Back home, Lin Xuan was still fuming.
"What kind of person is that? Instead of talking business properly, he only wants me to accompany him for a meal. He must have ill intentions."
Long Xiao chuckled, "Who told my wife to be so beautiful."
"What are you grinning about? The pharmaceutical factory isn't profitable and you're still smiling," Lin Xuan said unhappily.
"The pharmaceutical factory for sale isn't the only one, we can find someone else to acquire it."
With nothing to do at home, Lin Xuan wanted to go to the market with Long Xiao to buy groceries. Before they could leave, they received a call from Lin Shijie.
After hanging up, Lin Xuan sighed and said, "Long Xiao, my dad has gotten into trouble again. We need to go to the Earth God Temple."
The Earth God Temple was Donghai's old goods market, the most concentrated place for antiques and handicrafts, known as the antique street. The two found a paid parking lot at the entrance, parked the car, and then walked in.
The street was crowded, bustling with people. Stalls by the roadside and various shops were packed.
Without time to browse, the two walked quickly along the street and stopped in front of a luxuriously decorated antique shop.
"Zhenbao Pavilion, this is it," Lin Xuan said, glancing at the signboard.
They opened the door and entered. The shop was crowded, with people gathered in a circle, watching the commotion.
Pushing through the crowd, they reached the inside and saw Lin Shijie being watched by two burly men, with a blackish-gray stone placed on the ground.
"What's going on?" Lin Xuan asked.
Seeing Lin Xuan and Long Xiao arrive, Lin Shijie shouted, "Daughter, they are forcing me to pay fifty thousand yuan for this stone."
A woman in a pencil-striped suit and a small Western-style jacket had been observing Long Xiao and Lin Xuan. Although the woman was ordinary-looking, she possessed an extraordinary aura and an air of disdain, as if everyone in the shop were mere ants in her eyes.
"You are this old man's daughter. Your father picked up a hammer and smashed it, damaging our jade rough. Now he refuses to buy it."
Long Xiao looked at the jade rough on the ground. Indeed, beside the black stone, there were some chipped pieces.
"Isn't this forced buying and selling? Does being a big shop mean you can bully customers?" Long Xiao said indignantly.
The woman snorted, "You clearly look like broke losers. So what if we bully you? Do you know whose shop this is?"
"It's a society governed by law. No one's shop can bully customers."
Hahaha, the woman burst into laughter, finding Long Xiao's naive statement utterly amusing.
"Rule of law? You're too naive. How hilarious."
Seeing the woman mocking him, Long Xiao stopped paying attention to her and lowered his head to examine the black stone.
Observing it with the 'Xing Long Guan Qi' technique, Long Xiao noticed a faint green mist enveloping the black stone. His heart couldn't help but flutter with excitement.
This mist was a potent life force. After cultivating 'Xing Long Guan Qi', Long Xiao began searching for life forces. He found that apart from living beings, he couldn't detect any trace of it from non-living matter.
Absorbing life forces from living beings placed a great psychological burden on Long Xiao. He felt such actions were immoral, so after learning 'Long Tun Si Hai', he only used it a few times. If there was life force within this jade rough, which was non-living, he could absorb it freely.
"How much is this stone? I'll take it."
"Long Xiao, this is just a broken stone used by them to cheat people. Those pieces I chipped off are just glued on by them."
Lin Shijie panicked when he heard Long Xiao wanted to buy the black stone.
Lin Xuan tugged at Long Xiao, "Long Xiao, don't buy it yet. Let's think of other ways."
Long Xiao shook his head, "No need. We'll just buy it directly."
Seeing Long Xiao back down, the woman smiled and said, "This stone is fifty thousand yuan. Card or cash?"
Long Xiao took out his bank card and said, "Card, please."
As Long Xiao prepared to buy the stone, the surrounding crowd murmured, thinking he was a fool being cheated.
After paying, Long Xiao put away his bank card and asked, "Can you cut this stone here?"
The woman nodded, "Of course."
The woman, the manager of the shop, immediately arranged for a worker to bring out a cutting machine to cut the jade rough on the spot.
Long Xiao marked several cutting positions on the black stone with a marker. A few workers lifted the stone, secured it on the cutting machine, and began to cut.
With the first cut, nothing appeared. The worker operating the machine asked, "Should I continue cutting?"
Long Xiao nodded without speaking. The worker adjusted the cutting machine and cut again.
Before the cutting machine stopped, someone exclaimed in surprise, "It's showing green! The water is so rich, it's definitely Imperial Green."
With a 'clack', the black stone split into two, revealing a patch of emerald green. Everyone gasped.
The woman's expression gradually soured. This stone had cost thirty thousand yuan to acquire, and it had been in the shop for over a year. Experts had appraised it multiple times, all concluding it was a dead stone with no possibility of jade inside. To prove it, she had a few pieces chipped off, revealing no jade at all. Thus, she had her staff tamper with the stone, creating some green coloration on the surface. Lin Shijie was the first to fall for it, and she thought she had caught a big fish, only to realize the big fish was herself.
The workers made a few more cuts and polished the stone, revealing a fist-sized piece of top-grade Imperial Green jade.
"Sir, I'll give you ten million yuan to buy back this piece of jade," the woman said tentatively, stepping forward.
Long Xiao knew nothing about jade prices. Seeing the Imperial Green, he was overjoyed. He never expected jade to contain life force. This was great; he wouldn't have to worry about running out of it when treating people in the future.
Long Xiao shook his head and said, "I won't sell it for any price."
Seeing the Imperial Green, Lin Shijie's earlier dejected mood instantly improved.
"That's right, we're not selling. Long Xiao, I saw this first, so it belongs to me. You have no right to sell it."
"Dad, Long Xiao bought this. How can it be yours?" Lin Xuan said unhappily.
Lin Shijie snatched the jade from Long Xiao's hand and said, "I'll return the fifty thousand yuan to you. The stone must be mine."
Both Long Xiao and Lin Xuan were helpless at Lin Shijie's unreasonable behavior.
The three left Zhenbao Pavilion with the jade. As they left, Long Xiao carefully examined the dozen or so pieces of jade rough on the ground. Two of them emitted a faint energy, but it was red, not the life force he was looking for.
As Long Xiao and the others exited Zhenbao Pavilion, the woman quietly instructed a worker, "Follow them."
Watching the worker go out, the woman took out her phone and made a call.
"Ruan Jing, go to the parking lot immediately and follow three people. They have a piece of Imperial Green jade."
"Zhao Lingyu, if I get the jade for you, what will you give me?"
"Ruan Jing, your Ruan Five Fiends are surely not short of money. I won't give you money, but I will arrange for you brothers to leave China."
The Ruan Jing on the phone was the fourth of the Ruan Five Fiends. Not long ago, they had set a trap and attacked Lu Tianxing, nearly killing him. The Donghai City police were actively searching for them, and they couldn't leave through airports, ports, or highways. They had to hide in a suburban farm. The eldest, second, and fifth brothers had been killed by Long Xiao for speaking up for Director Zhao. The remaining two were like stray dogs, hiding in the farm, afraid to come out, and constantly looking for an opportunity to leave China. Hearing that she could help them leave China, Ruan Jing readily agreed to Zhao Lingyu's request.