"Finally out of the hospital. You're going to drive me crazy if you keep me confined any longer. I feel like I'm going to get sick from being cooped up." Guo Xuyang grumbled.
"Enough. Don't say any more. My best friend here feels a bit embarrassed already and wanted you to stay for another week of observation," Xiao Yun said as she helped pack his things. "Here, put on your hat. So you don't look too unsightly."
During the emergency treatment, all his hair had been shaved off. A bandage was conspicuously placed on his bald head, the result of trying to get a free meal and take advantage of seeing a beautiful woman.
Xiao Yun's best friend had good taste, that was for sure. The clothes she bought fit him perfectly.
Guo Xuyang threw the discarded clothes into the trash. "Let's go. We'll find a hotel and have a good meal to treat you. Thank you for staying with me for the past week."
Ever since he was hospitalized, Xiao Yun hadn't left his side. He had no idea how she managed to get leave from her company, but she had stayed with him at the hospital, which touched him deeply.
As the two of them walked out of the hospital, they saw Chen Hailing approaching.
"Good thing I'm not too late. I managed to catch you. You silly girl, why didn't you call me earlier? Thankfully, I didn't have to go on a business trip today," Chen Hailing chided.
"I didn't want you to make the trip. My car has been picked up and repaired. We can head back directly later. You should focus on your own work; you've already gone to a lot of trouble for us," Xiao Yun said.
"Don't say that. If it weren't for Xiao Qiang's immaturity, none of this would have happened," Chen Hailing said, taking the items from Xiao Yun's hand. "Come on, I've booked a hotel. This young man couldn't make it to dinner last time, so we must make up for it today. It's also my apology to both of you."
"Don't say that. Apologize for what? We're grateful to you. If it weren't for you, how could I have gotten so much time off?" Xiao Yun said.
So, it turned out that her best friend had spoken to her company, which allowed her to stay there for over a week.
"Alright, enough talk. Let's go to the hotel," Chen Hailing said, slinging an arm around Xiao Yun and walking forward.
Guo Xuyang could only follow behind them.
The hotel was located in the city center, right next to the plaza.
As the three of them reached the hotel entrance, about to go in, they suddenly noticed a crowd of people across the street, excitedly shouting about something. They couldn't help but look up. It turned out to be a specialty shop selling raw jade. Guo Xuyang remembered his supernatural ability and wondered if he could tell if there was anything good inside the stones.
Chen Hailing noticed he had stopped and followed his gaze. "That's a raw jade specialty shop. What? Are you interested? How about we go check it out after we eat?"
"It's still early, why don't we go take a look first? People say that surviving a great disaster brings great fortune. Maybe my luck will be good," he said, feeling an itch of impatience to test how well his ability worked. He couldn't just use his ability to look at beautiful women and shorten his lifespan, after all. His gaze involuntarily drifted towards Chen Hailing.
"Then let's go take a look first," Xiao Yun agreed with his suggestion, also wanting to try her luck.
The three of them entered the raw jade specialty shop. There weren't many people inside. Raw jade stones of various sizes were displayed on shelves along the walls. A man in his mid-thirties approached them.
"Are you gentlemen and ladies looking at stones? Please come this way." He led the three of them to a shelf filled with stones weighing about three to five pounds. "These are newly arrived stones. No one has cut them yet. What do you think?"
No one has cut them yet? What a load of rubbish. It was obvious they weren't anything good.
Guo Xuyang peered closely. Inside, everything was hazy and indistinguishable. Were his abilities only effective on people, and incapable of penetrating stones? Was it true what they said, that even immortals couldn't predict the value of jade?
He wasn't willing to give up. He walked towards a pile of stones near the inner wall. He examined them one by one, but they all remained hazy. Were his abilities failing him, or were there simply no jade inside these stones?
His heart sank. This ability seemed to be of little use. He had hoped to show off with it, but now, he was facing an embarrassing setback.
Feeling a bit dejected, he walked back. Seeing Xiao Yun and the other woman still carefully selecting stones, he sat down on a bench at the shop entrance, feeling bored and waiting for them.
"Hmm." His heart leaped. What was going on? He felt a hazy green glow emanating from a stone weighing about eighty to a hundred pounds beneath his feet. It was a very comfortable sight. He blinked hard and crouched down. The green light inside was like the eyes of a wolf at night, glistening green, and it occupied a significant area, more than half of the stone.
"Boss, how much for this stone?" He stood up and then sat back on the bench, tapping the stone under his feet with his foot.
"This is a piece from the Mu Na mine. It's thirty thousand yuan per pound. You have excellent taste, sir. As you know, any material from the Mu Na mine, if it has color, is high-quality jade. Boss, I can tell you're an expert." Who couldn't sweet-talk? They had finally found a fat sheep, so why not slaughter it?
I don't know anything about roughs. If it weren't for this cheat device, how would I know about raw jade? Do I look easy to fool? Guo Xuyang cursed inwardly. I'll show you soon, you won't even know where to find your tears.
"Boss, are you trying to drive customers away? While I may not know much about raw stones, this price is just too high, isn't it?"
"Sir, what are you saying? We never drive customers away. Business is about bargaining, so what price can you offer?"
Seeing Guo Xuyang start haggling with the boss, Xiao Yun and the other woman walked over.
"How much is the stone?" Xiao Yun asked.
"The boss wants thirty thousand yuan per pound," Guo Xuyang said, kicking the stone beneath his feet as the two women approached.
"Good heavens! Even selling me wouldn't be enough to buy this stone," Xiao Yun exclaimed dramatically, almost making him faint from anger. Revealing his true financial situation like this?
"Boss, can you lower the price a bit? If the price is right, I'll buy it."
"At least twenty-eight thousand, I can't sell it for any less."
"How about twenty thousand?"
"Twenty thousand is really not feasible. If you are genuinely interested in buying, the minimum is twenty-five thousand."
Twenty-five thousand, and this stone weighs at least eighty pounds. To get this stone, it would cost two million yuan. Xiao Yun was right; even selling him wouldn't be enough to buy it.
"Alright, let me see if there are any smaller ones. Perhaps I can snag a bargain," he said, thinking. "How about I take another look at the others? This price range is still too high."
He walked back to where the three of them had initially been looking at stones. The stones here were smaller, so they shouldn't be too expensive, right?
"How much are these stones?" Guo Xuyang pointed to the shelf of smaller stones and asked.
"Three thousand for those under three pounds, and eight thousand for those over three pounds. These stones are not negotiable." At this point, a trace of arrogance clearly appeared in the boss's eyes. This look made Guo Xuyang feel very uncomfortable.
You little punk, I'll make you kneel and sing your submission later. He thought to himself.