the British offered a reasonable price.
Chapter 956 Focus
This jade mine has been in operation for almost two years, yet the British company still wants to acquire it. It seems they have put in a lot of effort, and the fact that Hu Rong rushed here suggests that their offer is quite high.
"1.2 billion!"
Hu Rong stated a number.
"1.2 billion?"
Zhuang Rui raised an eyebrow but remained silent.
To be honest, according to Zhuang Rui's previous survey, this jade mine is worth about two billion US dollars. Moreover, at that time, Zhuang Rui's spiritual energy had not been upgraded, so he could not see further and did not know if there were more jade veins inside.
In two years, only 700 million US dollars worth of jadeite has been mined, and there are still at least 1 billion US dollars worth of raw jadeite left. If the British company is only willing to offer 1.2 billion US dollars, Zhuang Rui will not agree to sell it.
"It's £1.2 billion..."
Seeing Zhuang Rui frown, Hu Rong added a comment from the side.
"Damn it, why didn't you say so earlier?"
Zhuang Rui glanced at Hu Rong with dissatisfaction. How could the British pound be compared to the US dollar? 1.2 billion pounds is roughly 15 to 16 billion RMB, while 1.2 billion US dollars is less than 10 billion. The difference is huge.
You didn't ask either?
Hu Rong chuckled. He wanted to see Zhuang Rui's reaction to the word "pound sterling," but Zhuang Rui disappointed him. He didn't seem particularly excited when he heard it was pounds sterling.
In fact, Zhuang Rui was still a little shocked. He originally thought he was quite rich, but he didn't expect that these foreign resource tycoons would spend tens of billions of RMB in one go. Compared with them, he was embarrassed to talk about his own little assets.
"We estimated the mine to be worth around two billion US dollars. If they're really willing to offer 1.2 billion pounds, then we could consider it..."
While thinking, Zhuang Rui said, "Brother Hu, after receiving their quote, you must have re-evaluated the mine, right? What were the results?"
In any cross-border acquisition involving such a large sum of money, both parties are quite cautious and will send their own appraisal companies to assess the resources of the mine. That's why Zhuang Rui asked that question.
"I hired a well-known German mineral assessment consulting firm to do the assessment. Their assessment results are not much different from the British offer, so that's why I'm asking for your opinion..."
Hu Rong is now in a dilemma. From a profit perspective, selling the jade mine would reduce many intermediate links and labor costs, which would undoubtedly maximize profits.
However, selling the jade mine did not benefit the Hu family's development in Myanmar.
Although the Hu family owns seven or eight mines in Myanmar, those mines are all in decline and almost depleted. Only this jade mine is currently the most profitable and largest mine in the Hu family's portfolio. If it is sold, it would mean that the Hu family will withdraw from the competition in Myanmar's mineral resources industry.
Therefore, Hu Rong has been unable to make a decision. Behind him is not just the Hu family, but also the entire Chinese community that has been dependent on the Hu family for hundreds of years. Almost all the Chinese living there rely on mining for a living. If he sells the mine, it will affect the whole community. He cannot help but be cautious.
There was nothing that Hu Rong and Zhuang Rui couldn't talk about, so they shared their thoughts. Although Zhuang Rui was young, he had deep roots in China, and Hu Rong wanted to hear his opinion.
Upon hearing that this matter concerned the future of the Myanmar Chinatown, Zhuang Rui pondered for a moment before asking, "If we sell that jade mine, will there be nowhere to place those Chinese people to work?"
Hu Rong shook his head and said, "That's not entirely true. The Hu family has other businesses in Myanmar, but once this mine is sold, the Hu family's bargaining power in the resource mining industry will be greatly reduced, and it will be difficult to secure good mines in the future..."
Myanmar is an agricultural country, and Chinatown has a lot of farmland in the surrounding areas. However, most young people work in the mines, and farming is generally done by women and the elderly.
Hu Rong hesitated because of the complex situation in Myanmar. If he sold this rich mine, he would likely be ostracized by his peers, making it even more difficult for him to get involved in the jade mining industry again.
"Brother Hu, in your opinion, are there still many valuable jade mines in Myanmar?"
Zhuang Rui asked.
"Where are there any valuable mines left? An area spanning dozens of kilometers has been mined for hundreds of years; it's basically all gone. But quite a few gold deposits have been discovered..."
As Hu Rong was speaking, his eyes suddenly lit up. If the jade mine was gone, he could look for gold mines. He would still need miners then.
"How about this, Brother Hu, I'll find some time to go to Hpakant with you again to take a look at that jade mine in person, and then we can decide what to do. Is that alright?"
Zhuang Rui couldn't give an answer to this matter at the moment. He needed to see how much jadeite vein was still contained in that mine.
If it's still the same vein we saw before, and it doesn't extend any further, then Zhuang Rui's idea is naturally to sell it. But if the mine contains other veins, then it certainly shouldn't be allowed to fall into the hands of the British.
"You want to go to Hpakant?"
