Chapter 139: Chapter 139: To the Highest Bidder

The stone-cutting master looked at the black moss on the jadeite and then glanced at Su Qing with sympathy. Normally, when such a large area was eaten away by black moss, the jadeite inside was most likely ruined, even in a piece this large. The moss was simply too dense and widespread.

However, there were exceptions. This stone-cutting master had seen all sorts of jadeite and knew that even when moss ate into a stone, a small, intact portion of jadeite could sometimes be preserved.

So, the stone-cutting master offered some reassurance, "Let’s make a few more cuts. Maybe the jadeite inside is good."

Su Qing smiled. "Okay, Master. Please do as you suggest."

"You got it." The stone-cutting master smiled and nodded at Su Qing, then started operating the cutting machine again.

Another third of the stone was cut away, but the newly exposed surface was still covered in dense black moss. Although it was slightly better than the previous surface, the density of the moss was clearly not a good sign.

Someone in the crowd said, "Sigh, this doesn’t look good. I bet they won’t be able to get any usable jadeite out of this piece."

"Exactly. The stone’s a dud."

Su Qing was unmoved by their words and simply said, "Please continue cutting, Master."

’That powerful fluctuation I sensed couldn’t have been for nothing.’

The stone-cutting master nodded, lowered his head, and continued to cut. When he was about halfway through, he suddenly let out a cry of surprise, quickly stopped the machine, and splashed a bowl of water onto the jadeite.

"Whoa!"

"My god!"

"This is... This is high ice type!"

The cut surface of the jadeite revealed to the crowd no longer had any black moss. To everyone’s astonishment, the dense moss that they thought had consumed the entire stone came to an abrupt halt, suddenly vanishing completely. Moreover, the jadeite’s quality had jumped from near ice type to high ice type.

The sun was bright, and under its light, the cut surface of the jadeite was so crystal clear and translucent it filled one’s heart with joy.

Pure, vivid yellow-green, combined with the quality of a high ice type—this piece of jadeite was a massive win! What’s more, from the looks of it, the final piece of usable jadeite wouldn’t be small either.

Many people’s hearts started to POUND. Such a large piece of jadeite... ’This young lady doesn’t have her own company, so she won’t be taking it with her, right? She’ll sell it, won’t she?’

However, looking at the overjoyed Cheng Beilin standing next to Su Qing, many felt as if a bucket of cold water had been dumped on them. Who could possibly compete with the Cheng Family?

Well, the An Family was on equal footing with the Cheng Family.

And so, many people secretly shot a glance at An Zhiqian.

At that moment, An Zhiqian was also eyeing Su Qing’s jadeite, his heart stirred. ’If I can get my hands on this piece, our family’s supply of high-end jewelry material will be even more abundant. Besides, this jadeite can’t fall into the hands of the Cheng Family. Our two families are rivals. If it falls into their hands, it’ll be detrimental to our company.’

At this thought, An Zhiqian couldn’t help but glare at An Zhiwei again, his heart thumping with anxiety. ’An Zhiwei has already offended Su Qing. I don’t know if Su Qing will hold a grudge. Besides, I’m worried about how close Cheng Beilin and Su Qing are. If Su Qing decides to sell the jadeite, she’ll probably lean toward the Cheng Family.’

An Zhiqian once again regretted bringing An Zhiwei here.

An Zhiwei, on the other hand, wore a look of indignation. She just didn’t understand. ’How could Su Qing be so lucky? To think she could cut such a beautiful, high ice type vivid yellow-green from such a large, moss-covered stone!’

Watching Cheng Beilin whispering intimately with Su Qing, An Zhiwei practically ground her teeth to dust.

Cheng Beilin looked at the jadeite with delight. Leaning close to Su Qing, she whispered, "Su Qing, are you planning to sell this piece of jadeite?"

"Why, are you looking to buy it?" Su Qing asked with a smile. ’A piece of jadeite this big would be hard to carry away. Selling it is the best option.’

"You know my family runs a jewelry company," Cheng Beilin said with a grin. "We’re always in need of all kinds of high-end jadeite material. The quality and translucency of your piece are exceptionally good, and the color is so pure. It’s a truly rare find."

Don’t be fooled by the fact that Cheng Beilin didn’t usually get involved in her family’s business; at critical moments, she was always thinking of how to snag good things for them. She might be bad at picking raw stones, but having grown up around the business, she knew a thing or two about finished jadeite. From a piece this large, you could make at least twenty to thirty complete jewelry sets. If the carving master planned it out meticulously, you could even get more than thirty sets.

A piece of jadeite this large was definitely important to the Cheng Family!

Before Su Qing could speak, Cheng Beilin hurriedly said, "Don’t worry, if you’re going to sell, please consider our Cheng Family first. I’ll make sure my brother gives you a great price. I guarantee you won’t get a bad deal. How about it?" 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

"Alright," Su Qing agreed after a moment’s thought. Her impression of the Cheng siblings was quite good. Besides, Cheng Beize had made a good first impression on her, and she was more than willing to do business with someone like him.

"Really? That’s wonderful!" Hearing this, Cheng Beilin was so happy she grabbed Su Qing’s arm. "Su Qing, I’m so happy!"

Su Qing smiled, pursing her lips.

By now, the stone-cutting master had finished cutting out the complete piece of jadeite. It was truly a massive specimen. The crowd erupted, but everyone knew that for a high ice type, vivid yellow-green piece this big, only the Cheng Family and the An Family had the means to acquire it. So, no one started shouting out random prices. They couldn’t afford it anyway!

Cheng Beize naturally hoped to purchase the jadeite. He stepped forward and said to Su Qing with a smile, "Miss Su, I was wondering if you have any intention of selling this piece?"

Su Qing smiled. "I just told Beilin that I would sell this piece of jadeite to you."

"Really? That’s wonderful," Cheng Beize said, overjoyed. "Thank you."

Cheng Beilin pursed her lips in a smile and said, "Brother, you can’t let Su Qing get a bad deal."

"Of course," Cheng Beize nodded. Just as he was about to discuss the price with Su Qing, An Zhiqian came over. "Miss Su," he said to Su Qing, "our An Family is also interested in purchasing your jadeite. For the sake of fairness, how about we let the highest bidder win?"

An Zhiqian knew that since An Zhiwei had offended Su Qing, his family was already at a disadvantage. His only option now was to entice Su Qing with a high price. After all, who doesn’t love money, right?

Besides, even if he couldn’t win the jadeite, making the Cheng Family spend more money was a victory in itself.

The surrounding onlookers stared intently at the group. They weren’t qualified to join this battle for the jadeite, so they might as well watch and see who it would end up with.

An Zhiqian’s words made Cheng Beilin frown. Although the Cheng Family would never let Su Qing get a bad deal, it was obvious what An Zhiqian’s intentions were, throwing a wrench in the works like this.