"I only came overseas in the past few years. Before that, I was in Hong Kong. I still have Hong Kong residency, just living abroad."
Hong Kong is, after all, part of our country. Our living habits are quite similar. The senior was clever to steer the conversation away.
Brother Hui nodded, "So that's how it is. Does the chairman still have companies in Hong Kong?"
The senior replied, "I used to, but my energy is limited, so I've deregistered them. All my business is overseas now."
I breathed a sigh of relief, filled with immense admiration.
Brother Hui remained expressionless, not committing to an answer. After a moment of thought, he continued, "Chairman, you look a bit familiar to me. Have we met somewhere before?"
What was bound to come, had finally arrived. He was finally getting to the point.
People with sharp eyes can recognize you, even from a distance, no matter how you disguise yourself.
The senior replied, "This is my first time in Yunnan Province. Could it be that Brother Hui has seen me abroad?"
Brother Hui said, "I don't know, I just feel like we've met. I can't recall where."
The senior smiled, "It seems we are truly destined. People say 'eye缘' (affinity at first sight) is very important. Looking at this, our businesses are bound to grow larger and larger."
Brother Hui replied, "Let's hope so, Chairman. We won't disturb you any further. My elder brother and I have some matters to attend to. We'll come back later to seek your advice."
The senior asked, "I've prepared some light refreshments for tonight. Can you both make it?"
Xie Jiabao responded, "We'll try our best. However, if anyone is to treat, it should be me. I'll give you a call later."
With that, the two stood up. This time, Brother Hui politely shook hands with the senior before bidding farewell.
My palms were covered in sweat, my fists clenched. I only relaxed them after they had gone far.
I returned to my room, and the senior, with a furrowed brow, told me, "This Brother Hui is not easy to deal with. We need to be wary of him using other methods to test us."
I pulled a few sheets of paper from the table and wiped the sweat from my hands, saying, "I was so nervous I was sweating buckets just now. Luckily, you were so quick-witted, otherwise, we would have been caught by them by now."
The senior replied, "Don't celebrate too early. This is just the beginning."
I asked, "He doesn't believe anything you say?"
The senior responded, "If he were to believe it so easily, I would look down on him."
I inquired, "What do you mean by that?"
The senior explained, "Brother Hui has so many titles, none of them were given for nothing."
I spent a long time conceiving this book. In 2010, I stayed in Tengchong for several months, and that's when my understanding of jade began.
Jade is beautiful, extraordinarily beautiful. The Xiangxieli Hotel where we stayed had a jade carving weighing over a ton in its lobby, which was truly stunning and magnificent.
The jade ornaments in the exhibition hall made one linger, lost in their beauty.
It was then that I suddenly fell in love with jade. Whenever I had free time, I would visit the jade market, though often just to browse and admire.
Sometimes, I would buy a small piece, just to satisfy the urge.
Jade can be addictive, especially stone gambling. It's truly one cut to poverty, one cut to wealth, one cut to rags. Such events happen daily in the stone gambling city.
As written in the book, most stones don't yield great surprises. Being able to show some color is considered good. People, driven by the dream of getting rich, constantly seek the next opportunity.
I've written about the experience of one person struggling in this industry. Please take it as reading a story. If it can offer any enlightenment or help, I will be content.
The book is now available. I started uploading chapters at the end of last month, meeting the requirements for going live. From now on, there will be locked chapters. If you feel this book is worth reading, I hope you will spend a few thousand coins to support the author. Writing a book is not easy; it's a laborious task that not only requires racking your brains but also involves daily update quotas, which puts immense pressure on me.
I once missed the last high-speed train of the day because I was writing, forcing me to cancel my ticket and travel the next day. People criticized me for becoming a bookworm.
While sitting in the waiting room, I didn't hear the boarding announcements. By the time I realized it, the train was long gone.
There are many interesting stories that happened during the writing process, which I will share with you gradually. In short, I hope for your support. Please write more reviews. Your support is my only motivation to continue writing.