Hu Rong was surprised that Zhuang Rui would make this request. After thinking for a moment, he said, "If you really want to do an on-site inspection, shall we set off in the next couple of days?"
"So soon? Even if they offer to acquire you, it shouldn't be this quick, right?"
Zhuang Rui was taken aback when he heard this. Such a large acquisition would take at least a year and a half to negotiate. Was there any need to rush?
In addition, Zhuang Rui has other matters to attend to. That Song Dynasty shipwreck is still in a warehouse in Tianjin Port, waiting to be moved in once the exhibition hall is completed.
Hu Rong picked up the teacup in front of him, took a sip of tea, and said, "That matter isn't urgent. To show our sincerity in this acquisition, the jade mine is currently in a semi-shutdown state. However, in early September, there will be the third jade auction this year. Why don't you take the opportunity to go and have a look?"
"Jade auction?"
Today brought back many memories for Zhuang Rui. First, there was the unforgettable place of Hpakant, and then the jade auction. For a moment, Zhuang Rui really felt an urge to go to Myanmar.
"Yes, the jade auction in September is the largest and most bustling one yet. Don't you want to go check it out?"
Hu Rong laughed and continued, "Even though I'm abroad, I often hear people call you the 'Jade King' of the North!"
That's a misnomer! Don't you want to prove it? And supposedly this "Jade King" from Yunnan...
"I'll be there too; this is truly a meeting of two kings!"
To be honest, Hu Rong had never been able to figure out Zhuang Rui's skill in gambling on jade. He also wanted to see these two "Jade Kings," one old and one young, one from the south and one from the north!
Who is more capable?
"Early September? There are still four or five days left..."
After thinking for a moment, Zhuang Rui said, "Okay, I'll go. I'll arrange some other things for the next couple of days. Don't rush off either. We'll go together on my private jet..."
For both emotional and rational reasons, Zhuang Rui had to go there, because if he really sold that jade mine, Zhuang Rui's "Qin Ruilin" in Beijing, as well as the jade raw materials of the entire Qin family jewelry, would face a huge crisis.
So Zhuang Rui's trip to Myanmar this time is not only to transport the top-quality jadeite already mined from the Hpakant jadeite mine back to China, but also to bid for enough raw stones at the public auction, at least to ensure the materials for "Qin Ruilin" for the next ten years, right?
As for Beijing, the museum expansion will take at least two months, and the shipwreck artifacts are being studied by Professor Meng and his team, so Zhuang Rui has nothing to do with them.
However, the bet that Zhuang Rui agreed to at the end of the year was causing him some trouble. The other day, the gambling king called to congratulate Zhuang Rui on his successful escape from the sinking ship, and then the conversation turned to the bet, which annoyed Zhuang Rui to no end.
Furthermore, Zhuang Rui felt somewhat indebted to his wife and children. He had originally said he wouldn't travel far, but this time he was going abroad again, and the situation in Myanmar was complicated, so he couldn't take them with him. This was what was giving Zhuang Rui a real headache.
Back in their room, Zhuang Rui explained the situation to Qin Xuanbing. Qin Xuanbing was very understanding, and since the matter would also affect the Qin family in Hong Kong, she immediately called her father.
Qin Haoran had already learned about this matter, and he was also preparing to participate in the Myanmar jade auction to stockpile a batch of jade raw materials. He immediately arranged to meet Zhuang Rui in Myanmar over the phone.
The next day, Zhuang Rui drove to the Jade Association and picked up an invitation letter from Myanmar. Without this, he really couldn't have participated in the auction. This allowed Zhuang Rui to enjoy the privileges of a director of the Jade Association.
What Zhuang Rui didn't know was that his participation in the September Myanmar jade auction had been leaked by some internal staff of the Jade Association. This news immediately caused a stir in the domestic jade industry, and many eyes were focused on Zhuang Rui.
Zhuang Rui's status today is no longer that of the naive young man he once was. He has a great reputation in the antique industry, almost on par with Jin Pangzi and others. In the field of archaeology, he is Professor Meng's last disciple. Wherever he goes, he is respected.
Although Zhuang Rui hasn't made many moves in the jade industry in the past two years, giving the impression of being a flash in the pan, he is still the young "Jade King" of the North!
The impending comeback still alarmed many people.
Many people want to know whether this young man will make a triumphant return and sweep the Myanmar jade auction, or return defeated and prove that he was just lucky back then.
Another highlight is the "Jade King" of Yunnan, who was once as famous as the "Jade King" of Xinjiang in the jade industry!
They will also participate in this auction. Whether this old and young pair will create sparks is something everyone is looking forward to.
Instantly, invitations to the Myanmar auction became extremely popular, and many people who hadn't originally planned to attend changed their minds, packing their bags and preparing to head to Myanmar.
Chapter 957 Questioning
"Brother, your return as the Jade King has certainly caused quite a stir!"
In a manor in Yangon, Myanmar, Hu Rong was teasing Zhuang Rui, who looked worried, while Ouyang Jun, Peng Fei, Li Zhen, and others sat nearby.